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Well the first Playtest group has fallen through. It was a sort of pick-up group through the FLGS. Got a few sessions in but people weren't timely and regular. And a couple were kind of "wierd." :)
So we have a new group going. This one is testing compatability. That is, it is open to outside spells, feats, and whatever.
We have a half-orc barbarian, a gnome wizard-transmuter, a gnome sorcerer, a human cleric of Abadar, and a human fighter.
We are playing Rise of the Runelords. And they love/hate goblins :)
First session pulled the players together as they explored the Swallowtail Festival. They loved the crazed little homicidal pests running through the streets with their dogslicers and horsechoppers.
The goblins got a surprise round as they raced through the crowd slicing at ankles. The first roll of the game was a crit on the barbarian. We were fortunate we were using the Constitution based HP option, otherwise the first roll of the game might just have killed our barbarian.
The barbarian raged and absoltely destroyed the poor little goblin in one hit. Wizard used a Cantrip often do do a little bit of damage to the goblins every round. The sorcerer and cleric have some weird idea that they are something else and used crossbows the entire time... OK whatever. The fighter managed to damage one mightily but not killed.
Long story short the goblins did not last long. The PCs took a few minor wounds. The goblin pyros did manage to set the Fighter on fire. They were freaked by the Goblin Song. The warchanter never got to do anything much before she was obliterated. The Goblin Commando got a coupe good hits in, and the goblin dog was freaky. They laughed mightily when one goblin fell off the roof into a rain barrel, and others would stop in the fight to eat or kill a random dog.
First thing I noticed was the sheer dominance of the barbarian in melee. The fighter was tougher to hit but did little damage. The barbarian was easy to hit but could easily do over 20 points damage in a single swing. Also he was able to charge 100 feet, and once he even lept over a tent to smash a goblin. Very cinematic, but he absolutely dominated the battle. The transmuter used enlarge person on the barbarian and it got nasty.
The cleric and sorcerer just need to learn how to play, as they were useless. Not a game issue.
The transmuter was awesome. Tossing cantrips like candy drops, using a well timed Enlarge Person. He was loving the sheer joy of being a caster and not being a doorstop in two rounds.
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The second session was more roleplaying. Only twice did we roll initiative.
The PCs are praised wherever they go. The sorcerer decides to give a try with Norah, the hagfish. Yeah, OK. I really need to figure out some stories he can read so he has a clue what his role is.
They make friends everywhere. They explored the Bonyards and follow some goblin tracks. The visit the Goblin Squash Stables and meet Aldern again who invites them to go on the boar hunt.
Then they get to the shopkeeper's daughter. Oh I loved that one. The poor barbarian is taken to the cellar. Things get hot and heavy. The shopkeeper comes downstairs... and the barbarian is stunned and dumb... he just freezes up.
The naked daughter, Shayliss, hopes to save the barbarian from having his head caved in with a mallet by saying "But, Dad, I love him and we're going to be married!"
That did it. The barbarian launches into action...fleeing up the stairs (Vinder gets an AoO and gets a crit) and out of town, vowing to never go back to that town.
As the party prepares to leave the next day to go goblin hunting I have the mother come screaming down the road looking for the "heroes." They go and find the husband dead in the house, his face eaten away. They send the gnome transmuter to go down the hole... Just as he is about to go down the goblin explodes out and chews on the transmuters face. The fighter pummels the goblin unconscious.
They meet Shalelu and learn about the goblins in the area.
They absolutely HATE goblins now. The Half-orc barbarian thinks human civilization is "Just whacked, dude." The gnome transmuter has a scar on his face where the goblin chewed his cheek off.
The cleric has no freaking clue how to play a cleric. When asked for healing he casts cure light once and says "that's it all out." After I made sure he knows he can use turning to heal... that he does not need to prepare cure spells...
The sorcerer is a chair warmer. Did absolutely nothing worth having him there.
Combat-wise the fighter got to do some decent non-lethal damage. And then tried to tie up the goblin and we learned there is no Use Rope anymore... so it kind of makes it hard for me to have the goblin get loose from the ropes as there is nothing for the PC to roll for really. So kind of seems like cheating for me to just have the goblin get loose.
Biggest comment of note in the session was "Love the condensed skill list- HATE the number of skill points." Which I have to agree with. Essentially a character can have 1 or 2 skills total in the game. It is very likely that I will change this to be double the skill points awarded. If so few skill points are going to be used, just drop skills entirely as a waste of space and make everything Ability rolls instead.
I do get tired of looking at a character sheet and seeing a HUGE list of skills that no one is able to use. "Just make an Ability roll instead" gets pretty old. Either give enough skill points to actually use skills, or drop them entirely. Right now they are useless.