Hey guys, I’d like your feedback on this subject….
We are currently playing the Arena Games in the AOW AP:
Last session, my PC went off to explore under the arena, and found the hidden home of Bozal and his minions.
The session ended with them barely able to defeat him after going through the Morghs and the Spawns of Kyuss. Next friday they will likely discover the Apostolic scrolls and the Ulghurstasta-containing sphere.
My questions are:
1) I’ve gone through the ways one can destroy the sphere (other than the one who created it – which is presumably now out of the question, since Bozal is now quite dead) and they seem all very difficult to achieve for 9th-10th level PCs…
The turning undead attempt could be feasibile, but heck! – the dispel 1d4 round later against caster level 20! That’s tough!!!
2) Even if they break the sphere, the adventure says that the Ulghur-boy vill attack anything on tendrils’range, or – much more likely option in my opinion – try to open its way to the arena floor since nobody will stay near it…
What happens next? Big night combat in the empty arena? And the games? No distruption whatsoever? To me it seems that this was not what the adventure’s author had in mind (I think that he wants the PS destroy the Ulghur with no-one else being the wiser of this fact) but the odds are stacked against this happening…
How have you handled these points in your campaigns?
Thanks all for the help!
Kella
Have it break out during the last combat. Worked for us - the thing's not that hard to kill as long as you don't use that necromantic blast it has. I had it swallow Auric, but the PCs killed it before he died. You can see pictures of it in one of my threads on this board.
My players couldn't figure out how to get around the sphere as the Wizard didn't regularly memorize dispel magic and there is no straight cleric. Even if there was I doubt they would have thought about turning it. I had Raknian dispell it during the final combat and it rose into the arena, pretty much as the module describe. My poor pc's though were not able to stop it in time and now they have to deal with a ton of wights in the middle of Waterdeep.
Hey guys, I’d like your feedback on this subject….
We are currently playing the Arena Games in the AOW AP:
Last session, my PC went off to explore under the arena, and found the hidden home of Bozal and his minions.
The session ended with them barely able to defeat him after going through the Morghs and the Spawns of Kyuss. Next friday they will likely discover the Apostolic scrolls and the Ulghurstasta-containing sphere.
My questions are:
1) I’ve gone through the ways one can destroy the sphere (other than the one who created it – which is presumably now out of the question, since Bozal is now quite dead) and they seem all very difficult to achieve for 9th-10th level PCs…
The turning undead attempt could be feasibile, but heck! – the dispel 1d4 round later against caster level 20! That’s tough!!!2) Even if they break the sphere, the adventure says that the Ulghur-boy vill attack anything on tendrils’range, or – much more likely option in my opinion – try to open its way to the arena floor since nobody will stay near it…
What happens next? Big night combat in the empty arena? And the games? No distruption whatsoever? To me it seems that this was not what the adventure’s author had in mind (I think that he wants the PS destroy the Ulghur with no-one else being the wiser of this fact) but the odds are stacked against this happening…How have you handled these points in your campaigns?
Thanks all for the help!
Kella
I had it break free during the final round of competition. I let the competition go for one round, then had the whole place shake, and as the Urgulstasta erupted from the center of the combat field, Raknian shouted something and pointed at Auric; a shadowy light lit Auric and anyone else with Fighter levels (so one of the PCs and a number of the guards and spectators in the stands) to let the Urgulstasta know who were the "best" victims.
The Urgulstasta can't use it's necromantic blast because if it does, it doesn't have enough necromantic acid in its gut to kill a swallowed target; and it has to try to swallow Auric (or any Fighter) and have them die in its gut. I decided after reading the adventure that even if the Urgulstasta successfully swallowed Auric, the ritual still wouldn't be complete til Auric actually died in there; I decided (GM fiat) that Auric would not successfully cut his way out if it came to that, and I think I remember that it would take one or two rounds for him to die from the necromantic acid.
My PCs managed to kill the Urgulstasta after it had bit-and-grappled Auric but before it managed to swallow him.
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1) I’ve gone through the ways one can destroy the sphere (other than the one who created it – which is presumably now out of the question, since Bozal is now quite dead) and they seem all very difficult to achieve for 9th-10th level PCs…
The turning undead attempt could be feasibile, but heck! – the dispel 1d4 round later against caster level 20! That’s tough!!!
I kinda took away from that that the PCs were not supposed to be able to open it themselves. It would just give them a hint of what was coming. Because PCs might insist on trying all sort of things, the other possibilities are listed. In my campaign, they didn't have the resources to handle it.
One thing, though. The Rod of Negation (or Cancellation, I think) is relatively affordable. The PCs might have trouble getting it, because they have a restricted magic item channel. Eliyos (sp?) could smuggle it in, perhaps....2) Even if they break the sphere, the adventure says that the Ulghur-boy vill attack anything on tendrils’range, or – much more likely option in my opinion – try to open its way to the arena floor since nobody will stay near it…
What happens next? Big night combat in the empty arena? And the games? No distruption whatsoever? To me it seems that this was not what the adventure’s author had in mind (I think that he wants the PS destroy the Ulghur with no-one else being the wiser of this fact) but the odds are stacked against this happening…
One DM on the boards from waaaay back mentioned how the PCs freed the Ulgurstasta and fought it after it broke onto the surface of the arena. They were successful, but the tournament director (Raknian) put out a press-release about how a creature held for the games had escaped, damaged the stadium, and the games would be postponed for a while.
As I mentioned above, I think that the author wanted the Ulgurstasta to be the centerpiece of the last fight: The methods of destroying the sphere are either unlikely (getting the Rod of Cancellation), unavailable (disintegrate), or absurdly difficult (turning).Don't forget, towards the back it says that, on the eve of the final battle, Raknian goes to check on Bozal. If he finds that Bozal has gotten himself killed, he purchases the Rod of Cancellation and destroys it himself.
In my campaign, the PCs had failed to fully kill the Faceless One (so Raknian's unnamed minion healed him) and the Faceless One released the Ulgurstasta to pay off his debt.
Thank you all for your comments!
I guess that the most feasible thing is to have the final battle in the arena....
but it still seem to me that having the PCs discover the plot but not being able to twart it somehow before the end is a lot like railroading...
Anyways, thanks everybody!
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Thank you all for your comments!
I guess that the most feasible thing is to have the final battle in the arena....
but it still seem to me that having the PCs discover the plot but not being able to twart it somehow before the end is a lot like railroading...Anyways, thanks everybody!
If you really want them to have a chance to deal with it pre-fight, emphasize the Rod of Cancellation angle. That's the only real way that they could open it without a serious chance of backfire, pre-fight. In my campaign, I played it down because I was looking forward to the grand-battle.
They have the knowledge (I assume) and they (technically) have the resources. If they don't take advantage of that, it's on them.If you do have it come out during the final battle, remember that it loses 1d8 HP a day from the time when they killed Bozal to the time it's released.
I honestly wouldn't say that a Rod of Cancellation is the easiest way to open the containment field. Heck, it's even far from the cheapest. Just because nobody in the party has access to the Disintegrate spell yet doesn't mean they can't use it from a scroll. A scroll of Disintegrate is much, MUCH cheaper than a Rod of Cancellation, and as long as someone in the group is a Wizard or Sorcerer (or, better, someone with a high Use Magic Device) it can be used quite easily. If a 9th-level caster, for example, tries to use a scroll of disintegrate (at caster level 11), that means that have to make a DC 11 caster level check- so they have to roll a 2 or better in order to use the scroll. True, if they roll a 1, something bad happens, but honestly, which would an adventuring party do- pay a small amount for a scroll of disintegrate and take that 5% chance of failure, or pay ten times the amount for something without a chance of failure?
...the Wizard didn't regularly memorize dispel magic
I'd let them die just for that. A wizard without a dispel? Insane!!!
In my campaign I had Bozal come bursting in while the party was fighting the spawn and morgh. It was a tough battle and they were pretty drain and had a battle in the arena the next day, so they quit at that point and went back to rest.
After their battle with Madtooth, they went down again. They found the scrolls and the sealed portal to the ulgurstasta chamber, but couldn't figure out how to effect it. They went on and two of the six got trapped in the chest. Then the others about got plastered by the demon, but got through it.
On the way back out, they gave it another try, and with some good knowledge checks, and a little prompting from me, figured it out, and the gung ho Paladin in the group let the thing loose. They were already pretty wasted and down two members of the party.
The Bard then had the grand idea to use his Message spell to contact Eligos. The bard told him the situation and I didn't see any reason not to have him come help, as it was really quick thinking on my player's part. The ulgurstasta broke through the arena floor and they had a midnight fight, aided by Eligos, with no one to watch but the guards, who were quivering in their boots.
As it was they all barely made it, including Eligos, which made the story of him being killed by the assassin more likely.
The Bard then had the grand idea to use his Message spell to contact Eligos. The bard told him the situation and I didn't see any reason not to have him come help, as it was really quick thinking on my player's part. The ulgurstasta broke through the arena floor and they had a midnight fight, aided by Eligos, with no one to watch but the guards, who were quivering in their boots.
A message spell hardly has the range to contact Eligos, and it needs line of sight and line of effect.
So unless Eligos was standing in the next room, it wouldn't have reached him, unless I am mistaken.