Nertonius's page

Hey everybody.

I'm running CotCT through Roll20 and I've already put an obscene amount of work and time into prepping for book 5.

Unfortunately in the Deathhead Vault a player who has a habit of running his characters into danger and getting them killed to make new characters caught on that SoS was about undead. Lo and behold his druid was killed.

In an attempt to completely nullify the entire next book he created a mesmerist who is designed to do nothing but control and charm undead. The character has no other purpose and he has gloated pretty openly that his plan is to force every undead creature he comes across to set off traps and be his slaves.

Is there a book from another path of roughly the equated level and power that would allow me to substitute something so this book isn't a completely pointless wash?

Well first off, that player is a dick. You may want to tighten your GM-leash a bit on him/her. After all, how do the other characters in the group know/like/trust this revolving cast of characters that just happen to keep being the spotlight. I'm assuming this player decided to kill off their druid after they found out their abilities that were useful in A History of Ashes weren't going to be anymore. That's some meta-gaming shenanigans of the highest order.

If confrontation isn't your bag, then just remember that just about everything that Castle Scarwall does is at a CL 20th. It's highly unlikely that a 13th-14th level caster will have the power needed to break through that kind of power on their own. Even if they did, it can't happen many times.

I currently have a cleric that wakes up every morning and casts a full load of Hide from Undead on all his team. Great! That's a 1st level Cleric spell that eliminates the need for random encounters from mindless undead (I'm not big on random encounters anyways). Any intelligent undead get to make a save to see them, otherwise its just invisibility vs undead. That's strong but not game breaking in any way. Plus, I get the added bonus of describing them sneaking around this haunted castle through hallways of random ghosts and skeletons that don't touch them. It gives my cleric a chance to shine a bit without breaking anything too much and makes my job easier and funner.

Speaking of great character choices, I have a druid who is absolutely obliterating things with Sunbeam, which between that and Searing Light from the cleric, are the best spells for this dungeon.

All in all, no one player should be the "star" of your adventure unless everyone wants to play that way and letting a player just make a new, highly optimized character for each book kinda defeats the greater purpose of an adventure path.

Upon exiting the Old Fishery:

My players decided to take Yargin, Hookshanks and Gaedren prisoner (Giggles went to go visit the jigsaw shark with a chandelier wrapped around his ankles) and bring the children directly to an orphanage after completing the Old Fishery only to step outside and have all hell break loose. They are now running through the streets with 20-ish scared children and three prisoners, attempting to escape the rioting mobs and Hellknight patrols.

I decided to give them the choice of the 3 closest orphanages in Midlands (Guide to Korvosa, p. 32): The Slopes, Pillar Hill and High Bridge.

The Slopes would be the closest but the hardest to get to with a wagon full of prisoners/children and no pull animal. It would also be where they encounter the Mad Prophet.

Pillar Hill would be be next and have the Meet the Mob encounter in it.

High Bridge would feature the Drunken Guard event, since it is closest to the Citadel.

Which ever one is chosen, the others' events occur after the children have been dropped off but before the prisoners are turned over at the Citadel. Imps and Dragons also can occur at this time with the imps discovering the prisoners and trying to free them. This allows for more imps to be used because they won't be directly in combat until the house drakes show up.

Is there any chance this gets remade, even in PDF format for the re-release of the AP?

Edge of Anarchy: I haven't watched it yet but No Escape feels like a solid choice as well.

I've had some people suggest for A History of Ashes to go with Indiana Jones or the Mummy but I feel like something more like Dances with Wolves or Last Samurai feels more appropriate. For flavouring on the Cinderlander, try The Outlaw Josey Wales.

Scarwall: House on Haunted Hill, 13 Ghosts

Crown of Fangs: The Lego Movie

With CotCT coming back out in a short time, I want to get my players in the proper mindset for the setting and individual adventures. I’m looking for movies suggestions to watch for each adventure. I’ve come up with a few (and others mentioned from the actual AP)

Edge of Anarchy: Mask of Zorro (Possibly spoilery)

Seven Days to the Grave: The Hot Zone, Andromeda Strain, Outbreak

Escape from Old Corvosa: Escape from New York

A History of Ashes:

Skeletons of Scarwall:

Crown of Fangs: