Christougher Posted July 15, 2012 Report Share Posted July 15, 2012 I had an idea for a game where the PCs were angels sent down from On High to handle things on Earth. The catch is, they can't reveal themselves to be angels. And that's about as far as I got. I decided to make it a high-powered superhero game after borrowing the Great Evils from the Diablo computer game series, and decidedly /not/ wanting to run it as a Fantasy Hero rehash of said game(s). So, now I'm stuck for plot ideas. What brings them to the mortal realms and poses enough threat for angels to get involved? What are the different plans of each of the seven great evils? For those not familiar with the games, the sever great evils are: Diablo, Lord of Terror; Baal, Lord of Destruction; Mephisto, Lord of Hatred; Lilith(Andariel), Mistress of Misery(Anguish); Azmodan, Lord of Sin; Belial, Lord of Lies; and Duriel, Lord of Pain. So Herophiles, any suggestions or ideas that aren't stolen from the Diablo games? Looking more for an action/adventure RPG than a deep religious experience. Chris. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nepenthe Posted July 15, 2012 Report Share Posted July 15, 2012 Re: Angels on Earth - plot ideas needed How about an idea stolen from Preacher? The blasphemous offspring of an angel and a demon escapes to earth and possesses a human, granting him superhuman powers in the process. The PC's are sent to destroy this abomination and cover up any messes caused by its host. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheQuestionMan Posted July 15, 2012 Report Share Posted July 15, 2012 Re: Angels on Earth - plot ideas needed Angel and Demon Resources http://www.herogames.com/forums/showthread.php/54935-Angel-and-Demon-Resources?p=1311119#post1311119 Hmmm... QM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ninja-Bear Posted July 15, 2012 Report Share Posted July 15, 2012 Re: Angels on Earth - plot ideas needed Well for Champion foes the ones that come up off the top of my head are; Black Paladin, Dark Serpah, and Demon. There is a blurb for this type of game in Villiany Amok. Perhaps the motivation for the Angels are that they are Fallen, and this is a chance for redemption? For plot how about said villians are killing off seemingly random people. The Pcs discover that they are trying to kill an appointed one and they have to save the person from the evil ones. Another would be that the villians are trying open a gate to hell or maybe summon Leviathan? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christougher Posted July 15, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 15, 2012 Re: Angels on Earth - plot ideas needed Not planning to set it in the official Champs Universe and I don't have access to those kinds of resources. The prophet/savior trope (hmm, must go see tvtropes.org) is a good one; perhaps there are multiple possible ones and each of the Evils has chosen a different one. The idea of temptation, risk and fall, rather than being pre-fallen should be a good counterpoint to the high powered combats. The player character in Diablo 3 /is/ an angel/demon offspring, so I'm wary of using that, but an escaped Unique monster is always good. Chris. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nepenthe Posted July 15, 2012 Report Share Posted July 15, 2012 Re: Angels on Earth - plot ideas needed Oops, sorry. I'm probably the only person on earth who hasn't played Diablo 3 (or 2, or 1...). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RexMundi Posted July 15, 2012 Report Share Posted July 15, 2012 Re: Angels on Earth - plot ideas needed Hmm..... Hmmm...... I know I got some stuff in a box here somewhere that I started when the "Rage of Angels" project still stood a chance of getting on TV.... Lemme dig around. ~Rex Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
csyphrett Posted July 16, 2012 Report Share Posted July 16, 2012 Re: Angels on Earth - plot ideas needed I had an idea for a game where the PCs were angels sent down from On High to handle things on Earth. The catch is, they can't reveal themselves to be angels. And that's about as far as I got. I decided to make it a high-powered superhero game after borrowing the Great Evils from the Diablo computer game series, and decidedly /not/ wanting to run it as a Fantasy Hero rehash of said game(s). So, now I'm stuck for plot ideas. What brings them to the mortal realms and poses enough threat for angels to get involved? What are the different plans of each of the seven great evils? For those not familiar with the games, the sever great evils are: Diablo, Lord of Terror; Baal, Lord of Destruction; Mephisto, Lord of Hatred; Lilith(Andariel), Mistress of Misery(Anguish); Azmodan, Lord of Sin; Belial, Lord of Lies; and Duriel, Lord of Pain. So Herophiles, any suggestions or ideas that aren't stolen from the Diablo games? Looking more for an action/adventure RPG than a deep religious experience. Chris. I dont know if this is useful, but Highway to Heaven had an Angel earning his wings by helping people secretly, and the angels and demons in Supernatural have to possess people to operate. I think the possession angle by both sides would help this campaign. The seven monsters are out there secretly working to further their ends. The PCs are angels who are operating as possessed humans, or possessing dead people like the alien in that one movie with Michael Nouri and Kyle Maclachen. In my opinion, before you can design your campaign, you have to decide what each of the demon lords want to do. Then you have to decide if the angels can take a physical form, have to possess someone, or have to be summoned in someway like Captain Marvel. Additionally powers for both sides would have to be worked out. Then you can build your initial adventure off what the sides are doing to combat each other. CES Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christougher Posted July 16, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 16, 2012 Re: Angels on Earth - plot ideas needed In my opinion' date=' before you can design your campaign, you have to decide what each of the demon lords want to do.[/quote'] Yeah, I know. That's what I'm soliciting ideas for. I don't know yet what they want. Chris. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmjalund Posted July 16, 2012 Report Share Posted July 16, 2012 Re: Angels on Earth - plot ideas needed follow the seven sins! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ninja-Bear Posted July 16, 2012 Report Share Posted July 16, 2012 Re: Angels on Earth - plot ideas needed Christougher-fyi Black Paladin and Dark Seraph can be found in Classic Enemies (4th ed) together which I would think would be cheap to pick up and Demon, you could just supplement the agents found in book. And it might be worth to look at some of the super villians to file off the numbers and rebuild into the seven you were mentioning-instead of designing them wholecloth. As for some powers which might help with scenerios. Supernatural-dis features; limited group, unusal senses, alls detected. With this limitation, the right people, such as priests, magic-users, and occultists recognize that you are a supernatural being, the rest of the world takes you at face value. "That no demon, where is his tail and pitchfork?" Hear prayers-detect ranged. at least one of the PCs can 'hear' a prayer, and know that it is real. However, they still have to find out who sent it and why. The Glory of the LORD-Pre with knock back (perhaps x2). Just a glimpse of God's glory has mortals quivering. (A friend of mine hates this power contruct, but I think in this case, it would be acceptable). One thing that is probably more genre than mechanics would be that just because the PCs are fighting the big bads, doesn't meant that the rest of the world can see it. Imagine that the pcs are fighting a demon possesed person. To the world, it might look like the heros are smacking around an old bag lady even though, its one of Diablo's henchmen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cancer Posted July 16, 2012 Report Share Posted July 16, 2012 Re: Angels on Earth - plot ideas needed What tone do you want in the game? If Evil has already taken over the powerful institutions of the world, mostly via the love of money, then you would have a very dark game as all the puppets (banks, governments, and everyone who needs a buck) would be gunning for anyone who hadn't sold out to them or who was bent on exposing them to the light of truth. The opposition then would mostly be heavily-armed mundanes with a leavening of magical or infernal specials ... this is sort of like the Shadowrun world. OTOH, if the world is more or less neutral, then Evil may have champion-class superagents of their own bent on somewhat more obvious death and destruction, allowing face-to-face combat between supers, and have something closer to a Silver Age tone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
csyphrett Posted July 16, 2012 Report Share Posted July 16, 2012 Re: Angels on Earth - plot ideas needed For those not familiar with the games, the sever great evils are: Diablo, Lord of Terror; he works as a serial killer creating city wide fear as he strikes as random. Maybe he has got a cult together like the killers from CObra Baal, Lord of Destruction; He destroys targets obviously, but ithout a personality it's hard to say if he goes after individuals or systems. Mephisto, Lord of Hatred; Race based hate crimes Lilith(Andariel), Mistress of Misery(Anguish); Uses finances to ruin people's lives like Madoff Azmodan, Lord of Sin; Encourages vice and drug dependencies Belial, Lord of Lies; Media based like Fox news and Duriel, Lord of Pain: May combine all of the above. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ninja-Bear Posted July 17, 2012 Report Share Posted July 17, 2012 Re: Angels on Earth - plot ideas needed Belial, Lord of Lies; Media based like Fox news Obviously if you believe that, then Belial has already conned you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravor Posted July 17, 2012 Report Share Posted July 17, 2012 Re: Angels on Earth - plot ideas needed Read "The Book of Cain", it hashes alot of the backstory from the Diablo universe into a rather neat little package. Personally, instead of going political (In which case I'd side on NBC and ilk as being Belial's mouthpiece. ) I think I'd posist Balail as being behind the distorting lens of social media and the net as a whole. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christougher Posted July 17, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 17, 2012 Re: Angels on Earth - plot ideas needed Let's keep the politics out of this, please? I'd say religion too, but... It's a superhero universe, it doesn't the real world's baggage. Chris. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christougher Posted July 17, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 17, 2012 Re: Angels on Earth - plot ideas needed Read "The Book of Cain"' date=' it hashes alot of the backstory from the Diablo universe into a rather neat little package.[/quote'] I've been googling and wikiing for ideas, but don't recall that being mentioned. What/where is it? While I'm trying to avoid recreating the Diablo world, I'll steal ideas from anywhere. Chris. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RexMundi Posted July 18, 2012 Report Share Posted July 18, 2012 Re: Angels on Earth - plot ideas needed Well, there is the Engel RPG, as well as In Nomine and Armageddon, Seventh Seal and the old Demon the Fallen game ..... Few others out there as well and some not bad supplements from back in the day. Still looking for my Angel setting stuff. Stuffed it in a box back when all that other material popped up, heh. ~Rex Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheQuestionMan Posted July 18, 2012 Report Share Posted July 18, 2012 Re: Angels on Earth - plot ideas needed Angel and Demon Resources http://www.herogames.com/forums/showthread.php/54935-Angel-and-Demon-Resources?p=1311119#post1311119 Hmmm... QM Ah hem! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravor Posted July 19, 2012 Report Share Posted July 19, 2012 Re: Angels on Earth - plot ideas needed The Book of Cain is a book I found the other day at Hastings, in the graphic novel section, it's in the format of a letter that Deckard Cain wrote to his niece sometime between the end of Diablo II and Daible III. It goes through alot of the backstory and lore, including descriptions of the seven lords of Hell and what their realms look like, ect... I personally enjoyed and would recomend it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laundry Knight Posted July 19, 2012 Report Share Posted July 19, 2012 Re: Angels on Earth - plot ideas needed I don't know much about Diablo, but there are plenty of sources from classical literature that could add a little flavor to your game, Dante's Divine Comedy, Milton's Paradise Lost, and Marlowe's Doctor Faustus come first to mind though Lewis's Screwtape Letters might add a little something also, but with any attempt to tell a story, you have to decide what kind of feel do you want to portray. As for why the devils and angels are lining up, it could be eschatological. Eschatology being the theological arguments involving the end times. In other words, the divine and infernal forces are firing off the first volleys in preparation for the final Tribulation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christougher Posted July 19, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 19, 2012 Re: Angels on Earth - plot ideas needed Ah hem! I saw it the first time, and it still doesn't offer me a lot of help. It's a link to a list of books I don't have, probably couldn't get, and can't afford even if I could. I haven't finished going through what on that list I can actually access, but it doesn't seem to have what I need - plot ideas. I'm not trying to be snarky or rude, I'm sure you're trying to help, and I thank you for that effort. Chris. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
csyphrett Posted July 19, 2012 Report Share Posted July 19, 2012 Re: Angels on Earth - plot ideas needed You can try touched by an angel or saving grace. CES Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alverant Posted July 20, 2012 Report Share Posted July 20, 2012 Re: Angels on Earth - plot ideas needed What sort of angels are we talking about? They can be found in multiple religions. For instance there are Valkyries, angels who escort warriors to the afterlife; reapers angels of death, gods that serve as messangers, etc. Angels are supernatural agents of a deity so they're not just limited to western religions. An avatar of a Hindu god could be considered an angel too. Since they are agents, they have to follow orders and (presumably) have another angel above them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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