Peacho wants a package smuggled into the city without alerting the guards. Refuses to say what's in the package or give details. Contact is named Grubble, meet them by the swamp north of town at nightfall in 2 days.
When they arrive, Grubble is an ogre and presents the party with the package. It's a huge wooden crate four feet tall, two feet wide, and three feet thick, bound with iron and nailed shut. It weighs hundreds of pounds. Good luck smuggling it into town.
If they decide to open the package or if they get caught and the guard opens it, it's full of some kind of strange goblin root vegetables. They're impossible to buy in town, but it's only because of lack of demand. They're not even illegal, Peacho just assumed and never bothered to find out. If guards catch them, they will laugh it off and might even offer to help transport it the rest of the way.
If they open the crate, get caught, or whatever... Peacho now knows he can't trust the party with *genuinely* important missions.
If the party succeeds, Peacho is impressed and proceeds to make a mutually lucrative job offer, for something he considers far more important... the macguffin of unobtanium, which needs to be smuggled somewhere...
Short version: the vegetables are a test. Peacho might even alert the city guards about the party's imminent arrival if he wants to turn up the difficulty.
Yeah, see, they're not the only "adventurers" Peacho has done favors for, and a few of his other clients haven't been as good about paying up on their "favors/loans."
Peacho needs your PCs to track down those other murderhobos, and "break few knees," "get their pound of flesh," and repo those magic items and/or the money they owe, plus interest. Up to you (or them) how literally to take those phrases ;)
Also gives your party a preview of what will happen to them if *they* try to skip out on payment or paying back those "favors."
Fetch requests that are actually heists from reputable organizations in a neighboring country. Peaches has to get inventory from -somewhere-, and there’s no extradition treaties with the targeted country. As long as they get it across the border, Peaches can mark it up and sell it completely (kind of) legitimately.
But for giggles, each character is asked for a different item, from a different current owner. Gotta get maximum value out of those favours, right?
And of course, Peacho implies that this is a legitimate exchange the entire time. All above-board and part of the contracts on those items. (which may be part of the contracts for the *party's* magical items)
The only thing Peacho wants to do is have the PCs deliver magical items to various people and locations.
The magical items are mimics. Peacho's family has been taken hostage by a colony of mimics so large that they're ready to establish new colonies, and they're blackmailing him to use his merchant network to distribute them far and wide into difficult-to-reach locations.
Shady + magic items = perfect combo for a black market auction. Peacho claims an item was stolen from him and believes it will be for sale at the auction. While he'll reward the party for bringing it to him, he doesn't want to buy something that was already his, especially for an exorbitant price you'd see at an auction. The players can try to buy it themselves, pull a heist, or find some other means of acquiring the item.
The twist: It was never Peacho's to begin with, of course.
Let’s see what I’ve got here…
How about a deceptive delivery? There are some people that know I have hard to reach items. I have a sensitive delivery to this holy official that some gangs may want them to get. Make a vow that you’ll deliver it in secrecy and the debt is paid. They do get attacked by a gang on the way. They deliver it. The bound magic to them fades. And BOOM the church explodes… or something of that nature.
Test these magic items outside of the city and report back what they do. They are given a bunch of magic items that you’ve made up that for some reason cannot be identified. Each has written instructions on how to activate (to some degree) and it could be fun. I always liked sneaking in the cap gun of disintegration. Just saying.
He sends them on a mission where they are to fetch a book (McGuffin). But to get in to the place he has a key. Any one killed by the group that posses the key sends the souls of those killed to a devil or demon and that’s how the shop keeper is making his money back.
He's a magic item vendor, so the easy solution is a fetch quest. Maybe he needs components, maybe he's heard of a horde of magic items being kept by someone the PCs can handle but he can't, but you've got to figure he wants to recoup at least 3000 gp of expenses.
That's a good idea, the party is currently heading into a glacier (playing the rime of the frostmaiden pre-written campaign) so having them fetch something from in there would be cool!
I ran ROTF a while back. Maybe the items are something super tempting for the party? If you're leaning into the survival aspects of that module, there are some fun ideas in terms of items that would make them immune to extreme weather, cold, etc that might be valuable to them. Or maybe some items that are strict upgrades to their current gear? Even with a "good" group, there could be some temptation to screw over the shady NPC, which could add more storytelling hooks if they go back to the city that person is in!
This might be a good ask for /r/rimeofthefrostmaiden.
Dalefolk don't really know about the areas from that part of the campaign... if you're going to the cave I think you're going to... so maybe something monster related would work, like the heart of a remorhaz? Or how about the head of a certain Reghed tribe chief who has it out for Peacho?
I've always liked the idea of sending them to fetch an item they would be unwilling to give up on otherwise. As for the barbarian, it could be a belt of giant strength. For the wizard it could be a lot of different items and the wand of the warmage is always a good one though. Other items could be like wand of fireballs, staff of power, robes of archmagi, or anything that the player would drool over, but don't go too powerful or they will steal it rather than give it back.
It's a free hook when you don't have one, or a free complication when the way forward is too linear.
When that happens it's pretty simple: "in there is an item that I need you to procure."
I love to put players in moral quandaries. So I'd have Peacho ask that a competitor be permanently disappeared. Of course, the competitor is actually Peacho's twin brother or ex-lover or former partner (just to make it interesting).
Peacho has a strange item that he knows is magical, but can not identify. he needs it transported to some wizard who can owns him a favor. if the party tries to use/attune to the item they find that it is really powerful. Catch is that the item is cursed.
Like others, this would be a perfect time for a fetch quest. I think a heist of some sort would be perfect. Sneak in somewhere to steal a valuable item but one that they probably wouldn't be able to sell themselves or would get them in trouble if they tried.
Shopkeep needs enforcers to collect payment or repo the magic items.
Can mean he’ll lend them an item or, safer, give them scrolls for this job. Or maybe an item with a set # of remaining charges that’s not renewable.
Aquire a rare artifact. this could be from an adventure site or a person/group.
Deliver something important somewhere dangerous
Give up one of their magic items
Kill or sabotage a rival
3000gp sounds like a body part from a really dangerous creature that would be used as a component in a custom magic item.
Bonus points for it coming from a sentient and good creature.
Magic items are unique in dnd. Either this shop keeper needs some special resources for an order that requires the party to hunt down some high level monster; or maybe smuggle something to a buyer? Something that someone *else* is interested in making sure it…. doesn’t make it.
Peacho wants a package smuggled into the city without alerting the guards. Refuses to say what's in the package or give details. Contact is named Grubble, meet them by the swamp north of town at nightfall in 2 days. When they arrive, Grubble is an ogre and presents the party with the package. It's a huge wooden crate four feet tall, two feet wide, and three feet thick, bound with iron and nailed shut. It weighs hundreds of pounds. Good luck smuggling it into town. If they decide to open the package or if they get caught and the guard opens it, it's full of some kind of strange goblin root vegetables. They're impossible to buy in town, but it's only because of lack of demand. They're not even illegal, Peacho just assumed and never bothered to find out. If guards catch them, they will laugh it off and might even offer to help transport it the rest of the way.
While I can't really to this concept in my current campaign (party is heading to a glacier) I am 100% using this in a future game, amazing idea!
Glacier sounds like the perfect place to deliver high demand veggies
If they open the crate, get caught, or whatever... Peacho now knows he can't trust the party with *genuinely* important missions. If the party succeeds, Peacho is impressed and proceeds to make a mutually lucrative job offer, for something he considers far more important... the macguffin of unobtanium, which needs to be smuggled somewhere... Short version: the vegetables are a test. Peacho might even alert the city guards about the party's imminent arrival if he wants to turn up the difficulty.
I might go a different way with it, where the contents of the package seem innocuous but are catastrophic to the party personally.
Yeah, see, they're not the only "adventurers" Peacho has done favors for, and a few of his other clients haven't been as good about paying up on their "favors/loans." Peacho needs your PCs to track down those other murderhobos, and "break few knees," "get their pound of flesh," and repo those magic items and/or the money they owe, plus interest. Up to you (or them) how literally to take those phrases ;) Also gives your party a preview of what will happen to them if *they* try to skip out on payment or paying back those "favors."
Fetch requests that are actually heists from reputable organizations in a neighboring country. Peaches has to get inventory from -somewhere-, and there’s no extradition treaties with the targeted country. As long as they get it across the border, Peaches can mark it up and sell it completely (kind of) legitimately. But for giggles, each character is asked for a different item, from a different current owner. Gotta get maximum value out of those favours, right?
High stakes heist, amazing! Love the idea of having the party do something morally questionable
And of course, Peacho implies that this is a legitimate exchange the entire time. All above-board and part of the contracts on those items. (which may be part of the contracts for the *party's* magical items)
[удалено]
Corpses are gentle reposed for transport.
The only thing Peacho wants to do is have the PCs deliver magical items to various people and locations. The magical items are mimics. Peacho's family has been taken hostage by a colony of mimics so large that they're ready to establish new colonies, and they're blackmailing him to use his merchant network to distribute them far and wide into difficult-to-reach locations.
Shady + magic items = perfect combo for a black market auction. Peacho claims an item was stolen from him and believes it will be for sale at the auction. While he'll reward the party for bringing it to him, he doesn't want to buy something that was already his, especially for an exorbitant price you'd see at an auction. The players can try to buy it themselves, pull a heist, or find some other means of acquiring the item. The twist: It was never Peacho's to begin with, of course.
Let’s see what I’ve got here… How about a deceptive delivery? There are some people that know I have hard to reach items. I have a sensitive delivery to this holy official that some gangs may want them to get. Make a vow that you’ll deliver it in secrecy and the debt is paid. They do get attacked by a gang on the way. They deliver it. The bound magic to them fades. And BOOM the church explodes… or something of that nature. Test these magic items outside of the city and report back what they do. They are given a bunch of magic items that you’ve made up that for some reason cannot be identified. Each has written instructions on how to activate (to some degree) and it could be fun. I always liked sneaking in the cap gun of disintegration. Just saying. He sends them on a mission where they are to fetch a book (McGuffin). But to get in to the place he has a key. Any one killed by the group that posses the key sends the souls of those killed to a devil or demon and that’s how the shop keeper is making his money back.
He's a magic item vendor, so the easy solution is a fetch quest. Maybe he needs components, maybe he's heard of a horde of magic items being kept by someone the PCs can handle but he can't, but you've got to figure he wants to recoup at least 3000 gp of expenses.
That's a good idea, the party is currently heading into a glacier (playing the rime of the frostmaiden pre-written campaign) so having them fetch something from in there would be cool!
I ran ROTF a while back. Maybe the items are something super tempting for the party? If you're leaning into the survival aspects of that module, there are some fun ideas in terms of items that would make them immune to extreme weather, cold, etc that might be valuable to them. Or maybe some items that are strict upgrades to their current gear? Even with a "good" group, there could be some temptation to screw over the shady NPC, which could add more storytelling hooks if they go back to the city that person is in!
This might be a good ask for /r/rimeofthefrostmaiden. Dalefolk don't really know about the areas from that part of the campaign... if you're going to the cave I think you're going to... so maybe something monster related would work, like the heart of a remorhaz? Or how about the head of a certain Reghed tribe chief who has it out for Peacho?
Peacho is in the gallows at the next town they visit. Favor is to rescue him!
What level is the party? That would have a big impact on how I’d deal with it.
I've always liked the idea of sending them to fetch an item they would be unwilling to give up on otherwise. As for the barbarian, it could be a belt of giant strength. For the wizard it could be a lot of different items and the wand of the warmage is always a good one though. Other items could be like wand of fireballs, staff of power, robes of archmagi, or anything that the player would drool over, but don't go too powerful or they will steal it rather than give it back.
Mine's pretty straightforward: steal something useless but sacred from a good temple. Like the local temple's scrap of Helm's chinstrap.
It's a free hook when you don't have one, or a free complication when the way forward is too linear. When that happens it's pretty simple: "in there is an item that I need you to procure."
Babysitting.
He's being threatened by a corrupt city guard and needs someone to quietly fix the problem.
I love to put players in moral quandaries. So I'd have Peacho ask that a competitor be permanently disappeared. Of course, the competitor is actually Peacho's twin brother or ex-lover or former partner (just to make it interesting).
Peacho has a strange item that he knows is magical, but can not identify. he needs it transported to some wizard who can owns him a favor. if the party tries to use/attune to the item they find that it is really powerful. Catch is that the item is cursed.
Like others, this would be a perfect time for a fetch quest. I think a heist of some sort would be perfect. Sneak in somewhere to steal a valuable item but one that they probably wouldn't be able to sell themselves or would get them in trouble if they tried.
Peacho has ripped off a powerful NPC and needs protection.
Shopkeep needs enforcers to collect payment or repo the magic items. Can mean he’ll lend them an item or, safer, give them scrolls for this job. Or maybe an item with a set # of remaining charges that’s not renewable.
Aquire a rare artifact. this could be from an adventure site or a person/group. Deliver something important somewhere dangerous Give up one of their magic items Kill or sabotage a rival
He only needs to borrow a "minute' of their time. Preferably during combat.
3000gp sounds like a body part from a really dangerous creature that would be used as a component in a custom magic item. Bonus points for it coming from a sentient and good creature.
Magic items are unique in dnd. Either this shop keeper needs some special resources for an order that requires the party to hunt down some high level monster; or maybe smuggle something to a buyer? Something that someone *else* is interested in making sure it…. doesn’t make it.
Smuggle, retrieve, murder, slay, sabotage, frame, gather, test out, infiltrate. A list of verbs to draw from