I've been delayed, but I finally managed to get a copy of Carrion Hill. An avid Lovecraft scholar and CoC player, I was very pleased with the atmosphere and nature of the adventure, as well as the buried chamber that echoed of many Lovecraftian locales. (Sermon Bishop's farm, anyone?)
Has anyone had a chance to run it yet? I like the open-ended way the PCs can encounter the Shogo - I mean - Chaos Beast, but the adventure seems best if they run into it at the Asylum. Is this the case? Is there a subtle way to guide your PCs there last? Any thoughts on creating the proper atmosphere?
I've been delayed, but I finally managed to get a copy of Carrion Hill. An avid Lovecraft scholar and CoC player, I was very pleased with the atmosphere and nature of the adventure, as well as the buried chamber that echoed of many Lovecraftian locales. (Sermon Bishop's farm, anyone?)
Has anyone had a chance to run it yet? I like the open-ended way the PCs can encounter the Shogo - I mean - Chaos Beast, but the adventure seems best if they run into it at the Asylum. Is this the case? Is there a subtle way to guide your PCs there last? Any thoughts on creating the proper atmosphere?
I'm thinking of running Carrion Hill to replace Trial of the Beast in Carrion Crown (and running Harrowstone after Godsmouth Heresy), so I wouldn't know yet since I haven't read it (3 adventures down the line at this point), BUT I do have a possible suggestion.
KEY it, magically key it. Only a certain object or key can get you into the last room and the only way to find the key is to check every room...thereby the second to last room gains you access despite the powerful otherworldly magicks (or perhaps in this case, chaotic elements?). Not sure if there is an event that would work for this that is already in there, but I'm sure a creative DM (no doubt like yourself as you're a fan of Lovecraft) can work that out too.
To be frank, I wanted my horror campaign to have that feel, but haven't really read much Lovecraft...yet. I am, otherwise, familiar with his work and know a few people who dig the C-man and CoC as well.
I've run this.
Unfortunately, the PCs are most likely to head to the Asylum first, as Crove is the easiet name to notice, and he's the leader of the gang. The party is likely to write off the other cultists as distractions, thinking that Crove should be their only target.
Also, on a metagame level, it's obvious Crove is the strongest, so therefore he should be faced while the party is at maximum resources.
At least that's how it went down for my group.
FYI: The module runs pretty quick. There's actually very few combats in this book. My group is usually superduper slow, and they did this in only 2 sessions.
Also, FWIW, my group was convinced that it was "something they did" to cause the Shoggoth to attack at the location it did (the Middenstone Vats), they just didn't know what it was. After the game was over, and I revealed to them "it just shows up at the last one" they were quite upset and disappointed about that. (In a campaign, I wouldn't have revealed this, but since it was just a one-off, I didn't see the harm.)
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Yeah, I noticed the same thing - if the asylum isn't the last location then there's not a strong dramatic structure to the whole thing. I had Keeper Crove's name be on the strip Keeper Hyve tore out of the Pnakotic Manuscript to seal his mouth.
I ran Carrion Hill, albeit set in Riddleport, for a number of sessions, if you want more details there are full session summaries, see the beginning of Season Two here.
Other things you'll want to correct.
1. The solo ghoul is a terrible idea. I gave him a bunch of ghoul mooks.
2. The solo Keeper Hyve is a terrible idea. I gave him a bunch of traps.
3. Those two dark creepers are unexplained and pointless. I cut them.
There's a lot of raw goodness in Carrion Hill but don't just open it up and run it as written, it needs some TLC.
Yeah, I noticed the same thing - if the asylum isn't the last location then there's not a strong dramatic structure to the whole thing. I had Keeper Crove's name be on the strip Keeper Hyve tore out of the Pnakotic Manuscript to seal his mouth.
I ran Carrion Hill, albeit set in Riddleport, for a number of sessions, if you want more details there are full session summaries, see the beginning of Season Two here.
Other things you'll want to correct.
1. The solo ghoul is a terrible idea. I gave him a bunch of ghoul mooks.
2. The solo Keeper Hyve is a terrible idea. I gave him a bunch of traps.
3. Those two dark creepers are unexplained and pointless. I cut them.There's a lot of raw goodness in Carrion Hill but don't just open it up and run it as written, it needs some TLC.
Thanks, I'll definitely keep these points in mind for when I run it. Especially since there's a good chance that my party will be above the written APL. (considering slow progression through the Godsmouth Heresy, maybe to pick things up after The Haunting of Harrowstone gets started, then dip into Carrion Hill instead of Trial of the Beast).
So these suggestions are helpful to me, and make sense, though I've yet to fully read the module. I'm still in 1st level party mode, so if the group lasts as long as I hope, I'll get to tie Carrion Hill into the larger Carrion Crown tapestry.
I'd be curious about what sort of traps you gave the Keeper Hyve encounter.
Thanks, I'll definitely keep these points in mind for when I run it. Especially since there's a good chance that my party will be above the written APL. (considering slow progression through the Godsmouth Heresy, maybe to pick things up after The Haunting of Harrowstone gets started, then dip into Carrion Hill instead of Trial of the Beast).So these suggestions are helpful to me, and make sense, though I've yet to fully read the module. I'm still in 1st level party mode, so if the group lasts as long as I hope, I'll get to tie Carrion Hill into the larger Carrion Crown tapestry.
I'd be curious about what sort of traps you gave the Keeper Hyve encounter.
Oh, just normal stuff, spear hedges popping out of the puddles when people charge him, that sort of thing. Might should have punched them up with some poison or other alchemical stuff because it didn't help much.
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1. The solo ghoul is a terrible idea. I gave him a bunch of ghoul mooks.
2. The solo Keeper Hyve is a terrible idea. I gave him a bunch of traps.
3. Those two dark creepers are unexplained and pointless. I cut them.There's a lot of raw goodness in Carrion Hill but don't just open it up and run it as written, it needs some TLC.
1) I could see where a group would rather squash his face in, rather than talk to him. So more ghouls may be a good idea to make him..."Challenging"
3) I think they add in the whole, you found a survivor bit. When I think of this, I think of that bad movie about the sea monster attacking the cruise liner, and pirates find it, and then start dieing trying to get off the ship.
I'm rezzing this thread because I'm running this currently with a new group. We started at 5th level with all Paizo/DSP/RGG options open. I've been bumping up the difficulty a bit without much effort, but I really didn't like those Dark Creepers in that room. So I changed it.
The 5 Keepers were not the only ones involved in the ritual. Keeper Hyve has taken an apprentice in recent months, and this was to be her initiation into the greater goals of the Keepers of the Oldest. Tanli Vydra is just shy of 20 years old, and tutored under Hyve to become a scholar to make her family proud. Hyve has been influencing her since she began her learning. She was brought along to witness the power that Hyve was beginning to teach her and seal her loyalty to the Keepers of the Oldest.
In the course of summoning the Spawn, the Keepers also accidentally brought in 4 Deep Ones from the same place that the Spawn had been banished to. In their hurried flight from the subterranean chamber, Tanli was first to flee, but paused on the stairs to make sure her master was able to escape with her. Knowing that as they were fleeing, the Deep Ones were right behind, Hyve convinced her to go into the side chamber in the crypt and wait in the doorway to their camp. As the Deep Ones emerged from the stairs, the adult Keepers were hidden in the alcoves. Tanli saw their pursuers and screamed, running deeper into the cultist camp.
The Deep Ones pursued her into the room, and the remaining Keepers piled as many stones in front of the door as they could, almost concealing the door from view (DC 15 Perception check to notice the door behind the stones) before making their escape ahead of the Spawn.
After the stones are removed, the door is plainly visible, and it looks as if something inside had attempted to break out. If the Deep Ones inside see a female PC, they will say, in Aklo, "More brides for us." They will attempt to kill any (visibly) male characters while fighting to subdue (visibly) female characters. If a Deep One is killed, the remaining ones change to lethal combat for all attacks.
Change to the Map: A7 and A8 have no walls between them, so the door is gone. The brick of the wall in A7 is simply broken out and A8 is totally exposed.
When the adventurers arrive, Tanli can be found in the shreds of a dark robe, in the northernmost area of A8 on the map. She is still alive, and catatonic. If touched or spoken to, she reveals that she seems conscious, but flinches and shivers and won't respond to any stimulus. She will not resist being picked up and carried if the party wishes to get her out of the area.
If presented to the guards, before the party descends the stairs, they will be shocked that anyone was alive under the house, and then attempt to identify the girl. If the players have already cleared the rooms at the base of the stairs, one of the nearby Crows will identify her and tell the party where to find her family. This can serve to steer them toward Keeper Hyve as their first Keeper to investigate if the GM wishes.
Creature:
Inside are 3 Deep Ones and an Advanced Large Deep One (4HD)
Advanced Deep One CR 4
XP 1,200
Advanced deep one (Pathfinder RPG Bestiary 288, Pathfinder RPG Bestiary 5 68)
CE Large monstrous humanoid (aquatic, deep one)
Init +0; Senses darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision; Perception +11
Defense
AC 16, touch 9, flat-footed 16 (+7 natural, -1 size)
hp 68 (4d10+28)
Fort +10, Ref +4, Will +8
Defensive Abilities deep dweller, immortal; Resist cold 5
Offense
Speed 20 ft., swim 40 ft.
Melee 2 claws +12 (1d6+9)
Space 10 ft.; Reach 10 ft.
Statistics
Str 29, Dex 11, Con 24, Int 16, Wis 19, Cha 14
Base Atk +4; CMB +14; CMD 24
Feats Flanking FoilUC, Great Fortitude
Skills Acrobatics +4 (+0 to jump), Climb +16, Intimidate +9, Knowledge (religion) +10, Perception +11, Stealth +3 (+7 underwater), Survival +11, Swim +24; Racial Modifiers +4 Stealth underwater
Languages Aklo, Common, Elder Thing, Sahaugin
SQ amphibious, devoted, item use
Special Abilities
Amphibious (Ex) You can survive indefinitely on land.
Darkvision (60 feet) You can see in the dark (black and white only).
Deep Dweller (Ex) Deep ones are immune to damage from water pressure; their bodies are capable of instantly adjusting to different water depths or even the surface with ease.
Devoted Deep ones are fanatically religious, be it to the worship of a Great Old One, an elder deep one, or some other divinity. A deep one gains one bonus skill rank per Hit Die that must be placed in Knowledge (religion), and this skill is a class skill fo
Energy Resistance, Cold (5) You have the specified Energy Resistance against Cold attacks.
Flanking Foil Foes you strike lose their flanking bonus against you
Immortal (Ex) A deep one does not age. Barring death from violence, disease, or misadventure, a deep one can live forever. Deep ones are immune to effects that cause magical aging.
Item Use (Su) A deep one can activate spell-trigger items like staves and wands as if it were a spellcaster of the appropriate class.
Low-Light Vision See twice as far as a human in dim light, distinguishing color and detail.
Swimming (40 feet) You have a Swim speed.
AFTERMATH:
If the party stays in town for an extended period after this adventure, they might hear about Tanli returning to limited consciousness in a couple months. Some months later she gives birth to a son. Within weeks, she vanishes from the town, headed for the nearest body of salt water with her Deep One Hybrid child.