Hello, fellows. I'm going to start a new game soon. Players begin at 5th level. Now, my players want to try a few odd concepts and I want to help them, but I don't know exactly how. Also, I need some help with encounter building. Can you guys help me? ^^
1) One of my players wants to run a shapeshifting unicorn, basically a unicorn that has a human form. I don't think a unicorn would fit a 5th level party, so I'm looking for alternatives. A skinwalker kind of works. Beast Shape IV would work for unicorn shape, but it's not accessible at 5th level. I think the Hunter's Animal Focus helps. I'm thinking something along the lines of a unicorn who was cursed to live in a human form, but can still tap it's potential. So basically - how much unicorn can I cram into a skinwalker, and how?
2) Another of my players wants to create weapons and armor from enemies he kills, like Monster Hunter. He wants to run a Master Craftsman Ranger, but I'm afraid that is going to be somewhat underpowered. Any suggestions on how to make this work or how to fullfil this concept in another way?
3) For my first adventure, I think I'm going with a town that gets attacked by a ragtag gang of hobgoblins. The players find out the hobgoblins lived kinda peacefully in a cave nearby, but a goblin tribe forced them out. The tribe is a barghest cult and I'm toying with the idea of giving the barghest leader a Large green dragon as a mate - meaning I get a hook to throw a half-dragon barghest at them later.
I don't want to limit myself to goblins and worgs, though. What other encounters can I use to make this a bit more colorful, without moving away from the theme too much?
Thanks in advance!
1) Maybe the PC can only be in Unicorn form while not under any duress?
2) Just be lenient about what can be used, and how it can be used.
3) Classic Monsters Revisited has more on Hobgoblins, so I'd start there.
1: I'd make it more powerful than a skinwalker and chop off a level or two. +2 con, +2 wis, +4 Cha, detect evil and Stabilize at will, Regenerate once per week (also requires a 1-minute ritual and drawing some of his/her own blood) because reasons, alternate form grants +4 Str, gore attack (1d8), and +1 natural armor. Lose 1 level. I realize that's kinda powerful, but compare to a half-dragon's +8 strength and + a whole lot more to other stuff for (back in the day) ECL +2
2: Have him roll Slayer, if you're still worried let Master Craftsman act as the necessary item crafting feats, but he's probably fine since he's basically just making magic items like the wizard, but without being a caster. Let the spell requirements slide if there's an appropriate "trophy" in his collection, maybe even a discount to the price. Have him take Hedge Mage.
3: Level 5 probably rates more than "ragtag" hobgoblins, but they could still be forced out by properly-empowered goblins. Also, as an ordered and militaristic society they tend to have a plan and the capacity for diplomacy, whether or not diplomacy is their first choice. Also, a green dragon that is banging a barghest is a little weird, dragon's a 10, barghest is a 3.
But then horrific mutant creations spawned from a mad scientist/arcanist's lab are good, clean fun. A higher-level green could be mixing his or her blood with fleshcrafting magic to create spawnlings of various sorts can fill the woods with templated creatures and "failed experiments" from the aberration group. Goblins are often the common fruit-fly for your average mad arcanogeneticist. So many mutations to play with, so little time.
Green Dragons are the most likely of evil dragons to think dynastically and concern themselves with their families. A young Green might have some evil Treants keeping an eye on it because of family ties.
Evil Fey attack adventurers because it's funny. Good Fey attack adventurers because they get confused.
These goblins and this barghest came from somewhere, where did they come from? Is there something bigger and meaner that chased them out or even sent them out with orders?
Goblins LOVE fire. Plenty of ways to have them make enemies by burning sections of the forest.
1) If you are starting at ECL 5, then I would just let the player start as a full Unicorn with Natural Lycanthropy and 1 class level. I am not sure why that doesn't fit a 5th level party. He might be a bit underpowered for a little while, but that is the price you pay for getting to be a Unicorn Lycanthrope.
One thing I was considering was using an oversized goblin from the Monster Codex as the tribe leader.
While I was at it, I considered giving them alchemist's fire - my idea is that the hobgoblins have been attacking the town for a while, they got pissed and were expecting a delivery of alchemical goods to fight the hobgoblins... but the goblin tribe ambushed them. So the goblins have alchemist fire, tanglefoot bags and the kind of stuff that makes small humanoids a pain in the ass even when you're 5th level.
I'm also considering making those hobgoblins lycanthropes to introduce a sideplot of 'who is infected here'.
I guess I could have the goblins be slaves to the hobgoblins until the barghest showed up.
true_shinken wrote: One thing I was considering was using an oversized goblin from the Monster Codex as the tribe leader.
While I was at it, I considered giving them alchemist's fire - my idea is that the hobgoblins have been attacking the town for a while, they got pissed and were expecting a delivery of alchemical goods to fight the hobgoblins... but the goblin tribe ambushed them. So the goblins have alchemist fire, tanglefoot bags and the kind of stuff that makes small humanoids a pain in the ass even when you're 5th level.
I'm also considering making those hobgoblins lycanthropes to introduce a sideplot of 'who is infected here'.
I guess I could have the goblins be slaves to the hobgoblins until the barghest showed up.
To be honest, I kind of agree with justaworm, but I've been told I err on the side of crazy munchkindom so I try to reign it in, perhaps too much. Anyways, I'm getting off-topic, the key element is what part of "unicorn" is most important to the player. It makes quite a difference if the player wants to be an evil-smiting badass uni-bro bringing the thunder with a forehead-mounted spear*, a four-legged angel of mercy and natural pure beauty, or a pretty unicorn that looks totally sweet and who cares about powers.
Moving on...goblins as former slaves works for a couple of reasons. Presumably the hobgoblins were raiding the town in preparation for a full siege-and-destroy of the local town, so they had their clan in the cave and most of their warriors in a forward base or mobile camp. Shortly before getting important military resources the little coup happened back home, so what's left is a band of hungry, kinda desperate hobgoblin soldiers doing a last-ditch effort to sack the town and get enough food/resources to either retake their home or start fresh elsewhere.
Goblins love fire.
The main question is how long is this going to be the A plot? Goblins, Greater Barghest, youngish green dragon, this whole plot can be wrapped up within a week or two. You have "defend the town", "track the hobgoblins", "track the Goblins", a few "find trouble on the way", "assault the Goblins' dungeon" and then you should be pretty much done. Goblins don't do complicated plots or plans, so they can't leave a trail of clues and byzantine plots leading across the continent, and their bosses wouldn't be rooming with goblins if they had much bigger and better plans. Even if they did, when you bust in on their lair, whatever they were doing with the Waterdeep Guild War or the Secret Infiltration of Castle Greyhawk generally ENDS at the same time the boss does. Evil is a rather hierarchical structure; little guy does what the big guy says.
I mean I suppose you could find documentation that Green Dragon's clan of Green Dragons is currently meddling with Nearby City's current faction-struggle. Maybe the PCs ruin a delicate balance-of-power by going to the King and "outing" an entire thieves' guild, thus making a name for themselves as troublemakers/players/potential pawns for the suddenly destabilized cold war between the Praetorian Rangers (City watch, but also operates pretty far afield), the Light Guard (Religious leaders, slightly corrupt and ecumenical enough to include some neutral or secretly-evil members), the Nobility (gearing up for a coup, mostly live outside the city), the Locksmen (known as a beggar's guild, kinda secret that they have a whole underground community in both senses of the word), the neighboring Fey court in the nearest large forest, and any other factions, subfactions, and assorted nonsense you want. To keep things good for the outdoorsy hunter as well as any indoorsy plot, have lots of stuff inside the city be affected by things outside the city.
Or not. Lot of possibilities to play with.
*Technically a phallic symbol. The whole unicorn thing is an onion of Freudian layers, see the unicorn-virgin mythos.
I'm planning to wrap this whole thing in a single game session, two at most.
Well hell, crafting won't even NEED rules in that case. Just tell him every corpse more exotic than goblin is worth 100xHD gold in crafting components and the ranger will be happy. An overpowered Uni-bro won't probably won't be a big deal for very long, and you'll be lucky to squeeze more than 6 fights into the whole thing.
So, I talked to the unicorn player, we figured some stuff out.
The character is a unicorn who did something nasty and was thus cursed to learn humility in human form. Through sheer willpower, she can manifest some of her previous unicorn abilities.
For starters, she is a Skinwalker. However, I'm going to mix and match to get a good enough flavor of 'unicornkin'. Ragebred works well enough as a base, I'm going with Perception/wild empathy for the skills affect and Cure Light Wounds as spell-like.
She is also a Feral Shifter Druid, since animal focus fits so well with the concept.
What else can I do to make it work better?
Detect evil at will, skill bonus to diplomacy, constain trail of rainbows.
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