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What's a float? (That which the Blue Nixie was moored on in TINH). I made the assumption that it was 100 feet of open water between the Nixie and the pier, so the characters had to commandeer a rowboat to get to the ship.

Naturally, being terrible with their social skills, they were sitting ducks when Soller’s men began peppering them with crossbow bolts. One was rendered unconscious and the rest, after so many failed climbing checks, manage to board the Nixie and won the encounter, barely.

So again I would like to know what’s a float, for the sake of knowing what I did wrong with the encounter?

What's a float? (That which the Blue Nixie was moored on in TINH). I made the assumption that it was 100 feet of open water between the Nixie and the pier, so the characters had to commandeer a rowboat to get to the ship.

Naturally, being terrible with their social skills, they were sitting ducks when Soller’s men began peppering them with crossbow bolts. One was rendered unconscious and the rest, after so many failed climbing checks, manage to board the Nixie and won the encounter, barely.

So again I would like to know what’s a float, for the sake of knowing what I did wrong with the encounter?

How do you resolve a encounter between a party of 4 mid-level PCs vs. say 50 orcs in an open field? The players roll their respective initiatives and the DM rolls for the orcs as a whole, do you let all 50 orcs swarm in on the players? *shudders* Or do you let a number do nothing that round and just wait, observe, etc.? What if the 50 orcs have shortbows and all decided to fire?

Having to come home from work at 11:00 PM and then immediately do net surfing, I only get an average of four to five hours of sleep these days. But my eyes are diagnosed as mesopic and I should really rest more a bit.

In AD&D, the 1st edition, players were obliged to draw a map of their progress in a dungeon (usually) and there was a mechanic for it - 1 turn (10 minutes) for their slowest movement I think. In those days it was cumbersome describing the dungeon features, especially irregularly shaped rooms or caves and caverns, to my players. They couldn't tell the difference between a passage turn to a side passage without me showing it to them. Today maps have become more essential due to the meticulous nature of combat system of 3.5.

To those who use photocopied or scanned player's maps from the dungeon magazines lately or to those who DMs who make the extra effort of making player's maps; how do you present them to your players, as a whole or piece by piece?

In the AD&D, the 1st edition, players were obliged to draw a map of their progress in a dungeon (usually) and there was a mechanic for it - 1 turn (10 minutes) for their slowest movement I think. In those days it was cumbersome describing the dungeon features, especially irregularly shaped rooms or caves and caverns, to my players. They couldn't tell the difference between a passage turn to a side passage without me showing it to them. Today maps have become more essential due to the meticulous nature of combat system of 3.5.

To those who use photocopied or scanned player's maps from the dungeon magazines lately or to those who DMs who make the extra effort of making player's maps; how do you present them to your players, as a whole or piece by piece?

My players and I have played "Whispering Cairn" as is - where the PCs are natives of Diamond Lake - but somehow stopped after the part of defeating the 3 wolves. We ditched it and started off on an Eberron campaign, using the Forgotten Forge as a start.

I plan to introduce the Whispering Cairn again to them in the very near future, but as visitors and not as natives of Diamond Lake. All I need then is a good adventure hook, besides the default one and one that involves outsiders coming to town, to get them involve in the adventure.

Many thanks in advance.