D&D 5E Putting Characters on Trial

[Platostotle]

Does anyone have some advice/mechanics for trials? I need to accomplish 3 things:
A) Introduce the rulers of this city, acting as the judges
B) Establish the corruption of some of these rulers
C) Establish consequences for actions in major cities.

I want to put them on trial for fighting a dragon inside the city. The rulers want to keep this quiet to avoid a panic. The party should be able to prove that their actions were justified. There are 5 rulers on the council, at least one of the rulers is good, and at least one is evil.

Any ideas for rules for the trial? Should they be allowed counsel, bail? A few of the players re-rolled since the fight with the dragon, what should I do with them?

 

[Sunseeker]

Characters who weren't involved in the fight against the dragon (assuming those PCs died for the sake of argument) shouldn't be put on trial. Perhaps they could act as agents of the remaining party members, like lawyers, investigators, etc...who will help the PCs who are in trouble prove they were justified.

I beg the question: if the government wants to keep this quiet, why are they holding a trial? Seems like the PCs could get out of it by simply agreeing to keep things quiet and playing the whole event up as some elaborate illusion. Alternatively, the government could keep this quiet by not holding a trial and just jailing everyone who refuses to stay quiet.

How do the new party members even know the existing ones? Why would they be inclined to help people who the government essentially wants to "disappear"? If we are to argue that the new party members are basically rogue agents against the government, what incentive do they have to make themselves known to said government?

You want to establish consequences, I suggest you determine exactly what those consequences are, and how the nobles feel about them towards resolving the goal of "keep this quiet".

 

[Lanliss]

A) easy enough, just have some guy read off their titles as they enter.

B)also pretty easy. Have one of them walk up to "examine" the criminals, and offer to make it all go away, for a price...

C) decide your consequences, make sure that they are listed as possible punishments for the given crime, and ask "how do you plead"

 

[Imaculata]

The real question is how you make it fun, and turn this into mini quests. I would think hard about how the scales of power are divided in the city, and who would benefit from having the players set free. And of course, who wants them to be convicted, to further their own agenda? Then you can set up side quests where they have to trust someone to help prove their innocence.

 

[knasser]

• At least one of the judges must be a dragon in disguise. Whether this judge is determined to find them guilty or determined to find them innocent, either way adds interesting plot.
• One of the judges (the one with the deciding vote, possibly) should approach the PCs with a deal. This should be something they don't want to do.
• An NPC who was saved by their fighting the dragon should come forward or otherwise try to help the PCs. Bonus points if they are a child of the strictest judge trying to not let him find out about his / her involvement. (Don't explain to the PCs why the NPC is being so furtive and reluctant to be public. Save it for a "Um... hello daddy" moment).
• Have the judges believe - rightly or wrongly - that the dragon would not have been revealed if the PCs didn't start the fight. This is why the PCs can be on trial even for defending the city, if they are blamed for the battle in the first place.
• Have a crazy person who witnessed the fight hanging around streetcorners telling people that "there are dragons amongst us! I have seen them! They were there! (points at PCs) They know the truth!" Bonus points if you can use this to make the PCs think disguised dragons really are a silly conspiracy theory and tie it into the disguised dragon judge above.
• Provide some actual stakes. Have an election for the new alderman or mayor or whatever, with the incumbant insisting "There are no dragons loose in the city" so that the PCs understand why there is a trial and why it matters.
• Call the adventure "Scales of Justice". Ensure at some point you contrive to have a judge in response to the inevitable player that tries to ridicule her say: "Do you want to spend your life in a dungeon? You think this is a game? That matters of dungeons and dragons are to be treated lightly?"
• Have a thief on trial just before them. Have her sentenced to death. Have her sister in the court cry out "Black Leaf! Noooooooo!"
• Drop hints that if the PCs do get taken away, something dreadful that only they can prevent is going to happen. Maybe another dragon will strike / get away / steal an artifact. Have only the PCs believe this so that they know they must convince the judges to let them go or something terrible will occur. This adds impetus and helps stop players thinking that being convicted will just mean you starting the next adventure with "So you're in a dungeon..." and the obligatory bust out and retrieve your equipment cliché. Add some stakes.

 

[Platostotle]

@shidaku The trial would be held in secret. I was thinking that the new party members would at first be arrested by association, and released when it turns out they weren't involved. At least one of the nobles is good, and the rest can't just make the party disappear without him making a stink.

 

[Derren]

Can you give a bit more information about the fight and the intention of the rulers?

If they just want the people to not know that there are dragons in the city and/or the fight has happened a trial would be the last thing they want to do. They would either make a deal with the PCs or execute them in secret without any trial at all.
Or was there any official treaty with that or other dragons which the PCs broke by fighting it (maybe with good reason)?

For a trial to happen a law must have been broken or the rulers must be divided by the actions of the PCs, some supporting it and some not with the trial the only way to resolve the deadlock.

 

[Platostotle]

@knasser Interesting ideas, unfortunately, one of the main NPCs is already a disguised blue dragon (actually gave them the quest that led them to the white dragon). I'm already a little dragon heavy in the story, so I'm worried about adding too many.

 

[Platostotle]

[MENTION=2518]Derren[/MENTION] The rulers are divided. At least one of them is good and will not allow the party to be killed or jailed indefinitely without a trial. The trial would be held in secret.

The white dragon was the muscle behind a group of dragon cultists. When the party started killing cultists, the dragon attacked. The players should be able to plead self-defense, but no one else saw the beginning of the fight.

 

[Derren]

[MENTION=2518]Derren[/MENTION] The rulers are divided. At least one of them is good and will not allow the party to be killed or jailed indefinitely without a trial. The trial would be held in secret.

The white dragon was the muscle behind a group of dragon cultists. When the party started killing cultists, the dragon attacked. The players should be able to plead self-defense, but no one else saw the beginning of the fight.

So what is the intention of the trial and the other rulers? Are they in league with the cultist and want the PCs removed? If not the question is again why the trial is held. Are dragons protected by the laws of the city and they are accused of murder? If yes, why keep the trial in secret? And if not what would it accomplish?
And how can you even keep a fight with a dragon a secret?

Another question is, why should the PCs submit to the trial instead of murdering everyone and flee?