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Post by onethatwas on Oct 21, 2014 21:12:56 GMT
So I have been out of gaming for about 9 months give or take...sucks, but it is what it is.
That being said I am looking to get another game going, and because it will be a totally new game group, I wanted a simple, direct adventure, that can be both fun but not expand into something world shaking.
So I thought, "why not a treasure map?"
So I've been mulling it over for a few days, and I really like the idea. But, looking into it, and drawing on inspirational stories, it is a bit more complicated than I thought when I got the idea. Mostly because the map should be a puzzle as well as a hook.
Knowing how hard puzzles can be to implement, I figured I'd seek ideas here.
That being said, I want the map to be split into 3 parts (bestowed upon 3 people for safe keeping or some such). This allows for the puzzle of the map to be a little complex, but it should be solvable with all three pieces.
I was thinking a riddle or some geometric shape that is revealed when the map is lined up in a particular fashion.
So, That being said, I'm looking forward to hearing ideas, and hopefully any ideas shared here can be useful for others (and don't be shy about sharing totally different treasure map ideas).
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Post by belatucadras on Oct 21, 2014 22:14:53 GMT
I always struggle with ways to rationalize that the party should be acting as a cohesive unit... or at least cohesive enough to stick together for the common goal. I have had a party in the past all working for a council, each representing the interests of a particular council member. I have kidnapped a party and sold them into slavery so that they would feel inclined to work together to escape and discover why they were kidnapped. I had a party grow up near each other and start out as very young adventurers.
One start on my to do list, that I have not implemented yet, is to have each party member have a unique tattoo. When in close proximity to a similar tattoo, they feel drawn to it. The tattoos, when viewed together indicate something important. I have not decided how they have come to have these tattoos nor if it is to be a map or a riddle or whatever. Neither have I decided yet where the tattoos would lead them, but maybe you can use this idea.
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Post by Erasmas on Oct 21, 2014 22:41:57 GMT
Maybe instead of tattoos, they could be birthmarks - that form a fairly vague, yet still distinctly recognizable thing. Perhaps a well-known landmark with lots of rumors about it, or the crest of a house all but forgotten about.
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Post by onethatwas on Oct 21, 2014 23:41:53 GMT
That's actually a pretty decent idea.
I was kinda going for a vibe akin to this pirate film (can't recall the name, had Gina Davis in it), where they have to collect the map pieces before they can find the treasure.
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Post by Erasmas on Oct 21, 2014 23:59:37 GMT
*cough*Cutthroat Island*cough* I mean... I have no idea what you're talking about. Seriously though, it had some decent enough moments to it. However, on the whole, not a classic piece of cinematic history. "Bad dog!"? Really, screenwriters... that's the best you could come up with?! Sheesh...
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Post by onethatwas on Oct 22, 2014 1:32:56 GMT
Yeah, it was really badly cliche. But it had some moments.
Goonies also makes for some good ideas here, and on top of that it is one of the top 5 nerd movies (according to me).
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Post by Erasmas on Oct 22, 2014 3:16:52 GMT
Goonies is a fantastic flick! There were some rumblings of them making a sequel... of which I was torn between a nerdgasm of joy and a shudder at some possibilities (see Indiana Jones 4).
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Post by beetlewing on Oct 22, 2014 15:11:15 GMT
1. You could have one map, but then have some decoder object (like a large amulet) with holes in it that you lay over the map. The holes line up with landmarks and denote the treasure location. Line it up wrong and it sends you on a wild goose chase.
2. Instead of a map you could use a list of instructions on how to get there. Problems is, the instructions are on separate pieces of paper, so they have to figure out the order. Each instruction would be a somewhat vague clue like "pass through the twin trees". This would work best in a confined region, like on an island.
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Post by beetlewing on Oct 27, 2014 13:51:29 GMT
Don't make the mistake I made... using washable crayola markers, lol
Overall effect is pretty nice. I used brown postage/butcher paper instead of a brown paper bag.
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Post by DnDPaladin on Oct 27, 2014 17:18:13 GMT
finding treasure is always the same thing, reguardless of where you look...
- a place - a map - a compass
compass gives you the map direction, the map gives you the place. and the place holds the treasure.
taking the map above... the compass shows the north and as such how to read the map. the map gives you the location of the place to search for. the X on the map is the place where the treasure is.
reguardless of how far you go, as long as you have these 3 things... you'll be able to make a good treasure chase. separating the map is good advice. so is separating all three things into each their own. the more you separate the 3 elements, the harder it is to get it together.
exemple... you got 9 pieces of map that needs to be assembled. but you need 2 pieces of a special compass that tells you how to read the map. once that is, you need to get to a place in order to get the signal that tell you the real place.
see, all same 3 elements, they ust have been separated and suddently finding the treaure has become quite a chase.
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Post by lordmorbius on May 20, 2015 5:26:24 GMT
Or, on the other hand...
How about a map of a chain of islands, with all the features in great detail, except no "X marks the spot" symbol.
The "Treasure Map Key" is a series of cryptic verses that you must figure out, in order to find the starting point and move from location, to location, to eventually find a place where the treasure is hidden. (It may not even be obvious at first that the "map key" goes with the map at all).
For example:
Verse 1: To find the lost treasure, begin at a ship not worthy of the sea. (The map can features two such vessels, a shipwreck jutting up from the water because its up against a coral reef and sunken vessel that the players may not even know is there).
Verse 2: Go ashore to the northwest, to rest at a spire that no longer points to the stars. (Only one of the possible shipwrecks should have a beach with a crumbled, fallen obelisk on it).
Verse 3: Trek westward to a hollow hill. (There should be numerous hills all over the islands, but specifically two or three sets of hills to the west of the obelisk. The first should be tall and prominent, but not the one. The second or third should have an abandoned coal mine shaft in it that isn't marked, but can be easily found by exploration).
Verse 4: In the darkness deep, you will find caverns bright. (Obviously NOT the mine shaft [which should have dangerous collapses and underground monsters lurking within it], but inside a water well outside the mineshaft that formerly served the mining camp, there is a secret door...that is plainly open and visible to anyone looking down the well...if they bother to look. The secret door leads to a small nest of caves with glowing fungi and crystals (the "caverns bright").
Verse 5: Within the stoney depths, the way to the treasure will lay. (If the group is having a hard time, you could place the treasure here. If the group is having an easy time, "the way to the treasure will lay" will be a brass scroll tube, sealed with wax, with another set of cryptic verses to decode.
The second scroll:
Verse one: Stand in the shadow of the standing stone and peer to the sunrise. (The map should clearly have a prominent ring of stones like stone henge somewhere on the island. The map should also have a tiny mark labeled obelisk located a good distance away from the ring of stones (other than the fallen one mentioned above. The "shadow of the standing stone" indicates that it is "the standing stone" singular, not a ring of stones, and the word "standing" separates it from the fallen obelisk. "Peering to the sunrise" is obviously east, where the view from the standing obelisk on a clifftop shows another island in the chain.
Verse two: Upon a beach of fresh sand, venture to the north of the ones with wooden faces. ("Beach of fresh sand" is the beach of the new island to the east, viewable from the obelisk (which should be the western shore of the island to the east). "Venture to the north of the ones with wooden faces" refers to island natives who wear tiki masks (and are head hunters if the players get too close). Their village should be on the south eastern corner of the island, which would make "north of the ones with wooden faces" somewhere on the eastern shoreline. Just to mix it up a bit, you can have isolated tiki faces carved into trees scattered the island as well. "Ones with wooden faces" is making faces plural, not a singular isolated tree, but could serve to mislead players.
Verse three: There you will find a field of death and a kingly hoard guarded by a nameless soul. (Somewhere on the eastern shoreline, an abandoned missionary ruin with a grave yard should be located. The treasure is buried deep inside a grave with a marker name that simply reads "Unknown R.I.P").
Just my two coppers... =D
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Post by lordbryon on Jun 4, 2015 15:10:10 GMT
Nicely said Morbius. I think you just wrote my next adventure.
As luck would have it my current party is stuck on an island and cant leave. Any ship that tries to leave the island is sunk by an unknown creature, well unknown to the party. Its actually a female dragon turtle who uses the island as her hatchery and has done so for centuries. She's only recently become aggressive because her eggs are ready to hatch and event that only happens every 1,000 years. I like the 1,000 years because nobody on the island has any clue what's going on the locals only real clue is that there are some ancient ruins on the eastern side of the island and the origin and people that once lived there are a mystery.
The characters have yet to explore the ancient ruins on the other end of the island. The original village, now ruins, were the result of dragon turtle hatchlings venturing into the world. I haven't figured out how they party is going to figure out the imminent threat to the current inhabitants of the island but I plan on them finding that info in the ruins. Maybe a skeleton of a dragon turtle hatchling that was slain by heroes of the past lies amongst the rubble. Maybe a dracolitch turtle, is that a thing? Or more likely a ghost of a fallen hero. I haven't figured that out yet.
Anyway I needed some ideas to fill in some of the time they are on the island. Your treasure hunt sounds perfect. After all its within reason that in the past 1,000 years some pirate left some booty on the island. I can start the rumors now of some famous pirate that was known to have used this island as a sanctuary. Then give them a sliver of a clue and go from there. I already have a current crew of pirates harassing them. Maybe these pirates have some knowledge of the treasure. Or are at the very least hear with the intent of finding it. Awesome! Now I have a treasure hunt and an opposing band of ruffians to give the PC's a run for their money...
Also love tiki warriors.. OMG I want to play right now. I can already see a scene in my mind. The pirates find the adjacent island first and are almost certainly going to beat the PC's to the treasure hoard. The PC's know they are tailing but pursue anyway.
Once the PC's get the island they follow the pirates trail into the vast jungle only to find their foes dead, their corpses riddled with mysterious little darts. As they look around they notice the carved faces in the trees.. but wait...one of the perceptive characters says "the faces, I swear one of them just moved." DM says Roll Initiative.... he he he
After that the characters should be leveled high enough to face the real threat on the island.
As far as Cutthroat Island goes I love the idea of the map being tattooed onto the scalp of one of the map keepers. I also love when the good guys "Gena Davis and Mathew Modine" are following the map through thick jungle and almost fall over the edge of a huge cliff. Only to discover that the treasure is in a cave in the cliffside. Still I can see many an adventurer failing the Dexterity save to not fall over the edge. Helarity .
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dmgreg8
Cardboard Collector
Posts: 22
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Post by dmgreg8 on Jul 30, 2015 8:00:22 GMT
finding treasure is always the same thing, reguardless of where you look... - a place - a map - a compass compass gives you the map direction, the map gives you the place. and the place holds the treasure. ---Jack sparrows compass!
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Post by DnDPaladin on Jul 30, 2015 17:55:54 GMT
in the case of jacksparrow, the compass was also the map. as the compass gave the direction directly to the X.
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Jayzhee
Paint Manipulator
What should I work on today?...
Posts: 106
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Post by Jayzhee on Aug 15, 2015 22:39:21 GMT
Hmm...
If you draw the map in red, green, black and blue Sharpies, you can give them an item with a red lens. Use a piece of some old 3D glasses. The Captain's Monocle? "They say only Captain McClaren could read this map..." Through the lens, they won't see the red parts, which would all be lies. Islands that don't exist, false warnings, paths leading to monsters... Maybe a two X's: one red, one blue.
Draw some herrings in red! ;P
Edit: I'm going to try using a piece of Crystal Clear Shrinky Dink, colored red as the monocle. I'll let y'all know if it works!
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smgoggles
Cardboard Collector
Currently saving for a fancy glue gun.
Posts: 17
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Post by smgoggles on Aug 16, 2015 10:21:24 GMT
Hmm...
If you draw the map in red, green, black and blue Sharpies, you can give them an item with a red lens. Use a piece of some old 3D glasses. The Captain's Monocle? "They say only Captain McClaren could read this map..." Through the lens, they won't see the red parts, which would all be lies. Islands that don't exist, false warnings, paths leading to monsters... Maybe a two X's: one red, one blue. I happen to have a 'borrowed' UV light somewhere, along with a secure tagging pen that only shows up under UV lighting....So, I could probably do that with a scroll or a map.
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Post by onethatwas on Aug 16, 2015 18:15:51 GMT
That is a cool idea...however it would have to be a rather elaborate map (with extensive coordinates/direction written in each color) to fool players, because most people can easily sort out differences in the different colors without difficulty.
An alternative is to make two copies of the map: one in black and white, the other with colored lines. They only get the black and white copy UNTIL they get the monocle...then you let them use the second map.
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Jayzhee
Paint Manipulator
What should I work on today?...
Posts: 106
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Post by Jayzhee on Aug 22, 2015 21:38:53 GMT
Apparently, the "Crystal Clear" Shrinky Dinks are referring to some pretty cloudy crystals! The monocle worked well if I held it to the map, but I can't see crap when I hold it to my eye.
My local craft store has some red plastic that should be usable; I'll just need to make a frame for it. Probably with a chain attached.
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Post by onethatwas on Aug 23, 2015 3:39:02 GMT
Red colored plastic wrap (the kind you find in flower shops), and the cap and screw on part to a gatorade bottle or soda bottle. with a little ingenuity you can make a spiffy monocle/jeweler appraisal lens.
The harder plastic works better obviously, but for a cheap prop...
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Jayzhee
Paint Manipulator
What should I work on today?...
Posts: 106
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Post by Jayzhee on Aug 24, 2015 0:21:19 GMT
I saw some red plastic at the craft store that would work well. It was very much like the rectangle that used to come with Transformers toys to look at their ability chart that was on the back of the box.
Also, I'm old.
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