Damn Grump, you really have it down. YOU Need ideas?

In one Pirate campaign I ran many, many (ok a whole butt load of) Moons ago, the PC's started as deck hands and had to prove themselves in raids and such in order to get prompted. One of the PC's became the "Captain" after killing the Captain in a duel of Honor.

I really need to purchase the Maiden and do some pirate stuff, but until Denny comes out with more, or I can find other Card stock ships that I think measure up, One type of ship is not going to cut it.

Like I said... you need ideas? I'm confused.

CCotD'

As I noted, this all happens at the start of adventure 4 - how to grab and keep the player's interest before then is the problem.

I can add hints that there is something a bit 'off' about the captain, and getting them to hate the bo'sun early on will downright easy (likely involving the use of a cat o' nine tails for a minor infraction...). But getting the PCs up to level four or five... there's the rub. Giving them a continuing round of 'see ship, attack ship, pillage ship' seems a bit lacking.

Adventure 1 will likely start in media res, with the pirates closing on their prey. After that it all gets a bit grey.

The Auld Grump

A few ideas (lame as they may be)

a) Sabotage. While transporting a load of cargo 'accidents' begin to happen. Who is doing the sabotage and for what purposes?

b) Haunting. The ship is haunted either by an item or due to the actions of a crewman/passenger. Is there a cursed item somewhere in the hold? Was a crate made from sacred wood? Or is it just Old Man Withers trying to scare everyone (pesky kids and their dog!)

c) Stranded. The ship encounters a storm which results in the ship having to go to ground on a deserted(?) island. Opportunity here for some ruin/dungeon diving.

Again, pretty tame stuff, but you asked for ideas.

For the first adventure you could easily do the How our PCs became Pirates in the first place? kind of adventure. Between the battle(s) where the Pirates take their ship (or whatever the scenario), some kind of initiation ceremony (fight the croc!), and then the first cargo taken with the newbies as the shock troops (cuz isn't that what you do with new crewmates? newest members go first when boarding a target), you could probably get them at or near Level 2.


Edit: And for additional Bosun hate, have him (or some crew loyal to him) frame the group for something. Whipping for a minor infraction might seem par for the course - but an active attempt to get them in trouble, causing the whipping, will be seen as much worse.

Also fun (especially with a Maiden) - who needs a tavern brawl? Thats what the lower deck is for!

. . . Tcho Tcho people . . . bad . . .

How about sabatage against other pirates? A sort of "friendly" competion that the captain has with another band of pirates? The PC's have to sneak in and do something like drop the rudder or switch the sails with tissue paper?

Hell a can of creamed corn spread across the deck of the other ship would be a great practicle joke.

When I was haze gray and underway, if a ship pissed us off, then we would get a few cans of creamed corn and throw it down on their deck. The seagulls would go nuts and since they eat and poop at the same time...... you get the picture

Ahhhhhh, fun times.

CCotD'

OK, pirate myth/history is one of my weakest areas so forgive me if none of this very appropriate for the setting and flavor of the campaign. This may sound like an old rerun to some but it was an idea I had a while back but never finished up the work and never used it and it came to mind

For the beginning adventures I would also say go for the "becoming pirates" line:

1- The PC's are captured during a raid, the adventure begins with the initial wave of the attack. Being only level one characters they have only limited success defending the village/city/ship from the more seasoned pirates.

2- The PC's are the treasure the captain is seeking, one (or two) of the characters are decedents (maybe unknowingly) of a mythic bloodline and only the pc's can open the gates/portal/chest/whatever to the book you mentioned above. (It could even be all of the pc's and each must face his or her own personal challenge to open a series of locks that guard the tome)

3- The PC's fight the Bo’sun during the raid (possibly a boss type encounter), Let the players think they are winning the fight but in act actually he is using them for sport before giving them a sound thrashing. The Captain is the one who intervenes and prevents the Bo’sun from killing the defeated pc’s

4- After their inevitable defeat the players are bound and gagged. They only option is to join the crew (sealed by a dark voodoo pact that will hold them too it) until such time as they are released by the captain or their death. The characters serve the ship and her captain not an individual, so after the death/disappearance of the first captain they are still bound

4- One or more of the characters has only a single item of moderate value, the Bo’sun claims it as his own but is over ridden by the captain who recognizes it as the key to that character’s personal challenge. This in addition to the Bo’Sun seeing them as having escaped him could lead to a personal hatred for the npc and gives reason for the Bo’Sun to repeatedly find fault (real or imagined) with there performance.

This could lead into a series of adventures where the players must each meet and over come there personal challenges. The challenges would be test of mind and body but not necessarily combat. The pc’s would have to enter the Island/ruins/whatever where they face there challenges together (only those marked with the chosen bloodlines can enter or something).

The Bo’Sun could be the principle source of the players challenges along the way to their missions. As a side note the characters oath could include a “clause” where they must obey the commands from the ships officers (not just captain) giving even more room for the Bo’Sun hatred as he uses the oath against them (accuses the pc of an offence and orders them to confess, so they must.) He could even taunt them with bits of his plan or even tell them that he will kill the captain but orders them to not say a word about it.

As a side note: one or more of the challenges could actually be player vs. player rather than individual. The result of the challenge determining where the players go next. And when the characters enter into the designated area and read the ancient inscriptions/hears the strange voice they never hear the whole truth of what they are to do. The idea of a challenge being located under water in an ancient sunken temple/catacombs.

Also once the captain has his hands on the book the pc’s have basically outlived their usefulness and any special protection they may have had from the captain (to ensure they did not die) would be removed giving the Bo’Sun a chance to take out a little revenge for what he sees as a personal insult.

Did of that ramble help?
Richard

There are a island with a strong military presence, say spains.
On the island live a mad priest the captain need to talk with, but its hard
to get to him because the spanish galleons hunt any pirate ship.

The pirates capture a spanish merchant from europe with this island as final destination. The SC speak spanish, so they plan to disguise as spanish merchants and enter the harbor, meet the mad priest and sail away. But maybe there is a invitation to the great ball of the Governor, to have a little socialising adventure, maybe they meet there a young Lady that dabble in Dark arts and knows the captain, and she demands something to not betray their true identity.
Maybe they could meet her later again, after the fight against the Bosun.

No time this past week. I am hoping that my work schedule loosens up enough to do some nuts and bolts work on the first two adventures next week.

Then comes planning out the models and minis.
Planned minis:
Deep ones are a must
A servitor of the outer gods, complete with flute (one of the alternate endings that I am considering involves an isolated volcanic island and a Summon Azathoth ritual....*)
Pirates of various types, both for PCs, and allies and the enemy
The Maiden (preferably two, but given the condition of my first Maiden I will have two build two new models...).
Natives and Tcho Tcho.
My RAFM Cthulhu mini, which shall serve as a mere spawn in this case.
Dark Young.
More pirates.

Not all of these have planned encounters, but these are likely.

The Auld Grump

I am now running a short (5 week) Pirates campaign for some younger players. Not this one, but simpler, and using Unorthodox Pirates and Unorthodox Witches by The Le Games for the bad guys.

I almost ran a crossover between D&D and Grimm.... Bad guys run using the same sourcebooks as above, the players running children. The setting: a lost island called Never Never Land.



Long after Peter has left the island.

The Auld Grump