This campaign hook suddenly came to me, and I’ll probably never run it, though I might, but mostly I think it’s cool so I figured I’d share. Maybe it inspires someone else!
Image: Arctic Treeline MtG Art from Kaldheim by Alayna Danner
The Company
In this campaign, all player characters are members of a mercenary company à la The Black Company. I imagine players having their ‘main’ characters, but also being able to just pick a new recruit (that the plot just never focused on before, but was definitely there the whole time) whenever they want. Some ranks within the Company include:
- Captain. Overall commander of the company. Probably an NPC at the start of the campaign, might be succeeded by a PC as the events progress.
- Lieutenant. Second in command to the Captain, handles logistics.
- Sergeant. Oversees small units of 8-12 during specific missions. In practice, these might be detachments in Block, Dodge, Parry.
- Quartermaster. In charge of supplies, equipment and logistics. Rewards players for bringing in supplies.
- Scoutmaster. Leads the scouting teams of the company.
- Chronicler. Keeps record of the Company’s deeds, writes down the names of the fallen, oversees ceremonies.
- Spellmaster. The company’s chief magic-user.
- Healer. A cleric, alchemist or battlefield medic.
- Spymaster. Oversees informants, spies and assassins.
The First Job
The Company has some esteem within the Empire, which is a Byzantine patchwork of kingdoms and realms overseen by an Emperor and a sizeable court of squabbling nobles.
In the first few sessions of the campaign, the Company takes part in a relatively run-of-the-mill job: protect a valuable asset from bandits. The asset can be various things: perhaps it’s a fertile region, or a city in which the season’s harvest of grain is stored, or a supply line or harbor. It can be something mundane like food or ore, or something more esoteric such as mind-altering mushrooms that allow one to cast spells and see the future.
A Scheme in the Dark
The main point is this: The Company succeeds. In what I imagine to be a ‘cutscene’ afterwards, shady figures discuss the outcome of events. These figures had a lot riding on the outcome of this contract; they figured the Company would fail and the asset would be compromised, which would greatly increase the value of their own assets. Perhaps the conspirators are shipping magnates, and they were looking forward to transporting their grain at a premium, with the Empire’s main supply compromised.
These merchants/nobles are two things: petty and powerful. The leader decides to punish the Company, and promises the others that he’ll petition the Emperor to make sure the Company sees a proper reward; a “promotion” in the form of overseeing a ruined outpost out in the middle of nowhere.
The actual player characters have no way of knowing that this conversation takes place, of course. However, the actual members of the Company could infer that they're being screwed over, and it does add nice stakes and tension to the set-up.
The Outpost
Out on the northern borders of the Empire, sits a small, ruined outpost. It can only be reached through a narrow mountain pass, which becomes impassable at first snowfall. Further north lies a mighty river, which keeps many of the threats of the North out during the summer months; wargs, goblins, “barbarians”, giants, undead etc.
During the long, dark winter months, the mountain pass is blocked, and the river freezes over. It fucking sucks out here.
This is where the bulk of the campaign takes place. I imagine a few main mechanisms at work here:
- Timekeeping. The main task is to survive until spring.
- Resources. Food to not starve, wood for repairs to the outpost (and for heat!), manpower to man the battlements and fight off attacks.
- Factions. Perhaps a small, forgotten hamlet nearby can prove an interesting social dynamic. The “barbarians” from the north can have several sub-groups, with some being open to trade, negotiation and even recruitment.
- Weather. Snow, blizzards, flash freezes can alter the landscape and travel conditions.
A Dream of Spring
Should the Company make it through the long, cold dark, the first thing they’d do is send a messenger south, to deliver a report to the Imperial Court. This messenger could be a player character (or party), or could be an NPC, with the players not knowing of their success until later.
The messenger arriving at the Court would be a very dramatic moment, and would send the conspirators into a rage.
In their paranoia and desperation (What does the Company know? What will they do next?), the conspirators would send a force to deal with the Company, led by their own son or something dramatic like that.
This would lead to the finale of the campaign, with a big final battle at the outpost (or in the snowy pass). Should the Company win this fight, the epilogue would involve the full Company arriving at the Court, throwing the head of the main conspirator’s son at the Emperor’s feet, followed by a suitably dramatic resolution.
So yeah, that was my rough idea, combining something resembling a ‘plot’ with a lot of sandbox-y space in the middle. Hope you liked reading it!
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