Canonfire! Forums-viewtopic-25 Epic Adventure Ideas for the World of Greyhawk-LONG

Last edited by Dethand on Fri Mar 11, 2005 1:20 am; edited 1 time in total

One of the problems facing a DM in using a high level game set in the World of Greyhawk is the assumption that all high level play centers on godslaying and gathering obscene amounts of treasure and power . In some cases one cant be blamed in this opinon as the Deities and Demigods are stated out in a sort of high level Monster Manual or players gibbering about crazed examples of 400th level wizards researching world destroying spells just to gain a level that the thought prevades about high level play being about world destroying. Part of this stems from a lack of solid adventure examples for high level characters and ignoring not only examples of epic characters in myth and legend but also allowing characters to do as they please unopposed by other epic scale antagonists.

Following the example in the Epic Level Handbook I have 25 adventure ideas I have been working on, a lot of this heavily uses the 3.5e bookline, as well as a lot of the monsters and situations from the EPH, I tried to put in situations and seeds that draws upon areas from the World of Greyhawk to develop epic characters and situations without having to overturn the whole setting in order to play a high level game with a 20+ character who has to kill a god. Wink

1. Strange psionic worms create an empire in the Sea of Dust and threaten to spread their influence.
Seed-advanced psurlons (MM2) psions and psychic warriors and psuedonatrual purple worms have sprung from ages of gnawing upon an artifact to Tharizdun.

2. A long winter prevades in the North, and groups of strange monsters and white dragons wreck havoc in its wake.
Seed-Xixecal of Telchur rises in the north on its hellish glacier in the Icy Sea, attended by an epic white dragon, shivads (Frostburn) and infernal devils of ice.

3. Travellers from the Amedio tell of bold attacks by Yuan-ti seeking slaves for some dark purpose.
Seed-an Anathema and its horrid cult of yuan-ti have allied with a psuedo natural ha-naga who demands sacrifices in the ruins of a former city.

4. Night brings terror to the people of Perrenland by dark riders who ride in the shadows of night.
Seed- Drelzna has gathered vampiric scions lairing in a demiplane to find an artifact called the Midnight Heart to plunge the area in blood and darkness.

5. Keogthom calls on great heroes to aid him in perlious quest.
Seed- Murlynd has been captured by Pazuz and is held by a pair balor sorcerers deep in the Abyss.

6. Undead rise in great numbers in Keoland in seemingly endless numbers.
Seed- an atropal from Wee Jas attended by nightstalkers, death giants and dreamvestiges (Libris Mortis) has been freed from their black crystal cyst and seeks revenge for its imprisonment.

7. Dark omens herald a doom coming from some abyssal plane.
Seed- Eclavadra and her cadre of drow and demons are freeing a feindish devastation spider from the Demonweb Pits.

8. Burning undead haunt and attack travellers near the Burning Cliffs.
Seed- Freed from Invictus Devastatus a Shape of Fire has been spawning undead in the region.

9. Strange large roachlike creatures of surprising speed attack excavators construcing a drain system near the Old City in the City of Greyhawk.
Seed-Thorcasids long encased in their cacoons have recently been freed by the excavations and seek to spawn more of their kind.

10. A spell of unheard of power and ability rampages across the North Kingdom causing horrible damage and suffering.
Seed- an archmage loosed a spell of epic power that is infused with his sentience and power before being consumed by it as the now living spell runs amok.

11. A ancient door is uncovered in a storm in the Bright Desert unopenable to any, even it is said by Rary.
Seed-passing the doors of an ancient race awakens a hunefer and its minions.

12. A mighty champion of Hextor in Ahlissa claims he is the Chosen of Hextor in the all of the Flanaess.
Seed- an epic fighter/cleric/Fist of Hextor and his epic fellows has found the Iron Gauntlet of Hextor and seeks to bring the Flanaess to its knees before the Herald of Hell.

13. Several archmages including report thefts and seek those behind the them.
Seed- an epic level etheral filcher/perfect wight steals the items for it collection and has several caches all over the planes.

14. Powerful storms and attacks by a horrible winged beast plague the Yeomanry.
Seed- an evil Storm Giant blackgaurd has found an epic item that summons thunderworms (MM2) and has enslaved a chichimec in his dark bid to destroy the Storm Lords.

15. A living storm dwells in the center of the Solonor Ocean making voyages extremely perilous.
Seed-paragon Ixixitachls sworn to demogorgon have summoned a primal elemental.

16. A powerful bard in the Granwood is hunted by an unseen enemy.
Seed-a cunning epic green dragon seeks a powerful bard to present to Tiamat to advance its status.

17.Nightmares plague several regents of the Flanaess and become real and terroize their subjects.
Seed-a covey of epic hags has conceived a dream larva and sets it loose to revel in the terror and panic it creates.

18. From the Underdark comes talk of gaining great power..how soon til the mind flayers come to the surface?
Seed- a paragon illithid has worked a bargain with a Neg-Thallu and sets its sights on the surface world.

19. Strange creatures never seen before in the Flanaess attack in Verbobonc.
Seed-a demiplane passes close to the prime and traps a hagunemnon.

20. A demiplance drifts close to Oerths reality heralding a terrible calamity.
Seed- a gibbering orb imprisoned by Zagyg is freed by the proximity of the planar confluences.

21. High level druids across the Flanaess hear a summons from the King of Trees.
Seed-an elder treant in the Vesve Forest is sickened by contact with the Far Realm as an uvuudaum passes into this reality.

22. Horrid insects attack Ull.
Seed- a verimurge attacks from the sands attended by colossal scorpions.

23. In the Pomarj a fell presence is revealed.
Seed- for decades a Genus Loci has enslaved all who venture close. (thanks to Wykthor!)

24. The Dark Sails of the Ataphads are seen near Zeif on some occult mission.
Seed-an infernal seeks the Lanthorn of Daoud last seen in Zeif and has enlisted the aid of the Ataphad and a trio of glooms to find it.

25. A crystal city is found floating high in the clouds east of the Oljatt Sea.
Seed-an archmage long since passed away has left his lair in the care of a mighty force dragon and golems.

While a lot of these are simply situational encounters they provide something to start the ball rolling and using the World of Greyhawk as a setting for epic play.
Just some thoughts. Confused

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Fri Mar 11, 2005 1:12 am

26 - A xixecal is imprisoned by oerthmagik in the Land of Black Ice, a former dalliance between Beory and Vatun and one of tthe reasons why Iuz avoids this region entirely (I've posted about this xixecal longo tima go..)

27 - In SB, there is an Amedio city called Chetanitacla, which is ruled by a selfentitled god kin, a greater gibbering mouther. It coulds be a paragon creature and a nice "low" epic adventure.

28 - In the Hellfurnaces, either accidentally or by intentional meddling, a long-time dormant volcano expels its captive - a Phaeton who can scorch entire areas

> for decades a Genus Loci has enslaved all who venture close. (thanks to Wykthor!)

Heh, I'm glad you liked the idea of the Earth Dragon being a Genius Loci (and thee is certainly room for more of these creatures on Onerth)
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Victor Caminha

Mon Mar 14, 2005 10:31 pm Nice work!

Excellent work Dethand, i really like how you've added each of these to remote areas or areas that havent seen full development.
One I might want to add however...perhaps the Mother of the Lerera is a Genus Loci as well???

Another interesting high level adventure could be using the Eldritch Giants from the MM3 as a small but secluded civilization held in a time wrinkle within the Barrier Peaks (ie a temporal influx of energies from the crashing spaceship from Expedition into the Barrier Peaks, generated a wrinkle in time over this area where the ship first breached the atmosphere of Oerth. )

Edit: Found another epic level monster.
The Lone Deklo; N; Elder Treant its in the Torlan Forest of the Tltavot Peninsula, Reference: The Scarlet Brotherhood, pg. 32
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Wed Mar 16, 2005 2:00 am

Run! The Vermiurge has returned! Shocked

Man these are all great! I really like the ones involving Xixecals since I am currently involved with the cold north. Too bad I'm not doing epic! Yeah the Mother of the Lerara would be a classic one to make, how about the Mist Golem? I have ideas swirling in my head now, must keep the thread going. Good stuff!

Wed Mar 16, 2005 2:53 am

Hmm I know I've read something about the Mother of Lerara, can you tell me where it is described?

Duicarthan, when the MM3 was released I cursed why it hasn't on stores earlier. The eldritch giants would as good as the nightwalker in a giantish site (caves and a city in a kind of reality wrinkle/demiplane, indeed) i created some time ago (cf. "The Forbidden Caves")

Agreed with the Lone Deklo, perhaps in long bouts of hibernation?

I don't know about this mist golem. Perhaps it could use similar stats to a Primal Air Elemental?
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Victor Caminha

Fri Apr 15, 2005 5:25 am

Wow!

While I have yet to run an epic campaign, the seeds listed above are just plain brilliant! What I particularly like is the recurring theme of something breaking free. This is good, as the idea of oodles of epic anything running around just looking for something to do just doesn't scan with me. The ideas above are rock solid and compelling. Great job!

Fri Apr 15, 2005 7:11 am Mother of the Lerara

Fri Apr 15, 2005 12:36 pm

Thanks for the explanation about the Lerara, Rob. I'll dig my box and read it :-)

> or it could be some kind of swarm creature - a swarm of diminutive water elementals - thousands of them, formed into a humanoid shape

There's such a creature in the Planar Handbook. But unless you apply a paragon or pseudonatural template, It won't be an epic monster
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Victor Caminha

Sun Apr 17, 2005 12:59 pm

Wed Jun 22, 2005 4:16 pm

Dethand, Any plans on implementing that recent 30th lvl epic adventure in Dungeon to GH?

DethStruck? Does Dethand have a new stalking friend? hehe =P
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-Rick "Duicarthan" Miller
Editor-in-Chief, Oerth Journal
http://www.oerthjournal.com http://www.greyhawkonline.com/duicarthan

Tue Jul 26, 2005 9:49 am

Tue Jul 26, 2005 12:01 pm

Thu Sep 01, 2005 3:46 pm Mother of the Lerara

I had always thought of making Her an advanced deepspawn, or possible a shoggoth from CoC. Almost ran that adventure, too...

Tue Apr 05, 2022 12:50 am

Excellent work Dethand, i really like how you've added each of these to remote areas or areas that havent seen full development.

One I might want to add however...perhaps the Mother of the Lerera is a Genus Loci as well???

Another interesting high level adventure could be using the Eldritch Giants from the MM3 as a small but secluded civilization held in a time wrinkle within the Barrier Peaks
ie a temporal influx of energies from the crashing spaceship from Expedition into the Barrier Peaks, generated a wrinkle in time over this area where the ship first breached the atmosphere of Oerth.
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