The 'Rowing to Farshore' Thread just got me thinking of some problems I may be facing at the beginning of HTBM...
My party has an artificer in its ranks, and they had the good sense to acquire a Folding Boat to use as an emergency launch. They're also trying to get the artificer to make a second one so they can ditch the regular launches and free up some deck space (I give them credit for being smart and practical with their resources at least).
When the Wyvern gets grounded, it has enough damage to not be repaired onsite, but is still salvageable. However, does having a PC who can cast 'Repair' spells derail the whole idea of having to leave the Sea Wyvern and salvage it later?
Also, would the Folding Boat (in its ship-size) be big enough to handle the trip by water, assuming that all the survivors could fit aboard? The Mashers are still bigger (by about 6 feet), but the PCs might be crazy enough to try.
I don't want to ignore the fact that the PCs have made good choices and planned ahead for disasters, but I also really want them to have to hike to Farshore and go through the adventure as written. It's just too good to avoid ;P
My thoughts so far -
1) I read the Ecology of the Isle of Dread to my players, so they could get a feel for what was in Larissa Vanderboren's journals and get a taste of what the IoD has to offer. They know about the Mashers now, so that may be deterrent enough to avoid the waters and stick to land.
2) The Sea Wyvern may be so firmly grounded that it would require another ship to help tow it off the rocks so it can sail again, thus encouraging the PCs to hike to Farshore to get help.
Do these ideas seem too heavy-handed? Does anyone else have ideas that might work better all around? Any and all help is welcome...
Thanks in advance! :)
Your Friendly Neighborhood Dalesman
"Bringing Big D**n Justice to the Bad Guys Since 1369 DR"
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Do these ideas seem too heavy-handed? Does anyone else have ideas that might work better all around? Any and all help is welcome...
I would say absolutely not! If the Sea Wyvern is grounded high enough on a reef (which a storm is likely to do, esp at high tide), it would definitely take another ship with a strong crew turning at the capstan to pull her off. The way I understand the procedure, you have to get a firm grounding for your own anchor, send a party over to secure lines to the grounded ship, pass that line around the capstan, and pull with everything you've got. Even then, the anchor line may part first, or come free of the bottom, meaning you have to do the whole thing over again. You'd have to try it at the next high tide when there's as much water as possible under the hull. You'd also need to perform said repairs before you pulled her off, or you might end up sinking anyway.
Chances are, when she hit the reef, her masts went overboard, so you'd need supplies for new rigging. All these complications provide ample excuse for shooting down your artificer's repair abilities.
Now the folding boat thing - that's a whole different can of worms. Maybe they were lost overboard or something?
Do these ideas seem too heavy-handed? Does anyone else have ideas that might work better all around? Any and all help is welcome...
I would say absolutely not! If the Sea Wyvern is grounded high enough on a reef (which a storm is likely to do, esp at high tide), it would definitely take another ship with a strong crew turning at the capstan to pull her off. The way I understand the procedure, you have to get a firm grounding for your own anchor, send a party over to secure lines to the grounded ship, pass that line around the capstan, and pull with everything you've got. Even then, the anchor line may part first, or come free of the bottom, meaning you have to do the whole thing over again. You'd have to try it at the next high tide when there's as much water as possible under the hull. You'd also need to perform said repairs before you pulled her off, or you might end up sinking anyway.
Chances are, when she hit the reef, her masts went overboard, so you'd need supplies for new rigging. All these complications provide ample excuse for shooting down your artificer's repair abilities.
Now the folding boat thing - that's a whole different can of worms. Maybe they were lost overboard or something?
Thanks for that bit of info on the Wyvern, Luke - that definitely helps!
As far as the Folding Boat goes, I'm honestly thinking about having the party use one as part of their bargaining to get forgiven for Avner's little episode in Renkrue with trying to 'buy' one of the village's women. That way, they would only have one boat to work with (though that means I need a lot of survivors at the beginning so there's not enough room for everybody, but I can kill people off during the trek south I suppose).
Your Friendly Neighborhood Dalesman
"Bringing Big D**n Justice to the Bad Guys Since 1369 DR"
The simplest solution: The PCs and all the survivors (initially a lot more of them than in the adventure as written) set off by folding boat for the trip round the island. Shortly into that journey, an attack by mashers or a similar hazard capsizes the folding boat, and the PCs, along with the now-reduced list of survivors, just barely manage to make it back to shore. And from there you pick up with the adventure as written.
The simplest solution: The PCs and all the survivors (initially a lot more of them than in the adventure as written) set off by folding boat for the trip round the island. Shortly into that journey, an attack by mashers or a similar hazard capsizes the folding boat, and the PCs, along with the now-reduced list of survivors, just barely manage to make it back to shore. And from there you pick up with the adventure as written.
If you go this route, which is perfectly fine and makes sense, make sure that you allow the PCs the opportunity to fight back, repair their ship and make Profession (sailor) checks. Even in a boat, it would take several days to get as far down coast to Farshore. It may be a good idea to think of ways that Olangru could sabotage their maritime efforts. Perhaps he and his mates could launch boulders from the coastline at the PCs' ship; maybe he dumps a lot of savaged bodies into the ocean directly in their path to call more ferocious predators. He can still follow them via the coastline and make things difficult, like an illusion of a very similar boat to theirs drifting by, it's keel shattered and moldering corpses at the helm. That would be enough to give the NPCs the serious shivers and their fear and complaints may be enough to send the PCs back to land, if only to keep them quiet and to bolster their already fractured nerves.
Thanks James and MarkB for the suggestions!
Another idea that just popped into my head would be to have the storm that helped wreck the Wyvern still be going on. A brief lull in the storm becomes the window in which the PCs get to shore for the opening scene of HTBM. After they deal with the TRex, it starts to rain and thunder again...
It would be a good motivator to keep them off the water - though it would have to keep going until they get to the mountain tunnel to keep them from backtracking. My concern is whether or not that would screw up any of the encounters leading up to that (terror birds, aranea, etc.)
Hmmm....
Your Friendly Neighborhood Dalesman
"Bringing Big D**n Justice to the Bad Guys Since 1369 DR"
All good ideas, but that's an easy and great solution. When the ship crashes, let them put all the stuff they need in one or two floating sea-chests, then swim to shore (skip the materials-gathering part of the adventure). Give them a couple spots and listens as they quickly swim from the shipwrecked Sea Wyvern to shore in the middle of the storm, and let one or two of them see massive shapes moving amidst the rolling waves during flashes of lightning. When they finally get to shore, soaked, they won't want to even attempt the ocean again. Urol figures out they are a straight short march to the mountains for cover, and if they go back to sea, well almost the entire coast all the way there is cliffs hundreds of feet high and if there was any trouble there would be no where to go. The rain in the jungle shouldn't affect the terror birds or the aranea really, and I already ran them. They should definitely be too scared to go back to sea..
..but then again, getting attacked by a T-Rex as a greeting to being on land might make them neutral again!
If your PCs are very insistent on rowing around the island and you've made certain they understand they're on a tiny boat and sailing, I've just one word for you: Emraag.
After an encounter with Emraag, I imagine they'd change their tune about having set sail as fast as can be...
~ Bryon ~