I've been running Burnt Offerings for my group, and last session ended after the combat with Nuala.
But a couple of my players have been mentioning in the last couple of sessions as they were working their way through Thistletop, that it would make a great fortress for the party to occupy.
I don't have a real problem with them doing that, however I've only skimmed the remainder of the AP and don't know if it would present any problems later.
The only problems I see are they won't be spending much time there in the next 2-3 modules, and when Fort Rannick comes along, whether they will want to settle there or not. I could easily arrange for the surviving members of the Fort Guard to retake possession so the PC's don't get the offer of the Castle.
Can anyone offer me any possible problems if I let my PC's take over Thistletop?
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Thistletop actually seems to be a pretty decent place to let the PCs hold up. Sandpoint seems to be the main spot for people in the campaign, and thistletop is close enough that it can serve as the same thing. Fort Rannick is a good alternative because at that level PCs can teleport, but there is no need for the party to be so far away from their home town that they can't get there by horseback. The only downside I see at all, is that if you wanted to include some of the side adventures from keeping the keep, they make a bit less sense in thistletop(much more settled then rannick is).
-Tarlane
Probably should put spoiler tags on this thread...
Here are some issues that I see with "living the Thistletop life".
For one thing, the place smells like goblin poo.
For another thing, Lyrie's cat pissed all over the place.
And don't forget the temple to Lamashtu in the "basement".
So assuming that the PCs defeat all of the residents of the complex, they still would have a lot of work to do to make the place comfortable.
They would need to do some major mundane cleaning, and they might want to get a high level divine caster to hallow the temple. The adventure text implies that it's only under the effects of a desecrate, not unhallow, but it's good to be safe.
In my campaign, I will probably have an allied NPC organization take over the complex so that the PCs don't have to deal with it.
It's not so far from Sandpoint that it would be too inconvenient to be based there, but it's not exactly in a position to "protect" the town.
I suppose it might draw goblins away from the town.
It makes a really cool "bat cave" type of lair for the PCs. But they don't really need a bat cave, becuase they don't have secret identities.
Probably should put spoiler tags on this thread...
Here are some issues that I see with "living the Thistletop life".
** spoiler omitted **
What about the other goblin tribes? I imagine some of them might come sniffing around as a side quest encounter.
What about the other goblin tribes? I imagine some of them might come sniffing around as a side quest encounter.Probably should put spoiler tags on this thread...
Here are some issues that I see with "living the Thistletop life".
** spoiler omitted **
I definitely thought of that as an option. Actually putting my bastard DM hat on, I can see them coming back from the extended trip in module 2 to find all thier hard work in cleaning up undone by a group of goblins having moved back in :-)
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Another goblin tribe taking over is what happened in my game(almost immediately, the PCs left for most of a week and then returned to finish clearing out the bottom floor and found goblins all over the upstairs again). It was described as being the most coveted of goblin lairs after all.
But I think the difference in this case was just that my players didn't show any interest in taking thistletop as their own. I would imagine that if they did claim it the remaining goblin tribes would be a persistent nuisance, but if they got stomped on once more then they would likely leave it be and just cause minor issues from a distance, just as with any settlement. They know if they attack sandpoint(without organized leadership) they will die, so they don't do it. But that doesn't stop them from rooting through the garbage or occasionally harassing someone out on his own.
If they want the place, and are willing to hold it and do the work to clean it up in their downtime, then I say good for them. It will give them something else that really ties them to the area.
-Tarlane
Some of the remaining Goblin tribes in the area would probably be interested in moving in if they got the chance. That's what I meant by "keeping the goblins away from the town". As long as Thistletop was held by a small band of adventurers, it would probably be an irresistable target to the goblins, and this would possibly distract them from troubling Sandpoint or travellers on the roads.
The Birdcruncher tribe is mostly broken up, so they probably wouldn't show up. The Licktoads are farthest away, down in the swamp. They're good swimmers, but probably not good enough to get rid of the Bunyip, so they might not try for Thistletop either. The Mosswood tribe is large, with feuding factions. Perhaps a group of Mosswood goblins would see a mostly empty Thistletop as a perfect opportunity to strike out on their own. And the Seven Tooth tribe is also close by, so they would probably be interested in upgrading their lair.
It might be tough for the PCs to hold on to Thistletop without some NPC cohorts of some kind. I suppose they could hire some folks. I can't imagine that the Sandpoint Watch would want to occupy the complex, unless they placed a high value on distracting the goblins away from the town. It wouldn't really be useful to fisherman, but maybe smugglers would want to use it.
It might be fun to see if the PCs could build up the defenses to the point where they could hold on to Thistletop for a long time. If they had access to flying spells, they could permanently cut the bridge. That would make it tough on a goblin assault, as the little buggers would have to swim past the Bunyip and then scale the cliff. I suppose you could put a pack of guard dogs on the island too. But what would the dogs eat when you were gone and there were no goblin snacks? And cutting the bridge isn't going to prevent Harpies from taking over, for example.
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Thistle Top is a nice spot...they might want to employ some skilled labour in maintaining their nice mansion, vinyards, etc.
Thistletop might become a suburb of the city of Sandpoint eventually. Wow. They could subdivide (survey) out plots of twenty acres each and market them in the big city to potential farmers...
Similar things happened in my group...
Thistletop would make a great base but I am leaning to Cutters Isle in Sandpoint. Private island and still on hand for story. It would just need to be purified of the taint left by the previous owner by the priests.
Thistletop makes a cool hangout, but I don't see how it protects the town. It's isolated on the coast behind a wall of shrubbery and far from the road.
If you wanted to protect the Sandpoint community from outside the town, you'd be better off living down south near the farms.
It seems unlikely that anyone who wanted to attack Sandpoint would ever stop in at Thistletop first. And the PCs would have a tough time saving the town from a few miles away unless they had a really great early warning system and super-fast movement.
Thistletop is only a mile or so off the Lost Coast Road, and could be used as a base for rangers operating in the Nettlewood, spying on and harrassing any enemy forces moving on Sandpoint from the east along the road.
That would work, but unless the PCs have a few dozen Ranger cohorts, they probably wouldn't be able to manage it on their own.
Depending on how the coast curves, you might be able to warn Sandpoint by lighting a signal fire on Thistletop. Kind of like another bit in Lord of the Rings.
My PCs haven't even breached the front doors of Thistletop, but they're already talking about taking it over! Cheeky bastards.
When the read Tsuto's journal, they seemed convinced that "lower levels" could only refer to the Catacombs of Wrath.
I printed out a full-sized color map of the main Thistletop level, but I haven't printed out the lower levels. When the find the stairs and go down, I'll say: "Hey what do you know, there's more to this place. Let me go check the car and see what I have..."