So in HTBM today my party will encounter their first black Pudding. I read that its a DC 21 REF save for armor hit buy the pudding to avoid dissolving, and if a weapon strikes the Pudding its the same save for it to avoid being destroyed.
Two questions
1. The Psionic warrior's axe has the "crystal" property therefor I am going to treat the weapon as "stone" so it wont be effected because the pudding only dissolves metal and wood. Is this a fair call in your mind?
2. In the DMG under damaging magic items it states they get a saving throw bonus of 2 plus 1/2 caster level to all saves. The example is a magic lantern caught in a fireball would have a +4. Now because the Pudding lists a save DC of 21 do I use it, do magic items add their save bonus to the users, or what is the call?
Jason
The best of the two save bonuses are used on item's saving throws, such as the aforementioned magical lantern.
Treating a weapon as stone is your call - just make sure to remember that call for the entire campaign. Also reduce its hardness appropriately (as stone has hardness 8 compared to the 10, 15 or 20 for metals). It would / should / might weigh more than that item normally does when made of metal though. One thing to remember if you are using this to grant his weapon immunity to pudding dissolving and rust-based effects, is that it is crystalline. Other baddies should be able to target it with shatter, shout and greater shout spells are GOING to damage it (probably obliterating it) and so on...
Care to link a web-based description (or copy-paste it here) ?
The best of the two save bonuses are used on item's saving throws, such as the aforementioned magical lantern.
Treating a weapon as stone is your call - just make sure to remember that call for the entire campaign. Also reduce its hardness appropriately (as stone has hardness 8 compared to the 10, 15 or 20 for metals). It would / should / might weigh more than that though.
Care to link a web-based description (or copy-paste it here) ?
Its not "normal stone" its a magical property from crafting Psionic weapons, its crystal, and crystal is a stone which is where I make the call from.
The best of the two save bonuses are used on item's saving throws, such as the aforementioned magical lantern.
Treating a weapon as stone is your call - just make sure to remember that call for the entire campaign. Also reduce its hardness appropriately (as stone has hardness 8 compared to the 10, 15 or 20 for metals). It would / should / might weigh more than that item normally does when made of metal though. One thing to remember if you are using this to grant his weapon immunity to pudding dissolving and rust-based effects, is that it is crystalline. Other baddies should be able to target it with shatter, shout and greater shout spells are GOING to damage it (probably obliterating it) and so on...
Care to link a web-based description (or copy-paste it here) ?
I think I might add the items save throw bonus to the wearer/user. At level 8 they could end up weapon and armorless from this one encounter and I think thats to much.
I think I might add the items save throw bonus to the wearer/user. At level 8 they could end up weapon and armorless from this one encounter and I think thats to much.The best of the two save bonuses are used on item's saving throws, such as the aforementioned magical lantern.
Treating a weapon as stone is your call - just make sure to remember that call for the entire campaign. Also reduce its hardness appropriately (as stone has hardness 8 compared to the 10, 15 or 20 for metals). It would / should / might weigh more than that item normally does when made of metal though. One thing to remember if you are using this to grant his weapon immunity to pudding dissolving and rust-based effects, is that it is crystalline. Other baddies should be able to target it with shatter, shout and greater shout spells are GOING to damage it (probably obliterating it) and so on...
Care to link a web-based description (or copy-paste it here) ?
In practice, the complete loss of armor and weapons is unlikely unless - frankly - your players are dumber than a bag of hammers.
I don't disagree with your ruling - crystal stuff is what it is. It's just vulnerable to things that metal doesn't care about (as much).
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Yeah, unless you surprise them they'll run away screaming like a girls' school picnic outing, hide all their stuff in a rope trick, scream about knowledge checks to justify what they remember from the Monster Manual, then fry it at range :-)
At least, that's what my bunch of hoarders do :-)
And if you surprise them, one player will lose a few items and burst into tears. Then they'll all run away screaming like a girls' school picnic outing, hide all their stuff in a rope trick, scream about knowledge checks...etc etc
Yeah, unless you surprise them they'll run away screaming like a girls' school picnic outing, hide all their stuff in a rope trick, scream about knowledge checks to justify what they remember from the Monster Manual, then fry it at range :-)
At least, that's what my bunch of hoarders do :-)
And if you surprise them, one player will lose a few items and burst into tears. Then they'll all run away screaming like a girls' school picnic outing, hide all their stuff in a rope trick, scream about knowledge checks...etc etc
I've seen it happen, and it is rather sad to see an adult throw a tantrum, burst into near-tears (or outright tears) or otherwise demonstrate emotionally over the loss of a character's piece of gear.
This even crops up when a PC over-fond of Sunder gets his Uber-Sundering Adamantine Great Axe of Thwacking ... thwacked in return.
What is even more amazing is when players toss sleep spells around (or anything similarly debilitating) and then pitch a fit when they eat the same in turn.
The DC of the check to notice the pudding as I recall is not that high ...
^_^ Still, the character should be packing something other than The One Weapon to smack critters with. Clubs are free, staves are free (or nearly so), a sling and bullets for it are stupifyingly cheap.
It never ceases to amaze me how often players very quickly forget the lessons of the first levels of game play, when whether or not you have a club or two in the party makes the difference between life and death ... as it does at later levels when thwacking certain oozes.
At this level of play, they ought to have a wall spell or two to buy themselves some valuable time to change up their tactics...
The fighter in my group has a +3 spiked shield with +3 spikes on it. I would so love to Sunder that, or have a pudding slurp it :-)
And I suspect he would not be happy! ;-D
My player lost his Mithril full plate (Nimble) +1. He was not happy. The DC 21 REF save is very difficult to make.
The last time I ran an Elder Black Pudding against my party, the front-line fighters all went "please make your knowledge check!!" to the player who was playing the Wizard, almost with tears in their eyes :)
Between these kinds of critters and Rust Monsters my groups -ALWAYS- have someone trained in Dungeoneering. Even if no one gets it as a class skill, someone will scrounge up the points from somewhere to take it cross-class. :P
In our just-started Age of Worms game, it's my Crusader/Paladin. In my STAP game, they're lucky in that they have a Bard with every skill except Nobility.
Between these kinds of critters and Rust Monsters my groups -ALWAYS- have someone trained in Dungeoneering. Even if no one gets it as a class skill, someone will scrounge up the points from somewhere to take it cross-class. :P
In our just-started Age of Worms game, it's my Crusader/Paladin. In my STAP game, they're lucky in that they have a Bard with every skill except Nobility.
The party Knowledge check failed :( After the rouge created 2 more Puddings with arrow fire the SOR took care of them all with his blasting, not before the Magic armor was lost.
J
Ouch.
Some nights, the Dice Gods are not kind.
In practice, the complete loss of armor and weapons is unlikely unless - frankly - your players are dumber than a bag of hammers.
Gotta add "just plain unlucky" to that list.
My players (all of whom have been playing D&D for decades) have been breaking the First Rule of D&D, they regularly split the party.
While in Dark Mountain Pass, the Rogue and Ranger wandered into the black puddings lair while the rest of the party were futzing with the heavy water gate. The Rogue immediately went to investigate the pool and was able to make his reflex save to not lose his gear but caused it to split when he hit, then the Ranger bungled his Knowledge check and split it again with his arrow. The only other toon with the proper Knowledge skill was the Wizard, who was out of the room and near the bottom of the order. By the time there was a successful check, the Barbarian had charged with his greatclub (seeing that slashing and piercing didn't work) and failed his Reflex save for the AoO that hit his +1 mithral shirt. He also lost the greatclub when he pounded on it.
In practice, the complete loss of armor and weapons is unlikely unless - frankly - your players are dumber than a bag of hammers.
Gotta add "just plain unlucky" to that list.
My players (all of whom have been playing D&D for decades) have been breaking the First Rule of D&D, they regularly split the party.
While in Dark Mountain Pass, the Rogue and Ranger wandered into the black puddings lair while the rest of the party were futzing with the heavy water gate. The Rogue immediately went to investigate the pool and was able to make his reflex save to not lose his gear but caused it to split when he hit, then the Ranger bungled his Knowledge check and split it again with his arrow. The only other toon with the proper Knowledge skill was the Wizard, who was out of the room and near the bottom of the order. By the time there was a successful check, the Barbarian had charged with his greatclub (seeing that slashing and piercing didn't work) and failed his Reflex save for the AoO that hit his +1 mithral shirt. He also lost the greatclub when he pounded on it.
Regularly splitting the party ? Ouch!
Regularly splitting the party ? Ouch!
In practice, the complete loss of armor and weapons is unlikely unless - frankly - your players are dumber than a bag of hammers.
Gotta add "just plain unlucky" to that list.
My players (all of whom have been playing D&D for decades) have been breaking the First Rule of D&D, they regularly split the party.
While in Dark Mountain Pass, the Rogue and Ranger wandered into the black puddings lair while the rest of the party were futzing with the heavy water gate. The Rogue immediately went to investigate the pool and was able to make his reflex save to not lose his gear but caused it to split when he hit, then the Ranger bungled his Knowledge check and split it again with his arrow. The only other toon with the proper Knowledge skill was the Wizard, who was out of the room and near the bottom of the order. By the time there was a successful check, the Barbarian had charged with his greatclub (seeing that slashing and piercing didn't work) and failed his Reflex save for the AoO that hit his +1 mithral shirt. He also lost the greatclub when he pounded on it.
Yep.
In their defense, they have a dilemma; they saved FAR too many passengers and feel obligated to keep some PC's back for protection.They split up for the Giant Centipedes, two went left and two went right and two guarding the npcs.
They sent the Rogue and the Barbarian in to the tombs with the mummies to scout while the rest stayed behind.
Then the aforementioned pudding.
I added an encounter with some Centipede swarms in a cave off the road south, they sent in half the group so that the Ranger could take Thunderstrike to the back of the cave (they were attempting to rest).
During the Bullywug gambit, the Ranger was in the kitchen on the stairs heading to the first floor while the rest of the party were headed to the 3rd floor.
In the caves of Kraken's Cove, they split on a couple of occasions, they were very lucky that they had already cleared most of the complex, though they didn't know that at the time.
If I may adapt a quote from Turin... "Nothing ends splitting the party like Deathbugs." >:)
Rhagodessas put an end to splitting my group by the end of chapter one. "No way we want to tangle with those things solo!" The slow learners got the message by Ripclaw.
Curious: Lots of saved passengers = lots of fodder for Bar-Lguras. How are they going to handle it when Olangru starts kidnapping people? >:)
Curious: Lots of saved passengers = lots of fodder for Bar-Lguras. How are they going to handle it when Olangru starts kidnapping people? >:)
He already has! On the way to DMP, 2 npcs died and the party buried them just outside under Olangru's watchful, if invisible, eye. As soon as they emerged from the DMP, Olangru was looking for ways to strike a little fear and in the confusion, nab someone. He also grabbed the two corpses (the group don't know this) and flayed the flesh from their bones. On the first night, O pulled the pebble trick and everyone fled the darkness while he lev'd down and made off with the sleeping Skald. The next night, O made off with Thunderstrike. They now all sleep in Extended Rope Tricks, to avoid nighttime abductions.
Big O built a throne from Skald's and the other 2 crew corpses' bones and left it for them to find. O also filled Skald's pack with his internal organs and left it on the trail to find. Urol, as a naturalist, was able to ID the guts and potentially Skalds.
During the final Gargoyle fight, O is going provide some distraction to aide the attackers and to provide himself with an abduction opportunity.
I am adding a few other mobs to the trek, hoping to kill off some more before the final abductions, and to give the party some much needed xp.
Most of the tortures above were found by reading this site BTW. Thanks you guys!