Sorry if this has come up before, but is there any cleric in Diamond Lake of a high enough level to raise the dead? One of the party was critically hit by Theldrick in the Hextor Temple battle and went down, which is where we left off the session. The party is gung ho about resurrecting their companion... Is Greyhawk the nearest city capable of doing so?
According to the Overload, the highest level clerics in town are only 7th (Wierus of St Cuthbert and Valkus Dun of Hieroneous), implying there ain't no raisin' goin' on.
Depending upon how much fuss you want to make about this, you could change Valkus Dun from Cleric 7/Fighter 3 to Cleric 9/ Fighter 1. Then all your party has to do is raise the 5000 gp worth of diamonds necessary to cast the spell...
Sorry if this has come up before, but is there any cleric in Diamond Lake of a high enough level to raise the dead? One of the party was critically hit by Theldrick in the Hextor Temple battle and went down, which is where we left off the session. The party is gung ho about resurrecting their companion... Is Greyhawk the nearest city capable of doing so?
Maybe Amariss of Wee Jas will help with an Animate Dead??
For me, it would not fit the mood of Diamond Lake if there was a priest capable of raising the dead, so I would not change the levels of the NPC Priests.
I would not let them get off the hook just by paying 5000 gp or whatever. If they find a priest (within time) capable of this, they have to persuade him somehow to cast that spell. If the dead PC in question worshipped another god, that would be hard. A priest of Pholtus might not be too eager to raise a follower of St. Cuthbert or Heironeous, for example. The Priest might require a conversion from raised character or even the whole group, on top of generous donations.
The Free City is the right place to look for a priest capable and willing to raise the dead, there are high priests of Pelor, St. Cuthbert, Rao and many more in the city. The best bet would probably be Pelor, this faith is the most open minded about raising non-believers.
Stefan
IMC Greyhawk (the Free City) is a resource for many or most exotic needs and wants, such as raise dead.
i.e. no raise dead in DL :)
Jack
I simply gave each of the higher level priests a scroll or two of Raise Dead. Now of course they wouldn't use them on just anyone, luckily (I guess) for the party only the cleric of Heironeous and the sorcerer had died so they could get raised. Sure they had to pay gold, magic (chain and the pearl of power) plus the cleric has a tithe to pay until the church states otherwise. For the sorcerer who went to the priests of Wee Jas had to tell them everything they have been doing. One of the books I have read stated that the Wee Jas priesthood like to have information in exchange for services rendered.
This allows the characters to get brought back, but they know theres a limit, once the scrolls are gone, thats it. I am also using Andy Collin's rules for characters being raised and they are working out well (gain a negative level until next level).
They could always go to the Bronzewood Lodge and pay for a Reincarnate...which could be very funny.
"I'm a kobold...but I'm the main fighter?"
At 2000 gp a pop and a 4th level spell it's well within the ballpark.
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I've read of other games that have used the Bronzewood Lodge as a route for bringing back a PC with a reincarnate spell. If the PCs are willing to go that route, taking the chance with returning as a kobold or flumph, I'd be willing to have a 9th+ level cleric of Obad-hai/Beory/Elhonna visiting the Lodge for a religious ceremony of some sort. Have the PCs roleplay the situation and "earn" that raise dead at reincarnation prices.
Aside from the Free City, Magepoint is well-known for having personalities of power and the PCs may be better served to take a side trek there pursuing a raise dead spell. In this case, the DM can do a little foreshadowing for future installments of the AP.
How far is Magepoint from Diamond Lake? Would they be able to get there in time without horses? How long by horse?
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How far is Magepoint from Diamond Lake? Would they be able to get there in time without horses? How long by horse?
Gentle repose is easily had in Diamond Lake to keep the body "Tupperware fresh".
Looking at the Domain of Greyhawk map, Magepoint is probably more accessable by heading east out of Diamond Lake and taking a ranger trail from Bronzewood Lodge north to the Nyr Dyv. Otherwise, it's through Elmshire and along the coast. Eyeballing the map (digital, not to scale), it looks like it's just a quick to the Free City. ::shrug::
They could always go to the Bronzewood Lodge and pay for a Reincarnate...which could be very funny.
"I'm a kobold...but I'm the main fighter?"
At 2000 gp a pop and a 4th level spell it's well within the ballpark.
Of course, Nogweir is only 6th level. . . .
It's probably not really worth raising a third level character anyhow, but it's not really my call.
Here's a tangent question: Will the world eventually be wiped clean of precious gems used for spells like identify and raise dead? What happens to gems that are used in this way? Are they obliterated or do the gems perhaps get sucked into another dimension full of gems?
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Nobody is. As another poster referred to above, Greyhawk is a quick trip away.
The PCs took a wagon coach to the free city with a dead comrade to have him raised. Wiped out a good chunk of the loot from The Whispering Cairn to do it - but they got a reasonable deal at the Temple of St. Cuthbert in the CoGH.
Chief Creative Officer, Publisher
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For me, it would not fit the mood of Diamond Lake if there was a priest capable of raising the dead, so I would not change the levels of the NPC Priests.
Me neither.
Diamond Lake is a gauntlet. The characters who go on to basically save the world are the ones who managed to escape with their lives. The fact that some PCs probably don't make it out alive makes the fact that some do more special, and hammers home the idea that death is a very real risk throughout the campaign.
I appreciate that that's a bit harsher than some DMs would prefer to play it, and I think the right choice for any DM is the one that makes for a more enjoyable game, but the fact that none of the clerics in Diamond Lake can bring you back from the dead was an intentional choice for the reasons I outlined above.
--Erik
...but the fact that none of the clerics in Diamond Lake can bring you back from the dead ...
Apart Valkus Dun's scroll of Raise Dead, which IS mentioned in the Overload (well spotted, Olmac!) Mind you, the PC's would have to be super extra persuasive to get him to cast it on one of them rather than say keep it for the garrison's uses.
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Apart Valkus Dun's scroll of Raise Dead, which IS mentioned in the Overload (well spotted, Olmac!)
~takes a bow~
Thank you. One of characters in my group is a Paladin of Heironious and I let it be known to him, and the party through him, that there is only one raise dead in Diamond Lake (the scroll). They have yet to use it and are done WC. Yes, they made it through without a death. Mind you, the half orc barbarian and the rogue have been deep into the negatives a couple times.
The character are about to embark upon TFoE starting this week and I am sure that they will suffer a death there. I don't think it is the type of adventure that can done by going in until your out of spells and healing, leave and rest a couple days and then go at it again. That is how they got through WC. The only time they pushed a bad position was against Filge and that was because they realized they screwed up dealing with Kullen and had to finish off Filge without porperly preparing. Had they done that, Filge would have had backup at the behest of Smenck.
Oh well, I bet I kill one or two of them in TFoE.
Apart Valkus Dun's scroll of Raise Dead, which IS mentioned in the Overload (well spotted, Olmac!)~takes a bow~
Thank you. One of characters in my group is a Paladin of Heironious and I let it be known to him, and the party through him, that there is only one raise dead in Diamond Lake (the scroll). They have yet to use it and are done WC. Yes, they made it through without a death. Mind you, the half orc barbarian and the rogue have been deep into the negatives a couple times.
The character are about to embark upon TFoE starting this week and I am sure that they will suffer a death there. I don't think it is the type of adventure that can done by going in until your out of spells and healing, leave and rest a couple days and then go at it again. That is how they got through WC. The only time they pushed a bad position was against Filge and that was because they realized they screwed up dealing with Kullen and had to finish off Filge without porperly preparing. Had they done that, Filge would have had backup at the behest of Smenck.
Oh well, I bet I kill one or two of them in TFoE.
As a grizzled vet of the TFoE - a wand of CLW makes all the difference. My guys are halfway through their second one, in fact.
Really, I don't think players of 4th level or lower should at all be counting on Raise Dead and the like. Not only is it well beyond their level (9th level to cast it), as well as far beyond their price range (5,000 gp, minimum, to bring back a single member), but that's some pretty hefty magic. There's probably lots of people who have done much more heroic deeds than get killed by the leader of some cult, and none of them had the luxury of being brought back from the dead. If characters that low of level just assume that they'll be able to be brought back from the dead, it really de-emphasizes the fact that death should be a big deal. That, in my opinion, is worse than 20th-level characters being True Resurrected all the time- they've been through the worst, and they've got the fame and prestige to expect it. If Bob the 3rd-level Fighter is expecting a Raise Dead, hasn't death lost its sting?
Good point UltimaGabe. I agree that its not really realistic for a third level fighter/rogue to be brought back from the dead. I imagine the party is eventually going to come to the same conclusion.
In general I'm against too frequent usage of the Lazarus thing. However, in a campaign this tough, I tend to be a bit more liberal for the sake of continuity--occasional deaths are inevitable, but you want to at least have a couple of your original characters see the quest through to the end.
In this case, I'd say Valkus Dunn might be willing to use his scroll for a good cause. If one of the party members has some kind of tie to Hieroneous or the garrison, it will be much easier to persuade him that the cause is good, of course. But that still gives them only one free pass for the early part of the campaign, and probably costs a substantial tithe, even if Dunn doesn't charge full price.
Best option is a wand of cure light wounds--which my party smartly ponied up for before 3FOE (having made it through a few tough AP/Campaign Arc dungeons before and realizing the necessity of pooling money to purchase such items). Since 2 additional ones are in the loot of 3FOE, they'll have some back up once they burn the first one (which they will almost certainly do, at least by 2/3 of the way through the adventure.) Hopefully your party has at least one secondary healer who can make use of the extra wand when the cleric goes down. My party fortunately has both a bard and a paladin, which saved their bacon in the Hextor temple! Oh, and hopefully they're smart enough to burn as many charges as needed to get back to full HP between encounters.
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Best option is a wand of cure light wounds--which my party smartly ponied up for before 3FOE (having made it through a few tough AP/Campaign Arc dungeons before and realizing the necessity of pooling money to purchase such items).
Absolutely true. My players bought one just before the final advance to the True Tomb in Whispering Cairn.
It is, easily, the best investment of party gold that a low level party can make.
... the fact that none of the clerics in Diamond Lake can bring you back from the dead was an intentional choice for the reasons I outlined above.
I agree with Erik, in the general case.
Although, in my own campaign, the PC's had done a major favour to the Cuthbertites (handed over Theldrick, which really annoyed the Heironean church and hence scorred good political points for the High Priest of St Cuthbert). So when our group had their first casualty, which was really bad luck not bad planning, I gave them a break and had the High Priest of St Cuthbert send for a scroll from the Free City. He dressed it up in his rituals to make it look like he simply prayed to his god for a week or so, taking various donations from the party (money as well as magic items).
It also helped that the dead PC happened to have grown up in a nunnery with nuns of St Cuthbert, so the High Priest saw her "St Cuthbert Badge" on her clothing. I also got another of the PC's (the Ogre) to convert to the worship of St Cuthbert - I even got him to start on the self-flagelation thing.
All in all, it turned out to be quite fun, and built on some existing story lines. Now the church has "Saint Nia", returned from the dead, which has increased his already large following in the town. A "win win situation" :-)