I just used these guidelines to make the characters first visit a little more memorable. The idea is from sly-flourish and DMG
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- What fantastic characteristic about the town do they notice first? The Elkhorn wall (pg. 62) and the impaled gearsmen (pg. 66).
- Give them a physical map of the town.
- What event happens to be going on at the town? The Burning of King Robot Day. Carnival atmosphere, stalls and the like. Children dressed as robots run around play acting, puppet shows with the theme “robots are bad, heroes are good” are on. At night they burn a giant effigy of a gearsman. They no longer burn real tech due to the disaster a decade ago when they inadvertently added grenades to the bonfire and burned it to the ground.
- What three quests or hooks brought the PCs to the town? What leads can they follow?
- What are the three most interesting locations in the town? The High Home and Old Skelton’s Farm.
- What are the three most interesting NPCs the PCs are likely to want to meet? Redfang, Illaris and Eldermen Ivik Gunett
- What brings each PC to the town? Chasing leads about a second Iron God named Casandalee.
- What friend or relative lives here? I asked the players to come up with a one line sentence if they knew anyone in Iadenveigh. Two of them – Rikku and Sylvanus – came up with good ones so I used them. Rikku knew an old friend of the family. A trader called Johnny Bagels. And Sylvanus’ linked it to her backstory – one the adventurers who saved her from the mind flayers retired here. Worked nicely to have these contact point them to Redfang more naturally.
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