)ANYWAY, I want to use the Requiem for a God event book by Monte Cook really bad.
So, at the climax of the campaign (20th/epic level) you've got gods taking active part and slaying each other, continents sinking, land rising in the sea, etc. Given that the Greyhawk gods are very hands-off with regards to the Prime, I'm trying to think of a way to get to this point. My idea is that Iuz gets powerful enough that St. Cuthbert decides to come to the Prime to stop him. The other gods let him because they have traditionally given him more leeway with regards to Iuz. However, somehow Iuz slays Cuthbert and steals his power to ascend to lesser godhood. He has discovered a way to steal another god's power. He had become a big threat on the Prime simply to lure Cuthbert there so he could slay him. Ok, this freaks out all of the gods out because they didn't know this was possible. His ultimate goal is to become head of the pantheon. Iuz offers the secret to some other evil gods in return for their allegiance. The whole situation keeps escalating until you've got a full-on godswar. Meanwhile, the PCs are running around trying to find the whole prophecy so they know what to do to help their side win.So far, so good. I need to figure out how to make Iuz enough of a threat to warrant Cuthbert coming to the Prime. Amassing an unstoppable army of fiends might do it. But, didn't the Crook of Rao banish all fiends from Greyhawk? Does it prevent them from returning? For how long? I'm fuzzy on the details of what its powers are and what it did. If it's an obstacle, I can simply Rule 0 it, but I'd like to stay as close to canon as I can. Or come up with another way. What are your ideas on the campaign idea and/or other ideas of making Iuz a big threat?
I can't elaborate to avoid spoilers for LG players so check them out.
All the clue's could eventually lead them to Tovag Bagru. Iuz now the self proclaimed master of Oerth is unstoppable. Gods on other planes of existance cannot enter the prime directly even the Greater gods. So if you want to get ST. Cuthbert involved directly have him make the ultimate sacrifice and give up his position amongst the gods. St. Cuthbert's mace could still have the ability to slay a god but St. Cuthbert in his know mortal form is at a grave disadvantage to Iuz.
These are just some suggestions take what you like. Also The Crook of Rao, can have what ever powers you want it to have or you can look for the info like Steven has stated. Goo luck with your campaign.
There is a cycle of ages in history. In one age, the struggle is between Law and Chaos. In the next age, the struggle is between Good and Evil. Each age lasts an indeterminate amount of time, culminating in a final showdown to determine the winner of that age. If one extreme wins, that Ethos is dominant from then on. There can also be a draw, in which case Neutrality (or Balance) "wins". These ages keep repeating until only one winner from both axes remains.
For example, first age is Law vs. Chaos. It ends in a draw. Next age starts and is Good vs. Evil. It ends in a draw. Next age is L vs. C again, but this time, L wins. Every age from now on will be G vs. E until one of them wins. Chaos will not exist anymore, so only alignments, magic, etc. are LG, LE, LN. The end of an age typically results in cataclysms, old gods dying, new gods rising, etc. Nobody knows what will happen if/when both contests are won. Proponents of the extremes think they will be granted great power or the world will become a paradise. Neutrals tend to think that it will be the end of the world. Who knows?
There are sentient prophecies that are more powerful than the gods. They are bound by a masking magic that limits their influence. So only fragments from insane prophets are known. There are artifacts and energies throughout the world that can be used in certain ways to win the contest. But the masking hides their true nature. Until the end of the age approaches when the masking magic begins to fade and the prophecies can take a more direct hand in events. Then they can direct their champions (the PCs) as to what needs to be done.
Iuz would be the Evil prophecy champion. Depending on the PCs' alignments, they could be the Good or Neutral prophecy champs. The last age was Law vs. Chaos (Rod of Seven Parts, Wind Dukes of Aqua) ending in a draw. Why do these cycles happen? Maybe some overpowers are doing an experiment to see if the Ethos are unbalanced. They could be running these contests on billions of Prime worlds to see if the results are statisically equal. How's that for a mind-blower?
Ok, so how do I go from this super-high-level perspective to 1st level PCs? I'm not sure how to draw the PCs into this whole mess... My initial idea is to have them be prisoners of Iuz captured in the war. They escape in the first session and make it across the border to Furyondy. They are drafted by Furyondy as "special forces" and run some missions against Iuz's minions. From there, I'm stuck...
Originally posted by Darth Binky
Which patheon? There is the Suel, Oerdian, Flan, etc.
All of 'em. If the Evil prophecy wins out, there will only be Evil gods left (or even possible) and he intends to be the strongest of them all.
I would try and link this part of the story together because the gods of neutrality would play a part in maintaining the order such as Beory and Istus.
How many character in your campaign would like to owe a follower or priest of Hextor a favor. Think of the parties alignments and how many of them would fight against each other. Lawful good vs. Chaotic good, neutral, evil etc. I think you get my drift.
So why did Iuz capture them?, how do they escape and or why?, what faction or priest hood is enlisting their aid in Furyondy? These are questions that once you answer will lead you to creating more for your campaign which could go on for years.
Think of ways to include different priest hoods with the same goals and ways for the pc's to find out that because of their missions for the church of Heironious priests of Kord are seeking their demise and the priests of Hextor would make strange enemies indeed.