Eldan
2017-06-16, 10:23 AM
So, I'm a bit lost and out of my element. I usually sit together and discuss with my players what they want out of a campaign. This time, they wanted something "classic" and "epic". Alrighty, then, time to hide my folders of political intrigue.
The world is Mediterranean-inspired, with city states of three main cultures around an inland sea, surrounded by a lot of uncivilized (to the sea people) nothingness full of other tribes and smaller cultures. Generally, a pretty low-level world where the players happen to be mid level. Some inspiration of Greek and Norse myth.
Anyway. After some smaller adventures, the players find out that an old, deposed god (think titan) has managed to reach out of his prison and is weakening the foundations of the world to bring about the end of an age. Huge changes to the natural order, global catastrophe, players only ones to stop it, the usual.
So, the players decided to "go to the top". Not find any of the artifacts that they have ideas about that might help, not find more information from mystery cults or old lost libraries, or hunt down cultists, which were ideas I had planned for. Nope, they want to go tell the gods and let them handle it.
Now, these gods are not all-powerful, all-knowing or even all that benevolent. The ruler of the gods is distant and uncaring and doesn't answer prayers, the sea god is a vengeful jerk who hates people traveling his waters and only lets them do it in exchange for animal sacrifices and proper reverence and still occasionally will sink your fleets for fun or send some krakens after you, the war goddess has an absolute disregard for anyone who doesn't prove their valour by mighty deeds of conquest and the muse of dance and music quite likes driving people insane. The usual. They decided to go for the mother goddess who is responsible for the earth, animals, plants and healing, because she sounded nicest.
I allowed this to happen, trying to be a good DM. They didn't decide to climb the world tree, because it sounded like it would take too much time. Instead, they found a portal to the spirit world deep under ground and from there, bargained their way across it into ever more deeper and dangerous dimensions. They bargained with a fey lord for permission to climb his tower to the clouds to escape a magical forest (which is also under the sea). In the clouds (which are also a blinding white desert), they negotiated with a Djinn for a door and a map, so they could get into the shadow world. There they climbed a stormy mountain in perfect darkness and battled monsters to reach the top.
So, now... they should reach the home of the gods. And I have no idea how to go from there. Obviously, the gods can't just solve this, or the campaign is over. On the other hand, the gods just telling them to bugger off is seriously anti-climactic. I can't think of a satisfying solution.
The world is Mediterranean-inspired, with city states of three main cultures around an inland sea, surrounded by a lot of uncivilized (to the sea people) nothingness full of other tribes and smaller cultures. Generally, a pretty low-level world where the players happen to be mid level. Some inspiration of Greek and Norse myth.
Anyway. After some smaller adventures, the players find out that an old, deposed god (think titan) has managed to reach out of his prison and is weakening the foundations of the world to bring about the end of an age. Huge changes to the natural order, global catastrophe, players only ones to stop it, the usual.
So, the players decided to "go to the top". Not find any of the artifacts that they have ideas about that might help, not find more information from mystery cults or old lost libraries, or hunt down cultists, which were ideas I had planned for. Nope, they want to go tell the gods and let them handle it.
Now, these gods are not all-powerful, all-knowing or even all that benevolent. The ruler of the gods is distant and uncaring and doesn't answer prayers, the sea god is a vengeful jerk who hates people traveling his waters and only lets them do it in exchange for animal sacrifices and proper reverence and still occasionally will sink your fleets for fun or send some krakens after you, the war goddess has an absolute disregard for anyone who doesn't prove their valour by mighty deeds of conquest and the muse of dance and music quite likes driving people insane. The usual. They decided to go for the mother goddess who is responsible for the earth, animals, plants and healing, because she sounded nicest.
I allowed this to happen, trying to be a good DM. They didn't decide to climb the world tree, because it sounded like it would take too much time. Instead, they found a portal to the spirit world deep under ground and from there, bargained their way across it into ever more deeper and dangerous dimensions. They bargained with a fey lord for permission to climb his tower to the clouds to escape a magical forest (which is also under the sea). In the clouds (which are also a blinding white desert), they negotiated with a Djinn for a door and a map, so they could get into the shadow world. There they climbed a stormy mountain in perfect darkness and battled monsters to reach the top.
So, now... they should reach the home of the gods. And I have no idea how to go from there. Obviously, the gods can't just solve this, or the campaign is over. On the other hand, the gods just telling them to bugger off is seriously anti-climactic. I can't think of a satisfying solution.