State of the Campaign, Episode III

[copied from my original Facebook Notes, circa Jan 2010]

My Friday night Mystara campaign continues to move forward. The group recently defeated a vampire only to have one of their own members rise up as a vampire himself. Luckily, the group only managed to inflict minor wounds on him before he convinced the group that he wasn't an EVIL vampire. The group has moved on further into the interior of the Isle, led by a grumpy old lizardman shaman. I started out playing him (at least, in my mind) as a wise, quiet, peaceful type. Something like the stereotypical Elder Indian Chief you see in various movies. I was imagining the old guy from Dances With Wolves, specifically. However, as the group has begun their expedition to the interior of the Isle, I find that I'm playing him more like a curmudgeonly old man. Something like the old guy from "Up" or "Gran Torino"; the type of guy that would yell out "Damn you kids!! Get off of my lawn!". He is getting more and more frustrated that the characters can't seem to take care of business as expected.

The reason I mention this is because I'm beginning to think that his change in demeanor is a reflection of how I fell about the game right now. I have already written several encounters and scenarios that the group will face in the near future, and I'm wondering if I should rework them somehow. A small minority of them feel like they would be repetitive and boring. I can hear Oxyl, the lizardman shaman, clearly in my mind, grouching away through clenched teeth (cue Clint Eastwood), "Well, come on. Get on with it. I'm not going to wait forever."

My problem stems from the fact that the BBEG (Big Bad Evil Guy) at the climax of this plot arc would annihilate the group if they fought each other right now. So, I'm forced to throw challenges at the party, allowing them to gain in strength before the final battle. What to do, what to do?

It has been 20 minutes since I wrote that last note. I've been going over and over how to either tone down the final scene and/or improve on the story leading up to it. Now that I write this out, I think I've come up with a solution. Awesome. This blog once again proves itself valuable.