I got ahold of Tales from the Yawning Portal, and I thought I'd run my group through Tomb of Horrors. The adventure isn't really clear on what level they should be for this. It says "high" level, but I don't really see that much in it that requires one to be super high level, and the original was for around levels 10-12.
So I've got the characters are starting at 9th level. They are are rolling stats- 3d6 in order. reroll lowest if you want, and swap 2 around. They are each making two characters and starting with whichever one they prefer. I'm also giving them a list of magic items to choose from to start with, and they each get a rare item, an uncommon item, and a couple of healing potions.
Anyhow, it should be interesting. They are rolling up their sacrifices right now. So far I've got a gnome bard, a human rogue, and a dwarf barbarian.
I have the original AP in physical and pdf form. I'm considering running this AP. However, I'll likely be converting it to 5E D&D. If I were going to run it in Pathfinder, I'd definitely spring for the new version, but since I'd be running it in 5e, I'm wondering if people think it's worth it.
Looking at the stat block for Acererak the infamous demilich from Tomb of Horrors in Tales of the Yawning Portal- he's rated CR 21. He has a AC 20 and 80 hp. He does has potent offensive abilities that can drop opponents to 0 hp if they fail a save or suck them into the soul gems that act as his teeth, but with only 80 this fight will come down to who wins initiative. Sure he has legendary actions, he could easily dropped before he gets to do much of anything.
If anyone gets to playing through this adventure, I'd very much be interested in hearing how the adventure as a whole goes, and specifically how the final encounter with Acererak runs.
I thought I might as well start posting journals from the campaign I'm currently running.
This one takes place in the Forgotten Realms and takes place around the Moonsea. For some reason I've always kind of liked this particular corner of the realms, and I always wanted to set a campaign in this region. Anyhow we are currently, 13 sessions in, but I'll start posting the journals over the coming weeks.
I decided to start it at 3rd level, and I'm not really sure how far I want to take it, probably to at least 10th or 11th level. We have six players for this campaign, so its a little crowded, but I think the players are enjoying it.
This will be the journal for my new Pathfinder campaign. It is set in Greyhawk and takes place (at least initially) around the town of Saltmarsh. It is inspired in part by that adventure, but includes a lot of homebrew content and possibly other adventures.
The campaign begins in the spring of the year 606 CY, some ten years after the events of the Age of Worms. The lands of the Flanaess have had some time to heal, but packs of roving undead are still a hazard in many parts of the continent. The adventurers have travelled from Gradsul to Seaton via a merchant caravel, and from Seaton they have been following the Coast Road west towards Saltmarsh. John Breslow has interests in Saltmarsh. He recently received a deed to his grandfather’s mansion in Saltmarsh, and he has been ordered by his father, a successful merchant in Gradsul, to go there and see to this valuable asset. John’a companions have each agreed to accompany him for various reasons (which are not overly clear at this point). Their journey has thus far been uneventful, but as they get closer to Saltmarsh and emerge from a copse of trees, they happen upon a group of eight bandits a little ways up the road. The bandits are in the process of robbing a peddler and his half orc son. The two victims are standing in the middle of the trail while four hooded and masked archers train bows on them. At the same time, four other bandits are busy picking over the goods on their wagon, which is stuck in some muck- it seems that due to a recent storm the road up ahead is swamped, and not passable by wagon or cart, a lesson that peddler has seemingly learned the hard way. At first, the bandits don’t notice the heroes standing in the shadows of the trees, and this gives several of them the chance to hide among the foliage and try to sneak closer to the bandits. Seymaz stays on the trail and casts a divine favour spell on his great sword. He then steps forward to address the bandits. They tell him that they are “road wardens” out “collecting taxes” and that he had best mind his own business, turn around and be on his way. A couple of them raise bows at him. At this point, John also emerges from hiding and assists Seymaz with the negotiations. They learn that the bandits are loyal to an individual called the Skull King, but when Seymaz doesn’t seem interested in minding his own business one of them fires a shot at him with his bow. The arrow deflects off of the tiefling’s armour, but Freya, who is hiding in some ferns already had a line on the bandit with her crossbow, and she fires at him as soon as he looses his arrow. As one would expect, a battle erupts. Galdriel emerges from the trees with her own bow and fires on an archer, tagging him in the arm. John gulps down one of his mutagens. Ephai fires with his bow and moves closer to the action, as he prefers melee to ranged combat. Seymaz charges down the path with his great sword ready, bellowing a battle cry to Dalt, The half orc escorting the peddler has been stripped of weapons and armour, but he has plenty of fight in him. He sees that the bandits that had previously been covering him with their bows are now distracted, and he takes advantage of this to rush the bandit leader. The leader of the bandits has a short sword drawn, but he isn’t ready for the sudden rush of the big half orc, and both of them slip and fall in the muck, where they find themselves rolling about in a vicious grappling match.
Things get a little ugly, when both Galdriel and Seymaz take arrows and are wounded, but Freya and John help to turn the tide with their respective magics. Freya brings two bandits down with a sleep spell, while John drinks one of his elixirs and grows to twice his height. The magic causes his gear to enlarge with him, and this combined with the power of his mutagen makes him incredibly strong (first level character with a of str 22 I think). He moves up to the prone bandit leader and smashes him with his mace, nearly killing the bandit captain with a single blow. A couple of the other bandits close around their leader and try to protect him, but Seymaz arrives to back up John, and the two of them fight viciously enough to make the bandits abandon their downed leader and start a fighting withdraw. They fire a few more arrows at the heroes, specifically trying to bring down the enlarged, mutated hulk that is John Breslow (John Smash!). They put a couple of arrows in him, and nearly drop him, but Gladriel, Ephai and Freya keep launching arrows at the bandits, inflicting painful wounds. This is enough to fully route the survivors, and they flee to the north. The heroes are content to let them run, as they have injuries of their own and, truth be told, aren’t in much shape to keep up the fighting. They execute the leader of the bandits, and bind the two bandits that Freya took out with her sleep spell.
Next, John takes advantage of the remaining time on his mutagen and enlarge elixir to help the peddler get his wagon out of the mud it got stuck in. The peddler is most grateful for their aid, and after the heroes chat with the peddler and learn that his name is Resten. He introduces them to his half orc son Gram. Gladriel immediately quips that he must take after his mother. It turns out that Resten and Gram travel a route that takes them from Seaton west to Saltmarsh and then north to the town of Burle. Resten explains that he’s heard of this Skull King, and says that he is rumoured to be some kind of bandit lord lairing in the Dreadwood. Bandits loyal to him rob travellers using the Dreadwood road, as well as along the trade route he follows. Fortunately, they don’t take everything from those they rob. They seem to view their robberies more as toll or tax collection. They also aren’t overly violent, unless provoked. The viscount in Seaton has done little to put an end to the bandit raids, and rumour has it that folk from some of the region’s villages have been abandoning their lot as serfs and venturing into the Dreadwood so that they might join the ranks for the growing bandit army.
Due to the trail being swamped from the heavy spring rains, Resten concludes that he won’t be able to continue along the Coast Road with his horse and wagon to Saltmarsh. So even though they are only about 5 miles from the town he is forced to detour north and cut around Saltlake. This detour will cost him an extra day, and cause him to pass by some of the odd little villages of the interior that he generally prefers to avoid. He asks if the heroes will accompany him. At first they look for compensation, but he explains that he has little to offer them other than his gratitude, as he is not a wealthy merchant and can’t afford to hire on guards. Normally, he relies on his faith in Saint Cuthbert and his son’s strength and skill with a blade to protect him and his goods. The heroes agree to go with him anyhow, and they load up the wagon with their two bandit prisoners, as well as some of the gear they salvaged from the bandits.
They travel with Resten and Gram for the remainder of the day, heading north along the salt lake. Rested avoids the villages, but they make their camp along the shores of the lake that night. The following day they trek around the remainder of the lake and arrive in Saltmarsh late in the afternoon. Their day passes without incident, but during the journey they have time to converse with Resten and learn a little about the region. He informs them that John’s grandfather, Frandlor the alchemist, was not a well liked man in Saltmarsh, despite the fact that he and the Company of the Axe helped elevate the town from a backwater fishing village to a thriving trade town. They also learn that Resten is a follower of Saint Cuthbert and that there is a temple of Saint Cuthbert in Saltmarsh that is presided over by a priest named Shepard Ivan who is the son of Ivan the Elder, who was in turn one of Frandlor’s adventuring companions.
Eventually, they reach Saltmarsh. They find it to be a large town sitting on the coast, partially protected by a stone wall that has not been completed. The remainder of the town is defended by wooden palisade and a ditch. Up on a hill at the southern end of the town, sits a stone keep, a temple and the town hall. Resten mentions that the temple is dedicated to Procan the sea god. The heroes pass through the gate into town. They tell their tale of aiding Resten against the Skull King bandits, and they hand over the captured bandits to them, as well as the head of the leader. They inquire about a bounty for the man, but the guards inform them that bounties on bandits are paid in Seaton by the Viscount, not Saltmarsh. Rested leads the adventurers into town, and takes them to an Inn called the Lizard’s Boat. Here they set up to spend the night. The proprietor of the inn is an attractive elven woman named Kailee that is missing a hand. She keeps a large monitor lizard as a pet, and her son is big and ugly half elf named Kelvin.
They take their supper in the common room, and during that time they have a chance to chat with Kailee. They learn the reason why Frandor is not well-liked in Saltmarsh as well as unusually circumstances regarding his death. It seems that Grandpa Frandor was poisoned by a serving girl named Giselle in the Drunken Urchin tavern in Saltmarsh. Prior to his death he had several large metal cages commissioned in town, and afterwards some young women from the town started disappearing. The locals blame him for the girls’ disappearances. Giselle’s sister was one of the girls, which is why people in the town think Giselle poisoned the alchemist. Giselle claimed to be innocent, but the town’s high priest of Procan (god of the sea) used divine magic to discern her guilt, and she was executed for Frandor’s murder. When Frandor died he assumed the form of a changeling. This left a lot of questions about whether he was actually dead. Townsfolk went to his mansion afterwards, but they found no sign of Frandor, the girls, his lab or the big metal cages. Most folk assume that there are secret chambers hidden in the mansion that have not been discovered, for Frandor had the place designed and built, at great expense, by dwarves that were brought in from distant lands, and everyone knows that dwarves are experts at clever stonework. These days folk claim that the mansion is now haunted by Frandor’s ghost and the ghosts of the missing girls. The place is generally avoided. Kailee mentions that a local hunter named Yorst claims that he explored the place and encountered various ghosts and haunts. She tells them that Yorst likes to hang out in a tavern called the Drunken Urchin, should they wish to speak with the man.
Their dinner is interrupted when Sherriff Isiah Crowley enters the common room with a couple of guards. He has gotten word of the adventurers encounter with the bandits and their arrival in town, and he is interested in meeting them. He informs them that Saltmarsh is a peaceful town of goodly folk who don’t like trouble makers. This seems to be a bit of warning towards them; in particular he looks at Seymaz the tiefling when he speaks these words. The sheriff inquires about their business in town, and John explains his relationship to Frandor and makes clear his intention to see to his grandfather’s former home. The sheriff also makes plain that Frandor was not well liked in town. They do get to talking for a while though, and over the course of their conversation with the sheriff they learn that there is a large bounty being offered for the head of the Skull King by the Viscount of Seaton. They also learn that in Saltmarsh there is a bounty being offered for merrow heads, as merrow have been making small, night raids against the town from the water on occasion. The sheriff suspects that the merrow are lairing on in the sea caves below Tern Island. He goes on tell them how the sea caves are known to be a place where various pirate captains of the Crimson Fleet hid their treasure over the years. In fact, Frandor and the Company of the Axe gained their wealth when the recovered a large pirate treasure horde while exploring sea caves, and it was with his share of this plunder that he had his mansion built.
After sheriff Isiah departs, the adventurers decide that they will next visit the Drunken Urchin and see if they can find Yorst the hunter, and find out more about Frandor’s manor.
After wrapping up my 5e Swords of the Realms campaign, I started running some 2e Dark Heresy. It's kind of an ongoing campaign. I've run about ten sessions for it, but I've put it on hold to go back to Pathfinder and run "Eyes of the Lich Queen". I plan to take a couple of breaks from Eyes of the Lich Queen and continue to run this campaign.
I decided I'd post the journals from my 5e Shadowrun campaign. The campaign is an ongoing face to face campaign that runs only about once per month at the most. The adventures are pretty much all home brew content.
It's set in L.A. in 2076.
Session #1 (A night on the town),
Runners: Skull (elf adept), Big Nasty (orc, street sammy), Hashtag (human decker), Tip (human, occult investigator)
The runners are recruited by an agent named Tony Milan who represents B trideo star Bruce Lanceman. They are to accompany Bruce for a night out in LA, ostensibly acting as his hired muscle. He will be streaming his night on the town on his p2.0 feed, so part of the job is to be entertaining.
The next evening (Saturday, March 7th, 2076) Bruce picks them up in at a burger joint in Studio City. He’s driving a purple, custom, open topped low rider and he’s wearing a batman costume- a prop from the Batman vs Predator movie he played in back in the mid 2060s. Accompanying him is a well known gangsta rapper named Monsta. Monsta is a hairless freak with scaly orthoskin and shark teeth implants. Monsta’s posse follows behind them in an SUV. The runners pile into the low rider’s two back seats and they head for the Athena- a night club that has just opened at the top of a luxury hotel called the Olympus.
Things get interesting at the club when they are out on the patio and Tip takes note of basketball star Dwayne Mosley and his super model girl friend Tara Ambers. Tara Ambers is a cat shaman, and she is in the midst of projecting astrally and giving comedian Jerry Sanders an astral lap dance, much to the amusement of her NBA boyfriend. Things get crazy suddenly when Tip is scanning astral space and notices a few hostile spirits rapidly closing in on Tara's astral form. She identifies them as demonic Shedim- a strange type of spirit from an unknown metaplane that are said to be capable of possessing the bodies of the recently deceased and giving them a semblance of life. Tip tries to warn Tara, but she can’t get to her in time. Two of the shedim start ripping apart Tara’s astral form, while a third one takes possession of her empty body.
Tip tries to help her by jumping on her and attempting an exorcism, a metamagic feat that Tip has yet to fully master. Big Nasty helps to hold Tara down. Unfortunately the spirit proves too difficult to cast out of Tara’s body, and a possessed Tara slashes manically at Tip with her hand razors and eventually throws her off, sending Tip crashing onto a low table.
Meanwhile Monsta has offered Hashtag 1500 nuyun to hack Bruce’s commlink and shut down his p2.0 feed for a few minutes. Hashtag gets on it, shutting Bruce down and leaving Monsta the only one streaming the exorcism. Bruce loses his shit, allowing Skull to convince him to get away from the potentially dangerous situation to have a drink. He demands that Hashtag get his p2.0 feed going again ASAP (he doesn’t seem to suspect that Hashtag was the one who shut it down). Hashtag obliges, but doesn’t make it happen too quick, causing him to miss out on covering the exorcism, giving Monsta a ratings edge.
Having failed her exorcism attempt, Tip conjures a beast spirit to attack the Shedim in attempt to save Tara. Unfortunately, it is outnumbered and isn’t able to prevent her astral form from being destroyed. It does destroy one of the shedim and a second one retreats. The third remains in Tara’s body. Bouncers quickly arrive on the scene and subdue what is now Tara’s animated corpse. Dwayne Mosley is a wreck. He confides in Tip and tells her that he has been worried about Tara for a while, as she has been making some astral trips in the evening, and he doesn’t know where she has been going. He was worried that she was having an astral affair, but now he wonders if the two things are connected. He’s too shaken up to think on it much more or offer Tip a job investigating, but he makes sure to get her contact information, and says that he might call her sometime soon.
The evening starts to drag as police are called to the scene and Tip is required to give a statement. Bruce decides he needs to shake things up, so he runs for the balcony and vaults off. His batman cape kicks in (sort of), and he starts gliding towards a boat he has waiting in the bay. Bruce had previously given Skull a parachute and warned Skull that it was an “exit strategy.” Skull takes the cue and follows after Bruce, also jumping off the balcony. Shit gets real when Bruce’s cape malfunctions and he starts to spin out. It looks like he’s going to hit the water pretty hard and well shy of his boat. Skull sees this and holds off on activating his chute, which is linked to his PAN. He goes into a dive and crashes into Bruce, grabbing onto the falling star and triggering his chute just in time. They hit the water a little hard and come in just short of the boat. Luckily they don’t have to spend too long in the drink before a couple of Bruce’s buddies haul them out and onto the boat. Skull is very much concerned about his exposure to the harbour water. He’s heard many a horror story about its toxicity and fears for his life. Fortunately, his exposure was pretty short, so beyond a nasty rash it seems likely he’ll be fine.
Back at the club, Nasty gets a call from Mr. Donovan the “CEO” of the Cutters street gang, of which Nasty is a member. Mr. Donovan has some urgent biz for Nasty to handle. It seems that a booster gang called the A-Kidz just destroyed one of the Cutters’ betameth labs, and Mr. Donovan cannot abide by such insolence. The Cutters are all about the bottom line, so he wants to be compensated with interest. He asks Nasty to pay a visit to the A-Kidz and issue an ultimatum- pay the Cutters 3 million in compensation or die. Big Nasty easily convinces Bruce and Monsta that this little errand will make good entertainment for the night, so a couple of hours later they all rendezvous and head for downtown.
They meet up with van full of Cutters that Mr. Donovan has sent to back Nasty up with, and then the whole crew of them roll up to the A-Kidz doss. Their pad is more of trid set than anything else. The gang is well known for their reality show “Gang Life.” And it is rumoured that they are mostly corp brats with weird cybermods payed for by Horizon- the AAA megacorp that sponsors their show. This doesn’t much concern Big Nasty. Two A-Kidz chicas are hanging out on the street when they arrive- Demon Girl and Feline, and the pair seem to think that all the company is for some sort of party that they weren’t informed about. Big Nasty let’s them keep thinking that, and the entire crew walks through the front door (except for Hastag who remains in the car). It’s a party.
They are greeted by Timberwolf the leader of the A-Kidz. He too thinks it’s some kind of publicity stunt for the show. His make up guy rushes over to attend the guests, and the cameras are rolling. Big Nasty takes point and makes it clear that he’s hear representing the Cutters, and that he’s here to make it very clear that there are consequences for f!%*ing with the gang. Timberwolf at first thinks he’s joking, and to some extent thinks his gang is untouchable because of who their daddies are because of their Horizon sponsorship. Big Nasty doesn’t give a f$#@ about daddies and sponsor; he pulls his ruger, blasting Timberwolf with a stick n shock round in the chest, intent on making sure the punk gets the message. A fight breaks out, as several of the A-Kidz rush to backup their leader as he falls to the ground twitching from a pair the stick n shock rounds. Demon Girl pulls a pistol and starts firing on Nasty. Hashtag is watching the scene through Skull’s camera drone, and he shifts to VR and moves to brick her gun, which he does with little trouble.
Skull watches the show for now, ready to help if need be, but more interested in keeping an eye on Bruce and making sure he doesn’t do something stupid that gets him killed. Two more A-Kidz b&*#~es- Big Guns and Blade Girl get in on the action. Guns predictably pulls a gun, while Blade Girl manifests a cyberblade from her forearm and starts slashing at Nasty. Nasty goes on the defensive and fends her off, while Tip conjures a beast spirit that overwhelms Big Guns with supernatural fear and sends her screaming to hide behind the bar. Skull fails to notice Gecko (another A-kid) crawling along the ceiling, and Gecko drops on Bruce just as Bruce throws a pool ball that hits Blade Girl in the back of the head. Skull blasts Gecko point blank with a gel round from his shotgun, which takes Gecko down.
Brainiac, the gang’s own decker attempts to brick Nasty’s gun, but Hashtag has it slaved to his deck, making the weapon well protected. He starts searching for Brainiac’s icon so he can engage him in cyber combat, and in seconds the two deckers are blasting it out in the matrix. Hashtag proves to be the superior Decker and has little trouble crashing Brainiac’s icon/deck.
The rest of the A-Kidz are smart enough to stay out of the fray, and they promise Nasty they’ll come up with the money. Just to be sure the message is clear, Big Nasty sets the Cutters along with Monsta and his posse loose on the common room, and they start trashing the place. Skull is all over the prospect of scoring a cyberdeck that they can sell, so he calls Nasty to go with him upstairs where Brainiac is holed up. They bust into the geek’s bedroom and take his deck. Then they decide to go after the nice Stoner Ares machinegun that Big Guns keeps in her room. Too bad they don’t notice the monowire strung across the entry! Nasty trips over it and nearly severs his foot. His boys have to come carry the poor bastard out to the van. On his way out he shoots Big Guns in the face (with a stick n shock round). His boys toss him in the van, whereupon Tip quickly enchants a healing stone. Unfortunately for Nasty, he has too much cyberware, and the stone’s magic doesn’t help.
The Cutters rush him to the street doc they use, and get him there in time to save his foot from having to be replaced. The dust up with the A-kidz brings an end to the evening’s partying. Bruce and Monsta are happy with how things went down. They both feel it was even more eventful than they had hoped. The runners are paid and head home to crash.
I thought since I started a journal for the new Pathfinder Campaign I started (Eyes of the Lich Queen), I might as well start posting my journals from the 5e campaign I spent the last year or so running.
This campaign was run weekly on roll20. It features material from the Beginner Box, Princes of the Apocalypse, plus a some other adventures and plenty of homebrew content. It took characters from level 1-10 over the course of 50 sessions (sessions being about 2.5 hours each on roll20).
I plan to post 2 sessions per week, until I've posted all the journals. Since they are already written it shouldn't be too difficult to maintain.
I'm returning to pathfinder after over a year of running other stuff (5e D&D, Dark Heresy, some Shadowrun). I've decided to convert the 3e Eberron Adventure, Eyes of the Lich Queen to Pathfinder and give it a go.
I have five players for this campaign and I'm running it pretty much entirely on roll20. We're gaming weekly on Tuesday evenings from about 8-10:30, so sessions are fairly short.
The starting characters are:
Gale Miller (slyph, fighter 4- dex based fighter with a high Int to give her a fair amount of skills, so that she somewhat doubles as a scout/tomb raider)
Bakji (samsaran, occulist 4, scholarly type obsessed with acquiring lost lore)
Jeysus Chryst (aasimar, cleric 4, believes he is the son of a god he calls "The One" and he is attempting establish his own religion. He of course is the prophet of said religion)
Gundar Judsen (human, fighter 4, big, heavily armored fighter with a great sword who kills things, and isn't great at much else)
We played our first session last night. Journal to follow soon.
???? (not sure yet what the final addition to the party will be, as my fifth player is on vacation.
So we have a dragon disciple in our party with two levels of paladin (basically a dip taken to gain the benefits of Cha bonus to saves and the opportunity to smite).
In our last session the party was doing recon and beginning infiltration of Jorgenfist.
Spoiler:
The party ambushed a party of stone giants who were travelling back to Jorgenfist after cutting wood. The giants were not of evil alignment and the paladin made no attempt to confirm if they were evil before party attacked them without provocation.
Later in the session they entered into the guard tower during the night (A1). The rogue killed the taiga giant while she was sleeping with a coupe de grace. Then they went into the lower level where the two rune-scarred hill giants were sleeping. The party was under the cover of a silence spell. The paladin manifested her fangs (dragon disciple) and bit the throat out of one of the sleeping giants (another coup de grace). In this case the giant was evil, but once again the paladin didn't bother to check with detect evil to actually confirm this was the case before performing the coupe de grace.
I'm thinking that these may count as evil acts or at the very least "dishonourable" and violations of the paladin's code of conduct. FYI the paladin is a follower of Imodae, who I don't think would approve of murdering sentient creatures in their sleep- even nasty giants.
What do people think, would I be out of line in calling this character out on this and stripping her of her paladin powers?
So I've put my Age of Worms campaign on hold for the next while, and convinced one of my players to give a me a bit of GMing break. So I get to be a player for a while, a role I very rarely get the chance to take on. He's decided to run some Edge of the Empire. Last night we played through what I believe was the intro adventure in the GM screen, and after that he's planning to run a published adventure called Beyond the Rim, which I believe is a 96 page hardcover, and the first full adventure FFG has released for this line. Hopefully I'll get to play through it, and after that I'll go back to finishing up Age of Worms.
I decided I'd try to keep up an in character journal of this campaign.
If you live in the Toronto area and want a ton of D&D books that are in excellent condition let me know. Ideally I'd like a bit of cash for them, but I'm not asking for a lot. Here's what I've got:
D&D 3.5 books for sale: players handbook, dungeon master guide, dungeon master's guide II, elder evils, lords of madness, book of vile darkness, heroes of battle, rules compendium, psionics handbook, oriental adventures, epic level handbook, manual of the planes, magic item compendium, spell compendium, monster manual V, Forgotten Realms dragons of faerun, Forgotten Realms lords of darkness, Forgotten Realms City of the Spider Queen, Forgotten Realms Serpent Kingdoms, Forgotten Realms Shining South, Forgotten Realms Mysteries of the Moonsea, Forgotten Realms Underdark, Forgotten Realms Magic of Faerun, Forgotten Realms Monsters of Faerun
D&D 4e books for sale: Players Handbook, Players Handbook II, Players Handbook III, Dungeon Masters Guide, Dungeon Masters Guide II, Monster Manual, Marital Power, Martial Power II, Divine Power, Arcane Power, Primal Power, Open Graves Secrets of the Undead, Underdark, Aventurers Vault, Revenge of the Giants, Forgotten Realms Players Guide, Assault on Nightwyrm Fortress, King of Trollhaunt Warrens, Gamma World Boxed Set.
I've spent a bunch of time fleshing out a very detailed set of potential overland encounters for the journey to Fort Rannick and dividing the journey into various legs. I thought I'd post the work here in case anyone wants to make use of it.
Part #1, Trip Overview
Note: The times assume that characters are travelling on foot based on characters with a move speed of 30.' Random encounters are divided into two categories. The first are "traveller encounters," which are encounters with folk on the road during the day. For the most part they are intended as rp encounters. The second are the more standard monster type encounters, which will pretty much always result in combat. When an encounter is called for during the day the GM rolls to see if it is a traveler encounter or a monster encounter based on the percentage chance given for the specific leg of the journey, as described below. At night encounters are always monster encounters.
Journey to Turtleback Ferry Overview
Weather: Consult table on p. 439. Roll once and then roll 1d6 to determine how many days the weather stays the same before a new check on the table is required. It is late in fall when the party leaves. There are fewer folk travelling, as most people are settling in for the winter.
• Magnimar- Sandpoint (2 days)
2 chances of an encounter per day (25%), 1 chance per night
(15%). Use Varisian lowlands encounter table. During the day there is a 70% chance that an encounter is a traveler encounter.
• Sandpoint along the trade road to Wartle (4 days)
This portion of the journey is fairly safe. The trade road is well travelled and in fair condition. However, given that winter is approaching there are fewer travelers now than in the summer. 2 chances of an encounter per day (25%), 1 chance per night (15%). Use Varisian lowlands encounter table. During the day 70% chance of a traveler encounter.
• Wartle to Whistledown (5 days)
The first 3 days of this journey is the most dangerous as the trade road skirts the Sanos forest on one side and the Mushfens on the other (1 per day 25%, and 1 per night 25%) The second 2 days the trade road follows close to the river and the fens (1 per day 20% and 1 per night 20%). Use Sanos forest or Mush Fen encounter tables. During the day 40% chance of a traveler encounter.
• Whistledown north to the Sanos forest (4 days)
The trail here is not well used. The second two days the trail travels close to the Shimmerglens. There will be few encounters with travelers on the road for this leg of the journey. At the end of this leg of the trip they will arrive at a lumber camp that is in the midst of packing up for the season. (1 per day 20% and 1 per night 25%).
During the day 30% chance of a traveler encounter
• The Sanos Forest (2-4 days)
The trail here is not well used, and if they have a wagon they may encounter deadfalls that require clearing before they can move on.
(1 per day 25% and 1 per night 30%). During the day there is a 25% chance that an encounter is a traveler encounter.
I'm going to use this journal as a design diary for the ideas I come up with on my journey to create the "Ultimate Dungeon".
Here's the basic premise:
Note: This is not intended to be a full campaign, but rather a mini campaign- 6-10 sessions (depending on the interest level of the players).
Premise: There is a legend of an entity of unknown power called the “Dungeon Master.” According to the legend, inexperienced would be heroes, knaves and adventurers are sometimes stolen away by mysterious forces to his lair where they must use every bit of their strength, skill and cunning to survive his diabolical labyrinth- all for his twisted pleasure and entertainment. Those who reach the mythical Fountain of Fate can drink from it, become true heroes and be released from the dungeon.
Objective: Escape the dungeon with as much loot as possible.
Disclaimer: This is not intended to be an opportunity for an egotistical GM to wantonly slaughter PCs and frustrate players. It is intended to provide players with a challenging, but entertaining location to explore that will allow them to have some laughs, roll some dice, make bold decisions, engage in creative problem solving, kill some monsters, gather some loot, rp with the inhabitants etc… However, characters will die (probably fairly often).
Character Creation: Characters begin at level 1. Players roll 3d6 in order to create their characters. When a character dies (or is otherwise removed from the game) the player immediately rolls up his next character, and the “Dungeon Master” teleports that new character to the join up with the party. The only time a player is sitting out is when he is making a new character. The “Dungeon Master” also uses teleportation magic to remove dead characters immediately along with their gear.
In addition there is a special deck of cards that a player draws a card from just before their character starts play. About half the cards are blank. Several cards confer a fortune benefit. In this case the character rolls on a random table and might gain things like a bonus feat, an attribute boost, a spell like ability etc… Finally, in the deck are a few sleeper agent cards. In this case the character is actually a loyal/dominated minion of the Dungeon Master, who at some inopportune time will turn on his fellow party members.
Obviously this not a game for min/maxers since the dice will, for the most part, determine character and party composition. The fun is seeing how long your gimpy character can survive. That being said, there are plenty of chances along the way to gain power in addition to merely earning xp (magic items, random effects that might increase on attribute, give a bonus feat or special power etc…), but players have to work for them a little. Finally at the end of the dungeon is the Fortune of Fate, which provides an opportunity to transform your Gimpy character into a more customized and viable hero (you gain build points when you drink from it that you can spend to improve your character’s attributes).
Advancement: This is intended to be a fairly low level Dungeon crawl. Characters start at level #1. They use the slow advancement track. They can level up as usual, except that they can never get to a level higher than the Dungeon Level they are on +1. For example, if they are on the first level of the Dungeon they can get to level #2, but they can’t go to level #3 until they discover the 2nd level of the Dungeon. Furthermore, if they do discover a new Dungeon level and can access it, they automatically advance a level.
Characters who survive the dungeon can drink from the Fountain of Fate and gain benefits that will bring them up to par with today’s standard of character prior to being deposited back to their homeland.
The Dungeon: It has 3-4 large levels, along with some sublevels. Exploration of the entire complex is not required to for PCs to complete the objective of escaping the place. The crazy premise behind this dungeon allows for virtually any kind of weird encounter area the GM can devise. It features plenty of secrets- useful treasure, secret doors, secret sublevels, secret means of accessing lower levels etc... It is a true sandbox dungeon. The PCs can do what they want and go where they want within the confines of this location. There is intended to be a balance between exploration, rp and combat- plenty of traps, puzzles and general weirdness to investigate; plenty of monsters (not always out to get the PCs or looking for a fight); and opportunities to role play with inhabitants of the dungeon.
Fun Features:
- Lots of Randomness to keep players on their toes (wandering monster checks, wild magic area(s), strange items)
- Open Sandbox to explore
- Many opportunities for hilarity, bold decision making, and creative problem solving.
This is not intended to be a full campaign, but rather a mini campaign- 6-10 sessions (depending on the interest level of the players)
Premise: There is a legend of an entity of unknown power called the “Dungeon Master.” According to the legend, inexperienced would be heroes, knaves and adventurers are sometimes stolen away by mysterious forces to his lair where they must use every bit of their strength, skill and cunning to survive his diabolical labyrinth- all for his twisted pleasure and entertainment. Those who reach the mythical Fountain of Fate can drink from it, become true heroes and be released from the dungeon.
Objective: Escape the dungeon with as much loot as possible.
Disclaimer: This is not intended to be an opportunity for an egotistical GM to wantonly slaughter PCs and frustrate players. It is intended to provide players with a challenging, but entertaining location to explore that will allow them to have some laughs, roll some dice, make bold decisions, engage in creative problem solving, kill some monsters, gather some loot, rp with the inhabitants etc… However, characters will die (probably fairly often).
Character Creation: Characters begin at level 1. Players roll 3d6 in order to create their characters. When a character dies (or is otherwise removed from the game) the player immediately rolls up his next character, and the “Dungeon Master” teleports that new character to the join up with the party. The only time a player is sitting out is when he is making a new character. The “Dungeon Master” also uses teleportation magic to remove dead characters immediately along with their gear.
In addition there is a special deck of cards that a player draws a card from just before their character starts play. About half the cards are blank. Several cards confer a fortune benefit. In this case the character rolls on a random table and might gain things like a bonus feat, an attribute boost, a spell like ability etc… Finally, in the deck are a few sleeper agent cards. In this case the character is actually a loyal/dominated minion of the Dungeon Master, who at some inopportune time will turn on his fellow party members.
Obviously this not a game for min/maxers since the dice will, for the most part, determine character and party composition. The fun is seeing how long your gimpy character can survive. That being said, there are plenty of chances along the way to gain power in addition to merely earning xp (magic items, random effects that might increase on attribute, give a bonus feat or special power etc…), but players have to work for them a little. Finally at the end of the dungeon is the Fortune of Fate, which provides an opportunity to transform your Gimpy character into a more customized and viable hero (you gain build points when you drink from it that you can spend to improve your character’s attributes).
Character Advancement: This is intended to be a fairly low level Dungeon crawl. Characters start at level #1. They use the slow advancement track. They can level up as usual, except that they can never get to a level higher than the Dungeon Level they are on +1. For example, if they are on the first level of the Dungeon they can get to level #2, but they can’t go to level #3 until they discover the 2nd level of the Dungeon. Furthermore, if they do discover a new Dungeon level and can access it, they automatically advance a level.
Characters who survive the dungeon can drink from the Fountain of Fate and gain benefits that will bring them up to par with today’s standard of character prior to being deposited back to their homeland.
The Dungeon: It has 3-4 large levels, along with some sublevels. Exploration of the entire complex is not required to for PCs to complete the objective of escaping the place. The crazy premise behind this dungeon allows for virtually any kind of weird encounter area the GM can devise. It features plenty of secrets- useful treasure, secret doors, secret sublevels, secret means of accessing lower levels etc... It is a true sandbox dungeon. The PCs can do what they want and go where they want within the confines of this location. There is intended to be a balance between exploration, rp and combat- plenty of traps, puzzles and general weirdness to investigate; plenty of monsters (not always out to get the PCs or looking for a fight); and opportunities to role play with inhabitants of the dungeon.
Fun Features:
- Lots of Randomness to keep players on their toes (wandering monster checks, wild magic area(s), strange items)
- Open Sandbox to explore
- Many opportunities for hilarity, bold decision making, creative problem solving, combat and rping.
Build a party of 4 1st level characters
Roll 3d6 in order for each character
Decide on race and class
Add any more details you want
Rate your party (how screwed are they)
If you are too lazy to build a party, just do a character
I'm a little confused about the Brothers Seven and the Skinshaw men. According to the adventure the Brothers Seven is a cover for the Skinshaw men. It also gives the impression that the members of the brothers seven are influential and wealthy individuals.
This leads me to wonder about the cultists encountered at the sawmill. Presumably none of them are actually members of the Brothers Seven (except Ironbriar), for why would wealthy and influential members of Magnimar be working in a sawmill. I assume that these guys are just lower class killers that the brothers have indoctrinated into the cult. Is that a safe assumption or are these guys actually supposed to be members of the brothers seven?
Assuming they aren't, then in theory more members of the brothers should be in the city, and they are likely wealthy merchants or members of the nobility.
I'm trying to figure out how to deal with this because the PCs are on their way to Magnimar they know of the brothers seven and will be trying to gather information about them. I'm worried they will end up getting off track trying to track down all the members of the brothers. On the other hand, I think it would be interesting to add a bit more detail about the brothers that they can investigate.
Right now I'm thinking that the brothers will be a fairly large social club made up of members of the city's elite. However, for the most part, it is a legit social club- even the lord mayor is a member. They gather at people's homes once a month to dine and socialize. They pay dues, network etc... However the club has an inner circle (the 7). According to the constitution of the club there may only be seven members in the inner circle at once (at least that's what members of the club's outer circle are told), and members of the inner circle are only replaced when one leaves or dies. The identities of the members of the inner circle are secret (maybe justice Ironbriar is the only known member of the inner circle). Members of the outer circle spend a lot of time guessing and speculating about who might be a member of the inner circle, though they don't over do for fear of pissing the inner circle off and ruining their chances of ever moving up.
The truth is that the inner circle recruits from the outer circle, but only when they see someone who seems to have the potential make a good candidate (ie. serial killer). The lay members of the club are fed the line about there only being aloud seven members in the inner circle because Ironbriar doesn't want self-important members of the club pestering him to join the inner circle, especially when such folk aren't the sort of candidate he's looking for. For instance the mayor would think he should be a member of the inner circle, but Ironbriar could easily brush him off by saying there are no empty spots available (rules are rules). The inner circle is ultra-secretive and never let the members of the outer circle on to their true nature.
In this larger version of the brothers it seems likely that some of the members of the outer circle might be greedy targets for Xanesha, and I think a couple will already be dead.
I'm still trying to decide if there are actually any members of the inner circle still around. When the brothers were founded there were seven in the inner circle, but I'm thinking that there are now less. Maybe only Ironbriar is left, and the inner circle no longer really exists because he hasn't found good candidates of late and the former members are now dead or just too old to be effective murderers. He uses the outer circle as a means of gaining money and maintaining influence over important folk in the city, though he always keeps his eye for a potential killer.
Ironbriar still has his cult, but the current Skinshawmen are mainly composed of lowclass killers that he has employed at the mill as a cover. These individuals aren't actually members of the brothers seven, even though they are Skinshawmen.
So is anyone else thinking of stating Dragotha up as a mythic monster??
I was thinking of bringing the new mythic rules into this campaign. My group is starting Gathering of Winds next, and...
Spoiler:
I was thinking that when/if they acquire the fragment of the rod of seven parts, they might gain a mythic tier, and I have some other spots further down the road in mind for more mythic tiers, probably giving them 6 or so by the time they face Kyuss
I was able to download City of Strangers fine, but the Inner Sea World guide is not downloading properly from my downloads (regardless of which version I attempt to download). How can I solve this?
I have the Rise of the Runelords Anniversary Edition in hardcopy, but I really like to have word documents of stat blocks for NPCs and monsters that I can print out, mark up and modify if I wish. Has anyone written up the NPC stat blocks into Word documents? If so, would you be willing to share them.
Obviously, I can type them up myself, but it would save a ton of time to get them from someone else.
Brutus: Is a half orc wizard from Magnimar. There he served as a wizard’s apprentice. His master recently died rather mysteriously. Brutus was blamed for the death and forced to flee town. Whether or not he was actually involved or not remains uncertain, and is so far not a topic he has seemed interested in discussing. He recently arrived in Sandpoint where he was able to get work as cook at the Hagfish tavern. He has been staying at the Rusty Dragon; Ameiko Kaijitsu, the establishment’s owner, was so fascinated by meeting such a learned and well-spoken half orc that she has given him a discounted rate while staying in the town.
Ronak: Is one of the Sandpoint’s local dwarves. His family, the Shalesplitters, are a well-regarded family from Magnimar who came to town in the past couple of years to head up construction on a new temple to the gods. They have quickly established themselves as a reputable family and are known for their honor and strong work ethic. Ronak has lived in the town for the past few years.
Grakkok: He originally hales from the dwarven stronghold of Janderhoff, and worked as prospector in the Mindspin Mountains until the prospecting camp he was staying in was raided by giants and his kin slaughtered. He was not present at the time of the raid, but he returned from the delve he had been inspecting in time to see the results of the attack. He has borne a terrible hatred of giants ever since, and he swore an oath to learn the skills needed to take on such terrible foes. Ashamed to be the sole survivor of the raid, he has exiled himself from Janderhoff and taken to the road until such a time that he feels he has redeemed himself by slaying a sufficient number of giants. He hopes to hone his skills by seeing and experiencing the wider world. Grakkok is still quite green and has yet to kill a giant. He recently arrived in Sandpoint where he intended to make a short provisioning stop before moving on to other parts of Varisia. He too has been residing at the Rusty Dragon for the past couple of days.
Characters (Meet the heroes of the Licktodad tribe):
Reta (goblin, fighter 1)
Poog (goblin, cleric 1)
Mogmuck (aka Mog) (goblin, alchemist 1)
Chuffy (goblin, rogue 1)
Piney (goblin, sorcerer 1)
House Rule: in order to convince players to be a little more goblin like I gave them “goblin points,” which they could spend against other players to force them to roll two dice and take the lowest (like D&D Next disadvantage rules). In exchange for doing so they could earn a hero point that they could spend on themselves, assuming that the goblin point was spent in a situation that mattered.
I attempted to model this session after a typical session of Paranoia. It didn’t quite match the level of mayhem that a paranoia session entails, but it came close.
Introduction: The PCs are goblins of the Licktoad tribe, who live deep in Brinestump Marsh, south of the hated man-town called Sandpoint. Once, other goblins tried to burn Sandpoint down, and they would have been legends if they had succeeded. But they didn’t bring enough fire, and got themselves killed as a result.
The day before the adventure begins the tribe discovered that one of their own had been using forbidden arts and was engaged in one of the greatest of taboos—writing things down. In fact, rumor holds that what he was writing was a history of the tribe! There’s no swifter way to bring about bad luck than stealing words out of your mind by writing them down, and so the tribe had no choice. They branded the goblin’s face with letters to punish him, which is why everyone calls him Scribbleface now, and then they ran him out of town, took all of his stuff, and burned down his hut.
That’s where things got interesting, because before they burned down his hut, Chief Gutwad found a weird box within the building. Inside was a map and a lot of fireworks—fireworks that immediately came to use in burning the hut down. Then, in the morning, Gutwad announced that there would be a feast in order to drive out any lingering bad luck from Scribbleface’s poor decisions. But perhaps even more exciting, all of the PCs have been secretly invited to meet at Chief Gutwad’s Moot House.
Act #1, Scene #1 (Mission Briefing): The troubleshooters (aka goblin PCs) met with Chief Gutwad in his hall where they learned of their mission to recover the fireworks by following Scribbleface’s map. The were informed that they would be playing games at the night’s bonfire to earn items from the chief’s treasury, which could help them on their mission. Reta was the most active participant in this scene and as a result was made “team leader” by the chief, for she was clearly the smartest goblin of the bunch. As such, she was given Scribbleface’s map.
Nothing much happened in this scene. The players were still waking up and getting used to being goblins.
Act #1, Scene #2 (The Games): The games began with a rival of Reta’s, another female goblin warrior named Bramblebush, daring Reta to ride Squealy Nord (the tribes ill tempered pet pig). Reta took her up on the dare, as she was a competent rider. However, Piney (the tribe sorcerer and weirdo due to his aberrant bloodline) wasn’t too happy with Reta’s insults against Bramblebush since Bramblebush was one of the few female goblins in the tribe that didn’t think Piney was weird and had been willing to get with him. Thus, while Reta was getting ready to mount Squealy Nord, Piney cast a grease spell on the pig. Reta was still able to ride it, but due to the grease (and a spent goblin chip), she only stayed on for a few seconds before falling off, causing the goblins of the tribe to laugh at her. She was humiliated, and very mad at Piney. She immediately started plotting her revenge.
Reta then volunteered Piney for the next dare, which was to eat the bag of bull slugs. Bull slugs are quite large and difficult for even a goblin to keep down. Piney took on the dare, but didn’t have the fortitude to stomach them and was promptly vomiting up slug slime, much to the glee of the goblin tribe. Piney was somewhat embarrassed, but the little eweirdo didn’t seem to realize that his kind were laughing at him. Consequently, Reta wasn’t entirely satisfied with this revenge.
Chuffy volunteered for the next dare, which entailed playing “hide or be clubbed.” Chuffy was great hider and found an excellent hiding spot. The goblin tribe went out searching for Chuffy, but although many came near his hiding spot none found him. Mog came close, but Chuffy’s hiding spot was too good. Chuffy was pleased not to be clubbed.
Meanwhile, Piney went to his own not so secret hiding spot where he started to make a sling stone by picking his nose and rolling the boogers into a ball. Reta knew of this spot and decided that she would try to club Piney. She managed to creep up on Piney, but her club swing was blocked by some of the brambles that he was hiding in. A scuffle ensued and Piney managed to daze Reta with a cantrip and pull her pants down before Reta could club him. Her fellow goblins laughed at her, including Bramblebush, and Reta was given the flattering nickname “Thornbush.”Once again Reta found herself humiliated by Piney, and her desire for vengeance continued to grow.
The goblins of the tribe soon returned to the village, frustrated that they never found Chuffy, but most of them had ended up clubbing each other at some point, so they weren’t entirely bored by the event. Chuffy earned the chief’s “ring that lets you climb real good” to aid with the mission.
Poog, the tribe’s cleric, was volunteered for the final challenge, which was to crawl through the Rusty Earbiter. Poog got caught in the Earbiter pretty quick. Mog gave him a good kick into it that caused Poog some pain, but got him moving. Unfortunately, he got pretty stuck in the thing and the goblins of the tribe, along with Chief Gutwad soon got bored of waiting for him come out the other side. Poog finally got free, but not fast enough to earn the chief’s robe of very useful items, which he had been sitting and farting on.
Mogmuck managed to get off the hook and avoided participating in any of the dares.
[/b]Act #1, Scene #3:[/b] The goblins eventually returned to their huts, went to sleep, and the next day they set out from their village to seek the fireworks. Before leaving, chief Gutwad entrusted team leader Reta with the last of the fireworks to be recovered from Scribbleface’s hut. They included one large “skyrocket.”
.
Act #2, (The journey- An encounter with Manylegs Eats Goblin Babies Many): The goblins followed Scribbleface’s map through the swamp to the location of the fireworks supply. They made their way west, along a stream towards the coast. Unfortunately, they were forced to pass through the territory of Manylegs. Most of the goblins in the party couldn’t remember what Manylegs was, but both Poog and Mogmurck recalled that Manylegs was a giant spider that hunted in the area. They, of course, kept this information to themselves. Perhaps it was karma then that resulted in Poog and Mog being the ones that were webbed by the spider when it ambushed them from some rushes. Luckily the two goblins were both able to escape the webbing before it could inject them with poison.
A fight ensued. Chuffy did a good job of sneaking through the reeds and hurling a dart from surprise that stuck the spider in the abdomen. Piney made effective use of his acid bolt ability to blast the spider, and Reta fired at it from a distance with her bow. Poog and Mog scattered after escaping the webbing, leaving Piney closest to the spider. While Piney was trying to dodge the spider’s snapping fangs, Reta saw a chance to have here revenge. She lined up a shot on Piney, hoping that she could plug him with an arrow and claim it was an accident. Sadly, she missed Piney when Manylegs got in the way of her shot, and to her chagrin she injured the spider instead. Mog hurled a firebomb at the spider. It caused the spider great pain, but also scorched Poog and Piney. Seeing Piney scorched by fire gave Reta much happiness and laughter.
It wasn’t long before Manylegs was dead. Luck was with the goblins, and the only injuries came from “friendly fire.”
The Licktoads eagerly started taking trophies from the spider, hacking off legs to eat. Piney decided to try to remove the poison sack and managed the extraction successfully. He then punctured the sack and emptied the poison into the gourd that he normally would keep his dried worms in. He somehow accomplished it all without poisoning himself.
After their encounter with Manylegs they made the rest of the journey to the coast without any further difficulty.
I've just started an Eberron campaign. My Age of Worms game isn't finished yet, but the plan is alternate between this campaign and the Age of Worms. I'm not necessarily planning on making this a really long term game. It will probably be more like a mini-campaign. I'm working with some pre-published Eberron adventures, and we'll see how they go. The first is "Forgotten Forge" introductory adventure from the 3.5 Eberron Campaign book.
The Belker can transform into smoke and be inhaled by a PC and then inflict damage to their insides, which is pretty cool. The rules for this say that the afflicted character can make a DC 17 Fort save on his turn to cough it out. However, the rules aren't clear on whether this requires an action on the part of the character, and if so what type of action (standard, move etc...). Does anyone have a suggestion on how to rule this? I'm tempted to make it require a move or standard action, since the character supposed to be coughing the thing out of them, which sounds like it would take some time and effort.
I started running Age of Worms a little while back. I've opted to go Pathfinder for this AP. I've made some changes to the story here and there to try to make the adventures connect a little better with each other and the characters. I figured I might as well post my journals since they might be of use to other folks trying to run this campaign.
The first few entries are point form, as I wasn't originally planning on doing an online campaign journal, but I found that I naturally want to write paragraphs, so I went back to my usual journaling format (i.e.. paragraphs).
It's more geared towards folks familiar with the Age of Worms AP, so if you aren't you may have some trouble following certain parts, but if you have questions feel free to post and I can try and clarify any details that aren't clear.
The starting party consists of:
Stinky: half orc, oracle of battle, and follower of Kord
I've been thinking a lot lately about how much time we have until the civilization we have grown to take for granted comes crashing down around us. It would contend that given that it is built on the premise of ever expanding consumption and economic growth in a world that has finite space and resources it is only matter of time before it collapses. How long though? 10 years, 20, 100?
I'm new to pathfinder, but not D&D. I like the combat maneuver system for Pathfinder except that because of all the restrictions on it (provoking AoO, requiring standard actions etc..) there isn't much incentive to use it unless there are exceptional circumstances where it would be of obvious benefit (like bull rushing someone into a pit).
My goal is to make combat more dynamic- less I smack you, you smack me. To encourage players and monsters to make more use of combat maneuvers, I was considering implementing a house rule whereby combat maneuvers would generally not provoke attacks of opportunity. This of course would make all the improved x feats less useful, but to compensate for that I was considering modifying the feats, so that in addition to the bonus the feat gives to the maneuver, the feat would also allow you to perform it as a move action. For instance, improved sunder would allow you to sunder as a move action and then make an attack in the same round with a standard action. I'm wondering if some folks can help me foresee the implications of such a house rule. Would it mess up the game balance too much?
Any other suggestions about how to make combat more exciting and interesting for the melee types would also be appreciated.
I'm thinking of running my next campaign using Pathfinder. However, I would prefer to run it in a more low magic item mode or at least a magic items seem special mode. I want the PCs to be able to keep up in terms of AC and Saving Throws without needing cloaks of resistance, amulets of natural armour, rings of protection etc... I'm wondering if anyone has plotted out a set of inherent bonus house rules, so that these things can advance as expected without the need for the magic items. I'm thinking in the vein of 4E, which has such a set of rules.
It is early spring in northern Taldor in the barony of Hawkhaven.
You are currently in the bailey of Albercroft Keep near the stables tending to the horses or perhaps just socializing. It is morning and a good day for a ride after a long winter.
Baron Albercroft steps out of the old wooden doors to the keep, takes in the crisp morning air, stretches and starts descending the stairs to the bailey. He's a husky man with a dark, well-trimmed beard. He looks intently at the horses as he approaches, seemingly measuring their condition and the quality of the grooming they are currently receiving.
Feel free to introduce your characters, explain what you are up to and start some chit chat among yourselves.
Sir Garret, you will be serving your family and starting in your home barony, which is in Taldor. I'm making you the second son not the third in your line. However, your elder brother has proved to be a bully and boor. Your father, who is a devout follower of Imodae, decided that your brother was unfit for ruling. Thus he broke tradition and decided that you would be the heir to the family's lands not your older brother. This resulted in a rift in the family. Your older brother left to live with his uncle, who your father doesn't particularly get on well with. This particular uncle rules a neighbouring barony and is a warlike follower of Gorum.If it weren't for the fact that he and your father were brothers you would likely be in a bloodfeud or border war. Your brother still harbours a grudge for the slight caused by your father.
Sir Garret feel free to decide on some details for other siblings- little brothers or sisters.
I'm checking to see if there's an interest in a somewhat non-traditional style Pathfinder game.
The premise is that the characters would be members of minor noble house in a unstable/war torn feudal realm (possibly Taldor or maybe Nyrond in the Greyhawk setting). The focus of the campaign would be on defending, stabilizing and expanding their realm. There would be ample opportunity for rp and combat as characters build alliances or make enemies of their neighbours and deal with various threats to their domain. More traditionally adventuring objectives like gathering loot would take a backseat, and things like bringing honour to the party's family and winning the favour of more powerful/prominent nobles would be much more important.
The campaign would focus more on martial characters with classes like fighters, cavaliers, and paladins having an important place. Other classes like clerics, druids, rangers and wizards could all have a role in the campaign as well.
Characters would begin at 3rd level. I'd use point buy for stats, and I'm leaning towards a 15 point buy to give the game a heroic but more low fantasy type feel. Humans would be the primary race, but there could be one or two members of other races. All characters will be somehow connected to the noble family that the game centres around, and together the players will design the noble house. Initially no PC will be the ruler of the house, but could be a son or daughter of the local baron.
I am considering running a sword and sorcery pbp set in Hyboria using the Barbarians of Lemuria system. Barbarians of Lemuria is a very rules lite system that is designed with sword and sorcery adventure in mind, and I think due to its rules lite nature it would be well suited to running in pbp format. I find more complex systems can bog down in pbp, but I think this one could allow the game to move along at a pretty good pace, which in theory would help keep it engaging for all involved.
I've played lots of 3.5, but for the past few years I've been running 4E games. I haven't tried Pathfinder yet. We're starting a new campaign and we've decided to take a break from 4E. I've been trying to decide whether to use Pathfinder or True20. I like a lot of the flavour and such in Pathfinder, but I'm a bit hesitant to use the system because on the surface it looks like it would have all the same balance issues that 3.5 had (primarily- magic dominating the game at higher levels and melee characters having few combat options beyond "full attack, again"). For those of you who have played the game past level 9 or so, is this the case or have they managed to make some changes to alleviate that trend?
For those of you are familiar with FATE. Has anyone had any issue with players trying to continual rely on or two aspects or does anyone have any house rules about how many time you can invoke an aspect during a scene?
I have yet to run this system, but I am planning on doing so in a couple of weeks, and it seems like this could be an issue (probably not so much for my group) with the system.
I'm considering running another Pathfinder AP (I've run second darkness). I'm trying to decide which one. Any thoughts on which one is the best and why?
I'm looking for a new system to run D&D style fantasy games (for instance running/converting a paizo AP). I'm burnt out on 3E/pathfinder and 4E.
I've checked out Savage Worlds, and I like its relative rulesliteness, but the magic system just isn't evocative enough for me to really want to use in the long term for fantasy.
I've considered checking out Dragonage, but I haven't yet. I'm concerned that it doesn't have enough options to build the classic character archetypes I'm used to with D&D.
I've played and ran a bit of Warhammer 3E, and though I like it, it is a little too setting specific to recreate the feel of D&D.
I've had a look at Castles and Crusades, but I don't think it's quite what I'm looking for.
I'm strongly considering using the FATE system (Starblazers/legends of Anglerre more specifically), but I haven't actually tried to run it yet, and I'm a little worried about how well the magic rules will work in it.
I'd appreciate any suggestions. Ideally I'd like a system that is balanced but still versatile enough to create a wide range of D&D type characters, can do magic in an evocative way without unbalancing the game, and does combat in fairly quickly and simply while still being interesting and exciting. I realize that all that is probably a lot to ask.
I'm trying to understand what it is that some people seem to have against this organization.
I'm a school teacher, and what I see in the school system is that the people who are least well equipped to properly care for and raise children are producing the most kids. Over time this single fact places an enormous burden on society. Such children are more likely to have health problems (diabetes, obesity, fetal alcohol syndrome etc..), they tend to have more difficulty in school, struggle more to get gainful employment after school, and are more likely to end up in the criminal justice system.
Having an organization like planned parenthood that helps to educate people about taking steps to ensure that they don't have children when they aren't equipped to raise them can only be a good thing for society. The savings a country will see in the long run for investing in such education will more than pay for itself.
Is anyone out there an expert on Colony Collapse Disorder. I have only recently heard of this, but apparently it's been going on for several years now. Essentially, bee colony populations are rapidly declining. The exact causes haven't yet been determined, but it seems to be a result of a number of factors including wide spread use of commercial pesticides.
Why should we care?
Because bees pollinate a large percentage of the food crops we eat, and without them there will be enormous food shortages and vastly increased food prices.
This is question for dms running 4E games. How do you rule powers when they don't make sense?
I've noticed a lot of situations in 4E play where a player wants to use a power, but the way the power is described doesn't make any in game sense that it would actually work in the situation the player is trying to use the power in.
Here's a classic example: The fighter "come and get it" power lets the fighter pull nearby enemies to him, so that he can take a big sweeping swing that will hit them all. It's a cool power, and makes a lot of sense in many situations (like when he's in a fight with a bunch of savage orcs), but what about when he manages to get near an enemy wizard with a very high intelligence who is smart enough to know that he doesn't want to be anywhere near a fighter? Why would an enemy like that suddenly run up to the fighter so that the guy can take a swing at him?
Another Example: There's a couple of rogue powers that let a rogue temporarily blind a foe by apparently slashing the foe and thus causing blood to get in his enemy's eyes. Well what happens when the rogue tries to use such a power on a creature like an air elemental that has no eyes and doesn't bleed?
It seems to me like the dm has two options. Either he nerfs the power and says that the power doesn't work in that situation (or more fairly says that it can't be used ahead before hand so that the player can go with something different) or he lets it work but has to try to come up with some ridiculous justification for why it would have functioned under such circumstances.
So far I've done a bit of both of these. I'll try to justify a power most of the time, attempting to come up with (often with the players help) some reason why it would work, but there have been times where it just seemed too ridiculous and I've told the player that this power just can't work in the given situation. The players have generally accepted such decisions, but usually there is some grumbling.
I find that there is definitely a sense of entitlement among many players that powers should work no matter what as long as the player succeeds with whatever attack roll is needed.
I'm interested to know how other dms have dealt with such situations and how players feel about a dm reserving the right to nerf there powers if he thinks it doesn't make sense in a given situation.
