5 Tips For Running The "Curse of The Crimson Throne" Adventure Path

A little while back I put together 4 Tips For Running The "Rise of The Runelords" Adventure Path, and readers generally seemed to respond well to it. As such, I figured I'd offer some more advice for game masters considering running Curse of The Crimson Throne for their tables this week. My Table Talk run through of the campaign starts with The Saga of Majenko, as I called it, so feel free to give it a read through if you want to see how my table completed the campaign. Of course there will be spoilers both there and here, so keep that in mind going forward.

It's a tough one... but well worth running with a few tweaks.

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Tip #1: Give Locations A Personality

Walk down the wrong alley in Korvosa, and who knows what you'll find.

While CoTCT isn't the only campaign that takes place in a major urban area, it was one of the first games Paizo put out that did. And Korvosa itself is large enough that a GM should really sit back and think of how to best bring across the personality of this city, as well as the feel of all its different districts and locations. The docks should feel different from the Shingles, which should feel different from the castle district, and so on, and so forth.

My personal take is that Korvosa should feel akin to Gotham City. It has splendor and grandeur, but there's dark alleys aplenty, crushing poverty, and a crazed vigilante that only half the populace believes is real. But don't worry, we'll get to Blackjack later.

For GMs who want to keep some resources on-hand for adding details to make things organic, consider some of the following:

- 100 Gangs For Your Urban Campaigns: While we meet a few members of Korvosa's scummier side, given the roles the PCs get roped into it's good to have more. Whether they're snitches and contacts, former comrades, or just background information for you to feed your players when they go to the rough parts of the city, there's all sorts of options in this supplement to draw on.

- 100 Random Taverns: Though not all of the taverns in this collection are in a city, there's plenty of strange and unusual options that are. So if the PCs want to ask around for information, catch a bite to eat, or just have some RP time, consider adding some of these locations in between the margins in the setting.

- 100 NPCs You Might Meet at The Tavern: Whether the PCs are looking for informants, experts in history, gossip, or just somebody to fix a damaged boot, there's all sorts of strange and unusual NPCs in this collection... it's also (at time of writing) the only one of mine to reach Gold seller status!

Also, this tip applies to more than just Korvosa (though it will be where the bulk of the campaign first happens). It also applies to Scarwall, to the countryside you travel through, to Kaer Maga if you go there, to the lands of the Shoanti, each of these places needs to have its own personality in order for the players to really engage with it. Don't just read box text and roll some dice, either. Incorporate the environment, the culture, the feel, the smell, and the taste of things so that there's a real difference from block to block, street to street, region to region.

Tip #2: Prep Your Players For Their Upcoming Role

The city needs people like you. Will you volunteer today?

Like most other adventure paths, CoTC gives players a background trait to help tie them to the plot. I remember when I first tried the adventure that I thought Gaedren Lamm was going to be the antagonist of the whole first arc of the game. After all, he's such an ideal bad guy. He's just a ganglord with a decent gimmick, and he's been in power long enough that he's wronged an entire party of adventurers who are coming together to deal with him.

If you've read the adventure at all, though, you know that Lamm is confronted and defeated in the very first session. After that the party gets sort of unceremoniously shuffled to the "opportunity" to be a special part of the Korvosa City Watch, putting their unique talents to work under Cressida Kroft. The difficulty here is that if the players put together a party with mutual grievances against this one guy, then once he's dead/captured/no longer a threat, their primary motivation may be complete.

As such, "spoil" this plot development with your players, make sure it's the role they're comfortable in, and that they've given their characters proper motivation to do it. My game actually skipped the cloak and dagger, and just started off as a squad of low-level patrolmen to get ahead of this arc.

Additionally, you should actually prepare a list of dos and don'ts for players once they accept their role as special consultants/troubleshooters to make it more than just a pretense for the rest of the campaign. Does the city offer armaments to them, allowing you to bypass the clunky mechanic of coinage as a reward and so they can get better gear, for example? Are they expected to bring people in alive for trial? Will they have jurisdictional squabbles with the Order of The Nail, or the queen's Gray Maidens?

Since the first half of the game is basically a cop drama, lean into that aspect and make sure your players really enmesh themselves in the city, and understand they can make a difference... for good or ill, depending on how they choose to act.

Tip #3: Make Sure Actions Have Consequences

I will remember this. Always.

While this adventure path eventually leaves Korvosa, the players are going to meet the same NPCs, go back to the same districts, etc., over and over again. The most important thing you can do as a GM is to make sure that the players' actions have appropriate consequences... both good and bad.

I talked about some of this in Character Reputation in RPGs: The Small Legend, but specific examples might be more helpful for applying this tip to your game.

Take the character of Thousand Bones, the Shoanti NPC. Early on the players have to find the body of someone important to him, and return it to Thousand Bones. This is a sensitive matter, both because of his grief, and because of the... fraught nature of relations between Korvosa and the tribes of Shoanti people. And since the PCs are eventually going to venture out into the harsh country where those tribes live, how they treat Thousand Bones, and how they approach his case should be reflected when they see him again later. If they were rude, dismissive, or disrespectful, they'll have a much harder time getting him to help them. If, on the other hand, they were helpful, sensitive, and acted in good faith, they'll find he's a far more willing ally to their cause.

There's countless opportunities for this to happen. Do the PCs kill Lamm, or take him prisoner and arrest him?  Does that create a power gap that other gangs move into, or are they lying low so as not to catch the attention of these new troubleshooters? What sort of situation do they create when they deal with the Spider? Do they form relationships with the community by doing outreach and helping, or do they hide behind their badge while abusing their authority? Do they form a bond with people that gets citizens to trust them over the plague doctors? Or are they seen as even less reliable than the hellknights, because at least the Order of The Nail has rules they follow?

The story shouldn't be happening in a vacuum. So keep track of what the PCs do, and ask how that affects the city, future scenarios, and how certain NPCs view them... as well as what sort of reputation it garners them.

Tip #4: Keep Track of Active NPCs and Relationships

I don't know who you are or how you got here, but it's in the box text.

This is related to the previous tip, but I felt it should be mentioned on its own just to drive home how important this is. Because CoTCT is jammed with named NPCs who can be more or less important, and if you want to create a cohesive narrative with your players it's important to look at who is going to matter going forward, and to ensure that you put in the effort to establish some kind of relationship with the party in order for those NPCs to actually matter to the party, and your players.

Cressida is a primary example of this. She is a major NPC, but if you just treat her like a stock quest giver then the party is going to have zero investment in her struggles trying to manage their actions along with the rest of the deteriorating situation in the city. Another big example of this is the mysterious vigilante Blackjack, who the PCs eventually have to go and save from a dungeon. But if they've never met Blackjack before (he never swooped in to assist them in a fight that was going poorly, he's never contacted them to provide plot-relevant information Batman-style, etc.), this is going to have zero impact on them. As such, what feels like a huge moment plot-wise is just going to fall flat because it comes out of left field.

Whether the NPCs are written into the module, or you want to add moments with individuals that aren't part of the established game (be it discussions with Severs DiViri from the Order of The Nail, or turning characters like Lamm into longer-running figures in the event the PCs don't kill them, etc.), you need to solidify those relationships to give them weight in the game. Otherwise they become just so much box text in the background that people forget about, or aren't interested in, and that sucks all the impact out of the story.

Tip #5: Keep Players Invested in The Overarching Plot

It's all connected!

CoTCT starts off as a minor story of revenge on a ganglord who personally wronged a bunch of people, and eventually spirals out into fighting a queen possessed by the spirit of a legendary dragon trying to re-conquer an empire that's centuries in the dust, and to subjugate thousands of people through blood magic. Unfortunately the sort of PC who'd be right at home in the former scenario may not be the sort of PC who has the motivation and drive to handle the latter scenario.

Without a little help from the GM, that is.

The early parts of the game are fairly straightforward. You're acting on behalf of the city because it's your job, this is where you live, it pays your bills, and whatever personal motivations you have as a character. As things spiral out of control with the queen actively engaging in conspiracy, becoming more and more extreme, etc., it is very important to make sure the PCs don't just say sod this, and flee the city so that Ileosa is no longer their concern.

There's a lot of things you can do, here. If the PC is loyal to the city because it's their home, or they view it as their duty to protect it, lean into that. Especially if it means establishing relationships with other protectors of the city so that the PC feels like part of an organization rather than just some unaccountable nobody who can book it if they get cold feet. If the PC is more selfish, ask who they care about in the city? Because they could leave, but that would mean their sister, their friends at the bar, their favorite restaurants, all those people they've protected (who should exist as NPCs with names and faces by that point) would be left defenseless. Duty to flesh and blood people, rather than the idea of city or country, can be  equally useful as a motivator.

Whether the motivation is religious zeal (useful for Iomedae worshipers), loyalty to their companions, a sense of duty to stand against the horror the queen has become, or even something as petty as spite, make sure the players don't feel like they're scrambling to remain part of the plot because it's become so different than what they what the early game might suggest.

Lastly, make sure you break down the current goals and plot arc in a way that makes sense to your players. With so much happening at any given time this adventure path can easily feel like a disjointed mishmash if events and characters aren't having a lasting impact on folks sitting around the table.

Also, if you're looking for any additional advice that will come in handy when running this and other adventure paths, don't forget to check out my supplement 100 Tips and Tricks For Being a Better Game Master!

What's Next on Table Talk?

That's it for this installment of Table Talk! What would you like to see next? Or do you have your own story you'd like to share with folks?

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The Saga of Majenko Part 10: Down With The Queen

Today we have the final installment of the whirlwind adventure that is The Saga of Majenko (or Curse of The Crimson Throne to give it the name on the cover of the adventure path). From dingy dock wards to undead castles, to fighting dragons in the streets, to slaying devils in the throne room, our party has gone above and beyond the call of duty in protecting their city, and trying to bring down the thing Queen Ileosa has become.

Before we get started, though, make sure you're caught up on all the previous installments.

Part One: Finding The Main Character of "Curse of The Crimson Throne"
Part Two: How Much Damage Could One Pseudodragon Do?
Part Three: Scourge of The Red Mantis
Part Four: Blood Pig Champion
Part Five: Brother to The Shoanti
Part Six: The Assault on Castle Scarwall
Part Seven: The Return to Korvosa
Part Eight: Re-Taking Korvosa
Part Nine: The Assault on Castle Korvosa
Part Ten: Down With The Queen

There, all caught up? Beautiful! Because now it's time for the grand finale!

Down in The Dungeon

We realized after fighting the infernal thing living in the Ileosa's bedchamber, that the queen herself was not in the castle. She had, in fact, left quite some time ago. With the Bloat Mage's notes, and the testimony of his spirit, we confirmed that the erstwhile ruler of the city had fled to a half-sunken temple for a purpose we couldn't guess. We were all confident that it was nothing good, though.

Before we left, however, we had one last promise to fulfill. So we walk in through the front doors of the now de-populated Castle Korvosa, and take the stairs down to the dungeon below. Our party, which doesn't even have a token human in it at this point, takes in the grim, brooding atmosphere, and the claustrophobic vaults. We also completely avoid a high-level trap whose trigger is that the room is filled with light, which was unnecessary between the dwarf, the aasimar, the two tieflings, and the pseudodragon. So, we explore, and eventually find the body that had been unceremoniously walled-up.

Like ya do...

We bring the bones back to the attic room, and the ghost of the tiefling merges with the gypsy in our harrow deck, and allows each of us to draw a card from a Harrow Deck of Many Things, with the special allowance that we could re-draw one card each. So, we all decide to draw. The dwarf gains a level, loses a level, and then gains a small team of followers in Blood Pig jerseys. Majenko gains the ability to automatically confirm a critical hit, though the same ability works against him. One of Egil's enemies has a change of heart and becomes his ally, though with the sheer number of arrested NPCs the DM never got around to choosing one. The paladin becomes immune to sonic damage. Cards chosen, we receive a blessing from the ghosts, and set off southward toward the final confrontation.

One Long Series of Unfortunate Events

We travel southward, following the map we were given. We make our way down rivers, and through swamps, until we find an ancient pyramid, half-sunken into a lake. Unfortunately, there's no bridge to that lake, and no guarantee that there isn't something awful lurking beneath the waters.

Something more awful than me, I mean.

So, we take stock of our options. We quickly realize, through burning a powerful scroll, that we can't simply phase through the stone. Apparently it is protected by ancient magics, and our modern-day shortcuts aren't going to hack it. Deciding that we are not doing another underwater combat in murky liquid we can barely see through, the cleric wind walks us all across the water, and through the vents leading into the upper floor. Everything's quiet, at least until the dwarf touches a stone, and gets sucked into it. That's when the paladin has to turn corporeal again, and start smashing away with his adamantine hammer until we crack the dwarf out of his soul prison.

Which, of course, means the level's guards are well aware of our presence. Which is why we have yet another pack of Erinyes trying to turn us into pincushions. The fight is frustrating, but we've taken down enough of these particular devils by now to know what we should expect. We emerge triumphant, for the most part, and only down a few, minor resources. We also find a massive pool filled with blood, and a dead body floating in it. It looks almost like Ileosa, but clearly isn't. This is around the time we all get a bad feeling regarding the blood samples that were being taken from the citizens of Korvosa before the revolution got rolling.

We come across a shaft, and Majenko stealthily slips up to take a look. What he finds is...

The Final Encounter

At the top of the shaft, waiting for us, is Queen Ileosa. Floating regally above the ground, she's admiring a floating ball of blood. The ball is, of course, constantly shifting and pulsing, with faces and even buildings pressing against the surface before receding. Even the highly-experienced magic users have no clue what it's for, but we have an inkling that we don't want to find out.

So we roll initiative.

Which may have been our first mistake.

The first thing that comes our way is a trio of powerful wraiths. No worries, since a charge from the staff of Necromancy makes them hold still for the paladin to walk by and dust. They get a few nasty slices in, but we emerge triumphant. Before we've dealt with them, though, a line of Ileosa clones appears, and they all start singing. Which is when the wand of silence starts getting plenty of use, since there's no Will save allowed if the spell affects an area and not a person. Ileosa flies higher, and Egil locks her behind a wall of force. Which she then dimension doors herself past.

Despite the chaos of the battle, it's soon down to just us, and just her. And that is where things started to get tough. Not hard, not deadly, but tough.

You see, the queen had plenty of time to buff herself, thanks to our less-than-quiet entrance. Given the level she's at, and the horror that lives inside her skull, she's got a lot of tricks. She's flying, she has freedom of movement (as we found out), her AC is buffed to a mirror shine, and she's throwing down magic like there's no tomorrow. Very little of her magic, though, actually does damage. Most of it's just a debuff, or an obstacle, meant to hamper us for a time. She even managed to get control of the dwarf for a bit, but a smoke screen rendered him ineffective as a threat to the party.

The problem we're having is that we're actually fighting to a standstill. None of the aid the cleric is summoning hits hard enough to get through the queen's defenses, and even the paladin wielding the relic sword is only hitting once a turn or so. Spell resistance, and various deafening effects, have eaten away most of Egil's spells, and even the great and powerful Majenko is little use against her. In a battle that lasted three, full sessions, we accomplished an ignoble goal that I doubt most gamers have ever sought.

Both sides started running out of magic.

The Conclusion

The party retreats with the intention of regrouping. Which is when a line of barbarian frogmen come out of the flooded depths, and we enjoy a brief round of wiping them off the map like a greasy stain. Ileosa follows, but now she's under the effects of greater invisibility. She still can't seem to do us any real damage, but she's getting down to magic items and bard tricks.

Well, shit, we've tried everything else...

That's when the cleric pulls another friend out of her bag. She summons a creature who, while it can't penetrate the queen's defenses, does have invisibility purge as a constant aura. So, at least we can see her again. The paladin lays into her, and the rest of the party is rallying to make one, final strike. Unfortunately for us, though, her contingency spell goes off, and she vanishes. She is nowhere near the pyramid, and there's no way to tell where she went.

Not My Problem

The vanishing act Ileosa pulled seems like the worst sort of adventuring blue balls, particularly after such a knock-down, drag-out slog. However, the personalities of this particular party, and their definition of victory conditions, rendered expectations quite skewed. The ritual was stopped, for example. The citizenry was saved, and we lost no companions in the final fight. Not only that, but as far as we can tell, Ileosa fled from Varisia in its entirety, off to who knows where.

Out of my jurisdiction, that's what matters.

Egil, and by extension Majenko, have done their jobs as well as they can. With the city of Korvosa in ruins, and rebuilding taking place, that is where their duty lies. Balen has no real investment, now that the queen is overthrown, but would be just as comfortable returning to a life of drug use broken up by occasional bouts of Blood Pig. The cleric and paladin both feel that Ileosa should be pursued, in time, but as for the time being they hold a major relic of the church in their hands, and they want to know what the best use of it is. So, singed but triumphant, the party returns to the dockyards and waterfronts, sinking into the hustle and bustle to decide what they're going to do with themselves, and to try and restore what parts of the broken city, nation, and world they can.

And that, my friends, is the end of the Saga of Majenko.

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