I have an initial question, which led me to another.
Getting ready to head through Splinterden in the Emerald Spire and was looking at the synesthesia gas trap. It says the onset is 10 minutes. Onset means how long it will take to affect the player. Does this mean the PCs don't experience the effects of the gas until 10 minutes later? What's the point of that?
Which led me to: For those of you who have played it, how long would you say an average trip through a level of the Emerald Spire is? Because if the gas doesn't hit them for 10 minutes, then they won't feel the effects until they're almost done with the level.
The way we have been figuring (because this subject came up on the first level): a round = 6 seconds. 10 rounds = 1 minute. 60 rounds = 10 minutes. 600 rounds = an hour.
So as far as my PCs are concerned, it only takes 10-15 minutes to clear a level.
Now, thinking a little more realistically, I feel it would take longer than this. But going strictly by how time works in-game, they seem to be correct
Thoughts?
In terms of how long it takes to clear a level, I think you may be overlooking things like how long it takes to do a search of a body for example, or how long it takes to identify a magical item, and so forth. In other words, you may be hand-waving the time it takes for the PCs to do things. "We search the bodies of the goblins we just killed" they say, and you ignore the amount of time that would take, which depending on the number of goblins, could easily be 10-15 minutes in and of itself.
In terms of how long it takes to clear a level, I think you may be overlooking things like how long it takes to do a search of a body for example, or how long it takes to identify a magical item, and so forth. In other words, you may be hand-waving the time it takes for the PCs to do things. "We search the bodies of the goblins we just killed" they say, and you ignore the amount of time that would take, which depending on the number of goblins, could easily be 10-15 minutes in and of itself.
A world of this. While combat happens relatively quickly (most fights are over in a minute or less), consider the various things that PCs usually do in between fights.
- Search a half dozen bodies, work out what's valuable, identify things, and stick them in a bag of holding. That's probably another minute worth of rounds right there (all those move actions to pick up an item, then to put it away in the bag), per fight.
- Discuss plans. Do we go left, or right? Sneaking, or not? Lights, or darkness? Does the note we found on the body mean the boss is a fire elemental? Do we have enough ice spells? This takes as long as it takes at the table (several minutes, generally).
- Moving through the dungeon. Opening doors, opening locks, disarming traps, searching rooms for secret doors - this is a lot of minutes.
- Healing, particularly if you're using a Cure wand. Casting a dozen spells from a CLW wants takes 12 rounds.
@Rub-Eta: Correct on the time thing. Typing faster than I was thinking.
And actually the trap isn't, to me, as deadly as ability damage. It's a hallucinogenic gas which "creates synesthesia, crossing a victim's sensory input so she might 'see' sounds or 'taste' sights. The gas is invisible and odorless; characters in the area may not even realize that they set off the trap."
Onset: 10 mins
Frequency: 1/rd for 4 rounds
Effect: 1 Wis and target is fascinated and sickened for 1d4 rounds
Cure: 1 save
All targets in a 10-ft spread
Later in the level there is a gibbering mouther, about which the book says "to anyone under the effects of synesthesia gas, the crazy babbling of the monster produces spectacular colors and smells."
This left me wondering what the point of mentioning this was, since my PCs would have long defeated the monster before they felt these effects.
But thanks to Paladin and Reverse, I see I need to start keeping better track of time. I do indeed hand-wave most of those things. In fact, I only recently began following the "unlocking this door takes 2d4 rounds" rule.
So do you all keep track of everything like this all the time? Typically, if my players aren't in combat, it's free time and they move in whatever order they want and rounds aren't kept track of (unless there is a specific reason to, like how many rounds a summoned creature has left).
(As a side note, how does the above trap work, exactly? it says the frequency is once per round for 4 rounds, and the fascinated/sickened effects last 1d4 rounds, with the cure being 1 saving throw. So...they roll Fort saves 4 rounds in a row until they fail, and then are affected for 1d4 rounds?)
I only recently began following the "unlocking this door takes 2d4 rounds" rule.
So do you all keep track of everything like this all the time? Typically, if my players aren't in combat, it's free time and they move in whatever order they want and rounds aren't kept track of (unless there is a specific reason to, like how many rounds a summoned creature has left).
Personally, I don't keep track at all. I just announce to the players the GM conclusion on how long it's taken them to accomplish something. "You've spend 3 minutes in this room".
More frequently, I only bother to keep track of it for relevant effects. I just tell the players "OK, now your minutes-per-level buff spell has worn off. The 10 minutes per level one is still going, though."
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Abstract the time, as Reverse said.
For the poison, it is a Fort save each round, for up to 4 rounds, until they succeed at the Fort save.
Each round that they fail, they take a point of Wisdom damage, and get 1-4 rounds of being fascinated/sickerned. Once they save, they stop takign additional Wisdom damage, but still have the fascinated/sickened condition until the duration ends.
Note that 1d4 does not stack, you count off, and roll the duration for each round failed, using the new duration if it is longer than what was left from the previous round(s) effects.
Example:
Round 1: Failed save, -1 Wisdom, 1d4 (3) rounds
Round 2: Failed save another -1 Wisdom, 1d4 (1) rounds, so still 2 rounds left from the previous round's effect. If the duration rolled had been 3 or 4, that would have been the new duration left.
Round 3: Successful save, no additional Wisdom damage, still 1 round left on the sickened.
Round 4: No need to save, and the sickened effect ends after this round.
Hope that helps make it clear.