David Gunter's page

You know, I seem to recall that there was a scroll or other magic item in Bhal Hamatung that would allow a PC to either see invisible or to cast invisibility purge. Looking through the module, I can't seem to find it anywhere, though.

I'm thinking of planting a scroll of invisibility pruge on Mangh if I can't find the original location.

If I'm not mistaken, it is either in the Black Dragon's loot or in Mangh's loot (the oh so fun exploding jars). In my campaign, it got blown up.

DM Dave

I also found it much more effective to have the Whips spread out and each firing lightning bolts separately as the Idol counted for 4 whips (I modified it due to the large size of the group I have playing through it). I also had the Whips standing at various locations in the shrine with the soldiers protecting them.

Later in the game the Sorcerer PC polymorphed into an Umber Hulk to dig through the wall around the trapped double doors. After the pc's fled to recover, I had the assassin stalk them. He actually killed 2 pc's during the course of the game. Since the PCs were gone for more than 24 hours recouperating, I had the Kuo-Toa's coat the inside of the tunnel the sorcerer had left around the door with the same adhesive they used to coat their shields. The first player inside had to make DC 17 Reflex saves not to get stuck, and removing an appendage from the walls caused 1d6 points of damage. It wasn't deadly, but it was a pain in the ass for the PCs and it made me laugh!

I wouldn't be surprised to find out that more parties entered the shrine through the secret door rather than the main entrance.

DM Dave

I like it! I also placed my campaign in the Silver Marches. I used Sundabar as Sasserine (sp?) the capital of the region Cauldron is in. I placed Cauldron near the High Forest and extended mountain ranges and rivers as needed to match the map found in Flood Season. Good luck with your game!
DM Dave

A.K.A. Thom Vincent, I believe.

Anyone out there ever wonder what I'm wondering? That this brawny ex D&D devotee may have nicked his cool surname from Deisel, a cartographer brought on board at TSR some time back in the 80's.

I first saw the latter's work appear in I6 (was it?), the Ravenloft module. It was a mindblowing new take on the dungeon lay-out, 3-D and quite detailed.

The thought had occurred to me. It was interesting seeing all of the celebraties who have played or do play D&D in the 30th anniversary book. I wonder if they approached Mike Myers? Lothar of the Hill People was based on a character he played in High School. It would be great to see a group of celeb gamers get together and post their adventures. (Maybe even including Wil?) but I bet they would have as hard a time getting the group together as those of us in the real world do. Deisel was great! I wonder what happened to him?

DM Dave

Guilds:
The City Guard
The Church of St Cuthbert
The Church of Pelor
The Church of Wee Jas
The Church of Kord
The Last Laugh Thieves Guild
The Alleybashers
The Chisel
The Striders of Fharlanghn

Are you going to convert to the FR pantheon?

DM Dave

I don't think it is necessarily a TPK waiting to happen. It is good to teach groups to slow down, use strategy, even retreat from time to time. I took the spear guy (can't remember his name) from the work area as he appeared to be superflous and had him acting as Mangh's assistant. A bloody nose can be a good teacher from time to time. Have fun!

DM Dave

b.t.w. I built the central shrine out of cardstock using a worldworks games set a few weeks ago. Here's the finished result.

That looks great! I definately endorse decent scenary in the game. It helps everyone visualize what is happening. I have been and am using the Dwarven Forge Mastermaze set pieces. Impressive!

DM Dave

inviting everyone to

unrelated to this

Grecian Formula, producing

filch fiendish fondue

I too have been very happy with Dungeon and will be renewing my subscription. The Adventure Path has been great and I can't think of any better entertainment value for your money (while fully dressed) than D&D and Dungeon Magazine. I can keep a group of 11 people (also fully dressed) entertained for 7 hours straight for a couple of bucks. The magazine is high quality and it is obviously run by people who love the game as much as I do. Keep up the great work!

DM Dave

The Wesley clone

which tasted like

down dark, dingly

Excellent! Smithers, you've outdone yourself!

DM Dave

at the rogue's

I was finishing

The SRD. Don't leave home without it. :)

Dumb question- What is the SRD?

bag of unimaginable

the Cleric unzipped

which came as

I will be running the final confrontation with Zenith Splintershield this weekend and would like some advise from this august body on running the Invisible Stalkers. I will be increasing the number of stalkers from 1 to 2 or possibly 3 due to the size of the group. I don't have much experience running permanently invisible foes and I don't have any of the books with me here at the office, but I understand that to hit the IS, the PC must first, take a guess on where it is, second roll a percentage die due to concealment (50% miss chance) and third, roll to hit at a -4 due to the creature being invisible. Is this correct?

Thanks for the help!

DM Dave

My group gets together about every three weeks. I generally set the games up for the weekends my wife is on ER call as she has no interest in the game. We get together around 5:00 pm, bs for about 30 minutes and then play until around 2:00 am. These games are most often on Saturdays as we have 3 teenagers playing in the group who have school and the players drive between 30 minutes to an hour to get to my house. I also have the table set, books out , DMscreen up and am ready to play when they arrive. As we often go 3 weeks between games, I usually give a brief recap from notes I have taken during the previous session just to get everyone up to speed. I ain't as young as I used to be (38) so I have laid off the Chimay during the game and stick to water, coffee, and sodas. It also makes a difference when running a game for up to 10 players who are often all talking at once.

DM Dave

So one of my player a sorcerer\elemental sevant just got the sign of the smoking eye by thowing his familier into the flam.

the way everything works out is that he would get 9th level spells at 20th level. This was before he got SSE. Now he dose not get them at all or until 21st level depending.. anyone one have any advice now how to work this out? he is bummed about the situation but i told him that he did it to himslef.

I'd have to agree with you. A reasonable Wizard/Sorcerer usually goes to great pains to keep his familiar safe. That doesn't usually include throwing it into flames to see what happens.

DM Dave

I have been playing D&D for several years, and my children are learning the rules now (and dragging my wife into the mess too). I want to know what other longtime gamers think of 3.5 edition, and if a revision was really needed.

I was really upset when they announced they were going to come out with 3rd edition as I had a substantial investment in 2nd edition and AD&D materials. I was even more upset when Dungeon quit supporting these earlier versions of the game as they had done in the past (there was a time when Dungeon would publish Basic, AD&D, and 2nd edition modules all in the same issue). I felt like my games were running just fine thank you and I didn't want to go through the expense and trouble of learning a new system.

Then a friend gave me the core set of 3.0 books and I decided to give it a try. I do like the new edition, and from a practical standpoint, you are not going to find much support for the earlier editions anymore except for at Half-Price Books. It is a good system and easier to use in many respects. The feats/skills/prestige classes can be a little overwhelming to keep track of, and it is a little easier to overlook something important in regards to running the NPCs and monsters, but it does give the players and the DM alot of flexibility in character/creature creation. I have never been a big fan of the half-dragons, but the fact that alot of the 3rd edition materials use creatures that longtime players haven't seen before keeps it fresh for them as well. I was getting really sick of 1st level characters who had never seen a troll before pulling out their oil flasks just because the players were so intimately familiar with that encounter.

Definately give 3.5 a try. Good luck to you!

DM Dave

David Gunter wrote:

Some of the other uses this player has come up with for the spell are shrinking locked doors or portcullises and returning them to a regular size in a narrow passageway when being chased. The fun never ends!

Wow! THAT is a great use of the spell, and it's still in the original spirit of the spell.

Also, if you cast the spell, and it's technically "active," is the slot used up until Shrink Object is dispelled? I don't remember how this works, but it't another possible wrinkle. . .

My interpretation is that the object remains shrunk until it is dispelled or the spell duration expires (5 days I think, but I would have to look it up). The PC is able to cast it as many times a day as he has 2nd level spell slots. His plan is to carry up to 5 items at all times, and to just recast the spell on the object before the duration expires. It is one of the prerequisite spells to have if he later wants to make a Robe of Useful Items. He is tracking his timing, and I trust him to be truthful with it. I think another interesting variation might be to have the item remain shrunken for 1d4+1 days and have the dm make the roll and not tell him the result. That could make the spell more dangerous for the PC but it would be just another thing for the DM to keep track of. It could make for some funny or nailbiting gameplay though!

DM Dave

K wrote:

Ok, Shrink Item can be dismissed by hitting it against something or a command word.

This means that your PC can Shrink Item bonfires, pools of acid or holy water, lava, or boulders.

Now, DnD rules about Polymorph show that when two objects superimposing the same square due to transmutation magic means that the expanding creature/object is shunted into the nearest open space with no damage to either party.

However I don't think the players plan to hit the Drow priestess with the rock and then unshrink it. The idea is you take your rock and throw it at the enemy - before it actually hits them and while it still has enough room to expand you dismiss the spell. Personally I'd want to try for pop flys if the space was available. That way you could throw the rock and when it was just coming out of its apex you dismiss it and a 6 ton rock squashes flat whatever annoying bad guy was below it. I guess they would probably get some kind of a reflex save to avoid being turned into so much pulp, though.

Though if your rules are correct regarding polymorphing and such then its actually better for the players. If they did forget about the 6 ton rock and it grows back while their trying to catch some sleep or something they will have a rude awakening when they are shunted aside but won't actually be harmed.

I really appreciate everyone's help with this issue. I think I will end up using either the polymorph rules on superimposed objects, or increase the time it takes to grow an object back to it's original size to 10 rounds. The 10 round rule for returning an object to it's normal size could still be useful in some trap making scenario and leaves all of the other uses of the spell intact. Another alternative, if I wanted to let the spell be useful as a combat spell, would be to increase the spell level from a 2 to a 7 or thereabouts. I don't know of any 2nd level offensive spell that can do up to 27d6 of damage such as this one could if I let the player go with the "throw the rock and turn it into a boulder right before it hits" ploy. Alternatively, if he wants an offensive spell, I can give him the opportunity to ditch this one in favor of an offensive spell. Some of the other uses this player has come up with for the spell are shrinking locked doors or portcullises and returning them to a regular size in a narrow passageway when being chased. The fun never ends!

Paul McCarthy wrote:

I am flicking back through all my old issues of Dungeon to see what ones I need to order through backstock and run upon this doozy. What a collection of adventures in 37! "Serpent of the Sands" (an amazing Yuan-ti adventure set in the desert), "A Wizards Fate" (a nice little side adventure), "The White Boar of Kilfay"(easily Willie Walsh's best effort), "Their Master's Voice"(nice little side trek)and everybody's favourite, "The Mud Sorceror's Tomb". If you are looking for the quintessential Dungeon magazine, this one comes highly recommended.

Belated thanks for your belated kind words...! It's always great to hear that the old adventures are still entertaining people after all these years.

My favorite was, "A Wrastle with Bertrum". My players still list that as one of their most memorable games. The Horn of Jumping they got from that module continues to be a great source of chaos and consternation. Thanks for the memories!

DM Dave

I have a player who has just gotten the shrink object spell and of course the first thing he wants to to is shrink a boulder, throw it at someone, and have it returned to it's original size before it hits them. He is able to shrink a 3 cubic ft. boulder which would weigh several tons. This is not a real high level spell, and there are so many different uses for the spell that I think the high number of hp damage this boulder or a shrunken ballista bolt could do is excessive. Has anyone dealt with this issue before in a satisfactory way that doesn't lend itself to abuse? This has had to have come up in someone's game as it seems to be an obvious use of this spell.

Thanks for the help!

DM Dave

Do you have "The Coming of Conan", David? It'a collection of Robert's essays and storys of Conan witten in the order that Howard wrote them. Great stuff. I used to have the whole old collection by Howard, and edited by Lyn Carter and L. Sprague de Camp when I was young. Man, how many times did I reread those things. I then bought the art collection of Frank Frazetta (he did the cover for those)wrapped up in five glossy books. Boy, that man could oil paint. He has a whole bunch of sites on the net if you are into fantasy art.

I'd have to agree. Conan is hands down the best series of sword and sorcery books out there, with a possible tip of the hat to Tolkien. Conan is not just a brute strength fighter, but a person of high intelligence who speaks multiple languages who out thinks almost as many opponents as he massacres. There is a second book in the collection series which I believe contains all of the rest of the Conan stories as written by REH. I actually live in the small town of Peaster, Texas where REH was born. There is no plaque or public awareness of that honor anywhere in the town (which consists of scattered houses, a small convenience store, schools, and a large church). You would think the school mascot would be the "Barbarians" at the very least instead of the Greyhounds. Howard was raised and died in Cross Plains Texas, but was born to a travelling physician and his wife in a relatives home in Peaster.

I'd say that if your group is struggling, just inject a side adventure or some more reasonable random encounters to help bulk them up a bit.

There's nothing about the AP that REQUIRES full casters or anything of the sort...just do what you would in any case...adjust, let them advance, lower the opponents...and keep on telling the story.

I'd agree with Andorax, you should try to run some mini-adventures or increase random encounters to give your PCs a chance to get at a more reasonable level. Your problem does bring up an interesting point about the problem with multiclassing. One of the players in my group is a serious min-maxer and had multiclassed to such a level that he was basically ineffective. Jack of all trades, master of none. The PCs who are more focused on their particular class progression are much more effective. Maybe this is poetic justice for min/maxing?

Well, since I started this whole nonsense with my question, I guess I should let you all know how I decided to play it out...Without a CLEAR, DEFINITIVE official ruling, I've decided to do something that I've had to do as a DM for the last two-and-a-half decades... wing it.

Careful thought and reading of the MM entry on hydras has led me to believe that the nasty critters have one body but several independent heads, each with a survival safety-lock that keeps them from doing suicidal individual actions (like biting each other, or pulling in opposite directions hard enough to do any damage. I came to this conclusion from the line that reads, "Hydras can attack with all their heads at no penalty, even if they move or charge during the round." To my knowledge, no other creature has this ability (feel free to correct me if you can think of one, but don't make a big issue, 'cuz I just don't care all that much). Well, I've decided that each head will attack separately with its breath weapon, just as it attacks separately with its bite attacks. Viewing it this way, I will make its breath weapon separate 3d6 attacks. If all 7 heads breathe in the same direction, it could mean up to 21d6 to anyone caught in the collective blast, but with 7 different Reflex saves, it will likely be far less for a competent adventurer. Furthermore, since each head is separate, I will have them roll separately for how long it takes to recharge between breaths... more paperwork for me, but my party would likely find a way to kill the critter in 4 rounds or less, and this way I can give them the cold shoulder more than once, a nickel at a time. Also, since the beast only has animal-level intellect (Int 2), it may not breathe with every head at once, perhaps unleashing several bursts in the first round, with the others following shortly thereafter... then continuing to fire more as they each get the ability back. Since the creature is a Cold subtype, it will be able to blast attackers in any direction, to the flanks or the rear, and has no...

That was similar to how I ran it. I had each head make a 3d6 breath weapon attack and had them all on seperate timers so I was averaging about two attacks per round (I had to increase the Hydra to an 8 head version due to the size of the PC group of 8 players). My party had a more difficult time with the Hydra's AoO due to it's reach and eight bites on each AoO. I only lost the foolhardy monk who charged down the stairs, noticed the flash-frozen drow, and attacked it rather than the Hydra. They found a rough map that I had spritzed with water and placed in the deep-freeze the night before that showed a section of the underdark that included directions to the Kuo-Toa stronghold. Good times, Good times. My group had a much harder time with the Behir they met as a random encounter in a 10 ft wide tunnel. Lost two PCs to that one.

Recently, I got to thinking... What makes a really good adventure? Looking back over the years I've spent as a DM, I think the best adventures I've ever run were ones that had a really good balance of fun, humor, and tough challenges.

It's hard to hit that perfect balance, but, man, when you do, those are the adventures that players talk about for years!

What are your favorite adventures that had all of these elements?

The most fun, intentionally humorous game I have run was from an old Dungeon Magazine adventure (I think it was one of the 30 something issues) called "A Rassle with Bertrum" by Willie Walsh. It gave me an oportunity to completely disarm my players before all hell broke loose. The premis was an unscrupulous Tavern owner who had a troll named Bertrum for a bouncer. He posted a contest in which anyone who could defeat Bertrum in a wrestling match (non-lethal, unarmed combat) could win 500 gp. There were no less than three parties who had shown up just to try to steal the gold (A low level mage apprentice who planned to steal it with a "Horn of Jumping", a group of halflings in really bad disquises pretending to be Darl Danglethumb's Dwarven bandits, and the actual Darl Danglethumb and his bandit gang). The very sad part was that the gold wasn't real. It was a bag of gold painted copper pieces that the Tavern owner thought no one could win. This one was worth buying a back issue for.

DM Dave

I have been running the Adventure Path for several months now with a group of 8 players. I have moved Cauldron to Sembia in the Forgotten Realms. I really wanted to run a more euro-centric adventure so I was forced to change some of the encounters to fit. For example, in Flood Season, I changed Tongue-eater and the baboons to a Werewolf and Dire Wolves. I also replaced the dinosaurs who were eating the carrion behind the Lucky Monkey Inn with two ghouls and one ghast. In Zenith Trajectory, I changed Garrek the mummy/torturer into a creature from the Fiend Folio, that was called something like a Quth Mara? Sorry, don't have it with me, but I would recommend that anyone who has access to the FF look it up as a skinless, undead torturer who can spit and ooze acid made for an excellent character. After my characters left the prisoner's in place during the adventure, they came back to find one dead, and the other one skinned and propped up to make them think the torturer they had killed had returned. The thing I have enjoyed about the adventure path is that, even though several of the players I DM for have been playing since the mid-seventies, they are not familiar with the unusual creatures introduced in the AP. These players are still scratching their heads in wonder about what that creature was.

Dave

David Gunter wrote:

I seem to remember in the Forgotten Realms Box Set (2nd Edition) there being mention of a land near Cormyr that TSR left blank on purpose to give DMs the option of filling it in as they saw fit, but I can't remember the name of the nation. Anyone know the answer?

DM Dave

The nation was Sembia. It lies east of Cormyr and South of the Dalelands. It's south and eastern coast are bordered by the Sea of Fallen Stars.

Thanks! That was driving crazy! It is interesting to see the different approaches everyone took in placing Cauldron. Personally, the idea of a jungle kingdom didn't appeal to me nor did the dinosaur encounters. So I replaced the dinosaur encounter at the Lucky Monkey with ghouls, which worked out quite well. I also changed Tongueeater from a Werebaboon to a Werewolf with a minimum of effort. It has worked out well with the Eurocentric flavor of the campaign. Thanks again!

DM Dave

I am half-way through running Zenith Trajectory and have been putting off telling the players where Cauldron is in the realms. I have changed the setting to a Eurocentric, subtropical location but I haven't determined where to put it on the map. I would like to have it near the Sword Coast or the Dale Lands or Cormyr, but not actually in them. I seem to remember in the Forgotten Realms Box Set (2nd Edition) there being mention of a land near Cormyr that TSR left blank on purpose to give DMs the option of filling it in as they saw fit, but I can't remember the name of the nation. Anyone know the answer? My group of players are all 40 somethings who have been gaming a long time and our kids. Some of them are Very familiar with the Forgotten Realms Campain setting so I don't want to put it somewhere they have been before. Help!!!

DM Dave

My party is about to enter bhal-hamatugn and several of the PC's are good. How dose the magic circle against good work in room 5? i know they must make their DC 17 will save to enter the room... but i have a few questions about that

1: dose this only affect good charaters? what about true nutral?
2: How long until they can try and enter the room again?
3: what is the affect if the fair? is it like hitting a wall for them?

just thought that i would be all ready for my sunday session

I had the characters attempt to enter each round. Enough of them failed their first attempt that it did a good job spreading them out. I had the DC17 check apply to all characters who were not evil in alignment

I am currently running Zenith Trajectory and, unless I overlooked it, there is no mention of why Zenith went insane (other than losing all of his comrads) or the source of his prophecies. From the background of the story, it appears to be that his prophecies involving the Huo Toa were correct. Later, when you encounter him, they are random. Does he have a prophetic power, and if so, what is the cause?

DM Dave

Ok, In the Kopru Ruins, Rooms 27,28,30,31, and 32 are all webbby. When the party says "I light the webs on fire" What do you do?

The last time I ran this I had the creatures in these rooms take 1d6 fire (It may have been 1d3 I don't remember exactly), but the heavy smoke kept the party out of there.

In the module, I believe it said that everything was damp in the ruins therefore, the PC's were unable to light the webs with anything short of magical means, and if they did use magic to light them, they only burned away in the area of effect.