CoTN: Demons - Francois de Penible - sprucing up?

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

I'm going to run the "Dark Desires" adventure from Children of the Night: Demons soon, and was going over it in preparation. I realize I need to beef it up a bit since it's made for level 2-4 3.0 characters, and I have a level 11 PF party. It's a very short adventure (go ahead and read it if you haven't. It's only 6 pages, including Francois's writeup, and it's free.) But that's ok, since I'll be weaving it with another adventure at the same time. So, I may or may not want to add another encounter or two before the climax, and I definitely want to up the danger in the climax.

Thoughts so far:
- dead abbatoir owner must certainly rise as undead of some kind and attack.
- the animated chains upstairs need to attack more than just once.
- Francois needs some more levels/powers, or some sort of template to buff him. (Master of Chains?)
- maybe something more can happen at his appartment or Marie's bedroom beside simple investigation?
- he could use some minions, so it's not just a many-on-1 fight. Maybe a chain golem or two that he spontaneously forms? Maybe an actual kyton comes through the gate to assist? Maybe some sort of human lackey in his employ (Renfield-esque?)
- some other twist on the theme I can add besides chains, chains, and more chains?

Any ideas on how to turn this delightful "Marquis de Sade meets Hellraiser" scenario into a main course, or at least an appetizer, rather than a light snack?

[The Lesser Evil]

De Penible always struck me as something of a social monster/philosopher, so perhaps he's created a cult of similarly disaffected Dementlieuse nobles?

You could play up the creepy loss of self and desensitization that joining a cult can bring. (Kytons and chain imagery seems a good fit for this). The final ritual is their equivalent to committing suicide in order to obtain transcendence to the hereafter or whatever (even though they're not technically physically killing themselves).

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

De Penible always struck me as something of a social monster/philosopher, so perhaps he's created a cult of similarly disaffected Dementlieuse nobles? .

In isolation, yes, a very good idea. In my particular case, we're coming right off an adventure involving an underground cult in Dementlieu, so I don't want to go back to that well so soon.

ETA: also, BTW, I'm replacing "Louise" with Marie Delacourte (CotN: Ghosts), whom the PCs saved from her necromancer father years ago. They have already seen Marie with her "fiance" Francois, at a dinner party 1 year ago, so I have to tweak the opening. Also, I will have to deal with her guardian ghost, Nikolai, who can pass right through de Penible's chains and attack him, so I need to find a way to keep Nikolai out of the fight, or give him something ethereal to fight himself that will keep him off de Penible. maybe a ghost of one of de Penible's victims or something.

[The Lesser Evil]

Hmm, well you could have a few bumbling ghost hunters/priests show up and think Nikolai's ghost is behind any weirdness going on and then try to destroy him.

Since Francois has the Madrigorian, he could have conceivably conjured some sort of fiend, perhaps a kyton that has been "mentoring" him in the ways of the Kyton Device. (However, this may have a chance of overshadowing Francois' evil.)

The torture rituals Francois endured might have involved tearing off pieces of his flesh. Perhaps these could animate as some kind of undead remnant (boneless, etc.) Francois murdered the owner of the abbatoir, so you could turn him into some kind of grisly undead.

The adventure mentions some flies in the slaughterhouse that have been hanging over some the dried blood. Perhaps you could throw in some kind of vermin swarm?

Finally, how is Marie's mental state? Cotn:Demons describes Louise as bitterly divided over continuing with the transformation. If you're using Marie as a standin, her inner mental turmoil might have built so much up that an especially powerful phthisic may form. http://www.d20srd.org/srd/psionic/monsters/phthisic.htm
Alternatively, a bastellus may be feeding on her dreams and does not want her nightmares to stop.

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

Hmm, well you could have a few bumbling ghost hunters/priests show up and think Nikolai's ghost is behind any weirdness going on and then try to destroy him.

hmmm... that's an idea. I do have a group of "monster hunters" of sorts on the tail of my infected werebat PC. Might be worth working them in, or it might be one too many complications.

Since Francois has the Madrigorian, he could have conceivably conjured some sort of fiend, perhaps a kyton that has been "mentoring" him in the ways of the Kyton Device. (However, this may have a chance of overshadowing Francois' evil.)

yeah, agreed. Also treads on my prior adventure a bit, since the cultists there were summoning stuff. If I do put a full kyton in, it would be one that comes through the gate of the device at the climax, just to help prevent their newest recruit from being destroyed.

The torture rituals Francois endured might have involved tearing off pieces of his flesh. Perhaps these could animate as some kind of undead remnant (boneless, etc.)

hmm... yes... yeeeessss... scribble, scribble. That could give me something back at his apartment to spring on them. It can't be too big or tough, though, since he's still able-bodied and walking around. A nuisance and a clue, then.

Francois murdered the owner of the abbatoir, so you could turn him into some kind of grisly undead.

yup, for sure.

The adventure mentions some flies in the slaughterhouse that have been hanging over some the dried blood. Perhaps you could throw in some kind of vermin swarm?

Nice catch! scribble, scribble.

Finally, how is Marie's mental state? Cotn:Demons describes Louise as bitterly divided over continuing with the transformation. If you're using Marie as a standin, her inner mental turmoil might have built so much up that an especially powerful phthisic may form. http://www.d20srd.org/srd/psionic/monsters/phthisic.htm

Hmmm... intriguing, if a bit out there.

I had another little brainstorm. It says in his writeup, that he "arranged unfortunate painful accidents for his friends—always making sure he would be present to experience their pain." This can be both a clue and a source of a ghost "guardian" of sorts. Assuming the PCs check out the hospice, Sister Eliza might tell them of a specific peasant he brought in, the result of one of these "accidents," who didn't make it. Then I can have a tortured, mad ghost, or wraith or allip or something of that nature that's become a "convert" in death and protects Francois from the ethereal in a nice little mirror to the way Nikolai protects Marie.

[The Lesser Evil]

One thing you might put in as a consequence of player (in)actions is have Sister Eliza get targeted by Francois if the players tarry too long in finishing the adventure or make their asking questions of her too public. If word gets back to Francois about her giving them a lead to his whereabouts, I can see him targeting her for conversion. If he tortured her enough to motivate her to blasphemously renounce her vows, she might die and come back as a heucuva.

However, I would only do this one if the players committed some gross error in conducting the investigation.

[Hamiclar]

I was debating of having my group be the ones that get hired by him to into Falkovia and obtain key of krypton.

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

bump.

any last thoughts on this anyone? (I'm doing my final prep... we're playing soon! huzzah!)

[The Lesser Evil]

If having a cult would be a problem, what about some kind of unruly mob or gang who are fed up with the system and think it needs radical (possibly violent?) change? A rogue/more violent faction of either the L'Ordures ( http://fraternityofshadows.com/wiki/Category:L'Ordures ) or the Noble Brotherhood of Assassins? http://fraternityofshadows.com/wiki/Cat ... _Assassins

Whatever group you might see the Kyton device as nothing more than an initiation ritual, as least not until they're too deep into it to pull out. And if de Penible's group has been infiltrated, I can imagine several factions wanting to know more about the Kyton Device- the Brain, the Fraternity of Shadows, etc.

[Band2]

I am probably too late, but how about this.
De Penible engages in self mutilation does he? What if he used a dangerous animal sometimes to hurt himself. Could be a guard/ fighting dog, or something poisonous like a scorpion. Nothing deadly but something with a painful sting. With scorpions he could have a whoel collection of them. The party could stumble across it when searching his room.

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

I am probably too late, but how about this.
De Penible engages in self mutilation does he? What if he used a dangerous animal sometimes to hurt himself. Could be a guard/ fighting dog, or something poisonous like a scorpion. Nothing deadly but something with a painful sting. With scorpions he could have a whoel collection of them. The party could stumble across it when searching his room.

Nope, not too late, just in time! I like the scorpion idea. Though, I didn't like any of the scorpion stats I saw, so I'm using a venemous snake instead for the stats (but still skinning it as a scorpion, because I cheat like that). Thanks!

[Daisu]

automated torture devices~ An Animator Monster creating a hall of pain or a mechanical clockwork assistant.
Monster drawn by pain, like a Resplendent cloaker

[IrvyneWolfe]

I cobbled together a Kyton sorcerer bloodline and gave that to Francois when my players fought him. Toss in a few spells from the book of vile darkness and he was a nasty foe.... until one of my heroes got infected with lycanthropy and ate him... and a nun.

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

I cobbled together a Kyton sorcerer bloodline and gave that to Francois when my players fought him. Toss in a few spells from the book of vile darkness and he was a nasty foe.... until one of my heroes got infected with lycanthropy and ate him... and a nun.

Nice... I ended up rather pleased with my de Penible stats, though I didn't get to test them out yet (we stopped on a cliffhanger right as they found Marie). I went with adding 10 magus levels to his existing stats, and picking spells that either involve chains or can be re-skinned as chains (evard's black tentacles, web, force hook charge, thunderstomp, warding weapon) and some critical related feats to emphasize the pain aspect. I like that with spell combat, he can attack with the chains and still "cast" a spell at the same time. Should make up somewhat for the action imbalance of a group of PCs (plus a ghost) vs 1 BBEG (plus a ghost).

[IrvyneWolfe]

I cobbled together a Kyton sorcerer bloodline and gave that to Francois when my players fought him. Toss in a few spells from the book of vile darkness and he was a nasty foe.... until one of my heroes got infected with lycanthropy and ate him... and a nun.

Nice... I ended up rather pleased with my de Penible stats, though I didn't get to test them out yet (we stopped on a cliffhanger right as they found Marie). I went with adding 10 magus levels to his existing stats, and picking spells that either involve chains or can be re-skinned as chains (evard's black tentacles, web, force hook charge, thunderstomp, warding weapon) and some critical related feats to emphasize the pain aspect. I like that with spell combat, he can attack with the chains and still "cast" a spell at the same time. Should make up somewhat for the action imbalance of a group of PCs (plus a ghost) vs 1 BBEG (plus a ghost).

Nice one! Magus is a good choice especially since, as a class, it can be downright broken sometimes.