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I am going to run AoW for a group of 3 or 4 new players and one experienced player. I keep hearing that AoW is tough so I thought that I would give let the group be more advanced before getting to AoW. I was thinking of running them through the Sunless Citadel first; then they would be third level when starting AoW. Is that too high? Should I run them just up to level two?
thanks
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This was my concern too. I'm running a group of 5 players and the boards indicate that the encounters are pretty deadly at lower levels.
If you are only using 3 players, then they will be too weak to handle The Whispering Cairn as printed, and you might want to consider giving them a chance to hit 2nd or even 3rd level before starting the adventure path in earnest.
"Within the Circle" looks like a tempting adventure if you make a few small tweaks like dumping the Yuan-ti references and replacing them with Ebon Hand ones. Dourstone might make an interesting patron instead of a FR noble.
IMC I ran my players through a short world-intro adventure (modified "Dark and Stormy Knight" from WotC site) to make sure they hit 2nd level earlier in the module. It also gave them enough treaure to get a wand of CLW and get in the good graces of the Church of St. Cuthbert and Alustan as well. This should cut down on down time due to wounds and keep play going at a brisk pace.
The other thing a lot of other DM's do is include an NPC party member to fill in any gaps in the party skill set. Try to steer clear of a character that is pivotal to the party survival or the plot though. Nobody likes it when the DM's character is the centre of attention. ;) Sorry if I rambled, but I hope this helps.
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Getting them close to second level should be where you want them. Giving them a wand of cure light wounds with a dozen charges was just what the cleric needed to keep the party going through the Whispering Cairn. Third level would be "too high", especially when you get to the latter stages of Three Faces of Evil as a 6th level party would wipe out the Ebon Aspect easily. The lizard folk would be a cakewalk as well. You may find yourself needing to revamp all the subsequent adventures for the increasd average party level; dropping an adventure or two could happen as well.
As it was for my game, the PCs gained 2nd after the first full session in Whispering Cairn and are now pushing 9th level by the time they arrived in the Free City. As such, I'm cutting most of the Hall of Harsh Reflections so they can get to the Champion's Belt ASAP otherwise I'll have to do too much tweaking of the combat situations that are the focus of that scenario.
In short, one nearly empty wand can save you hours of additional work.
As long as your party actually takes the time to rest occasionally, rather than pushing on through the adventure despite being low on spells, they should be fine. Giving them additional levels before starting play only serves to make the early encounters too easy, instead of making the players create good tactics. While the adventures in AoW are definitely at the high-end of what a party of the suggested level can take on, they're not too difficult in my experience (so far; about to start the Champion's Belt now).
My party started at the usual straight-out-of-1st-level, and made it through the Whispering Cairn in about a week of in-game time (2 real world sessions, iirc). They did face one death, due to the Owlbear (a full-attack involving one hit and one critical hit from an Owlbear will do that to a 2nd-level character, regardless of the Owlbear's current hit points).
Three Faces of Evil will also be a TPK if the players don't rest between each of the three parts; it's pretty dangerous even then, especially the Hextor and Vecna parts. I found the Lizardfolk lair to be a cakewalk. My players considered it to be an "intermission" or "free XP", but that was remedied again in Hall of Harsh Reflections. Zyrxog is a pretty tough BBEG for an 8th-9th level party.
I would suggest that if you're going to run an intro adventure before starting the AOW officially, that sometime during that intro adventure they should encounter a minor critter infected with the Kyuss worms. Otherwise the PC's are merely hearing rumours about said worms until the third adventure in the campaign.
Give them some immediate experience with the Kyuss worms - I would say from a story and plot perspective this would be the way to go.
If you do a prequel for AoW, or more specifically, TWC, I would recommend using the Diamond Lake backdrop. This will give your players the added benefit of becoming familiar with the town and its inhabitants, which might come in handy later.
I liked Rexx's suggestion about the wand of cure light. My own NPC cleric was just practically a band-aid for the first two adventures. On that note, I would at least recommend your party goes into the Whispering Cairn well-equipped. Thinking about it, that acid beetle swarm and lurking strangler opener is pretty rough for a fresh-out-of-the-box party. You may want to hint at alchemist's fires being on sale at the local shop, for instance.
I didn't do a prequel myself, though the idea is intriguing. I don't personally feel, experience-wise, that it's necessary. If you have only three players, you may want to try the campaign as a gestalt one (see Unearthed Arcana) or introduce an NPC for you to play--which has become a lot of fun, in truth, and I was hesitant to do it myself.
Still, if I did a prequel, I'd like to do something low on actual combat, but more on intrigue or cunning, stealth and deception. Consider relaying private messages from Chaum Gansworth to Luzane Parrin, regarding a secret mine--maybe Deepspike Mine--that could endanger Balabar Smenk's iron grip on the mining operations of Diamond Lake. Perhaps forged documents need to be made to free an innocent man wrongfully incarcerated by Sheriff Cubbin, and the only way to secure the forger's help is to talk down his gambling debt at the Emporium. By keeping the amount of combat low, you shouldn't have to worry about your PCs raising too big of a ruckus in town, which might make events in TWC that much more difficult for them. Plus, you can find out which NPCs your players like to communicate with, and which ones you can forget about, for the most part. In this situation, I would award experience on an ad hoc basis, inevitably gearing them toward an amount you would like them to have prior to starting TWC.
I am going to run AoW for a group of 3 or 4 new players and one experienced player. I keep hearing that AoW is tough so I thought that I would give let the group be more advanced before getting to AoW. I was thinking of running them through the Sunless Citadel first; then they would be third level when starting AoW. Is that too high? Should I run them just up to level two?
Third level would be too high to start the Whispering Cairn, really (as others have already suggested). You might consider using Chris Wissel's filling-out of the abandoned mine office as an introductory adventure, which has the advantage of being part of the Whispering Cairn story. It gives the PCs a nice XP boost before starting the main adventure, and also provides them with some useful equipment.
You might consider using Chris Wissel's filling-out of the abandoned mine office as an introductory adventure, which has the advantage of being part of the Whispering Cairn story.
I second this recommendation. I used it to give my party a boost. It also has a very "iconic" feel to it.
Another thing about a three member party is you'll notice the characters leveling a bit faster than you might be used to (assuming your used to four people), and faster than the published adventures assume anyways. Giving them too much extra experience or starting them off at higher level will just add to this problem, so I would advise against it.
On the other hand, an introductory adventure is a good idea, just so long as you don't give out too much experience points, but rather actual experience. Find a way to bring up good tactics, like Aid Another (something my normal party seems to find completely alien) and flanking. Let them find an adventurer down on his luck who's interested in making a trade for some "adventuring goods" (namely a curelight wand and/or some alchemist fire) for cheap so he can get something to eat for the night. Write up a few paragraphs of a story for them to hear while hanging out in the local common room, full of handy adventuring advice. If your party already knows all this, and is well equiped, you should be alright (assuming they rest often, as has been stated already), even with a three person party. Quick question though, what sort of characters do you have? A balanced three person party should be alright, but, say for example, three fighters, would be screwed. Someone with the Find Traps class ability is vital in my opinion, and a healer is almost a must. Beyond that, someone with good area of effect combat spells would be handy, but not as important as the previous two character types.
I put my players through the Dungeon adventure "Mad God's Key" to start off the campaign. It starts off in the Free City and ends in the Cairn Hills not too far from Diamond Lake. And since my PCs aren't from Diamond Lake, it was a great way to get them there.
When the adventure started, I described to my players that their PCs just exited a tavern after being at the arena all day watching the Free City's Games Finale (not knowing that their PCs would participate in them a year later in 'Champion's Belt').
Ultradan
I put my players through the Dungeon adventure "Mad God's Key" to start off the campaign. It starts off in the Free City and ends in the Cairn Hills not too far from Diamond Lake. And since my PCs aren't from Diamond Lake, it was a great way to get them there.
Ultradan
Dito, whispering cairn has a very Age of Wormy kinda feel to it. Given some minor tweaking, it fits in great with the campaign. Moreover, it is an excellent adventure as such, top shelve!