The Quest Prompt Thread

For all talk about quest development - creation, testing, and quest system.
Post Reply
User avatar
Jay_H
Posts: 4062
Joined: Tue Aug 25, 2015 1:54 am
Contact:

Re: The Quest Prompt Thread

Post by Jay_H »

Oh man, these are great! :D Thank you again for adding more. I've been away from DFU but sooner or later I'll find time for them.

I've been keeping away from quests that span months (like the multi-dungeon quest you listed before) but many others have encouraged me to start trying them. I need to give them a shot and see how players react.

User avatar
Jay_H
Posts: 4062
Joined: Tue Aug 25, 2015 1:54 am
Contact:

Re: The Quest Prompt Thread

Post by Jay_H »

Some excellent ideas being generated on Discord:

Prompt 1: The player is sent by the Fighters Guild to a dungeon to kill a known outlaw.
Consequence:

1A: (ACNAero) The target was the sibling of a high ranking member of the Thieves Guild, and now they have it out for you. After some weeks or some months (however long you feel would be needed for them to track you down), the next time you sleeping in an inn, guild hall, your house, or your boat, you'll be attacked by him/her. why not in a dungeon? because they want your murder known because it's personal to them.

1B: (Baler) The outlaw offers you a sum of gold to let him go and report back that you killed him.

1C: (JayH) The outlaw was possessed by a daedra. The daedra is now free and attacking some place, and you're responsible to fight it.

1D: (JayH) The outlaw was an assassin under surveillance. The bosses think you'll be better for a risky, high-paying murder job than the dead guy.

1E: (Baler) The outlaw knew you were coming and planned an ambush for you with some other baddies.

1F: (ACNAero) The target was, unbeknownst to the FG guy who gave you the job, an Ancient Vampire.

1G: (Baler) upon your arrival you discover the outlaw was killed by a horrible beast

1H: (ACNAero) The target had serious dirt on the man who gave you the quest, and you were sent to silence the blackmail so said dirt wouldn't come out. you find the proof in a book on his/her person and have to decide what to do from there. Or maybe an alternate path for the blackmail is that an outlaw is threatening to frame the quest giver, and he's sending you to shut them up for good.

1I: (ACNAero and Baler) The target had serious dirt on the man who gave you the quest, and you were sent to silence the blackmail so said dirt wouldn't come out. The outlaw knew you were coming and planned an ambush for you with some other baddies. (Combines 1E and 1H)

These all tie directly into JHFG003, so there are a ton of new possibilities available right now. I'll be moving on to this after I'm done with the classic quests.

User avatar
Jay_H
Posts: 4062
Joined: Tue Aug 25, 2015 1:54 am
Contact:

Re: The Quest Prompt Thread

Post by Jay_H »

I feel as though some of Daggerfall's more important NPCs could get questlines that tie into the game's lore and how it relates to other TES titles. I was thinking about a quest line for Gortwog and his drive to establish the Orcish nation as a civil, integrated people. It's true that the Warp in the West gave him that power, but a well-written quest line could make the Warp in the West the final touch instead of the single cataclysmic event that makes orcs playable in TES3-5.

Each of the seven game-ending factions could have a quest line that better details their aims and allow the PC to decide, maybe subtly or drastically, some of the Iliac Bay's future.

These could make use of some of Daggerfall's lesser-known nobles and court members, such as Popudax, Mobar, Lord Bridwell, Lord Provlith, Lord Vhosek, Charvek-si, Lady Northbridge, and Karethys, to say nothing of more established NPCs like the royalty. It would be a shame to leave all these NPCs to collect dust.

The idea isn't limited only to the game-ending factions (perhaps one could explore more of the motivation behind the War of Betony due to some lingering resentment about it, including some miscreants who want revenge), but it's a starting point. Some branches out to other TES games' lore could help make the Daggerfall world seem larger.

User avatar
Jay_H
Posts: 4062
Joined: Tue Aug 25, 2015 1:54 am
Contact:

Re: The Quest Prompt Thread

Post by Jay_H »

In addition, there could be an enhanced version of the main quest. (If released as a mod pack, it'd include an "originals" folder to ensure people are aware of the difference post-install.) Perhaps one implementation could be considered Daggerfall on hard mode, but in others it could rewrite and expound on much of Daggerfall's original content. Take SlainByWoodborne's suggestion that the missing prince's dungeon should probably have undead, for instance; he could either be put into an abandoned crypt, or a well-known undead hive like Castle Necromoghan (in Daggerfall territory, no less; it kinda makes more sense if you want to make him disappear, right?), and/or have undead periodically spawn in the dungeon.

Armed foes could appear as the quests progress to try to deter you from finding out Lysandus' murderer. False agents from the various opposing factions could offer to "help" you, leading to traps, difficulties, and lies to uncover.
Spoiler!
Lord Woodborne
could get some early foreshadowing of some kind, speaking to the PC in person and via letter, rather than being thrown in at the end. Think the Greater Dwemer Ruins mod for Morrowind, applied to the main quest -- everything made bigger, more complex, more realistic, and more satisfying to work through. (I mean, who actually understands what's happening in DF's main quest the first time they go through it? :D)

ACNAero
Posts: 113
Joined: Thu Sep 13, 2018 4:27 pm

Re: The Quest Prompt Thread

Post by ACNAero »

Knightly Orders

*Angry Noble*
1. Noble is angry about their child being kidnapped, and for some reason has been led on to think that the Order has something to do with it. They are kicking up a political dust storm and need to be dealt with.

2. You go visit them and try to talk to them. An Etiquette check is used to try and calm them down.

3a. The check succeeds, and after coming to their senses they tell you the whole story.
3b. The check fails and they attack you in anger.

4a. After telling you their story, you follow leads and info to track down their missing child. This is open to being as simple or complex as desired.
4b. You can kill them in self defense, use a spell to pacify them, or run from the building (I'm not sure if the quest system can detect the latter two) and report back that you were unsuccessful. Killing them causes a strong political blowback, and the latter two results in the Noble adding fuel to his political fire by adding that the Knightly Order is cowardly.

5. You bring the child back to the Noble (who gives you a good reward, maybe a valuable gem or weapon) and then report back to the quest giver, who gives you the standard gold reward.

*Thief Catching*
1. The quest giver tells you that a thief got too in over his/her head, and stole from a powerful Diplomat, and the Order wants you to find the thief and get the valuables back or else it would look bad for the Kingdom if the Diplomat had to send their own people to do it.

2. You track down the thief in a dungeon.

3a. When you find them, they tell you they won't give the valuables back even if they're too hot to fence. You can do a Streetwise check to convince them to hand the valuables over, then maybe a second one following that to convince them to follow you back to town and turn themselves in, through any justification needed. If either of them fail, they turn hostile and you kill them.
3aa. If you're part of the Thieves Guild, you can convince the thief to hand over the valuables for the good of the guild, and you let them go after telling them to think harder about their target next time.
3ab. Thief is an independent, and aggros due to disdain for the Guild.
3ac. Thief is an independent, but the process of 3a takes place.
3b. The thief tells you they already fenced the valuables and attacks you. They'll have a large amount of gold on them as proof they sold it.
3ba. If you're part of the Thieves Guild, you can use Streetwise to convince the thief that their target was too high profile and they need to come with you and turn themselves in as a sacrifice to keep the rest of the guild safe. If it fails, the thief will aggro and you have to kill them.
3bb. The thief is an independent, and they aggro at you due to disdain for the Guild.

4a. The quest giver gives you the reward for bringing back the valuables. Small rep gain with Thieves Guild if 3aa or 3ab was done, or if 3ac failed.
4b. The quest giver is impressed you were able to bring the valuables back and convinced the thief to come with you and turn themselves in. You get some bonus gold on top of the initial reward. Small rep gain with Thieves Guild if 3ac was done.
4c. You come back and tell the quest giver that the valuables were already fenced off. The quest giver isn't happy, but doesn't blame you and still gives you the reward. Small rep loss with the Thieves Guild if 3ba failed for having killed a fellow thief. Small rep gain with Thieves Guild if 3bb happened due to ridding of an independent who caused the Guild trouble.
4d. You come back and tell the quest giver that the valuables were already fenced off. The quest giver isn't happy, but is consolidated somewhat by that you managed to bring the thief in alive to turn themselves in. Small rep gain with Thieves Guild for having kept the guild safe.

User avatar
Jay_H
Posts: 4062
Joined: Tue Aug 25, 2015 1:54 am
Contact:

Re: The Quest Prompt Thread

Post by Jay_H »

I'm thinking of just taking the everyday cornerstones of Daggerfall's world and developing quests out of them. For example, banks exist, and they store money and offer loans. Therefore:
1. A Fighters Guild quest could require tracking down a runaway debtor.
2. A knightly order quest could do detective work for a break-in on a local bank to find the culprit.
3. A Mages Guild quest could request that an identification spell be made on some evidence left behind at the scene of a robbery, leading to a dungeon where the stash has been taken
4. A Dark Brotherhood quest could lead to a banker who's been embezzling funds, requiring making him a public example

And that's just one of the many facets of Daggerfall life.

We should also do quests that improve faction with other guilds, not just take it away.

Fighters Guild: "Hey Adventurer, not sure what your history is with the Mages Guild. Got an opportunity here that'll pay and get you in good with them. Wanna track down a missing mage in [region name]?"

Then I'm toying with an idea of a Mages Guild quest where a mage is holding a daedra in subjection, and both are in a mental battle to win. Your action during the struggle could determine who wins.

Post Reply