If I changed the ruleset to something else would people be more interested or less?
With only the first two books completed I will have to use an outline I found on the
Paizo forums of the following 4 books to guide me through the rest of the campaign.
Book Three: Death or Dammerhall*picture of a castle with Dwarven statues surrounding it*
After the events of Book Two, the PCs should have discovered a route to the lost dwarven city of Dammerhall. They discover that road is hidden and concealed behind a living secret door that is as much a golem as it a method of passage. They must discover how to get past it by demonstrating their worthiness either by honest deed or dark deception.
They discover even before they enter the city that they are not the only ones interested in the goings on in the city. An agent of death, a psychopomp, has been sent to this plane of existence to track down the so-called King of Dammerhall, a corrupt dwarf of the old city who has achieved immortality using forbidden magic and dark pacts. She can be either a useful ally or a deadly enemy, but she definitely has her own agenda and the PCs must tread carefully around her.
*picture of a dark-haired lady surrounded by tiny spiders*
Finally the PCs discover the gates of Dammerhall and thus begins the overwhelming bulk of the adventure – a dwarven city exploration sandbox. There are dozens of points of interest, dangerous creatures and secrets to discover. There is great wealth, the potential to become the rightful high king of the dwarves and a deadly deathless enemy who wields a frightful weapon crafted by the dwarves of old at the full height of their power and craft.
*picture of a cannon golem awaiting the PCs*
As the book ends, the PCs may either reestablish a thriving dwarven city with them as its rulers or plunder this hulk for the wealth necessary to build an army to expand their ever-growing underworld empire.
Book Four: City of Night*picture of a knife-wielding drow hiding behind a wall within a drow city, avoiding a drow mage*
The PCs either learn of the threat of a nearby drow city, Taaryssia, or perhaps bring their plans to get revenge against the queen of the drow who banished them to fruition. The journey to the city is not without is perils, but they pale compared to the countless dangers within this haven of evil. The drow city is a roiling cauldron of intrigue and treachery. Five drow nobles house vie for control of the city. The PCs (if they’re drow) likely come from the destroyed sixth house. Each house proudly wears amulets made of mithral and various gemstones to show their allegiances.
*picture of all six main drow noble heraldry insignia*
For dwarves, infiltration is possible, but you must always be wary of capture. If the drow capture you, they may force you into fight in their deadly arena. Is there any way to escape or will you die for the pleasure of debauched dark elf masters? Can you even rise to become a champion of the arena, earning a personal audience with the Queen herself?
*picture of two dwarves wearing mithral in the middle of a coliseum, surrounded by four drow on giant spiders*
Who can you trust? Which houses truly desires to see the queen deposed? Everyone has an agenda and the PCs must navigate this web of intrigue if they are to survive in this deadly city of the dark elves.
*picture of a drow noble with one blue eye and one green eye*
And perhaps even worse, the city is not populated merely by the elves. Taaryssia is a nexus of worlds. Portals open to multiple layers of the abyss and to other more esoteric planes of existence. Even the drow nobility of the city has crossbred heavily with demons and one of the houses is guided by a sinister marilith who may become friend or foe depending upon how she feels the PCs can serve her needs.
*picture of either a marilith half-drow or a drow half-marailith sitting on a throne*
And finally after negotiating its countless dangers and discovering its many secrets, there lies the queen herself. This merciless monarch of the drow will not easily give up her power to upstart challengers. And if she is not stopped, she will soon raise an army that could crush the fledgling empire that the PCs have been growing.
*picture of a drow army next to a demon army*
*picture of a drow noble woman with a glaberzu and another demon by her side*
Book Five: Sailors on a Sunless Sea*picture of a jet black aboleth creature*
With Taaryssia dealt with either by war, assassination or alliance, the PCs began to realize that they may face an enemy greater than either drow or corrupted dwarves. Caravans start to go missing. Reports of strange aberrations appearing in the depths come to their attention. And everywhere there are dark omens that something of terrible magical power is awakening the deepest depths of the earth. To find out more and to reach these rarely visited depths, the PCs must cross the great Sunless Sea.
*picture of dwarves in a boat rowing down an underground river*
What soon becomes apparent is that the Sunless Sea is not one sea, but many, each with its own unique character -- a great subterranean network of waterways, dark islands and flooded caves. Some portions are shrouded in mists. Other seas boil like a hot cauldron over a ceaseless fire. Some are the domain of monsters never dreamed of by the sunlit realms.
*picture of a huge aberration shark*
There are strange tribes of weird creatures rarely even heard of by the those who dwell above. The PCs must conquer them either by guile or by force if they are make this epic underworld journey across the sunless sea.
*picture of an aquatic creature riding a two-headed sea mount*
And as they make this journey, their true enemy comes closer into view – a dark enemy below with horrid designs upon the realms above. These waters are not merely the home of monsters. This is the domain of the fearsome aboleth and they do not tolerate outsiders.
*picture of a boat filled with drow crossing waters, unaware of the aboleth dangers below*
Book Six: Dark Dynasty*picture of what can only be describe as Atlantis in a snow globe*
In the deepest depths, the underworld grows strange indeed. The creatures here are utterly alien, bizarre and malevolent.
*picture of a multitude of intellect devourers*
The PCs began to learn that their ultimate enemy plots nothing less than dimming the sun so that their dominion can extend across all the world. It is a plan that they have already carried out on other worlds and their work on this one grows close to completion.
Finally, the PCs get to infiltrate the aboleth city only to learn that even the aboleth are only lesser servitors. They must navigate the non-Euclidian architecture of this timeless place and find the great engine that will be the agent of untold havoc. Will the PCs heroically save the world from annihilation or take control of the Sunkiller and use it to extend their own dark dynasty across the face of the world? Are they saviors of legend or will they be conquerors of a world cast into unending darkness?
*picture of an aberration guarding an eerily glowing crystal of the same size*
And finally the ultimate enemy is discovered – a horror from another world intent on making this world its own. Even the aboleth were only pawns of this transdimensional terror. How can anyone hope to oppose this mighty creature?
*a picture of what can only be described as Cthulhu (likely a star spawn) sitting on a throne*
That's all for now.
Having re-read it again there are a few changes that I'm keen to make but in general the campaign should follow that outline.