tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-78892156280079601172024-03-05T09:00:44.359-08:00Storytelling in All its FormsDedicated to roleplaying games including D&D, Call of Cthulhu and more.Roman J. Martelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09545497713474664555noreply@blogger.comBlogger234125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7889215628007960117.post-856279740700684562024-01-07T06:00:00.000-08:002024-01-07T06:00:00.134-08:00Voyage to the Isle of Dread<p> <b>Introduction</b></p><p>Let's get this out of the way right at the start. You don't need to include a voyage if you run <i><a href="https://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2023/11/what-is-isle-of-dread.html">Isle of Dread</a></i>. I know that sounds odd since this adventure takes place on an island. But it is very possible to start the adventure with the ship coming into sight of the island, or the players waking up after being ship wrecked on the mysterious island.</p><p>But if you decide to include a voyage portion, here is some advice on how to run that.</p><p><b>The Voyage</b></p><p>First you need a crew and a ship. If you are playing 5th Edition you have a few resources to help you with this. The <b>Player's Handbook</b> provides the costs for passage on a ship (1sp per mile) and the cost and speed of a few types of vessels. Both of these appear in the <i>Equipment</i> chapter. And, um, yeah that's about all there is. I was hoping the <b>Dungeon Masters Guide</b> would have a few specifics for sea travel, but it is very focused on overland and dungeon exploration. There is a solid weather table you could use for travel, but that is about it.</p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMWsdOJe9jm4KCFGyOU_ri2BLOo57JMMWsXYGm_ft0XwEZc7zetTgcEO196Ai6STYG-7Fn-fcH4QoRnAkmX2ckkPMb2qMKsRSAGdwKiSPZ6WV38XD8jlv8khxtUXtLJGb1vnFndf3ynz8wrM45pAoVhHSZQHk30GpWx17HUotnCBmCJ6aA9HkI2sAzsYvk/s938/saltymarsh.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="519" data-original-width="938" height="177" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMWsdOJe9jm4KCFGyOU_ri2BLOo57JMMWsXYGm_ft0XwEZc7zetTgcEO196Ai6STYG-7Fn-fcH4QoRnAkmX2ckkPMb2qMKsRSAGdwKiSPZ6WV38XD8jlv8khxtUXtLJGb1vnFndf3ynz8wrM45pAoVhHSZQHk30GpWx17HUotnCBmCJ6aA9HkI2sAzsYvk/s320/saltymarsh.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm sure this is fine... right?</td></tr></tbody></table><br />The 5th edition resource you may want to pick up is <b>Ghosts of Saltmarsh</b> which has an appendix all about ships and crew. It gives you plenty of material to work with, but some folks found the ship combat rules, and crew roles to be underwhelming. I think it depends on how much time you are going to spend on the ship and how involved you want to get with ship to ship combat. </p><p>I found it all very helpful, and even though I referenced other sources like the old <b>Rules Cyclopedia</b> which has pretty detailed ship combat mechanics, and some of the material from <b>The Mintrothad Guilds</b> gazetteer to inspire some crew concepts, those were not necessary.</p><p><b>Ghost of Saltmarsh </b>includes some solid sea travel/exploration rules, and I found those pretty inspiring to add hazards during the voyage. I think if you are going to spend a good chunk of your time at sea, then picking up this book for the appendix (and a few really well written adventures) is worth the money. </p><p>When building out the crew, I would make most of them friendly and helpful. Maybe have one see a player character as friendly rival. Take some time to flesh out a few of these crew members, giving them a reason for taking to the seas, and seeking adventure. Make the crew likable and engaging, so when things start to go wrong on the Isle of Dread, you have a way to increase the stakes. It makes for a great tool to put some of the crew (or the whole ship) in danger. For a 5th edition game, this can be very important, since it may become harder and harder to actually cause tension for the players.</p><p>I would also decide on the danger level of the Sea of Dread. I mean, it has that name for a reason, so you may want to add some perilous natural features, weather or pirates. The trick is to not go too crazy with the bizarre and the terrifying. You want to save that kind of thing for the main event: The Isle of Dread. But you may want to make the voyage have some interesting and memorable moments.</p><p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGGiOoOY1zDy0oCkopZi0wPK13qbV6puu0egFYFBfsB1vVVOk_Itgribjfml0N0tt6qLP7UoyscNCf9LL5XG-SlegIvqrR-6rE8wX6930aXn343Kk8P25UDipvRafy1fYkP5HT18kM7K-vt-jSG2QAT8qfvEikpOn0Wl7ltjrQ7sB8Eu_UX3FHua8N18wf/s1023/D&Dpiratecrew.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="685" data-original-width="1023" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGGiOoOY1zDy0oCkopZi0wPK13qbV6puu0egFYFBfsB1vVVOk_Itgribjfml0N0tt6qLP7UoyscNCf9LL5XG-SlegIvqrR-6rE8wX6930aXn343Kk8P25UDipvRafy1fYkP5HT18kM7K-vt-jSG2QAT8qfvEikpOn0Wl7ltjrQ7sB8Eu_UX3FHua8N18wf/s320/D&Dpiratecrew.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ragtag? Sure. But lovable just the same.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />From a storytelling perspective, talk up the danger of the Sea of Dread. Perhaps most voyagers stick close to the coast and known islands. But the Sea of Dread is uncharted and filled with danger. Only the crazy or the fearless go there. Maybe the voyage starts off simple enough with some trips to local known islands. But that last stop, have the crew get nervous. Have the quartermaster triple check the supplies, because they are sailing into unknown waters. If you gave your group a nautical chart, have the navigator obsess over it, wanting to make sure they understand the distances at play. </p><p>Then the ship leaves the known and heads into the unknown. This is a key moment in your adventure, and there should be a moment where the players and the crew let those emotions play out. Then the next encounter should reinforce that feeling of danger and oddity. Maybe a freak storm with magical properties erupts. Maybe some merfolk hail the vessel from a coral reef, and provide a hint about The Isle of Dread, or some bizarre sea creature attacks or tries to interact with the vessel. </p><p>If you are going to include the voyage, make it memorable, but don't let it take up too much space in the adventure. The Isle of Dread is the star, the voyage is the warm up act. Pick your encounters to contrast with the world left behind, and preview the world they are entering. Then have them catch sight of the isle, and once again the crew can react. They did it! They survived the crossing of uncharted waters. And now riches and fame lie ahead - as long as they can make it back alive.</p><p><b>My Experience</b></p><p>The good thing about really turning the voyage to the Isle of Dread into an event in itself was that I really got to play up the mystery and danger of the island. When the players got a ship and crew they started the voyage into the very civilized Guild Islands (borrowed directly from Mystara).</p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSvzo4UinXi3KTnAH4Aox9VHx89ZjkxdDrFZGaWRINNiEuIVWYyqeVI0cY89dPZntCujPxG9wS6QMrtXb7vLlqfHvQG6Ii_IZBMAKlMg2wW03UX0FRoC-DAj2pOCLLPV1AyUFa5STU9UKhKpmLfX15P7KAUBRgPyQQFN1oAPxNmU-9zBiVST68VSvkdjAG/s371/ierendi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="371" data-original-width="290" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSvzo4UinXi3KTnAH4Aox9VHx89ZjkxdDrFZGaWRINNiEuIVWYyqeVI0cY89dPZntCujPxG9wS6QMrtXb7vLlqfHvQG6Ii_IZBMAKlMg2wW03UX0FRoC-DAj2pOCLLPV1AyUFa5STU9UKhKpmLfX15P7KAUBRgPyQQFN1oAPxNmU-9zBiVST68VSvkdjAG/s320/ierendi.jpg" width="250" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">More gazetteer action.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />As the players continued south, the island civilizations became less advanced. I borrowed concepts from the Mystara gazetteer about the island <i>Kingdom of Ierendi</i> for this portion, and it was pretty neat. But let me clear - it was also a ton of extra work, reading these gazetteers, pulling them apart for pieces, and building adventures on them. It was fun. But it was also building up my DM Overload meter. Something I didn't realize I had. Burnout was coming right for me. </p><p>Finally I added a magical barrier between the known sea and the mysterious islands to the south. I had been building up the dangers of the barrier for a good chunk of the game. And now I unleashed it on the players. It turned into a mini-game of insanity - literally warping the characters minds and causing them to do foolish and dangerous acts. My players were pretty resilient (this is 5th edition after all) but the crew of the ship wasn't. And putting them in danger made my players leap into heroics. </p><p>That was the other side effect of building out the voyage. My players made friends (and in one case a lover) among the crew and officers of the ship. They really liked some of these NPCs, and to this day you can mention one of these character names, and the players will get nostalgic and happy with memories. It worked great for the barrier, because the crew was having a tough time with it, and the heroic players were doing everything they could to keep the crew from hurting themselves or others. Great stuff, and another moment that one player called his favorite event from the campaign.</p><p>After passing the barrier the sea encounters became more dangerous, the islands more wild and magical. There was more evidence of the works of ancient civilizations and gods. The players really felt like they had passed into a wild frontier of unexplored lands. And once again, I built all kinds of stuff here because I was afraid to screw up the actual Isle of Dread itself. Some of it was great, like the entire island of Colossa pulled from one of my favorite adventure movies as a kid <i>The 7th Voyage of Sinbad</i>. In fact it had elements from all three Harryhausen Sinbad movies, and was something I would love to run again some day. </p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx8XeKGbOd-0HKA51hXme05_JkkPD-2fNteIxmGIg-CLQ0gd55Mb4BX7urZRZSLKqLuY-CQwXfz6BYYfLF6clo_bBpeDKWUtGLdA0nsFiDHGbKUDb-ZnCkIPXKGBTVma7Gh5ajrGkADQIBqO1FM68tbNVgSI9MxWyenIBM6gsa9hHnBMGO22ehkLGCeeCH/s505/KaliGolden.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="505" height="316" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx8XeKGbOd-0HKA51hXme05_JkkPD-2fNteIxmGIg-CLQ0gd55Mb4BX7urZRZSLKqLuY-CQwXfz6BYYfLF6clo_bBpeDKWUtGLdA0nsFiDHGbKUDb-ZnCkIPXKGBTVma7Gh5ajrGkADQIBqO1FM68tbNVgSI9MxWyenIBM6gsa9hHnBMGO22ehkLGCeeCH/s320/KaliGolden.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Oh yeah, she was there. Sadly the party never<br />ran into her.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />All this was more work as I home-brewed more material, and tied it to more backstory elements. And continued updating the Isle of Dread with more homebrew content, so that when they arrived it felt unique and exciting. So much extra work. DM burnout was hurtling like a runaway train. And it was going to hit all too soon.</p><p>It was around this point that I really understood how powerful 5th edition player characters were. One player was running a simple Champion Fighter. Nothing special, and with simple Feats added. But the amount of damage he could dish out caught me completely by surprise. And the amount of punishment he could take was impressive as well. I also made the mistake of handing out a couple of very potent magic items to the group. Looking back, I should have nerfed them as soon as I was aware how broken they were, but I chickened out. The party really started to steamroll through encounters I thought would be very challenging. And suddenly an island full of dinosaurs looked much less impressive for this group of characters. It was one of the reasons I started to add more and more homebrew to the Isle of Dread itself - because I felt the encounters as written are just not going to be a challenge.</p><p>Eventually the party arrived at the northern islands of the archipelago including the Isle of Dread. The long overland journey, the dangerous voyage leading to this moment. I had spent two thirds of this campaign building up the isle, I felt there was no way it could live up to it. </p><p>I was freaking out.</p>Roman J. Martelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09545497713474664555noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7889215628007960117.post-32469289798739928592023-12-17T06:00:00.000-08:002023-12-17T06:00:00.357-08:00My Hook for the Isle of Dread<p> <b>Introduction</b></p><p>My <a href="http://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2023/12/hooking-isle-of-dread.html">previous post</a> about hooks for the <i>Isle of Dread</i> was a bit long, so I figured I'd pull out my personal experience dealing with hooks for this article. No real advice here, but hope you find it interesting and a bit amusing, as I make several obvious mistakes in my zeal to get this adventure going.</p><p><b>My Experience</b></p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiacnDLW0qbQc7ZVer39-mrlRY3TacRlvxqSaLB16MbAelPyiWx5H_PWPsIZqBG0XLXBbEy8wdURRDbJ-vpLzqvUenzdEXy5r9FRIoETxa0_csM-6rpVRFhXwN5DsoxOTQzs5hC5QiZpVP2r886Jweuw5o3hAFAwW5q5tavJepYN81GDe4FZQTucyWILeGF/s909/U1Sinister.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="909" data-original-width="732" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiacnDLW0qbQc7ZVer39-mrlRY3TacRlvxqSaLB16MbAelPyiWx5H_PWPsIZqBG0XLXBbEy8wdURRDbJ-vpLzqvUenzdEXy5r9FRIoETxa0_csM-6rpVRFhXwN5DsoxOTQzs5hC5QiZpVP2r886Jweuw5o3hAFAwW5q5tavJepYN81GDe4FZQTucyWILeGF/s320/U1Sinister.jpg" width="258" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A fun adventure for starting players<br />and characters.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />Looking back at the way I ran this campaign, it was a glorious mess. It was my first long running 5th edition campaign, and I threw everything into it. The result was a lot of fun, but also a lot of work. It was the excitement of building this world for my players, but also fear of screwing it all up.</p><p>If I were to run this again, I would probably use the <i>Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh</i> for new players, or start in the Guild Isles of Mystara with a cult of Kopru for seasoned players. Then have a few island hopping adventures before getting them to the Isle of Dread itself. A faster turn ramp up to the main event than I actually ended up doing.</p><p>Back in 2020, I was still a newish DM. I had tried to homebrew an adventure and failed spectacularly. Then I ran a good chunk of <i><a href="https://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2019/09/the-dragon-of-icespire-peak-campaign.html">Dragon of Icespire Peak</a></i> and had a lot of fun with it, before the pandemic shut it down. Now, I'd been playing characters in two regular games for about three years up to that point, but running the game sporadically.</p><p>So I was a bit timid to dive right into a nautical adventure, when I had only really run and played in more traditional settings. For some reason I was also convinced that I needed to have the port city be a huge impressive place. So I wanted the time to flesh that out. I started my campaign in a very traditional mountain village with a local problem with a cursed ghost. This town was miles and miles away from the big port city (based loosely on Specularum in Mystara). We ended up spending many sessions with the small village adventure and then overland travel to the city and then exploring the city and finally getting the ship. All of this was a ton of fun, and created so many memorable moments - but it was about a third of the total campaign - too much.</p><p>What is funny is that this whole start would have made a great mini campaign by itself. That starting village was great, and the situation and NPCs were a lot of fun. In fact one player admitted that it was his favorite part of the whole campaign. But I did all that, because I was world building like crazy behind the scenes trying to make this impressive city and island adventures for the journey and seeding the main plot.</p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgroGeKcne_hEnMxbT940Y_J1GqfAkGKZoQWk1dkZ-adksytRoH1D5pdLR7qM6wXTcNsXJJfVCz55JdBk-xNUKYSQR-ZT4lpCeuoF8plDymmCYT25Br8VoWmuII-w7bTgNlX5i3POhyoI1klvYc4_gC64gjnmB5-iU-XV0PHgIqutD2Gpnc4a-RyquxI2sB/s1483/Dragonlance.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="833" data-original-width="1483" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgroGeKcne_hEnMxbT940Y_J1GqfAkGKZoQWk1dkZ-adksytRoH1D5pdLR7qM6wXTcNsXJJfVCz55JdBk-xNUKYSQR-ZT4lpCeuoF8plDymmCYT25Br8VoWmuII-w7bTgNlX5i3POhyoI1klvYc4_gC64gjnmB5-iU-XV0PHgIqutD2Gpnc4a-RyquxI2sB/s320/Dragonlance.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This trilogy was one of my favorite during <br />junior high and into high school.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />In my quest to include all my favorite 80s fantasy stuff in one adventure (who knows when I'd get to run a homebrew world again) I took the world of Mystara as a skeleton, overlaid the lore from <i>Dragonlance </i>onto it (with the cataclysm and the gods vanishing) and then added the Chosen One concept, with one player being selected to bring the gods back to the world.</p><p>Don't do this. Ever.</p><p>Never put a player in the situation where they are the Chose One. It turns the campaign into a one person focal point. It puts pressure on that player. Or worse, you could get a player who abuses this. The poor player I did this to told me later that she really disliked this aspect of the story, and felt it forced her into too many awkward and uncomfortable situations. It was never my intent, I thought it was fun and a power fantasy - but that wasn't why she was playing. </p><p>When I ran this, the gods were being prevented from returning by a powerful ancient monster, Kopru, who needed to be stopped. But first the characters had to find the location of the mysterious Isle of Dread, and then get a crew crazy enough to sail into the dangerous Sea of Dread. I added a bunch of other side stories and elements based on the character's backstories. It turned the saga into a very personal adventure for them - and I really love how that turned out. They were invested in those storylines and it helped build some great character moments.</p><p>One good thing about the way this all played out, was that the Chosen One elements and main storyline all evolved organically. It felt like a novel with the characters discovering what role they had to play and how it all interconnected. And yeah that is the writer in me speaking. But a novel and an RPG are very different things. Yeah, my story was linear for the most part - and in a way the opposite of what <i>The Isle of Dread </i>was supposed to be. And yet, the end result was a memorable campaign that ran for over a year. </p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk6upi_TDjVq7pxwFL0HS6SuKKI9ohl2615szziYI2ES6pvqELBcOaAMrTUswKSUe9sVZoATZvljRNQUUdWcHYN-KHvhQV6DCyWnSK9RvJBDU0MH6zRl-MN7qM4Zdv1_XL6EsEkM6XVjK03nkcFppnDrfgo2PFddPqk11UGlS_rzbyvXrDVUNzwOP4J8XZ/s475/karameikos.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="419" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk6upi_TDjVq7pxwFL0HS6SuKKI9ohl2615szziYI2ES6pvqELBcOaAMrTUswKSUe9sVZoATZvljRNQUUdWcHYN-KHvhQV6DCyWnSK9RvJBDU0MH6zRl-MN7qM4Zdv1_XL6EsEkM6XVjK03nkcFppnDrfgo2PFddPqk11UGlS_rzbyvXrDVUNzwOP4J8XZ/s320/karameikos.jpg" width="282" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Great setting for classic D&D<br />adventures</td></tr></tbody></table><br />For the main port city, I took the <i>Gazetteer: The Grand Duchy of Karameikos</i> and used that as my basis for this opening portion of the campaign. This old school resource is full of great locations, NPCs and plot hooks. You could use it to run a very fun campaign right here. I mainly used it for the town and city locations the characters encountered on the way from the starting village (that I created) and to get to the ship. While I was fleshing out the port city (transforming it from Specularum in the Gazetteer to Mystemere in my setting), I got completely immersed in city creation. I spent way too much time trying to get it "perfect". And while it was fun and interesting. Ultimately the party didn't spend a lot of time here. I really could have spent time on other things especially for the later portion of the campaign. </p><p>Once the characters go their hands on a vessel and crew to sail the Sea of Dread, we were ready to dive into the voyage. But that is another story for another post.</p>Roman J. Martelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09545497713474664555noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7889215628007960117.post-49887730003455379342023-12-10T06:00:00.000-08:002023-12-10T06:00:00.130-08:00Hooking the Isle of Dread<p> <b>Introduction</b></p><p>The <a href="https://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2023/11/what-is-isle-of-dread.html">Isle of Dread </a>adventure is more of a campaign setting, full of interesting locations, encounters and treasures. While it contains adventure hooks to get things rolling, they are a bit bare bones. In this post I'll talk about what the adventure gives you, what other things you could try and what I ended up doing.</p><p>I'll be referencing the Goodman Games reprint for 5th edition. If I switch to the original printing, I'll let you know.</p><p><b>Starting using the Module</b></p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGkd9thyphenhyphenABzFMTKZYzMFcjZMCRgkLzzM3146jStjiTjwhjWfweQal12JPqXIcg3mjLZ1_sCi7tXHO0h-Ul6Z1RpMSoD2GBGHmM6CbCqroMJTdOMrgVJt46mW6jRcP1oYSWm09E856yBIRt-qx8tyx0RbbHdETmZGeV8pXjrAcjtLv7tqxYEwvERoaZ0hLP/s330/X1%20part%202.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="330" data-original-width="260" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGkd9thyphenhyphenABzFMTKZYzMFcjZMCRgkLzzM3146jStjiTjwhjWfweQal12JPqXIcg3mjLZ1_sCi7tXHO0h-Ul6Z1RpMSoD2GBGHmM6CbCqroMJTdOMrgVJt46mW6jRcP1oYSWm09E856yBIRt-qx8tyx0RbbHdETmZGeV8pXjrAcjtLv7tqxYEwvERoaZ0hLP/s320/X1%20part%202.jpg" width="252" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alternate cover ahoy!</td></tr></tbody></table><br />This adventure was written in 1980, and makes the assumption that your player characters are seeking treasure so they can level up. Back then, experience points were given based on treasure, and that was a great motivation for any party. With that in mind, most of the hooks revolve on finding untold riches on the Isle of Dread.</p><p>You get one detailed hook and three supporting hooks. The detailed one is an account by a sailor who traveled to the island and stopped there briefly. He talks about meeting the locals and trading with them. He discovered rumors of an ancient civilization flourishing and falling here. Its ruins are scattered across the island, the most impressive being a forgotten city filled with riches. He includes a rough map in his account.</p><p>This is a solid hook to work with. You could easily turn the written account into an actual NPC and have him tell the player characters all this and provide them with the map. Maybe he is too old or sick to go, but wants to pass this along to a dear friend or relative. As presented in the module this all happens because the PCs stumble across the account and map by pure luck. I like adding that personal connection.</p><p>One of the minor hooks is similar with a brief account of a massive black pearl of incalculable value hidden on the island. Not a bad hook. You could even say the pearl has magical properties that might entice the PCs further. This could be a local legend, but you need something tangible to kick the adventure off. Again, an NPC or chart to the isle or magical guide could be used to get the quest for the pearl rolling. </p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdkfTgHz9bOef0Vx4AIPM8qDiTIHJ9dViPP9NTf3Mp9oOosCS0K4E7uKBTzH-CEUdW086Thhw2dXzY4F5-UnK7z_R0uRvJsr2yzhRAZxR4xx4yiqn1tO9zKLvjBFN4ciWv6ZUvn_2t73eVs2BYW-wnkg9zRDu2P91dSVCi0m-k0KPhWwi22KwZCQQd5jby/s370/Rory.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="370" data-original-width="370" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdkfTgHz9bOef0Vx4AIPM8qDiTIHJ9dViPP9NTf3Mp9oOosCS0K4E7uKBTzH-CEUdW086Thhw2dXzY4F5-UnK7z_R0uRvJsr2yzhRAZxR4xx4yiqn1tO9zKLvjBFN4ciWv6ZUvn_2t73eVs2BYW-wnkg9zRDu2P91dSVCi0m-k0KPhWwi22KwZCQQd5jby/w320-h320/Rory.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"No, I really did see a black pearl the size of<br />your head. Do I look like a liar?"</td></tr></tbody></table><br />Or you could combine the account of the sailor with the legend of the pearl, and give the PCs a goal to seek out on the island. If you have a group that needs or wants a clear cut goal, this could work great. With both of these hooks, you can easily skip past the voyage to the island and just start with the ship in sight of the Isle of Dread. You also don't have to develop the crew of the ship all that much, since they are pretty much around to take the players to different spots and wait for them.</p><p>Then you get the option to be working for a merchant who sees the Isle of Dread as a trading opportunity. Essentially he hires the PCs to travel to the island, scout out the resources and make contact with the locals to set up a trading post. If you have a group that likes to focus on role-play over combat, this might be a good option. They are not going to the isle to fight, but to make friends and set up trade. One thing I would avoid is turning this into an exercise in colonialism. That can lead to some very dark and disturbing areas that not everyone is comfortable with. If you do select this route, then creating NPCs for the vessel and their goal in the operation will become important. This may require some extra work on the DMs part.</p><p>The last option could be a fun one with the right group. Just start with the characters waking up after a shipwreck. They are on the Isle of Dread with a few other cast away NPCs, and then set about exploring and trying to survive in this dangerous wilderness. You could ramp up the survival aspects of the game (especially if you are using an old school rules variant). This hook throws the players right into the adventure, and you can keep the NPCs to a minimum (mostly as back up characters in case one of the player character's die).</p><p><b>Starting with other material</b></p><p>The <i>Isle of Dread </i>adventure is recommended for characters at level 3. If you want a full level 1 to 7 campaign, then you might need some material to get those first three levels under the character's belts. The adventure provides you with a mini world setting including some brief descriptions of lands and islands to start the adventure in. These would all become the Mystara setting in later modules and gazetteers. What you get here is pretty sparse, but you could use it as a jumping off point for some homebrew adventures</p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn8KR43tsL9zq4vE4OZSwS7csjj4232nu-XjZZEnehc-61ez5FktZcYwy0qBXFVhijTQB7Dju_pwVQ2tuaRsu2QfODQulhrlL1C4GLH7j7MYxRHqPpEzAQtOaJxOYGLMma7s4KWNFUHh09UFgRseojlIh7bm2Bsz6qhwUoKXklo-R-WHaxXzMBdHsxUNgK/s832/B6%20purple.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="832" data-original-width="637" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn8KR43tsL9zq4vE4OZSwS7csjj4232nu-XjZZEnehc-61ez5FktZcYwy0qBXFVhijTQB7Dju_pwVQ2tuaRsu2QfODQulhrlL1C4GLH7j7MYxRHqPpEzAQtOaJxOYGLMma7s4KWNFUHh09UFgRseojlIh7bm2Bsz6qhwUoKXklo-R-WHaxXzMBdHsxUNgK/s320/B6%20purple.jpg" width="245" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Go full classic Mystara if you<br />start here.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />There are a couple of adventures that could provide a good starting point. One is the classic adventure <i>The Veiled Society</i>, which starts at level 1 and goes up to level 3. It takes place in the city of Specularum in the Grand Duchy of Karameikos, which is a massive port city. It gives the players experience in the city and then you can tie it to obtaining the ship or the hook for the Isle of Dread as part of the reward for completing the adventure.</p><p>The other option is to take the first adventure of <i>Ghosts of Saltmarsh</i> (5th edition adventure collection) and use that as starting point. This adventure contains pirates and smugglers, and ends with the party possibly obtaining their own ship! It makes for a solid starting point, with some of the NPCs from that adventure and in the town of Saltmarsh being accessible as crew for the voyage. This is a great option if you are using 5th edition to run this adventure, and want to use published material to flesh out your adventure.</p><p>For even looser starting points, you could select ports in any campaign setting you wish, and build some low level adventures tied to those locations. Waterdeep in the Forgotten realms could work fine, with someadventures around the docks being a good way to start things off.</p><p>If you want to stick to the Mystara setting, but want the voyage to start a bit closer, you can pick up the gazetteer for the <i>Minrothad Guilds</i> which contains a bunch of information about these trading guilds and their rivalries. It includes several low level adventure ideas that you can use to build the characters up to level 3. This would be a solid fit for a group that wants to explore trading and role playing options on the Isle of Dread. </p><p><b>Starting with home-brew</b></p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9DxCG42TQthTtPd0JiP77GnxwzFaWlViWooLix6qXTsc7yaY_KSwXZeteXcB7wZTtQthXzUIYseaL26JmUc1DS2WYx5KlhXfnHBgJbIoAxDQxJnc7tfDrLRP5ljeajAdV69C-VsIbG0ZcqZVGz1CjvkGLneRY5qV20DUZ3aMURGj0dZy2dZO5qKCZtK8k/s876/Trident.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="876" data-original-width="833" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9DxCG42TQthTtPd0JiP77GnxwzFaWlViWooLix6qXTsc7yaY_KSwXZeteXcB7wZTtQthXzUIYseaL26JmUc1DS2WYx5KlhXfnHBgJbIoAxDQxJnc7tfDrLRP5ljeajAdV69C-VsIbG0ZcqZVGz1CjvkGLneRY5qV20DUZ3aMURGj0dZy2dZO5qKCZtK8k/s320/Trident.jpg" width="304" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Magical trident on a lost island? Go for it!</td></tr></tbody></table><br />If you want to craft your own material then even more options are available. Focus on your players and what they enjoy in a game. If you aren't sure, then you can give them a goal, but allow for some wiggle room to expand beyond that if you wish.</p><p>The great thing about this module is that it is very flexible and you can fit it into a campaign very easily. I see three obvious ways to make this work (and I'm sure you can come up with more). </p><p>The Isle of Dread is the location of:</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>A potent magical item or lore</li><li>A dangerous enemy that must be defeated</li><li>A powerful ally that must be bargained with</li></ul>The first two are the easiest to manage, since the adventure provides you with plenty of material to work with. There are magical items scattered throughout the island, and you could pick one as a goal for your party. Or pick a magic item from the <i>Dungeon Master's Guide</i> (or other similar resource) that fits your campaign, and slide it into a location that is suitable. <p></p><p>Forgotten lore works the same way, with plenty of ancient locations and artifacts waiting to be discovered on the island. You will need to seed hints about the location of the lore, and turn the adventure into an investigation as they piece together the location of the treasure or lore and discover it. This option works great with the exploration focus of the original module.</p><p>When it comes to antagonists, you have a lot to pick from on the <i>Isle of Dread</i>. The two obvious one are the pirates and the monstrous Kopru. </p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeNGWv7T0kCr3Q8elrYbBZ6aYDUyLyZs_ZwB_XWRURN_XfuYiPl95baO7tveZd7-ikPO9u9Lhotg9HS5N82vPfV1ZjuE2Y2jmQN0C2RGctUusTPQA8qqjg0B8RUYeyIM2wwLSCZAU24yP6mWfVD2ocKws7FVuw-Jz0RTizZ4UwpNg9IFBw_BIULGR-vzw_/s559/Orc%20pirates.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="445" data-original-width="559" height="255" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeNGWv7T0kCr3Q8elrYbBZ6aYDUyLyZs_ZwB_XWRURN_XfuYiPl95baO7tveZd7-ikPO9u9Lhotg9HS5N82vPfV1ZjuE2Y2jmQN0C2RGctUusTPQA8qqjg0B8RUYeyIM2wwLSCZAU24yP6mWfVD2ocKws7FVuw-Jz0RTizZ4UwpNg9IFBw_BIULGR-vzw_/s320/Orc%20pirates.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Did someone say orc pirates?</td></tr></tbody></table><br />Focusing on the pirates is easy enough, making the Isle of Dread their base of operations. If this is the focus of the campaign, you probably need to flesh out the pirates a bit more, giving them more ships and captains. At the end of the Goodman Games update, you'll find a couple of pirate crews ready to be added to the adventure. One with ties to the shark cult and one that is undead. You may want to figure out a goal for the leader of the pirates, and how the players can interfere with it. For added flavor, make it a confederation of multiple pirate groups on the island, and the players can pit them against each other. While the rest of the island kind of turns into side quest material, it can also serve as hidden resources the pirates are attempting to find and use to complete their goal - whatever that might be.</p><p>Kopru are unique monsters in D&D history and most new players won't know anything about them. Their mental powers and specific biology make them tricky and dangerous opponents. Turning them into the focus of evil spreading out from Isle of Dread can be a lot of fun. Essentially allowing you to make a cult of Kopru that is bent on dominating as much of your campaign world as possible. This can be an insidious evil that starts with corrupted cultists doing evil deeds in the port city (a connection to <i>The Veiled Society</i> adventure). As the players uncover more information they find that the origin of the cult is across the Sea of Dread. They then seek out the source of the cult, leading to island hopping adventures - gaining levels until they reach level 3, and arrive at the Isle of Dread. Here they seek out the source of the cult, interacting with the various locals (who have cult member embedded within or may already be completely loyal to the Kopru). Eventually everything leads to the plateau and the hidden temple within. </p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5SS3oT5h9qx3RsqP6UjmA6pEA0eCSPUESfZ1Nr-0U6Q9cyTPhqaEPu0gAw672z8NZw62ZjMuGPNClBQsskQWwT_htB3TRBJ5BExUxxXB2Z594RIxWyz6W6GgBVu1ytDRrv61YefIiiLEK_6yKSKL43rg36oE_naSnmvdqutWW7lYgcTBt-di5zTgk6OGE/s1215/Bronze%20Dragon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="782" data-original-width="1215" height="206" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5SS3oT5h9qx3RsqP6UjmA6pEA0eCSPUESfZ1Nr-0U6Q9cyTPhqaEPu0gAw672z8NZw62ZjMuGPNClBQsskQWwT_htB3TRBJ5BExUxxXB2Z594RIxWyz6W6GgBVu1ytDRrv61YefIiiLEK_6yKSKL43rg36oE_naSnmvdqutWW7lYgcTBt-di5zTgk6OGE/s320/Bronze%20Dragon.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Don't see enough bronze dragons these days.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />The ally option is a bit trickier because you would need a reason for the ally be on this very dangerous island. Are they a prisoner here? Are they researching the ancient ruins, seeking out forbidden knowledge? Are they obsessed with taming and training dinosaurs? You can have your ally be willing to help the PCs in exchange for something they need done. It can be as simple as retrieving the black pearl from the hidden temple or as dangerous as destroying the ancient monster Kopru. You have a lot of options to play with and build a fun story around. Your biggest hurtle is creating an interesting NPC with a valid reason for being on the island. One option would be to have a bronze dragon living on the island. These underused dragons live on coasts, are intelligent and helpful to a heroic party. Could make for some fun and interesting interactions. </p><p>And this post is long enough. Next time I'll tell you what I attempted. Including all the silly mistakes I made.</p>Roman J. Martelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09545497713474664555noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7889215628007960117.post-4835125339325126412023-12-09T09:42:00.000-08:002024-01-07T06:49:35.906-08:00Isle of Dread - Advice and Experiences<p> Here is a spot where I will collect all my article about running the <i>Isle of Dread</i> adventure for Dungeons and Dragons. I ran this as a 5th edition campaign, but my advice is pretty system agnostic. I hope you find it entertaining and useful.</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><a href="https://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2023/11/what-is-isle-of-dread.html">What is the Isle of Dread?</a> - Explanation of the adventure and a brief history of my experience with Dungeons and Dragons leading up to me running it for my group.</li><li><a href="https://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2023/12/why-isle-of-dread.html">Why Isle of Dread?</a> - Why you should consider this adventure for your group and what it offers.</li><li><a href="http://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2023/12/hooking-isle-of-dread.html">Hooking the Isle of Dread</a> - Exploring adventure hooks you can use for your game to hook the player characters into seeking out the island.</li><li><a href="https://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2023/12/my-hook-for-isle-of-dread.html">My Hook for the Isle of Dread</a> - I take a critical look at the path I picked and what I did wrong.</li><li><a href="http://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2024/01/voyage-to-isle-of-dread.html">Voyage to the Isle of Dread</a> - How do you get your players to the island in the first place?</li><li>Village of Dread? - Inhabitants of the Isle and how to use them.</li><li>Dragons of Dread - Here be dragons and what they are used for.</li></ul><p></p>Roman J. Martelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09545497713474664555noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7889215628007960117.post-92213219024071111392023-12-03T06:00:00.000-08:002023-12-03T07:54:24.235-08:00Why Isle of Dread?<p> <b>Why run Isle of Dread?</b></p><p>With so many published adventures and campaign settings out there, why should you consider the <b><a href="https://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2023/11/what-is-isle-of-dread.html">Isle of Dread</a></b> for your group? Here are a few reasons:</p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPkE_is0L4e_yVvg4jF5dZbb7luhv8Cf6Ske6FEQTEZCntn_psdC9EVsSvAycIOlCagqinO9B54GNFTPARD_1r09ZGbGnWQ4f_xpJtupMt3fKjQhjpxBE8RZ6ZaG5mtaDHsjQfOVKk3tPGl4WFkL41z9tJtin0JxRdQOGO6Dw1fnRTaNhYADSLm_RkPDri/s442/Ranger.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="366" data-original-width="442" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPkE_is0L4e_yVvg4jF5dZbb7luhv8Cf6Ske6FEQTEZCntn_psdC9EVsSvAycIOlCagqinO9B54GNFTPARD_1r09ZGbGnWQ4f_xpJtupMt3fKjQhjpxBE8RZ6ZaG5mtaDHsjQfOVKk3tPGl4WFkL41z9tJtin0JxRdQOGO6Dw1fnRTaNhYADSLm_RkPDri/s320/Ranger.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ranger ready to range in the jungle</td></tr></tbody></table><br />A lot of fifth edition hardback adventures focus on plot and combat, and the exploration angle to Dungeons and Dragons takes a back seat. But <b>Isle of Dread leans into the exploration</b> portion of the game pretty well. With this massive island almost completely unexplored and pockets of civilization rare, it really becomes a setting where characters like Rangers and Druids can shine. There are also a few abilities and feats in the game that are focused on the exploration side, and these will finally get some play. Finally there is a real element of the unknown to this setting. Upon landing on the Isle of Dread it really feels like the characters are entering a unique land with different rules, culture and natural phenomena.<p></p><p>As a campaign setting <b>Isle of Dread is extremely flexible</b>. You can run it right out of the book, and create a very classic 80s D&D experience. You can pick and choose your favorite set pieces, NPCs and monsters and use them in your homebrew world. There are plenty of fascinating elements to this setting that could work in just about any game with only a minor adjustment or two. I've also heard from several old timer GMs that they have run Isle of Dread multiple times over the years and it has been a unique experience each time. Some GMs shifted the focus of the campaign each time, but usually the players explored the island in a unique way from party to party. You can get a lot of use out of this setting over the years.</p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQVWPoKymGCbvMJOqcocVhDODazzpx9gjE5c28rJY7tDVuxqtpfz8yHph7Mllw3mlmhmff-2p56pSM6d6wsFBK9Z3dbKrd_AA9v3FRqR4oAk5SahFOegpGP2uqDI89Y__2WGW7Ey7FWH0HuTitEmH-fQrwBCT9ow8NdzI5RA9MzejRS0PDHuet6J4x1EPt/s538/phanaton.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="366" data-original-width="538" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQVWPoKymGCbvMJOqcocVhDODazzpx9gjE5c28rJY7tDVuxqtpfz8yHph7Mllw3mlmhmff-2p56pSM6d6wsFBK9Z3dbKrd_AA9v3FRqR4oAk5SahFOegpGP2uqDI89Y__2WGW7Ey7FWH0HuTitEmH-fQrwBCT9ow8NdzI5RA9MzejRS0PDHuet6J4x1EPt/s320/phanaton.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm sure it was all a mistranslation.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />When this was released in 1980, this adventure was very unique compared to its contemporaries. Most D&D adventures of the era stuck with the traditional medieval inspired fantasy. But I<b>sle of Dread is a unique setting</b>. It is a tropical island filled with dinosaurs and long extinct giant mammals like saber-toothed cats and woolly mammoths. You've got the villagers of Taneroa who use the undead was a workforce. There is an enclave of pirates - full on eyepatch, peg-leg pirates. Add to that the unique creatures you encounter like the flying squirrel/monkey hybrids the Phanaton. You also meet the wickedly intelligent giant spiders known as the Aranea who have disturbing chitinous hands. And then the first of the cat-people in D&D, the nomadic Rakasta. And of course who can forget the sinister Kopru and their mind control powers. Mix this in with some classic movie and novel tropes ranging from <i>King Kong</i> to <i>Jurassic Park</i> and you have something that your players will remember.<p></p><p>And that is the final reason to run this adventure. Because it has been around since 1980 and included in a widely available box set and then adapted several times over numerous editions of D&D, you run into a lot of folks how have played it. <b>Isle of Dread links generations of game players</b>, and they can share war stories about meeting the phanton tribe, their encounter with a T-rex and how they dealt with Kopru. </p><p>For me those are four great reasons to give the Isle of Dread a try, or at least pick it up and read through.</p><p></p>Roman J. Martelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09545497713474664555noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7889215628007960117.post-44544782942599744142023-11-26T06:00:00.000-08:002023-11-26T06:00:00.140-08:00What is The Isle of Dread?<p><b>Introduction</b> </p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl1jmJ94M__4XH2qiKnt-STuUgDqYtfK4Y7gbB8PuLAhsAI4hXNjtWW8o0uMZrtKQMFWwfN_ijCDI8TvrP4Mxh37Q7QA635pO3WlL1nH7rYjT41n0UZ5ETG3j9eHVsA5pgv_AqqLqqVY_rDcVoCXteJX1clr_lOcnxgdEbnpg8VC8BfSGCuliBCvmlNk1z/s473/Isle%20of%20goodman.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="473" height="271" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl1jmJ94M__4XH2qiKnt-STuUgDqYtfK4Y7gbB8PuLAhsAI4hXNjtWW8o0uMZrtKQMFWwfN_ijCDI8TvrP4Mxh37Q7QA635pO3WlL1nH7rYjT41n0UZ5ETG3j9eHVsA5pgv_AqqLqqVY_rDcVoCXteJX1clr_lOcnxgdEbnpg8VC8BfSGCuliBCvmlNk1z/s320/Isle%20of%20goodman.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The return of the classic.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />The first successfully completed campaign I ran for Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition was based on <i>The Isle of Dread</i>. This module was created for the Basic version of D&D back in 1980. I picked up the Goodman Games conversion to 5th Edition published in 2018. I bought it mostly for nostalgia sake, but also with a thin hope of running a retro campaign one day.<p></p><p>I got that chance in 2020, for a group of five players online for over a year. It was a ton of fun, and we created some great stories and memories that we still talk about to this day. In this series, I'm going to talk about my experiences running the <i>Isle of Dread</i>. I'll tell you what worked, what didn't and what I changed and what I wish had done differently. </p><p>I will front load the advice at the start, and then save my reminiscing for the second half with section called <i>My Experience</i>.</p><p><b>What is the Isle of Dread</b></p><p>The <i>Isle of Dread</i> module is actually a campaign setting. It doesn't matter if you are using the classic module or the Goodman Games update - you are essentially getting the same material. </p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmCICxzjgZxggcFJgK3W76HhKQ5HKapwx1256cvQcYwVHt15Mw46pa_1fU6jEblNnvyS-anI5jml_tWk70iQ9v-1bdKoQ6XwtOQxNlBKz4beLrEUCUau-xy62kWSpcOLohIq0kC7wq-mPaeSG_tCYBKNsAlWq19x1eoSqi6QdYScbYJz9pe99K5cvTwq9j/s513/land%20that%20time%20forgot.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="513" data-original-width="392" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmCICxzjgZxggcFJgK3W76HhKQ5HKapwx1256cvQcYwVHt15Mw46pa_1fU6jEblNnvyS-anI5jml_tWk70iQ9v-1bdKoQ6XwtOQxNlBKz4beLrEUCUau-xy62kWSpcOLohIq0kC7wq-mPaeSG_tCYBKNsAlWq19x1eoSqi6QdYScbYJz9pe99K5cvTwq9j/s320/land%20that%20time%20forgot.jpg" width="245" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Time, why are you so forgetful?</td></tr></tbody></table><br />This setting is a tropical island campaign involving lots of exploration on land and at sea. The focus is a large island (the Isle of Dread) and its surrounding smaller islands and reefs. You get a bunch of adventuring locations and set pieces on the island. There are a large number of non-player characters (NPCs) to interact with including pirates, cultists, villagers and four unique races with their own societies/cultures and goals. <p></p><p>Adventure locations include unique natural formations, strange ancient monuments, cave networks and even a couple good sized dungeons to crawl through. There are settlements on the main island, but also on the smaller islands and even under the water. Player characters (PCs) can befriend or antagonize the locals in a multitude of ways.</p><p>The Isle itself is very much inspired by Skull Island from <i>King Kong</i> and the works of Edgar Rice Burroughs (such as <i>The Land that Time Forgot</i>) with dense jungles, roaming dinosaurs, and cave people. The adventure is targeted at characters from 3rd to 7th level, and is fairly grounded when it comes to magic. </p><p>Treasures and secrets abound on the island, the players are expected to explore to find them. You get a nifty player map that only shows the basic outline of the island itself, with a few coastal details. The rest is for the players to fill in.</p><p>You don't get an overarching plot or central antagonist. There is a very powerful monster on the island who can act as your Big Bad, if you like. But there are no story threads leading the players to this monster. Story hooks to get the adventure started are provided, and they focus on your players seeking fame and fortune, and having a vessel to travel to the island. Depending on the group, the DM may need to create a bit more of a story to get everything moving.</p><p>You don't get any material for a ship or crew. These are things the DM will need to create, depending on how much you want that to be a part of the game.</p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfsnVfOZvpbCh5Lqou0xH_BMNZPi6QlnZ2WGdExbMiSi-S7FhTX_egdd6qCUXzIiCKKz1j_KvxX-3UgXhxff3qzSQpIpZK_xRaiCQkXT6lsQ2X9ugoS8k5CJhaEPLAFXhzBgTH86e87qVhKhjpvjbFPqUs5EdN7Ix7M33Hx58VQ_botI9WPdKHm69VzDEM/s981/kopru%20classic.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="484" data-original-width="981" height="158" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfsnVfOZvpbCh5Lqou0xH_BMNZPi6QlnZ2WGdExbMiSi-S7FhTX_egdd6qCUXzIiCKKz1j_KvxX-3UgXhxff3qzSQpIpZK_xRaiCQkXT6lsQ2X9ugoS8k5CJhaEPLAFXhzBgTH86e87qVhKhjpvjbFPqUs5EdN7Ix7M33Hx58VQ_botI9WPdKHm69VzDEM/s320/kopru%20classic.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Classic art of Kopru from the original print.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />You get some bare bones material to get the adventure rolling from a port in civilized lands. Your mileage may vary with the provided material. But the focus of the adventure text is the setting and the encounters within.<p></p><p>The Isle of Dread is a rich adventure location with plenty to offer a DM. You can run it right from the book as straight exploration focused sandbox. Or you can modify it to fit your existing campaign but making it a key location in the larger scope of the story. It has some great locations to hide that special treasure of macguffin the party is seeking out. You have plenty of dangerous antagonists that can become a focal point for the adventurers including the pirates, the shark cultists, and of course the infamous monster Kopru and his dedicated followers.</p><p>This adventure book is very versatile and is an easy recommendation for anyone looking for a fun island location with lots of dinosaurs, exploration and unique characters to meet.</p><p><b>My Experience</b></p><p>My first experience with D&D was the red box Basic set by Frank Mentzer created in 1983. I probably ran into it a couple years after that, when a friend of mine tried to run me through the castle adventure included in the book. This was a hurried session during recess in fifth grade or so. I remember creating a thief and then failing to climb a wall and getting killed by a carrion crawler monster.</p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGly5qt13a5Ca5p4QLt5NEOFhXI5zPqDOW7eSIkQ1jFHuc1MWYL4DYF8msux3z5Tvhnu4ZRRyFqH5eWjf5ePkLClgvl_qAHtPLQApenDtkG7jUto6DenjS6iVONRl1HIQe-EEQu_mlPU2h-lMJFiOuqLgtfGBgBLozhEcnFVxNBGHUNS-U69mKFdG4xOEN/s761/redandblue.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="537" data-original-width="761" height="226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGly5qt13a5Ca5p4QLt5NEOFhXI5zPqDOW7eSIkQ1jFHuc1MWYL4DYF8msux3z5Tvhnu4ZRRyFqH5eWjf5ePkLClgvl_qAHtPLQApenDtkG7jUto6DenjS6iVONRl1HIQe-EEQu_mlPU2h-lMJFiOuqLgtfGBgBLozhEcnFVxNBGHUNS-U69mKFdG4xOEN/s320/redandblue.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Red and blue box sets for the win!</td></tr></tbody></table><br />I got the box set myself later that year, and was immediately drawn into the solo adventure where you meet Aleena the cleric and Bargle the infamous. I had already read some of the early Endless Quest books and had a couple in my collection. So I was familiar with the concept of D&D. But I struggled to get any of my friends to give it a try. Eventually the same friend who ran me through the castle adventure gave me the rules to the Expert set. But by this point I was more interested in <i>Advanced Dungeons and Dragons</i> - and thought that regular "basic" rules were for kids. Yeah I was kid myself, don't judge me.<p></p><p>I read through the Expert rulebook, and somewhere in it or with it was information about this module called <i>The Isle of Dread</i>, which just sounded cool! I remember seeing the cover with the characters fighting a T-Rex and it just got my mind going. But I never got my hands on the module, even though I'm pretty sure I saw it at the local bookstore on a number of occasions.</p><p>Jump forward to around 2019 or so. I'm thinking of running my own campaign for a group of friends online. I want to set it in a low magic low fantasy setting like my memories of old school D&D. I grab a bunch of world building notes for a fantasy novel I wrote around 2016 or so, and then looked for an old school module to combine it with. doing some internet research, I find the name <i>Isle of Dread</i> and it sparks all kinds of memories and ideas. </p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnBouEK882wyo-p0MHK2qVXbhyBLUNEqH0ukNa9uTk84VbJID1KPFEWIxZkbBVPwH8dYR25tFI6zG9o-A7L3HlCMR_3E-G7YJY5rfaoQ0fptXHN7uC3ipIQld75V1-xctoOXaNoIuj4yM0xGHC24JCzQw2Dn92Y5Fm__VsT1QuEqcx78i_RKEcQGqWIX-3/s1196/Voyagebegin.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="765" data-original-width="1196" height="205" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnBouEK882wyo-p0MHK2qVXbhyBLUNEqH0ukNa9uTk84VbJID1KPFEWIxZkbBVPwH8dYR25tFI6zG9o-A7L3HlCMR_3E-G7YJY5rfaoQ0fptXHN7uC3ipIQld75V1-xctoOXaNoIuj4yM0xGHC24JCzQw2Dn92Y5Fm__VsT1QuEqcx78i_RKEcQGqWIX-3/s320/Voyagebegin.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Let the voyage to the isle begin!</td></tr></tbody></table><br />Looking into it, this module is fondly remembered by a lot of older players. Plenty of war stories of exploring the mysteries of the island, battling pirates and facing down Kopru. Reviews also mentioned how it was a teaching module designed to show the new DM how to focus on exploration outside of a dungeon. This sounded useful, and when I discovered that Goodman Games had just published a revised version for 5th Edition, including the original versions of the old module and interviews with the original writers and creators of the module - it just sounded like a good buy. I do love me some RPG history.<p></p><p>So picked it up for myself, even if I didn't end up running it. And it was a fun read all the way around. When I ended up pitching campaign ideas to the online group, I threw in Isle of Dread as an option. Not really thinking anyone would be up for a nautical exploration campaign.</p><p>But I was wrong, nearly everyone selected Isle of Dread as their first pick for the campaign. And so I got to serious work re-reading the module and prepping it for play. In the end I fused several of my other campaign ideas into this one, turning it into a rather clunky but entertaining saga that took over a year to complete. But it all started here, with memories of an old copy of the Expert rules and the mention of that title.</p>Roman J. Martelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09545497713474664555noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7889215628007960117.post-44239747260328426822023-11-19T06:00:00.019-08:002023-11-19T06:00:00.136-08:00Homebrew your 5th Edition setting - Dungeon Master Tools<p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeEQOhUfZ_F6tAtnz6dhEDL0KtYQca8dlWzp0_q-ukUy5JdVkXQpTVXlEoJS19obqbm8VO1Ova0pIjM8NXj-FRZtVZIGXFQj5o9uFf3d2XDCl8PFzd9fyVSfqGmBJg3hG6K4OyoQnGgEQFlXqkuWWTgLc6UIdQwvU1XV8E3GHHJr18am8hIVo86GmrWdnM/s1192/worldbuild.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="618" data-original-width="1192" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeEQOhUfZ_F6tAtnz6dhEDL0KtYQca8dlWzp0_q-ukUy5JdVkXQpTVXlEoJS19obqbm8VO1Ova0pIjM8NXj-FRZtVZIGXFQj5o9uFf3d2XDCl8PFzd9fyVSfqGmBJg3hG6K4OyoQnGgEQFlXqkuWWTgLc6UIdQwvU1XV8E3GHHJr18am8hIVo86GmrWdnM/w400-h208/worldbuild.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looks pretty darn magical out there.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /> In an <a href="https://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2023/11/know-your-system-dungeon-master-tools.html">earlier post</a>, I talked about knowing what type of game Dungeons and Dragons 5th edition was and how understanding that can lead to better games at the table. I gave some example on preparing your sessions using that information.<p></p><p>But what if you want to build a campaign world for a 5th edition home-brew campaign? How do you apply those points?</p><p>Here are the points again.</p><ul><li>The player characters are powerful and will only get more powerful.</li><li>The game expects a setting where magic is everywhere and well known and used often.</li><li><b>Anything</b> can happen and it often does.</li><li>Most of the rules in the game revolve around combat with monsters and how to resolve it.</li></ul><p>While you often see the default setting for <i>Dungeons and Dragons</i> as medieval European inspired. That familiar trope can clash with the way the game is currently played. For me the disconnect is very strong. It can be difficult to reconcile medieval castles and knights dealing with flying player characters that look like cat people who can shoot lances of fire from their fingertips while strumming a lute. It gets comical and silly really damn quick. And if you are going for a comical game, then it works great. But if you are more interested in running a serious game, then it can be a challenge.</p><p>If you look beyond the classic <i>Forgotten Realms</i> setting and at some of the other campaign settings for 5th Edition from Wizards of the Coast you see some appealing alternatives. A lot of folks love the Eberonn setting, with its pulp noire aesthetic and fusion of magic and technology. </p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQUrRMcG6h9DkCOP0wm49RKwEWOme5YDVTopeZa-MJZr0l8vLb_nElk-w63ueuBOyYPsMG-KFdxQ5FlqTxRSLr-uc6-f9jed_8svkfAz1jRLgIUjN9QTJrXPZj7vTxuC0Y3AjEpncZRh-GjSyaOp1297mMeTlIxVkm_C907tEeWfPDxxxjCgJ_wguB2opW/s898/Ravnicabook.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="898" data-original-width="682" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQUrRMcG6h9DkCOP0wm49RKwEWOme5YDVTopeZa-MJZr0l8vLb_nElk-w63ueuBOyYPsMG-KFdxQ5FlqTxRSLr-uc6-f9jed_8svkfAz1jRLgIUjN9QTJrXPZj7vTxuC0Y3AjEpncZRh-GjSyaOp1297mMeTlIxVkm_C907tEeWfPDxxxjCgJ_wguB2opW/s320/Ravnicabook.jpg" width="243" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Had a blast in this setting!</td></tr></tbody></table><br />I ran a year long campaign in the Ravnica setting, based on a high magic super-city from the <i>Magic: The Gathering </i>card game. This was a blast, and the high magic/high power of 5th edition fit easily into the setting. It also allows for lots of intrigues and crazy combat situations. <p></p><p>Spelljammer with its interplanetary travel, Planescape with its dimensional hopping and Theros with its divine powered characters and destinies can all work with the bigger scope that fits 5th edition. I haven't had a chance to take a look at it, but the setting of the Radiant Citadel, from the adventure anthology <i>Journeys through the Radiant Citadel</i> looks like a good fit and with an all new setting created specifically for this edition. </p><p>So look at these settings for inspiration for your home-brew. For me, a lot of the powers and spells could also easily fit in fantasy worlds found in anime and Japanese role playing games like <i>Final Fantasy. </i>In my mind, the further you pull away from a grounded historical setting and open up an imaginative large scale world, the better the fit for this edition of the game.</p><p>So let's ask a couple of world building questions that will help you create a world for your 5th edition campaign.</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Why is your setting so magical - what caused it to be that way?</li><li>What kind of threat are you presenting that will take super heroes to resolve?</li><li>If magic is everywhere and nearly everyone can access it, what keeps everyone from being a super hero?</li></ul>Coming to grips with those three questions will help you create a campaign that can build up to higher levels of play. If there is one thing that Dungeons and Dragons players love - it is leveling up. It also answers some basic questions about the world that your players may find useful during character creation and backstory development.<p></p><p>Worldbuilding can be a lot of fun, and a whole rabbit hole of work if you aren't careful. So remember, that you are creating a setting for your players to explore and interact with. Keeping that player focus helps you stay on target and only create what you need for your game first. And then, if you have time, you can flesh out more just for fun.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBpkTxFZwJyy6gmQpLOGcdx0WzARVlC_PwC14rIkEdkfKeBxmoVAN1lv00tYV2SAHceMcd95pNTgzcKxlU2b_Wnc8rvz4ENrwoYok_x2_OLCNLWWG_ib1lAaooCdQfLmQMoA_MBjiJNhCnjNnuiQTmRqYfDAH3Z1C3j4EjB_Y-VcN3MBrgguHUs0B_jqcc/s835/argue.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="403" data-original-width="835" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBpkTxFZwJyy6gmQpLOGcdx0WzARVlC_PwC14rIkEdkfKeBxmoVAN1lv00tYV2SAHceMcd95pNTgzcKxlU2b_Wnc8rvz4ENrwoYok_x2_OLCNLWWG_ib1lAaooCdQfLmQMoA_MBjiJNhCnjNnuiQTmRqYfDAH3Z1C3j4EjB_Y-VcN3MBrgguHUs0B_jqcc/w400-h193/argue.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A violent argument broke out over whose day was more magical.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><br /></p>Roman J. Martelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09545497713474664555noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7889215628007960117.post-82464319951858942732023-11-12T06:00:00.003-08:002023-11-12T06:00:00.137-08:00Know your system - Dungeon Master Tools<p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJC0XBaKyMvTGj8Pvo4zwV75pecPlip6ROv4olBRUEP7j1-acTgp-vAW3yio7dPBQx7GeMhaangnPQJHUDoRfccRHba50G0MBO8nSve8v6nlCu1nMwxAn9EPL7fTzXp331Oe8dp7S0YeO1qKvV9AecwjQau4kzUIUdvklNXb6Vu_ADNTx5UEqPkVAyEC0y/s560/PHB.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="560" data-original-width="420" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJC0XBaKyMvTGj8Pvo4zwV75pecPlip6ROv4olBRUEP7j1-acTgp-vAW3yio7dPBQx7GeMhaangnPQJHUDoRfccRHba50G0MBO8nSve8v6nlCu1nMwxAn9EPL7fTzXp331Oe8dp7S0YeO1qKvV9AecwjQau4kzUIUdvklNXb6Vu_ADNTx5UEqPkVAyEC0y/w240-h320/PHB.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The player's handbook compels you!</td></tr></tbody></table><br /> I've been playing Dungeons and Dragons 5th edition for several years now. I've came to the realization that this game has a very specific style it is going for. Understanding that helps me prep and run my games in a way that works for me and the players.<p></p><p>This seems like obvious advice, but I can't tell you how much I've struggled against what 5th edition is, and what I wanted it to be. It created an odd disconnect that ended up frustrating me, and in one case ended a campaign way too early.</p><p>So what is D&D 5th edition at its core?<b> It is a game about super heroic characters in a high fantasy-high magic setting fighting monsters and performing impressive heroic acts.</b></p><p>The game works best when you embrace these key elements:</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>The player characters are powerful and will only get more powerful.</li><li>The game expects a setting where magic is everywhere and well known and used often.</li><li><b>Anything</b> can happen and it often does.</li><li>Most of the rules in the game revolve around combat with monsters and how to resolve it.</li></ul>Keeping these points in mind while prepping for your next session or building your campaign can lead to more fun at the table and a better experience overall.<p></p><p>Let's look at some examples for making this work.</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Know your player characters - review the spells, abilities, feats, and magic gear they have as part of your prep session. Then build encounters (monsters, traps, NPCs) that allow them to use these cool features. If using a published adventure, modify encounters to highlight these elements. </li><li>After hitting level three, and certainly by level five, most players characters are very powerful. You can toss a lot at them, and they will survive. Embrace this instead of fighting against it. The bigger threats and overcoming them are part of the fun.</li><li>Most 5th edition settings are full of magic and magical mayhem. This means that you can play around with all kinds of storylines and elements including time travel, dimension hopping, encountering gods (or god like beings) and more. The scope for a 5th edition campaign can be HUGE, and leaning into that gives the players a sense of achieving important and amazing tasks.</li><li>Combat is a big part of the game. As much fun as roleplaying and exploring are, combat is where the characters shine. So spend a bit of time giving your combat encounters a bit of flavor, with memorable monsters, or an interesting environment, or an element of added tension. Don't go overboard with combat, but keep in mind it is a key element of the game.</li></ul><br /><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio2MQyWoCwTZT_O9UBujHIs649BMZUoaZ3SHSkjP8X4C2YMaxxQcGKlgP4d7HEyx4ApeOLjreP8inQiKWFANNCX9YisNBdZk2YldsZefRwA8C1PtaNzhKqPYEjX5336CI_ctgJhjwyQm2If4DZq7HyLFNLLK4S4ej15c10zJMI_X5Wdb9In-HgWzHCaAPk/s976/Partyvdragon.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="976" height="246" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio2MQyWoCwTZT_O9UBujHIs649BMZUoaZ3SHSkjP8X4C2YMaxxQcGKlgP4d7HEyx4ApeOLjreP8inQiKWFANNCX9YisNBdZk2YldsZefRwA8C1PtaNzhKqPYEjX5336CI_ctgJhjwyQm2If4DZq7HyLFNLLK4S4ej15c10zJMI_X5Wdb9In-HgWzHCaAPk/w400-h246/Partyvdragon.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">If they are level 7, they've got this.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />Roman J. Martelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09545497713474664555noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7889215628007960117.post-38775096375649709522022-10-28T06:00:00.023-07:002022-12-09T11:22:32.216-08:00Game Log: Shemshime's Bedtime Rhyme<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">In my <a href="https://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2022/10/tips-for-running-shemshimes-bedtime.html">previous article</a> I provided some tips for running <b>Shemshime’s Bedtime Rhyme</b> from <b>Candlekeep Mysteries</b>. Most of those tips came from running the game myself. We had a good time overall, but I was hoping for a smash success with this one. I love horror as a genre, and while I’ve been incorporating horror elements in my 5<sup>th</sup> edition campaigns, this was the first full horror scenario I’ve had the pleasure of running. In this article I’ll describe what I did, and where I could have done things a bit differently.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyhM91UNV7kI2CC_ARpIWyjfTmXOk3DDPTd8KXgteYUN6G2M4nt19PnZeFpR4qbmRlYOcEXqkw8u50iyAniTheuCEGEwcbQHqxxHPpUDJohevx50Xa30rOtl6ikTXWdU6GTYiWyFpbBdg_KF1-hIghuANwxRTmSqkPRNI3IzeDllNh_JROJL-kwK1zkA/s1336/Candlekeep.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="583" data-original-width="1336" height="140" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyhM91UNV7kI2CC_ARpIWyjfTmXOk3DDPTd8KXgteYUN6G2M4nt19PnZeFpR4qbmRlYOcEXqkw8u50iyAniTheuCEGEwcbQHqxxHPpUDJohevx50Xa30rOtl6ikTXWdU6GTYiWyFpbBdg_KF1-hIghuANwxRTmSqkPRNI3IzeDllNh_JROJL-kwK1zkA/s320/Candlekeep.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Candlekeep looms over the Sword Coast.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />I ran this online over three sessions. The first two were about three and half hours long and the last was about two hours. 9 hours total with five players. They were playing new characters for this little side adventure from our weekly Ravnica campaign.<o:p></o:p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><i>Summary</i>: The characters arrive at Candlekeep in the night and are sent to a cellar beneath the inn (which is full). Once there they meet a group of NPCs and explore this hidden portion of the library. In the morning, they awaken to a tune playing in their head non-stop. The NPC in charge seals the cellar after sending out a message for help. She reveals that the tune is an ancient curse that afflicted the library once before. As the curse continues to manifest, NPCs start to lose their minds, violence erupts and something sinister becomes more and more powerful. Eventually the PCs discover source of the curse, and are given a hint or two on how to stop it. The finale is spent trying to finish off the malevolent being Shemshime, and breaking the curse.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">My first big change would occur before we even start playing. Setting expectations. I told my players that this was “more of a horror adventure than a mystery”. But I really should have just said, “This is a horror adventure. Your goal is to survive long enough to break a curse.” Nearly <u>all </u>my players created investigators of some kind. As such, they didn’t really get to use their skills and abilities that much. This led to some frustration from them, because half of their stuff wasn’t super useful. To be fair, this adventure can work with pretty much any character group. That said, their expectation was to be able to use mystery solving skills to help them in this adventure. But those skills aren’t really vital to survive the scenario.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">This expectation also made the resolution of the “mystery” of why this was happening feel unsatisfying. One player actually said, “I don’t know what to do, because it feels like we aren’t finding any clues”. And no, they weren’t finding anything, I was handing them clues when I needed them to find them. As I mentioned in the other article, this adventure is on rails, like a house of horrors carnival ride. For a real mystery, the players need to time to search, to put pieces together, to follow up leads. Now you could restructure <b>Shemshime’s Bedtime Rhyme</b> to play out like a classic locked room mystery. But you need to put in some extra work to do that. To really run this right from the book, it is better to make sure your players know this is a horror adventure to enjoy as an experience, not a mystery to be solved.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_DP5B5fgYKaboGYWxsEPn_lo_HfS7_Jnn4OPgPQRMWyWtrvDibrPYfquqQ6Qn5TXa24ft4L2mRs5N8Wvc46Ezs492THkow-GXlFXtvC1WubxGn4ouQxnGnWKR9X6fD4zLdulrUuvJ9zr2FX3kBPpsjHJ8LlnIKoLuMnOmbVrLt_3Uw7ASgfP4Br-o7w/s1379/Gailbys%20Drawings.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="591" data-original-width="1379" height="137" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_DP5B5fgYKaboGYWxsEPn_lo_HfS7_Jnn4OPgPQRMWyWtrvDibrPYfquqQ6Qn5TXa24ft4L2mRs5N8Wvc46Ezs492THkow-GXlFXtvC1WubxGn4ouQxnGnWKR9X6fD4zLdulrUuvJ9zr2FX3kBPpsjHJ8LlnIKoLuMnOmbVrLt_3Uw7ASgfP4Br-o7w/s320/Gailbys%20Drawings.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Creepy drawing by a child. Always fun.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />Finally establishing this was a horror game, I should have found out what kind of horror the group wanted. I didn’t ask if they were good with evil children or harm to children. So when little Gailby was in the spotlight, I wasn’t sure how far I could or should go with her character. My players liked most of the NPCs so I ended up pulling my punches when it came to violence toward them. And some player characters were never in actual peril. The main bit of feedback I got at the end was that the scenario wasn’t scary enough. They wanted more thrills, more peril. Not necessarily more blood (because I had one player who said “I’m a weenie and get grossed out easily”). But if I knew their comfort level with scary/imperiled children and that they wanted more spooky scares, I could have adjusted things to hit that mark. I also should have been very clear that a Total Party Kill (TPK) was a very possible end for this scenario. That way, I wouldn’t feel like I had to pull punches at the end, or worse drag things out into a third session. In the end they wanted “more <b>Hellraiser</b> and less <b>Hocus Pocus</b>”. I delivered somewhere in the middle and it didn’t satisfy anyone.<o:p></o:p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">With that in mind, I had planned to only run two sessions for <b>Shemshime’s Bedtime Rhyme</b>. I should have stuck to that with all my might, because the momentum of this scenario really flagged with the third session. We have a hard end time, and we ended mid-fight with Shemshime. Yeah, don’t do that! It sucked. In my previous article I outlined the optimal way I should have run the adventure. What I did instead was spend way too much time with the set up and then tried to work in all the Events. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiuAkoX3QNTdAPw55f4VuvwanDxdZ_dGIZRqEw2IqOaG_6SDtd7M1gIRC3JVD1xGjq6JEB2_wM4cozI-5FaRVmxz584YBYbKt3zmxqm1MXD-z0ClWPekn3ZetmsYS9Yz45oD_vmOA31v3nIHmbZQpEAHH2Xel5Fjaft60jR58nCnl4hOX1-xG0nxCFyQ/s779/Krinkle.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="779" data-original-width="520" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiuAkoX3QNTdAPw55f4VuvwanDxdZ_dGIZRqEw2IqOaG_6SDtd7M1gIRC3JVD1xGjq6JEB2_wM4cozI-5FaRVmxz584YBYbKt3zmxqm1MXD-z0ClWPekn3ZetmsYS9Yz45oD_vmOA31v3nIHmbZQpEAHH2Xel5Fjaft60jR58nCnl4hOX1-xG0nxCFyQ/s320/Krinkle.jpg" width="214" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Would you trust old Krinkle?</td></tr></tbody></table><br />Knowing that the players wanted a bit more <b>Hellraiser</b> in the game, I would have started session two with the Puppets event, and had the NPCs go all out in trying to harm the player characters. Stakes would have been high, because the players liked the NPCs, and I could have even added some flying books adding chaos to the situation. A good strong start for session two.<o:p></o:p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">From there we could have jumped into finding the book must faster. Instead, I let them spend way too much time trying to find the book and looking for clues, and just slowing everything down, instead of keeping it fast moving and fun. We did hit all the events. And the discovery of the singing skull was a great macabre moment. But It isn’t really necessary. I could have had possessed NPCs start shouting “Finish the Rhyme!” or have them find that scrawled in a book that falls during the chaos of the Puppets event. Lots of ways to do it.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">Now my favorite bit of tabletop roleplaying games is the character interaction. As a player, I’m definitely an actor type with a bit of storyteller thrown in. As a DM I love the stories we make together, and that means having NPCs that I love playing. I tweaked my NPCs a bit for this game. I did my best to have each NPC find something interesting about a player character, and share a nice moment with them. This means I altered some personalities here and there, and adjusted some NPC motivations or backstories. But it was worth it. If I ask my players about this session a few months from now, I think they will remember the NPCs and the Shemshime being invincible. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">However, my strength as a DM is also my weakness. I love creating and playing NPCs. But I also overindulge in social interactions. In a long running campaign it isn’t so bad, if the players are also really into it. My players are, and we can have a few sessions without combat and only social and exploration events. But in a short scenario, this is not good. Once I get the players connected to the NPCs, then I need to really lighten up on the social interactions and ramp up the scares and thrills. I dropped the ball here. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjTJNy-sHKXXrT9dRmzZPz653PKbByMD6DuTgaz8pZ9Jk1yPnsvzoE5bP0V8fQvcewYtcIn0nc2Q6--UX7mLHk0CdFYiPX7nQDH1gBbnGqArAiCQ8m_ZG0I7iQMhxjCGCYk9KYWGyD82BOQvW6gPKZDGwLD3SJ5-CiB-uHYQogD_3eIh7pS2COigN6Xg/s3000/Firefly%20Cellar.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="2199" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjTJNy-sHKXXrT9dRmzZPz653PKbByMD6DuTgaz8pZ9Jk1yPnsvzoE5bP0V8fQvcewYtcIn0nc2Q6--UX7mLHk0CdFYiPX7nQDH1gBbnGqArAiCQ8m_ZG0I7iQMhxjCGCYk9KYWGyD82BOQvW6gPKZDGwLD3SJ5-CiB-uHYQogD_3eIh7pS2COigN6Xg/s320/Firefly%20Cellar.jpg" width="235" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Welcome to the Cellar.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />The set up took almost the entire first session. Now, they were all playing new characters who had not met before, so there was the good old fashioned awkward player character introductions. But I anticipated that, and we moved through them as quickly as possible. But I did spend too much time with the grand tour of all three levels of the cellar, and meeting the NPCs. I realized this when I hadn’t hit the quarantine mark by the break in session one. What I should have done was have the remaining NPCs all be in the main floor to meet at once. Instead, I sprinkled them throughout the cellar and just slowing things down meeting all of them. I did accelerate events a bit, and we ended with the fireflies going dark right before the shadows attack. Not a bad way to end things.<o:p></o:p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">However, we started session two with a fight, and that ate up a bit of time. Then I tried to cram in all three middle events (Singing Skull, Escape Attempt, Puppets). It was too much. Add to that the confusion of the party searching for clues that aren’t really there to be found. I drip feeding them secrets as described in the events. It felt awkward and a bit frustrating. When they finally found the book and figured out how to repair it, I gave them a little time to plan… and then a little more time… and then a little more time. I should have just said, “we are ending tonight, so let’s just go with the plan you’ve got.” I must say the in-character discussion was a blast, and I was having a lot of fun having the NPCs chime in with bad advice and distractions. But I really should have just backed off and stayed locked into our end time.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">They started the Shemshime battle with only about 20 minutes of game time left. And things did not go as they hoped. But they were inching toward the correct resolution. Again, I should have either let their original plan work (or partially work), or just leaned into the horror of Shemshime wiping the floor with them. But because I didn’t set that expectation, I wasn’t sure how comfortable they would be with a TPK ending. I ended up stopping the game at our set end time, and said we’d finish the adventure next session. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">When the third session rolled around, I could tell the players just weren’t as engaged. They shifted strategies a few more time and then finally destroyed Shemshime. I did an epilogue scene and actually stretched that out a bit so we didn’t end super early, but that just made the finale feel even more sloggy. The session ended with a bit of shrug, when it should have been a cheer of victory or a bunch of laughter at getting wiped out. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQoDfVqjjmEtf4LOYt-f6i96Re44k2TXBCHhjhABLTvx5xyEHmJMxsFo_skSsw29eZWdB5nNlyFp9r_ZaBIZbqYtAggiYzT8L1FHxFnbo57JOSHOTBc4FDDXuE7hEUaVLAWk_iZ6ZWgAiShxkj-p58tdCnXb8JmUX0Nr9_8mlN_3WeYFVK4HnRDv9tGw/s1126/Repaired%20book.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="742" data-original-width="1126" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQoDfVqjjmEtf4LOYt-f6i96Re44k2TXBCHhjhABLTvx5xyEHmJMxsFo_skSsw29eZWdB5nNlyFp9r_ZaBIZbqYtAggiYzT8L1FHxFnbo57JOSHOTBc4FDDXuE7hEUaVLAWk_iZ6ZWgAiShxkj-p58tdCnXb8JmUX0Nr9_8mlN_3WeYFVK4HnRDv9tGw/s320/Repaired%20book.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Music from the book sets the mood.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />One last thing that happened that was no one’s fault, but that ended up impacting session one was that none of my music was working on Discord. I didn’t have a backup solution, and so the session played in silence. Normally not a huge deal, but with a scenario so focused on the musical rhyme, I spent a ton of work on the playlists and timing for implementing them. Because the first session was silent, all that establishing mood was lost. I really should have had a backup ready to go, even a Youtube playlist for individual players to run on their side to build that atmosphere. I will say that when the music did work on Discord for Session 2 and 3 my players loved it. <o:p></o:p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">Looking at this long ass article you might think that this mini-campaign was a failure. But it really wasn’t. Everyone had fun. They made great and memorable characters. Each of them said they would love to play these characters again. They liked the NPCs. They liked the set up and scenario of the curse. It was a nice break from our regular campaign and was a lot of fun to prep and run. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">But hindsight is 20/20. I could have run <b>Shemshime’s Bedtime Rhyme</b> in a way that was more fun, and memorable. It really hammered home how important expectations are to a new game. I don’t think a session 0 is needed for something like this. But if I had been clear this being a horror thrill ride, we all could have embraced it, and really made something we’ll talk about years later.</p>Roman J. Martelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09545497713474664555noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7889215628007960117.post-66633160188332605762022-10-24T06:00:00.002-07:002022-10-28T08:16:55.690-07:00Tips for running Shemshime's Bedtime Rhyme<p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><br />I ran</span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"> </span><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Shemshime’s Bedtime Rhyme</b><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"> </span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif">from the</span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"> </span><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Candlekeep Mysteries </b><span face="Calibri, sans-serif">adventure book. I learned quite a few things from running it. I figured I’d share them with you, to give you a hand running your game.</span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlorQc1RCPmRZIomG_3Bwby1dI3yBhg_5iFBtDtJ_Utg8KamxIvQUlxTZubK6eUw2oMHGNoPXHMyq40VYy-hEFNLYG2jc-gkyVF6u7lfTiblDqZDmXfYAh96Sve7WFCwPZunv4_pKD2JIe8FwdGtbbsvjxUuGOXsBy9KX04tiDqVuVQcCxufe3ZFtokQ/s789/Candlekeep%20mysteries.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="789" height="274" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlorQc1RCPmRZIomG_3Bwby1dI3yBhg_5iFBtDtJ_Utg8KamxIvQUlxTZubK6eUw2oMHGNoPXHMyq40VYy-hEFNLYG2jc-gkyVF6u7lfTiblDqZDmXfYAh96Sve7WFCwPZunv4_pKD2JIe8FwdGtbbsvjxUuGOXsBy9KX04tiDqVuVQcCxufe3ZFtokQ/w400-h274/Candlekeep%20mysteries.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Let the investigation begin... in another adventure.</td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">I ran this online over three sessions. The first two were about three and half hours long and the last was about two hours. 9 hours total with five players. They were playing new characters for this little side adventure from our weekly Ravnica campaign.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><i>Summary</i>: The characters arrive at Candlekeep in the night and are sent to a cellar beneath the inn (which is full). Once there they meet a group of NPCs and explore this hidden portion of the library. In the morning, they awaken to a tune playing in their head non-stop. The NPC in charge seals the cellar after sending out a message for help. She reveals that the tune is an ancient curse that afflicted the library once before. As the curse continues to manifest, NPCs start to lose their minds, violence erupts and something sinister becomes more and more powerful. Eventually the PCs discover source of the curse, and are given a hint or two on how to stop it. The finale is spent trying to finish off the malevolent being Shemshime, and breaking the curse.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">Here are a few things I learned.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><b><br />Shemshime’s Midnight Rhyme</b> is a horror adventure, pure and simple. The mystery portion of the game is actually very limited in scope. To be honest this scenario plays out more like a ride through a house of horrors. The characters sit in their seats and the DM takes them through scare to scare until they get to the finale where their big decision is how to finish Shemshime (if they figure it out). Make this clear to the players. They are not here to solve a mystery. They are here to survive a curse. This should help them focus less on the “why is this happening” to more of “how do we stop it”. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">Tied to this, find out how horrific your players want this to run. You can adjust the horror dials pretty easily on this scenario. If they are hard core horror fans and want more gore and scares, use the NPCs as the punching bags. It is very hard to scare players with character death in D&D 5<sup>th</sup> edition. But if make your NPCs likable and engaging, then hurting them or having them hurt each other can really make things horrifying. I mean you have a child and her father as NPCs. Possessed children make for a great moral quandary, but only if the players are OK with that. <o:p></o:p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf-4nSGEb0ACarkZ1et8fWsoxXQrWaMyqRDTiWEDmYzLorfnO49wUqCoiANb9BGvHVRS2i59cwu1cmaIfugdWgju9BtVJqOtfU2BARI6mHh1xQRDjGKpCYae_kUxNUlGHr9ylNOXohLbCAsgnNFK3Kj5TkOBTBws8aPCn05dNb2yEh-hQl-HA-L4g95w/s698/Gailby.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="592" data-original-width="698" height="271" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf-4nSGEb0ACarkZ1et8fWsoxXQrWaMyqRDTiWEDmYzLorfnO49wUqCoiANb9BGvHVRS2i59cwu1cmaIfugdWgju9BtVJqOtfU2BARI6mHh1xQRDjGKpCYae_kUxNUlGHr9ylNOXohLbCAsgnNFK3Kj5TkOBTBws8aPCn05dNb2yEh-hQl-HA-L4g95w/s320/Gailby.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Isn't little Gailby cute?</td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">You may have a group that doesn’t want to see children come to harm, or isn’t really into gore. Then stick to the atmospheric spooks and scares. Lean into the creeping darkness, and the shadow attacks (even at this level, shadow attacks against physically weak characters can be scary with their strength drain to death ability). Have the floating books and freezing rooms make a bigger punch (maybe even creating condition affects like exhaustion). Create your own mind-bending scares. Suddenly the passages and stairs in the cellar don’t lead to where they are supposed to. Add voices calling to them in the darkness or add ghostly figures of the unfortunates who were killed by the curse before. To paraphrase my players, find out what kind of horror game they are looking for. Are they feeling more like <b>Hocus Pocus</b> or <b>Hellraiser</b>?<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">This adventure has moments that force player characters to attack other players characters, and it can get deadly very quickly. It also takes away player agency and some players <u>hate</u> that. Before running this game, make sure your players are good with this. If they aren’t, then lean into the NPCs, most are weak and can’t really harm the player characters. But if you make the NPCs likable and relatable, your PCs are going to struggle with hurting them, especially knowing they aren’t in control of their bodies. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">This adventure is best when it is kept short and visceral. I don’t think you want this going over two sessions. Break down what <u>needs to</u> happen in the game. Identify your natural breaking points (because they make a good place to stop, or because you can raise tension by pausing there). Then keep an eye on the time as you run. Do your best to hit those stopping points. Remember it is better to have a shorter session in this case. The longer it goes on, the less intense the game becomes.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">Here are the key points I identified and where to break for a two-session game.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Set up – Meet NPCs, explore setting, the curse starts.<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6U2LsPqWdc9EInBDrQrZ3B8DpPOfx5rkCAyeY23d1I0imC-0YmQHQM3X2ovXf-E8VhzpcyuxkH6LcwepS0jewR1LVWHAm2oiNqBPz-hRd_gIGD0kdYYgHBoIWZEVSEhzY2QxIHmZ-ihej7H5_Rq39bemCUFlSmIhctuCj-VqXn7MU7VEee5dYQlVDyA/s744/Shemshime.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="744" data-original-width="490" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6U2LsPqWdc9EInBDrQrZ3B8DpPOfx5rkCAyeY23d1I0imC-0YmQHQM3X2ovXf-E8VhzpcyuxkH6LcwepS0jewR1LVWHAm2oiNqBPz-hRd_gIGD0kdYYgHBoIWZEVSEhzY2QxIHmZ-ihej7H5_Rq39bemCUFlSmIhctuCj-VqXn7MU7VEee5dYQlVDyA/s320/Shemshime.jpg" width="211" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lurking Shemshime</td></tr></tbody></table><br /></li><li>Quarantine – Varnyr’s announcement of the quarantine should happen right before your mid-session break.</li><li>Tension moment – atmospheric scare like books moving, room getting cold or firefly behavior </li><li>Ebder’s Outburst – Characters learn the words to the rhyme</li><li>Tension moment 2 – Shadow attack, finish the battle and describe a downed NPC or strength drained character and <u>end session one.</u></li><li>Singing Skull or Escape Attempt or Puppets – Start the session with <u>one</u> of these. If your players really bonded with K’Tulah, then the Escape Attempt is a solid one. If they want more of a <b>Hocus Pocus</b> style game, the singing skull is perfectly creepy. If they are more of a <b>Hellraiser</b> group, the Puppets scene can be brutally disturbing. Whichever one you start with, keep the other two in your back pocket in case you need to fill in some more game time. But don’t feel like you have to run them. It is more important that they…</li><li>Find the book – Use NPCs or clues to direct your players to the book. Don’t get bogged down here.</li><li>Book fixed – Shemshime appears at the midsession break.</li><li>Planning – Allow them some time to come up with a plan based on the completed rhyme. If needed remind them that the adventure will end with this session. The longer they take to plan, the less time they have to deal with Shemshime.</li><li>Battle – The players attempt to strike back, and adjust plans as needed. </li><li>Epilogue – Either a quick scene of the survivors leaving the cellar and getting the reward – or of the Candlekeep wizards finding the corpses of the player characters and NPCs, and a slow pan over to the book looking innocent in a pool of blood. </li></ul><o:p></o:p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">This scenario features music, which means you really should try to include some kind of audio version of the rhyme. There are a few on YouTube to pick from. My favorite used the lullaby from the film <b>Pan’s Labrynth</b>and shifted the words of the poem slightly to fit. The tune is melancholy and sets a great mood. You can also cobble together a great playlist of music including tracks from the film score, or just play the whole film score to <b>Pan’s Labrynth. </b>This way the background music contains the rhyme as well as having the performed version form YouTube handy. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/GPJ7as-mEs8" width="320" youtube-src-id="GPJ7as-mEs8"></iframe></div><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">Overall keep it fun. It can be tempting to get too dower with horror games. But this scenario isn’t so much a creeping dread story, but a brisk and punchy set of thrills with a terrifying conclusion. When you feel things bogging down too much, throw in another scare. The room gets colder. The books start moving. An NPC suddenly shrieks and runs at a PC with a heavy book. If the players get stuck on how to finish off Shemshime, use the NPCs to guide them, or decide to let whatever idea they did cook up actually work. Remember the “mystery” isn’t the point of this scenario. It is fun scares. If your players end the game frustrated because they didn’t solve the mystery in a satisfactory way then you didn’t set the correct expectations for the game. They should be enjoying the thrill ride, and even if they all get slaughtered by Shemshime, they should end the session laughing and chatting about how awesome the scenario was. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">I learned most of these lessons the hard way. Coming up, <a href="https://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2022/10/game-log-shemshimes-bedtime-rhyme.html">how I ran the game</a> and what I would do differently.<o:p></o:p></p>Roman J. Martelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09545497713474664555noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7889215628007960117.post-824873871386542152021-03-13T06:00:00.001-08:002021-03-13T06:00:09.494-08:00Dragon of Icespire Peak Campaign Diary - Episode 24 - A Rat in the Toe<p> <b>The prep...</b></p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvXzYcFQQVk6dQldME9EH6zwR3BCUyfc0Hf7P975i-ZDwg4dPSPZYfjhLtTmKlhDhjBXDJJ65gys7tcvTPN_O1X75TR8aSm7jQv6cnkIhwjLIahypBBHk19NO1t3AkvPDTTy_1mmf-tFkc/s1270/Mountain%25E2%2580%2599s+Toe+Gold+Mine.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="796" data-original-width="1270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvXzYcFQQVk6dQldME9EH6zwR3BCUyfc0Hf7P975i-ZDwg4dPSPZYfjhLtTmKlhDhjBXDJJ65gys7tcvTPN_O1X75TR8aSm7jQv6cnkIhwjLIahypBBHk19NO1t3AkvPDTTy_1mmf-tFkc/s320/Mountain%25E2%2580%2599s+Toe+Gold+Mine.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Too many rooms, just clip a few.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />So my player decided to handle the escort mission to the mine next. I took some suggestions from <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCC8AgO4FbP11n_WBdFai7DA">Bob Worldbuilder</a> and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/SlyFlourish/featured">Sly Flourish</a> on this adventure. First off, D.J. Raskin was going to have a bit of knowledge about mining and actually know one of the miners real well. This way he could give my player a few hints (like the mine having multiple entrances) if she got stuck. Also, D.J. knowing one of the miners allowed for some drama to occur when he runs into that miner later in the adventure. <p></p><p>So I created a new NPC, Volga Runegrog, a female dwarven miner that Raskin knows pretty well. She is leading the group of survivors at the mine and they are holding the rear entrance to the mine. She is focused on killing all the wererats and taking back the mine. I also threw in a turncoat miner working with the were rats (already becoming one of them) to add some additional drama if I need it.</p><p>I fleshed out Zeleen a bit more, making her greedy for the golden bell at the shrine and trying to get the characters to clear out the area so her gang can take it for themselves. I also removed the carrion crawler with some striges. It feels like it works a bit better in the hidden cave (and fits the environment the player has experienced already. She knows that striges are in the area).</p><p>The final change was to make the mine a bit smaller, with fewer rooms to explore and make it a bit more streamlined for my player to navigate. It will be a nice break from the massive complex of Axeholm, and by removing the empty rooms, I can increase the drama a bit. </p><p><b>The story...</b></p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitCXzDLWQl830UGfjHU20x3VgED7cD1-XyWwhqpSN60gvgkKf1ZnBUXzaWIJI-N9isBXsmZAuZMvONzcEm9CP9P7g_P62xd-yxJ8tltxV8Jx_P64duKyierewQBWIXuRC7P4DExqW5yhEx/s412/DJ+Raskin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="412" data-original-width="337" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitCXzDLWQl830UGfjHU20x3VgED7cD1-XyWwhqpSN60gvgkKf1ZnBUXzaWIJI-N9isBXsmZAuZMvONzcEm9CP9P7g_P62xd-yxJ8tltxV8Jx_P64duKyierewQBWIXuRC7P4DExqW5yhEx/s320/DJ+Raskin.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">About that time ol' DJ showed up.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />After the recap, I made sure the player had everything she needed from Phandalin, and had all her spells selected for the day. She head over to Barthan's and pulled a strange cold idol of Cthullu from the treasure barrel (yes she rolled that from a trinket roll). She paid one gold piece for it and Barthan was happy to see it gone. </p><p>The Druid and Inverna then met up with D.J. Raskin, former adventurer and excited to hear stories of danger and excitement. As they traveled to the mine, I rolled for the dragon... and he turned out to be hunting in the area they were going. So I had them witness Cryovaine attack an orc and ogre hunting party right in front of them. The took cover as they watched the dragon pick up a howling ogre and then drop him from a height. Then swoop down and blast the area with ice. To wrap up the dragon swooped back down, pried up the frozen ogre and flew away toward Icespire Peak. </p><p>After that excitement, the group continued to the mine, and snuck up on it, expecting trouble. Sadly, Inverna didn't do well with the stealth check, and they were discovered by the were rat guards. The guards were in human form, so they didn't immediately draw suspicion from the player. To present less of a threat, the Druid transformed into an fine horse, and pretended to be Raskin's steed. </p><p>After D.J. mentioned that he was there to check on the miners, the guards got a bit cagey and then said they needed to talk to Zeleen. The party followed the guards back into the cave where they met Zaleen (after noticing the secret knock the rat guards used to get the door to the audience chamber opened). </p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsEIO7WOshpaJlxnVl8lav7fDluTT5_lw9C5KdcF3UhZ_qpB_DlXnSVvgX-gens_PWfJQBGuF5vs3dT0LyXcJN5U1dinDbvxkZYj78jTQ0-7VEeZJE0_9A2jjgjccWkBeqqTFvjHPtMEf1/s406/wererat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="406" data-original-width="320" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsEIO7WOshpaJlxnVl8lav7fDluTT5_lw9C5KdcF3UhZ_qpB_DlXnSVvgX-gens_PWfJQBGuF5vs3dT0LyXcJN5U1dinDbvxkZYj78jTQ0-7VEeZJE0_9A2jjgjccWkBeqqTFvjHPtMEf1/s320/wererat.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Where oh where is my wererat?</td></tr></tbody></table><br />This next bit was a bit awkward, since the Druid was in the form of a horse, she couldn't talk. This meant that I had to do some scenes with NPCs talking with each other. Inspired by Bob Worldbuilder's take on the were rat gang, I went full 1940s Noir New York Gangster with the accents, and my player was amused. Zeleen was enchanted with the lovely horse and D.J. chatted with her about where the miners were. I made sure that D.J. collected the information, but didn't make any actual decisions. He kept glancing to Inverna and the horse. Inverna was all about attacking the obviously lying were rats, but the Druid kept her head.</p><p>Zeleen wove a tale of her group finding the miners here all dead or dying. And her group tried to help, but it was too late and they all died. But she would give D.J. a nugget of gold for their trouble. No one was buying that story, so with a bit of prodding and the Druid in horse form acting like she really liked Zeleen's attention, the were rat leader mentioned how they were living at the Shrine of Savras. While they were there this half-orc shaman showed up and was ranting about the end of all who opposed him or something stupid like that. They told him to take a hike, and within a week a group of orcs and ogres showed up and drove her folks away from the shrine. She would be happy to leave the mine if they could go back to the shrine. </p><p>D.J. and Inverna told Zaleen they would like a moment to chat. And Zaleen and her buddies left the room. There were essentially two plans. After learning that the ladies had already been the shrine and taken care of most of its denizens, Raskin suggested they return there, finish off the orcs and then come back with proof for Zaleen and maybe get her group out of here without a fight. Inverna was all for attacking now, surprising them and clearing the mine that way. The Druid was still in horse form, but signaled that Raskin's idea was the one she wanted to try. She had already deduced that Zaleen was a wererat (the player figured it out from my description and remembered the ratty evidence from the shrine earlier in the campaign). She rolled a 24 on history and so she remembered a story that were rats could only be harmed by magic or silver weapons. This swayed her decision to try their luck with the orcs.</p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFvY-mdUT219Ic_m6fly8sK8LBf8NwnzuIBZoBuDWsYJfYx5uxJay6xHw0fD8UvDTTMWmqVc4vxS_my29cCOw0Or1S6MWCpISFf_XgecZ6stI8dkCYo5ZWbv-Y61cnpe461BWkvBa5kikg/s554/Wild+shape%253F.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="554" data-original-width="553" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFvY-mdUT219Ic_m6fly8sK8LBf8NwnzuIBZoBuDWsYJfYx5uxJay6xHw0fD8UvDTTMWmqVc4vxS_my29cCOw0Or1S6MWCpISFf_XgecZ6stI8dkCYo5ZWbv-Y61cnpe461BWkvBa5kikg/s320/Wild+shape%253F.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the dangers of Wildshape.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />Zaleen was delighted by this and wished them luck, then booted them out of the mine. The group did a quick circuit and saw the other two entrances to the mine as well as the dwarven graveyard. D.J. was dishearten to see so many were killed. I asked if they wanted to investigate either entrance further, but stye decided to keep on the path they were on, and continue to the shrine via Coneyberry. The party traveled up to the shrine, with more tales of being shared among the travelers. D.J. thought they were pulling his leg with stories of the lightening boar attack on Falcon's hunting lodge.</p><p>When the party arrived at the Shrine they found more devastation. Earlier in the campaign I rolled for Cryovaine hunting and he attacked the shrine. So here they found more of the walls knocked down, claw damage and bodies of orcs laying scattered around. They also found the impact point of another ogre (probably the one that was high on mushrooms from the previous session). But it was quiet and abandoned.</p><p>Now, I rolled for the dragon again... and got the Shrine again. I didn't say anything imagining that Cryovain was nearby, but not visible (in a copse of trees not too far away). The group explored the shrine again, looking for some kind of proof. But then they hit upon an idea. Zaleen kept mentioning the bell during their conversation. The player remembered that the Rogue had noticed that the bell was not all of one metal, she caught the glint of something gold. So using their Immovable Rod, and some rope Inverna climbed the shrine and scraped at the bell. Sure enough it was made of gold but covered in paint to look another color. Raskin mentioned he had some tools to chip away a bit of the bell to bring back as proof. They thought this would be great.</p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiChINVja1k8Rq8bOJt0jiuxmO1TzIkN6KYu0tiUsm-utQXLlA8WeqE4WK3CzFrkxv_Dr2pVJclxdGnBZA2mn9NNjAhcyWDW_9HKFJOZzO6c6eg4SCitV9t-LdwkufFX6yE6uzq2ZY_wemc/s494/White+dragon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="392" data-original-width="494" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiChINVja1k8Rq8bOJt0jiuxmO1TzIkN6KYu0tiUsm-utQXLlA8WeqE4WK3CzFrkxv_Dr2pVJclxdGnBZA2mn9NNjAhcyWDW_9HKFJOZzO6c6eg4SCitV9t-LdwkufFX6yE6uzq2ZY_wemc/s320/White+dragon.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Oh man, I wasn't expecting this.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />So all three of them were there on top of the shrine as Raskin started working, and with his tools, he made the bell ring as he tried to pry a chunk off. The noise woke the dragon.</p><p>I took a page from Professor Dungeonmaster over at Dungeoncraft, and used a Timer. I rolled a D4 and it landed on 4. I told the player that the dragon would arrive at the shrine in four turns! I determined who had the highest dex and they would act first. It was The Druid, followed by Inverna, followed by Raskin. </p><p>What followed was a great sequence as the Druid used <b>Misty Step </b>to move down from the shrine, got inside and remembered the illusion trap in the alter room. She hurried to it, hoping the illusion would work on a dragon. Since she knew it was there, she got advantage on her wisdom save and was able to enter the room. Invera and Raskin followed (with the chunk of bell pulled free). They left the rope behind but there was nothing for it. They all made it inside the alter room just as Cryovaine landed on the belfry.</p><p>His booming voice echoed all around them, taunting them. "You rang the bell to play. I want to play. Come out." I also borrowed from <b>Jurassic Park</b> having him tap one of his claws impatiently against the stone. This quickly became his tick.</p><p>The player was at a loss. She was looking through her gear, Inverna's gear and asking what Raskin had on him. I described how Raskin was terrified and not looking like he'd be much help. Inverna was ready to fight the dragon now! The whole time Cryovain is taunting them, asking why they are hiding and clicking his claw. He landed on the ground, attempting to sniff them out.</p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxACXDjHF7kQqQhtugjK3XWDh5nMbcLOC0eP6N0P7Mkk6nn7OSDk-A2I8GZsTdpYr-lU2OFXcvg6zEaSso118d8FOw_1qGTvDFHM8QvZoR0I9gZsaHBjcGOBb8tBDOkHit6ISmgrSvWhTF/s543/Moonbeam+.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="543" data-original-width="426" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxACXDjHF7kQqQhtugjK3XWDh5nMbcLOC0eP6N0P7Mkk6nn7OSDk-A2I8GZsTdpYr-lU2OFXcvg6zEaSso118d8FOw_1qGTvDFHM8QvZoR0I9gZsaHBjcGOBb8tBDOkHit6ISmgrSvWhTF/s320/Moonbeam+.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Moonbeam for fun and profit.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />Then the Druid found something in her spell list. <b>Moonbeam</b> doesn't require her to see the target. She asked if she could make a perception check to determine where the dragon was, and then cast Moonbeam on him. That sounded reasonable (Cryovaine wasn't attempting to be quiet). She rolled great on perception and knew exactly where he was. Then she unleashed Moonbeam casting it one level higher to get the damage boost.</p><p>Now it was already night when this happened, so the moon was out. I described how the light of the moon concentrated and them struck the dragon. He rolled very high for his Constitution save, but he still took some damage. I rolled an Intelligence check for Cryovaine to determine if he understood that a spell was cast on him. He rolled a 2... so he had no clue. In his mind, the moon was attacking him for no reason.</p><p>I had him start shouting in draconic, confused and outraged by this offense. He flew up and landed on the belfry again, yelling at the moon. The Druid just moved the beam back onto him. This time he failed his Constitution save and took a large amount of damage - over 20. Cryovaine cried out in pain, surprised and disturbed by this turn of events. He took to the skies, still shouting at the moon and demanding to know why it betrayed him.</p><p>The characters all let out their held breath. D.J. commented that he was going to ask for a transfer out of this crazy place as soon as possible. Inverna cheered the Druid's skills and ingenuity. But the Druid was troubled. That was a dangerously close scrape... how would they deal with Cryovaine when the time came? Did they even have a hope? And that is where we wrapped for the night.</p><p><b>The post...</b></p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_c27YWU4foX7kUnWgjh3yCpljar5er4Bowf0zf3x-B8Cbs5iqxUwDh1lKTwc-A4W9IluN61Amyim0wawW_dPbK8wAVNsqpcfiZM7oSs6tshtwSE_zgtz4YQiW3QQH_mv4RRu03POfeVHg/s604/Shrine+time.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="604" data-original-width="457" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_c27YWU4foX7kUnWgjh3yCpljar5er4Bowf0zf3x-B8Cbs5iqxUwDh1lKTwc-A4W9IluN61Amyim0wawW_dPbK8wAVNsqpcfiZM7oSs6tshtwSE_zgtz4YQiW3QQH_mv4RRu03POfeVHg/s320/Shrine+time.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shrines are just trouble.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />The session started off fine. Heavy role-play with Raskin chatting up his new friends, and then interacting with the were rats. It was fun to have Zeleen become a horse lovin' girl the moment she put eyes on the magnificent "beast". It was also fun seeing my player put together the pieces of the story to realize that the were rats were at the Shrine of Savras originally. </p><p>But I will say the dragon rolls for this session are what made it work. Having Cryovain attack an orc party in front of the player at the start was a stroke of luck. Great foreshadowing that he was hunting in the area. So when he appeared at the end, it felt natural. </p><p>It was great to have the player actually come in direct contact with Cryovaine. I played up his mocking attitude and impatience. I think the player started to hate him just a little bit there. The Timer of the D4 worked great. It felt like it really drove the tension of the dragon coming for them. It would have been crazy if I had rolled a 1, I'm imagining characters jumping down and taking some kind of fall damage. </p><p>But my player is really worried about battling the dragon. Seeing him hunt by picking up and dropping his enemies, and seeing the damage from his attacks close up has really brought it home how dangerous he is. She doesn't have any ranged weapons to really fight him with, but there may be another way.</p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWRK0MMMP2E6hdTiuhAywJnMYnzKRWWo1EBZRlhATj0v6QGQbFgjINOBvlM9mUcTBn449p3owm74mkFHQdkw4ETezGmdSgDKm3BHsnDKmzw9PKog2jhLkpuyTD7CKqXK692lbmGsWMzsQ6/s748/smug.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="748" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWRK0MMMP2E6hdTiuhAywJnMYnzKRWWo1EBZRlhATj0v6QGQbFgjINOBvlM9mUcTBn449p3owm74mkFHQdkw4ETezGmdSgDKm3BHsnDKmzw9PKog2jhLkpuyTD7CKqXK692lbmGsWMzsQ6/s320/smug.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Smug white dragon?</td></tr></tbody></table><br />I know my player, and she likes to have a plan. At this point, she feels like she doesn't have the knowledge to make a plan. So maybe the treasure at the Dragon's Barrow isn't another magic weapon - but knowledge of dragons. Maybe there is another way to impair Cryovaine that will tie directly into her methods as a druid.</p><p>She also mentioned that if they could drive him away, that could be an option. I agree. And then I thought of something else. I'm currently reading <b>The Tyranny of Dragons</b> campaign adventure. Maybe I could introduce the dragon cultists from that adventure - and they could help in getting rid of Cryovaine - for a price. More pondering...</p><p>I may be going off book for this finale, but I think it may work best for my player. All that said, we had a good time with this session. I'm very curious to see what she comes up with for the next session, and if they find the dwarven miner's holed up on the other side of the mine.</p><p><b>Up Next...</b></p><p>A miner problem.</p><p><br /></p>Roman J. Martelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09545497713474664555noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7889215628007960117.post-6473199651567257342021-03-07T06:00:00.000-08:002021-03-07T07:11:09.827-08:00The Timer - Dungeon Master Tools<p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBRrVZXOZXcaknei11TTBq7Ylv0gkBcaSeA3qaVNgYvCUpABah2Z1UGbfQC732G1iUoSROsjtNk14IQ5Lb-Br3JDg1SXZNbAAtsI0wHNMMiWmHNapIFhDSUSDDHDd1TOFNuvyD_IjI2QGs/s818/Ghost+ship.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="777" data-original-width="818" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBRrVZXOZXcaknei11TTBq7Ylv0gkBcaSeA3qaVNgYvCUpABah2Z1UGbfQC732G1iUoSROsjtNk14IQ5Lb-Br3JDg1SXZNbAAtsI0wHNMMiWmHNapIFhDSUSDDHDd1TOFNuvyD_IjI2QGs/s320/Ghost+ship.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looks harmless, right?</td></tr></tbody></table><br /> So I've seen a few recommendations about using a timer during a session before, but I've never tried it. Professor Dungeon Master over at <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCD6ERRdXrF2IZ0R888G8PQg">Dungeoncraft</a> swears by them. I recently had a chance to use one while running the adventure <b>Salvage Operation</b> from the <b>Ghost of Saltmarsh</b> adventure book. Guess what, it worked great. It drove up the tension of the finale sequence to impressive levels. I'm certainly going to look to add this to future set piece encounters.<p></p><p>Now you could use an actual timer counting down seconds until something happens. But the timer in <b>Salvage Operation</b> is built right into the encounter. So lets set the scene here. The characters enter a ship floating abandoned on the high seas. They are looking for a heavy box that requires two characters to move. It is at the bottom of the ship. So the characters search the ship, encounter traps and monsters along the way. When the reach the bottom, the hold is partially flooded, but the box is there. </p><p>The moment one of the characters touches the box, all hell breaks loose. A giant octopus attacks the ship and tries to tear it apart. The adventure then breaks down what occurs in the environment round by round. First, tentacles explode into the hull hitting some characters. Next round the ship shifts throwing some of them around. Next round the ship starts to sink. The whole time more tentacles are smashing throughs he hull. The characters are trying to escape and two of them are lugging that heavy box around with them (need to keep it in hand if they want to get paid). Any monsters left on board are trying to escape. And the rowboats out in the water attempt to get closer to save the characters. Each round things get worse as the ship continues to sink and level by level gets flooded with sea water. </p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiutwGSWLZSa88yq_4reMD44UF1GXrj7lPvnJfB9NjZGnANioscuOBNWjaa_yZJ44eCREJjxGWXW3RauX0_k6JMlBY2Z7yxklq7qp9XjWnnf2YUS0-_4P8SZz0fBER2Obph8TFhDk6V1MDt/s492/Indy+trap.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="439" data-original-width="492" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiutwGSWLZSa88yq_4reMD44UF1GXrj7lPvnJfB9NjZGnANioscuOBNWjaa_yZJ44eCREJjxGWXW3RauX0_k6JMlBY2Z7yxklq7qp9XjWnnf2YUS0-_4P8SZz0fBER2Obph8TFhDk6V1MDt/s320/Indy+trap.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"There are going to be two dead people in here!"</td></tr></tbody></table><br />Now this set up is pretty complicated with lots of moving parts (literally and figuratively). But you can keep it simple. There is that scene in <b>Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom</b> where Indy and Short Round are trapped in the room with the ceiling and spikes closing in on them. Round by round it gets more frantic as they try different things to get out. Meanwhile Willy is outside of the trap attempting to help. You could easily capture this moment in D&D, with plenty of different elements to keep all the characters engaged in the danger.</p><p>Now I wouldn't abuse these timers. I would keep them for key moments in an adventure where it is important to drive up tension or increase the sense of danger. Using these constantly can take away some of the fun they add. </p><p>Dungeons are the obvious place to use them, since you control so much of the environment, and the creatures. But as you can see in <b>Salvage Operation</b> you can do this just about anywhere. </p><p>So the first thing you need to consider is how many rounds you want this to take. The fewer rounds, the more intense the situation. Professor Dungeon Master often rolls a four sided dice and the result is how many rounds will pass before something happens. I used this in a different adventure. A dragon was heading toward the characters and I rolled a D4 to determine how far away he was. I rolled a 4 and the characters scrambled to get off the roof of the shrine and inside before the dragon arrived. That was a blast.</p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5XReHArByuuOyKW2RKCCTw9Jr2ETtBCj_Tn5dLmvSigDwrr4j2bmOC6V99cjvdzVsn5kP30xTcG6DdicT-byQpKZrqiZzQlzerB4wcyEL2rVnJdmnuwWUurZePK0UPXtyyOLAWggpqc39/s768/Octo+attack.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="515" data-original-width="768" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5XReHArByuuOyKW2RKCCTw9Jr2ETtBCj_Tn5dLmvSigDwrr4j2bmOC6V99cjvdzVsn5kP30xTcG6DdicT-byQpKZrqiZzQlzerB4wcyEL2rVnJdmnuwWUurZePK0UPXtyyOLAWggpqc39/s320/Octo+attack.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"I did not sign up for this!"</td></tr></tbody></table><br />But you can be a bit more structured like <b>Salvage Operation</b> was with each round describing how the stakes got higher and higher with each round. And that can be important, you want each round to get more and more intense. So you can stretch out the danger. You may even want to put a single round where nothing new happens just to give the players a moment to catch up. <b>Salvage Operation</b> has the octopus constantly bombarding the ship, but if the characters attack the tentacles and do enough damage, the octopus stops for a round.<p></p><p> Last you want to make sure you don't remove choices from your players. You can use the round by round structure as a guide, but if you players figure out a clever way to get around some of the obstacles, then let them do it. The object is to create tension, not railroad the players.</p><p>So using timers is a great way to increase the stakes in an encounter or sequence. Try working one into one of your dungeons or set piece encounters the next time you are prepping for the game.</p>Roman J. Martelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09545497713474664555noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7889215628007960117.post-90175864621450423552021-02-18T06:00:00.001-08:002021-02-18T06:00:00.843-08:00Dragon of Icespire Peak Campaign Diary - Episode 23 - The Haunting of Axeholm<p><b> The prep...</b></p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKFzF0n3xquNZdCGsT64KIEN3NmMbcXbgRmvHj-hIvQG3oOrXX3tOS52P33KiuXTLgIaUZ4p_aziZfQz7Qw2U7kgpEGa36Sl8073QcCYI8evYRe-AkavG_Inj86YyWKNofpGfBqiV3G_Bo/s454/The+Banshee+comes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="454" data-original-width="386" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKFzF0n3xquNZdCGsT64KIEN3NmMbcXbgRmvHj-hIvQG3oOrXX3tOS52P33KiuXTLgIaUZ4p_aziZfQz7Qw2U7kgpEGa36Sl8073QcCYI8evYRe-AkavG_Inj86YyWKNofpGfBqiV3G_Bo/s320/The+Banshee+comes.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Oh man, better plug your ears!</td></tr></tbody></table><br />So I had most of Axeholm prepped from the last session. One thing I wanted to build up in this session was the banshee. I decided to have her moving around upstairs and causing her ghostly light to be visible from the balcony below. I was going to start the session with the characters seeing that before they open the doors to the throne room.</p><p>I also took some time to clarify ghoul paralysis with the players, so they understood that I caused Inverna to be held in error last time. </p><p>The final change came from <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCC8AgO4FbP11n_WBdFai7DA">Bob Worldbuilder</a>'s YouTube channel about running this very adventure. I loved his idea of having the ghoul Castilian wielding a magic axe that the characters can use later. This will be especially important if things go badly at the Gold Toe Mine adventure. The Druid has the shillelagh cantrip already, and that will give her staff magical abilities. But Inverna doesn't have anything magical. So this magic axe would be a good fit for this sidekick.</p><p>That was about all the additional elements I needed to add, but I went through the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsvUHa1A3lfloZqVxNd5uWw">Lazy Dungeonmaster</a>'s checklist one more time, reread my notes on the rooms the party hadn't explored yet, and then got ready to play.</p><p><b>The story...</b></p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiju1DDAau9Os_7AytTwBZ6WJ65pBVKg_UedpTUsKKT9yojhih9A2p4L1oQyEFI4Cj7gCousLwbFnoksJhBrjMJLqlRIv0_qWwGOgbBV8mIxnabEyzjG9yO_Vlm16XGYrKNe-QYGFjFDmwk/s373/Ghost%253F.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="370" data-original-width="373" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiju1DDAau9Os_7AytTwBZ6WJ65pBVKg_UedpTUsKKT9yojhih9A2p4L1oQyEFI4Cj7gCousLwbFnoksJhBrjMJLqlRIv0_qWwGOgbBV8mIxnabEyzjG9yO_Vlm16XGYrKNe-QYGFjFDmwk/s320/Ghost%253F.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm sure that's nothing... or no one.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />The Druid and Inverna were in front of the door to the throne room and about to proceed ahead, but noticed some flickering light from high above them... not fire light. Intrigued, they tried to get a better view of the light source, it was coming from the balcony, or behind it. The light was pale and bluish, and the player remembered Harbin mentioning the haunting (as well at the rattling shield they encountered when they first entered the fortress).</p><p>This lead to a bit of a sidetrack as the pair retraced their steps back up to the second floor and tried to find a way over to the balcony, or at least a better vantage point to see the light source. There were unable to do much, except see that the light appeared to be pulsing because it was moving back and forth by a doorway behind the balcony. A collapsed corridor prevented them from moving around to the balcony from where they had currently explored. The player decided to find a different way up there... through the throne room.</p><p>So the pair went back down and cautiously entered the throne room. I reminded them about light sources, and how dark it was inside. Inside the throne room they found the dwarf Castilian sitting on the throne. I had his decaying body holding the shimmering axe, seemingly untouched by dust. The Druid rolled a very high perception check and noticed his signet ring as well, and figured that was an important item.</p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJet_c5agJIj-nLFqAI1sLrdihjR3eVqt9CyPRaEBpmiRZGfyLAxU-R62ZTtigKDa0-21noR24B-vjYOgGfG46DWFJx6EwPAc76L1qWGp-D6U2hAYei70DF3zI5H5N5PcQbUXnZqL4Lm5Z/s313/Magic+ax.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="313" data-original-width="247" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJet_c5agJIj-nLFqAI1sLrdihjR3eVqt9CyPRaEBpmiRZGfyLAxU-R62ZTtigKDa0-21noR24B-vjYOgGfG46DWFJx6EwPAc76L1qWGp-D6U2hAYei70DF3zI5H5N5PcQbUXnZqL4Lm5Z/s0/Magic+ax.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Magic axe for all your <br />dragon slaying needs.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />The pair was super cautious, because this is obviously some kind of trap. As they neared the figure on the throne, the Druid used her collapsing pole to tap the axe free from a distance... and the ghoul sprung to life, enraged by their effrontery. Inverna went in close and the Druid cast spells from a distance, and the pair was making short work of him. But he let out a howl of rage, and there was movement from the chimney. It worked to keep the druid busy casting <b>Entangle</b> in front of the chimney just as other ghouls started to emerge. This kept things manageable for the party. Inverna took down the Castillian, and then hurried to the Druid to help finish off the other ghouls, three in total. A couple ended up breaking free from the engagement, and get some hits in on the Druid, but it was a pretty swift battle over all.</p><p>The duo took some time for a short rest before moving on to continue exploring the vast complex. They eventually reached a stairway where they could see the moving blue light again. Moving as quietly as possible they crept of the stairs and saw the shimmering shape of a woman moving up and down the hallway. The pair decided to time their move into an adjacent hallway so the figure wasn't facing them. They had some great stealth rolls and succeeded.</p><p>The explored the rooms, finding a luxuriously appointed chamber with elven style paintings and women's clothing. Then they found the Castillian's chamber. And here I screwed up. Because once again the <i>player's version </i>of the map in <b>D&D Beyond</b> shows the secret chamber in the chimney. My player saw it and pointed it out... well too late for me to hide it now. She found the secret brick and opened the chamber with the treasure chest. She had retrieved the signet ring from the Castillian and used it to open the chest and found a necklace of elven design in there, along with the magic items.</p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeR9d8y2L27e9fuOWovl20fZsFFQK0F_Uo039YIi_XKrIg8qJ0ijR7pMQmm6uOJdn8GnRBI0r5roVz4TYbrErpVqBnYpHjALNmHhDIBxZqfLfHu18zBMMruVnhsKQ4l30oyCgEbvtm2Y96/s410/Elf+ghost.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="410" data-original-width="265" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeR9d8y2L27e9fuOWovl20fZsFFQK0F_Uo039YIi_XKrIg8qJ0ijR7pMQmm6uOJdn8GnRBI0r5roVz4TYbrErpVqBnYpHjALNmHhDIBxZqfLfHu18zBMMruVnhsKQ4l30oyCgEbvtm2Y96/s320/Elf+ghost.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">She has a quest for you.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />This whole time I kept mentioning how the glowing light would come closer and move away. And would ask for stealth rolls from time to time. Eventually Inverna botched one and the banshee entered the room.</p><p>The party didn't attack. The banshee told them to leave, but stopped short realizing they were elves, and that maybe they were servants sent to help her. The Druid played into this a little bit, asking what was wrong with "the lady". The banshee lamented that she was trapped in this place, and couldn't leave until her amulet was returned and her enemies were destroyed. The Druid handed the necklace of elven design to the banshee, and she was delighted. She was even more pleased to hear that the ghoulish Castilian was dead.</p><p>Still the banshee felt the presence of two more of "those horrid little dwarves" and told the characters to finish them off. So the Druid and Inverna continued to search Axeholm to find that last two ghouls. Once they did, the pair made quick work of them and returned to the banshee. She thanked them for their help and then vanished into the gloom, leaving the amulet behind. Of course it was a magic amulet, now imbued with the power to cast <b>Bless</b> once. A powerful tool that may come in handy.</p><p>With the ancient castle cleared of enemies the ladies left for Phadalin, stopping at Umbrage Hill to pick up some more healing potions and share some tea with their old alchemist friend, who mentioned seeing the manticore and his mate flying by, and the male still wearing the silly white glove on his head.</p><p>The two got paid and of course got to level up as well! </p><p><b>The post...</b></p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihfzYh3LgRzcaLokQO8sNTYhWrFqU-ueEGlwWxfkSwXzm5TygmnM-JLFw8ymgonuKAtUCF4I_A1m0s2DL3KucAz3ml-_95Cyil76BqgbanRq-aQ8UI4WzTEvCW57E3g35jf6YPAhlZeClC/s393/haunted+castle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="273" data-original-width="393" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihfzYh3LgRzcaLokQO8sNTYhWrFqU-ueEGlwWxfkSwXzm5TygmnM-JLFw8ymgonuKAtUCF4I_A1m0s2DL3KucAz3ml-_95Cyil76BqgbanRq-aQ8UI4WzTEvCW57E3g35jf6YPAhlZeClC/s320/haunted+castle.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It is not haunted, it's previously owned.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />I enjoyed this session in Axeholm a little more than the previous version. The combat with the Castilian was pretty intense and the interaction with the banshee made it feel a bit more dynamic. I will say that having the secret room show up on the player's map was unfortunate and made the search for the amulet too easy. So the resolution to the banshee encounter felt a bit anticlimactic. </p><p>That said, I liked that the banshee had a bit more of a personality and that her story got told through the encounter. It made her a bit more like a Ghost as opposed to a banshee according to the rules as written, but I know my player enjoyed that element more than a straight up fight against the creature.</p><p>I'm planning on having Inverna pick up some better armor (now that she has some serious coin) and she should be ready for adventure with her new magic axe. The Druid is also excited for her new spells and getting to test them out. Looking forward to the next session for sure.</p><p><b>Up Next...</b></p><p>A Rat in the Toe</p>Roman J. Martelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09545497713474664555noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7889215628007960117.post-61229381736714590312021-02-11T06:00:00.053-08:002021-02-12T09:38:45.891-08:00The Initiative Problem - Dungeon Master Tools<p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfOm2EW2c9U02Cyk3sEoai5CEACunTx-C651N3Wa-kQjK9LQr_RtFqnvoVPGjjoru0TJuOfFnaP9RcwNWz4W1yFVZPyX0ckjScyt1b-OL39yIIqVsy8F9lQRPF7oOsTOhgydSn8O4KRtmX/s376/Rogers+Roll.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="376" data-original-width="337" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfOm2EW2c9U02Cyk3sEoai5CEACunTx-C651N3Wa-kQjK9LQr_RtFqnvoVPGjjoru0TJuOfFnaP9RcwNWz4W1yFVZPyX0ckjScyt1b-OL39yIIqVsy8F9lQRPF7oOsTOhgydSn8O4KRtmX/s320/Rogers+Roll.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And he's running the old school rules too!<br />We're doomed!</td></tr></tbody></table><br /> "Roll for initiative." It's become a meme. It means that it is time for the characters to throw down with some monsters. It means, everything just got more serious.</p><p>It also means the game comes to a screeching halt as everyone at the table rolls dice, adds modifiers and the DM tries to put everyone in turn order, display that turn order, and correct any errors that may come up. After all that, you can start the battle. With a group of new players or large group this can take 5 minutes or more. It feels like an element of the game that could be improved.</p><p><b>Keeping Initiative</b></p><p>So let's work within the rules.</p><p>Only roll <b>once</b> for each creature type. So if the group is being attacked by 4 mephitis, 2 giant centipedes and a water weird, you are only making three rolls instead of seven. It will be MUCH easier for you to track, especially if you run theater of the mind style. </p><p>Here is one of my biggest time saver suggestions. Take some time during session prep to roll initiative for all the monsters and NPCs that may be involved in the battle. I will include Sidekicks, Retainers, and Henchmen if we are using them. Then when it comes time for the game, no one has to wait for me to roll for all these other characters.</p><p>I also use a spreadsheet with the character's names in one column. I plug in their initiative rolls in the column next to it. If I pre-rolled for the monsters, I'll add them in the same way, and then I'll sort the rolls highest to lowest. This is also a great way to track monster armor class, passive perception and hit points, so I have that key information at a glance.</p><p><b>Alternative Initiative</b></p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbh_2Hfe-13pjjlmowezzEeJsJmrEHgezbaqFNyai0jDV2_OF8W959zAB41qp7AwH7UXJV5BYsela0MALUPCDI4VkfY5lZNtRuUWkDNnUkVZzyMVmbfHoulZ6BUsGjduYNEu9UFuuVmrT5/s427/Hit+2nd.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="359" data-original-width="427" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbh_2Hfe-13pjjlmowezzEeJsJmrEHgezbaqFNyai0jDV2_OF8W959zAB41qp7AwH7UXJV5BYsela0MALUPCDI4VkfY5lZNtRuUWkDNnUkVZzyMVmbfHoulZ6BUsGjduYNEu9UFuuVmrT5/s320/Hit+2nd.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Still love saying "Roll for initiative" but hate all the book keeping and organizing? You can still have the players roll, but keep it simple. Have all of them roll a single 20 sided die, and the highest roll is what the group takes. Or they take turns throughout the session, and just keep track of who last rolled. This can lead to them planning a group what they want to do (don't give them too much time, they are under attack), and lead to some interesting cooperative combats.</p><p>Or use the dexterity score as the initiative score for the characters and monsters. This way the players know who is going in what order, and the only question is what the monsters will do. This allows for some planning by the party ahead of time. "We know the monk is going to move first, so let her get into position behind the orc and do some damage. Then the rogue goes next, attacking the same target and getting sweet Sneak Attack damage, oh and we are using flanking rules too, so the Rogue attacks at Advantage!" </p><p><b>Conclusion</b></p><p>While I enjoy the variety that rolling initiative creates during combat, I'm coming around more and more to something faster and gets us into combat with minimum fiddling. My spreadsheet is super helpful in my online games, but I also like the simplicity of just letting the fastest character move first. It will be something to try out in a one-shot for sure.</p><p>What tricks do you use to speed up the initiative process, or do you have an alternate style you use that works great at your table? </p>Roman J. Martelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09545497713474664555noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7889215628007960117.post-36155912553108386762021-02-01T07:33:00.004-08:002021-02-11T08:23:38.499-08:00Schools of Magic - Dungeon Master Tools<p> </p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXiJfCiPur42OtW-1gutJHrp0L9eoauUKXAAqoOcyn6r7rraKIZDLRcXVcmjvzV4Nv4W_7IaUbpZNoCLy3TyF8ikIAUFGTXkFUM8P3xPTh051wTAUSNJr8oqO1Gr4BxMtRqII7p3uPO4T4/s390/caster.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="390" data-original-width="252" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXiJfCiPur42OtW-1gutJHrp0L9eoauUKXAAqoOcyn6r7rraKIZDLRcXVcmjvzV4Nv4W_7IaUbpZNoCLy3TyF8ikIAUFGTXkFUM8P3xPTh051wTAUSNJr8oqO1Gr4BxMtRqII7p3uPO4T4/s320/caster.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Quick, guess the school!</td></tr></tbody></table><br />Here is a Dungeon Master tool that you'll want if you have a wizard in the party... or anyone with the spell <b>Detect Magic</b> on them. This spell allows the caster to detect if an item is magical or has a spell cast upon it. But it also allows the user to determine the school of magic (if any). <p></p><p>Yeah, the school of magic. Now, typing "school of magic" into D&D beyond will yield all kinds of results, but none of them are actual lists of the school of magic. And for some reason this information is not included on the DM screens. Instead this information can be found in the <b>Player's Handbook</b> in the <b>Spellcasting </b>chapter in a callout box in the <i>Attack Rolls</i> section. I still have no idea why.</p><p>There are eight schools of magic in Dungeons and Dragons (but a DM can create their own to add or replace if they wish). Most players who use spell casters do have a knowledge of the eight schools, because that can impact their spell selection depending on what class they are. Your players will probably expect to hear the names of one of these schools when they cast this spell.</p><p>So you need a copy of that list somewhere behind your DM Screen. I use One Note to run my games, and I have a tab for rules and reminders - this list is in there and I can access it easily. If you are running a physical game without electronics, then maybe just print it out and post it on the screen somewhere.</p><p>This information isn't just handy for the <b>Detect Magic</b> spell, but also if you need to describe something magical in game, or have a theme for spell types - like enchantment spells always glow blue when cast. In time (like a lot of these helpful reminders) you may end up with these schools memorized, but it doesn't hurt to have the list in a handy place, when the occasion arises.</p><p><br /></p><p><b>Schools of Magic</b></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Abjuration - spells of a protective nature </li><li>Conjuration - spells move objects and creatures from one location to another</li><li>Divination - spells that reveal information</li><li>Enchantment - spells that impact the minds of others</li><li>Evocation - manipulation of magical energy aka damage dealers aka fireball</li><li>Illusion - spells to deceive the minds and senses of others</li><li>Necromancy - manipulates the energies of life and death</li><li>Transmutation - change the properties of a creature, object or environment</li></ul><br /><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigb98E1FVHJXQoUALbei6yIh6gIZ8xYcbhdOKqbtU9Bvv46-8VpcFSSSAQif4tEjo-8Fl5Ze-p8MpFMBmAoJYprTJP8kHXXuC-03lw2LyrDasOeYCVRbcO3E2QVBxXcfoX03INwpPA9jR7/s817/Evocation.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="550" data-original-width="817" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigb98E1FVHJXQoUALbei6yIh6gIZ8xYcbhdOKqbtU9Bvv46-8VpcFSSSAQif4tEjo-8Fl5Ze-p8MpFMBmAoJYprTJP8kHXXuC-03lw2LyrDasOeYCVRbcO3E2QVBxXcfoX03INwpPA9jR7/s320/Evocation.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Evocation for the WIN!</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><br /></p>Roman J. Martelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09545497713474664555noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7889215628007960117.post-56248243724107101662021-02-01T06:00:00.004-08:002023-11-19T08:38:56.820-08:00Dungeon Master Tools<p> I'm going plunk down my articles about Dungeon Master Tools, so they are all in place and can be accessed easily by anyone that is looking for some advice on running the game. Hopefully you find these worthwhile.</p><p><br /></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><a href="http://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2020/02/dont-mephit-up-low-level-elemental.html">Low Level Elemental Enemies</a> -Tired of goblins and kobolds at 1st level?</li><li><a href="http://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2020/03/whats-in-name-name-list-dungeonmaster.html">Name List</a> - For when the players ask that random NPC a question</li><li><a href="http://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2020/03/5-things-i-learned-being-dungeon-master.html">5 Things I Learned Running the Game</a> - Lessons for the DM</li><li><a href="http://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2020/03/athletics-or-acrobatics-dungeon-master.html">Athletics or Acrobatics </a>- When to roll for each of these physical skills</li><li><a href="http://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2020/04/perception-or-investigation-dungeon.html">Perception or Investigation</a> - When to roll for each of these mental skills</li><li><a href="http://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2021/02/schools-of-magic-dungeon-master-tools.html">Schools of Magic</a> - Have these handy for player questions</li><li><a href="http://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2021/02/the-initiative-problem-dungeon-master.html">Initiative and Improving It</a> - Is rolling for initiative slowing down the game? Try these tips.</li><li><a href="https://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2021/03/the-timer-dungeon-master-tools.html">The Timer </a>- Driving up the stakes with a time limit to complete an encounter</li><li><a href="http://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2023/11/know-your-system-dungeon-master-tools.html">Know Your System</a> - What is D&D 5th Edition good at</li><li><a href="http://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2023/11/homebrew-your-5th-edition-setting.html">Homebrew Your 5th Edition Setting</a> - Hints for 5th edition campaign setting creation</li></ul><p></p>Roman J. Martelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09545497713474664555noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7889215628007960117.post-28401996076421178422021-01-25T06:00:00.002-08:002021-02-18T07:53:37.648-08:00Dragon of IceSpire Peak Campaign Diary - Episode 22 - Stinky Fortress<p><b>The prep...</b></p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJVJ7jXRfW1AeV6rgfv7MH7y3z6FwEC9nRXkUyEJFTEFlCqn6Q990B3LU2SVI79DJnxWCTOMBjFJbNiDOnxb29vib9QOg8U8HYJwrLdno6gRqDUfa0GOCP04OdkbWg2G_KoiB4DoHZSrzc/s624/Axeholm.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="389" data-original-width="624" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJVJ7jXRfW1AeV6rgfv7MH7y3z6FwEC9nRXkUyEJFTEFlCqn6Q990B3LU2SVI79DJnxWCTOMBjFJbNiDOnxb29vib9QOg8U8HYJwrLdno6gRqDUfa0GOCP04OdkbWg2G_KoiB4DoHZSrzc/s320/Axeholm.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lots of adventure potential in here.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />I vaguely remember the Axeholm adventure from when I read it last year. I specifically remembered the banshee haunting the upper floor. I thought there were other undead creatures, but I couldn't remember for sure. So I pulled out the book to review the location and damn! This place is huge, containing lots of empty rooms and when you do run into monsters, they nearly all have the power to paralyze the characters. OK, this will be challenging.<p></p><p>I did like how part of the challenge was getting inside the building. I knew my player had a few tricks up her sleeve, but I was curious to see what she would come up with.</p><p>Once again, I took the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/DungeonDudes/featured">Dungeon Dudes</a> advice and printed out a copy of the Axeholm map, and then made notes on the same paper. This place had so many rooms, it forced me to write very small, but I focused on keeping my horrible handwriting legible. I made note of the treasure and monsters, but there was an element I wasn't fond of.</p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw3a3RjPVKX23e9mjp1WmCDhM2lJnD_xqjlTuCLK3UxNBcBhwmIQNf-5mO8OOcuiBeoCBvbkWHsgHe1BAwOPx-HHEupgLTyY0AlthCOX-1muF6Bdp62ic-7ByhVCjeu8q-aH6xai4uLGxd/s104/Don%2527t+move.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="104" data-original-width="84" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw3a3RjPVKX23e9mjp1WmCDhM2lJnD_xqjlTuCLK3UxNBcBhwmIQNf-5mO8OOcuiBeoCBvbkWHsgHe1BAwOPx-HHEupgLTyY0AlthCOX-1muF6Bdp62ic-7ByhVCjeu8q-aH6xai4uLGxd/w161-h200/Don%2527t+move.jpg" width="161" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You can try to <br />escape... but no.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />According to the module, the banshee must be fought to the death. In addition there is an interesting story of how the elf that turned into the banshee was imprisoned here. I guess some my come out in dialogue with the banshee, but the way the encounter is set up the characters aren't going to hear it. Now if my player brings along Inverna again (and I think she will since that is her favorite of the companion sidekicks) then we will have two female elves that I think the banshee may want to communicate with. <p></p><p>So I decided to include another element to the haunting, one where the characters don't have to kill the banshee to end the haunting and get something cool out of it if they follow this path. Besides my player is a big fan of scary movies, ghost stories and spooky podcasts. She will love the challenge of solving the mystery to help a ghost. Luckily I don't have to change too much. </p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwpqmoHlUIQg1pZjt4YArV9AYNWmHcRiY1maoxviFNhunY3wGCtkO_C_DORTbTCF72p6hiEhJzIKCHJ4q5SMHOs4ztJpH-0Wa9Z8S1UrCQtqZFlWHXTXoc0ywuOgcXJYYFd0ydV8bedEnL/s674/Future+Banshee.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="674" data-original-width="413" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwpqmoHlUIQg1pZjt4YArV9AYNWmHcRiY1maoxviFNhunY3wGCtkO_C_DORTbTCF72p6hiEhJzIKCHJ4q5SMHOs4ztJpH-0Wa9Z8S1UrCQtqZFlWHXTXoc0ywuOgcXJYYFd0ydV8bedEnL/s320/Future+Banshee.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Future banshee?</td></tr></tbody></table><br />I will have the banshee explain that her beloved amulet of the god Corellon was taken from her by the Castilian, who imprisoned her in this place to have her beauty with him at all times. She cursed the whole fortress in her rage and this transformed all of them into undead. If the characters slay all the dwarf ghouls and bring her back her amulet she can finally know peace. Of course the characters are tasked with clearing the fortress out anyway, so that was already in the cards. I hid the amulet in the secret treasure chest that requires the signet ring to open. Once the Banshee has this, she will vanish, leaving the amulet behind, but now it can cast <b>Bless</b> once as a bonus action.<p></p><p>Now this location has an interesting social encounter as well as the exploration and deadly combat. I think this will work well.</p><p>But I also needed to prep for the rest of the session which included the aftermath of the siege on the Hunting Lodge, traveling back to Phandalin to get the new job and seeing if they could find a dwarf who could decipher some of the information on the map they will find on the dead body of the orc druid. I got all that prepped <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsvUHa1A3lfloZqVxNd5uWw">Lazy Dungeon Master</a> style and was ready to play.</p><p><b>The story...</b></p><p>We started in the immediate aftermath of the battle at the Hunting Lodge. The ladies helped Falcon find his two assistants and the animals. They also stuck around to clean up the place a bit (moving bodies and restoring the palisade to a semi workable version. They did a little looting of the bodies and found a couple of gems worth some gold. This took a couple of additional days in the world of the game. </p><p>Falcon gave them a letter he wanted them to send to Neverwinter. He seemed to know Haylia and told them that she would be able to get the message to Neverwinter quickly. He gave them a couple gold pieces to cover the delivery. He also said he would help them out if they ever needed it.</p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3xIG7MHX7dJ7x5aINz5t5fzq-4rrEqL5wQ-8P7HcBnbpOV7UBYKrYVDZkOARr01aEQVzQEbVMXw8Aggxq-Bk-FiNn392elGlCRVRvOphBg-THmncVzWJVEwLATbdzRBntR5bvvPQzsca6/s518/Hailia.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="518" data-original-width="410" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3xIG7MHX7dJ7x5aINz5t5fzq-4rrEqL5wQ-8P7HcBnbpOV7UBYKrYVDZkOARr01aEQVzQEbVMXw8Aggxq-Bk-FiNn392elGlCRVRvOphBg-THmncVzWJVEwLATbdzRBntR5bvvPQzsca6/s320/Hailia.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Still watching everything in <br />town.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />Next the pair headed toward Phandalin. I had my player roll for the dragon again, and she saw it lift off from the area of the Shrine and head further north (Neverwinter). They weren't too worried and continued on without going full stealth like they did at the last dragon sighting. Arriving in Phandalin they met up with Haylia to get that letter sent to Neverwinter (that may come into play later if the Druid revisits Falcon). I also reminded them that Haylia had a dwarf working for her, and after they found out where he lived they visited him.<p></p><p>The dwarf reviewed the map they found on the body of the dead anchorite. I mentioned that there was dwarven runes scrawled on the map in certain key areas. The dwarf revealed that they appeared to be names (names of the anchorites in those locations). One showed the tower in the sea, one showed the manse, one showed the Circle of Thunder and one showed the Shrine. By the Shrine the word "Rats" was written. He also found a faint scribble near IceSpire Peak that said "old home". Just some hints to the players at what was going on with these orcs. They did ask about Axeholm and he said he had heard of it, but never been himself. He told them that any good dwarf fortress would be very difficult to get into if it was sealed properly. He did mention that there may be chimneys in the cliff around the gates, and some may be large enough to sneak into. </p><p>Last stop in Phandalin was a visit to Townmaster Harbin. I do love roleplaying as the pompous Harbin and his interaction with Mr. Whiskers, his cat. It was quite a bit of fun having him talk a bit about Axeholm and how it was haunted and how it was in a very mountainous region. This was a not so subtle hint that they characters may need climbing gear... but my player wasn't worried. She had something up her sleeve.</p><p>The Druid then confirmed that Inverna could come along on this next adventure. Inverna accepted, but was a bit disappointed that she didn't get to kill more orcs, either at the tower or this broken circle spot on the map. The Druid promised they would head to one of those locations next. So after a good night's sleep they headed southeast to the location of Axeholm.</p><p>Rolls for random encounters went well for the characters. They were left alone on the journey. I did mention they passed Umbrage Hill, but I should have reminded them that they could purchase Healing Potions there... something I think we might all regret before this adventure is over.</p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2fEDrbCZnh1wnc83EHTZ-81Pw6L3lSgUcz8Tl0yqotLVoUte2Bqo2l-fLc0nOCn_n5T9kv3x0xOiqYSTuZIYCTZZhzhyphenhyphenPpD47-X2V7MxG_W4Bq7TCUzKWb4AFvYp2gQtUfmSWAO6xyT2Z/s504/Giant+spider.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="340" data-original-width="504" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2fEDrbCZnh1wnc83EHTZ-81Pw6L3lSgUcz8Tl0yqotLVoUte2Bqo2l-fLc0nOCn_n5T9kv3x0xOiqYSTuZIYCTZZhzhyphenhyphenPpD47-X2V7MxG_W4Bq7TCUzKWb4AFvYp2gQtUfmSWAO6xyT2Z/s320/Giant+spider.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Spider... did someone say spider?</td></tr></tbody></table><br />Upon arriving at Axeholm I described formidable gate, the closed portcullis and the general feeling of unease in the area. The ladies decided to climb the up to one of the chimneys that looked big enough for them to enter (she rolled great on perception). Inverna is strong and athletic so climbing wasn't going to be a problem. And the Druid used a potion of <b>Spider Climb</b> and the two scuttled up the cliff face, and squeezed their way into the upper levels of the gate house.<p></p><p>Since this building is haunted by a banshee, I decided to do some spooky antics in the empty rooms on the second floor. The room she entered (the West Upper Barracks) has a lone shield on the wall. As the ladies got ready to explore I had the shield rattle a bit on the wall. Just a little tapping to startle them, but nothing else. I made it clear that there was no wind in the room, maybe a tremor?</p><p>I won't detail all the exploration and slow methodical search my player performed. I will tell you about the battle against the Giant Spiders, because that was nuts. It happens in the Upper Bastion and for my session it was four of these monsters. I described the area as having a strange mist in it (the webs). As she moved forward to examine I had her roll a perception check. She got a 10, so she only discovered at the last minute that the mist was webbing, and then initiative got rolled. The Druid immediately set the web on fire hoping to catch some of the spiders in the flame. I figured half of them would take 1d4 fire damage and she rolled a 4 so that was a good start. But soon enough the bite attack started and she was paralyzed. </p><p>Ok, so I really wanted to avoid a TPK here. Like I said, this is a casual game for fun. It isn't fun to have your character paralyzed and the NPC doing all the work. The Giant Spider does not allow you to attempt to break from the paralysis on each turn, like a grapple. I modified the venom so that it was weaker and she could attempt a Con save each round to try to break out of it. Yeah, it isn't Rules as Written, but for this player and this type of game I think it was fine.</p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglTrHq3z6PkF9YrY1lj_VBJmUs4pwLXPDNjelaZDOcSIpsCtzMCDjTIPaJOu-2PhMpDuVD7rREn49qyHOiu-MVzQxOOF4uBGQz2GwxkCgLzzkXQOYnJTRPd4Fm-Lkz6sv2sr-wtCUD2Hv6/s449/dwarf+ghou%253B.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="426" data-original-width="449" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglTrHq3z6PkF9YrY1lj_VBJmUs4pwLXPDNjelaZDOcSIpsCtzMCDjTIPaJOu-2PhMpDuVD7rREn49qyHOiu-MVzQxOOF4uBGQz2GwxkCgLzzkXQOYnJTRPd4Fm-Lkz6sv2sr-wtCUD2Hv6/s320/dwarf+ghou%253B.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Oh so that is where the smell is coming from.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />So she was able to break out of the paralyzed state, but she still had the <b>Poisoned </b>condition on her. So she still used spell <b>Lesser Restoration</b> to remove that. Soon enough Inverna suffered the same fate, being paralyzed for a round and then breaking out. The Druid cast <b>Lesser Restoration </b>again, and eventually the two defeated the four spiders... barely. They were both low on hit points. So they retreated to the Barracks and had a short rest.<p></p><p>At this point I was getting worried. This adventure is balanced for 5th level characters. She is 4th. So I was already wondering if I should maybe drop some of the numbers for the ghoul battles coming up. But then again elves are resistant to ghoul's paralyzing touch... so maybe it isn't so bad after all. I'll have to play it by ear.</p><p>The pair explored the northern half of the upper hall. I told them about the smell of death coming from the tunnels below. I had them hear a strange moan coming from across the vaulted ceilings of the Gathering Hall. Eventually they went down to the Lower Halls and explored. They ran into a single ghoul feeding in the West Hall. At that time I forgot that ghouls could not paralyze elves (for some reason I didn't remember that transferring over to 5th edition). So Inverna did get paralyzed, but they made short work of the creature before it could do more damage. I was careful to describe how it was obviously a dwarf that had been warped by some hideous curse or magic. Needless to say the player was disturbed.</p><p>We stopped right before they entered the throne room, which should prove very interesting. </p><p><b>The post...</b></p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7UoArO7xNswsVkji4fwvoK9kQd_du03RD-NkHtAEg9D6QjsNJzUl96eKDBVA0H33E7P27gZpij6Krj3fh1VHNzWjtpDmtnLXOev3_YODB8jAeMgc6Mi2GZ6XnZjeoMM0GMtBXB68Gysqe/s318/Harbin.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="318" data-original-width="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7UoArO7xNswsVkji4fwvoK9kQd_du03RD-NkHtAEg9D6QjsNJzUl96eKDBVA0H33E7P27gZpij6Krj3fh1VHNzWjtpDmtnLXOev3_YODB8jAeMgc6Mi2GZ6XnZjeoMM0GMtBXB68Gysqe/s0/Harbin.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Payment, one coin at a time.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />All in all it was a solid session. The first half was role-playing heavy but a lot of fun as we got things sorted after that last battle and prepped for the new adventure. Getting to play Harbin again is always a treat for me. The second half ran pretty smooth, but it felt a little slow. Much of Axeholm is empty rooms, so it really falls on the DM to build on the dread of the place. Really give the players a feeling that this place is cursed and dangerous. The smell of decay coming from the ghoul nests should drift up tunnels and down open corridors as the players get close to them. Make sure the banshee leaves some ghostly clues like rattling the shield, leaving footprints that disappear as you focus on them, or just moaning in sorrow. The module doesn't really give you those tips, but I think they make this setting come a bit more alive. <p></p><p>Even so it feels like there should be a little something else to find in here. My player did miss out on an encounter with a Stirge, because she didn't mess with a chimney. And they also didn't go any deeper into a ghoul's nest that they found the entrance to. She'll need to do that at some point, but as a whole the second half felt a little less exciting then I hoped. Still I am looking forward to meeting with the banshee and seeing where that goes.</p><p><b>Up Next...</b></p><p><a href="http://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2021/02/dragon-of-icespire-peak-campaign-diary.html">The Haunting of Axeholm</a></p>Roman J. Martelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09545497713474664555noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7889215628007960117.post-63648112186224193742021-01-18T06:00:00.199-08:002021-01-26T09:17:39.038-08:00Dragon of Icespire Peak Campaign Diary - Episode 21 - Dueling Druids and a BIG Ham<p><b>The prep...</b></p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkfdklOgMs41lR4ibzr2SFXlf5RnV92P6pOuHifc5JmnuhGb1w1O6lriID1s_FASVH2GttFNl-7RUqKKtIwKnZ_vLxu2TJOs_obhMUhAFDQxKEjp4Kg90Kd9u1wNpOVXF4oHfWA_8KwggE/s537/Boar+v+bear.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="307" data-original-width="537" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkfdklOgMs41lR4ibzr2SFXlf5RnV92P6pOuHifc5JmnuhGb1w1O6lriID1s_FASVH2GttFNl-7RUqKKtIwKnZ_vLxu2TJOs_obhMUhAFDQxKEjp4Kg90Kd9u1wNpOVXF4oHfWA_8KwggE/s320/Boar+v+bear.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">When druids attack!</td></tr></tbody></table><br />I was excited to prep for the boss battle of Granoc the orc druid vs. the Druid in front of the burning tree at the Woodland Manse. It was a very cinematic set up. I went over Granoc's stats again, and added a few more druidic abilities that I might use, including the spell <b>Lightning Lure</b> and reskinning it to be blood vines that do bludgeoning damage. I got the boar stats ready, since I figured it would be wild shape against wild shape (the player's Druid was already in the Black Bear form). I also prepped the Twig Blights to keep Inverna's sword occupied.<p></p><p>At the end of the Woodland Manse section there are two recommended follow ups you can add. One was to have the boars and anchorites in the pumpkin patch attack the characters as they leave. I knew my party would be pretty beat up and low on resources after the battle against Granoc, so I decided to have the pumpkin patch party run away (and retreat to the Circle of Thunder). But there was a suggestion of having an attack at Falcon's Hunting Lodge. This made perfect sense to me, so I prepped that.</p><p>It would be a group of 20 orcs and their giant spirt of thunder - Gornok the Thunder Boar. This thing is scary as all hell, with multiple lightening and thunder based attacks, a whole bunch of hit points and power. Combined with 20 orcs it seemed like this would be deadly. But I reviewed Falcon's stats, and he was pretty damn skilled with that bow, so I figured it might work out if my player decided to defend the Lodge against Gornok and the orc army.</p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEm1YHB2pNTlGF3xQMFKZljHdlEZyInKRsqfI10UTYKC27vCzmotVc-QWFTwnTRl4zh1bM9TonPHmihimW8iUEojw2VhN3srtcSzl9UiTT-jEP5V2zYcAMn2ieso_knawRYIgAXOBKvQj7/s404/Orc+swarm%2521.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="165" data-original-width="404" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEm1YHB2pNTlGF3xQMFKZljHdlEZyInKRsqfI10UTYKC27vCzmotVc-QWFTwnTRl4zh1bM9TonPHmihimW8iUEojw2VhN3srtcSzl9UiTT-jEP5V2zYcAMn2ieso_knawRYIgAXOBKvQj7/s320/Orc+swarm%2521.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Two many orcs? Make them minions.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />I decided to use the minion concept for the orcs. I gave them two hits a piece. So any successful hit against an orc would drop him to half, and a second hit would kill him. A roll of a natural 20 would be an automatic kill. This would keep combat moving faster and be less fiddly for me to track all the HP for each orc. Since Inverna rolls a critical hit on 19 or 20, that gives her better odds for one shotting some of these orcs. I made twenty boxes on a piece of paper and would track the orcs this way. One slash would be one hit and an X would be a death.<p></p><p>I pulled up all the stats on D&D Beyond in separate tabs and was ready to run these two encounters. Let's face it, this session was back to back boss battles.</p><p><b>The story...</b></p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUt5eg-XWnuUHDoncgH2lTuHgvOAj2LRqIR8lGFdhiHdT-c_DmeqaGfK7MlL9ZMkp2RU9X7tJgqkw3_4JppDlmGp99hotAkuIjBJQ9Ss0lwvy4cPU-90eDPZC0L2WTOa-wyQg9aQVd-E6y/s384/orc+druid+.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUt5eg-XWnuUHDoncgH2lTuHgvOAj2LRqIR8lGFdhiHdT-c_DmeqaGfK7MlL9ZMkp2RU9X7tJgqkw3_4JppDlmGp99hotAkuIjBJQ9Ss0lwvy4cPU-90eDPZC0L2WTOa-wyQg9aQVd-E6y/s320/orc+druid+.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Orc druid is about to monologue.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />The session opens with Granoc demanding to know of Falcon sent them. Unfortunately the Druid was in Black Bear form and couldn't answer. And Inverna was just in the mood to kill orcs, "Shut yer trap and let's fight!" was the only answer he got. He declared that even if they defeated him, there were two more dedicated to Talos and it was hopeless to fight them. Yeah it was villain monologuing, but my player got a kick out of it and of course noted the fact that there were two orc "bosses" in the area. After completing his classic nemesis rant, he transformed into a boar and attacked. <p></p><p>The boar has a powerful initial attack when it charges at an opponent, and that did some damage to the Druid who was already injured because of the fight against the vine blights. But she held her Bear form for a while, putting the smackdown on Granoc. Meanwhile the twig blights burst from the Manse, four in total, and swarmed Inverna. They didn't hurt her too much, but it kept her from helping the Druid during her battle.</p><p>Eventually the orc shaman was forced out of his boar shape, not once, but twice! He attempted to strike back with his spells, like <b>Thunderwave</b> and even my adapted Bloodline Lure spell. This caused the Druid to fall out of Wild Shape, but she got her quarterstaff all shillelaghed up and continued the beat down. Inverna joined in and Granoc called out to Talos for aid even as he was slain and the tree burned to ash in the well behind him. Victory!</p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWE8opOLf1f91D4YBIizd6XgT5bemTK5WPmuGzOlpFG64HcLAGNDe9Hf9eJZQkYkXCV7-qXak24w5FIbY2Eu_CjMztdWshCLEtZJ1mAKKjI1MPNqW2sZjlHNUzU-BB0sOjdnyMqiM_c2wp/s496/Boots%2521.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="375" data-original-width="496" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWE8opOLf1f91D4YBIizd6XgT5bemTK5WPmuGzOlpFG64HcLAGNDe9Hf9eJZQkYkXCV7-qXak24w5FIbY2Eu_CjMztdWshCLEtZJ1mAKKjI1MPNqW2sZjlHNUzU-BB0sOjdnyMqiM_c2wp/s320/Boots%2521.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Not exactly the most fashionable.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />As I estimated both ladies were beaten up pretty good and low on resources. They completed the search of the Manse, and didn't find any other enemies. They briefly discussed burning the place down, but decided against it. The returned to Falcon's Hunting Lodge. He met with them and they discussed what they found. He gave them the <b>Boots of Elven Kind</b> and thanked them for their help. They decided to stay the night and get a good rest.<p></p><p>Unfortunately the morning brought with it a massive thunderstorm. It was pouring rain and the lightening was fierce. The ladies decided to stay until the storm broke and avoid the mud and rain (and possibly getting lost in the Neverwinter woods). As they were enjoying warm cider by the fire, the stablehand Pel raced in looking for Falcon. The boy saw orcs on the march! The adventurers hurried up the stone tower attached to the Lodge and saw a mass of orcs and something huge behind them, marching toward them. Falcon joined the ladies and explained that they needed to decide now: defend the Lodge or escape.</p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTxM8-17H4pxRgw1G5pZUqqMubwXWDPwtgwSBn2VJa3MLA4npWYmsKwnz73fg1g5areRV5vMGbIcatgtyqF2q-wbfP8l0RND-QkvPjc5S3a9Ano2Erl7tCxO_IK6G8ewrfHcMLEW9utMop/s715/Hunting+Lodge.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="633" data-original-width="715" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTxM8-17H4pxRgw1G5pZUqqMubwXWDPwtgwSBn2VJa3MLA4npWYmsKwnz73fg1g5areRV5vMGbIcatgtyqF2q-wbfP8l0RND-QkvPjc5S3a9Ano2Erl7tCxO_IK6G8ewrfHcMLEW9utMop/s320/Hunting+Lodge.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The héros were in the tower on the<br />east side of the map.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />The Druid pondered this and asked Falcon how skilled he was with the bow. He smiled and said, he's been known to be a fair shot (and she could tell he was attempting to be humble). The trio decided to defend the Lodge. They had little time. Falcon had Corwin and Pel try to wrangle the animals and get them out of the lodge before the orcs arrived. He also told the noble guests to leave. The guests were outraged, "I did not pay for an orc invasion Sir! I demand a refund!" But they fled back to Neverwinter as fast as their horses could carry them.<p></p><p>I told the player that they had to hold off the attack for three rounds. It would be enough to allow Corwin, Pel and the animals to escape the lodge confines. Then the attack began. The trio of heroes use the tower as defense, giving them a +5 to their AC for 2/3 cover. Both Falcon and Inverna had longbows with plenty of range (Falcon firing twice per round). The druid had a mess of spells at her disposal, but knew that orcs were strong and had a high constitution. <b>Entangle</b> wouldn't be nearly as effective against them... but <b>Web </b>would work great once they were in range. Falcon and Inverna rained arrows down on the orcs, who started throwing javelins back at them. </p><p><br />Then Gorthok the Thunder Boar emerged from the rain, the orcs parted and the giant boar bathed in lightening hurtled toward the palisade. The orcs held their ground using javelins to attack, and waiting for Gorthok to punch through the defenses so they could pour in. As Gorthok hurtled forward, the Druid cast <b>Web</b> on the ground in front of it, guessing correctly that its Dexterity score would be one of it's weaker stats. She guessed right, Gorthok was ensnared by the web and Inverna and Falcon took shots at it. But they quickly realized that normal weapons weren't doing nearly as much damage as they could. </p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmIETIY7gI05IUNOWKITSdJCvVi0X6PA0i_rakKJwHPWC53StIGRrPRUYeJ-cdrK8RwQwqYMKi-Dl0lk7MgaOdsQjsJFTx44vKHpQxLT_f94qZaDkv53gcQxp300CkFAO_OjOR9HS83R_g/s530/Gorthok.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="312" data-original-width="530" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmIETIY7gI05IUNOWKITSdJCvVi0X6PA0i_rakKJwHPWC53StIGRrPRUYeJ-cdrK8RwQwqYMKi-Dl0lk7MgaOdsQjsJFTx44vKHpQxLT_f94qZaDkv53gcQxp300CkFAO_OjOR9HS83R_g/s320/Gorthok.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Elemental boar spirit on the rampage!</td></tr></tbody></table>The Druid told them to stay focused on whittling down the orcs (they had killed a couple already with Falcon rolling crits a number of times during this battle). She focused her magic attacks on Gorthok. Now the giant boar may be strong but he is not bright. I rolled a Wisdom check and once he broke free he just moved forward into the palisade, but without the running start he did little damage to it. So he turned around and raced back to the orc line to attack again. The Druid cast <b>Moonbeam</b> in his path, so he took magical radiant damage as he charged through it. She then kept moving it on her bonus action and casting <b>Produce Flame</b> at him when he was close enough as an action. She was doing enough damage to the creature to really make a difference. <p></p><p>Not to say the trio didn't take their own hits. A few times orc javelins managed to hit Falcon and Inverna, and those did hurt. In addition Gorthok got mad at taking so much damage and not managing to crush the pallisade on the first or second collision. He called lightening and it struck. But all the heroes made their dexterity saves and only took half damage. Gorthok kept rolling to recharge that magical attack, but kept failing.</p><p>By the time the wall was breached, half the orcs were dead and many were wounded. Gorthok burst into the compound and started bashing things up, still unable to charge his only ranged attack. The Druid moved her Moonbeam directly over the breach so the orcs had to move through it to enter the compound. I kept rolling Wisdom saves to see if any of them would retreat or try to go around. But these guys were so filled with confidence that Gorthok would save them that they ran right at the Moonbeam. Four were killed instantly and the six remaining ones took damage going through, and were easy for Falcon and Inverna to finish off. </p><p>The Druid continued to focus on Gorthok burning him with tiny flames, even as he trashed the compound. Eventually he started ramming into the tower they were in, but it was too little too late. The remaining orcs were killed, so the Moonbeam was moved on top of Gorthok, arrows rained down and he couldn't recharge his attack. The Moonbeam finished him, and with a terrific thunderclap he exploded into a mass of power, shadow and energy. The Druid was disturbed... what was this creature? As soon as Gorthok was destroyed, the rain stopped and the sky above them started to clear. That is where we ended the session.</p><p><b>The post...</b></p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6ca7ZJKKKjbwaoL70JgoMFOyg1si3Pa1GxnK6wRtWQAZIBF93oBSny1Ncrffa8tOVl5yTnoZewiN16cv5EB-g769GCb_qyA_P1BYSAxCTeJvNmy4zAscz_hDAm48PgvI6hagKmMFpXN9t/s484/Hero.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="484" data-original-width="460" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6ca7ZJKKKjbwaoL70JgoMFOyg1si3Pa1GxnK6wRtWQAZIBF93oBSny1Ncrffa8tOVl5yTnoZewiN16cv5EB-g769GCb_qyA_P1BYSAxCTeJvNmy4zAscz_hDAm48PgvI6hagKmMFpXN9t/s320/Hero.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Definitely the hero of the siege.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />This was a wonderfully fun session, but also a bit exhausting. Back to back boss battles is exhilarating, and the Druid player really handled the whole siege so well. The first battle was a lot of fun with the two druids using their Wild Shapes to defeat each other, and the burning tree as the backdrop made for some fun descriptions. I was tracking the damage for the tree the whole time (telling the player to roll higher and higher damage dice the longer the tree burned). This increased the excitement as the damage numbers got higher and higher. And having the climax of the tree finally being destroyed just as the orc druid perished was a cinematic ending to the Woodland Manse adventure.<p></p><p>I admit right off the bat that I could have played the siege a little harsher. The orcs could have been smarter and climbed over the palisade as Gorthok was attacking and made a run at the characters in the tower. I could have had the pouring rain impact all the ranged attacks. I could have had Gorthok attack the tower immediately upon breaching the pallisade instead of destroying the flimsy barn first. </p><p>But I know my player pretty well. I know what is fun for her, and that this is a game being played to relax and enjoy some adventures. She wants challenge, which this siege certainly delivered. But she also wants to feel like there is some possibility of victory. She never lost hope as a player or character during the siege, and with all the crap the past year threw at us, I love that this game allowed her to hope. So yeah, I fudged things a bit, but she had a blast. She was exhausted but all smiles at the end of that massive battle. Her Druid was the hero who almost single handedly defeated this elemental spirit. She felt like the fantasy hero she wanted to be - that is why we play.</p><p>Using the minion rules for the orcs worked perfectly for this encounter. It kept things moving so quickly, and yet never let the orcs feel ineffective. Those javelins hit enough times to remind the player that the orcs were deadly and only the stone walls of the tower were keeping them from getting destroyed. Inverna got real low on hit points after only two javelin hits. Anyway, as a whole this session just flew by, and we played for nearly five hours because it was so much fun. We are both looking forward to the next session.</p><p><b>Up Next...</b></p><p><a href="https://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2021/01/dragon-of-icespire-peak-campaign-diary_25.html">Stinky Fortress</a></p>Roman J. Martelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09545497713474664555noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7889215628007960117.post-84576751030267950562021-01-11T06:30:00.110-08:002021-01-19T08:13:51.515-08:00Dragon of Icespire Peak Campaign Diary - Episode 20 - Orc Webbing and Black Bear Brawlin'<p><b> The prep...</b></p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnvTqZTKpAPPe1GaCal3gp217BpyCzQ9-Squsvh2QCptn7Em9EQI4Pe5L2x097IUoVV-xkFKv83NqAuHcj0OSTtZHYpdAepShmJd3SpAzYyTmlILfk2lknEmXrjHaR2se5ygIolMrNeBIJ/s498/orc.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="417" data-original-width="498" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnvTqZTKpAPPe1GaCal3gp217BpyCzQ9-Squsvh2QCptn7Em9EQI4Pe5L2x097IUoVV-xkFKv83NqAuHcj0OSTtZHYpdAepShmJd3SpAzYyTmlILfk2lknEmXrjHaR2se5ygIolMrNeBIJ/s320/orc.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Time to smash some elves.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />In light of how I felt during the last session, I headed over to one of my favorite Dungeons and Dragons YouTube content creators: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQDKouT6G_6P1eBIfkTkC-w">The Dungeon Dudes</a>. I remembered that they covered running a game based off a module, so I decided to give that a rewatch and see if there were any tips they had. Sure enough, the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fcjK8oXEx5I">Dungeon Dudes</a> had some great advice.<p></p><p>They suggested printing the map out and then making some quick notes right on the paper. This way you don't have to keep flipping to the section in the book as much. I did this (but I admit right now, my handwriting is pretty dreadful. Hopefully I'll be able to read my notes). I also used sticky note tabs to flag the places in the module where the monster stat blocks are located (I'll also try to remember to open tabs on my tablet in D&D Beyond before the game. But this is a good back up in case I forget to). </p><p>The Dudes also suggested creating a roster of main NPCs and villains so you can keep it all straight. Now <b>Dragon of Icespire Peak</b> is a bit unique in that it is fairly short (for an official campaign) and that it doesn't really have an antagonist that directly interacts with the party that much. Cryovaine is just a menace tormenting the people around Phandalin. He doesn't have an active plot or design. He's just hungry, bored and enjoys terrorizing folks.</p><p>But the orcs worshiping Talos... I could do something with them. I went over the sections of the module where they appeared and found three named Anchorites of Talos. I essentially made these the sub-antagonists for the campaign. These three would be coordinating the orc takeover of this area. The party would learn more from the first encounter with one of the three: Grannoc the shaman. Grannoc is the big bad guy at this location. So I would have him do an evil monologue about how he was one of three and defeating him would only strengthen the other two.</p><p>But digging up these named half-orcs and having them handy I will be able to foreshadow events later. I kinda wish I did this from the beginning, but hey, I got it down now and hopefully it will make the later adventures against the orcs feel a bit more planned.</p><p>I did some minor work with the other two half-orcs seeing them as a cleric and a paladin of sorts for Talos. I might tweak with their stat blocks to give them some abilities of those classes (clerical spells and smites). We'll see how it goes with this one.</p><p>After that, I gave everything a review going by the Lazy Dungeon Master material. Not a lot to change form the last session, just a few more notes about the three anchorites. I felt ready to run the session.</p><p><b>The story...</b></p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx7ZjuCbyXra6lvmTC2DqcJ4DAYC7DGQCrzLdb0y-awQKShBIuRIpXnGYYF4exgQvKqHI8XHMLo-e5U9kswCCNTWEU4R9_S7t_ppOwV-UNxY_2vCv3-QRpXVTb4_orEJr9D752LHVMZ3ox/s342/Bear+druid.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="251" data-original-width="342" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx7ZjuCbyXra6lvmTC2DqcJ4DAYC7DGQCrzLdb0y-awQKShBIuRIpXnGYYF4exgQvKqHI8XHMLo-e5U9kswCCNTWEU4R9_S7t_ppOwV-UNxY_2vCv3-QRpXVTb4_orEJr9D752LHVMZ3ox/s320/Bear+druid.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Is your kitchen rated for shape changing<br />druids?</td></tr></tbody></table><br />So we picked up with the pair of heroes exploring the Manse and seeking out a way to clear it out. The Druid reverted back to her elf form and with Inverna the two decided to go upstairs. Unfortunately the stair were trapped and the Druid failed her Dexterity Saving Throw (a trend to continue through the night). After taking a bit of damage, she used <b>Misty Step</b> to teleport to the top of the stairs. She had Inverna hold the lower level. They each had <b>Sending Stones</b> from early on in the campaign, and they could use these to communicate.<p></p><p>Now I did screw up a bit here. There are Stirges hiding at the top of the stairs, and I forgot to have them attack right away. I ended up using them later, but just something I should have been more mindful of. The Druid did great on her perception checks, and found foot prints leading to where a group of orcs were hiding out. She also explored the Master Bedroom and found all the magic items inside the loose stone in the mantle as well as finding the magic item vault. Of course my description of the secret door was pretty obvious (hidden behind a tall painting of a waterfall). The Druid recognized the <b>Cloak of Billowing</b> and got a kick out of it (it featured in a D&D live play she watched). But she was unfamiliar with the other items. </p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibbtXYp95fpovHSEjzKPoaMy73Wltu5i84goZk97Th__aqj7nlB7JYJ2zz1K1vioFZlfeWp8g80K5RQPmDuAK8VnbUD-H0UGfpqAlLNB9OMhQehik7gVeF_9G6WvqZKo0XTK5BWlw5m2Wh/s1077/Sitrge.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="802" data-original-width="1077" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibbtXYp95fpovHSEjzKPoaMy73Wltu5i84goZk97Th__aqj7nlB7JYJ2zz1K1vioFZlfeWp8g80K5RQPmDuAK8VnbUD-H0UGfpqAlLNB9OMhQehik7gVeF_9G6WvqZKo0XTK5BWlw5m2Wh/s320/Sitrge.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Repulsive little beasts.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />The Druid then used the Sending Stone to communicate to Inverna to come up using the vine covered balcony. The warrior did this and felt she was unobserved. The two then made their way back to where the orcs were hiding out. They burst in and attacked. The Druid cast <b>Web</b> and nabbed two of the five. One was slowed but not restrained and the other two attacked. These orcs were rolling really badly to escape the webs. But they did hit the heroes a few times, nearly killing The Druid again (she keeps refusing to Wild Shape). Finally she torched the restrained orcs in the web, and they looked for a location to take a rest. Here is where I unleashed the Stirges on them. But a well timed <b>Moonbeam </b> spell took out most of the vile creatures and Inverna rolled a natural 20 on her shot with the bow, so they were not a threat.<p></p><p>The two went to the magical vault and took that short rest to get some hit points and spell slots back. The player also took some time to look at the strange metal rod they found. After playing around with it, she realized it was an <b>Immovable Rod</b>. The concept delighted the player and she started thinking up all kinds of ways to use it. Then they continued exploring (using the rod as a makeshift stepladder to climb from a second story window).</p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVfJM3ox4YETT0Soqt8ZVy9QCR6Wmc89LbzTKi7FO4_eXbnbA5oK8KdTQouaDQgwCzHvqgXkW1MQ2CbObf5bigPlnzSLtL2d_THRuotlpdy5-OsxD7gIlaNBNH_HtAEqV3TwKL41uNuFJt/s440/manse+upper+level.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="440" data-original-width="384" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVfJM3ox4YETT0Soqt8ZVy9QCR6Wmc89LbzTKi7FO4_eXbnbA5oK8KdTQouaDQgwCzHvqgXkW1MQ2CbObf5bigPlnzSLtL2d_THRuotlpdy5-OsxD7gIlaNBNH_HtAEqV3TwKL41uNuFJt/s320/manse+upper+level.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Those orcs were hiding upstairs.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />They had seen the strange tree growing out of the well in the central courtyard from the windows above. So they made their way down. Now this whole time I was rolling behind the screen to see if anyone was going to be looking for the Black Bear that the magical Boars saw wander in the kitchen. But luck was on their side, and they weren't looking in the right rooms.<p></p><p>So the elves examine the tree and find that it smells like blood, has an oily texture to the bark and is just generally gross. The Druid assumes that some evil magic is at work (she's right of course) and declares that the tree must be burned down. She decides to her combo of <b>Web</b> and <b>Produce Flame</b> to burn the tree down. The minute she webbed the tree the two Vine Blights hiding in the tree emerged and attacked. </p><p>The battle was going poorly for the Druid as she kept failing her Strength and Dexterity saves to avoid being entangled by the grasping vines. They were both taking quite a beating, and this forced the Druid to finally wild shape into a Black Bear again. With the added strength and extra attack she did more damage to the cursed vines and the elves won.</p><p>The tree burning was bound to attract attention and soon the Anchorite of Talos, Granoc the Druid emerged from the ruined laboratory. Enraged at Inverna for burning down his tree and seeing the black bear he was warned about running amok, he took matters into his own hands. With a sinister threat he prepared to attack... next session.</p><p><b>The post...</b></p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbAgfb-8zdkmdcoabLbbY_D2oGRfgwhx-Be90y95qoahK2sqjDIJ7FH-Evxknvw3L87llkKtb5bvKmrE6QS0yx2kydPL4ZgMq6MrptWz3M0jkUoBLhZtj1BZnGdOn_-XYm2W-O47XdiaMA/s537/Vine+blight.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="537" data-original-width="452" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbAgfb-8zdkmdcoabLbbY_D2oGRfgwhx-Be90y95qoahK2sqjDIJ7FH-Evxknvw3L87llkKtb5bvKmrE6QS0yx2kydPL4ZgMq6MrptWz3M0jkUoBLhZtj1BZnGdOn_-XYm2W-O47XdiaMA/s320/Vine+blight.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Evil on the vine!</td></tr></tbody></table><br />So this session went a lot smoother than the last. My description makes it seem short, but there was a lot of careful creeping around the manse, as well as lots of conversation and pondering on how to best explore and what to do. Also role-playing the two characters messing with the Immovable Rod was a lot of fun (and a nice slow point between the combat encounters). It was a solid balance of exploration, roleplaying and action. I will say that they nearly got overwhelmed by those orcs. Those axes hit hard and it was only through bad saving throws for the two webbed ones that they were able to hold their ground.<p></p><p>Printing out the map and making notes right on the paper was a HUGE help. I only opened the book to check the monster stats. I was using my laptop to show the player the map of the manse, otherwise I would have had the laptop displaying the monster stats and would have barely opened the book at all. I also prepped the magic cards early on, but I should have prepped my combat information on paper ahead of time. I usually write down AC and HP for the monsters head of time so it is all in one place and I don't have to keep referring to it. </p><p>All in all it was a fun session and leaving it as a cliffhanger for facing the boss of the area is going to be exciting. Probably the first Boss Battle of the campaign. I'm pondering having him wild shape into a boar to attack them to start for a real battle royale. And lets not forget there are still some Twig Blights hanging around. Looking forward to the next session.</p><p><b>Up next...</b></p><p><a href="https://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2021/01/dragon-of-icespire-peak-campaign-diary_18.html">Dueling Druids and a BIG Ham</a></p>Roman J. Martelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09545497713474664555noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7889215628007960117.post-52756061431508863382021-01-04T06:00:00.003-08:002021-01-19T08:08:59.628-08:00Dragon of Icespire Peak Campaign Diary - Episode 19 - The Falcon and the Pumpkin Patch<p><b>The prep...</b></p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7_zUHbSYeRblFkViLBf5O2seRmb-SZAid071BONyKWxNBWC9qNrQf088wVowHg7Qj1SrEziVs2e9JaGM0Ov2Av7602HoSHz4VPneIO6y9kaUTJMsqFUdIyV8sham9GLH3aNVvp91weqQK/s403/Falcon.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="403" data-original-width="373" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7_zUHbSYeRblFkViLBf5O2seRmb-SZAid071BONyKWxNBWC9qNrQf088wVowHg7Qj1SrEziVs2e9JaGM0Ov2Av7602HoSHz4VPneIO6y9kaUTJMsqFUdIyV8sham9GLH3aNVvp91weqQK/s320/Falcon.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"My friends call me Falcon."</td></tr></tbody></table><br />So I was a caught off guard by the next session. My Druid player wanted to jump right in a couple of days later. I was good with that. However I didn't realize that the session could contain possibly two locations. One was Falcon's Hunting Lodge featuring at least three non-player characters (NPCs) the Druid may want to interact with. The other was the Woodland Mance, which was a two story house filled with dangerous monsters and a mystery of sorts. Two very different locations with a lot to wrangle in a short amount of time.<p></p><p>I skimmed over the section on the Hunting Lodge, focusing on the NPCs. I made some notes on them and how they would interact with the player. I also went over Falcon's motivation for hiring the adventurers in the first place. This guy is a bad ass former adventurer himself and the section points out that he has killed orcs recently. So why isn't he hunting down the source at the Woodland Manse himself? I decided that he couldn't go because he had guests staying for a lengthy amount of time at his home. He needed to entertain these nobles (and get paid). This means that I had to cobble some additional noble NPCs together as well. Nothing too detailed, but if the Player wanted to meet or chat with them I had to come up with something.</p><p>I got that done and then really gave the Woodland Manse my attention. Skimming again to get idea of the key monsters, treasure and secrets within. I didn't really focus on the rooms and where stuff was placed. I figured I could use the book as a guide to trigger my memories as we played. I probably should have done a bit more.</p><p>Last I went through the <b>Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master</b> tips. I reviewed the characters, created a strong start (pulled my random encounter idea from the previous session to be the opening encounter of this session), plotted out possible scenes (focusing mostly on the Hunting Lodge and Pumpkin Patch around the Manse) and then pulled together some secrets and clues for the session. </p><p>I felt pretty prepared, but that was my first mistake. </p><p><b>The story...</b></p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOz9YpA-tn5Cgjh1G8hpKFU-RHM9ZNOfNZJB43yUtcSrmgDUkoJ5YnmfCVE8jFTIXoXOIGQP0qENUI2tuaW76Aaf9doVFTQVwFN400eSEdgNx33m1shnO3y7InTc_ezIvzKQ7OHqZjhyphenhypheno5/s609/Map+portion.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="609" data-original-width="496" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOz9YpA-tn5Cgjh1G8hpKFU-RHM9ZNOfNZJB43yUtcSrmgDUkoJ5YnmfCVE8jFTIXoXOIGQP0qENUI2tuaW76Aaf9doVFTQVwFN400eSEdgNx33m1shnO3y7InTc_ezIvzKQ7OHqZjhyphenhypheno5/s320/Map+portion.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Plenty of adventures in the area.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />I asked the Druid if she had anything else she wanted to prep for the journey to Falcon's Lodge. She got directions from Barthen, and he asked her if the creatures at the Logger's Camp might have been in league with the dragon. She didn't think so, but it seems like the idea never occurred to her. Pondering this, she left Phandalin with Inverna and started on their way down the Triboar Trail toward Conyberry. The idea was to travel about a day, and then find the game trail leading to the lodge.<p></p><p>One thing I forgot to do in the last session was roll for the location of the dragon, Cryovain. So I did that and turns out he was on his way to the Shrine of Savras - which near Conyberry. This means he has to fly over the Triboar trail. The Druid freaks out! She grabs Inverna and the two take cover in the trees as the the creature flies by. They didn't do well on stealth rolls, so Cryovain saw them, but he is much more interested in the tasty ogre hanging out at the shrine. The two waited there for a while, and then continued following the trail but staying much closer to the forest. They camped for the night and didn't light a fire.</p><p>The next day they started on their way along the trail, heading toward the Hunting Lodge. Here I placed the undead orc encounter. They found symbols of Talos the storm god carved into some of the trees. They'd seen these symbols on many of the orcs they faced before. So immediately they were ready for anything. They came to some slaughtered forest animals, and then to an orc pinned to a tree by a stag's antlers. Both were dead. As the Druid examined the scene the undead orc moved and battle began.</p><p>I threw another one into the mix to face down Inverna. The Druid was trying to conserve her spells and not draw attention using anything too noisy. So she repeatedly tryied to use <b>Frostbite</b> on the zombies. But they kept making their Constitution saves. Eventually she used a combo of <b>Web</b> and then <b>Produce Flame</b> to catch and burn the horror. Inverna made short work of hers, and helped finish off the other. The ladies then hurried away from the scene, worried that they might attract a dragon or more zombies. And yes, the Druid made sure she put out the fire. She wasn't about to burn down Neverwinter Woods.</p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu_CTJ-1oM_yCvNLVzQye7DM_oKWWcthSClxyzSyUI2Qyj0xvhFgmk_iAKVdu2edZfeoaoWDdWVYhCYtgcpvjsCKFFgMMAMWojbSgtBMi3_ZPsO9FQNCaC_JnqXjlJLsYKVRUsBMq6Fm11/s715/Hunting+Lodge.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="633" data-original-width="715" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu_CTJ-1oM_yCvNLVzQye7DM_oKWWcthSClxyzSyUI2Qyj0xvhFgmk_iAKVdu2edZfeoaoWDdWVYhCYtgcpvjsCKFFgMMAMWojbSgtBMi3_ZPsO9FQNCaC_JnqXjlJLsYKVRUsBMq6Fm11/s320/Hunting+Lodge.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lodge or palatial estate?</td></tr></tbody></table><br />Eventually they came to the Lodge, which is more like a small fortress. This confused the Druid, and I admit it does seem a bit strange to have this massive sprawling place as a "lodge". As a DM I know why the writers did this based on later story events. But I was able to explain it away as needing to be impressive looking for Falcon's noble clientele. The thing was, the fortress looked deserted (there are only three people running the place and two guests).<p></p><p>So the Druid was super cautious and transformed into a mastiff and along with Inverna the two tried to look like they were out hunting in the area, while surveying the building. As a mastiff, the Druid could smell the livestock inside the compound, but still not hear anything. Eventually the two went to the back door and knocked. </p><p>I had Corwin the cook answer, and let the ladies in (the Druid dropped her mastiff form). They explained they were here to help with the orc problem. He lead them into the lodge itself, and the met the stablehand Pell. Soon Falcon came down and chatted with them about the job. He explained that if they could clear out the Manse he would give them some magical boots that would help with stealthing around. He gave them directions to the Manse and invited them to stay the night and enjoy a meal. They did just that.</p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwdJPRb_Oya3rgzzSAkDVWq8wQ-RmkIxLMSsixIe6LwAF2eJd5rEKDIyvVLBpMreXvH6acENEYk04u9t0f1d0yXlQ3EU2FV5pU1v1UbTlK8nj8TOOl7QCi0hmSYApr3mC_hKXDntxmsZCQ/s619/Woodland+Manse.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="619" data-original-width="536" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwdJPRb_Oya3rgzzSAkDVWq8wQ-RmkIxLMSsixIe6LwAF2eJd5rEKDIyvVLBpMreXvH6acENEYk04u9t0f1d0yXlQ3EU2FV5pU1v1UbTlK8nj8TOOl7QCi0hmSYApr3mC_hKXDntxmsZCQ/s320/Woodland+Manse.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">So many pumpkins so little time.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />The next day they traveled to the Manse, which was about a half day's journey away. They kept quiet and eventually came upon the pumpkin patches around the Manse. There were boars feasting in the patch, and the Druid rolled high on her perception and recognized one with a chipped tusk as the boar they encountered in the previous session. She cast <b>Detect Magic</b> and sure enough the three of the nine visible boars glowed with magical powers - as did the pumpkins! Puzzled by this, the ladies crept around the home getting a good look at it from the outside and noting the doors and windows. Unfortunately there were boars all around, and no way to get by without being seen.<p></p><p>They retreated into the woods and the Druid wild shaped into a cat. She then snuck forward through the pumpkin patch and past the boars. The door in the back was broken, and so she was able to get in that way. She explored the kitchen, and the pantry which had a roof that was caved in. She climbed up the walls and out the hole in the roof. Up there she could peek into windows and found a bathroom. She climbed down and peeked into one more window to see the dining room - and the strange twig dolls of both her and Inverna. Creepy, especially since the dining room was covered with scrawled blood symbols of Talos.</p><p>She went back and talked with Inverna about what she found. They chatted a bit more and decided to see if they could distract the boars and allow Inverna to get inside. So the Druid wild shaped again, this time into a black bear. The normal boars were terrified and two fled, but one of the magical boars just backed up and watched the bear carefully. The Druid played the bear as if it was just hungry for pumpkins and trying to find the best one. Inverna took the initiative and snuck into the Manse easily. Then the Druid pretended to sniff something on the air of the kitchen and go lumbering inside. The magical boar watched her and went racing to the front of the house.</p><p>Now they were inside and ready to explore a bit more. We ended there for the evening.</p><p><b>The post...</b></p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyMYbNTs8R2lfDu32OCQapGl83iUXBe-bjIex97ajHAmbXFVIRITyMOrcKXzj6bgNZKHagyw_BOmay_WEaUxLOpbJtsAWLtDlEgMkRVnGZx6PV-J9sjUg8rO8MHrb-4tD4vF3btCpYfQg4/s373/pumpkin.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="318" data-original-width="373" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyMYbNTs8R2lfDu32OCQapGl83iUXBe-bjIex97ajHAmbXFVIRITyMOrcKXzj6bgNZKHagyw_BOmay_WEaUxLOpbJtsAWLtDlEgMkRVnGZx6PV-J9sjUg8rO8MHrb-4tD4vF3btCpYfQg4/s320/pumpkin.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">What is really growing in <br />the pumpkin patch!</td></tr></tbody></table><br />So there was quite of bit of exploration in animal forms this time. This kind of stealth reconnaissance can feel like it slowing down the game, but my player seemed to enjoy it. She always plays pretty cautious and it usually works out for her (especially since it is just the two of them). The only thing I screwed up was not have a firm idea in my head of the layout of Falcon's Lodge and what was in the rooms for the Manse. I ended up referring to the adventure book A LOT. I really try to avoid doing that, because it slows the pacing of the game down.<p></p><p>I realized I had gotten so used to creating my own material and therefore knowing it so well that this kind of thing didn't really happen. But here it was tricky because the Druid was a cat and therefore could climb all over the place pretty easily. So any idea of prepping for the probable order of exploration would have been wasted anyway.</p><p>I asked the player if she felt I was dragging the pacing with my constant reference to the books. Either she was being kind, or it just felt like it was taking way longer than it really was. In any case, I need to really read those room descriptions a bit better before our next session. </p><p>I think the rest of the session went well. The roleplaying at Falcon's was fun. The encounter with the zombie orcs was surprising to the player and just dangerous enough to keep things exciting. And I'm so glad I remembered to roll for the dragon. That whole sequence with them hiding was really intense and brought back the reminder that Cryovain is always around. Looking forward to the next session when we dive deeper into the dangers of the Woodland Manse.</p><p><b>Up next...</b></p><p>Episode 20: <a href="http://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2021/01/dragon-of-icespire-peak-campaign-diary_11.html">Orc Webbing and Black Bear Brawling</a></p>Roman J. Martelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09545497713474664555noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7889215628007960117.post-90597169510944158322020-12-28T10:00:00.004-08:002021-01-04T08:53:53.144-08:00Dragon of Icespire Peak Campaign Diary - Episode 18 - Graboids?<b>The prep...</b> <div><br /></div><div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLQG1EDsgEbvzdFE_g5B2Lgx8xS5b693JrvHdEWG6OEGA6GPozNTM_SDdaR1VQb3eESnh4xbK7gT6DIxz-Oai1j-1j91PxFoL0Qh14siVlj28JSfSSIXMvnceDuYufucEDk3LvIGy_3wvT/s915/Essentials.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="382" data-original-width="915" height="134" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLQG1EDsgEbvzdFE_g5B2Lgx8xS5b693JrvHdEWG6OEGA6GPozNTM_SDdaR1VQb3eESnh4xbK7gT6DIxz-Oai1j-1j91PxFoL0Qh14siVlj28JSfSSIXMvnceDuYufucEDk3LvIGy_3wvT/w320-h134/Essentials.jpg" title="Only the essentials" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Only the Essentials</td></tr></tbody></table><br />I'm as surprised as you are. I had considered this campaign over. Then the player of the Druid mentioned that she was a bit sad to not see this adventure to the conclusion. Sadly our player who handled the Rogue was unable to join. I told the Druid player I had no problem running the game for her as a single player with a sidekick. I would have to adjust a few things I had originally planned, but it wouldn't be too hard. She declared she wanted to take that damn white dragon down, and so I pulled out my copy of the <b>Essential's Kit</b> and reviewed my notes. </div><div><br /></div><div>Now, I've been running my homebrew campaign for almost thirty sessions now, so I've gotten pretty good at using the techniques from <b>Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master</b> to prep for my weekly games. But I'm making up all that material: from the lore of the world to the adventure material. So picking up <b>Dragon of Icespire Peak</b> again and realizing how little I'd have to do was kind of a pleasent surprise. </div><div><br /></div><div>Going of my notes, I saw that I had focused so much on the Harvest Festival in Phandalin as the next big event. I also realized that a bunch of that stuff, while fun and entertaining, would work so much better for two players and the DM. It was all homebrew material, and I'm going to use it someday, but I know my Druid player. She is goal oriented. For her, getting to the Dragon was the big prize. I decided to just skip the festival, and say that her character had a good time and enjoyed it. I also mentioned that her partner the Rogue decided to work off her debt to Haylia and do a job for her in Neverwinter. </div><div><br /></div><div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZNfQ5AGNSlxzBDXn4vDkTGIglBpheXY2d5IuUgrHc8cpkBGcGEsnq62qQOTCpF3f37k7IXUTqTPNSMeXMC7xOyxWDxEdIcZvOtSV7UGWpa2jzvSLfAtddhi0w10-MSeFruzssHyP5UMO9/s348/Inverna.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="348" data-original-width="285" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZNfQ5AGNSlxzBDXn4vDkTGIglBpheXY2d5IuUgrHc8cpkBGcGEsnq62qQOTCpF3f37k7IXUTqTPNSMeXMC7xOyxWDxEdIcZvOtSV7UGWpa2jzvSLfAtddhi0w10-MSeFruzssHyP5UMO9/s320/Inverna.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bout that time ol' Inverna showed up...</td></tr></tbody></table><br />I asked the Druid player to look over the available quests. There was the Goldtoe Mine (which was the one I think they were going to do after the festival) and the logger's camp. She read over both quest cards and picked the logger's camp. Simple enough, deliver supplies to the loggers through the Neverwinter woods. Still she was wary and asked her old friend the Cowgirl Elf, Inverna to come along. </div><div><br /></div><div>Since I was pulling this together on the fly I flipped to the adventure in the book and gave it a quick read. I noticed a few key things. First was the boar they run into on the way (which is an anchorite in disguise) could act as foreshadowing for a later adventure. There is a totem hidden in the chimney of one of the ruins that is causing the Ankhegs to swarm. Finally I've never used Ankhegs before (but I remember them from the old <i>Balder's Gate</i> game). I was amused by the fact that the Ankhegs can tunnel, grapple and spit acid... damn. Luckily the adventure was pretty self contained and short - the perfect one for a quick pull up session.</div><div><br /></div><div>I wanted to add the possibility of one more random encounter on the two day journey to the logging camp. Since they had run into undead orcs in a previous session I created a scene where the Druid and Inverna could come upon two more undead orcs set up as a trap. Other than that, I took a few notes for secrets and clues (the boar is an orc shaman, the totem is calling's the Ankheg, Tibor is a coward) and then got ready to DM. </div><div><br /></div><div><b>The story...</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN6RCNY60M-Bbu8E-KSCCjTCPNOxNoELHzKY4AreCIc7A5A1d-ADyQIvec40jQMXAuu4yLqL7OC20v16-6lWfpbXszSzDTA2rKJVPzjvro4O2p9utaiJpdWNhexu6-yS2Fi6HqpKWYEGL-/s413/Boar.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="413" data-original-width="350" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN6RCNY60M-Bbu8E-KSCCjTCPNOxNoELHzKY4AreCIc7A5A1d-ADyQIvec40jQMXAuu4yLqL7OC20v16-6lWfpbXszSzDTA2rKJVPzjvro4O2p9utaiJpdWNhexu6-yS2Fi6HqpKWYEGL-/s320/Boar.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sometimes a boar is just a bore.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />We started with the pair going to Barthen's Provisions to pick up goods. Had a quick role-play moment as Barthen told them the name of the ox pulling the cart was named Vincent and that Barthen expected to have Vincent come back in one piece. I asked if they wanted to pick up anything else from the provision's store. However the pair had a bunch of stuff already (I just shifted a bunch of the magic items the Rogue had over to the Druid). So with that the pair was off.</div><div><br /></div><div>I had her roll 1d6. On a 1 she would get the zombie orc encounter. Otherwise they would run into the boar in the clearing. She rolled a 5, so I told the Druid that Inverna was a bit more talkative than normal and the two ladies caught up discussing the happenings at Butterskull Ranch (where Inverna stayed to help in a previous session) and the excitement of the festival (we rolled and Rupert the goat lost to Black Phillip in the Goat races).</div><div><br /></div><div>Up next was the encounter with the boar in the clearing. The Druid was cautious and decided to have the cart and ox go around the creature. I had her roll <i>Animal Handling</i> and she succeeded on the DC: 13. Vincent obeyed her commands. I also asked her to roll for Inverna to roll Strength/Athletics to help move the cart off the trail so it wouldn't get stuck. She also succeeded. So the ladies avoided the boar, and it raced off into the forest to the east (planting the seeds for danger in an upcoming adventure).</div><div><br /></div><div>Then it was time for the evening stop and setting watches. On the fly I decided the "boar" would return to see what they were up to. The Druid detected the animal watching them, but she remained quiet and observant. Since she didn't react, the boar headed to the east again.</div><div><br /></div><div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEMh6qCnuVzJ4yatJ0TZkbUzdvUpsGc7J5FQJFU5onf1PLKIqyNy1XwJl1N1tRZ30l-s2AA9VeNIxqxS8D6k2qRbu96-wvrBib_w7RSez2CUlzjbKryUfDAadoYlyOe6-U0P3BrjDokGy3/s1211/Logger+Camp.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="742" data-original-width="1211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEMh6qCnuVzJ4yatJ0TZkbUzdvUpsGc7J5FQJFU5onf1PLKIqyNy1XwJl1N1tRZ30l-s2AA9VeNIxqxS8D6k2qRbu96-wvrBib_w7RSez2CUlzjbKryUfDAadoYlyOe6-U0P3BrjDokGy3/s320/Logger+Camp.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm sure it is nice and safe...</td></tr></tbody></table><br />The next morning I had them roll another D6. She got a three this time, so no encounter again. Instead the the party arrived at the logger site. I read the description of the camp to the player. She was immediately suspicious of the holes in the tents and how damn quiet it was. They dismounted the cart and investigated the tents. I kept things eerie and mysterious as they examined the damage to the tents and the bedrolls. The Druid rolled poorly for <i>Investigation</i> and wasn't able to determine what kind of attack this was. As they started toward the next campsite, the first Ankheg attacked!</div><div><br /></div><div>The ankheg rolled poorly on stealth, so it wasn't able to sneak up on the Druid. She heard it coming and we rolled initiative. It was a pretty intense battle. The Druid used <b>Moonbeam</b> to great effect, and Inverna swung with her blade. But the acid attack was vicious and both ladies were burned in the attack. They finally defeated the creature with a combination of <b>Frostbite</b> and a mighty strike from Inverna. The player sighed and said, "So now we're dealing with Graboids!"</div><div><br /></div><div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-PiAVI-c2X96T7vswf_WWOx9FXzcvzq0JKaKeb2OFaYEv1b6kh_cBWGTI8pcfw0jvwA_XX5i_AjgSVWFICu5495BRJoSGtMNLAY5KrypdwqT3REv_8_joEDbiEvSH9Ljbo4vwEGJ8PN0J/s721/ankheg.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="721" data-original-width="612" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-PiAVI-c2X96T7vswf_WWOx9FXzcvzq0JKaKeb2OFaYEv1b6kh_cBWGTI8pcfw0jvwA_XX5i_AjgSVWFICu5495BRJoSGtMNLAY5KrypdwqT3REv_8_joEDbiEvSH9Ljbo4vwEGJ8PN0J/s320/ankheg.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Not quite Graboids, but <br />an incredible simulation!</td></tr></tbody></table><br />The party returned to the cart. There the Druid cast <b>Beast Bond</b> on Vincent the ox, to communicate with him and he with her as they explored. He could warn them if he saw something coming or if he needed help. The two then went to the only standing building: the office. They circled the building peeking in the windows. They saw the floor was wood, easy for an Ankheg to burst through. But they didn't see anyone inside. They did see a closed door to a storage room, so they headed to peek into the window of the storage room. </div><div><br /></div><div>Unfortunately for them one of the Ankhegs heard them messing around (they weren't being stealthy), and it attacked. This time they were not caught unawares either. In fact they had a clever plan. The back of the office is close to a stone plateau. Inverna was able to climb up that easily enough, and she managed to get a rope down to the Druid at the last minute and pull her up, just as the Ankheg erupted from the ground. It was time for another dose of <b>Moonbeam</b>, <b>Produce Flame</b> and Inverna unleashing attacks with her longbow. The Ankheg did get an acid blast against Inverna, but they were able to take the creature out with little issue.</div><div><br /></div><div>They climbed back down and headed to the storage room, peaking inside. There they saw the lone survivor, Barthen's brother Tibor. He barricaded himself in the storage room. They entered the office and told him they were there to rescue him. He was dubious that they killed all the creatures. Sure enough another one was charging toward the office. Tibor screamed and the ladies prepared for battle. The Druid hurried out doors and when the monster exploded forth she cast <b>Entangle</b>. The Ankheg was strong enough to break free, but the ground was still difficult terrain and his movement was slowed. But things got dicey, the Druid exhausted her spells. She was doing the most damage to it, so the monster focused on her, driving forward and finally knocking her out with a deadly bite attack. Luckily it was also very hurt, so Inverna finished it off with a longbow shot. She then used their only healing potion to bring the Druid back up to her feet.</div><div><br /></div><div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhRIVyyBnD4ITAOyPoONUzB9tmzEsd7BcRDxoRJOcqQvVKQFTU2ZcF0WI77OW2MxytP7jfVo9gvwl8_UhTziLR5M8RRvwSzMSuSOdMM-0EjoHdm9qJdNimceKpWWyWswGdjlR0OheHu_tE/s608/Graboid+monster.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="608" data-original-width="396" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhRIVyyBnD4ITAOyPoONUzB9tmzEsd7BcRDxoRJOcqQvVKQFTU2ZcF0WI77OW2MxytP7jfVo9gvwl8_UhTziLR5M8RRvwSzMSuSOdMM-0EjoHdm9qJdNimceKpWWyWswGdjlR0OheHu_tE/s320/Graboid+monster.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Could easily be in the<br />Monster Manual.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />The pair hurried back to the office and found that Tibor had tried to escape through the window and was stuck. The ladies extracted him and got him back to the cart. He assured them that no one else has survived the Ankheg attack and that they should return to Phandalin. The ladies took him at his word and turned the cart around. Soon enough Tibor reveled his cowardly nature (mentioning that he was willing to sacrifice Vincent the ox and hiding in the middle of the crates in the cart for the whole trip). Both ladies were not impressed.</div><div><br /></div><div>On the journey home I had them roll for the zombie encounter, but once again it didn't happen. I did have the boar return in the night, and this time the Druid got a good look at the boar. Still she didn't react, so the creature hurried away to the east. The next day the group returned to Phandalin, and returned Tibor to his brother. Barthen paid the ladies (100gp!). The Druid gave Inverna half the pay, and then spent 50 of the GP on another healing potion, because that last one came in real handy.</div><div><br /></div><div>I told the player that the notice board had new adventures and that she leveled up! She was excited to increase to see what she got at level 4 and picked up a new Feat from <b>Tasha's Caldron of Everything</b>. I leveled up the sidekicks and the player picked the Woodland Manse as the next stop for the adventure.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>The post...</b></div><div><br /></div><div>It was a lot of fun throwing this quick session together. The book provided me with enough information to run it pretty smoothly with such short notice. I was able to adjust the difficulty as we went through the session (there can be up to 4 Ankhegs around). Since they are fighting the creatures one at a time it is easy to drop one or more from the adventure if you need to. After the Druid fell unconscious I figured it was probably a good idea to ignore that last one. </div><div><br /></div><div>I had a blast rolling physical dice again, and seeing my player's face as events occurred. Playing online has many advantages, but since we play audio only it can be hard to read how well the players are enjoying the adventure. I did stumble a bit, referencing the book a few too many times. I keep forgetting that I have the adventure on <b>D&D Beyond</b>, and can reference the text as well as the images for the adventure. I also goofed when showing my player the map. She was able to see some text behind it, and a spoiler for the site was revealed. </div><div><br /></div><div>The player had a good time and was looking forward to playing again. The Manse it a bit more complicated so I'll have to take some time to prep that one, but all in all this went well. </div><div><br /></div><div><b>Up Next...</b></div><div><br /></div><div>Session 19: <a href="http://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2021/01/dragon-of-icespire-peak-campaign-diary.html">The Falcon and the Pumpkin Patch</a></div>Roman J. Martelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09545497713474664555noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7889215628007960117.post-81393093868606557342020-08-18T08:00:00.001-07:002020-08-18T08:00:43.175-07:00Blog Update<p> So it has been quiet around here for the last few months. As I mentioned in my previous post, my <a href="http://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2020/05/the-dragon-of-icespire-peak-campaign.html">Dragon of Icespire Peak</a> game was cancelled because of COVID. The good news is that I'm still playing D&D each week. The bad news is that my blogging time has been cut down severely.</p><p>I'm running a home brew game in a world of my own creation. Between all the world building, and session planning, I'm not having a lot of energy or time to write a full campaign diary for the sessions.</p><p>If you are curious about my world building, you can check out my page over at World Anvil for <a href="https://www.worldanvil.com/w/reluria-wanderer">Reluria</a>. It is based on the old D&D Basic setting of Mystara, but I've added my own twist to it. I'm using the same basic maps of Mystara and even some of the information from the Gazetteers which I've been picking up. I uses these as a jumping off point and then weave my player's stories and histories into the setting.</p><p>I post new content over there each week. Most of it is probably too much detail for my players, but I'm enjoying building all this right now and if I end up running more adventures in this setting in the future, I'll have it all set up.</p><p>Anyway, I hope to return to posting here a bit more frequently, but until then, thanks so much for reading the blog. I read and try to respond to all the comments. Stay safe and keep your ears open for any good stories you might hear.</p>Roman J. Martelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09545497713474664555noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7889215628007960117.post-60214371118916589972020-05-13T11:28:00.004-07:002020-12-28T10:07:01.889-08:00The Dragon of Icespire Peak Campaign Diary - Mid Campaign Wrap Up<div><i>(We did end up picking the game up again, but with only my Druid player and a sidekick. Read about the continuing adventure with <a href="http://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2020/12/dragon-of-icespire-peak-campaign-diary.html" target="_blank">Graboids!</a>)</i></div><div><b><br /></b></div><b>Wrapping it all up</b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIFHIdwA_WYbTUkdlS70MZTJ0W-GZaAzEw2phUhdbSQYnyqFoITpAiLzzdhSlGJzrdr-KlZY9OkAIkgQN2aLEUP0bNmGwiPuv2PA7e-etx-EYGfE0FyWBVXHFFGQAXV55VSJvjTCK7YE62/s1600/White+Dragon.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="213" data-original-width="334" height="204" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIFHIdwA_WYbTUkdlS70MZTJ0W-GZaAzEw2phUhdbSQYnyqFoITpAiLzzdhSlGJzrdr-KlZY9OkAIkgQN2aLEUP0bNmGwiPuv2PA7e-etx-EYGfE0FyWBVXHFFGQAXV55VSJvjTCK7YE62/s320/White+Dragon.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Still out there making mischief!</td></tr>
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Once the virus hit, it became impossible for our little group to meet up again. One of the players was an essential worker, and her job kicked into high gear. We weren't able to come up with a consistent meeting time or day, and came to the agreement that the campaign is on pause. But in all honesty I think we are just going to stop right here.<br />
<br />
If things get to a new normal, and my players want to pick up where we left off, then I'm willing to adventure with them once more. For now, the dragon is still flying over the Sword Mountains and terrorizing the folks in Phandalin. Somewhere a elven druid and her tiefling rogue companion are preparing to take it down.<br />
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<b>Game Talk</b><br />
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I was able to discuss the campaign with one of the players and get her feedback on her experience with it. This was a HUGE help in guiding my approach to my next campaign (which is happening sooner than I thought). She confirmed some of the elements I experienced, and I also learned a bit more about her as a player and what kind of adventure she was looking for.<br />
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So the big stumbling block for her, were the episodes in town. The player felt those dragged on too long and didn't feel like they offered much to the story. I would feel the same way at times. I enjoyed playing all the townsfolk in Phandalin, and some of the interactions were a blast (Harbin in particular). But I agreed that it often felt like the story took a back seat as they wandered around the town and interacted with all these folk.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilFOdD1rwm8epWtjxmD1hQtFtXIOKTVlkwtoSjNSejgsw1247WBaJm7QmoUYEt7FcLrM1G-ZtBLMidtH_uBeLVImx7lTUAkw_U-EUCgr1uBFWIOjLTD3EklIFiqu-vaUhrGIzGW4ChyphenhyphenJU5/s1600/Inverna.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="345" data-original-width="286" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilFOdD1rwm8epWtjxmD1hQtFtXIOKTVlkwtoSjNSejgsw1247WBaJm7QmoUYEt7FcLrM1G-ZtBLMidtH_uBeLVImx7lTUAkw_U-EUCgr1uBFWIOjLTD3EklIFiqu-vaUhrGIzGW4ChyphenhyphenJU5/s320/Inverna.jpg" width="265" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Voted most useful companion!</td></tr>
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I've been listening to Sly Flourish's one on one version of <b><a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLb39x-29puaqBS4QRF1TzjdT0oLSi-KKJ">The Dragon of Icespire Peak</a></b> to hear how differently he handled it and for one player. One of the big differences was that he kept the town moments very short - ten minutes max. The player was there to pick up the job, rest in the inn, and that was it. He only really narrated something if there was a new element in play. In one instance he had some bards show up and attempt to make a song about the heroic adventurers... with humorous results.<br />
<br />
Now, I've played in a couple campaigns where the shopping/town sequences can bog down the whole game, but we've had some players that love that stuff. So it is important to figure out what works and keep the approach balanced. My player is very goal oriented, and so I understand how she felt the "between encounter" segments were not her favorite.<br />
<br />
However when I asked her what parts she really enjoyed, she mentioned nearly all the encounters and puzzles (she's a big fan of puzzles). She like the set piece encounters and the exploration of the excavation site, as well as the battle at the Shrine. She also enjoyed the side kick characters, although she felt Inverna (cowboy elf) was the better one, and that Donnabella (the magical unicorn) was more of a liability. I did remind her that they didn't really get to see Donnabella at her best. She got to cast one spell in the entire Gnomengarde exploration.<br />
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<b>Reflection</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
Overall it sounds like my players had a good time. I know I did. I learned quite a bit as well. I've been playing online using a virtual tabletop for nearly three years now. So running a game at a physical table was very different in some ways. I really came to appreciate how much math the virtual table tops do for you. But I also liked rolling physical dice and seeing the players faces as things happened (I play voice only online).<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimnPCL5nTdnMhUE9YxYRyseGrhWMNg6gcIpm-w3M4fR7dXBBK0K-kQJvwMxxgoRAzwKG3WsxqvvywrnSDlS0MpxTHZ_iuDzcZKGaiU3DZzs88h4bqqCOGUOGN705mtvByjv30UxIaCnjyA/s1600/D%2526D+funny+dice+-+Google+Search+2020-05-13+11-27-49.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="424" data-original-width="426" height="317" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimnPCL5nTdnMhUE9YxYRyseGrhWMNg6gcIpm-w3M4fR7dXBBK0K-kQJvwMxxgoRAzwKG3WsxqvvywrnSDlS0MpxTHZ_iuDzcZKGaiU3DZzs88h4bqqCOGUOGN705mtvByjv30UxIaCnjyA/s320/D%2526D+funny+dice+-+Google+Search+2020-05-13+11-27-49.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This game has a dress code?</td></tr>
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I think I've improved as a DM. It felt like I had a better handle on pacing, with only the town sessions really giving me trouble. I really liked running from a published module, it gave me a nice spring board to build on. It's fun to know that my version of the game is the only one where zombie orcs can attack in Conyberry, or where a festival of High Harvest included goat racing. I am sad that we never got around to the festival. I put a lot of work into it, and was really looking forward to it. But I kept all the materials so maybe I can include it in a future game (or if we ever come back to Phandalin I'll have it ready).<br />
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All that said, I had a lot of fun hanging out with my friends in a fantasy world for a few hours, enjoying each others company, rolling funny shaped dice and talking in silly voices. It is a shame it ended too soon, but we made some great memories while it lasted and that is the important thing.<br />
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<b>What's Next?</b><br />
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Once I realized we were not going to be able to meet for a long time, I started thinking about running an online campaign. I talked with the player of the Druid, and she was game to give it a try. So I started pulling some concepts together. I've had a home brew world cooking away in the background for a couple years now. I think it is time to unleash it on some players and see what kind of stories we can make. I'm looking forward to it, and who knows maybe I'll write a diary about here.<br />
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For those of you that have been reading and enjoying the diary, thanks so much. I'm sorry you didn't get a proper ending. But if this helped you with your own version of <b>The Dragon of Icespire Peak</b>, than it was worth writing.Roman J. Martelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09545497713474664555noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7889215628007960117.post-8165687176678052072020-04-19T08:43:00.002-07:002020-04-19T08:43:42.561-07:00Perception or Investigation - Dungeon Master Tools<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzDNJExBCm7M4o8dQfjwGfTzSk-650-NcmCtbo6ifX1PQ6PSmsAsK2wQP3xYwAXkcNBD9SFwMNHSMUwkJ3chXyxd0iS9HNOtQECB8s6HZuQn-umgdmw-TWedr8xP040dDoSQlpabv7Jbm4/s1600/Deduction%253F.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="484" data-original-width="789" height="196" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzDNJExBCm7M4o8dQfjwGfTzSk-650-NcmCtbo6ifX1PQ6PSmsAsK2wQP3xYwAXkcNBD9SFwMNHSMUwkJ3chXyxd0iS9HNOtQECB8s6HZuQn-umgdmw-TWedr8xP040dDoSQlpabv7Jbm4/s320/Deduction%253F.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Why open a "trapped" door yourself when a friend can<br />open it?</td></tr>
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Like my previous look at <a href="https://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2020/03/athletics-or-acrobatics-dungeon-master.html">Athletics or Acrobatics</a>, I'm going to examine the difference between <i>Perception</i> and <i>Investigation</i> skill rolls in 5th Edition <i>Dungeons and Dragons</i>. These two checks come into play a lot during a game, and they are often ones that seems to cause some contention at the table. Usually you have characters with higher wisdom scores, like Clerics or Druids competing with higher intelligence scores like Wizards and Rogues wanting to use the skill that best suits them. Let's take a close look at the situation and see what skill is really called for.<br />
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Classic example, the adventuring party is tracking down the orcs who have abducted the village wizard and spirited her away to their overlord. As they pursue the orcs into a dense woodland, the group is staying on alert, knowing that orcs aren't completely stupid. The monsters may anticipate a tail. Sure enough a group of three orcs lie in wait to ambush the party. You ask for a P<i>erception</i> check from a character who is proficient. The Druid says he is and starts to roll, but the Rogue says that she has a higher <i>Investigation</i> skill modifier and wants to roll too. What do you do?<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9K2lXGvEgL4YPGIpjRvQ-y4T1es9bBy4eoECJjxIHO_V2byZhqXshUXiBLJdEDRptEG8p9rX5782TtitS-25Uxkr2yS5b-JbAniWnDehr-X58bPEtwCMuEurPnyx8kglMlhEQVZ-MX12k/s1600/Dragonlance+percep.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="616" data-original-width="394" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9K2lXGvEgL4YPGIpjRvQ-y4T1es9bBy4eoECJjxIHO_V2byZhqXshUXiBLJdEDRptEG8p9rX5782TtitS-25Uxkr2yS5b-JbAniWnDehr-X58bPEtwCMuEurPnyx8kglMlhEQVZ-MX12k/s320/Dragonlance+percep.jpg" width="204" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">That dragon has one hell of a<br />stealth score!</td></tr>
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In this case you can have both characters roll for their individual skills, because both apply. Let's look at each skill individually. According to the <b>Players Handbook</b>, <i>Perception</i> "lets you spot, hear or otherwise detect the presence of something. It measures your general awareness of your surroundings sand the keenness of your senses." It is directly tied to <i>Wisdom</i> with "reflects how attuned you are to the world around you and represents your perceptiveness and intuition". It would be safe to say that the Druid's experience of living within the woods, knowing the sounds of bird and beasts would allow him to perceive changes in the environment that may be caused by the orc rearguard. A <i>Perception </i>check makes sense.<br />
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The <b>Players Handbook</b> describes <i>Investigation</i> as when you "look around for clues and make deductions based on those clues." It is tied to <i>Intelligence</i> score which "measures mental acuity, accuracy of recall and ability to reason." So if the Rogue notices some broken branches on a cluster of shrubbery, the lack of animal sounds in the area and even the slight indentation of a boot print, she may put the pieces together to determine that someone is hiding and waiting to ambush.<br />
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You can see right away that there is a grey area here. How can the rogue pick up these clues without perceiving them? How can the Druid deduce from the signs of nature the ambush around the corner? In this case, I have no problem letting both characters make the roll. Perhaps the characters work together to piece the ambush together (if both roll well). Or you can have the Rogue roll with advantage (roll two D20s and use the higher roll) to say that the Druid was assisting her with the Investigation. Or vice versa. Like my previous post explained, the goal is to make sure you let your players do the cool things their characters can do.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6xNWoHEVWq0PbFWpvP2tlRrzXI7H63jCkpCCqBvA1vwlkkU97ZN7kgtZuGv1GcfwNvYgLZzdRAFtxLs2McPbsg8vTFVHpmpB5ZgXEUAGZQ5OZY3vftEul5PuSjzBGa23is1hJREe0ljbV/s1600/Percep+or+invest%253F.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="817" data-original-width="1214" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6xNWoHEVWq0PbFWpvP2tlRrzXI7H63jCkpCCqBvA1vwlkkU97ZN7kgtZuGv1GcfwNvYgLZzdRAFtxLs2McPbsg8vTFVHpmpB5ZgXEUAGZQ5OZY3vftEul5PuSjzBGa23is1hJREe0ljbV/s320/Percep+or+invest%253F.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Between the two of them, I think they got this mystery<br />solved.</td></tr>
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Let's flip the tables a bit. Suppose the party is looting the office of a corrupt mayor looking for evidence that he is being bribed by the evil wizard. The Druid's high <i>Perception</i> will not help in this case, because what they are looking for is specific documents or a paper trail. The Rogue's <i>Investigation </i>skill will be a big help here as she pieces together the correspondence that proves the mayor is corrupt. Luckily she has the Druid along with her to keep an eye out for trouble. So when the mayor's deadly elf bodyguard tries to sneak up the stairs, the Druid rolls his high <i>Perception</i> skill and detects the assassin.<br />
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Another way they can work together is in detecting and disarming traps. The Druid may be able to find the discolored cobblestone on the floor. But he will need the Rogue's keen <i>Investigation</i> skill to put together how the trap works, and then her nimble fingers to disarm the danger.<br />
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The main idea is to keep the two skills distinct enough when possible so the players feel like they are specialized and able to use those talents when needed. It keeps the players working together to solve problems. It also lets you as the DM to build encounters that play to their strengths or prey on their weaknesses. Because sometime even heroes have a bad day.Roman J. Martelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09545497713474664555noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7889215628007960117.post-88449170406491835292020-04-04T06:00:00.001-07:002020-12-28T10:11:18.435-08:00The Dragon of Icespire Peak Campaign Diary - Episode 17 - The Night Before the Festival<b>The prep...</b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSF2au2eNtC6w6_SMGx50xcYqFEw3bBFI3kxCC5yvXiolzKI2flJTjCH5QYjeXNhhZGGrcOsYgfHr1djSEPvjoeM52FyFc6BN_NCjgqQyQo3OyxoV123OnoIVnp9LzHQgKb31vIjU13TgE/s1600/Archery+Game.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="609" data-original-width="696" height="280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSF2au2eNtC6w6_SMGx50xcYqFEw3bBFI3kxCC5yvXiolzKI2flJTjCH5QYjeXNhhZGGrcOsYgfHr1djSEPvjoeM52FyFc6BN_NCjgqQyQo3OyxoV123OnoIVnp9LzHQgKb31vIjU13TgE/s320/Archery+Game.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A quick search on the internet will reveal all kinds of fun<br />festival mini-games.</td></tr>
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Ok I'm going to admit right off the bat that I probably spent way more time than I needed to on this little bit of home-brew content. But after the fuss I had the NPCs in Phandalin make about the festival, I figured I might as well make it a bit of an event. I curious to see how it plays out for the players, and if they find it as much fun as it was to put together.<br />
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I did some research online to find some skill challenges and mini-games to have at the festival. I wrote down some notes on the mechanics for the ones I think would fall into the wheelhouse of the player characters. Events include an archery contest, a scavenger hunt, a card tournament and of course goat races. None of these are mandatory for the players to engage in, but all have prize money and I know for sure the Rogue is looking for anyway to make coin to pay off Haylia.<br />
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I created some NPCs visiting the town on this feast day. Some will provide information for the current campaign. I have also thrown in a couple with seeds for <b>Princes of the Apocalypse</b> as well as the official followup to this adventure <b>Storm Lord's Wrath</b>. We'll see if either one grabs the characters (although I've been seeding <b>Princes</b> for a few sessions now).<br />
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There are also some vendors in town selling unique items like Silvered weapons (needed for later missions) and health potions. Yes the dragon is going to be sighted during the event, just to keep the tension up. All in all, there is plenty to do. I spent quite a bit of time creating new NPCs and working on the festival events. The NPCs will be useful to flesh out Phandalin a bit more, so even if the festival doesn't click, I'll have new characters for the players to interact with. I've also finally made a list of NPC names (something I should have done a long time ago) just in case my players decide to talk to the random halfling drinking at the inn. (deep breath). Ok, let's see how this goes.<br />
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<b>The story...</b><br />
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I told the players in advance that they had a couple days before the festival started. So they could spend those days doing anything they wanted, and we could role play any key events that got their interest. So I started working through the events, and the players ended up interacting with just about every single one! In the end, we didn't actually get to the festival.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5fEM9wODq3HB8yfyFMZJkqBiyORL5Ghb7-3Mm4QQsIS7vpaAlOYU_dfKTprVP617XZvUgY5nHYp80bz8kd3UTQkDGiJ6MXbT8qXlLW_3XNRufgBZ0YiGpOk-tI7bfmJjqhh51KLbhR7Y0/s1600/Black+Phillip.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="692" data-original-width="1070" height="206" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5fEM9wODq3HB8yfyFMZJkqBiyORL5Ghb7-3Mm4QQsIS7vpaAlOYU_dfKTprVP617XZvUgY5nHYp80bz8kd3UTQkDGiJ6MXbT8qXlLW_3XNRufgBZ0YiGpOk-tI7bfmJjqhh51KLbhR7Y0/s320/Black+Phillip.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">To win, he'll stop at nothing!</td></tr>
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I handed out the list of events for the festival and the players were immediately caught up in the idea of Goat Races. So they went around town asking about which goats were participating. I had established that Donnabella had saved a goat named Rupert during the white dragon's attack on Phandalin earlier in the campaign. So now I revealed (retconned) that Donnabella was out training Rupert for the goat races when that occurred. So the players had a connection to the event. I made Rupert the middle of the road option for the race, but if encouraged he had the potential to win! I also made the favorite goat Black Philip (which the players heard as Black Peter, so we just went with it). Yes Black Philip is a reference to the film <i>The Witch</i>, just for fun. Or is he really tied with infernal forces? Not sure, but I can go that way if we want. The players promised to help Donnabella get Rupert into racing condition and did some research to find out that Rupert loved apples. So tempting him with apples and having the Druid speak to him is the next step. Rupert's owner, Margo also has some story hooks to deliver, and I hinted at those.<br />
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They met some old friends like Adabra the alchemist. Norbus and Dazlyn, the dwarf archeologists showed up to talk with Fargrim Rakencrack (at a lunch event). They also met an older dwarf who helped out Haylia at the Miner's Exchange. The players wondered if he was also part of the Zhentarim... I'll let them wonder.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDXlIXkpzSkPtTLSLhe22ZjI2TO2sM4b1Bvt6s4yJmOflOpVEeVuqnFjVOvluNGi3WwAKr6D9KzZWf5xeJIwAAFTOVe9a7bh1tebmplSpfyYKMLmQ4vP_jjZfoUg9Ry20FtnaiKZQOwnMF/s1600/Dessarin+map.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="505" data-original-width="957" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDXlIXkpzSkPtTLSLhe22ZjI2TO2sM4b1Bvt6s4yJmOflOpVEeVuqnFjVOvluNGi3WwAKr6D9KzZWf5xeJIwAAFTOVe9a7bh1tebmplSpfyYKMLmQ4vP_jjZfoUg9Ry20FtnaiKZQOwnMF/s320/Dessarin+map.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">To the west of Phadalin lies a new adventure...</td></tr>
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Lots of visitors from local areas arrived. Obviously Fargrim came with a group of adventurers acting as his body guard. I had them chatting a bit about the dragon and wondering if they should try to take it down. A group of merchants arrived from Yartar and Triboar. They brought more news about things going badly in that area (tied to <b>Princes of the Apocalypse</b>).<b> </b>Finally I had a traveler from Leilon show up and talk to the players about her new town and how they are looking for adventurer's to help make the village a center of trade and travel in the area. This is a plot hook for <b>Storm Lord's Wrath</b>. I also had a couple elven bards show up and chat with the Druid about her background in the Feywild.<br />
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I'm really abbreviating everything that happened, because it was a lot of role play, discussion about which festival events to try, and checking out the stalls and stores to see what kind of deals and specials they were planning.<br />
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We ended the session on the morning of the Festival. The characters were awakened to the smell of cinnamon apple pancakes in the inn. Then they headed off to find Donnabella and Rupert to see how he was doing the morning of the race.<br />
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<b>The post...</b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh81MwEJ6w6dLyoUH_1pf1WQVX3iSXMCaygiUa7GJAZGAx8HsCo7w3AbBfs4Za9OCGFpRbcsKCY2bpnZa2ozw0YNUgZx1Xxcio5J-tNody01wa1pXOV2XHFN1eaW4quHtRnY7gOXB9TdDwH/s1600/Harvest+time%2521.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="485" data-original-width="455" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh81MwEJ6w6dLyoUH_1pf1WQVX3iSXMCaygiUa7GJAZGAx8HsCo7w3AbBfs4Za9OCGFpRbcsKCY2bpnZa2ozw0YNUgZx1Xxcio5J-tNody01wa1pXOV2XHFN1eaW4quHtRnY7gOXB9TdDwH/s320/Harvest+time%2521.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I swear it is happening next time!</td></tr>
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This session was a lot of fun for everyone and it just flew by. I created hand outs for the festival events as well as a lengthy menu for the Stonehill Inn. These items delighted the players and they referred to them throughout the session.<br />
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I introduced a LOT of NPCs in this session and I'm going to create a handout for them to keep as a reference for the day of the festival in case they want to interact with any of them. I was prepped for all the mini-games, but we didn't get to any of them. I admit I was a bit disappointed, but the session was so much fun, it doesn't matter. I love that this is a role-play heavy group. But I think they'll be ready for some hack and slash when the festival is over.<br />
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I'm also pleased how much the players enjoy the townies of Phandalin. If we move action to Red Larch or Leilon for future adventures, it will be tough to compare those folk with these that the players have really grown to like (especially Donnabella, Tobin and Inverna). But that is a worry for future DM. For now, I'm looking forward to the next session,<br />
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<b>Up Next...</b><br />
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Session 18: <a href="https://roman-martel.blogspot.com/2020/12/dragon-of-icespire-peak-campaign-diary.html" target="_blank">Graboids?</a>Roman J. Martelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09545497713474664555noreply@blogger.com2