First Adventure Concept: Inverted Archetype

[shadow_archmagi]

Trope inversion idea:


A rat has asked the party to clean out an infestation of human tavernkeeps. The city of Kobold Cave is strictly prohibitionist, due to the kobold's addictive personality and high metablosim: Even alcohol is catastrophic to them. Kobolds who build stills are harshly punished, but extraterritorial law is murky with regard to humans, and the Longtail Council is unwilling to risk the Count's wrath.

The kobolds will pay 200 gold per tavern removed.

Taverns:

The Cursed Tankard: On the outskirts of town, there's a crude shack, roughly 25'30, with unpatched holes in the walls and no floorboards, so it would be bare rock except for the accumulated dirt from foot traffic, sticky with fluids both distilled and bodily. There's a bar that consists of a board laid over three barrels. In back, the "still" consists of three rusty water troughs. It's becoming a local custom for the dishonored and depressed to actively drink themselves to shameful death here, a practice that the owner himself is engaged in. He's actually the bastard son of a local baron, determined to end his days in a depressing hole after his father refused to approve his marriage.

RESOLUTION OPTIONS:

KINDNESS: PCs with social proficiency can try to give some improvised therapy. He only wants to run the bar while he's mourning his lost love, so if you can just cheer his life up with a Academy Award-winning speech, he'll wander off to begin the first day of the rest of his life.

COMBAT: There's four 1st level fighters working as a security, a normal human alchemist tending the still who carries two flasks of acid that he'll throw in a fight, and five kobold regulars who will join battle with their patron.

REUNION: PCs can also track down his father the baron and get him to change his mind about the marriage. This is actually pretty easy if they think to do it.



The Light at the End of the Tunnel: In the mining district, there's a well-made kobold dwelling, purchased a few years ago and turned into a mining shop. Although kobolds are natural miners and highly proficient at creating their own tools, human goods are trendy and canaries are currently the height of fashion, (although kobold noses are sensitive enough to render the canary useless) so the shop does a brisk trade in legal goods, and is filled with the sound of chirping birds. The owner is a huge man, only able to stand upright in a few places, almost comically out of proportion with his shop. He wears an Inquisitor's Hat festooned with strong-smelling candles that trip wax onto his shoulders, and is boisterous and gregarious but somewhat nervous. He began smuggling in strong drink after he became convinced that the ghosts of the canaries were haunting him, and later began selling it in secret, as he is well aware of kobold law and custom. Has been looking for a medium to hire the ghost of a druid to help him with the animal ghosts that he believes haunt him.

COMBAT: He's a first level fighter, but otherwise fairly easy to murder. The main downside to combat is that he's actually fairly well liked in the community.

OPERATION SPOOKY COAT: Players can pretend to be a poltergeist and cause him to become afraid enough to leave town.

OPERATION DRY WELL: Players can pretend to be a druid and perform an "exorcism" that'll only hold as long as he stays sober and prays to the north wind once a month.

OPERATION CMMONNNN MAN: He's not unreasonable. Appealing to his long-term investment in the community can convince him to stop; he likes living here. It'd probably require a roll.

????
The Ogre's Unmentionable

The Ogre is the largest and most prosperous of the three illegal taverns, built along the same standards as any in the Empire: high ceilings, two stories, a roaring fireplace and large wooden tables. The apostrophe S is actually abbreviating "is." Do not mention the ogre. Never mention the ogre. Where most of kobold society is full of clanging, screeching, and noise of every kind, the Ogre is a place of near complete silence. Setting your drink down too loudly will garner looks of disapproval, and anyone speaking in a loud, clear voice is escorted out immediately; conversations must be conducted hushed and huddled in a corner. The bartender himself is a hardened criminal, a 5th level thief who was magically punished some years ago with sensitive ears, although he does not tell anyone this. In fact, he is utterly mute. He trades in a variety of illicit substances, although you'll have to know the correct gesture if you want to request one.

COMBAT: He also commands a dozen 1st level thieves, two assassins, and the ogre. Plus, he is fifth level. This is not an easy place to knock over.

COMPETITION: Players can insinuate that Gelb Konig (drug-smuggling kingpin) is planning on moving into town, and it would be unwise to be his rival.

COMPETETIVE OFFER: Someone in town wants to hire a thief for One Last Big Job. Simply convince the owner to stop being a sad, backwater moonshiner and start being an adventurer again. OPTIONAL: This might actually be Gelb as well. It'd be fun if, when the PCs inevitably wind up fighting the mob, the man they got a job ended up being sent to kill them.

[AnBe]

Very interesting stuff.
If I were running this for my players, they would most likely always choose the combat option lol

[sengmeng]

I clicked on the thread hoping it would be about rescuing a dragon from a princess

[MrZJunior]

Any players I run this for would undoubtedly come up with a totally unpredictable solution.

I clicked on the thread hoping it would be about rescuing a dragon from a princess

The dragon Chrysophylax pleads with the party to rescue his daughter, she has been kidnapped by the wicked warrior princess Rosella who lives in the kingdom next door. He would go himself but the princess's castle has many guards with many bows and they would shoot him from the sky as soon as he made an appearance. This task will need subtlety and guile rather than brute force.

I can think of three ways for the party to infiltrate the castle. First they could take jobs in it as soldiers, scribes or something else like that, it is a large fortress with a high turnover rate due to Rosella's cruel ways, so they are always looking for new staff. Next they could try by pure stealth, hiding in carts, climbing the walls, sneaking up the garderobe, or any number of things like that. Lastly there would be a large cavern under the caste, so it can be invaded through a traditional dungeon crawl. I'm certain that the players could come up with other possibilities.

Once inside the fun really starts; how are they going to sneak a dragon out of the castle?

If the party pays attention they can find evidence that Rosella is planning to overthrow her father. Bringing this to his attention leads to rewards and new adventure hooks.

[Slipperychicken]

A rat has asked the party to clean out an infestation of human tavernkeeps.

You had me at this line. I love it.


I just immediately pictured a rat's basement full of a bartenders all crawling around on the floor, glass mugs and rags in hand. I guess I have an adventure if I need to show the players that something is very obviously wrong, or that reality is being warped in very strange ways.

[Bohandas]

Sounds cool

[root]

You all meet in a den full of goblins, just outside the town. The questgiver, a man of some importance humble beggar in torn clothes, sends you off to clear a tavern full of humans.

[Kane0]

I just immediately pictured a rat's basement full of a bartenders all crawling around on the floor, glass mugs and rags in hand.

Don't be ridiculous. Obviously each bartender would have carved out his own tiny bar or bench to stand behind with his mug and rag.
Crawling around the floor indeed, hmph!

[caden_varn]

Don't be ridiculous. Obviously each bartender would have carved out his own tiny bar or bench to stand behind with his mug and rag.
Crawling around the floor indeed, hmph!

It's true. Barkeeps are highly territorial creatures.