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I have a few questions about Murder on the silken Caravan.
1) in act 3 Desert raiders, there are 9 goblins and 3 hobgoblins. How is a party of 4 1st level PCs supposed to reasonably handle those numbers? Should I have the drovers and the merchants pitch in with the battle? Will the difference between a Pathfinder 1st level character and a 3.5 1st level character help to make the difference?
2) In act 4 there are two harpies, one wounded and can’t sing, but two harpies. It would be very easy for these monsters to make snack food out of my party if I’m not careful. Any suggestions?
Also since this is a 3.5 scenario, and I have 4 Pathfinder characters ( 1st level) running the scenario, do I use the 3.5 MM harpies or the Pathfinder Bestiary Harpies?
In Act 5 the text mentions that Gaspur Du Merr has a gang of 27 hobgoblins. However for the encounter the text lists Gaspur du Mer, 4th level fighter, and 5 hobgoblin brigands.
What is the party facing Gaspur and 5 hobgoblin brigands and the 27 hobgoblins, or just the fighter and hobgoblins?
Is the summoned Dijin supposed to take care of the majority of the Gang?
And finally as a GM, for PFS, do I have some freedom in moderating an encounter, to make sure the party is facing a challenging encounter, and not an encounter they have little or no chance of surviving?
Thanks for your thoughts.
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I have a few questions about Murder on the silken Caravan.
** spoiler omitted **
Thanks for your thoughts.
When I ran it I think the PCs had just turned 2nd level.
For the goblins, I thought it said something in there about some of the goblins attacking the camels and being somewhat unorganized (hogoblins yelling at them, directing them) so 9 goblins vs 4 PCs shouldn't be too bad unless they are 3 wizards and a sorcerer. :)
For the harpies, as with all the monsters in this you should be using the 3.5 stats. This generally gives the PCs a small advantage, however this can be a deadly encounter. There is some tactics listed that you should stick with.
For the final encounter, I really didn't like this part. So basically there are all these hobgoblins and you are supposed to summon a djinni who will effectively fight and kill them all. Great, if that's the case, leave it out entirely. I know it's supposed to be cinematic, but the PCs don't care they are busying fighting a 4th level fighter! Also because there is no map provided for the encounter I had to create one based on the text there which has the PCs coming around a tight, blind corner into a huge open area for the rest of that silly combat to take place.
It's too bad, because I like the idea of this module quite a bit but mechanically it didn't work for me that well. Hopefully others have other/different ideas to share too.
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My thoughts from the original scenario thread:
The goblins are attempting to steal the camels and the trade goods that are loaded on them. They will only fight anyone who tries to stop them. If you are worried about the goblins overwhelming your PCs, try having them waste a few actions trying to intimidate the PCs (as the skill) or spread them out more to draw away melee types so the other goblins can dash in and grab a camel. Once a goblin had a camel, they make their escape and leave the battlemat. I used these tactics in one of the games I ran when the dice turned against the players, and it ended up they lost some camels but lived to tell. I did insist that the PCs had to buy camels of their own in the city if they wanted to join the caravan. Each camel they lost came out of their own pocket, but success in the last encounter meant they got everything back. And I did make a note which camel was transporting the body of Targos Min-Katheer... Losing the body would be bad.
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I've run this a few times (all at subtier 1-2) and it can be a deadly mod if you don't "assist" the players (IMO). While it is recommended to use the MM versions of monsters, I prefer to use the Bestiary (an argument for another thread). But if you're fearful of a TPK, the MM version (harpy) is weaker, and might be more easily handled by a party of 1st level PC's.
The sandstorm, makes the encounter with the goblinoids a bit more challenging, but that is mostly just to provide them some concealment until they are ready to spring the ambush. Unless your players are largely ranged, it shouldn't have a huge negative impact on the battle.
The drovers force the camels to lie down at the outset. Placing them between the PC's and the hobgoblins would provide cover against the ranged attacks and perhaps difficult terrain against the advancing goblins.
Also, you can split the goblin attacks between the drovers and the PC's. In fact, the text talks about the drovers "holding their own," loosing one drover and a camel. After round two, there is probably a few dead goblins and the ambushers start to break and flee.
This really isn't a "kill 'em all" encounter, more of a "drive 'em off" battle. The goblinoids thought to overwhelm the caravan, but when the PC's fought back, the cowards decided to seek victims elsewhere.
Act 4
Hearing the "forlorn song on the breeze" should alert the PC's to be cautious. If they have a bard with countersong, this encounter is significantly nerfed. If not, I give them a circumstance bonus if they do something to plug their ears to muffle the harpy's song.
I keep the harpies hiding until the PC's approach the cave. That is when one starts to sing. If the entire party fails their save, this could be a TPK. However (assuming that at least one PC saves), the harpy goes after Atmar (fails his save) and tries to carry him off to their cave in the mouth. Unless the part can stop this, they will have to climb up to get him back.
There really isn't any reason for the harpies to come back out and engage the PC's but otherwise, they have to climb. Fighting, while climbing, is a huge risk because failing damage can easily kill a 1st level PC. It's better to just defy logic and have them fly out and engage the PC's. With ranged attacks, this encounter is not hugely dangerous. However, if it can only be engaged in melee, the harpy's multiple attacks can be rough.
Act 5
As the PC's approach the end of the mountain pass, they should hear shouts and the sounds of combat ahead. This should spurr them forward and start the last encounter.
You want to position the group that will attack the PC's near the pass and seperate them from the rest of the hobgoblins with the caravan/camels. As soon the PC's emerge from the pass, have the djinn summoning occur so that it occupies the largest group of hob's so the PC's can focus on Gaspar and the remaining hob's. As the battle progresses, describe the cinematics of the battle such that as the PC's are defeating enemies, the djinn is keeping pace. Both battles should end at about the same time.
Battlefield control can be a great assist in this encounter. Use of Color Spray or Sleep can turn the tide quickly. Alternately, if they focus on taking down Gaspar, the rest of the brigands would break and run. Again, he can be very deadly, expecially for a 1st level party, because of his 1d10+4 damage. A critical hit is likely a death blow. Not to mention his AC19 will be a challenge for the PC's to hit him straight up.
All-in-all not a bad mod, IMHO, but it has a lot of potential for TPK. My recommendation would be to wait and run this for the party when they are level 2. Otherwise, you need to be aware of the risks, and use a combination of nerfing the encounter tactics and breaking off attacks if the PC's (or their companions) have a successful round. This will allow some "breathing room" for the players and they can regroup or do some quick healing.
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Thank you all for your helpful suggestions.
I think the game went well. I had four players at the table, one played a cleric, and another a cavalier, another a rogue, and the fourth player played a 3rd level ranger. It worked out pretty well. The harpies chewed on the ranger a bit. being third level, i thought he could stand up to some chewing. the fight with Gaspar du Mar lasted 8 interminable rounds. bad dice. On the whole the party did quite well.
Thank you
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A few belated responses:
In the final act, yes, the djinn tears into the main group of hobgoblins and the PCs only have to fight Gaspar and his immediate group (5 brigands). Considering what is going on behind them, the hobgoblins will certainly flee if Gaspar is out of the picture.
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I have a few questions about Murder on the silken Caravan.
** spoiler omitted **
Thanks for your thoughts.
I like this module a lot myself.