IMPORTANT NOTE: This is not just a quest. It is both a quest and a mission. The two are connected. Events that take place in one affect the other. I have permission to do this from Bach and Ruby. This request is broken into two parts for clarity's sake. Thank you.
The Quest: The Lost Throne[]
Character: James
God Parent: Boreas
Dear James,
Bonjour. I have an important task for you. Hephaestus has a forge in a volcano called Tseax Cone. This is where he keeps important or dangerous items he wants out of the reach of other gods. It is an effective location, because it is so far north in Canada, a region most gods avoid. However, recently some items have disappeared from Tseax Cone, the dissembled remains of the golden throne Hephaestus built to imprison Hera millennia ago. As the Tseax Cone is in my domain, Hephaestus demands that I retrieve the stolen items. I have tracked them a distance through the air. They have traveled via private air plane all the way across Canada, where it was replaced with a helicopter that traveled to New York. The helicopter landed in a private helipad in Manhatten where the passengers headed underground, and so it falls to you to retrieve the throne's remains. Be careful; the throne could be dangerous in the wrong hands and I suspect the Broken Covenant is at the core of the problem. Start at this private airport here.
bonne chance,
-Boreas
General Plot[]
The Broken Covenant is not behind the theft. The real criminals are the Desecraters, a group of 5 mortals who can see through the mist. They have quite a bit of money at their disposal which they use to hire other mortal to assist them in their mission (which the other mortals are not aware of). Their mission is to isolate whatever it is that gives demigods their abilities and find a way to replicate it (I'm not saying it's possible, but that's their goal). They do their research by kidnapping demigods and experimenting on them. Of course, the best way to do that is by using monsters, which they obtain mostly by sacrificing a large amount of their expendable (and ignorant) workforce in dangerous missions to capture them. They also collect and try to repair automatons.
General Outline[]
This quest needs 3 demigods. If two of the demigods can fly, it will negate a trap that could determine the path the story takes, so no strong fliers.
1. The questers start out at the helipad Boreas showed James, where they find a passageway that leads underground. They will follow a short tunnel until they reach a locked door. No matter what they do, the door will not open until they trip a security alarm. The tunnel fills with gas and they wake up in individual cells in a laboratory. Charles (the lead scientist of the desecrators) gives some quick plot exposition and leaves the room (if the mission party has been detected at this point, Charles might mention it).
2. After escaping, the heroes find themselves in a strange, dungeon-like tunnel system where some weak monsters are imprisoned (draconae and telkhines). The monsters are hungry (the haven't had an opportunity to eat demigods since they were captured) and manage to break the bars and battle with the heroes.
3. The party continues on and reaches a room with three doors and a wooden floor (from the sound footsteps make, it is clear the floor is elevated). One door is very tall. If the quest party reaches this room before the mission party, then the doors will all lock and a voice will speak to them through a speaker, requesting that they either leave or surrender. When the party refuses, a large cyclops is let in through the far door. After the defeat the cyclops, they head through the door he came through (4A). If the mission party was already here, the quest party will instead find the room battle ravaged. The floor gives away beneath them and they are drop a distance into water. A stock sea monster attacks them (unless I can find one that's actually from Greek mythology, I'll probably just use a large octopus thing). The group defeats the monster and wades through a tunnel filled partly with water (4B).
4A. The party continues forward and accidentally trips some more security alarms. Automatons attack. The group defeats them and moves on. (5A)
4B. The group continues through the tunnel until it turns straight up. There is completely vertical ladder to climb, but part way to the top a number of mooks working for the Desecrators notice them and start shooting at them from the top. The party must reach the top and disarm the mooks (this will obviously be easier for flying characters or characters with shields). (5B)
5A. The group encounters Kurtis, the first of the real Desecrators. Kurtis can see through the mist and is armed with a few magical items and a gun. After his defeat he will tell the party more about the Desecrators and point them in the direction of the throne's parts.
5B. The group finds a laboratory belonging to Charles. Charles is a Desecrator who can see through the mist. He explains the purpose of the Desecrators. He has a vial of gorgon blood, which he pours out. The blood becomes many Amphisbaenas, snakes with heads on both ends. The party defeats the serpents, but Charles escapes out the back of the room.
6. The party reaches a large room that appears to be a hastily dismantled command center. The most prominent item left is a large, automaton horse (Oh boy, we all know where this is going.) The horse activates and battles the party. The party defeats it and moves on (7A). If the mission party reached this room first, the horse will already be broken, but before the party can move on, hatches open on the sides of the horses and several automaton soldiers clamber out and battle the party (go ahead and pat yourself on the back for calling that one) (7B).
7A. The party enters a large arena-like room. Pieces of gold metal are placed all over the walls and ceiling. Pierre and Thomas, two more members of the Desecrators appear and explain that the gold metal pieces are actually the parts of the throne. They have special power dampening properties that prevent demigod powers from being used in the room (at this point the doors are sealed). Pierre and Thomas are master swordsmen, and now that they've brought the party down to their level, they intend to plug the leaks. The party defeats them, strips the walls of the metal and make their exit using the door they didn't come from (either Pierre or Thomas will have fled and unlocked the door in the process. (8A)
7B. The party enters a large arena-like room. The go through the room and emerge in Central Park. A man is stomping around and complaining about some group of stupid demigods that got away with the pieces of the throne. He is Art, the last Desecrator and the one who has been working on restoring Automatons (such as that horse). He grumbles about how he could have prevented this if he had time to activate his ultimate automaton (one he actually made himself from the remains of other automatons). Unfortunately for the party, the automaton is through powering up now, and they must fight it. Hopefully the mortals will mistake for a parade float or something less bizarre. (8B)
8A. Success! The party returns to the surface via a hidden trap door in Central Park. A strong wind swoops from the heavens and carries off the pieces of the throne to the North-West. Thanks Boreas!
8B. Failure. Sure, the party had an awesome final showdown with a giant automaton in Central Park, but they didn't retrieve the throne. Not only that, but the 3 desecrators escaped. Hephaestus will not be happy about this.
The Mission: The Gilded Throne[]
Leader: Strike
Assigner: Heinrich
Objective: Our spies report that the remains of the throne Hephaestus built to imprison Hera have been taken from his forge to a much more accessible area under Manhattan. It is obvious why such artifacts would be useful to the BC. Retrieve them.
Members: Any 3 BC members are allowed, but Strike fills one slot and a slot is reserved for Josie, so only 1 slot remains.
General outline[]
1. The party heads down into the sewers of Manhattan. They trek through the sewers until they notice a man running away. They give chase until he disappears around a corner. The party searches until they find a secret passageway that heads down at a sharp angle.
2. At the bottom of the passage is a tunnel. The party doesn't get far before they are confronted by a group of 3 cannibalistic giants (I can't be helped to look up their weird name again).
3. The party continues on and reaches a room with three doors and a wooden floor (from the sound footsteps make, it is clear the floor is elevated). One door is very tall. If the mission party reaches this room before the quest party, then the doors will all lock and a voice will speak to them through a speaker, requesting that they either leave or surrender. When the party refuses, a large cyclops is let in through the far door. After the defeat the cyclops, they head through the door he came through (4A). If the quest party was already here, the mission party will instead find the room battle ravaged. The floor gives away beneath them and they are drop a distance into water. A stock sea monster attacks them (unless I can find one that's actually from Greek mythology, I'll probably just use a large octopus thing). The group defeats the monster and wades through a tunnel filled partly with water (4B).
4A. The party continues forward and notices light beams crossing their path (part of the security system) They take detour through ventilation ducts to avoid them (classic). On the way they overhear some mooks talking about the weird stuff that goes on in at their job (still classic). They party is too heavy, and breaks the ducts, causing them to have to fight the mooks (OK, cliche. Happy?) The party soldiers on (5A).
4B. The group continues through the tunnel until it turns straight up. There is completely vertical ladder to climb, but part way to the top a number of mooks working for the Desecrators notice them and start shooting at them from the top. The party must reach the top and disarm the mooks (this will obviously be easier for flying characters or characters with shields) (5B).
5A. The group encounters Kurtis, the first of the real Desecrators. Kurtis can see through the mist and is armed with a few magical items and a gun. After his defeat he will tell the party more about the Desecrators and point them in the direction of the throne's parts.
5B. The group finds a laboratory belonging to Charles. Charles is a Desecrator who can see through the mist. He explains the purpose of the Desecrators. He has a vial of gorgon blood, which he pours out. The blood becomes many Amphisbaenas, snakes with heads on both ends. The party defeats the serpents, but Charles escapes out the back of the room.
6. The party reaches a large room that appears to be a hastily dismantled command center. The most prominent item left is a large, automaton horse (Oh boy, we all know where this is going.) The horse activates and battles the party. The party defeats it and moves on (7A). If the quest party reached this room first, the horse will already be broken, but before the party can move on, hatches open on the sides of the horses and several automaton soldiers clamber out and battle the party (go ahead and pat yourself on the back for calling that one) (7B).
7A. The party enters a large arena-like room. Pieces of gold metal are placed all over the walls and ceiling. Pierre and Thomas, two more members of the Desecrators appear and explain that the gold metal pieces are actually the parts of the throne. They have special power dampening properties that prevent demigod powers from being used in the room (at this point the doors are sealed). Pierre and Thomas are master swordsmen, and now that they've brought the party down to their level, they intend to plug the leaks. The party defeats them, strips the walls of the metal and make their exit using the door they didn't come from (either Pierre or Thomas will have fled and unlocked the door in the process. (8A)
7B. The party enters a large arena-like room. The go through the room and emerge in Central Park. A man is stomping around and complaining about some group of stupid demigods that got away with the pieces of the throne. He is Art, the last Desecrator and the one who has been working on restoring Automatons (such as that horse). He grumbles about how he could have prevented this if he had time to activate his ultimate automaton (one he actually made himself from the remains of other automatons). Unfortunately for the party, the automaton is through powering up now, and they must fight it. Hopefully the mortals will mistake for a parade float or something less bizarre. (8B)
8A. Success! The party returns to the surface via a hidden trap door in Central Park and returns to the BC with the spoils of victory!
8B. Failure. Sure, the party had an awesome final showdown with a giant automaton in Central Park, but they didn't retrieve the throne. Heinrich will not be happy about this.
Comments[]
Why would whomever did take the throne bring it to the gods front door?
Good question. I forgot to explain that. You see, they were just bringing the throne to their HQ. The Desecrators have their HQ under Manhattan for a few reasons. The first being that Manhattan has huge sewers, ideal for hiding things in. The second thing, is that the Desecrators are aware of CHB. Since they need demigods to experiment on, they intentional stay close to the mother load and try to capture campers that step outside their sanctuary. There is also the possibility that the Desecrators are unaware of Olympus (it seems to have the strongest mist disguise, seeing as even demigods who know it exists can't see it at all).
Maelstromis (talk) 15:44, January 30, 2013 (UTC)
How did the Desecrators manage to find/steal the throne? And how do the BC become aware of the fact that it's in NY?
"You are in every line I have ever read." -Ruby
Both are valid questions. The first has a really boring answer though.
The Desecrators are all quite rich and have a lot of money to devote to scouring the world for the mythological. They chanced upon the forge and were able to steal the throne because Hephaestus wasn't there (he doesn't hang out in Canada much). This means they only had to get past Hephaestus' security. They have tons of resources, and I could make up a story about how exactly they did it, but it's not really important and probably wouldn't come up in quest dialog anyway (if it does, I'll just wing it). The point is, they have a lot money and magic items they've found with which to, after a long spell of planning, retrieve the throne.
The second question is quite a bit harder. I meant to go back and work something out, but I forgot. Could it be possible to intercept dream messages? I did briefly consider making the quest message be a letter, which could be intercepted, but it seems like the gods would use Hermes mail anyway, which wouldn't get intercepted. What do you think?
Maelstromis (talk) 20:05, January 30, 2013 (UTC)
Hmm. Perhaps some of the BC spies were in NY and heard the news there somehow? Or they saw the Desecrators or something like that?
"You are in every line I have ever read." -Ruby
Ooh! The BC has spies? That works. I've added that to the first sentence of the mission objective.
Maelstromis (talk) 00:16, January 31, 2013 (UTC)
I'm not sure if you should just set up one page for both mission and quest, and just separate them, or if you want to make two pages for each.
| Heinrich Alten ~ Leader of the Broken Covenant | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 “???” |
00:24, January 31, 2013 (UTC) | |||||||
| ||||||||
| Owned by: Admins & Crats ~ Posted on: "Strike, your chance to prove yourself has finally come. We have received word that a very powerful object has recently been found in Manhattan. This item will increase our power immensely. I charge you with the task of finding it and bringing it back to headquarters." | ||||||||
"You are in every line I have ever read." -Ruby
I think two pages are the way to go. That way the quest people don't have to get notifications when someone posts on the mission and vice versa.
That works