To my players, stay out. There are tons of spoilers here…
My long running Lost Mine of Phandelver adventure, which through various circumstances has taken over a year, is almost over. I plan to poll the players to see if they would like to start fresh with new characters, or continue this campaign. This continuation would advance into tier 2 (levels 6 to 10). I want to offer players the opportunity to swap characters if they want.
New Mechanics
I would also like to implement several new mechanics that on their face appear complex, but are not overly so.
- Stronghold powers from Strongholds & Followers.
- Player organization from Kingdoms & Warfare.
Open Quest Hooks
I also want to remind the players of some open quests that they can follow so they understand that they are truly in a sandbox of the entire Sword Coast and even the Outer Planes if they desire.
- Rescue Bree’s soul. This will likely require some travel and research to seek out the means to identify the object in which her soul is trapped, and its location. I already have loose notes of this quest line, which draws on material in The City of Brass from Frog God Games, and the Path of the Planebreaker by Monte Cooke Games, mixed with some Planescape.
- Bree’s Zhentarim handler sent a note that arrived before she disappeared advising her to meet them at the Yawning Portal in Waterdeep.
- Amadeus received a note regarding the legality of the party’s claim on Conyberry and soliciting a meeting with him from Lord Neverember in Neverwinter. (Either this or the bullet above can hook into Waterdeep: Dragon Heist or Waterdeep: Dungeon of the Mad Mage)
- Venomfang, the green dragon that dominates the ruins of Thundertree has not been slain or driven off (Amafrey’s personal quest).
- Upon touching the altar in the shrine of Savras that is now the party’s stronghold near Conyberry, Aina had a vision of the white dragon Cryovain on Icespire Peak. Additionally they defeated a monster driven out of the mountains by the dragon in Phandalin, but have not investigated further. Cryovain might seek to expand his territory.
New Overarching Story Direction
The party will find a note from Duke Zalto of Ironslag on the Spider when they conclude the current adventure, leading into Storm King’s Thunder. Additionally, at a prescheduled date fire giants serving the Duke will attack Conyberry in search of a piece of the Vonindod. Frost giants will raid the Sword Coast if they travel the coastal road, and hill giants will be encountered raiding for food if they travel through the Dessarin Valley. Finally, rumors might come from Darkhold, Elturel, or Baldur’s Gate of a stirring of undead in the south, aided by undead stone giants, pointing towards the activities of a resurgent Dodkong. The party’s friend Zephyros, the cloud giant will also reappear at an appropriate moment, relating that various extraplanar phenomena seemed to be off—including that Amman, the chief god of the giants, is unreachable and it has been discovered that the Ordening, the metaphysical caste system enforced by Amman ordering giant society has been broken, driving all this activity. The way to communicate with Amman from this plane is to seek out the fabled Eye of the All Father, or seek information on Amman in the Outer Planes.
If the players journey to the outer planes to investigate the above or seek Bree they may also experience episodes of the Great Modron March, further evidence that not all is as it seems in the multiverse.
Other quest hooks might include Harper missions for Anarath, directions from the Order of the Gauntlet for Aina and Amafrey. One of these might be to conduct research at the library of Candlekeep, opening possibilities to seed information about the outer planes and to run quests from Candlekeep Mysteries. They may also become involved with Force Grey in Waterdeep.
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