A tangle of deception, warfare, and heartstopping action... idea!
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Additions
NWN2Game
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Description
This is a campaign idea I came up with for a module. It combines elements of stealth, warfare, and deception.
It is fairly long, so thanks if you read it all the way through. It's been running through my head for a while. -grin-
I'm fine if you don't like it, but if that's the case then please use constructive criticism and tell me where I went wrong so I can change it when I actually get to work on the project.
'When friends become enemies, they don't forget each other. That was the case with you and Arter Koul, that man you once called a brother-in-arms.
That was, until he stole something that so many people wanted, so many people like you.'
Setting:
This is a custom setting, in a world known as Alluvia. It is a relatively simple place, the world is vast and only one continent, known simply as Alivaan, has been discovered.
Two powers, the magic-supported city-state of Emilyre and the vast military nation of Illume fight for control over the area, but that is not what matters to the PC...
The player takes control of one of three covert soldiers in Emilyre's 1st Assault Division. The campaign begins with them sneaking up to the Illumineze Imperial Palace under the cover of an attack, attempting to assassinate the Illumineze King Elkin IV.
They do accomplish this task (with some great covert action along the way to help support the troops), and takes the 'liberty' of looting his bedroom, where they find three golden wedges that fit into a small disk.
Just as the PC is reading a note that they find along with it, their two comrades enter the room, one of them asking what the disk is. The character reads the note aloud, revealing that it is in fact the key to the tomb of King Elkin I, which was buried in Emilyre when the two nations were whole, before civil war tore them apart.
One of the comrades, who happens to be Arter Koul, tries to snatch the disk, only succeeding in grabbing one piece, and the PC and the third comrade, Mali Caubourne, fight the traitor, but he escapes after they defeat him, still in possession of the disk third. Mali, apologizing, swipes a second third, leaving the PC with only one.
Just as they escape, several soldiers enter the room and overwhelm the PC. What is happened is not revealed until the start of the first chapter.
It is three years later, and the player has, in fact, survived the ordeal. A lot has changed though: the three old war buddies have grown rich off their military pays and quit as to gain an edge against their new enemies. Each has gathered up a following of thugs, thieves, and assassins, and they are now all warring with each other amongst Emilyre.
This chapter is supposed to be very in-depth, with the PC commanding raids on enemy properties, stealing from them, and at the same time preventing the from achieving these goals.
At some point, the player gets word of Koul obtaining a third of the disk from Mali, causing him to team up with the PC.
Eventually, after a long while of missions and fun raids, Arter Koul himself leads an attack on the player's manor, finally acquiring the last piece of the disk and escaping. It's not over yet however, and the PC follows Arter, witnessing him opening the tomb.
That's when it is revealed: the grave was not sealed to protect what was inside, it was sealed to protect what wasn't. There is a huge surge of energy as the crypt opens, and both men are knocked out.
When the PC comes to, the city is in flames, and filled with black garbed fanatics who are torching the buildings and gutting the citizens. Additionally, the PC has changed: their body has become twisted and dark, and their mind is filled with visions of flames and fury. Whilst trying to escape the city, they witness several encounters between the 'blackcloaks', speaking of someone called the 'Count of Catastrophe'.
Eventually, they catch a glimpse of the marauding leader, whose servants refer to him as 'Misfortune' and 'Count'. They also notice that his bodyguard are twisted with the same curse as the PC, and witness him grabbing a running hostage by the neck, who then transforms into one of the beasts.
The Count then shouts, "Back to the hells, and let us drink to my return!"
The player eventually makes the connection and seeks out Elkin's heir, Prince Vidi, who has rebuilt the palace during the passed three years. To do so they go 'undercover' as a soldier, in the hopes that they will be knighted, however things are complicated when they are assigned to a border frontier known as Verdant Hold, a bastion of defense against invading orcs. The player must ascend the ranks of the Illumineze military, and eventually achieve knighthood.
In the chapter finale, the player meets the Prince and exchanges word with him, revealing their true identity. It so happens that the Prince hated his father, as his dream princess lives in Emilyre, and he asks only one thing in exchange for helping you kill The Count and hopefully remove your curse, he wants you to kidnap her.
Apparently only a single district of Emilyre was set to flame, more as a warning than an act of war, and the girl, Princess Miosine, is alive and well in the Royal District.
You are teleported near Emilyre by Vidi's archmage (but not into it due to the powerful magic it harnesses). This part is like a big stealth mission where you can't be seen (since the PC looks like one of the Count's soldiers). To put it simply, the player sneaks through the districts, using any means neccisary to avoid patrols, and must then infiltrate the Emilyran stronghold (which is very large and full of dangerous defense mechanisms like golems, traps, alarms, ect.) Eventually you find the Princess in her room, but end up spooking her, causing her to call for the royal guards, in which case you grab her, and use a vial of magic dust the archmage gave you to teleport yourself back to the Prince.
The Prince is pleased, and lends his entire military force to you in order to wipe out the Count. He tells you that while he doesn't know its exact location, a huge volcano nearby started to billow blue and purple smoke just after the attack on Emilyre, he suggests you look there.
The Count is indeed in the volcano... surrounded by a huge black city which they must assault. Using a special communication device, the PC can command troop divisons to attack certain places, sit back and defend the main force's flanks, and guard your siege engines. Additionally, the Princess, seeing your cause to be just, calls upon several Emilyran archmages to aid the assault.
This battle, like everything, is meant to be very realistic. Your force will retreat to their camp between attacks, at which points the enemy may try to outflank you, or you may command a night mission. During an attack there will be constant dangers to both sides, including arrows, siege weapons, magic, and a bloody fray between your force and the defenders in the battlefield. You will constantly recieve reinforcements, and can order artillery strikes at certain points.
Eventually, a siege weapon will breach the enemy wall and your soldiers will pour in, overwhelming the enemy and charging towards the volcano. There is then a loud roar, and the Count of Catastrophe emerges from its depths in a powerful demon form. At this point, your soldiers begin fighting his last elite force with your support, until the Count begins to worry and retreats into his haven, summoning up a barrier that will allow only his cursed minions to enter.
All seems lost, until a young soldiers points out the fact that you are also cursed, meaning that you can pass through the barrier. So you do.
You sneak through a network of volcanic vents, avoiding the Count's elite soldiers, and eventually walk out into the center of the volcano, where you see... nothing.
Then he appears, arising from beneath the blue magma at the mountain's core, standing waist-deep in lava. He beckons you over, then you fight.
I won't reveal the details of the fight, or the ending, but be sure that I have them all planned out. -evil grin-
I'll admit that I considered these things, and I'll try to answer your questions.
Firstly, yeah, NWN 1 and 2 have been my focus for a fair while. I've mainly been focusing on multiple things though, since I enjoy everything from custom content to module-building and scripting.
Second, yeah, you're right that the scope is very large and I'll probably have to scale down, I'm mainly just stating what I see would make the module ideal.
Three, one the topic of PCs, it would probably cause problems with a big time skip during which the player has no control and the fact that they're already in the military, but I wanted to start 'in the action' (The start is more supposed to be a flashback, and detatched from the main story line).
Basically I wanted to show what the progression of time has had on the characters and nations, which is naturally going to cause some restrictions. This part I may reconsider.
Finally, yes, it will require some working with CC, but that's all part of building. At least I don't have the same restrictions as NWN1, I've even tested out the volcano battle, and it goes quite well.
I will admit though that when I last tried implementing stealth into a module it didn't quite work, but I'll also admit that it was fun, working system or not, so I'd be happy to take another stab at it.
Really, the only things I haven't tried out are the realistic siege and the whole 'changing into a monster' thing. Therefore I will take your advice in a slightly distorted way and begin testing certain systems and making sure that they work solidly.
Thanks for the imput, this is exactly the kind of constructive criticism I need. ^^
First, have you ever done a mod for NWNs, either one or two? If not then you should consider scaling down the scope of your mod. This thing is HUGE. There are teams of expert modders, such as Rouge Dao, that are working on things like this but they have taken years and aren't finished yet. You should really start small until you get a feel for the system.
Second, you seem to be requiring the player to choose from pregenerated PCs. If that is the case you will alienate a large section of your audience. A lot of people won't even consider a game that requires them to play a pregenerated character. Go figure.
Third, from your description this mod will require some serious content work. Are you up to it? Again small and simple to start is a better way to go, IMHO. _________________________ Failure is not an option
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10 - A Masterpiece, Genuinely Groundbreaking 9 - Outstanding, a Must Have 8 - Excellent, Recommended to Anyone 7 - Very Good, Deserves a Look 6 - Good, Qualified Recommendation 5 - Fair, Solid yet Unremarkable 4 - Some Merit, Requires Improvements 3 - Poor Execution, Potential Unrealized 2 - Very Little Appeal 1 - Not Recommended to Anyone
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at 2008-11-14 23:59:17
