Troll Lord Games

Just started A3 and the PC more or less beelined to the witch queen from level 6 of the Ziggurat. I had her surrender with the highlight of a Gnome Illusionist putting in the beat down with a +2 dagger vs the Goblitts and the Queen.

Anyway I am wondering about the classic manipulate the party as the PCs have not figured out she is also a cleric as well as a wizard.Nor have they explored that much of her lair so the think she is a glorified silk merchant. And I suspect one of the PCs might like her if she plays up the "I am a victim card and open to redemption" route. Who knows it may even be true. One of our female players was a bit more blood thirsty than the male players and she was happy with the proverbial fate worse than death approach but the Knight has that whole honour thing going.

So any ideas what to do with a beautiful female captive with 18 charisma;). Villain, anti hero or redeemable any idea as to her fate? How hard can it be to convert a cleric of an evil god right?

I would play it subtlely. Evil doesn't mean stupid, so once she is captured, she will do what she can to survive and then escape. This means she'll probably lie, fake an attitude, bluff a conversion, whatever it takes!

Let the characters bicker over her fate and she will use that against them by seeing each individual's mindset and playing that up, convincing them their way is right, just to sew arguments among the PCs. Then she'll find the most opportune moment to flee fast and far.

She can come back to be a bigger threat later


I would run this fairly loose - go with whatever consensus the characters seem to arrive at about her and then use that against them but then again, I'm an evil CK who likes to let PCs hang themselves!

A lot would depend on the style and themes of the game, comfort levels and the like, but I see no issue with the Queen trying to seduce and bedding a party member, or several, including the female(s) if it meant it would lower their resistance... especially for charm and enchantment based touch effects, especially powerful things like emotion or, if she had access... geas. I'd probably play her as cowardly and her affections would be due to being saved, not outright "sluttiness." The occasional missing dagger, like the one the gnome has, might not be obvious at first either.

serleran wrote:A lot would depend on the style and themes of the game, comfort levels and the like, but I see no issue with the Queen trying to seduce and bedding a party member, or several, including the female(s) if it meant it would lower their resistance... especially for charm and enchantment based touch effects, especially powerful things like emotion or, if she had access... geas. I'd probably play her as cowardly and her affections would be due to being saved, not outright "sluttiness." The occasional missing dagger, like the one the gnome has, might not be obvious at first either.

They will expect things like this so I was going to go for a tragic Martyr angle. I might have her ask for a last request that is reasonable (a meal) and she can ask the knight for a quick and painless death sort of thing.

Hell maybe they can treat her right and actually convert her as if evil NPCs are always unredeemable PCs will not even try or the incentive to kill evil prisoners is quite high.

Knowing the angles of the players is certainly an advantage. There are hundreds of ways to play it - perhaps she does simply want to be rewarded her final payment or maybe she says she does because there is something that happens because of it. Altruism masked by demons... or, if that's expected (and often is by skilled players), some real altruism and selfless acts.

In any event, it should be interesting.

Especially if you play into the player's hands and then twist them.