So, What Do You Think of My First Campaign Idea?

[Amaril]

A while back, I posted a thread in this section asking for advice on how to introduce my players to my very first campaign. That campaign has now started, but we've only played one session, and have yet to reach the point in the story where I introduce the players to the main plot. I thought it might be interesting to put up a brief summary of the basic premise of my campaign and see what the Playground thought of it.

I'm hoping my players will be co-operative enough not to derail my campaign so badly that even this rudimentary outline of the first chapter becomes useless, but I'm fully aware that it is a realistic possibility. I think I've done a pretty good job of making this plan flexible enough that my players will be willing to go along with it, though, and they seem like a co-operative bunch so far.

I do have some idea of where the story can go after this, but for now I'd rather avoid committing anything to writing, just in case. If the group does prove interested in this main plot, though, I have several twists and hooks in mind that I think would make for a pretty interesting game.

If you have any advice on ways I might improve this idea to make it more interesting, or any other comments, I'd love to hear them.

Anyway, here's what I have written down so far:

Spoiler

Show

As the campaign begins, the party finds themselves on the road with a merchant caravan travelling between two of the region’s six major cities. During this sequence, they are introduced to the current state of affairs in the area, most notably the “day-star” that recently appeared in the sky and has grown steadily brighter over several weeks (since this world’s culture is strongly tied to astrology, this is a big deal). What the day-star actually is has so far remained unknown, but that may soon change—rumor has it that a scholar in the city to which the party is currently headed is constructing the world’s first astronomical telescope, which may be able to clear up the mystery.
After some brief trouble with bandits, the party finds out that a courier travelling with the caravan is actually carrying the final component of the telescope. In gratitude for dealing with the bandits, the courier promises to tell his employer about the party’s actions, telling them that they will likely be richly rewarded for unknowingly assisting with the telescope’s completion. With this in mind, the party continues onward.
Over the course of the trip, they learn more about the setting and current events, including the fact that the magical and technological marvels of Old Kingdom ruins across the region have recently begun reactivating in record numbers. After a few side quests, they should reach their destination in the city, where they will, indeed, be rewarded by the grateful scholar. Unfortunately, the completed telescope yields some frightening results—the day-star is actually a massive meteor on a collision course with the planet, and if it continues at its current speed, it will impact within just a few months, causing apocalyptic destruction. Shortly after this revelation, however, the party will receive a hint about a powerful Old Kingdom artifact called the Shadelight that may allow them to divert or stop the comet. Upon further investigation, the party will learn of legends telling that the Shadelight was broken up into pieces when the Old Kingdom fell thousands of years ago, and all the pieces must be found and collected if the Shadelight is to be used. With their primary mission established, they set off to find the pieces.

[Stake A Vamp]

A while back, I posted a thread in this section asking for advice on how to introduce my players to my very first campaign. That campaign has now started, but we've only played one session, and have yet to reach the point in the story where I introduce the players to the main plot. I thought it might be interesting to put up a brief summary of the basic premise of my campaign and see what the Playground thought of it.

I'm hoping my players will be co-operative enough not to derail my campaign so badly that even this rudimentary outline of the first chapter becomes useless, but I'm fully aware that it is a realistic possibility. I think I've done a pretty good job of making this plan flexible enough that my players will be willing to go along with it, though, and they seem like a co-operative bunch so far.

I do have some idea of where the story can go after this, but for now I'd rather avoid committing anything to writing, just in case. If the group does prove interested in this main plot, though, I have several twists and hooks in mind that I think would make for a pretty interesting game.

If you have any advice on ways I might improve this idea to make it more interesting, or any other comments, I'd love to hear them.

Anyway, here's what I have written down so far:

Spoiler

Show

As the campaign begins, the party finds themselves on the road with a merchant caravan travelling between two of the region’s six major cities. During this sequence, they are introduced to the current state of affairs in the area, most notably the “day-star” that recently appeared in the sky and has grown steadily brighter over several weeks (since this world’s culture is strongly tied to astrology, this is a big deal). What the day-star actually is has so far remained unknown, but that may soon change—rumor has it that a scholar in the city to which the party is currently headed is constructing the world’s first astronomical telescope, which may be able to clear up the mystery.
After some brief trouble with bandits, the party finds out that a courier travelling with the caravan is actually carrying the final component of the telescope. In gratitude for dealing with the bandits, the courier promises to tell his employer about the party’s actions, telling them that they will likely be richly rewarded for unknowingly assisting with the telescope’s completion. With this in mind, the party continues onward.
Over the course of the trip, they learn more about the setting and current events, including the fact that the magical and technological marvels of Old Kingdom ruins across the region have recently begun reactivating in record numbers. After a few side quests, they should reach their destination in the city, where they will, indeed, be rewarded by the grateful scholar. Unfortunately, the completed telescope yields some frightening results—the day-star is actually a massive meteor on a collision course with the planet, and if it continues at its current speed, it will impact within just a few months, causing apocalyptic destruction. Shortly after this revelation, however, the party will receive a hint about a powerful Old Kingdom artifact called the Shadelight that may allow them to divert or stop the comet. Upon further investigation, the party will learn of legends telling that the Shadelight was broken up into pieces when the Old Kingdom fell thousands of years ago, and all the pieces must be found and collected if the Shadelight is to be used. With their primary mission established, they set off to find the pieces.

so, lobe the idea, but do you have some idea of what the shade-light does, how it will save them, or any idea about magic level (if this is a normal D&D campaign, the magic system would allow a wizard to wish the damn thing away, or a cleric to have his god pick it up and carve it into a sacred twelve sided die! why don't they, why do the players have to assemble the shade-light (Personally i would go with this is the subject of an old prophesy, and as such mortal and divine magic cannot interfere, but the shade-light is an artifact created to stop doom prophesies or something)

[Amaril]

so, lobe the idea, but do you have some idea of what the shade-light does, how it will save them, or any idea about magic level (if this is a normal D&D campaign, the magic system would allow a wizard to wish the damn thing away, or a cleric to have his god pick it up and carve it into a sacred twelve sided die! why don't they, why do the players have to assemble the shade-light (Personally i would go with this is the subject of an old prophesy, and as such mortal and divine magic cannot interfere, but the shade-light is an artifact created to stop doom prophesies or something)

Yes, yes and yes. I just wasn't in the mood to write down everything I have in mind about the campaign, but I'm happy to answer your specific questions.

The campaign setting is what I'd call medium-magic. There are spellcasters scattered infrequently around the world, with divine being more common, and more socially acceptable, than arcane--about maybe one in five villages will have a cleric who can cast divine spells, and in the big cities, the temples will have several. As far as I know, though, none of the spellcasters in the world can currently manage anything above fourth-level spells--so no Wishing, and if the party cleric learns to Raise Dead, he'd be the first person in a long time, if ever, to be able to do so.

The Shadelight itself, as mentioned, is a powerful magical artifact. Back when the Old Kingdom was still alive and in power, the High King used it to gain epic-level arcane abilities that basically allowed him to just Wish for anything he wanted. This is, ultimately, what led to the Kingdom's downfall, as my players will hopefully discover eventually at the worst possible time. I won't go into details, but suffice to say that if the players actually do manage to find all the pieces and use the magical abilities they impart to stop the comet, plot twists will happen and they'll have to deal with tragic consequences

There may or may not be a prophecy connected to the story--I haven't decided yet--but if there is, it most likely won't mention the players specifically. I have an idea for a prophecy about the events of the campaign that has multiple sensible interpretations, and could be an excellent vehicle for the epic plot twists I mentioned above. However, I'm just a little tired of prophecy playing such an important role in fantasy--especially considering that this setting has a strong Lovecraftian flavor, which would make prophecies about mortals saving the world a bit incongruous, given that the Cthulhu mythos emphasizes mortalkind's total and complete irrelevance in the grand scheme of things.

Hope this makes things clearer

[Stake A Vamp]

There may or may not be a prophecy connected to the story--I haven't decided yet--but if there is, it most likely won't mention the players specifically. I have an idea for a prophecy about the events of the campaign that has multiple sensible interpretations, and could be an excellent vehicle for the epic plot twists I mentioned above. However, I'm just a little tired of prophecy playing such an important role in fantasy--especially considering that this setting has a strong Lovecraftian flavor, which would make prophecies about mortals saving the world a bit incongruous, given that the Cthulhu mythos emphasizes mortalkind's total and complete irrelevance in the grand scheme of things.

Hope this makes things clearer

so, when i said prophecy, i meant about the shade-light and the comet, the players are not mentioned, i almost never have early characters be the subject of prophecy, perhaps the shade-light was created to stop the prophetic destruction. i know i already said so, but i had to clarify.

[Kol Korran]

This sounds like a fairly solid idea, but I wonder if you addressed two points:
- long term villains: you could run the campaign with challenges for acquiring each artifact piece, but I find adding long term campaign antagonists campaign make a campaign much more memorable and engaging this can vary from utterly opposing party (someone who wants the meteor to hit), someone working at the wrong assumption (the artifact is in fact what draws the meteor or something more plausible) or just competition (why should they save the day? We can do it better!)

- keeping the PC's the focus of it all: if this doom and it's possible prevention is common knowledge enough, then the king (or another power) will probably try to rely on more than just one group of adventurers. Why should the focus rely on the party alone? i suggest to make this "only the artifact can save us!" A thory not widely supported by political, religious and other circles, leaving the pcs to prove it while other resources and parties are diveryed to other venues and problems (such as seeking out evil end of the world cults, or engaging some wrongfully blamed enemy). This might also go to explain why they are not supplied with tons of magical items ad saviours of the world.

Good luck with your campaign!

[Amaril]

This sounds like a fairly solid idea, but I wonder if you addressed two points:
- long term villains: you could run the campaign with challenges for acquiring each artifact piece, but I find adding long term campaign antagonists campaign make a campaign much more memorable and engaging this can vary from utterly opposing party (someone who wants the meteor to hit), someone working at the wrong assumption (the artifact is in fact what draws the meteor or something more plausible) or just competition (why should they save the day? We can do it better!)

- keeping the PC's the focus of it all: if this doom and it's possible prevention is common knowledge enough, then the king (or another power) will probably try to rely on more than just one group of adventurers. Why should the focus rely on the party alone? i suggest to make this "only the artifact can save us!" A thory not widely supported by political, religious and other circles, leaving the pcs to prove it while other resources and parties are diveryed to other venues and problems (such as seeking out evil end of the world cults, or engaging some wrongfully blamed enemy). This might also go to explain why they are not supplied with tons of magical items ad saviours of the world.

Good luck with your campaign!

In regard to why the PCs remain pretty much the only hope for stopping the comet, part of it is, indeed, that most people they tell about their theory won't believe them. The Shadelight figures pretty prominently in local mythology, but hardly anybody actually believes it's real, or that the pieces can actually be found after being lost for over four thousand years (aside from a few scattered accounts of one or two turning up for a while before disappearing again). One of the main challenges the party faces is actually going to be convincing as many world powers as possible to help them find the pieces and supply them with resources on their travels.

On the subject of antagonists, I'm glad you asked--I've got a couple ideas there I'm particularly proud of. Aside from the various monsters the party will run into on their quest, I'm planning to have them face opposition from at least one, and possibly two, notable sources.

The first one, and the one I can introduce independently of what the party actually does, is a global underground organization of arcane magic users called the Pact. The Pact's main goal is to offer protection and support to mages in hiding from persecution throughout the region, and to advance the reputation of arcane magic in the eyes of the public by dealing with problems before the agents of the temples get involved. However, another of their most important beliefs is that trying to reclaim the secrets of the Old Kingdom is a very, very bad idea--the logic being "look how that turned out the first time". Once they find out that the party actually has reliable information on the Shadelight (and they will, they have eyes in all sorts of places), they're going to do everything they can to stop them from finding it, though if they find out about the comet as well, they'll make every effort to stop it some other way.

The other antagonist I have in mind is the personal rival of the scholar who builds the telescope. The thing with him is that depending on how the party interacts with him, he'll either be a powerful ally, or the main antagonist of the story outside the Pact. He understands that the comet needs to be stopped, which is why he wants to find the pieces as much as the party does--but he's also incredibly xenophobic and nationalistic, which would be the primary motivation the party would have for wanting to make sure he doesn't get what he wants. If the Shadelight fell into his hands, he'd probably use it to exterminate or subjugate all non-humans in the world. Whether the party is willing to work with him up to a point, or wants to oppose him from the beginning, remains to be seen.

[Kol Korran]

The first one, and the one I can introduce independently of what the party actually does, is a global underground organization of arcane magic users called the Pact.

The Pact sounds like an interesting organization to face. However- my suggestion? try and make it more personal. give The Pact some face, someone the players can recognize and direct their frustrations at. a personal enemy is much better than many mooks. I believe that you can come up with something with their resources.

The other antagonist I have in mind is the personal rival of the scholar who builds the telescope.

Hmmmm... sounds interesting, but there may be one problem- first, since this is a well known figure I assume, with attachments and so on, then once the party know who he is he can very easily be targeted most likely. I think the main challenge here is to make him a force behind the scenes. but as with these kind of antagonists, the main difficulty is to make them invisible enough, not obvious, but also have some clues so that when the great reveal comes, the party goes "oooohhhh right! we should have known!" instead of "who is this guy?" or have him feel totally unconnected. good luck!

I like that the party can also deal with these antagonists in favorable manners. puts more depth into things.

[Amaril]

Hmmmm... sounds interesting, but there may be one problem- first, since this is a well known figure I assume, with attachments and so on, then once the party know who he is he can very easily be targeted most likely. I think the main challenge here is to make him a force behind the scenes. but as with these kind of antagonists, the main difficulty is to make them invisible enough, not obvious, but also have some clues so that when the great reveal comes, the party goes "oooohhhh right! we should have known!" instead of "who is this guy?" or have him feel totally unconnected. good luck!

Huh...I hadn't really thought to make him a more "behind-the-scenes" type of villain. He certainly disdains physical confrontation and prefers to let his many hired mercenaries and agents deal with the fighting, but he's also (secretly) a fairly experienced wizard, so he can definitely hold his own. I'd imagined him actually travelling around with his own expeditionary force trying to beat the party to the pieces of the Shadelight, and having the party actually have to fight him on a couple of occasions. Do you think this would make sense?

[Rorrik]

Spoiler

Show

The first one, and the one I can introduce independently of what the party actually does, is a global underground organization of arcane magic users called the Pact. The Pact's main goal is to offer protection and support to mages in hiding from persecution throughout the region, and to advance the reputation of arcane magic in the eyes of the public by dealing with problems before the agents of the temples get involved. However, another of their most important beliefs is that trying to reclaim the secrets of the Old Kingdom is a very, very bad idea--the logic being "look how that turned out the first time". Once they find out that the party actually has reliable information on the Shadelight (and they will, they have eyes in all sorts of places), they're going to do everything they can to stop them from finding it, though if they find out about the comet as well, they'll make every effort to stop it some other way.

I love the idea of the Pact. I once used an organization like this to blackmail the party because one of their members had stolen an artifact from them. In that scenario I was able to introduce a temporary player as a party member who was an agent of the magical group.

So, as far as giving them a face, the face could be an agent of the Pact who at first seems to be aiding them, but when he finds out they may in fact be able to find the Shadelight, turns against them, reveals he is more powerful than imagines, and once defeated retreats to get reinforcements. Alternately, the Pact could have a spec ops type team they send expressly to stop the party that ends up serving as their face.

[Amaril]

I love the idea of the Pact. I once used an organization like this to blackmail the party because one of their members had stolen an artifact from them. In that scenario I was able to introduce a temporary player as a party member who was an agent of the magical group.

So, as far as giving them a face, the face could be an agent of the Pact who at first seems to be aiding them, but when he finds out they may in fact be able to find the Shadelight, turns against them, reveals he is more powerful than imagines, and once defeated retreats to get reinforcements. Alternately, the Pact could have a spec ops type team they send expressly to stop the party that ends up serving as their face.

Yeah, I'm absolutely in favor of giving the Pact a "face" and making their relationship with the players more personal. I haven't decided exactly how yet, but it will get done eventually.

What'll be interesting is to see how the party reacts to whoever they meet from the Pact. Since the organization is, for the most part, benevolent (they never assassinate anyone unless they really, really have to ), I'm curious as to whether the party will start by trying to get them on their side, or just go hostile on them right away. I'll be sure to let you folks know how that turns out

[Fighter1000]

Okay, here's an idea: What if that sky-star incoming comet thingy is actually a lie concocted by the scholar? What if that mark in the sky is actually harmless?
And the scholar wants the party to assemble this Shadelight so he can have it all to himself?
Perhaps the party should not be so trusting.
Beeteedub, concerning the Pact. Why are they called the Pact? Why not something like the Arcane Avengers or something?

[Amaril]

Okay, here's an idea: What if that sky-star incoming comet thingy is actually a lie concocted by the scholar? What if that mark in the sky is actually harmless?
And the scholar wants the party to assemble this Shadelight so he can have it all to himself?
Perhaps the party should not be so trusting.
Beeteedub, concerning the Pact. Why are they called the Pact? Why not something like the Arcane Avengers or something?

1--Not a bad idea, but I already have a colossal plot twist in mind for when the players actually manage to assemble the Shadelight, and that's not it. Don't worry, it'll be just as epic

2--There's a history behind the name involving an oath sworn by the founders never to reveal a secret the uncovered together in some Old Kingdom ruins, but I mostly came up with it just cause I thought it sounded cool. And since they operate in secret, they have to have a name they can use in messages that won't automatically raise alarm bells (they can get away with talking about the Pact in letters and stuff because most people don't even know they exist).

[Kirgoth]

How about a little less apocalyptic, rather than destroying the world.

Such as changing the world/plane
Alterable Morphic to Sentient
Mabee Minor Positive-Dominant ( everone has fast healing 2 but no exploding)
Strongly evil aligned (-2 penalty on char/int/wis checks forever on non-evil)
Impeded Magic - ouch
Plane become Coterminous where the commet hits with another plane, allowing free travel between them. Say another medieval world but with a force of hostiles waiting to invade, such as an monsterous humanoid empire or some such.

Obviously there would be some groups which would like each of these and some who wouldn't. Positive dominant, druids would like, undead would not. Evil aligned, good vs evil, impeded magic casters would hate, conterminous plane monsters vs people.

[Amaril]

How about a little less apocalyptic, rather than destroying the world.

Such as changing the world/plane
Alterable Morphic to Sentient
Mabee Minor Positive-Dominant ( everone has fast healing 2 but no exploding)
Strongly evil aligned (-2 penalty on char/int/wis checks forever on non-evil)
Impeded Magic - ouch
Plane become Coterminous where the commet hits with another plane, allowing free travel between them. Say another medieval world but with a force of hostiles waiting to invade, such as an monsterous humanoid empire or some such.

Obviously there would be some groups which would like each of these and some who wouldn't. Positive dominant, druids would like, undead would not. Evil aligned, good vs evil, impeded magic casters would hate, conterminous plane monsters vs people.

Hmm, interesting ideas...I'm not really sure exactly how destructive I want the impact of the comet to be, but I definitely want it to be a bad enough thing that the party won't question that it needs to be stopped, since my whole idea is built around finding a way to do this. Knowing this group, if I tell them that there's even the slightest chance the comet won't kill them, they'll just let it hit to see what happens.

[Synovia]

Hmm, interesting ideas...I'm not really sure exactly how destructive I want the impact of the comet to be, but I definitely want it to be a bad enough thing that the party won't question that it needs to be stopped, since my whole idea is built around finding a way to do this. Knowing this group, if I tell them that there's even the slightest chance the comet won't kill them, they'll just let it hit to see what happens.

What's wrong with them doing that?

[Amaril]

What's wrong with them doing that?

Well, technically they could, but the very limited idea I have of how the campaign could proceed if they do isn't nearly as developed or interesting. I'm worried that if they don't want to stop the comet, they won't have much else to do for several in-game months.

I know this might be considered railroading, but this is the first time I've ever DM'd in my life. I'm kind of counting on my players to co-operate with me at least enough to accept my main quest (as I've told them specifically, and they understand). I'm still not confident enough in my DMing abilities to reliably improvise an entirely new campaign if they decide they want to ignore the comet.

[geeky_monkey]

What's wrong with them doing that?

Personally I find D&D more fun when the adventurers go out and have adventures rather than just staying in the tavern where they all meet.

[Amaril]

Personally I find D&D more fun when the adventurers go out and have adventures rather than just staying in the tavern where they all meet.

This, exactly.

Although, as I'm proud to say, my first game did not start in a tavern

[Synovia]

Personally I find D&D more fun when the adventurers go out and have adventures rather than just staying in the tavern where they all meet.

The fact that they've decided not to stop the comet doesn't mean they're not doing anything.

Personally, I prefer D&D where my characters actually get to make decisions, instead of being told what their decision is.

[Amaril]

The fact that they've decided not to stop the comet doesn't mean they're not doing anything.

Personally, I prefer D&D where my characters actually get to make decisions, instead of being told what their decision is.

I understand, but some DMs have different styles than complete freeform decision making and sandbox design. I'm more of a storyteller--I present my players with a particular task, and give them choices in how to accomplish it, which will have consequences on other tasks I give them later.

And besides, just because not everything in the world revolves around the players' actions doesn't mean it's badly designed. Basically, the comet is going to hit if nobody does anything, and it's going to cause problems if it does--how the players react to this is up to them, but I'm giving them an entirely reasonable course of action that will lead to conflict and adventure, though whether they pursue it is their choice. They could attempt to stop the comet some other way, or they could ignore it--but this might not lead to as interesting or exciting a game, and if they do the latter and ignore the problem, they're pretty much guaranteed to die. I see nothing wrong with these parameters for a game.

[Synovia]

And besides, just because not everything in the world revolves around the players' actions doesn't mean it's badly designed. Basically, the comet is going to hit if nobody does anything, and it's going to cause problems if it does--how the players react to this is up to them, but I'm giving them an entirely reasonable course of action that will lead to conflict and adventure, though whether they pursue it is their choice. They could attempt to stop the comet some other way, or they could ignore it--but this might not lead to as interesting or exciting a game, and if they do the latter and ignore the problem, they're pretty much guaranteed to die. I see nothing wrong with these parameters for a game.

You're trying to make it NOT be their choice. In fact, you've informed them out of character that they have to do it. You've basically said "pursue this, or I'll just cancel the game"

Frankly, I think a game where the players had ignored the incoming comet and the prophecies that foretold everything, and had to deal with the consequences would be terribly interesting. Walking into a town and seeing the townsfolk all starving to death under the ash filled sky and KNOWING that its your fault would make for some seriously intense character turmoil and roleplaying.

[Amaril]

You're trying to make it NOT be their choice. In fact, you've informed them out of character that they have to do it. You've basically said "pursue this, or I'll just cancel the game"

Frankly, I think a game where the players had ignored the incoming comet and the prophecies that foretold everything, and had to deal with the consequences would be terribly interesting. Walking into a town and seeing the townsfolk all starving to death under the ash filled sky and KNOWING that its your fault would make for some seriously intense character turmoil and roleplaying.

Well, I see your point, and I'll probably end up doing something like this if they do ignore the problem. I'm more concerned, however, about what they'll be doing until the impact. It's my opinion that just wandering around doing random unconnected side quests isn't that interesting, which would mean coming up with other engaging stuff for the group to do. I'd do that if they really wanted me to, but as I said, I'm very new at this, and my time and creative energy are limited.

Also, I may not have been clear as to what I told my group about the game. What I said was more along the lines of "look, guys, I know this is a roleplaying game, and if you really want to do something I haven't planned for, you can do that--but I'm new at this and bad at improvising new content, so I really think I'll have an easier time making this fun for everybody if you're willing to try out my story and see what you think of it." It may really just be a more polite way of saying what you said, but I'm not planning on stopping the game if they don't want to go along with what I expected--I'm just warning them that my skills may not be up to it, and they may not enjoy it as much.

Every game requires some amount of co-operation and understanding between the players and the GM--I definitely don't want to go the DM of the Rings route (and I don't think that's what I'm doing), but I don't think I'm asking too much of my players by requesting that they at least give my idea a chance.

[bigstipidfighte]

There's nothing wrong with not wanting to run a complete sandbox. As long as the players know the gist of the plot ahead of time, it's up to them to make characters who will want to save the world, and be willing to take the scientist's word on how to do it. Maybe he could even be an old family friend for one of the PCs, or a childhood idol, etc. Cooperation means everyone has to work together, not just the GM.

I'd like to hear a bit more about the rival scientist. He sounds like he'll be important enough that he should be well thought-out beforehand. Maybe make him have goals that aren't quite so hard to reconcile, unless the party is exclusively human. That way the PCs can have a real choice to make about weather to tolerate or fight him.

[Deploy]

So the pact needs a face that's personally connected to the players. They aren't known for assassination but it does occur, so how about a character similar to the operative from serenity. He has learned every detail about the players lives needed to kill them, however he is also soft-spoken and almost philosophical in his explanation of why he believes in his cause. He only uses martial skill to kill his targets because he doesn't wish to perpetuate negative stereotypes by using his magic for murder. He is ruthless and doesn't leve loose ends, yet poetic and tries to convince the characters to change their ways before every fight.

[Amaril]

So the pact needs a face that's personally connected to the players. They aren't known for assassination but it does occur, so how about a character similar to the operative from serenity. He has learned every detail about the players lives needed to kill them, however he is also soft-spoken and almost philosophical in his explanation of why he believes in his cause. He only uses martial skill to kill his targets because he doesn't wish to perpetuate negative stereotypes by using his magic for murder. He is ruthless and doesn't leve loose ends, yet poetic and tries to convince the characters to change their ways before every fight.

I like the sound of this...and that character is one of my favorites...I'll definitely keep that in mind.

[Rorrik]

So the pact needs a face that's personally connected to the players. They aren't known for assassination but it does occur, so how about a character similar to the operative from serenity. He has learned every detail about the players lives needed to kill them, however he is also soft-spoken and almost philosophical in his explanation of why he believes in his cause. He only uses martial skill to kill his targets because he doesn't wish to perpetuate negative stereotypes by using his magic for murder. He is ruthless and doesn't leve loose ends, yet poetic and tries to convince the characters to change their ways before every fight.

This is a good idea. Your face for the Pact needs to believe hard, like the operative. If not, the characters would be likely to try to convince him. He has to be the one doing the convincing, trying their resolve.

The idea of not using magic makes him really fun, but considering the party has little magic, his being a magic-user would give him some edge.

[Amaril]

This is a good idea. Your face for the Pact needs to believe hard, like the operative. If not, the characters would be likely to try to convince him. He has to be the one doing the convincing, trying their resolve.

The idea of not using magic makes him really fun, but considering the party has little magic, his being a magic-user would give him some edge.

To clarify, the three-person party consists of a human cleric, a human bard (who may be taking levels in sorcerer in the future) and an elven ranger specializing in archery. They actually do have a fair bit of magic, but most of it is divine.

[Gerrtt]

I dig this overall. I think you have lots of possibilities for some neat ideas to unfold. I also think you don't necessarily have a story that the players have to follow along. They could do pretty much whatever they want in that time and either the comet hits or it doesn't. Heck, if they choose to ignore it, then they get a whole other kind of game on their hands; it doesn't have to be the end of the "world" just because something world-ending occurred.

Not to throw too much at you but one of my initial thoughts was "wouldn't it be neat if one or more pieces of the Shadelight emitted magical radiation that changed the underlying ecology of the place it rests, and thus results in some really bizarre creatures that most people haven't ever seen?" Wouldn't be totally unplausible, given the high magic power of the artifact and its structural integrity (broken apart).

Could make for some interesting encounters (which of course means structure, flora, fauna, and environment). But maybe you've gotten that far out.

[JusticeZero]

Another different idea:
According to all the Gods, doom is fated and unchangeable, and it is their duty to see it happen. All the Gods are in agreement. Well, except for your local Satan analogue, who got run off for saying 'Screw destiny, we're changing this up.' That rogue Chaotic and evil goddess who hates fate? Made the artifact needed to stop the fated apocalypse. Needless to say this makes for a moral mess and lots of enemies.

[Rorrik]

Another different idea:
According to all the Gods, doom is fated and unchangeable, and it is their duty to see it happen. All the Gods are in agreement. Well, except for your local Satan analogue, who got run off for saying 'Screw destiny, we're changing this up.' That rogue Chaotic and evil goddess who hates fate? Made the artifact needed to stop the fated apocalypse. Needless to say this makes for a moral mess and lots of enemies.

This could be a chaotic good deity who loves life and freedom to such a degree he rebels against the other god, both good and evil.