WWIII (if you're in my supernatural cincinnati game KEEP OUT!!!

[neko128]

All right.  Conspiracy time.  Mr. X (the eeeeevil bad guy) is a warlock, necromancer, something along those lines.  He also happens to be the United States' ambassador to Country Y (something touchy and big - Russia?  China?).  He has a plot to blow something up using a magical bomb or a magical ritual.  He's performing said ritual inside the American Embassy in Country Y.  He's being helped by Mr. Q, Mr. R, and Mrs. S, who are - respectively - official representatives of the US, Country Y and Country W (some classic US Ally - the UK?).  The players get involved somehow (assignment, goody-two-shoes-itis, whatever) and the story arc climaxes when they interrupt the ritual and attempt to stop Mr. X.  Whatever happens, WHATEVER HAPPENS, the blast has to go off - whether it be on its appropriate target, or in the embassy, or whatever...  And get some of the assistants killed off.  Then, just spin the absolute worst way possible.

Case 1) The blast goes off as planned.  Authorities, investigating, find the assistant from the US and/or UK, dead - and involved in the blast.  Russia and/or China declare it a major diplomatic incident that descends into war.

Case 2) The blast goes off in the embassy.  US authorities investigate - and find the Russian/Chinese agent involved.  Major diplomatic incident.

Then just let it spiral out of control.  "You $%&(@ performed a terrorist attack on our embassy!" "You're crazy, you were trying to bomb the Kremlin!" etcetera...

[Lanir]

Well... if you're going with a pure mortal deal here several of the ideas above should work pretty well. If you're looking for something that intimately involves the supernatural then there are a few other options.

1. One of their "Final Confrontations" with a powerful supernatural baddie is caught on camera, possibly even live TV. Think "the bad guy is trying using a blimp to deliver bio-warfare agents to the Superbowl during the halftime show" plots here and then remember how big a simple "wardrobe malfunction" can be.
2. If it's a longer campaign and the PCs are getting a bit too successful at depleting a faction, perhaps said faction decides to take everyone else with them in some sort of anti-zombiepocalypse of pitchforks and torches. The PCs can stop the big reveal but even that might set of a shadow war of sorts.

One of the nice parts about this is you get to add a Men in Black faction to your game afterwards that you can kind of define yourself. They might be more investigatory like the X Files or maybe they're combat troops who don't care what you are, they just want to find you and kill you if you're supernatural. Whichever works better for your game.

[ralexs1991]

Have em accidentally assassinate the Archduke of Austria.   

lol im pretty sure thats been used before maybe lol 

[Richard_Chilton]

Someone recently recommended a series to me - and after watching it I'm recommending to to everyone who enjoys conspiracies where seemingly minor acts have major repercussions.

The show is call House of Cards.  It's a British one, with three main parts which are each broken into four 1 hour episodes.

One of the characters in that show is tasked with very minor things.  Rent an address.  Deliver this envelope.  That sort of thing.  While he's doing those tasks he doesn't clue into the fact that he is setting up the Prime Minister (who he respects and admires) for a fall.

Which is the perfect way to involve PCs in conspiracies.  A series of minor, innocent acts that lead to some world destroying event.  The PCs delivered something, or helps someone.  Maybe they were steered to a person who is threatened by vampires (any court) and they save him - only to learn that he has stolen launch codes.  Or they help a scientist who they later learn was working on a super bug.

An entire campaign could be worked like that - minor points here and there that you record and when they confront the big meanie he thanks them for making his work possible - point out time and time again when they unwittingly helped him....


A good way to start world war three...
Okay, extremists in Pakistan do terrorist attacks in India, which leads to India cracking down on pro-Pakistani groups in India, which leads Pakistan to mobilize.  As both countries start dusting off the nuclear launch codes the US tries to stop things (so they can use Pakistan to continue the war in Afghanistan) and China tries to play regional power - coming head to head with the US.  NATO goes on alert while Russia tries to defuse things.  A religious festival in India provides the spark and the nukes go flying.
As they do massive EMPs blanket the globe, taking out electrical grids, plunging the survivors into a new dark age.  Fallout is spread by the winds and cancer claims billions.

Or...
Iran is about to go nuclear and Israel takes steps to stop it - bombing steps.  This inflames tensions, leading to a new Arab - Israel war.  A stolen Russian nuke takes out Tel Aviv and Israeli nukes goes flying in response.  Various nations start getting involved to keep the Middle East from being turning to a smoking waste land - the US and Europe want the oil and Iran boarders Russia.  Things get out of hand (especially as the cloud of radioactive fallout spreads around the world) and more nukes fly.

Or...
North Korea has a brain fart and decide to break the cease fire.  Artillery (which has been prepping for this for 50 years) opens up and starts destroying the South.  Since the artillery is so well fortified the only way to neutralise it quickly is with nukes.  China - not wanting to see nukes used so close to it - freaks.  As that happens a number of yachts in major US harbours explode - revealing where the North Korean nukes went.  The US assumes that China had some thing to do with that, or China assumes that the US will assume and acts first.  Either way the missiles fly.

When you look at all the ways WW III could start you begin to wonder at the accident of peace.

Richard

[Kaldra]

if your party has ANY ties toe the courts (fae or vamp) major political figure breaks a promise as they usually do, the party is asked to black bag this man while s\he is out at their summer home, dont tell them who it is, have them take the figure through the NN and then back to the US and hand them to the given party for a sit down. major political figure isnt killed but is instead slipped into a prison and then the questions come up how did the politician get into the state run facility and why is he not the only one we are finding there.

or on a side note the court makes an example of the guy who broke a deal with their leader because really, would being a politician be protection from flipping off Mab? really? conversely if the party isnt the black bagging type have them be the security hired to stop a super natural threat from harm major political figure man becuase when your security and you eff up publicly its your head in the noose and as murph knows the fairies did it doesnt fly, who will the PC's blame in an attempt to save their own asses? (from my experiance the answer is any one)

if your party has any religious players ( knights work really well ) major political figure takes up a coin, he must either be redeemed or stopped before he uses his/her clout to kick off Armageddon. during the assault on the, insert iconic political place here, the group coincidently kills some one ( security will shoot first and players tend to get fiesty when that happens ) important while doing there duty to save the world and analysts peg... France ( they havent been a BBEG for a while ) for it. honestly any country with enough status to be a player in the world could fill the roll but really France seems like it would be interesting, and as a plus Paris, whole butload of fun places there.

Take one of your players who has a shady past or present ( kincades work well here ) have them run some "side jobs" in which they do minor things and eventually kill some one setting up the mob or some nonsense, in reality he is being used to start up a series of retaliatory assassinations which all take place in your city during a conference which escalates to war. now enter the rest of the party as that one pc asks the group to have a sit down with him as he comes clean, this gives one of your players a chance to really help shape the story and if you let other people have moments like this it really can create some interesting results ( a non world war three scenario version of this trick may have been how a bakery selling goods infused with human souls into them opened up, and yes the pc's were running it >.< ) ( dont ask... really dont ask ).

[GoldenH]

The PCs did it, but it was future versions of them who time travelled to the past to start it. They have to figure out why they did it in the first place, before paradox unravels the time-stream.

[Becq]

Not only that, but they might have to deal with Wardens regarding the Laws, too.  After all, in the 'present' of your game, time travel had already been performed by the characters in question...  :p

[Kaldra]

not just wardens time is the jurisdiction of The Gatekeeper, who as Jim said is the most dangerous of the council.

[neko128]

...major political figure takes up a coin...

That's evil and mean.  I love it.

[Kaldra]

 

[ralexs1991]

i ended up having one of the party members who i had been keeping NPC (i had told them he was there in case one of them died they could play as him  ) any who i had him kill Hugo Chaves' (i think thats how it's spelled  ) daughter to prevent her from becoming the vessal for what they thought was an ancient god of death but actually it was all a plan devised but an unnamed god of war to kick start WWIII  so he could become more powerful *insert evil snicker* 

[Kaldra]

ah perfect i was going to ask that you let us know what you ended up using, i hope it goes well.

[ralexs1991]

ah perfect i was going to ask that you let us know what you ended up using, i hope it goes well.

actually the players all think that a god of death is behind it so im going to have the run into Freya in the NN who will actually tell them that it was no god of death that was behind it and somehow she will point them towards the Greek pantheon... to be continued

[Kaldra]

*cough* kratos *cough*

[ralexs1991]

*cough* kratos *cough*

epic win maybe i will have to throw a refrence in there haha