I've decided that instead of posting the full actual play results here (they're a bit long to read on a blog), I'll only post the design notes and what I've learned from the session (a recap) rather than the full post. Those I'll throw on the forums, where they are easier to navigate and read.
That said, the two sessions I've run so far have shown me several good things about designing only what you need as you go. By leaving a number of entrances into the dungeon from other places, I can create any number of means by which others entered, and I can leave all sorts of dangling plot hooks for later.
I also see the huge benefit of actually play testing the adventures you design; you learn all sorts of cool little things once you actually pick up dice and play it out.
Friday, July 15, 2011
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
In Play 01
From Garth’s Journals:
After a long night of talking strategy with Uncle Trom (as we have come to call him) and an aggressive discussion of both the name of our group and Trom’s cut, we’ve arrived at the following agreements.
- Trom is a full member of the group; he gets 1/5 share, or an even share among survivors. We will all cast lots for order of selection on items. If you die, you and your heirs get nothing. We all agreed.
- Someone can be voted in or out of our fellowship only by unanimous agreement (of course, kicking someone out requires unanimous agreement of the others- your vote doesn’t count in that case!)
- We argued over Trom’s Hammer, Trom’s Fist, Trom’s Torch and Trom’s Echo as names for our team, but none could agree on any. Ultimately, we went with Trom’s Reach, despite some minor objections. It was getting late, and we were all a little tired at that point.
- We decided to set out at first light into the dungeons below; our first objective is to recover the Axe of Echoes, and bring this back to Trom.
Scene 1: Into the dungeons
From Xeric’s Journals:
The morning brought with it our descent into the cavernous underbelly of Beldin Mere, the tunnels that remained of the once-fearsome prison complex of Mount Brim. The rudimentary library of Beldin Mere had granted little by way of lore regarding this complex, and I determined to record as much as I could for posterity. The first thing one must notice is the smell of brimstone that hangs in the air, polluting the cellars of the Inn of 99 Ears as soon as the capstone over the shaft opens. We descended carefully into the 3’ wide shaft, deciding that this would be our order of progress through the tunnels:
Ziroh, Runyon, Me, Garth
We descended carefully, arriving at the western end of a balcony that overlooked a temple. The temple had a handful of statues in various poses scattered beneath. We checked around the area carefully before we made our decision…
In Play:
Since I know all of the obstacles that are here, it’s not reasonable that I’d be able to role play as well and think through problems. I’ll assume that my four heroes represent the full range of options. In general, I’ll roll 2D6 and get results that I’ll generally interpret like this:
2-4 The most dangerous or foolhardy course (Runyon’s view)
5-6 A risky or somewhat unknown course (Ziroh’s view)
7-9 A moderate course with some risk but possible reward (Garth’s view)
10-12 A conservative, safe course (Xeric’s view)
So, if I roll 2, the heroes just go for it; if I roll 12, they are exceptionally cautious, crossing their t’s and dotting their I’s before progressing. Sounds good.
They check the balcony, and find nothing. They scout out the west, and find a hallway that continues on, although they cannot see beyond the 30’ of torch light.
Xeric’s Journals:
We decided to first examine the statues below. They seemed to be of remarkable craftsmanship, and we wanted to inspect further…
In Play
They lower themselves without a problem, noticing the northern door is ajar, and the southern door is apparently sealed. As they search, there is a 1 in 6 chance that the cockatrice rolls in… I roll and get a 6. Nope. The cockatrice is unaware of the visitors. I also roll for wandering encounters, and get 3. Also no wandering monsters this scene.
The heroes investigate the statues. The conservative course is to leave things as they are; the careful course is to move the statues around so that they face the walls away from the heroes (maybe giving them more time to get situated should they come to life), and the reckless course is to smash the statues. I roll and get 7. They collectively decide to leave the statues be for the present, since they aren’t sure what’s going on. They move carefully to the north door, and Ziroh decides to sneak in and check the room out (area 2). He rolls 8+2=10, and the cockatrice rolls 8+2=10. Ties go to the action, so Ziroh barely slips into the room to see the cockatrice picking at its feathers in the northeast corner of the room. He comes out and tells the rest of the team… Xeric rolls lore to see if he knows anything about cockatrices… he rolls 6+2=8….
Xeric’s Journal
I knew little about the cockatrice, and had only minimal suggestions; it turns its foes to stone, so the statues herein must be its victims. How to turn them back, and how to fight a cockatrice, I had no idea. I knew that some creatures had to touch you to turn you to stone, while others could do it only by sight. I suggested that we move back to the balcony, prepare ranged attacks, and use one of the statues (I suggested the spider) to draw the creature into the room, avoiding its gaze if at all possible.
In Play
There is a 1 in 6 chance that the cockatrice comes in as they prepare (since this takes several minutes). I roll 2, so they finish just as the cockatrice is about to go for a stroll. They position themselves so that Runyon is to the west (in case creatures entered that way), Ziroh is to the east, Garth is to the north, and Xeric is to the south. Runyon and Garth will work together to pull over the spider statue (using ropes they tie to it), ducking beneath the balcony side, while Ziroh and Xeric pepper the creature with ranged attacks. Ultimately, both Runyon and Garth can throw rocks at it, as needed. They both gather a handful from the chamber (they aren’t hard to find, from pieces of broken statues)
Pulling over the spider statue is DR 10. Between them, they have 8 CPs invested in might (+4), and Garth’s +1 shift brings them to +5. They roll and get 6+5=11. They easily topple the statue, and it smashes to pieces on the floor in a loud crash. The cockatrice enters carefully, investigating the room, moving around the pillars towards the center. Once it crosses between the pillars on the west side, the heroes attack.
For sequence, they roll:
Garth rolls 7+0=7
Runyon rolls 6+0=6
Xeric rolls 7+1=8
Ziroh rolls 9+1=10. He also rolls for stealth, getting 6+2=8.
The cockatrice rolls 10+2=12. Additionally, it rolls to notice Ziroh’s stealth, getting 8+2=10. It sees him up on the balcony right away.
Round 1:
- The cockatrice will leap at Ziroh, attempting to bite him and turn him to stone. It has to move 3 units and leap 2 more, so this will be a considerable effort… leaping to the 15’ balcony will normally require a DR 15 might roll, but the cockatrice (although it cannot fly) can use its wings to ‘flutter’ to one of the statues, and again to the balcony. I rule that this will be its full action this turn, if successful, but will put it in melee range for its next turn. It needs two might rolls (both DR 7) to make it to the balcony. It rolls 9+5=14, and easily gets atop the statue. It then rolls 5+2=7, and narrowly perches on the balcony rail, next to Ziroh. There is a 50% chance that this action knocks over the statue. We’ll say evens on a D6, and it falls. I roll and get 4; it falls! Evens it’s the fighter, and odds it’s the scout. I roll and get 2; the fighter falls to the floor with a heavy crash, shattering his statue. The cockatrice prepares to bite Ziroh on its next turn.
- Ziroh fires a bolt at the cockatrice in midair, as it prepares to land on the balcony. He rolls 4+3=7, and the cockatrice rolls 4+3=7 to evade. He narrowly clips it with a bolt in midair, and rolls 4+1=5 for damage, but the cockatrice soaks 7+0=7 wounds. Ziroh fails to wound it, but a flurry of feathers cascade to the floor below.
- Xeric throws an arcane bolt; he rolls 5+3=8 to hit, and the cockatrice rolls 2+3=5 to evade; Xeric hits by +3, and for damage he rolls 9+3+2=14 wounds, and the cockatrice soaks 5+0=5; he deals 9 wounds, leaving the cockatrice at 11.
- Garth will use his turn to close for melee. He has to move 3 units, so he can travel and still strike at -3. He does so, rolling 7+4-3=8 to hit, and the cockatrice rolls 6+3=9 to evade. He misses. He’ll save his resolve point in case he really needs it later.
- Runyon cannot cross the chamber in one turn, but he thinks about using the rope that the heroes descended from; I rule that it’s anchored near him, and he can use it to swing to the cockatrice as a single turn (with a -3 attack linked to it), on a successful roll. He needs to roll might, DR 10, to cross the expanse. He rolls and gets 8+4 (from the aura of might) =12, and manages to traverse the room, leaping from the rope and he swings with his sword at the cockatrice, getting 10+4-3=11, and the cockatrice rolls 7+3=10 to evade; he hits by +1. For damage, he rolls 2 (blech) +4+1=7 wounds, and the cockatrice soaks 5; it’s now down to 9 wounds remaining.
Round 2
- On its turn, the cockatrice bites Ziroh, as promised. It rolls 8+2=10 to hit, and Ziroh rolls 6+2=8 to evade. The cockatrice hits by +2. For damage it gets 8+2=10, and Ziroh soaks 5+1=6, so he takes 4 wounds and is down to 6. He also has to resist the petrification; he rolls 6+1=7. He has no resolve, so he turns to stone. One down!
- Ziroh uses his turn to look like a handsome narglyn statue. He succeeds (no roll required).
- Xeric throws an arcane dart, getting 7+3=10 to hit, but the cockatrice rolls 9+3=12 to evade, and Xeric misses.
- Garth swings his hammer, getting 8+4=12 to hit, and the cockatrice rolls 7+3=10 to evade. He hits by +3, and for damage rolls 4+2+3=9, and the cockatrice rolls 7+0=7 to soak. It’s now down to 7 wounds remaining.
- Runyon swings his sword, getting 10+4=14 to hit, and the cockatrice rolls 3+3=6 to evade; Runyon hits by +8! For damage, he rolls 6+4+8=18 wounds, and the cockatrice soaks 7+0=7 wounds. The cockatrice suffers 11 wounds, and dies, falling from the edge of the balcony to the floor below in a pile of feathers and blood. Its head has been severed.
I’m going to house rule that you have to make a ‘system shock’ roll of sorts to recover from petrification. This would be a might roll, with a relatively low DR… we’ll say DR 7. The gnome is not yet an ally, so gets no bonus to this, but by virtue of being teamed with Garth, Ziroh has a might of +2 from the aura. The gnome scout rolls 6+0=6, while Ziroh rolls 8+2=10. Ziroh makes it, but the gnome is not going to… Garth uses a resolve point to allow the gnome to be part of his aura of might, so that the gnome makes the roll and survives.
For defeating the cockatrice, the heroes each earn 3 XP. For saving the gnome, they will get an extra +1 each, so all heroes are now at 4 XPs.
The gnome does not want to stick around. The heroes tell him how to get out, and he gladly takes the escape- but not before he tells the heroes that he suspected that his partner was ready to betray him, and he hid a small treasure in the area he and the fighter had used (19) as their safe haven.
Design Notes:
- The cockatrice is a capable foe against level 1 heroes; it took out Ziroh in one attack, and odds were in its favor with each hit beyond this. I was tempted to add a second cockatrice (returning from wandering the halls to find its mate in battle) at some point, but decided against it because this is the first encounter in the dungeon (or at least it is likely to be), and the encounter already presents the possibilities of adding a spider, fighter and maybe even a gnome to the combat depending on how things go… in this case, the heroes got lucky and handled things well, so the encounter was easier. If that spider had sprung to life, if they’d been battling on the first floor, or if the gnome had died instead of the human fighter, we’d have a very different situation here.
After a long night of talking strategy with Uncle Trom (as we have come to call him) and an aggressive discussion of both the name of our group and Trom’s cut, we’ve arrived at the following agreements.
- Trom is a full member of the group; he gets 1/5 share, or an even share among survivors. We will all cast lots for order of selection on items. If you die, you and your heirs get nothing. We all agreed.
- Someone can be voted in or out of our fellowship only by unanimous agreement (of course, kicking someone out requires unanimous agreement of the others- your vote doesn’t count in that case!)
- We argued over Trom’s Hammer, Trom’s Fist, Trom’s Torch and Trom’s Echo as names for our team, but none could agree on any. Ultimately, we went with Trom’s Reach, despite some minor objections. It was getting late, and we were all a little tired at that point.
- We decided to set out at first light into the dungeons below; our first objective is to recover the Axe of Echoes, and bring this back to Trom.
Scene 1: Into the dungeons
From Xeric’s Journals:
The morning brought with it our descent into the cavernous underbelly of Beldin Mere, the tunnels that remained of the once-fearsome prison complex of Mount Brim. The rudimentary library of Beldin Mere had granted little by way of lore regarding this complex, and I determined to record as much as I could for posterity. The first thing one must notice is the smell of brimstone that hangs in the air, polluting the cellars of the Inn of 99 Ears as soon as the capstone over the shaft opens. We descended carefully into the 3’ wide shaft, deciding that this would be our order of progress through the tunnels:
Ziroh, Runyon, Me, Garth
We descended carefully, arriving at the western end of a balcony that overlooked a temple. The temple had a handful of statues in various poses scattered beneath. We checked around the area carefully before we made our decision…
In Play:
Since I know all of the obstacles that are here, it’s not reasonable that I’d be able to role play as well and think through problems. I’ll assume that my four heroes represent the full range of options. In general, I’ll roll 2D6 and get results that I’ll generally interpret like this:
2-4 The most dangerous or foolhardy course (Runyon’s view)
5-6 A risky or somewhat unknown course (Ziroh’s view)
7-9 A moderate course with some risk but possible reward (Garth’s view)
10-12 A conservative, safe course (Xeric’s view)
So, if I roll 2, the heroes just go for it; if I roll 12, they are exceptionally cautious, crossing their t’s and dotting their I’s before progressing. Sounds good.
They check the balcony, and find nothing. They scout out the west, and find a hallway that continues on, although they cannot see beyond the 30’ of torch light.
Xeric’s Journals:
We decided to first examine the statues below. They seemed to be of remarkable craftsmanship, and we wanted to inspect further…
In Play
They lower themselves without a problem, noticing the northern door is ajar, and the southern door is apparently sealed. As they search, there is a 1 in 6 chance that the cockatrice rolls in… I roll and get a 6. Nope. The cockatrice is unaware of the visitors. I also roll for wandering encounters, and get 3. Also no wandering monsters this scene.
The heroes investigate the statues. The conservative course is to leave things as they are; the careful course is to move the statues around so that they face the walls away from the heroes (maybe giving them more time to get situated should they come to life), and the reckless course is to smash the statues. I roll and get 7. They collectively decide to leave the statues be for the present, since they aren’t sure what’s going on. They move carefully to the north door, and Ziroh decides to sneak in and check the room out (area 2). He rolls 8+2=10, and the cockatrice rolls 8+2=10. Ties go to the action, so Ziroh barely slips into the room to see the cockatrice picking at its feathers in the northeast corner of the room. He comes out and tells the rest of the team… Xeric rolls lore to see if he knows anything about cockatrices… he rolls 6+2=8….
Xeric’s Journal
I knew little about the cockatrice, and had only minimal suggestions; it turns its foes to stone, so the statues herein must be its victims. How to turn them back, and how to fight a cockatrice, I had no idea. I knew that some creatures had to touch you to turn you to stone, while others could do it only by sight. I suggested that we move back to the balcony, prepare ranged attacks, and use one of the statues (I suggested the spider) to draw the creature into the room, avoiding its gaze if at all possible.
In Play
There is a 1 in 6 chance that the cockatrice comes in as they prepare (since this takes several minutes). I roll 2, so they finish just as the cockatrice is about to go for a stroll. They position themselves so that Runyon is to the west (in case creatures entered that way), Ziroh is to the east, Garth is to the north, and Xeric is to the south. Runyon and Garth will work together to pull over the spider statue (using ropes they tie to it), ducking beneath the balcony side, while Ziroh and Xeric pepper the creature with ranged attacks. Ultimately, both Runyon and Garth can throw rocks at it, as needed. They both gather a handful from the chamber (they aren’t hard to find, from pieces of broken statues)
Pulling over the spider statue is DR 10. Between them, they have 8 CPs invested in might (+4), and Garth’s +1 shift brings them to +5. They roll and get 6+5=11. They easily topple the statue, and it smashes to pieces on the floor in a loud crash. The cockatrice enters carefully, investigating the room, moving around the pillars towards the center. Once it crosses between the pillars on the west side, the heroes attack.
For sequence, they roll:
Garth rolls 7+0=7
Runyon rolls 6+0=6
Xeric rolls 7+1=8
Ziroh rolls 9+1=10. He also rolls for stealth, getting 6+2=8.
The cockatrice rolls 10+2=12. Additionally, it rolls to notice Ziroh’s stealth, getting 8+2=10. It sees him up on the balcony right away.
Round 1:
- The cockatrice will leap at Ziroh, attempting to bite him and turn him to stone. It has to move 3 units and leap 2 more, so this will be a considerable effort… leaping to the 15’ balcony will normally require a DR 15 might roll, but the cockatrice (although it cannot fly) can use its wings to ‘flutter’ to one of the statues, and again to the balcony. I rule that this will be its full action this turn, if successful, but will put it in melee range for its next turn. It needs two might rolls (both DR 7) to make it to the balcony. It rolls 9+5=14, and easily gets atop the statue. It then rolls 5+2=7, and narrowly perches on the balcony rail, next to Ziroh. There is a 50% chance that this action knocks over the statue. We’ll say evens on a D6, and it falls. I roll and get 4; it falls! Evens it’s the fighter, and odds it’s the scout. I roll and get 2; the fighter falls to the floor with a heavy crash, shattering his statue. The cockatrice prepares to bite Ziroh on its next turn.
- Ziroh fires a bolt at the cockatrice in midair, as it prepares to land on the balcony. He rolls 4+3=7, and the cockatrice rolls 4+3=7 to evade. He narrowly clips it with a bolt in midair, and rolls 4+1=5 for damage, but the cockatrice soaks 7+0=7 wounds. Ziroh fails to wound it, but a flurry of feathers cascade to the floor below.
- Xeric throws an arcane bolt; he rolls 5+3=8 to hit, and the cockatrice rolls 2+3=5 to evade; Xeric hits by +3, and for damage he rolls 9+3+2=14 wounds, and the cockatrice soaks 5+0=5; he deals 9 wounds, leaving the cockatrice at 11.
- Garth will use his turn to close for melee. He has to move 3 units, so he can travel and still strike at -3. He does so, rolling 7+4-3=8 to hit, and the cockatrice rolls 6+3=9 to evade. He misses. He’ll save his resolve point in case he really needs it later.
- Runyon cannot cross the chamber in one turn, but he thinks about using the rope that the heroes descended from; I rule that it’s anchored near him, and he can use it to swing to the cockatrice as a single turn (with a -3 attack linked to it), on a successful roll. He needs to roll might, DR 10, to cross the expanse. He rolls and gets 8+4 (from the aura of might) =12, and manages to traverse the room, leaping from the rope and he swings with his sword at the cockatrice, getting 10+4-3=11, and the cockatrice rolls 7+3=10 to evade; he hits by +1. For damage, he rolls 2 (blech) +4+1=7 wounds, and the cockatrice soaks 5; it’s now down to 9 wounds remaining.
Round 2
- On its turn, the cockatrice bites Ziroh, as promised. It rolls 8+2=10 to hit, and Ziroh rolls 6+2=8 to evade. The cockatrice hits by +2. For damage it gets 8+2=10, and Ziroh soaks 5+1=6, so he takes 4 wounds and is down to 6. He also has to resist the petrification; he rolls 6+1=7. He has no resolve, so he turns to stone. One down!
- Ziroh uses his turn to look like a handsome narglyn statue. He succeeds (no roll required).
- Xeric throws an arcane dart, getting 7+3=10 to hit, but the cockatrice rolls 9+3=12 to evade, and Xeric misses.
- Garth swings his hammer, getting 8+4=12 to hit, and the cockatrice rolls 7+3=10 to evade. He hits by +3, and for damage rolls 4+2+3=9, and the cockatrice rolls 7+0=7 to soak. It’s now down to 7 wounds remaining.
- Runyon swings his sword, getting 10+4=14 to hit, and the cockatrice rolls 3+3=6 to evade; Runyon hits by +8! For damage, he rolls 6+4+8=18 wounds, and the cockatrice soaks 7+0=7 wounds. The cockatrice suffers 11 wounds, and dies, falling from the edge of the balcony to the floor below in a pile of feathers and blood. Its head has been severed.
I’m going to house rule that you have to make a ‘system shock’ roll of sorts to recover from petrification. This would be a might roll, with a relatively low DR… we’ll say DR 7. The gnome is not yet an ally, so gets no bonus to this, but by virtue of being teamed with Garth, Ziroh has a might of +2 from the aura. The gnome scout rolls 6+0=6, while Ziroh rolls 8+2=10. Ziroh makes it, but the gnome is not going to… Garth uses a resolve point to allow the gnome to be part of his aura of might, so that the gnome makes the roll and survives.
For defeating the cockatrice, the heroes each earn 3 XP. For saving the gnome, they will get an extra +1 each, so all heroes are now at 4 XPs.
The gnome does not want to stick around. The heroes tell him how to get out, and he gladly takes the escape- but not before he tells the heroes that he suspected that his partner was ready to betray him, and he hid a small treasure in the area he and the fighter had used (19) as their safe haven.
Design Notes:
- The cockatrice is a capable foe against level 1 heroes; it took out Ziroh in one attack, and odds were in its favor with each hit beyond this. I was tempted to add a second cockatrice (returning from wandering the halls to find its mate in battle) at some point, but decided against it because this is the first encounter in the dungeon (or at least it is likely to be), and the encounter already presents the possibilities of adding a spider, fighter and maybe even a gnome to the combat depending on how things go… in this case, the heroes got lucky and handled things well, so the encounter was easier. If that spider had sprung to life, if they’d been battling on the first floor, or if the gnome had died instead of the human fighter, we’d have a very different situation here.
Monday, July 11, 2011
Heroes 2.0
I’m going to trade out one of my heroes; instead of a forge gnome, I’m going to make my scout a narglyn. I’ll change his name to Ziroh Zanisak. Instead of a bonus to evade, narglyn get a bonus to precision; as such, I’m changing out his weapon from darts to a crossbow. Additionally, I changed out Runyon’s axe for a sword; at least one hero should be a sword wielder, and I know that Trom collects axes, so it’s a good swap out.
Ziroh Zanisak, the Narglyn Scout (10 CPs) Soak physical +1
Arms +1; Burglary +2; Evade +2; Intuition +1; Precision +3 (2 CPs/ +1 racial shift); Stealth +2
Light Crossbow +1 (attack +3/damage +1/range 4), dagger +1 (attack +3/damage +1); leather armor +1
Runyon the Human Fighter (10 CPs) Soak physical +2
Arms +2; Might +3; Resolve +3 (2 CPs; +1 racial shift); Weapon Specialization (swords) +2
Hide armor +2; long sword +2 (attack +3/damage +4)
Xeric the Moon Elf Magician (10 CPs) Soak magic +2
Arcane Bolt (eldritch) +3; Aspect +2; Evade +1; Lore +2; Intuition +1 (from racial shift +1); Resolve +1
Wand of eldritch +2 (attack +3/damage +2/range 3); cloak of warding +2
Carries a dog-eared edition of Heldack’s Arcanum; wears cloak of warding +2
Garth Thunderheart, Dwarf Disciple (10 CPs) Soak magic +1/physical +2
Arms +2; Aura of Might +2; Aura of Healing +1; Aspect +1; Intuition +1; Might +3 (2 CPs, +1 racial shift); Resolve +1
Studded armor +2; cloak of warding +1; war hammer +2 (attack +3/damage +2)
Ziroh Zanisak, the Narglyn Scout (10 CPs) Soak physical +1
Arms +1; Burglary +2; Evade +2; Intuition +1; Precision +3 (2 CPs/ +1 racial shift); Stealth +2
Light Crossbow +1 (attack +3/damage +1/range 4), dagger +1 (attack +3/damage +1); leather armor +1
Runyon the Human Fighter (10 CPs) Soak physical +2
Arms +2; Might +3; Resolve +3 (2 CPs; +1 racial shift); Weapon Specialization (swords) +2
Hide armor +2; long sword +2 (attack +3/damage +4)
Xeric the Moon Elf Magician (10 CPs) Soak magic +2
Arcane Bolt (eldritch) +3; Aspect +2; Evade +1; Lore +2; Intuition +1 (from racial shift +1); Resolve +1
Wand of eldritch +2 (attack +3/damage +2/range 3); cloak of warding +2
Carries a dog-eared edition of Heldack’s Arcanum; wears cloak of warding +2
Garth Thunderheart, Dwarf Disciple (10 CPs) Soak magic +1/physical +2
Arms +2; Aura of Might +2; Aura of Healing +1; Aspect +1; Intuition +1; Might +3 (2 CPs, +1 racial shift); Resolve +1
Studded armor +2; cloak of warding +1; war hammer +2 (attack +3/damage +2)
Sunday, July 10, 2011
The map is done for level 1, and I absolutely love it… although I can’t claim credit for the design. I was more than inspired by this map; both the circular layout and the artistic technique in drafting it were things I emulated. You should check out Dyson’s blog- he’s brilliant. His work hits the exact sweet spot for me in evocative, helpful and clear design. I plan to cop his style for my future maps, and to limit the use of computer-generated designs as much as possible. The blocky designs have an old-school charm, but maps like this one are 5x better in all respects, to my mind.
Working from his original design, I cut down the number of crossovers from 4 to 3, cut down the total number of rooms, and added the natural cavern that includes a waterfall into the central pit. The heroes immediately have any number of choices in direction, and they can move around the thing with quite a bit of freedom.
Four immediate access points are in the northwest corner and in the west; these are both connections to rival dwarf mining clans. Both clans have established portcullises as a ‘fence’ between the dungeon complex (as unclaimed territory) and their mine complexes (as per official charters granted by the Council of Beldin Mere). Both clans clearly mark their borders, have magically-sealed portcullises, and leave guardians as well. There are several ways to get to the next lower level (an entrance at the bottom of the central pit, and the stairs on the eastern end are two ways), although others surely exist… eventually.
My group of heroes will enter through the temple complex at the far eastern end. This temple rests directly beneath the Inn of the 99 Ears, and Trom Trollslayer has petitioned for and been granted a ‘special writ’ granting him property rights to all land directly beneath the confines of his inn. He therefore claims the temple itself as his (by property right), and wants to explore further down, to see what else may be his by right. Further, he wants to live vicariously through a group of young explorers; his wife would never allow him to undertake such reckless activity as dungeon crawling, but he craves the excitement of the adventuring life, and he’s hoping that by acting as the brains behind a young team, he can relive his glory days. He’s intentionally picked young, inexperienced but relatively trustworthy and honest folk for his fellowship, and expects to be fair with them; he sees them eventually becoming part of his extended family, but also knows that the life can be dangerous, and that it’s quite likely some (or all) will not survive long.
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Mount Brim
I’ve had Mount Brim in my notes for several years, and I’ve decided to make this the location of my mega-dungeon. Here’s what I already know about Mount Brim:
- Surdur kept a fortress atop the mountain that was the symbol of his power and influence. While in the Barrens, he warred with Beldin Mere for two centuries; the two fortresses (his and the dwarf complex) were located at opposite ends of the horizon- so maybe 20-30 miles separated them in the Barrens. During the Reckoning, Mount Brim was moved intact, while Beldin Mere was cut loose and ended up floating through the Celestial Sea for some time (upwards of a year, I’m thinking) before crossing over into the lands of Del Anon.
- Once Surdur’s forces and the dwarves realized that they had all arrived in the same realm, the battle heated up again in all of its glory; however, this time it was different, seeing as the dwarves were 20 miles up, and 200 miles away.
- Eventually, the dwarves found a way to control the movements of their aerial city, and decided to set a course for Mount Brim. They launched the final volley in their battle when they positioned Beldin Mere directly over Mount Brim- and then dropped it. I stole this image from an episode of Battlestar Galactica, wherein Adama has Galactica drop into a planet’s atmosphere.
-The dwarves succeeded in taking out the entire upper prison complex, squishing the upper levels of the caverns below and collapsing large sections. They believed at the time that they had succeeded in destroying the bulk of Surdur’s forces. If this were true, would we be talking about this right now?
- They used the last of the magic that held the fortress aloft to keep it from totally falling apart on impact; the city sustained some considerable damage, although this was minor relative to the impact of the fall. Dwarf engineers and meticulous manipulation of storm magic prevented the entire city from imploding upon impact.
- Surdur kept power by pitting his lieutenants against each other. He had dozens of powerful servitors who, since they were evil to the core, would inevitably gang up on him in an effort to seize personal power; he prevented this by keeping them pitted against each other. This means that individual sectors of the complex were personalized by the individual wardens, and many are still individual lairs of the warden and his/her/its personal entourage.
- Surdur may or may not still survive. I think that he does in some form (although almost assuredly not as a normal fire giant). However, his direct links to his former lieutenants have fallen apart, so many are either dead, acting in the ways they think Surdur would have wanted, or working to claim the complex for their own.
- It has several access points (as any good mega-dungeon should).
- Its main gates are quite powerful, and should be for heroes of level 6+. I’ll design these later, although I have some ideas/notes about that already. All in good time…
- Two access points lead into the section I’m designing… one is located below the Inn of the 99 Ears, and the other is located beneath a tree on the mountainside (outside of the city proper) that is haunted by an evil spirit. New heroes can use either access point, or ultimately both. I think that mine will be using the one through the 99 Ears (since I am working up backstory for that), but I want to include the other as an equally viable option (that leaves the heroes untied to any secret benefactor, if so desired).
- Surdur kept a fortress atop the mountain that was the symbol of his power and influence. While in the Barrens, he warred with Beldin Mere for two centuries; the two fortresses (his and the dwarf complex) were located at opposite ends of the horizon- so maybe 20-30 miles separated them in the Barrens. During the Reckoning, Mount Brim was moved intact, while Beldin Mere was cut loose and ended up floating through the Celestial Sea for some time (upwards of a year, I’m thinking) before crossing over into the lands of Del Anon.
- Once Surdur’s forces and the dwarves realized that they had all arrived in the same realm, the battle heated up again in all of its glory; however, this time it was different, seeing as the dwarves were 20 miles up, and 200 miles away.
- Eventually, the dwarves found a way to control the movements of their aerial city, and decided to set a course for Mount Brim. They launched the final volley in their battle when they positioned Beldin Mere directly over Mount Brim- and then dropped it. I stole this image from an episode of Battlestar Galactica, wherein Adama has Galactica drop into a planet’s atmosphere.
-The dwarves succeeded in taking out the entire upper prison complex, squishing the upper levels of the caverns below and collapsing large sections. They believed at the time that they had succeeded in destroying the bulk of Surdur’s forces. If this were true, would we be talking about this right now?
- They used the last of the magic that held the fortress aloft to keep it from totally falling apart on impact; the city sustained some considerable damage, although this was minor relative to the impact of the fall. Dwarf engineers and meticulous manipulation of storm magic prevented the entire city from imploding upon impact.
- Surdur kept power by pitting his lieutenants against each other. He had dozens of powerful servitors who, since they were evil to the core, would inevitably gang up on him in an effort to seize personal power; he prevented this by keeping them pitted against each other. This means that individual sectors of the complex were personalized by the individual wardens, and many are still individual lairs of the warden and his/her/its personal entourage.
- Surdur may or may not still survive. I think that he does in some form (although almost assuredly not as a normal fire giant). However, his direct links to his former lieutenants have fallen apart, so many are either dead, acting in the ways they think Surdur would have wanted, or working to claim the complex for their own.
- It has several access points (as any good mega-dungeon should).
- Its main gates are quite powerful, and should be for heroes of level 6+. I’ll design these later, although I have some ideas/notes about that already. All in good time…
- Two access points lead into the section I’m designing… one is located below the Inn of the 99 Ears, and the other is located beneath a tree on the mountainside (outside of the city proper) that is haunted by an evil spirit. New heroes can use either access point, or ultimately both. I think that mine will be using the one through the 99 Ears (since I am working up backstory for that), but I want to include the other as an equally viable option (that leaves the heroes untied to any secret benefactor, if so desired).
Who's the Leader of the Club?
Who exactly is my team’s leader? I suppose I should decide that now, too. Dran is motivated by traps and puzzles. This is not a bad motivation, but doesn’t necessarily make him a leader… Runyon is not much in the brains department as I see him, so I don’t like the idea of him making strategy. Xeric is a bit of a bookworm, and doesn't really have a mind for battle, so he’s out. Though he was the last hero I made, Garth seems the best fit for leading; he’s got the most ‘group utility’ in his build (he thinks of others), and he’s got motivation to go here; it was a dwarven prison complex, and he’s a dwarf. Let’s generate some rumors about the place that would hook Garth to seek it out:
• Surdur has become one with elemental flame. Since Garth would one day like to become one with elemental storm, he’d like to pick the old guys brains (preferably after removing them from the skull) to see how he did it.
• Garth’s father’s line met its end in the complex; he was the youngest son, so he doesn’t have the right to continue the clan. Only the eldest living son has the right to take the clan name; if any of his older brothers lives (and at least one must; he hasn’t received the mystical clan mark yet), he can’t carry on the line. Odds are good that someone is still imprisoned somewhere within; he has an obligation to attempt a rescue.
• Surdur had in his possession one of the six Hammers of Thunder, prized relics of the dwarves. Many believe that Surdur either has the hammer within, or disassembled it and spread its pieces throughout the complex (this one is better- keeps the heroes exploring every nook and cranny to find pieces of the hammer, and they get to feel a sense of accomplishment as they find pieces).
• Surdur has become one with elemental flame. Since Garth would one day like to become one with elemental storm, he’d like to pick the old guys brains (preferably after removing them from the skull) to see how he did it.
• Garth’s father’s line met its end in the complex; he was the youngest son, so he doesn’t have the right to continue the clan. Only the eldest living son has the right to take the clan name; if any of his older brothers lives (and at least one must; he hasn’t received the mystical clan mark yet), he can’t carry on the line. Odds are good that someone is still imprisoned somewhere within; he has an obligation to attempt a rescue.
• Surdur had in his possession one of the six Hammers of Thunder, prized relics of the dwarves. Many believe that Surdur either has the hammer within, or disassembled it and spread its pieces throughout the complex (this one is better- keeps the heroes exploring every nook and cranny to find pieces of the hammer, and they get to feel a sense of accomplishment as they find pieces).
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Revisiting the Early Days
As I’m working on my dungeon and its heroes, I have been reading about the old Greyhawk days and early adventures. I was struck by several things, but the one that really hit me was this- you always started at level 1, and you had to earn everything. I know that for many of you this won’t be much of a revelation, but I’ve fully embraced the idea of starting a new character at whatever level you want, and going from there.
If, by rule, you have to start new characters at level 1, and you have to earn every scrap of money, experience and treasure, a level 5 hero means a LOT more to you. For my own gaming, I think that I might go this way going forward.
I was also struck by how much personal pride Gary Gygax took in the dungeons below Castle Greyhawk; several things I’ve read have spoken to how much it bothered Gary when a player outsmarted part of the complex, or when they got past a particular challenge. It seems like there were two opposing forces at work in those early days: a general desire to flummox the player characters, and a strong ethic that it had to be fair. As the DM, level 1 had to be appropriate to level 1 characters; you couldn’t suddenly have a level 7 monster that could wipe the party out. On level 7, you had level 7 opponents. If the PCs were dumb enough (or didn’t take care) not to inadvertently end up on level 7 while they were still level 1, well- that was their problem.
If, by rule, you have to start new characters at level 1, and you have to earn every scrap of money, experience and treasure, a level 5 hero means a LOT more to you. For my own gaming, I think that I might go this way going forward.
I was also struck by how much personal pride Gary Gygax took in the dungeons below Castle Greyhawk; several things I’ve read have spoken to how much it bothered Gary when a player outsmarted part of the complex, or when they got past a particular challenge. It seems like there were two opposing forces at work in those early days: a general desire to flummox the player characters, and a strong ethic that it had to be fair. As the DM, level 1 had to be appropriate to level 1 characters; you couldn’t suddenly have a level 7 monster that could wipe the party out. On level 7, you had level 7 opponents. If the PCs were dumb enough (or didn’t take care) not to inadvertently end up on level 7 while they were still level 1, well- that was their problem.
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