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My group went into Bhal-Hamatugn, a pretty well balanced group, but damn this whole adventure has seemed way too tough, I had to ditch the Cryohydra in favor of a Caller in Darkness, and the dragon killed two of them (they got raised). Then the mummy got one of them, so that player and a new player brought in new characters at that point to basically be their backup. But the Erinyes demon laid waste to them. Three character deaths from the one battle and no chance to bring their bodies out (they scattered across the dungeon running away from it after the cleric dropped).
So basically the party wound up giving up on the mission entirely, and the Stormblades are gonna get the credit, but now I need help getting their characters back into the swing of the story with the next chapter. I'm gonna say some time's gone by (like 6 months) while they greived. Has anyone else had problems with things being generally tougher than expected? I have 5 players and two cohorts and every combat seems way too deadly.
This turned into more of a vent than a question, but advice/help would still be useful ^_^
Has anyone else had problems with things being generally tougher than expected? I have 5 players and two cohorts and every combat seems way too deadly.
This turned into more of a vent than a question, but advice/help would still be useful ^_^
Zenith Trajectory is a particularly lethal stretch of adventure for the SCAP. So lethal, that I'm side-trekking my PCs so that they are a few levels above the target difficulty.
The next chapter, The Demonskar Legacy, is relatively easy to slip the PCs back into. You could quite simply have them in the area when the tax riot starts, and voila! they are in the AP again.
Whenever I have a particularly brutal series of encounters, my personal choice is to lowball a few side treks to get the players back into the zone. If you constantly grind them, they will more than likely start revolting on their own.
It sounds like you are having the same problems many of us are, trust me it's not your fault. I have DM'ed through The Test of the Smoking Eye with my group. Things do not get any easier for the players. I have used the NPC's to help and bolster the party. I have encouraged membership in the Striders for all who qualify (half my players). I have a few fair weather players that show up about once a month and use membership as a tool to get them in and out of a session. You can use the Stiders or the Chisel as a supporting cast. The heroes of Star Wars would not have gotten far withou the help of the rebel alliance. 007 would be dead many times over without MI-6.
These NPC's hold a backseat to players, only offering advise when asked and insisting on compensation for more active roles. "You want me do x for you, well maybe you could help me with y." This will allow you to help the party after a string of bad luck, without sacrificing credability, and allowing players to have control of the outcome.
I highly recommend adding a side quest or two to keep them leveled up. If they have had a tough time, give them something to kill and some cool treasure. The future chapters are tough and their are spots where exp can be missed or is woefully low. Good luck.
Okay, as I am running my party through Zenith Trajectory right now, I have to ask as it seems that many of you have found this particular adventure fairly lethal in terms of your groups. Is this because they are trying to run throught the kua-toa home in one shot? Or are they retreating and returning once they have recovered?
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My group was 1 level above the recommended PC group, and was 7 people, and they still had trouble with Bhal-Hamatugn.
I ran the Hydra wrong, but they did a phenomenal amount of damage to the body and overcame the fast healing, never mind the heads.
In Bhal-Hamatugn they ended up killing the ferryman and nearly suffering a TPK - Aushanna charmed a PC (who in turn the PCs used suggestion on), and rained fiery death down on them, forcing them to run. They then came back armed with holy water and blessed weapons and dealt with her swiftly.
The rest of Zenith Trajectory wasn't so bad, as I recall.
My group only had trouble with the initial foray into the main temple chamber (they were beat back) and then the final battle with Zenith and particularly the Invisible Stalker.
The Cryohydra battle was epic and killed no one, and one canny player casted a successfull Dispel Magic on the red smoke before it could finish summoning Aushanna effectively bypassing her completely.
I think the Malachite Fortress in the first adventure was way harder and much easier to TPK your group (Kazmojen and his Howler).