|
So, I just finished running my first session and already very nearly had a death to the very first trap in the book! I figured I'd kick off the obituary thread in preparation. I know most people haven't even started it yet, but you never know how they'll go.
Name:
Race:
Classes/levels:
Adventure:
Location:
Catalyst:
The Gory Details: (optional)
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Name: Sadie Kane
Race: Aasimar
Classes/levels: Cleric 1
Adventure: Mummy's Mask
Location:
Catalyst: climbing in armor with no climb ranks
Thats so sad Sadie Kane :(
|
Names : Tanis and kazim
Races:elf and human
Class/level: ranger/1, cleric 1 respectively
Location:
The gory details
| 3 people marked this as a favorite. |
Oh well, at least think of all the money you saved on the rest of the AP.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
No doubt it depends on just how much was invested/how far along. A TPK at the front door of the first dungeon might just call for a 'Whoops, that was just a nasty dream you had due to bad stew'. Since I doubt there would be a big redo of PCs in that case. Late AP ones are more likely to end things since making high level PCs is a chore and getting them all to the spot where the last group was can also be a slog.
No doubt it depends on just how much was invested/how far along. A TPK at the front door of the first dungeon might just call for a 'Whoops, that was just a nasty dream you had due to bad stew'. Since I doubt there would be a big redo of PCs in that case. Late AP ones are more likely to end things since making high level PCs is a chore and getting them all to the spot where the last group was can also be a slog.
Kinda like Save Points in Video Games? I would say it depends on what caused the TPK.
|
Name: Torphrex Gravedrake
Race: Kobold
Class/Level: Druid 1
Adventure: Empty Graves
Location: The Necropolis Gates
What Happened: Dying Alone
Why: The formerly tribeless jungle kobold and his lion never liked the group dynamic in his tribe. When everyone got attacked by vermin, he kept summoning monkeys, holding nothing back for healing. Ignoring their chief's demands to wait until morning and head back into Wati proper for more supplies, he got on his lion and rode off, forgetting to tell anyone that he was trying to get supplies right away.
Everyone assumed that he abandoned his tribe, and that he would die alone.
When he got to the closed gates, he summoned an eagle to pick him up and carry him over the gates before it vanished. Having forgotten the rule that nobody was to pass the gates during the night, he was shot by an arrow (critical!) and was dead before he hit the ground.
A Pharasmin apologetically told the tribe that they had accidentally shot one of their own (it was taken in stride), and offered the sole surviving member of another group to join up with them: a young human Iomedan who was happily proclaimed an honorary tribemate. Alan Gravedrake is now the only one with a Strength of more than 10!
|
|
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
TPK, save one.
Names: Draniss Gravedrake; Kirrik Gravedrake; Alan Gravedrake the Honorary.
Races: Kobold; kobold; human.
Classes/Levels: Swashbuckler 1; Pharasmin Inquisitor 1; Fighter 1.
Adventure: Empty Graves.
What Happened: A deadly lack of caution.
She saw the sarcophagus itself hop up off of a pressure plate and slam its lid down on Alan's head, and was only able to cast a single spell before the doors shut her out and them in. She heard pleading, thumping, screaming, and flowing water, then a scraping sound, then silence.
When the doors opened again, everyone was dead. Kirrik and Alan had drowned, while Draniss had avoided that fate by bleeding out before he could have drowned.
Beside herself with despair, she was still able to take as much from them as she could carry, and barely made it out of the necropolis with her life. (She waited until daytime, and when the GM demanded to roll a random encounter, she was able to get enough Perception and Stealth to avoid it completely)
We want to move forward with Mummy's Mask, and hopefully it'll have more group cohesion, but everyone's new characters will also come with more evil. Yes, more evil than the all-kobold group.
|
|
Name: Fitzer
Race: Kitsune
Class/Level: Ninja 3
Adventure: Mummy's Mask Book 1
Location: Sanctum of the Erudite Eye
Catalyst: Wall Scythe Blade Trap
So everything's been pretty difficult thus far, and the group is enjoying it. I did the thieves in the street before they got there and it was a near TPK (too many arrow crits). Still quite fun but delayed exploring the temple by a day.
Next day they get there and explore. Everything's going pretty smooth and awesome, minimal damage all around. They don't manage to find the trap and the kitsune ninja goes first. I use a dice roller on roll 20, so couldnt fudge it. It came up natural 20. Confirmation was 17+20 for 37. Damage was 8d4+24 as it's a x4 trap. Even if I minned it would've dropped him and been near death. As it stood it was 47 points of damage, bringing him from full to dead.
Given the options, he made a new character and I let the others level up to 4 so everyone was doing something. I was going to do it before facing the bottom level anyway.
|
Name: Ta-Opet Nefemhetki
Race: Peri-blooded aasimar
Class/Level: Archivist bard 2
Adventure: The Half-Dead City
Location: The Pentheru Manor
Catalyst: A perfect storm of flying heads and cold dice
While exploring the manor, we figured out that the obnoxious whispering voice was a doru div and put together the whole series of traps and schemes the monster had set up. Being second level and with nothing to defeat invisibility but bags of sand, we decided to try goading the div into attacking us by insulting it, which we did non-stop for an hour while continuing our explorations. I will admit I was one of the primary sources of these insults. We met with some success, getting the dive to appear briefly and putting in a few lucky shots before it ran off again. Confident in our abilities, we headed upstairs.
Fast-forward to the source of my demise. The doru div, in keeping with his floating head schtick, sicced a vargouille on us. Bad fortune left half the group paralyzed, and the vargouille exposed my to sloppy make-outs before falling to our gunslinger's barrage of bullets. Still paralyzed, I could only watch helplessly as yet another vargouille appeared, and its screech affected me as well. As did its own sloppy make-outs. With our paladin free from his own paralysis, this vargouille went down soon after, but the group was unable to stop the div itself from ripping out my throat with a coup de grace.
The psychopomp I met outside the river of souls told me that both vargouille kisses were effective, and I would have required magic to fix those, but most assuredly would have had time to do so, had the div not murdered me first. I fear that div still lives and may return to vex us in the future...
I had two in my last session, one was legit the other was because she plaid a stubborn character. Anyway
Name: Caster
Race: Android
Classes/levels: Wizard (spellslinger) 1/Sorcerer 1
Adventure: House of Pentheru
Location: Boss fight
Catalyst: Wis of 3
The Gory Details:
Name: I honestly don't know... she never said her character name often
Race: Aasamar
Classes/levels: cleric of sarenrae 2
Adventure: Post House of Pentheru
Location: Wati streets
Catalyst: stubbornness
The Gory Details:
I use a dice roller on roll 20, so couldnt fudge it. It came up natural 20.
Never stopped me. And my players don't care. Because it can get most frustrating for a player to roll two attacks using roll20 and have two 1s in a row appear. To which I will say I'm sorry, I didn't see those rolls. Could you roll please?"
If I refuse to acknowledge a roll, then so be it. It doesn't matter if it's electronically, done with dice and reported to me (over Skype), or rolled before me. And my players accept that because they know ultimately I don't want the game bogged down with turn after turn of players getting frustrated because every single attack misses their target.
Though I did upgrade their encounters as well, so that might have something to do with it. ;)
|
|
Name: Ona
Race: Kitsune
Class/Levels: Necromancer 1
Adventure: Half-Dead City
Location: The Necropolis/ Wati at large
Catalyst: Betrayal
The Gory Details:
The skeleton fighter is chased out of town by phasmarans and is given sanctuary by a pack of ghouls, who want to meet the " all powerful lich" he is friends with. Long story short, the ghouls are convinced and are given permission to eat the human monk in exchange for servitude. Combat starts and... The Necromancer runs away. CE Drow Slayer beats her back to the inn and coats everything in poison. Torturous murder ensues.
|
Name: Tim
Race: Lynx
Class/Levels: Animal Companion 2HD
Location: The Canny Jackal
Catalyst: Disease
The Gory Details:
Mummy comes from the back room, thumps the animal companion, dropping it to -1hp. Tim fails fort save for mummy rot. 10 rounds later, fails save against mummy rot effects. I rolled 6's on both CON and CHA. CHA drops to 0, rendering it catatonic. CON drops to 7. HP Loss from CON damage: 6. New HP Total: -7. Dead Kitty.
Name: Ona
Race: Kitsune
Class/Levels: Necromancer 1
Adventure: Half-Dead City
Location: The Necropolis/ Wati at large
Catalyst: Betrayal
The Gory Details:
The skeleton fighter is chased out of town by phasmarans and is given sanctuary by a pack of ghouls, who want to meet the " all powerful lich" he is friends with. Long story short, the ghouls are convinced and are given permission to eat the human monk in exchange for servitude. Combat starts and... The Necromancer runs away. CE Drow Slayer beats her back to the inn and coats everything in poison. Torturous murder ensues.
So this was an evil party which self-destructed before reaching L 2?
Are you and the players going to try again, this time with a more compatible/socially acceptable party?
Name: Tialani of the Sands
Race: Human
Class/Levels: Druid 5
Adventure: Empty Graves
Location: The Necropolis
Catalyst: Split Party, plus...
The Gory Details:
Name: Kanika Panya
Race: Human
Class/Level: Cleric of Sekhmet 1
Adventure: Half Dead City?
Location: The Necropolis
Catlyst: Fumbles and ineffective tactics!
Insects coup-de-gracing is kinda harsh :P
Shouldnt they bring a fallen victim to his burrow lair to feed instead of slicing his throat?
Yeah, we do need some Benny Hill music! lol
lol Nope, just a hungry camel spider ;)
|
Name: Raman of the Sand Clan
Race: Dwarf (Pahmet)
Class/Level: Fighter 6
Adventure: Empty Graves
Location: Sepelchur of the Servant (Lower Level)
Catalyst: Failed Will Save vs. Crypt Thing
This was not entirely Raman's fault - but he died just the same.
All the heroes resisted the Crypt Thing's attempt to split the party, save for Raman of the Sand Clan.
As the battle against the Crypt Thing and Naghut raged, Raman found himself teleported randomly southward into what rapidly became a solo combat with the Graven Guardian of Anubis. The Guardian struck swiftly and without mercy. While Raman fought bravely, he soon discovered that he was over-matched and attempted to flee the area; Raman could have attempted to use the withdraw action but did not. Mistake. Instead, Raman trusted to his heavy armor and shield and ran for the door. The Guardian was lucky and the AoO as Raman tried to run was enough to finish him from behind. Raman died in a pool of blood before the northern doors, his companions just beyond, having defeated the Crypt Thing and now in a battle for their lives against Naghut - a Barbarian Ghoul that ought not to be able to gain morale effects from rage -- but apparently, nevertheless can.
Raman's next of kin have been notified. The player has opted not to have Raman raised to join the living. Accordingly, this was a true death.
|
|
Name: Drew
Race: Human
Class/Level: Investigator 5
Adventure: Empty Graves
Location: Vizier's Hill
Catalyst: 85 on the 1d140 chart
Deathweb! After crit Awesome Blowing his buddy, the Deathweb proceeds to hit on an AoO, and on the next round cleaves into him. Drops him to -13 with 12 CON, killing him. His soul briefly visited his former animal companion Ted(from back when he was a ranger) in the line at the Boneyard, before the dwarf (too cheap to pay for / ask the Pharasmins for a res) found a witch in town to reincarnate him. Drew welcomed the group back as a shiny new Kobold (who is apparently in a 15 y/o body, at 2'9" height, and female).
|
|
Name: Kasiem
Race: Suli
Class/Level: Spellscarred Oracle 9
Adventure: Mummy's Mask Book 3
Location: Chisisek's Tomb
Catalyst: Jamirah (though the was only the end)
So this was just bad all over. All the care and tactics they were previously displaying tossed right out the window. Didn't help that my druid player couldn't join us due to his internet crapping out.
So PCs enter the valley with the tomb in broad daylight. No scouting, no attempts to hide, no nothing. They fight the giants (I placed two since I have 6 pcs) and cultist. Seps gets lucky and I have him start coming out first turn. Fight goes okay, but they do get messed up enough to have to heal. This is where things go bad.
While four party members are down on the ground healing, the two with climb speeds (catfolk ninja and vanara inquisitor) had already climbed way up and were exploring Jamirah's camp. I had her exploring the tomb since I didn't want to risk TPKing the party right away during the previous battle and did not expect this turn of events.
So Jamirah makes her perception roll and hears the two. At this point I have her jump them. And things just go to heck and back. Ninja almost dies (single digits). Inquisitor bull rushed off the cliff to a 160' drop to teens HP.
The other four, thinking to take cover from Jamirah, rushed into the temple they haven't explore yet. The one with the two lamias and the cultist. Plus the 6 in the hole above who also make a perception check to hear the fighting below.
They engage the lamias, I manage to use Deep Slumber on the Suli Fighter and had the other lamia coup de grace her. She almost failed that, it was real close.
At this point five of my six are in the temple and they are just having a hell of a time with everything in there while Jamirah, under vanish and haste, comes up behind. Ifrit Sorcerer gets snuck attcked by her and drops. She should've died but I forgot about her bleeding attack, which is good because it probably would've been a TPK otherwise.
Next Jarmiah manages to get up to the Oracle, who uses Invisibility Purge finally. But Jamirah gets a full attack anyway and hits all four, 1 a crit. Dead Oracle.
So fight continues, only the Oread druid isn't in single digits. They finally managed to get through all three casting's of Jamirah's mirror images, drop the lamias and all but one cultist. They tried to phantasmal killer her but she made the fort save. Finally a Glitterdust blinded her and the Suli Fighter charged and took her down.
A lot of other stuff happened (it ended up being a very long and tense fight). But those are some highlights. The Oread Druid who couldn't make it is already calling for a reset since he wasn't there. Sometimes I love this game!
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
Name: Kasiem
Race: Suli
Class/Level: Spellscarred Oracle 9
Adventure: Mummy's Mask Book 3
Location: Chisisek's Tomb
Catalyst: Jamirah (though the was only the end)** spoiler omitted **...
As said Oread Druid, I have a few comments...
I think the biggest issue was having one player run 3 PCs (until the aforementioned deceased Oracle showed up). The second biggest issue was because there were 2 players missing (who happen to be the most tactically sound players), the rest of the clowns decided it would be a great idea to go all Scooby Doo on the tomb.
So it was lousy internet that almost got us killed. I'm still fairly bitter about it. My Druid may have to show the clowns the power of the Behemoth Hippo Druid.
one player run 3 PCs
That always goes well. :D
Yeah I agree with the players, that should probably have been a cancelled session due to lack of people, and they definitely should get a mulligan on that entire encounter.
... the rest of the clowns decided it would be a great idea to go all Scooby Doo on the tomb.
This makes me laugh and laugh and laugh some more for some reason. ^_^
|
|
We had 3 people die, sort of.
Spoilers!
At the end of part 1, book 2, in the battle versus the vanth psychopomp, the rogue4, cleric3/bard 1, and bar2/ftr2 all died. The first 2 to searing light, the last to just sheer damage. The barbarian was knocked unconscious repeatedly. The party also had a monk4 that got beat around, and a wiz3/ cl1 that took no damage.
Sebti hit them with breath of life in time to save them, but it was a scary fun battle!
|
|
Posting two more today.
Name: Otel
Race: Oread
Class/Level: Druid 10
Adventure: Mummy's Mask Book 4
Location: Parched Sands
Catalyst: Stupid Dice and DM Oversight
I say my oversight because I'll be honest, I hardly even looked at the creatures, didn't really consider their abilities, didn't think that some of the buffs that are normally up weren't. Plus the player wasn't there. All attacks hit, two of them crits. Damage was just over enough to kill him.
We've since agreed kind of my fault on this one and I made up the gold spent on the ressurection. Of course I still shouldn't be held responsible for two crits.
___________________________________________________________________
Name: Felix
Race: Catfolk
Class/Level: Ninja 11
Adventure: Mummy's Mask Book 4
Location: Sightless Sphinx
Catalyst: Heqet
I do have to say though, it's always fun when the PCs say "She did how much damage?". Even when I feel bad about it.
|
|
Name: Torc
Race: human
Class: monk 6
Adventure: empty graves
Location: Q2
Catalyst: meret's summon
The monk was already beat up from zombies and a magus shocking grasp, and got critter by the stinger from Merets eidolon. Instant death.
NAME: Eliza Strokoshka
RACE: Human
CLASS: Bard 4
Adventure: Empty Graves
LOCATION: kidnappers hideout
CATALYST: Lack of big hitters
|
|
Name: Drew
Race: Human
Class/Level: Investigator 5
Adventure: Empty Graves
Location: Vizier's Hill
Catalyst: 85 on the 1d140 chartDeathweb! After crit Awesome Blowing his buddy, the Deathweb proceeds to hit on an AoO, and on the next round cleaves into him. Drops him to -13 with 12 CON, killing him. His soul briefly visited his former animal companion Ted(from back when he was a ranger) in the line at the Boneyard, before the dwarf (too cheap to pay for / ask the Pharasmins for a res) found a witch in town to reincarnate him. Drew welcomed the group back as a shiny new Kobold (who is apparently in a 15 y/o body, at 2'9" height, and female).
Name: Drew (again)
Race: KoboldClass/Level: Investigator 8
Location: Tephu streets
Catalyst: Forgotten Pharaoh Cult's Goodbye Party
The party was preparing to leave Tephu, and the local FP cell went full on ambush in the streets. The crowd fled in terror as seven masked cultists attacked with their charmed Hiecerosphinx. Khabekh-Shu's Cones of Cold and Lightning Bolts made hearty work of the whole party, but 2 failed reflex saves in a row was enough to drop Drew to -15 (his 10 kobold CON). The party took his body back across the river to Wati and had the same witch brew him in her cauldron again, spitting him out as a male lizardfolk (huge stat bump from kobold to lizardfolk btw).
Is it bad of me that i want poor poor Drew to keep dying to see what he's reincarnated into next:-p
|
|
Yay,another one today, followed by two more close calls.
Name: Isher
Race: Ifrit
Class/Level: Sorcerer 15
Adventure: Mummy's Mask Book 6
Location: Water Crypt
Catalyst: Bad luck
So while exploring the water temple they come across the statue of Nialah. They set things up pretty well, go to stone shape the crown off her head. She goes first and wails. Sadly our ifrit sorceress didn't have enough hit points to survive the failed save.
_______________________
And the two near close calls after, both by the same monster
They come upon the water temples general, the Ghassawa Div. The ninja is for whatever reason leading the movement into the room. One of our bruisers is out in the hall (he's in huge elemental form at this point and doesn't want to give it up). I had given the Div a quick runner shirt since I have 5 PCs and wanted to scare them a bit first round. Things got out of hand.
Div goes and drops the ninja in one round, then poisons the fighter and does 6 points of strength damage. They continue and due to strange tactics I really don't understand end up with the Div in the middle of them 2nd round. Third round the Div full attacks the fighter and almost drops her. Fortunately the oracle used a ranged heal on her to keep her alive (while hiding in a forcecage at this point) as the Div's full attack next round would've dropped her with enough attacks to also finish off the unconsious ninja. In the end they managed to drop him but it was close for a moment.
___
After in the room with the two brother crocodile statues I managed to get three party members baleful polymorphed, two failing the will save following. Good time!
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Name: Shai Mao
Race: Catfolk
Classes/levels: Rogue 3
Adventure: ?
Location: Temple of Nethys, Basement
Catalyst: Graven Guardian
The Gory Details: (optional)
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Name: Anubarak
Race: Human
Class: Warpriest of Pharasama
Adventure: Half Dead City
Location: Temple of Nethys
Catalyst: Getting his head blown off by Velriana Hypaxes's Scorching Ray
------
Name: Indyana (I know)
Race: Catfolk
Class: Investigator
Adventure: Empty Graves
Location: The Canny Jackal
Catalyst: A mummy charged her and even though she crawled away the Mummy Rot devastated her Con thus turning her to dust.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
TPK
Name: Gaius
Race: Aasimer
Classes/levels: Archer-Paladin/3rd level
Name: Samuel
Race: Human
Classes/levels: Paladin/3rd (sword & board)
Name: Travion
Race: Human
Classes/levels: Dungeon-Delver Rogue/3rd
Adventure: The Half Dead City
Location: Wati & the Necropolis
Catalyst: Imannish the Doru Div (and PC's not parting with loot to save their dead friend and themselves.)
The Gory Details: At the ruins of Pentheru's estate, Imannish went invisible to evaluate the PC's. The PC's dispatched the Vargouilles and Imannish decided to exact vengeance on them for destroying his deadly-house-of-flying-head-death. While the PC's slept at one of the PC's homes, Imannish awoke Travion using telepathy, then cast charm person from the other side of the wall. Rogue made his S/T, so all he heard was a very faint chanting from outside. Instead of waking anyone, he stayed up for an hour, and went back to sleep. Gaius was awoken, failed his S/T, and failed suggestion as well. He moved to kill Samuel, opposing roll Gaius Stealth vs. Gaius Perception to wake up. Sam awoke before the Coup de Grace. Throughout the fight, Imannish's cackling laughter could be heard in Gaius' mind... In the resulting fight they failed over and over to stop him using grapple, trip and non-lethal, they went lethal and Gaius was brought to -13.
They had the loot for the potential of >9,000gp from the first tomb, and >7,000gp from the second (they missed some stuff at Pentheru's estate) Instead of making the effort to raise Gaius, they paid for gentle repose and to head for the Erudite Eye with just the two of them (and both of them were *still* afflicted with reduced STR, WIS and DEX from previous encounters with poison & disease they could have restoration the Rogue was rocking a 6 STR.)
Imannish, still marking their progress invisibly, flew on ahead and cast minor image of a wounded small child limping into the ruins of a building (where Imannish knew a choker resided.) They followed, and despite using detect evil and knowing something not right was going on, they ended up one, then another, failing their DC10 CON check and suffocating... hearing the cackling laughter of Imannish in their heads as they blacked out.
I explained Imannish to them and they realized how many times they COULD have figured it out had they played smarter. We retconned and started back at the nights sleep as tried again without the Doru Div being a factor.