|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
OCCIPITUS ARRIVAL TO THE CATHEDRAL OF FEATHERS
MINI-ADVENTURE OVERVIEW
From my first reading of ‘Test of the Smoking Eye’, I looked forward to my PCs journey to Occipitus.
Space limitations likely necessitated the use of wandering monsters tables between the major plot points of the module (the three tests). I wanted to turn my party’s journey across Occipitus into one where the various encounters between tests advanced the storyline more directly than wandering monsters would allow. The tables provide both insight and a potential outline for such an adventure.
What follows are some of my efforts to turn my PCs journey into a narrative arc exposing more of the mystery and backstory of Occipitus: a mini module that takes PCs from the moment they arrive on the plane to the point where they reach the Cathedral of Feathers.
This mini-adventure is inspired by David Noonan’s encounter tables, and uses adaptations of his original boxed text as well as descriptive copy of the various geographic features of Occipitus.
It is built around knowledge of my own adventuring party – a group without the means to teleport or fly, and with a movement speed of 20. At this pace overland, the journey to the Cathedral of Feathers would take approximately 7 days. Based on an encounter frequency of 8% hour (as suggested by the wandering monster tables), I assumed an average of 13 to 14 encounters over the duration of the journey (9 to 10 encounters for a group moving at a speed of 30).
The mini-adventure also assumes that Kaurophon takes on the role of guide, more actively participating in the exposition of Occipitus’ mysteries and history throughout the journey (Kaurophon doesn’t mind – he is, after all, an expert on the plane and it helps to establish a foundation of trust with the PCs).
The mini-adventure begins with the assumptions I made about the population distribution on Occipitus. This follows with a day-by-day breakdown of the first leg of my party’s journey through the plane to the Cathedral of Feathers. I’ll post the initial assumptions, then each day of the journey as separate posts.
I’ve inserted the stat blocks for templated fiendish creatures that originally appeared in Dungeon #107, and were posted on RPGenius by catdragon.
Here is my work, warts and all. I’m a bit of a Luddite, so the formatting I’ve placed in the mini-adventure will probably not survive being posted. However, I’ve uploaded the file in its entirety to the RPGenius site, in the ‘Test of the Smoking Eye’ section of the SCAP file repository. If this is of use to other SCAP DMs, I will write up the other two legs of the journey created for my PCs.
|
|
INHABITANTS OF OCCIPITUS
POPULATION
While Occipitus is desolate by the standards of the Prime Material Plane or most other layers of the Abyss, the encounter tables illustrate that there still exists a diversity of creatures. Occipitus is a harsh home, and even the bottom feeders in the Occipitus food chain are hearty creatures, capable of surviving in the environs.
DENIZENS AND VISITORS
The creatures found on Occipitus can be placed within six broad categories…
• The Natives
• The Abandoned
• The Livestock
• The Contenders
• The Lost Celestials
• The Visitors
THE NATIVES
This group includes some demons (the few that have survived centuries after the casting down of Celestian land), chaos beasts, and the abyssal greater basilisks.
The undead (shadows, spectres, ghosts) could now be considered native. Most are the result of Orcus’ recent dalliance with Occipitus, or as spirits of fallen mortals – others are minions and visitors to the plane who met a savage, brutal end.
THE ABANDONED
These are the followers of Adimarchus who were left behind after his disappearance and survived the onslaught of Graz’zt’s horde. The Abandoned include demons brought to Occipitus by Adimarchus with no means to leave the plane after his departure, as well as other minions and creatures drawn to serve under Adimarchus’ banner. This group includes a large number of green slaad (many of whom the passage of time have transformed into grey slaad), the various fiendish creatures Adimarchus used as shock troops (and their descendants), as well as elite allies such as Vorkaire, the black dragon.
Over the years, factions have formed with turf wars and infighting reducing the ranks of the Abandoned. Those who remain are either powerful, wily, or both.
THE LIVESTOCK
An army needs food. To satisfy this need, Adimarchus stocked Occipitus with fiendish cattle and other beasts forming the low rung of the Occipitus food chain. This includes the fiendish bison, and for the hearty, thunder beasts.
These creatures now roam the flats, and are preyed upon by other fiendish creatures, and the slaadi. While demons have no need for food, they often wade into the flats to shed blood and cause devastation when the mood strikes.
THE USURPERS
This select group encompasses those with the ambition to usurp Adimarchus’ throne: demons mad enough to rule Occipitus; demons who believe their only escape from Occipitus is by passing the Test of the Smoking Eye; and non-demons from other planes, who, for selfish or altruistic reasons, wish to pass the test.
Most of the contenders have followers, vassals or cohorts with them. For example, Liuvash the succubus has used her powers of persuasion to persuade Arrokh (the noble salamander and former minion of Adimarchus) and the driders to assist her; Zaur Sza (the rakshasa), Motruk (the fire giant) and Kaurophon all fit into this category. Certain self-proclaimed demon lords of Occipitus and other visitors to the layer may also view themselves as contenders to the throne.
THE LOST CELESTIALS
These are the poor souls (and their progeny), celestial forces caught in crush of conflict with Adimarchus’ demon hordes at the precise moment the land they were defending was torn from the fabric of Celestia and cast down into the Abyss. Those who remain lacked the means of planar travel to return to their home plane, or who elected to stay and protect the sacred ground left on Occipitus. Guardinals, some couatl, and golems created by the celestials fall into this group.
VISITORS
While Occipitus is far from a tourist hot spot, the plane does attract some abyssal visitors. The layer is also occasionally visited by celestial creatures seeking to discover the fate of the realm torn from Celestia, or hoping to rescue their lost brethren. Others travel to Occipitus with a purpose that does not include the Test of the Smoking Eye – including treasure hunters (i.e. the priests of Wee Jas) seeking legendary artifacts lost from Celestia or powerful items abandoned after the clash between Graz’zt and Adimarchus.
Saureya the fallen astral deva may also be considered a visitor. Saureya likely has the means to escape Occipitus. If so, he is there by choice pursuing his own agenda.
POPULATION DISTRIBUTION
Cattle and fiendish creatures form the centre of the Occipitus ecosystem. The cattle live in greatest numbers at the centre of the large flats, wandering in herds. Preying on these herds are other fiendish creatures, living in concentric circles around the flats (and into the ossaic and fibrous forests).
The slaadi have learned it’s best to stay close together, and live in caves and warrens carved into the mountainous rim that defines the edge of Occipitus. Some slaad have made loose alliances with celestial creatures and reside in the celestial rubble, others are enemies of the celestials, seeing these areas.
Demons can live virtually anywhere on Occipitus, although the mightiest avoid establishing their strongholds in the flats. Some demons have taken on the role of overlords, setting up lairs in the mountains or ossaic forest. The boldest set up their territories near the skull, seeing it as the true symbol of status in Occipitus. All send their minions about Occipitus, vying with other overlords, and spreading chaos and destruction among the flats, some seeking clues to solve the puzzle of the Smoking Eye.
|
|
OCCIPTITUS – ARRIVAL TO CATHEDRAL OF FEATHERS
DAY ONE: Arrival
-------------------------------------------------
Immediately upon completing your planar journey you notice the stark contrast with the world you have just left. Your senses are engulfed by an alien experience.
Above you, a sky of flame bathes everything in a reddish glow. In the distance looms a massive skull: a white monolith the size of a small mountain. Clouds of congealed fire stream from the skull’s single exposed eye socket, then up into the sky.
Close behind you, a steep mountain ridge thrusts through the burning shroud of clouds. The mountains stretch across the entire horizon – as if you were standing near the rim of a vast bowl with a fiery lid. About a half-mile away, gently curving white pillars stand like giant rib bones. The ground itself is spongy and wrinkled. It feels more like skin than dirt.
Kaurophon turns around, a sense of urgency on his face. He quickly finds his bearings. “Quick – this way,” he points in a direction angling away from the looming cliffs and towards the rib-like pillars. “Thee mountain walls are ripe with slaadi. Move before they are upon us!”
-------------------------------------------------
Kaurophon sets a brisk pace, should the party wish to follow. Between breaths, Kaurophon provides more information…
-------------------------------------------------
“We are about… 100 miles from the site… of the first test. We must pass through… the flats first… then the demon fields. When we reach… the celestial rubble… we are close to the Cathedral… the Cathedral of Feathers. Keep moving!”
-------------------------------------------------
Should the party fail to heed Kaurophon’s warning, they will be quickly set upon by slaad. Encounter One will occur as the party approaches the cliff walls, followed by the green slaad from encounter two. Every d3 rounds after, an additional grey or green slaad emerges from the walls to attack the PCs.
ENCOUNTER ONE (EL 10)
-------------------------------------------------
As you move, you feel warmth emanating from Occipitus’ fleshy surface. Your feet spring off of the spongy, grayish-red matter. The landscape seems desolate.
-------------------------------------------------
Three minutes after the heroes arrive on Occipitus (sooner if they turned towards the cliffs) they are set-upon by a Gray Slaad who is flying and invisible.
The slaad witnessed the party’s arrival from its cave in the mountains. It sets out to investigate and punish the trespassers.
Tactics: The slaad arrives with fly, invisibility, and see invisibility pre-cast. Near to maximum range, the Slaad unleashes a lightning bolt or chaos hammer depending on the way the party is arrayed. The next round, the slaad either strikes again with the same spell, or casts invisibility to set up its next attack. It reserves power word: stun for a character who can see invisible or fly.
The slaad carries no equipment or treasure. After it is defeated, Kaurophon wastes no time in keeping the party moving.
-------------------------------------------------
Kaurophon urges you onward. “There are more slaad nearby. They seldom work together but many on their own can be deadly.”
-------------------------------------------------
Assuming the heroes heed Kaurophon’s advice, they continue in the direction of the pillars.
-------------------------------------------------
In minutes, you reach the pillars observed upon your arrival. They appear as the gigantic remains of a skeletal rib cage, exposed to the blood-red sky and thrusting out of Occipitus’ skin.
-------------------------------------------------
Should the heroes decide to investigate, what appears to be bone turns out to be a chalky white rock, some of which crumbles on contact. The ‘ribs’ are easily 20 feet thick, arching to a height of 90 feet.
-------------------------------------------------
Past the skeletal cage, the flats continue unbroken as far as your eye can see. You notice sporadic variations – long stretches where thick, hair-like fibres spring from the ground; patches of earth reminiscent of scales; and undulating stretches that resemble wrinkles.
You travel for what must be hours but with no sun to rise or set on Occipitus it’s hard to gauge. Occasionally you see flashes of light in the direction you are traveling and dark shapes moving in the distance to the right or left.
“These are the flats. Herds of fiendish creatures and thunder beasts roam here. Make no mistake, while fierce, they are tame compared to the hunters.”
-------------------------------------------------
Kaurophon is happy to answer most questions about Occipitus as the party travels across the plane. After leading the party across Occipitus for 12 hours, he informs the party he needs to rest.
ENCOUNTER TWO (EL Varies)
A Green Slaad has been pursuing the party since shortly after their arrival, having witnessed the skirmish between the heroes and his grey brethren.
The slaad has pursued the party, using his hiding talents to keep remain unseen from a safe distance. He suspects the party offers a treasure trove of magic, and has devised a scheme to infiltrate their camp. About two hours after the party starts its rest, he makes his move.
The slaad approaches the camp invisibly (using his one item of magical treasure, a potion of invisibility). He uses detect thoughts to learn rudimentary details about his quarry, moving cautiously and silently, never approaching the heroes closer than 50 feet (Listen DC 27, Spot DC 44/24 if see invisibility is active).
Provided he is not detected, the slaad skulks off, taking the form of a human man in tattered robes. After a short period of time he attracts the attention of three chaos beasts he knows to lair in the area and uses his superior speed to lead the beasts to the PCs camp.
In his human guise, speaking in broken common he runs shouting… “Help! Help! I am pursued!” Immediately upon arriving in the camp, he slumps to the ground, exhausted.
The following round, the chaos beasts are on the camp. The slaad spends this first round of combat feigning a struggle to reach his feet. The next round the slaad seems to regain composure, if only briefly, casting a fireball at the chaos beast, before pretending to pass out.
After the fight is concluded, the PCs can resuscitate the slaad (if not, he brings himself to ‘consciousness’). “Food” he asks the party.
If questioned, the slaad will reveal the following…
• I do not know how long I have been here. There is little to mark the passage of time here – so long… (True)
• I come from Skatayang – my lost home. Perhaps it is like the place you are from. (True – although his words are carefully chosen)
• I was arrogant. I sought to enhance my prestige and power by visiting the other planes. Instead, I am trapped. (True)
If pressed, he will say that he has been wandering the plains for days, evading pursuit, and is now out of spells. (False)
The slaad feigns fatigue (receiving a +5 circumstance bonus on his bluff check as he actually is tired after his efforts). “So tired… must rest…”
Development: if the slaad is detected and defeated by the party, they will be discovered on their own by the three chaos beasts during the party’s second watch.
ENCOUNTER THREE (EL Varies)
Another green slaad is beginning the long return from a hunting trip to the flats. He is hauling a travois to help him to carry his quarry: a fireballed fiendish bison.
Unless the party is using exceptional means to conceal their encampment (i.e. rope trick, illusion), they are noticed by the slaad an hour after their fight with the Chaos Beasts. He uses Hide and Move Silent to approach.
Tactics: Once he is close enough to recognize the party as visitors to the plane (approximately 200 feet away) he begins to lob the party with fireballs (he only has two available, having used one to soften up the bison). He then approaches to attack the party.
Development: Once the first fireball hits, the disguised green slaad infiltrating the camp scrambles away from the party. On his first round, he attempts to summon another slaad, then follows up with targeting his two remaining fireballs at the party.
ENCOUNTER FOUR (EL 9)
A pair of fiendish dire lions following the scent of the hunter slaad and bison discovers the party’s encampment. They use stealth (Spot DC 12, Listen DC 22 for those on watch to notice) to try and grab a sleeping party member, running off with him or her.
Fiendish Dire Lion, Large magical beast; CR 7; HD 8d8+24; hp 60; Init +2; Spd 40'; AC 15 (-1 size, +2 Dex, +4 natural), touch 11, flat-footed 13; BAB/Grapple +6/+17; Atk 2 claws +13 melee (1d6+7) and bite +7 melee (1d8+3); Space/Reach 10'/10'; SA Improved grab, pounce, rake 1d6+3, smite good (+8 damage) 1/day; SQ Darkvision 60’, DR 5/magic, Low-light vision, scent, resistance to cold 10, resistance to fire 10, SR 13; SV Fort +9, Ref +8, Will +7; AL NE; Str 25, Dex 15, Con 17, Int 2, Wis 12, Cha 10.
Skills & Feats: Hide +2*, Listen +7, Move Silently +5, Spot +7; Alertness, Run, Weapon Focus (claw).
Improved Grab (Ex): To use this ability, a fiendish dire lion must hit with its bite attack. It can then attempt to start a grapple as a free action without provoking an attack of opportunity. If it wins the grapple check, it establishes a hold and can rake.
Pounce (Ex): If a fiendish dire lion charges, it can make a full attack, including two rake attacks.
Rake (Ex): Attack bonus +12 melee, damage 1d6+3.
Skills: Dire lions have a +4 racial bonus on Hide and Move Silently checks.
*In areas of tall grass or heavy undergrowth, the Hide bonus improves to +8.
Development: After this attack, the party does not have any other encounters until well into their second day.
|
|
DAY TWO – The Plains
-------------------------------------------------
Based on your first hours in Occipitus, you could be forgiven for feeling unwelcome. It is hard to sleep under the claret blisters that pool and congeal in the alien sky, burning with an arterial glow.
But somehow, you are given a reprieve. You are undisturbed, even if the absence of attention creates a building tension. Kaurophon is eager to resume the journey once everyone has rested.
“Today we traverse the flat lands, the food basket of Occipitus. Our goal is to find a furrow that will allow us to travel unnoticed.”
-------------------------------------------------
If the party asks, furrows are features consistent with the skin-like characteristics of Occipitus – entrenched, wrinkle like crevasses that can extend for miles through the plane’s fleshy ground.
-------------------------------------------------
As Kaurophon takes the lead, you see the occasional black mass wandering in the distance. “Bison herds,” Kaurophon explains. “Fiendish bison.” Not long after, you see a half-eaten carcass, its visceral cavity exposed. The cadaver is being swallowed up by Occipitus, its head and torso half-submerged in the amorphous ground. Kaurophon keeps up the pace.
-------------------------------------------------
ENCOUNTER FIVE (EL 12)
Seven hours into their trek on this second day, the adventurers have a first-hand encounter with the bison.
-------------------------------------------------
From the direction of the mountains, you notice a herd approaching. “They are being chased,” Kaurophon informs you. “We don’t want to find out by what.”
Even at your quickened pace the cloud of bison get closer, until you can see individual beasts, and then the spikes that thrust from their fiendish backs.
-------------------------------------------------
This is the opportunity for the party to take evasive action. Flying or dimensional travel will successfully avoid the encounter, while haste or expeditious retreat can lessen the impact of the stampede. The fiendish bison herd has no interest in the party, but they will trample those who stand in their path as they flee the terror chasing them.
While there are many head of bison in this herd, assume a group of 20 bison stampede over the party’s position (4d12 points of damage, Reflex DC 18 half). Those with exceptional speed, or are under the effects of haste can move to where the herd is less dense (2d12 points of damage, Reflex DC 18 half).
Fiendish Bison, Large magical beast; CR 3; HD 5d8+15 (37 hp); Init +0; Spd 40’; AC 13 (–1 size, +4 natural), touch 9, flat-footed 13; BAB/Grapple +3/+13; Atk Gore +8 melee (1d8+9); Space/Reach 10’/5’; SA Stampede, smite good +5 damage 1/day; SQ Darkvision 60’, DR 5/magic, Low-light vision, resistance to cold and fire 5, scent, SR 10; AL NE; SV Fort +7, Ref +4, Will +1; Str 22, Dex 10, Con 16, Int 2, Wis 11, Cha 4.
Skills & Feats: Listen +7, Spot +5; Alertness, Endurance.
Stampede (Ex): A frightened herd of bison flees as a group in a random direction (but always away from the perceived source of danger). They literally run over anything of Large size or smaller that gets in their way, dealing 1d12 points of damage for each five bison in the herd (Reflex DC 18 half ). The save DC is Strength-based.
This is just a prelude of what is to come. The herd blocks the party’s view of the bigger danger. Thunder beasts.
Those who successfully evade the bison stampede can also avoid conflict with the thunder beasts.
-------------------------------------------------
Charging behind the herd, you now see the source of their terror. They are immense nightmarish creatures, appearing part hippopotamus, but on the scale of a dinosaur. Two of them bound over the spongy ground. You feel their thunderous impact through your body.
They turn their focus away from the herd. With an ear piercing howl they turn towards you.
-------------------------------------------------
Fiendish beasts, while large and digestible, are less than satisfying to the palette. The thunder lizards recognize the party members as fresh and appealing.
Tactics The thunder beasts begin with a trample or charge towards the party, following up with their bellow ability. They are wily enough to realize their howl can affect several creatures and thus position themselves to take advantage of this.
ENCOUNTER SIX
-------------------------------------------------
You push on through the flats. Your view is unimpeded, allowing you to maneuver away from herds and other evidence of movement. Occasionally you see flighted creatures. Their features are indiscernible.
Kaurophon draws your attention to a feature close by. The start of a large rut or wrinkle in Occipitus’ ground.
“A furrow,” Kaurophon points. “There are several traversing these flats, and they continue for miles. This one leads towards where we are going. It will provide us much needed cover.”
-------------------------------------------------
Entering the furrow, the party gradually descends until they are engulfed by a fleshy trench, approximately 10 feet wide, with 60-foot walls on either side, steeply angled at about 75 degrees.
The floor of the furrow is flat enough for the party to proceed at a normal pace. Climbing the walls of the furrow require a Climb Check DC 15.
Kaurophon is true to his word. The party avoids the watchful eyes of hunters on the flats. Aside from scrambling over another half-buried bison carcass, the party notes nothing of consequence on their travels through the trench before resting.
|
|
DAY THREE – The Furrow Continues
ENCOUNTER SEVEN (EL 10)
-------------------------------------------------
The monotony of Kaurophon’s furrow is a welcome relief. You rest without interruption and continue to progress unchallenged. Several hours into the march, you feel a vibration under your feet followed by the sound of screams.
-------------------------------------------------
The tremors and sounds come from a small herd of bison, stampeding away from a vrock that is driving towards the furrow. Kaurophon advises the party hasten. Assuming the party heeds Kaurophon’s advice…
-------------------------------------------------
As you run, the vibrations increase. You are rounding a bend in the furrow when a chorus of howls is quickly silenced as a small herd of bison plunge to their deaths over the lip of the furrow.
Kaurophon does not stop to watch. “This is no time for gawking – keep moving!”
-------------------------------------------------
If the party continues, they do not see the vrock. They only hear the horrific muted squeals of the dying herd as the vrock lands to torment the survivors.
Development: Those who do not heed Kaurophon’s advice watch as the vrock swoops down to attack the struggling survivors. Unless the party has taken precautions, the vrock notices the PCs. Instead of torturing the bison, it drives the dozen survivors in a final stampede down the furrow towards the adventurers. The stampede does double the ordinary damage due to the narrow space through which the bison are being channeled. A DC 20 Reflex save is required to take half damage. All surviving Bison are at 18 hit points. The vrock follows the herd, then turns its attention to the party.
After this diversion, the adventurers proceed for the rest of the day without issue.
|
|
DAY FOUR – From one furrow to the next.
-------------------------------------------------
You continue the long march through the fleshy walls of the furrow. Only a few hours have passed when it comes to an abrupt end.
Kaurophon pauses to consider. “Furrows often appear in groups – there may be one running roughly parallel nearby.”
-------------------------------------------------
Kaurophon is correct. There are two furrows relatively close. One is a half mile away in the direction of the skull. The other lies two miles away in the direction of Occipitus’ mountainous rim. A party member who has the means to reach elevation of 100 feet can see the nearest crevasse. Otherwise the party must decide which direction to strike out in.
It is 30 feet to the top of the furrow, (Climb Check DC 15), and a 20-foot drop to the bottom of either neighboring furrow (also Climb Check DC 15).
Should the party heed Kaurophon’s advice, they travel without encounters for the entire day. Otherwise, they will face a herd of five hungry thunder beasts upon the surface
Development: Kelnor, a hezrou who fancies herself an overlord of this area, has sent a flight of vrocks to patrol her domain. Three hours before the party concludes its next rest, a vrock flies over the furrow, spotting the PCs. A DC 25 Spot check will notice the vrock flying behind the party’s position (DC 5 if the party is not in the Furrow).
|
|
DAY FIVE – Back onto the flats
ENCOUNTER EIGHT (EL 12 + EL 11)
-------------------------------------------------
You break camp and continue along the furrow. Gradually, the floor of the chasm widens and the walls climb above you. Eventually the walls tower almost 50 feet above you on either side. Then, as before, the furrow comes to an end.
Kaurophon looks upward. “We must be near the edge of the flats now. Let’s get out of here and see…”
Suddenly, Kaurophon is interrupted. From nowhere, multitudes of vrock appear, writhing with menace.
-------------------------------------------------
Three vrock have been sent by Kelnor and have been waiting for the adventurers to arrive. They have teleported into the furrow, 60 feet away from its terminus. They are all mirror imaged. On their next round they begin their dance of ruin. The party has three rounds to either kill one of the vrock or ensure they are more than 100 feet away (i.e. escape the furrow). The walls of the furrow are 45 feet high with an\ 80 degree grade (Climb Check DC 15).
Escape is further complicated by six babau demons hiding among clusters of grass-like fibres around the top of the furrow (Spot DC 39). They wait to attack the adventurers as they emerge from the trench. Some will gang up on emerging PCs, while others use dispel magic to neutralize buffs in effect.
Tactics: The vrock continue their dance of ruin until one of their members fall, the dance is otherwise disrupted, or all PCs are beyond range. At this point they seek to attack the least armored members of the party. The babau demons stay hidden, neither helping nor hindering the vrock, to sneak attack individual PCs as they emerge from the furrow.
Development: Kelnor is confident her forces will make short order of the heroes. However, should neither her vrock nor babau minions return, she lies in wait for the PCs, hiding amongst calcified outcroppings on the edge of the Ossaic Forest.
ENCOUNTER NINE (EL 11)
-------------------------------------------------
From the edge of the furrow you look towards your destination and see an outcropping several hundred feet to your right. “The Ossaic Forest,” Kaurophon informs. “Not a forest as you are familiar. More a tangled growth of calcified columns that penetrate the surface of Occipitus.”
Scanning the forest you see curving pillars, some resembling twisted bones, others as calcified trees. “We can travel fastest by staying in the flats and avoiding the forest for now.”
-------------------------------------------------
Kelnor has observed the party’s emergence and defeat of her minions from the safety of the forest (Spot DC 53 to notice her hiding). She is furious but she only presses the attack if she senses weakness. Otherwise, she gauges the party’s trajectory and teleports to a spot where the forest comes within 100 feet of their path (about a mile away). She attempts to summon dretches, then attacks. If the party goes out of its way to avoid the forest, Kelnor then attacks the party after they have made camp.
Tactics: If her dretches are present, Kelnor teleports amongst the party, hoping to affect as many members as possible with her stench ability. She then uses blasphemy three times in a row (presuming it is effective), allowing the dretches to arrive and attack. Kelnor follows up with either a full attack on nauseated victims, or an unholy blight.
If the dretches are not present, she begins with unholy blight or chaos hammer from her hiding place, teleporting to a new position the next round to repeat this strategy until no longer effective. She then teleports in to use her stench ability. Once Kelnor commits to melee combat, she fights with great ferocity. If she finds herself with less than 25% of her hit points at the start of her round, she teleports back to her lair to lick her wounds.
Development: Should Kelnor be defeated, the party will experience no more opposition as they cross the flats towards the Ossaic Forest. If Kelnor escaped, she sends three vrock to attack the party as they rest.
Players with the means to trace Kelnor’s lair discover a bulbous structure within the Ossaic forest. 300 feet long and up to 40 feet high, it resembles a bulbous, tumorous hip bone. It is guarded by six babau demons at all times, though Kelnor’s surviving forces are away following her orders. A series of lacquered tunnels burrow inside. Upon defeating Kelnor, the party will find 250 platinum pieces, 2180 gold pieces, 6 small garnets (20gp each), 6 pieces of small damaged marble statuary (taken from the fields of Celestial Rubble), and a Harp of Charming. The party also discovers two vrock nesting areas in elevated areas that remind you of joint sockets.
|
|
DAY SIX – Into the Forest
ENCOUNTER TEN (EL 11)
-------------------------------------------------
After a final rest in the flats, you make the short march into the Ossaic Forest. Large calcified stakes thrust forth from the ground at every imaginable angle, their twists and curves creating the illusion of a macabre forest. Its floor crunches beneath you as your feet break chalky bone-like fragments.
You travel no more than 200 feet when you notice a line of centaurs in front of you. Vile spikes emerge from their backs. They speak in a threatening tone.
-------------------------------------------------
These fiendish centaurs call the Ossaic Forest their home and hunting grounds. They speak to the party in Abyssal (they do not speak common) and want to know who the adventurers are and what they are doing in their forest. The centaurs’ attitude is currently ‘Unfriendly’. If the party is unable to find a way to communicate with the centaurs to change their attitude, they will attack the party (note that Kaurophon speaks Abyssal).
If the PCs manage to shift the centaurs’ attitude to ‘indifferent’ (Diplomacy Check DC 15), the rangers will let the PC pass through their territory. If they change their attitude to ‘friendly’, the centaurs will escort them through their territory (Diplomacy Check DC 25) – thus allowing the PCs to avoid any further encounters in the forest). If the party can move the centaurs’ attitude to ‘helpful’ (Diplomacy Check DC 40), the centaurs will actually accompany the party all the way to the Cathedral of Feathers, staying at their sides. The party receives a +5 bonus to their Diplomacy Check by mentioning their defeat of Kelnor (she has terrorized their tribe for a generation).
The centaurs also know the location of Kelnor’s lair, and may be convinced to lead the party there with a friendly or helpful result.
Fiendish Centaur, Large Monstrous Humanoid; CR 3; HD 4d8+8 (26 hp); Init +2; Spd 50'; AC 14 (-1 size, +2 Dex, +3 natural), touch 11, flat-footed 12; BAB/Grapple +4/+12; Atk Longsword +7 melee (2d6+6/19-20) and 2 hooves +3 melee (1d6+2); or composite longbow (+4 Str bonus) +5 ranged (2d6+4/×3); Space/Reach 10'/5'; SA —; SQ Darkvision 60'; AL NG; SV Fort +3, Ref +6, Will +5; Str 18, Dex 14, Con 15, Int 8, Wis 13, Cha 11.
Skills & Feats: Listen +3, Move Silently +4, Spot +3, Survival +2; Dodge, Weapon Focus (hoof).
A centaur employing a lance deals double damage when it charges, just as a rider on a mount does.
ENCOUNTER ELEVEN (EL 10)
-------------------------------------------------
You slog your way through the desolate mass of tangled ossifications, following a long chain of vertebrae-like protuberances.
-------------------------------------------------
If the party is in the company of the centaurs, they notice the party’s increasing fatigue and allow them to rest at one of their hiding places in the forest, a narrow shelter carved underneath a mass of ossified pillars. Some of the centaurs take leave of the party, only to rejoin before they break camp in the morning.
If the party is not in the company of the centaurs…
-------------------------------------------------
The traveling takes longer now. Kaurophon must frequently stop to get oriented – the forest blocks your sightlines, making navigation difficult.
-------------------------------------------------
The party does not clear the forest this day and eventually Kaurophon indicates it’s time to set up camp. Without the help of the centaurs, the party is set-upon during their rest period by a pack of six fiendish owlbears. The owlbears’ tactics are simple – attack the first creatures they encounter, and attack until they their target is dead.
Fiendish Owlbear, Large Magical Beast; CR 4; HD 5d10+25 (52 hp); Init +1; Spd 30'; AC 15 (-1 size, +1 Dex, +5 natural), touch 10, flat-footed 14; BAB/Grapple +5/+14; Atk 2 claws +9 melee (1d6+5) and bite +4 melee (1d8+2); Space/Reach 10'/5'; SA Improved grab; SQ Scent; AL N; SV Fort +9, Ref +5, Will +2; Str 21, Dex 12, Con 21, Int 2, Wis 12, Cha 10.
Skills & Feats: Listen +8, Spot +8; Alertness, Track.
Improved Grab (Ex): To use this ability, an owlbear must hit with a claw attack. It can then attempt to start a grapple as a free action without provoking an attack of opportunity.
|
|
DAY SEVEN – The Celestial Rubble
-------------------------------------------------
You have only traveled a mile or two after completing your rest when there is a change in the landscape.
The flesh of the plane takes on colourful striations, veins of green, black, yellow. You stumble over lumpy, solid nodules that float just beneath Occipitus’ skin. Nearby, the ground rises and gives way to a ridge of worked marble extending for miles in either direction.
“The Celestial Rubble,” Kaurophon exclaims. We are close now – maybe just hours from the Cathedral of Feathers.”
-------------------------------------------------
If the party is being escorted by the centaurs and has not achieved a ‘helpful’ result, their leader speaks to the party.
-------------------------------------------------
“This is as far as we go. These lands are tainted, cursed. We appreciate what you have done, and wish that you find what you seek. We return to our hunting grounds now.”
-------------------------------------------------
If the PCs killed Kelnor and have not visited her lair, the leader of the centaurs indicates one of his fellows to come forward. Out of gratitude, they present the party an item from Kelnor’s horde – the Harp of Charming.
The striations in the Occipitan flesh are from veins of Celestial marble not yet fully digested. Gradually, at a glacial pace, what remains of Celestia is being consumed by the plane. PCs can easily hack at the ground to expose the lumps and nodules as chunks of marble that are slowly being absorbed into the essence of Occipitus.
-------------------------------------------------
The field of celestial rubble is elevated above the surface of the Ossaic Forest. It is only when you crest the ridge that you grasp how vast it is.
Terrain of marble reaches out for miles. The stone is uneven, latticed with cracks and fault lines, as if the entire mass was thrown down from a great height. Rubble lies strewn across the expanse, along with the remains of toppled columns and grand structures decimated by the impact.
Miraculously, some buildings remain. There is a sad beauty to their classic and damaged facades, having survived the catastrophe that brought them here.
Kaurophon looks across the field. “Celestia’s great sorrow. Legend has it that hundreds of years ago, an angel opened a gate to the Abyss, allowing demon hordes to enter the sacred realm. This angel commanded the demons as an army. Through the shock of surprise they captured an expansive valley on Mercuria – the second level of Celestia. The horde opened more abyssal gates, and the demons continued to arrive.
“By the time Celestian defenders had regrouped from the initial assault, drastic action was required to excise the cancer. In a chorus of grief and sorrow the Heavenly Host expunged the valley from the face of Mercuria. It plunged through infinite depths until it came to a final violent rest here on Occipitus.
“This Celestial rubble we walk on resists being consumed by the plane. It is free of the abyssal taint. Still, we must be cautious. The ruins draw treasure hunters seeking unplundered tombs and the lost estates of angels. Powerful guardians from the time of the valley’s fall still protect these lands. So let us proceed prudently.”
-------------------------------------------------
ENCOUNTER TWELVE (EL 12)
Kaurophon now leads the party on this last leg of the journey. Walking across the devastated landscape, at times the party must climb up or down ridges and across clefts of shattered marble. Despite the beauty of the distressed landscape, the desolation and isolation is undeniable.
The party passes ruin after ruin – some no more than mounds of crushed rock. Others provide a hint of their former stature – fallen plinths and obelisks, or majestic carved roofs now toppled to the ground revealing angelic bas reliefs.
Occasionally, the party also sees stairways or shafts that lead beneath the surface. Kaurophon advises against approaching them for fear of alerting the guardians – many lead to the crypts of fallen archons and solars. A Spot DC 22 reveals the skeletal remains of large creatures around such a stairwell just over 100 feet from the route Kaurophon has selected. Should the PCs investigate, a Knowledge (Planes) Check DC 19 will identify the three skeletons as those of green slaadi, while a Heal Check DC 20 reveals claw marks that have raked their way across the ribcage of one slaad.
A leonal guardinal protects this area. Shortly after passing the slaadi, she makes her appearance.
-------------------------------------------------
As you make your way through the maze of shattered marble, a regal feline voice echoes across the ruin.
“Go no further until I take your measure. You stand on sacred ground.”
-------------------------------------------------
Should the party ignore the guardinal’s warning, she pounces forward, attacking the first PC before pausing to issue her warning again. If the party respects the guardinal’s wishes…
-------------------------------------------------
At this point, a lioness, powerfully muscled, emerges from behind the remains of toppled columns. She majestically walks on two feet, clad in simple robes that do not mask her strength. “Ah… you return Kaurophon. And what makes you think I shall let you pass this time? To what end has your lust to rule Occipitus driven you now.”
Kaurophon calmly looks the lioness in the eye. “Lady Guardinal, I have long since realized I am not destined to succeed in such a quest. Yet Occipitus is rudderless without a leader. I have returned with those who may shift Occipitus’ future in Celestia’s favour. I am their guide. I must lead them to the Cathedral of Feathers.”
-------------------------------------------------
Any character choosing to do so can attempt a Sense Motive Check (DC 29) to realize that Kaurophon is not telling the whole truth.
-------------------------------------------------
The lioness pauses to consider.
-------------------------------------------------
During this pause, the PCs have the opportunity to make their petitions to the guardinal, or engage her in conversation. She has indeed met Kaurophon in the past, and deemed him not worthy to proceed. Kaurophon respectfully retreated from the guardinal at that time, then used dimension door to pass beyond her and proceed to the Cathedral.
Once all petitions and conversation is complete (or after the guardinal’s extended pause) she makes this deliberation…
-------------------------------------------------
“I must take the measure of your minds. If all is as Kaurophon states, then you may proceed.”
-------------------------------------------------
The guardinal now uses her detect thoughts ability. As she turns her focus on each PC, she respectfully asks them to submit to her probing. As she does so, she asks simple questions of the PCs like, “Why are you here?”, “What do you love?”, “What do you hate?” in order to prompt surface thoughts that will reveal their character. Any PC who resists her probing (i.e. refuses to willingly fail the saving throw for the detect thoughts) fails this test, as does any character whose mind reveals evil intent. Characters can make a Bluff Check to hide answers to the guardinal’s questions.
Once the probing is complete, PCs who have passed are free to proceed. However, a Diplomacy Check DC 20 will be required to convince the guardinal that Kaurophon should go with them. Kaurophon cannot participate in aiding this check.
Should Kaurophon be denied, he will not put up a fight. He will wish the PCs well, then walk away from the guardinal back towards the Ossaic Forest. Safely out of the guardinal’s sight, he will use dimension door or some other means to make his way to the cathedral and reconnect with the party. If necessary, he will bring other denied PCs with him (although Kaurophon does not wish to show the party all his abilities unless absolutely necessary).
Should any denied PC clearly disrespect the guardinal’s judgment by visibly continuing towards the cathedral, the guardinal immediately attacks the character.
After passing the guardinal, it is no more than two miles to the Cathedral of Feathers. Its graceful spires shortly come into view.
This is so cool! Thank you so much for all your hard work! My printer is hard at work now and this weekend is going to rock!
I, too, would like to see the other two legs of the journey. This is good stuff!
- Cintra
Talk about right on time, too! My players are meeting Kaurophon and heading to Occipitus this Saturday. Thanks for sharing this on theRPGenius.com, too.
Regards,
Koramado
|
|
Koramado - thank you for theRPGenius.com - I can't begin to tell you how much your site and its contributors have benefitted my SCAP campaign.
Talk about right on time, too! My players are meeting Kaurophon and heading to Occipitus this Saturday. Thanks for sharing this on theRPGenius.com, too.
Regards,
Koramado
Thank you so much Rokeca ! This is absolutely what I needed. My players are entering Vapraks voice next week, your timing is perfect. Many thanks for sharing :))
Bran
Out-freaking-standing. Thank you for this. I hate running pure random encounters, but I also hate having nothing happen between plot points.
Rokeca,
Just wanted to add my thanks as well for sharing your mini adventure. My players are starting on Occipitus this coming Saturday and we’re doing a marathon session. Your timing was perfect. :-)
In addition, I also want to thank Koramado for theRPGenius.com site. It has been a fantastic resource to aid my Shackled City campaign.
Good Gaming,
Mark
|
|
Sean, Cintra, koramado, Bran, Colin, Mothman and Marcos - thanks to all of you for your feedback. It’s encouraging to know this material may be of use to other SCAP DMs.
I’ve started work writing the next leg of the journey (from the Cathedral to the Plane of Cysts). Between parenthood, my day job, and running two campaigns it may take awhile to get it complete. Perhaps I can post my raw, first draft copy within this thread as I finish new encounters to keep things moving for people. Then once I have the entire leg written, I’ll edit and post it under its own thread.
Thanks again!
|
Between parenthood, my day job, and running two campaigns it may take awhile to get it complete.
Totally understand those (and right with you on all of them...) I'm a long way off our group reaching Smoking Eye, so whenever you get them done is likely to be soon enough for me. Thanks again for the time and effort you're putting into these.
Between parenthood, my day job, and running two campaigns it may take awhile to get it complete.
I'm also in the same loop my friends ;-)
In any case I'm sure I will use your work when available (I have two groups and none of them has finished Flood Season to date).As the others stated: Thanks for your contribution. I hope I will be able to propose something in return on this forum.
This messageboard and the guys who post on it are creating an absolute stunning effect which incredibly boost the already greatest adventure path IMHO.
The result are the best game sessions I had for the last 25 years I've played. I believed it was no more possible... I was wrong!
Be creative
Inspired by earlier posts by rokeca I did the same and only just finished the random encounters come mini-adventure. Happy to post these up if people are interested. Planning on uploading it to the rpg-genius site.
|
|
Meanwhile, some new content, raw and unedited as of yet. The first encounter after leaving the cathedral (more to come later)...
OCCIPITUS – THE CATHEDRAL OF FEATHERS TO THE PLAIN OF CYSTS
________________________________________
The light from the mummy’s lantern guides you back to the Cathedral’s upper level. Kaurophon waits for you, unable to conceal his level of anticipation as he asks, “Did you succeed?”
________________________________________
Karuophon is fascinated by the lantern of guidance. If the party allows, he examines it carefully. The lantern is a mystery to him, its existence never revealed in any of his studies and visits to Occipitus. The lantern levels the playing field somewhat for Kaurophon. While he is still the resident expert on the plane, his role as guide has be usurped by the lantern.
Kaurophon is impressed with the party’s success – to his knowledge, no one has ever passed the first part of the test – which means no one has ever been closer to claiming Adimarchus’ throne. He will also want to know the nature of the challenges the party faced, and what they did to pass the test.
Should the party choose to rest within the Cathedral, they will do so uninterrupted.
The lantern’s light points to the Cathedral’s exit. Once the party emerges, the light reveals a new direction…
DAY ONE – Ghosts and Guardians
________________________________________
You are once again bathed in the ever-present firey glow from the coagulating pool flowing above. Its irregular light casts a red taint over the purity and broken beauty of the Celestial marble. The lantern’s beam indicates a route that takes you no closer to the distant mountainous skull that once again dominates the sky.
Kaurophon looks in the direction of the beam. “At this point, I am as much a tourist as you. Let’s see where the light leads us.”
________________________________________
The party travels for several hours without interruption. This marble (like the other expanses of Celestial rubble on Occipitus) once rose gracefully out of Mercuria’s soil within the verdant valley ripped from Celestia and cast into the abyss. On this stone were once magnificent shrines, places of worship, grand angelic estates, and necropoli for honoured archons and angels. The PCs now walk through these desolate shattered remnants.
ENCOUNTER ONE
________________________________________
You reach an expansive rift in the marble. The stone must be miles deep, but it looks as if here it has been split in two. Far down the rift appear to be openings in the severed rock walls, faintly illuminated by the night sky. On the other side of the crevasse, three defiant pillars stand amidst a field of shattered rock.
The beam continues on across the rift. Kaurophon’s gaze remain fixed on the light and shake his head. “It would take us hours to walk around this – our best option is to go over. This appears to be the best point for crossing.
________________________________________
The openings in the walls are 600 feet below the surface. They are worked shafts of marble in a sacred burial crypt, and the area is now the home (and fiercly protected by) several couatls should the characters dare to explore.
It is up to the party to devise a way across the rift. Across from the pillars, the rift is only 20 feet wide (as opposed to 40 or 60 feet wide). The drop to the rift’s bottom is over one and a half miles, so they would be advised to proceed with caution.
As soon as the first PC reaches the other side of the chasm…
________________________________________
You have barely made your way across the rift, when without warning a horrific visage emerges from one of the pillars that tower in front of you.
The image is insubstantial, in humanoid form with a dog’s head. The chest cavity of the creature lies exposed, entrails spilling out.
________________________________________
The creature is the ghost of a hound archon. The three pillars are only 20 feet from the chasm. Any character within 60 feet of the ghost when it appears must made a DC 16 Fortitude save versus its Horrific Appearance or take 1d4 points of Strength, Dexterity and Constitution damage.
Have the party roll initiative. If the party attacks the ghost, its two companions (also hound archon ghosts) emerge from the other two pillars. All assail the party.
However, should the party not attack, on the ghost’s initiative it speaks with a platinum voice, its beauty defining its appearance. Anyone who understands Celestial understands what the ghost is saying: “Will you help my beloved”. Anyone who does not speak Celestial can tell with a DC 15 Sense Motive check that the ghost is clearly attempting to communicate.
The hound archon ghost only speaks Celestial. Should there be a language barrier, it will attempt to merge its body with one of the PCs (using its Malevolence ability – Will DC 18 to resist) in order to enable communication (i.e. through a comprehend language).
Once communication is established, the ghost tells its story. His name is Liatrodes. He and his fellows were all descendants of hound archons stranded on Occipitus at the time of what he refers to as ‘the severing’.
After the severing, archons banded together to protect sacred sites. This group selected to protect an expansive necropolis known as ‘the Hall of Trumpets’, a hallowed crypt reserved for trumpet archons of legendary stature.
The hound archons protected this domain (and surrounding area) throughout Adimarchus’ reign. However, shortly after his disappearance 50 years ago, Nerull made a play for Occipitus. He sent many of his undead minions to target the celestial rubble.
Liatrodes, his beloved Saru, and the other hound archons (in league with other remaining Celestial defenders) helped to hold off Nerull’s minions for an extended time – but he was unable to protect Saru from being slain and transformed into a spectre during the battle. Liatrodes and his two companions were later slain by a lich leading the assault. Liatrodes spirit is bound by his failure to protect Saru, while his companions (Desum and Vailiar) are bound by their failure to defend the Hall of Trumpets.
Liatrodes seeks the PCs to release Saru – by entering the Hall of Trumpets which the spectre and its spawn (including Saru) perversely selected to inhabit after Nerull’s retreat and abandonment of Occipitus. Should the spectre that was once Saru be destroyed, Liatrodes’ spirit is released knowing that her soul is no longer in the grips of Nerull. Desum and Vailiar however are destined to remain until the Hall of Trumpets is once again under the command of Celestial guardians.
If the party asks for a reward to achieve this goal, Liatrodes and his companions deem the party unworthy to enter the Hall of Trumpets and attack. Without Liatrodes to guide them, the party will be unable to find the long forgotten entrance to the necropolis.
Liatrodes companions only reveal themselves should a fight ensue. Otherwise, Desum and Vailiar follow the PCs as Liatrodes leads them to the Hall of Trumpets. The will only reveal themselves once Liatrodes spirit has been released.
Tactics: Should combat begin, Desum and Vailiar emerge from the marble in the midst of the PCs in order to affect the maximum number with their Horrific Appearance. They will attempt to use their Manifestation ability to enter the form of martial characters, and then attack spellcasters. Otherwise, they will use their telekenisis ability, either flinging large chunks of marble at the party, or possibly launching an unfortunate PC into the chasm (such unfortunate characters can attempt a Reflex Save DC 15 to avoid falling into oblivion by landing on a rock outcropping 150 feet below the lip of the crevasse – and taking 15d6 damage in the process on a successful save).
I am so pissed that I just started Chapter 7. I would have loved to use this in my campaign. I'll still get some use out of it, as a PC has already returned to Occipitus to survey his new "realm". Tons of useful flavor text here, and some interesting NPCs to throw at him, both combat and non. I enjoyed reading this, and I know the players will enjoy your somewhat more vibrant and "alive feeling" Occipitus than the creepy and disquieting one I gave them. Thanks much for your contribution.
I've only just returned from holiday yesterday and just read this thread.
Well Done!
This is a great addition and solution to a problem in the TotSE. I'll definiately be using it.
Delvesdeep
I'd be interested in reading it, let us know when its posted at rpgenius.
Your wish is my command!
http://paizo.com/paizo/messageboards/dungeon/shackledCity/solomanisSCAPMods
|
|
I'd be interested in reading it, let us know when its posted at rpgenius.
Your wish is my command!
http://paizo.com/paizo/messageboards/dungeon/shackledCity/solomanisSCAPMods
Thanks man, going to take me a little bit to read through them, but I appreciate the links. And hey, the more Planescape references the better IMO!
|
|
I am so pissed that I just started Chapter 7. I would have loved to use this in my campaign. I'll still get some use out of it, as a PC has already returned to Occipitus to survey his new "realm". Tons of useful flavor text here, and some interesting NPCs to throw at him, both combat and non. I enjoyed reading this, and I know the players will enjoy your somewhat more vibrant and "alive feeling" Occipitus than the creepy and disquieting one I gave them. Thanks much for your contribution.
I'm sure your creepy and disquieting Occipitus is much closer to what James Jacobs and David Noonan intended - the encounter tables got me thinking on this path, suggesting there was more life on Occipitus then I first thought. Thanks for the feedback and support - hopefully some of the material will be of use!
|
|
I've only just returned from holiday yesterday and just read this thread.
Well Done!
This is a great addition and solution to a problem in the TotSE. I'll definiately be using it.
Delvesdeep
Delvesdeep - thanks. I have huge respect for the work you've done with the SCAP. To me, this is like getting the thumbs up from the godfather of Cauldron.
|
|
I'd be interested in reading it, let us know when its posted at rpgenius.
Your wish is my command!
http://paizo.com/paizo/messageboards/dungeon/shackledCity/solomanisSCAPMods
Solomani - this is good stuff. A very creative spin on Occipitus. Where my encounters stay tighter to the TotSE encouter tables, your work is far more original. I particularly like the paranoia you created upon arrival with the centaurs. 'Hope' is a very interesting idea as well - it makes sense that there would be some sort of community within the Celestial Rubble where Celestial beings would work together. Nicely done.
|
|
Here's some new content - again, raw & unproofed/unedited at this point. This picks up where the last encounter left off, and covers to the far end of the tremor zone en route to the Plain of Cysts.
A note on my previous encounter: a major typo. The ghosts and spectres are the result of Orcus' play for Occipitus (not Nerull) - as foreshadowed in the Cathedral of Feathers.
ENCOUNTER TWO – THE HALL OF TRUMPETS (EL 11+)
__________________________________________
Liatrodes leads the group across the marble, moving roughly in the direction of the skull. Kaurophon mutters under his breath about losing time as the route deviates from the path of the lantern’s light.
You have traveled for perhaps half an hour when Liatrodes stops to point at a mound of rubble over 20 feet tall.
__________________________________________
If the party has the means to communicate with the party, he will tell them that this is the entrance to the Hall of Trumpets. A permanent image creates the illusion of the rubble mound that hides a half standing open air temple. Liatrodes does not enter the temple, unable to face the source of his sorrow.
At the middle of the temple, a 10 foot wide staircase descends sixty feet. Here a long hallway leads into the Entry Hall, a 20 by 40 room featuring bas reliefs on the walls and arched ceiling. These painted sculptures reveal various trumpet archons and angels, victorious against hordes of fiends. Unexposed to the light for hundred of years, the colours are still brilliant. A 10 foot wide corridor opposite the hall way leads further into the necropolis.
It is in this chamber four spectres wait – three in the guise of hound archons, the other in the form of a human, sensing as life approaches. They hide within the forms of the bas reliefs (Spot DC 33 to notice an insubstantial shape emanating from some of the faces).
Tactics: The spectres attack when first living creature to enters the hall, hoping to gain surprise. If possible, they later attack from within the walls (achieving cover when they do so). If the spectre has movement after making an attack, it may entirely enter the wall for total cover. While the Hall of Trumpets was once consecrated ground, the hundreds of years in Occipitus have neutralized the consecration. Clerics who attempt to turn in the hall receive no bonuses or penalties for doing so.
Development: When the spectre that was once Saru is destroyed, Liatrodes’ soul is released. Should the characters succeed in cleansing the temple of all spectres, there is a whispering sound that echoes through the halls – a whispering that prompts Desum and Vailiar to appear (likely forcing new Fortitude Saves versus their horrific appearance). A DC 10 Sense Motive Check will make it evident that they have peaceful intent.
In Celestial, the ghosts tell the PCs to follow them (supplementing this with body language). They lead the PCs into the next chamber of the Necropolis – the Gatekeepers’ Hall. This impressive 40 by 60 foot chamber contains the remains of four trumpet guardians, symbolically laid to rest here to guard against intruders who might violate these halls. The ceiling is alight with an illusion revealing the skies of Mercuria.
An immense statue representing each the four trumpet archons stand in the corners of the room, and heavy sepulchers are set in recessed niches, two to the left and the right. A stairwell descends further into the Celestial marble.
The ghosts indicate to the hands of the statues. Each statue holds an item that was precious to the fallen archon during their life – a rod, a staff, a trumpet, and a stone.
In celestial, Desum states, “You have cleansed these halls with your acts. The guardians have called, asking us to bring you here so you might rewarded. It is the guardians will that you choose one of these items. Once you have made your choice, you must leave.” Desum will use body language – a Sense Motive DC 20 will catch the jist of the communication – ‘You may choose one’.
Neither Desum or Vailiar know the nature of the items – only that they are a rod, a staff, a stone, and a trumpet.
They are in fact the following: Lesser Metamagic Rod of Sculpting (Complete Arcane), Trumpet of Doom (Book of Exalted Deeds), Ioun Stone of Resistance +2 (Arms and Equipment Guide), and a Greater Saintly Staff with 5 charges (Complete Divine). (DMG substitutions: Lesser Metamagic Rod of Extend, Trumpet of Goodness (as Horn of Goodness), Cloak of Resistance +2, Staff of Illumination with 8 charges). Characters are permitted to examine the items with their eyes and through divinations, but touching an item commits their selection (thus thwarting efforts to identify). Once one item is touched, the hands of the other three statues clasp around their items.
Should the party attempt to take any more than one of their items, the four statue avatars of the guardians (stone golems) attack, as do Desum and Vailiar. Should the PCs retreat from the chamber, the stone golems do not pursue, but a massive stone block lowers, preventing an easy return to the Gatekeepers’ Hall.
DAY TWO – Reaching the Tremor Zone
ENCOUNTER THREE (EL 12)
__________________________________________
The lantern’s light continues to direct you across the fields of marble. You are navigating around a substantial ruin when, without warning, three green slaadi emerge, climbing out of rubble carrying a carrying a carved box. They seem as surprised to see you as you are seeing them.
__________________________________________
The slaadi are the survivors of a raiding group that has left their warrens in the mountainous rim in search of the Celestial rubble’s fabled magics. The box they carry contains what magic they’ve found raiding the estate crypt they’ve just exited.
Tactics: The slaadi aren’t looking for a fight – they realize they must now traverse across the rubble without drawing the attention of guardians. They only attack if attacked themselves, creating a blanket of deeper darkness in an effort to aid their escape. Should combat begin, the slaadi only cast fireball within areas of darkness to avoid being noticed by Celestials. Once one of their members falls, desperation kicks in and the slaadi cease to be concerned by these restrictions.
Should the party attempt Diplomacy, the slaadi begin negotiations with an unfriendly attitude. If a helpful attitude is achieved, the slaadi will offer to give the PCs one of their magic items should they be allowed to leave peacefully. The slaadi refuse to return the magic items to the crypt – the have lost two of their fellows in its explorations, and have left two stone golem defenders intact below.
Treasure: The box carried by the slaadi (built and carved from the silver pines of Mercuria, worth 250gp) contains a pair of steadfast boots (Arms and Equipment Guide), a momento magica, 1st level (Races of the Dragon) and a wand of light of Mercuria with 18 charges (Spell Compendium).(DMG Substitutes: boots of striding and springing, pearl of power, 1st level, wand of daylight with 18 charges.)
Development: The crypt below is that of the estate of a noble aasimar family from the time of the fall. Access to the deeper areas of the family catacombs are choked and blocked by fallen rubble, but the top-most level is still accessible. Should the party decide to explore the crypt below over Kaurophon’s protestations over lost time, they will find the two stone golems waiting to protect the space, as well as the bodies of two fallen slaadi. No other magic remains in this area, although a thorough search will reveal a diamond encrusted platinum chalice portraying a feast hosted by Solars (6000gp) within one of the aasimar’s crypts.
__________________________________________
You have completed perhaps a half-day’s march when the Celestial Rubble comes to an end, yielding to a pulsating mass of Occipitan flats that reaches for miles.
The ground undulates, the fleshy soil randomly heaving across the direction your lantern points. The flats nearby sometimes violently slap against the leading edge of Celestial Rubble, making the marble beneath your feet shutter. There are brief interludes of stillness between tremors, but then the ground’s quivering begins anew.
“As I feared – the lantern is directing us across a tremor zone. I have never traversed one. It would take us a week to walk around it and we don’t have that kind of time. We should rest now. Once we start to cross, we will be unable to rest.”
__________________________________________
Kaurophon is correct. Unless the party has extraordinary or extradimensional means (i.e. rope trick) they will not be able to rest until they reach the far side of the tremor zone.
DAY THREE – Across the Tremor Zone
__________________________________________
You rest without interruption, save for the continuous sound of the tremorous flats cresting and slapping against stone.
As you break camp, Kaurophon is quieter than usual, as if even he dreads this next stage of the journey.
__________________________________________
Kaurophon is uncertain the width the party must traverse (he estimates between 10 and 25 miles). It is in fact 15 miles.
For the purposes of overland movement, assume that movement rates are reduced by half. Parties with a speed of 30 feet can traverse 1.5 miles per hour, while parties with a speed of 20 feet only cover 1 mile per hour.
For many parties, this will require a forced march (PHB pg 164). Should a PC become exhausted (i.e. fails two saves vs. fatigue without having the non-lethal damage removed) their speed is further cut by half. Anyone wearing the steadfast boots can move at their normal overland speed until they are exhausted (it is as if Celestia wanted the party to find this item).
__________________________________________
Walking to the edge of the Celestial rubble, the flats continue to shake and tremble. Flaps of the fleshy mass frequently open up, like a gaping wound, only to slam against the marble seconds later. There is no discernable pattern to this opening and closing.
__________________________________________
Should the PCs have no safe means to traverse the random rifts (i.e. fly)…
__________________________________________
Kaurophon steps back, then takes a running jump towards the flats, safely landing on its surface. He indicates for you to follow.
__________________________________________
Every 1d4 rounds, there is an undulation centered close enough to the Celestial rubble to cause this opening and closing. It creates a random sized rift (3d6 feet).
On the round a PC attempts to cross from the Celestial Rubble into the tremor zone, role a d4 to determine if a rift opens up that round. If so, they must make a successful Jump check based on the width of the rift. Failure means falling 20 feet to a point where the character is sandwiched between marble and flats. The following round, the rift closes up.
Each round a character remains trapped in the rift they take 6d6 damage as the flats grind them against the rough marble surface. A rift will open again in 1d3 rounds providing trapped characters an opportunity to escape. A Climb Check DC 20 is required to scale the tremorous flats, but only DC 10 to ascend the marble.
Once all PCs have landed on the flats, their journey continues. The ground quivers continuously, as if a minor earthquake is perpetually occurring. Each round, each character standing within the tremor zone must resist a trip attempt from the tremors (the tremors have a +0 Strength bonus). Characters who fail the opposed check are knocked prone, hindering their progress.
ENCOUNTER FOUR (EL 12)
__________________________________________
Your progress is slow. The ground’s pulsation is unrelenting. Kaurophon keeps his eyes to the sky. “I don’t know what could live on these flats… but I have seen preditors flying above tremor zones, perhaps seeking easy prey.
__________________________________________
In fact, six miles into the tremor zone, the party faces their first threat from the skies – a group of four vrock flying close to the surface of the flats notices the PCs at a range of 340 feet (DC 25 for PCs to notice).
Tactics: On their surprise round, the vrock each use their mirror image ability. The following round they teleport to surround the party. Some vrock may use heroism before wading in to create chaos and destruction. Every round at initiative point 0, unflighted characters (save the vrock) must make an opposed Strength check to avoid being tripped.
ENCOUNTER FIVE (EL 12)
__________________________________________
The perpetual tremors, the falling down and getting back, all take a toll. Kaurophon sweats and labours with each step. “I wonder… is the lantern leading us to the Plain of Cysts?”
__________________________________________
Given the precarious state of travel, Kaurophon is unable to share all he knows about the Plain of Cysts – he can at this point mention that it was the site of an epic battle between Celestial forces and Adimarchus hordes.
At the twelve-mile point in their journey across the tremor zone, the party is once again attacked from the air by six fiendish wyverns. By this point, parties with a 20 foot movement rate may be struggling with fatigue. Ask all party members to roll spot checks. Add nine to the highest number and multiply by 10 – this is the range in feet when the party becomes aware of the wyverns.
Tactics: The wyverns do not fly in tight formation (to avoid falling prey to fireballs and lightning bolts). If possible, they target creatures who have wounded them on their approach.
ENCOUNTER SIX (EL 10)
The PCs face one final challenge traversing the tremor zone. An eyrie of fiendish giant eagles nests in a large hill that boarders the tremor zone. By the time the party reaches the 14th mile, they are set upon by seven eagles. The eagles fly close to the ground to avoid early detection, and in three clusters. The party notices the eagles when they are 100 feet away from the PCs.
Tactics: The eagles use their flyby attack and attempt to grab one or more small characters. If successful, they then head back to their nesting area to share their meal.
Development: Should the eagles succeed in abducting a character, they will reach a height of sixty feet, then head directly to the eyrie, which is on the top of a large hill just over two miles away. Should their prey escape an eagles’ clutches, the eagles will attempt to retrieve their prize. Any PCs still alive when deposited in the eagles’ nest will be attacked by all remaining eagles. No treasure will be found in the eyrie.
After the eagles, the party faces no other challenges on the flats. Near the 15th mile of their trek across the tremor zones, the pulsation and shuttering diminishes. By the 16th mile it is no longer felt at all. Kaurophon slumps to the ground, exhausted. The party will not be assailed while they rest.
Solomani - this is good stuff. A very creative spin on Occipitus. Where my encounters stay tighter to the TotSE encouter tables, your work is far more original. I particularly like the paranoia you created upon arrival with the centaurs. 'Hope' is a very interesting idea as well - it makes sense that there would be some sort of community within the Celestial Rubble where Celestial beings would work together. Nicely done.I'd be interested in reading it, let us know when its posted at rpgenius.
Your wish is my command!
http://paizo.com/paizo/messageboards/dungeon/shackledCity/solomanisSCAPMods
Glad you liked it. Once I started the ideas just didn’t stop coming. I can’t take credit for the centaurs however. I read it on these boards sometime back and made a mental note to use it when my players got to that point which was late last year. Next time my players go back I will continue to use the encounters I made and now insert your ones as well. I intend on moving Shatterhorn to here as well.
My only problem is now that the players teleport everywhere. So they plane shift in, teleport to the skull or cathedral. Then from the cathedral teleport wherever they want to go. I added the ability for the smoking eye template to be able to see anything on the plane they can name and then teleport themselves to the target from the skull.
Cough cough *dusting off the thread*
Hello Rokeca !
First of all kudos for the great job you did. I'm currently working on translating (French) and adapting your work and I have a question for you regarding the encounter with Kelnor. How did you manage the Blasphemy spell? As per PHB, if the party has between 2 and 5 HD less than the Hezrou spellcaster level (13), they are dazed for 1 round, weakened (-2d6 Str) for 2d4 rds then paralyzed for minutes. No save, 60 ft radius, it screams TPK for me. And Kelnor can cast THREE of those.
Do I miss something ? My party is around 10th level and there is no way they can avoid this except if they can keep their distance which is unlikely as Kelnor is able to teleport at will. How did your PCs manage?
And if there's fellow DMs out there who want to share their lights on this, you're very welcome !
Bran.
re: the Blasphemy spell
My PC's ran into the same issue--since there are eight PC's sharing the experience, they're mostly a level or two behind the module. If you check the beginning of this chapter, it says the PC's should be high enough level that they aren't automatically paralyzed (not in so many words, but I don't remember what the level is). In my group, one fighter and Kaurophon were high enough level to not get paralyzed, and the paranoid fire genasi wizard had fled the main battle area before the Blasphemy went off. So, Kaurophon, having turned in visible the first round, spent the next two rounds casting Dispel Magic to unparalyze the other six PC's (and the Dire Ape companion...). Unfortunately, he also dispelled the Haste...
re: the Blasphemy spell
My PC's ran into the same issue--since there are eight PC's sharing the experience, they're mostly a level or two behind the module. If you check the beginning of this chapter, it says the PC's should be high enough level that they aren't automatically paralyzed (not in so many words, but I don't remember what the level is). In my group, one fighter and Kaurophon were high enough level to not get paralyzed, and the paranoid fire genasi wizard had fled the main battle area before the Blasphemy went off. So, Kaurophon, having turned in visible the first round, spent the next two rounds casting Dispel Magic to unparalyze the other six PC's (and the Dire Ape companion...). Unfortunately, he also dispelled the Haste...
Thanks Colin ! I suppose it's not easy to concentrate on gaming matters while the hobby feels like it's the end of the world :((
I didn't notice any particular piece of advice regarding the level of these encounters but I'll take a closer look. Kelnor is a 13th level spellcaster which means even Kaurophon may be paralysed (a 2-level difference, and a 3-level for my PCs). Well I suppose I'll let them make Knowledge (Planes) checks to warn them in advance, or skip the encounter until they make it out of the Skull. It raises again the issue of the broken CR system (how come a 13th level spellcaster with 7th level spells could be a CR11 encounter ?)Bran
It raises again the issue of the broken CR system (how come a 13th level spellcaster with 7th level spells could be a CR11 encounter ?)
Bran
The other one like this is the leonal guardinal. For various reasons of ideology, the first time our PCs encountered her, the paladin challenged her to single non-lethal combat. It was okay that the guardinal won, but she won by such a huge margin that we seriously doubted she was a CR12 encounter. This was a useful warning that led us to say, when it appeared that the whole party (including now ex-paladin) would jump her later on, "Let's run this fight out of continuity and see what happens." TPK. This one "CR12" monster beat a party of eight PCs levels 11-13.
The blasted guardinal is, therefore, still there in our game, and the new Lady of Occipitus is having signs put up: "Stay out of the Celestial Rubble if you value your life!" It really sticks in her craw that she can't get rid of the guardinal, but even now (PCs are 13th-14th) we're not too sure about the fight.
I think a useful generalization is: never trust the CR of an angel, and be skeptical of the CR of a demon or devil.
Mary
Kelnor is a 13th level spellcaster which means even Kaurophon may be paralysed (a 2-level difference, and a 3-level for my PCs).
As written, Kauraphon's alignment is CE, so unless you've made changes to him, he can't be affected by Blasphemy.
Kelnor is a 13th level spellcaster which means even Kaurophon may be paralysed (a 2-level difference, and a 3-level for my PCs).As written, Kauraphon's alignment is CE, so unless you've made changes to him, he can't be affected by Blasphemy.
That's true. Shame on me lol ! Thanks a lot.
I think a useful generalization is: never trust the CR of an angel, and be skeptical of the CR of a demon or devil.
Mary
I will certainly pay close attention to these encounters in the future. I'm quite sure my PC won't challenge the leonal. However I'll give a look to his abilities as well. I'm on the verge of making Kelnor a Glabrezu. While it is CR13, I find it less lethal as it is more a straightforward bruiser with no "save or die" spell-like abilities (except for Power Word: Stun which affect only one person). As my PCs weren't able to even scratch Nabthatoron, it'll give them a chance to regain some confidence.
Too bad... I really liked what Rokeca did on this encounter and I don't want to fudge it nor to underplay creatures like demons.
Thanks for sharing Mary !
Bran
|
|
Thanks Bran, Colin, Mary and VendiCold - great comments and troubleshooting, and sorry for the tardy reply.
Yes - the Kelnor encounter as written is very challenging. VedicCold is correct that Kaurophon will be unaffected by the blasphemy and as Colin mentioned Kaurophon can cast dispel magic (either targetted specifically against the blasphemy, or as an area effect on all the affected PCs) to help keep them in the game.
Having said that, the encounter can still be a bit over the top, so here's an alternate approach that stays true to Kelnor’s cruel and overconfident attitude.
Kelnor uses blasphemy to debilitate the adventuring party one or two members at a time, all the while taunting her foes. She does this with glee, realizing it typically creates increased terror and despair, and deliberately targets only one or two charcters with this effect. In essence, she uses blasphemy to strip down the party, then she attacks the survivors, before turning her attention to those who are paralyzed, weakened or dazed.
If she sees that Kaurophon is starting to dispel her blasphemies, she might then target a larger group of PCs with the ability, or attempt to elminate Kaurophon from the equation.
Mary - your experience with the guardinal is fascinating. The encounter is designed as a roleplaying experience - and that's how it rolled out with my group. With the exception of the odd friendly duel here or there, the encounter is unlikely to escalate into a hostile situation (unless the party is outright defiant, disrespectful - or evil). However, if it does, your experience shows it can be deadly. I am writing up some errata for this leg of the Occipitus adventure and I'll make some suggestions based on your experience.
Should combat break out, my recommendation would be: the guardinal does not seek to kill the party (unless it believes they are evil or have evil intent). Instead, it is trying to defeat them in order to drive them back from the rubble, and offers them the opportunity to surrender/retreat. Of course, should the guardinal believe the party is up to no good, it will be no holes barred.
Personally, I think your party's experience with the guardinal is perfect. It's not a bad thing for the PCs to learn to respect the celestial rubble's guaridans - and it helps to explain why, after 500 years, there is still such a strong presence of good in Occipitus.
Hi Rokeca !
Many thanks again for this great piece of adventure and roleplaying. I'm taking my players to Occipitus tomorrow night and I'll let you know what happens. I find your suggestion very useful and I think it's the way I will use it. I really want them to fear the Abyss and make this trip memorable.
I did another small change so far. Instead of three chaos beasts attacking the camp during the green slaad infiltration, I will use only one advanced-16HD chaos beast (that's a CR9 encounter as well). With a +22 melee claw attack and a DC 19 Fortitude to prevent corporeal instability, I'll be pretty sure I can make them sweat a little on this one. :)) I 'll try to post a block in this thread for this variant soon.
Bran.
Thanks Bran, Colin, Mary and VendiCold - great comments and troubleshooting, and sorry for the tardy reply.
Hey, thank you for the hard work on designing this! My GM was excited to run it.
Kelnor uses blasphemy to debilitate the adventuring party one or two members at a time, all the while taunting her foes. She does this with glee, realizing it typically creates increased terror and despair, and deliberately targets only one or two charcters with this effect. In essence, she uses blasphemy to strip down the party, then she attacks the survivors, before turning her attention to those who are paralyzed, weakened or dazed.
I'd be careful with this, because a consistent problem we had with SCAP in general and Occipitus in particular was the PCs concluding that they were outclassed and should bail out. Having a superior foe toying with you is one of the most demoralizing and unpleasant experiences in roleplaying, in my opinion, and if you do it here--in the already rather weakly motivated Occipitus line--you run a big risk that you will derail the whole module.
I'd cut this encounter down if the PCs are too low-level for it. (My GM left it out.)
Mary - your experience with the guardinal is fascinating. The encounter is designed as a roleplaying experience - and that's how it rolled out with my group. With the exception of the odd friendly duel here or there, the encounter is unlikely to escalate into a hostile situation (unless the party is outright defiant, disrespectful - or evil). However, if it does, your experience shows it can be deadly. I am writing up some errata for this leg of the Occipitus adventure and I'll make some suggestions based on your experience.
I think that when you put in something whose nominal CR misrepresents its strength this badly, it's helpful to warn the GM. Mine was very upset.
I also think you've missed a number of ways that this encounter could naturally end up as combat even if none of the PCs is evil (and really, is a TPK a good reaction to one of the PCs being evil? I don't recall SCAP saying that they mustn't be....)
(1) One of the PCs/cohorts/allies/etc. has the background feat, found in the SCAP hardcover, which makes you register magically as evil even if you are not.
(2) One of the PCs has an oath or obligation that prohibits them from submitting to mind-reading, or is for some reason immune to mind-reading.
(3) The PCs are not willing to trust the guardinal enough to waive their saving throws.
Consider an encounter that progresses exactly the same as this one, except that instead of the guardinal, it's the succubus from the Cathedral, polymorphed. If the PCs agree to throw their saves "to allow their minds to be read," she gets to charm them all for free, and she should shortly be Lord of Occipitus. Oops. If the party thinks about this, and has no way to prove to itself that the guardinal is actually what she says she is, they may be balky about the mindreading.
(My PCs had just pulled exactly this dirty trick on Grahlia Cairnness, so they were very aware of the possibility. "I need to read your mind to verify that you're telling the truth" followed by casting Dominate Person instead of Detect Thoughts. Not nice!)
All that said, it was a roleplaying experience, and rather a significant one for the campaign. It was a catalyst to the paladin renouncing her paladinhood (after Kauraphon dimension doored into the cathedral it became apparent to the paladin that the leonal's purported goodness was doing the work of evil, and that was the beginning of the end for her), and it also shaped the direction in which the new Lord of Occipitus is taking her lordship. That PC turned out to take her new role very seriously, much more so than the module expects.
I'll try to do a writeup at some point and post it here.
Mary
Here is a writeup of our party's experiences on Occipitus. The game had diverged pretty far from the book by this point, but we used a lot of the material from this thread as well as considerable new material.
Fritz -- TN half-elf wizard 7/regnant 5 (custom PrC resembling mindbender,
related to the Spellweavers)
Charis -- LG half-elf paladin 11
Rael -- LG advanced celestial unicorn, Charis' mount
Lakos -- LN human cleric 12 of Wee Jas
Jules -- CN human rogue/fighter/scout/dervish, total of 12
Tillie -- CG human rogue 12
Bryce -- CG half-orc fighter 12
Shensen -- NG NPC half-drow druid (mostly, with other classes) 13
Elaine -- NG NPC human wizard 6
Fritz, Charis, Lakos, Jules and Tillie are all Shackleborn, and
by this point, they know roughly what that implies.
The PCs had just defeated Grahlia Cairnness at Vaprik's Voice, and
had tricked her into allowing herself to be Dominated. Fritz was
keeping her alive out of a combination of squeamishness (he does not
like to hurt people he's charmed), sexual attraction, and desire to
mine more information out of her. The rest of the PCs were reluctantly
going along.
Grahlia told them about Fetor at Karran-Kurul, beyond a mirror gate
in Vaprik's Voice. The PCs walked unmolested through Vaprik as
guests of Grahlia and went through the mirror gate, which Fritz was
able to control. They came out in a small chamber with Alec Tercival
and a demon whom they recognized, to their horror, as Nabrithond.
Fritz cast Tasha's Irresistable Laughter, his signature spell, and
freakishly enough it worked. (The GM's mouth was hanging open. We
calculated this as about a 2% chance.) The PCs cut up their childhood
terror into little bitty pieces, and then healed Alec of his madness
using an artifact potion from a previous adventure. However, they
could not get back through the mirror gate, and on pushing out via
the only exit, found that they were on Occipitus.
Almost at once they were attacked by nine babau demons. The babau
threw a volley of Dispel Magic and managed to dispel almost nothing
except the Dominate Person on Grahlia. Grahlia, finding herself free
in the middle of a fight in deeply hostile territory, cried out that
she offered her parole and would aid the PCs while they were in the
Abyss; Fritz and Charis accepted.
Fritz used telepathy to snarl at the babau, "Why are you attacking
me, you idiots? Don't you know who I am?" and rolled very high on
Bluff, ending the fight suddenly. ("Oh gosh," said the babau. "Sorry,
sir. Mistaken identity.")
Kauraphon's desire to help them in the fight was rather stymied by
this (he got in one fireball) but he introduced himself to the PCs
anyway and made his pitch about the Lordship of Occipitus. The PCs
were divided on whether he was a lying knave or an honest dupe, but
in neither case did they find him the least bit trustworthy: the
fact that Alex sensed him as evil didn't help.
Throughout this part, Alex' comments seemed incredibly naive and
closed-minded. The PCs had just about decided that they didn't care
for him when they realized that he'd been Wisdom-drained into near
insensibility by the Amaranth Elixer. Once they fixed that, he became
a much better ally.
The PCs set out for the Cathedral of Feathers, with Kauraphon as
guide. They were not at all sure they were going to attempt the
Tests, but they needed a way out and hoped to find one there.
They fought a gray slaad (ran him off but couldn't beat him) and three
thunderbeasts pursing a green slaad (killed the thunderbeasts with
considerable difficulty) and a flight of vrock. At this point the
GM said, "Four or five more days like this to the Cathedral of
Feathers" and the player said, "No, please, don't do that to me,
this is miserable." The PCs were having a very bad time with DR
and SR in all of these fights (as well as at Vaprik's Voice, where
they had just fought a flight of vrock and half a dozen babau) and
were becoming very demoralized. So we abstracted through the PCs
being hassled by a demon leader, killing a bunch of his strike forces
and then the demon himself, and meeting the bone centaurs. (In
retrospect I was sorry not to play out the bone centaurs.)
Part of the problem was that we had never found adequate solutions
to high DR; another part was that the PCs had meant to go to
Karan-Kurrul and resented being sidetracked onto Occipitus with
no clear goal. They were not eager to take Kauraphon's advice as
he was clearly not their friend.
There was a really interesting late-night conversation between
Jules and Grahlia about Jules' demodand ancestry and what she might
do to capitalize on it. Several of the PCs were becoming reluctantly
fond of Grahlia. (Alex and Shensen definitely were not.)
At the Celestial Rubble the PCs met a leonal guardinal who
challenged them and would not let Grahlia or Kauraphon pass.
The PCs felt honor-bound not to abandon Grahlia alone in Occipitus
after the deal they had made with her. The natural thing at this
point would have been to plane-shift away and not come back, but
there was a Divination pointing to Occipitus, and on a metagame
level the player hated to miss an entire scenario. (My
GM's other group just bailed from Occipitus without ever doing
the tests, and was happy to get away.)
Charis challenged the leonal to single non-lethal combat, no spells,
to establish whether the leonal was right in forbidding them from
going on. The leonal won absolutely effortlessly. Grahlia said,
"I'm in your way. I'll just stay here--I'll be fine" and the PCs
reluctantly left her and Kaurophan. (They have regretted this bitterly
ever since.)
At the Cathedral the PCs fought and beat a succubus and a fire
salamander, nearly losing Charis and Rael to the salamander. They
heard from Kauraphon, who had dimension doored to the
Cathedral. Alex and Charis were aghast that he had cheated the
leonal and gone back on the bargain they had made, and drove him
angrily away, telling him that they would kill him if they saw
him again.
They met the mummy lord, chose to pass through the avoral doorway,
and each spoke privately with the avoral. They tried to free it
but could not; several PCs independently promised to free it later.
For the first time, several of the PCs (Jules, Charis and Tillie)
began to feel that they might have a reason to become Lord of
Occipitus, if only to disband this awful slave-taking test.
Several of them (Fritz, Rael, Lakos, Alec, Shensen) said flatly to
the avoral, "I will not be Lord of Occipitus. I'm here to help my
friends, that's all." When it let those PCs pass, they wondered
what the test had been and whether it had any meaning at all.
They headed off, following their guiding lantern, and in the Ossaic
Forest realized they were being tailed by a mind flayer and his
minions. They guessed this was the same mind flayer who had nearly
destroyed a town near Sasserine in an earlier encounter (we ran
_Speaker in Dreams_ as a side adventure) and jumped him with extreme
overkill, slaughtering the whole group in seconds and without a
chance to parley.
Then they found that the mind flayer's minions were carrying holy
swords. Charis' faith in her own goodness, and goodness in general,
snapped completely at this point. (It was a strong echo of a
previous scenario in which they'd attacked a group of drow for
what turned out to be morally inadequate reasons). Alex tried to
comfort her but failed. She had not lost her paladin powers, but it
was not clear why; she no longer considered herself a paladin.
At this point the PCs had a hint that the final Test might involve
sacrifice, and Charis became privately resolved that she would be
the one sacrificed.
On the border of the Plain of Cysts they fought and beat a black
dragon. On the Plain, they were told by a mummy lord that they
must choose the entombed creature who would be their champion in
the Test. The lantern would illuminate the insides of cysts so that
they could see and speak with their candidate champions.
Before they could get started, they met Velassia, an acolyte of Lakos'
temple in Cauldron, with her drow and retriever servants and a
rogue, Finch, from the Last Laugh. Velassia demanded that they
turn back; Lakos, who outranked her, refused. After a tense
discussion the two groups split up, giving each other plenty of room
on the Plain. Fritz established telepathic contact with Finch, who
was getting dubious about Velassia's sanity.
The PCs started to look into cysts. They talked to Tleklatl the coatl,
an athack, a bodak, a vrock, a sentient magical weapon, a gray
slaad, a babau, a celestial lion bard, a lammasu, and a spellweaver
lich. (The poor GM was starting to wonder if they would *ever* stop
looking into cysts!) Finally they went right back to the beginning
and chose Tleklatl. They had another run-in with Velassia and ended it by
using a teleport gate to get close to the Skull.
In dense jungle outside the Skull, a were-baboon with a big sword
blocked the way forward, saying that only those who were committed to
the Test could pass, and each could take one champion. Jules, with
Tleklatl as her champion, and Charis, with Rael, went forward. No
other PC would say that he or she was really willing to continue,
so the rest waited there. They were attacked by Velassia and Kaurophon,
and killed them, sparing Finch. (We didn't play this out; it
seemed to distract from the main line.)
Jules and Charis fought and beat the rakshasa during the ascent. They
were tense with each other as it seemed that they might be
adversaries soon.
At the top, they were challenged by a nalfashnee demon, the Steward
of Occipitus. He asked each one what she would renounce to be Lord of
Occipitus. Charis, without hesitation, laid down her paladinhood, which
was deemed a suitable sacrifice. Jules hesitated--I didn't think
she'd go on--and then said, "I sacrifice my freedom, as every Lord
must." This, too, was deemed acceptable. They plunged into the
flames. Charis was turned into a kind of berserker (we used the
Iron Heroes rules here) and Jules into something resembling an erinys.
The two of them, with only magical support from their champions, fought
the Steward. He tried to turn them against each other but failed.
Charis was killed, and Jules barely managed to kill the Steward. She
took the Rod of Raising from Charis' belt and raised her from the dead
just as the flames exploded through the whole cavern. (The GM said,
"It's highly significant that Jules' first act as Lord of Occipitus
was to raise a potential rival from the dead.")
(If we had played the Skull as written, probably Charis would have
sacrificed herself so that Jules could become Lord of Occipitus. As the
book describes it, doing so would have made *Charis* Lord of Occipitus.
We really disliked this possible outcome; I think it would have
wrecked the party. So the GM chose to do something else.)
The rest of the PCs were horrified to receive back a demon-lord and
a fallen paladin. They had not meant to pay so high a price. Jules
bargained with them and eventually it was agreed that they would help
her scour the Plain of Cysts and she would help them defeat the
Cagewrights. Alex said, "The person you used to be never would have
bargained like that," to general dismay.
They went back to the Plain of Cysts and Jules offered each of the
prisoned creatures various choices including serving her. She put
together the beginnings of a Council consisting of the lammasu,
babau, athack, and grey slaad (that one was trouble from the start),
and the celestial lion as her personal chronicler. She also freed
the avoral guardinal and the lantern archons (in the lanterns) from
the Test. She was too afraid of the spellweaver lich to free it, and
Lakos killed the bodak when it would not cooperate. The vrock and
weapon had no concept of cooperation; baffled, she left them where
they were.
Jules and Lakos then plane-shifted the PCs back to the Prime
Material. The GM ruled, for metagame reasons, that the party was
split up with the NPCs ending up in Cauldron and the PCs somewhere
far away (so that he could run a different adventure, namely Vampires
of Waterdeep, before returning to the SCAP main-line).
Since then Jules has been using every spare moment to try to solidify
her hold on Occipitus and learn how to control it. She takes her
Lordship utterly seriously. This has caused considerable tension
between the party and its allies in Cauldron, where demons are
currently very unpopular.
Jules learned from a Commune cast by Lakos that there were three
Lords of Occipitus: herself, the marilith Valshea, and the fallen
angel Sauraya. She had a chance to hunt down Valshea and
took it enthusiastically, killing her once on the Prime Material
and again in the Chamber of the Eye. She wants to talk to Sauraya
(and perhaps to kill him too--we'll see) but he is on Occipitus
at a place called the Well of Wishes, which the bone centaurs tell
her that no one can reach unless they pass various tests. She
has reluctantly set this plan aside until the Cagewright crisis is
past.
We did a custom class for Jules, so she is a moderately powerful
demon-like sort of thing. The character had been so extremely weak
all campaign long, especially since DR started to become common,
that even giving her much better stats and abilities than before
didn't seem to make her overpowering.
The roleplaying impact of her giving up her freedom has been immense
and unmistakeable, though rather hard to describe; it was definitely
a real sacrifice. Her ambition is to make Occipitus an independent
realm beholden to neither Celestia nor the Abyss, and peopled by
fallen angels, corrupted demons, and rebels and misfits from every
plane. This is probably outside the scope of the campaign, alas.
Charis has decided that, having been ransomed from death by Jules, she
has to serve Jules--frankly, she doesn't know what else to do with
herself. She goes berserk in combat and fights as if she doesn't
care whether she lives or dies, and it's a marvel that she hasn't died
yet. Rael is deeply troubled by this. Since she could no longer be
a paladin's mount, Rael has taken levels of ranger, with evil outsiders
as her first favored enemy and good outsiders as her second. She
privately hopes to put her horn through the heart of that leonal
guardinal some day; she blames the leonal for breaking her mistress'
spirit.
Mary
|
|
Here is a writeup of our party's experiences on Occipitus.
Wow, this is some really cool stuff.
Occipitus really became something other than just a "sidetrek" or a revealer for things to come in the AP, but a really central focus.
So what about Charis and Jules? Are they both still PCs continuing with the AP? What do their players feel about the changes to their characters?
So what about Charis and Jules? Are they both still PCs continuing with the AP? What do their players feel about the changes to their characters?
They're both still PCs, though it's hard to be sure that they won't split off from the party (and thus drop out of play).
Both players are me.... I'm pretty happy with Jules, except that these events tend to pull her away from the party (and the GM is not keen on running two separate threads--this campaign is big enough as it is). The conversation between Jules and her father when she got back to Cauldron was priceless, one of the best roleplaying bits I've ever been involved with.
I'm bothered by Charis, who is fey and borderline suicidal. I hope the planned expedition to the Wishing Well in search of Sauraya may give her something to hope for. Jules would like to put her in charge of the re-vegetation of Occipitus, which would probably do her soul good but would take her out of play.
The PC group as a whole feels it has triangulated the Cagewrights and is moving to take all of them out, bang-bang-bang, as quickly as possible so that they can't organize a strong response. I don't know what will happen with that, and it may pre-empt anything specifically to do with Jules, Charis and Occipitus. It's a pretty over-ambitious plan, but the PCs are sick of responding to enemy actions and want to take the initiative. They have done Vaprik and Karran-Kurul already, next stop Shatterhorn. (Eek!)
Mary
So are you going to add the other two legs of the journey? Please do, the first was fantastic.
|
|
So are you going to add the other two legs of the journey? Please do, the first was fantastic.
Hey Alacar - good news. Part two is already here (just a bit thread-buried)...
http://paizo.com/dungeon/messageboards/shackledCity/occipitusCathedralOfFea thersToPlainOfCystsMiniAdventure
It's also posted on theRPGenius site.
I am presently working on writing up part 3 (which is far shorter than the first two legs since my PCs were getting eager to return to Cauldron).
|
|
Excellent questions. My party entered this chapter just behind the power curve at 9th level (almost at 10th - the recommended level to start the adventure) - but they were a party of 7. By the end of the module with the additional encounters they were close to 12th level (the recommended start point for Soul Pillars).
The module seems to assume, from an XP progression perspective, that the random encounter tables will be used - there is not enough XP provided from the keyed encounters to get a party from 10th to 12th (except maybe if they start on the cusp of 11th at the start of the adventure).
If your party is already level-happy, and if it's a small group, I'd suggest selecting your favorite encounters - the ones that progress the atmosphere and environment of Occipitus the most. Perhaps a single Slaad encounter, the bison herd/thunderbeast encounter, the vrock/babau trap in the furrow - and maybe the hezrou encounter to give them respect for the plane. Plus the roleplaying encounter with the guardinal.
For part two, perhaps run only the graverobbers or the ghost-archon encounter, keep the journey across the tremor zone and the various encounters (they add a cumulative sense of tension), then cut to the succubus/wee jas cleric encounter.
Together these should provide a good sense of the flavor of the plane, while reducing the XP you need to dole out as the party journeys between tests.
From a timeline perspective, my party spent a little more than two weeks on Occipitus - the one ticking clock that I can think of is the situation with Redgorge. This could have already been diffused if the PCs managed to get word back to Cauldron before departing to Occipitus. If not, the seige could be continuing on return (and the PCs could end up being plane shifted a fair ways away from Cauldron if they don't have teleportation magic) - or Redgorge may have even fallen or be under attack from Nabthatoron and his gnoll forces.
And if they did get word back to stop the seige of Redgorge, they may have one pissed-off Nabthatoron (if they didn't destroy him before meeting Kaurophon).
Also, while the PCs are on Occipitus - that's when the Lord Mayor mysteriously disappears.
For my group, the PCs had invested in a number of capital projects. One was building a theatre, another a casino by the lake. It allowed me to fast forward some of those projects so they were much closer to completion.