I run a complete homebrew game set in a fantasy/Sci-Fi world where my players get to play as Immortals with the power to control the types of "essence" that make up the world. One player created a Walker of Twilight, Immortals with powers to bend light and shape shadows named Drege. The other player made a Dragoknight, think a Jedi with DBZ powers but with a code of honor resembling the samurai named D'Jeeri.
My story follows the whole "chosen ones" trope with the players first being sent to a long forgotten castle with a mural that depicts the players saving the world hundreds of years ago. (They don't have amnesia they actually get sent back in time after part 1) This "forgotten" castle is actually the BBEG's old HQ. Located within a hollowed out mountain on a mesa protruding from a black abyss there is an upside-down castle balancing on the tip of it's "highest" spire. Four stone bridges lead to the outer walls with crevasses glowing in green, red, yellow, and blue. On the mesa there are teleportation glyphs etched into the ground with what appears to be power conduits attached to both the glyphs and the castle and leading off across the bridges.
The two deduce that the lights from the crevasses are power sources they need to transfer across the bridges. They take the first bridge to the left. (color didn't matter except to remind me which puzzle it was, not that it was going to matter!) Upon crossing the bridge they see a pyramid with a beam of colored light going thought the glass tip. (think a reverse Luxor) and there were 2 sphinx statues on each side of the pyramid's entrance. D'Jeeri made mention that once we activate the pyramid they would be fighting those. (he knows my "go to" enemies)
Inside they see a floating Black stone absorbing the light not allowing it to hit the pedestal which is covered in markings. They discuss what to do, trying to figure a way to set a "timer" like thing so the light wont hit the pedestal till they're across the bridge.
Drege declares "I'm going to Indiana Jones switch the stone ball with a dark energy ball."
As my brain instantly starts imaging the different scenarios that could happen only one replays itself. I stare at him and confirm "So, you want to put an energy ball into the beam of energy."
"Yes" he said with the smile idiots wear when they think they had a good idea.
I shrug and tell him how he switches the stone with the E.ball. And how the E.ball start to grow as it absorbs the energy. And grows, and grows, and grows, (you should run) and grows, They turn and run as fast as they can. The ball makes contact with the pedestal and the pyramid activates. The players run right by the sphynx as they turn on. The E.Ball hits its critical mass and explodes, taking out the pyramid, the sphinx, and the bridge. Drege used his light step to travel on the explosions light to the mesa while D'jeeri teleported.
Now technically they cant continue cause the power source and etching were destroyed but being the DM and my word is god here I say that side of the glyph is Illuminated. But I also tell them some doors won't work within the castle due to this. They agree that is fair and they trek onward. (yes i awarded Drege 200 xp for technically killing both sphynx)
I decide to give them the same puzzle to see if they learned their lesson…………….*sigh*
"Don't worry" Drege claims, "I know what to do this time!" And he actually looks me in the eyes with that same effing smile again. "I learned my lesson."
"ok then, what do you do"
"I switch the ball with a light crystal."
My mouth drops, not to what he said, but to D'Jeeri saying "**ck yeah, that's using your noodle!"
I remove my glasses and rub the bridge of my nose with my eyes closed imagining the new scenario while I again confirm, "So, you want to put a crystal, a PRISM essencially, into the beam of energy that is traveling through the light. Is that correct?"
"YES" they say in unison.
Still not opening my eyes I describe how the light get refracted through the PRISM LIKE CRYSTAL (I say very sternly and hear a double face palm and a "oh sh*t that's right" from D'Jeeri) sending continuous lasers in all directions as it spins in the light.
"Both of you roll your luck" Drege Botches and I can't stop myself from having the most devilish grin I could make. "If you look at your character sheet you'll see the equipment area has the silhouette of a person in the T-pose. Notice the numbers 0-9 places on the body. Roll a D10, you will permanently lose that part." (0-head, 1-heart, 5-goin, 3-gut, these where death cause it would behead or cut in half) Lucky bastagle rolls a 9 and losses his left leg. But now the bane of my storytelling as my brain continues to imagine the lasers destruction. The sphynx and bridge are destroyed. I roll for the castle itself. BOTCH!!! A laser slices through the spire, and the castle tumbles into the abyss."
"wait…..what?" Says D,Jeeri, "The ENTIRE castle?"
"Yup," I said as i started to pack my things. "the castle, the soul possessed weapons that grow with you, oh damn," I just remembered my NPC as in the BBEG before the true BBEG. "The leader of the Penthos Raven is gone, and the next 3 weeks of story…All gone. Hopefully I will have someway to salvage this by next session. Anyone up for smash bros?"
[zombify_post]
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