#godking

"These people and lands are mine, they belong to me now, and should any try to take them from me I shall turn them to ash!" His voice boomed, the clouds shuddered and flashed, the earth rumbled underfoot.

Of course the foolish Empire did not listen, they sneered and threatened before trying to march forward. They made it only three steps before our King raised his blade and the heavens smote the army before us, whole platoons slain in blinks of an eye, thunderous blasts so strong it shattered plate.

Within moments the empire was broken, they sounded the retreat before they had even met our forces. Our King turned to us, the storm behind him a halo of mighty godlike power. We knelt before him, and each and every one of us pledged our very souls to the Lightning King.

To this day he sits upon our throne, a guardian of our people, even after four centuries under his hand.

The Hook

Now after four centuries the king has made his first move since the rebellion, having been isolated from the world as the people shunned any outsider.

The party have come across a set of animated armour sparking with lightning, a core of cracked crystal. A difficult fight the party defeat it (barely) and discover two things:

1. An unusual makers mark on the inside of the helm.

2. The cracked crystal let most of the power escape, had it been whole it could have torn the party limb from limb with ease.

After reporting the deadly creation to the authorities the captain has concerns that there's more behind this and asks the party to investigate, pointing them toward someone who may be able to track down the maker, and see how far the rabbit hole goes.

What the party will discover will be a series of subterfuge and treason, along with the machinations of a God King looking to craft an army of unstoppable automatons powered by the storm.

Some Ideas

So, this is overall a typical dnd campaign, a big bad of godlike proportions looking for world domination. But it is a classic for a reason, plus I had some thoughts on the truth of the kings origin:

This man was not born this way, he is the remnants of a slain god. When the last avatar of a god died their powers diffused into the ethereal plane, their weapon however fell to the material. In the crater a young man touched the blade, the innate magic of the divine weapon tearing into the boy and twisted his mind. While he was not a true avatar, and was still mortal, he held the morals of the now dead god. Transformed by the raw power the man became mighty in stature and skilled with his weapon, fragments of divine knowledge allowing him to channel the powers bestowed upon him.

When the people around him started to worship him as a saviour it only felt natural, the charisma that came with power attracting anyone to his cause.

Of course this is entirely up to you, maybe he is a genuine god, or perhaps just a man infused with power beyond regular comprehension. I imagine the stories about him from his people's perspective to be reverent, seeing him as a mighty saviour capable of killing thousands of soldiers, however this could be embellished after generations.

He may have only killed the townsguards the people had forced to flee, the guards wanting to turn back and fight the rebellion they couldn't control, so the "King" used a magic item to obliterate the disorganised force. Four-hundred years is enough time for a single dramatic act to spiral out of control.

The party can follow the trail of the armour to find a craftsman living in the empire who worships the Lightning King, wanting to let him rule the world, or their child/partner is being held hostage, letting the party save them and gain a skilled ally.

Ultimately this is pretty freeform, I like the idea behind the question:

"What happens when a god dies?"

Since the death has lore implications as well as allowing a DM to show the world behind the divine curtain, how gods aren't quite as invulnerable as people think.

Art by: Darkcloud013

The blade is chipped and cracked, its once stately guard dull as it crashes into the earth. This image is evocative of loss and sorrow, but with a ringing power behind it. I love this, simple but so impactful. Thank you