So, one of my first posts was an entry of stuff I want to see in my now running 4Eberron RL game. Things I have done from that list so far:

- Characters are hired by the Twelve to go to Xen'drik (not main fiddles; they're 1st?)

Characters are associated with a Morgrave Expedition and are brought along by their mentors (see the bottom of that link).

- Sharn air battle (taxi; airsleds; etc.)

Characters had to hop on soarsleds to chase down someone who stole something from the expedition. Ran it as a skill challenge.

stonegod

A few weeks ago I started my first 4E campaign as a DM: Shards of Light, Shards of Shadow. Its set in Eberron and I'm using the wonderful Obsidian Portal as our wiki.

We had our fourth session last night (I haven't put this up on the addy log yet). So far, 4E is a blast to DM for and with the DDI Compendium a breeze to create encounters for. Still working a bit on the encounter balance (most encounters probably have been a bit on the easy side), but otherwise I think it is going well. Players seem to be having a blast.

Looking forward to the drop of the Eberron Player's Guide next month.

stonegod

As I did last time I did a system change, I have converted my last PCs into NPCs: In this case, I converted Col Tobinson & Churtle from 3.5 to 4e.

Col Tobinson
Converting Col was a bit tricky as Arcane Power has not come out yet. If it did, I doubt it would have Malconvoker abilities. Col was known for having lots of outsiders fighting for him and always having an escape plan: Col died only once in the entire campaign (in the fight with Big D). Even then, he had a contingency: Churtle, his cohort, with a scroll of wish saved for that occasion. At the end of the game, he is on the run and using magic to mask his presence. I wanted to include all of these elements.

I used the NPC making rules of the DMG as a basis, staring with a 30th level human wizard. Though 3.5e Col was 23rd, 30th seemed right for a 4e version (as that would be the end of the Epic Tier extraplanar part of the Savage Tide). I chose powers similar to those he used often: Meteor Swarm, Time Stop, Disintegrate, etc. Next, I made him elite by applying a "Malconvoker" like template. I based it off of the Death Master, replacing its undead summoning ability with one similar to the Pit Fiend (though adjusted for Col's extra four levels). In addition, I gave Col a 3.5 malconvoker like ability to have his evil minions do more damage (if they are near enough). To deal with the fact that most elites get abilities to attack twice every round, I gave Col the ability to command two of his nearby minions to attack (as a basic attack); they get a +4 bonus to account for Col's level difference to them (they'll all be at least four levels lower if summoned).

The last thing I did for Col was add his "escape hatch": Col's Backup Plan. The power is taken from the Keybearer Epic Destiny in Dragon 372's "Master the Planes" article. Its the perfect Col thing to do: Get out of town when things get rough. I also borrowed Mordain the Fleshweaver's immunity to scrying from the same issue to emulate Col's dependence on 3.5's mind blank to escape detection.

Churtle
Churtle was more straightforward. As a cohort, I did not make her elite. She's pretty much a 26th level kobold warlock straight up. The main things are a resistance to fire and the ability to heat things up with her Channel Hellfire ability: She channels superhot fires of Hell to do extra damage at the cost of hurting herself. A nice homage to the hellfire warlock of Fiendish Codex II.

stonegod

After the TPK and the end of KotS, our DM had us start up new 4th level PCs. I decided to go with the classic blind seer who gave up sight for knowledge. But can you trust said knowledge when it comes from entities beyond the stars?

Nos Vanthren
Male Half-Elf Star Pact Warlock 4
Initiative: +2, Low-Light, Passive Perception: 19, Passive Insight: 12
HP: 47, Bloodied: 23, Surge: 16, Surges: 11
AC: 16, Fort: 18, Reflex: 15, Will: 18; Ranged attack from more than 5 squares are at -5.
Resist: 5 necrotic, 5 poison
Speed: 6

Eldritch Blast
Dire Radiance
Illusory Ambush
Dreadful Word
Frigid Darkness
Ethereal Stride
Curse of the Dark Dream

Alignment: Unaligned. Languages: Common, Elven, Deep Speech
Feats: Improved Fate of the Void, Sacrifice to Caiphon, Starfire Womb
Skills: Arcana +12, Diplomacy +8, History +8, Insight +9, Intimidate +11
Abilities: Str 8, Con 20, Dex 10, Int 13, Wis 10, Cha 18
Possessions: Dagger, Deathcut Leather +1, Rod of Corruption +1, Adventurer's Kit, Bracers of the Perfect Shot (Heroic), Cloak of Distortion +1, Everburning Torch.

Appearance and Personality

Nos, at first glance, seems unremarkable other than his apparent injury–a thick bandage wrapping his head over his now missing eyes. A passingly handsome half-elf with a goatee and hair that needs tending, Nos otherwise seems unremarkable if unkempt. But at a second glance, the strange force of his otherness becomes clear as he becomes hard to ignore. His clothes bear the trappings of a scholar, though how he can read with his injury cannot be seen.

Nos rarely speaks over a low whisper, as if speaking hurts. Even so, he addresses the speaker directly, his eyesight apparently keen despite his wounds. He is direct and articulate, but almost always seems distracted, as if looking at something just a bit off your shoulder. Nos is very rarely flummoxed, as if he was expecting something to happen.

Background

The Vanthren family is a well-off family in the remains of a former Nerath capital. Merchants mostly, there were several Vanthren scions in the clergy, the Academy, and other lofty heights. Nos was the last son of his particular branch and destined for the Academy, the other positions left for his elder siblings.

While Nos showed an initial talent for magic, he was no star student—he did not have the natural talent for wizardry. However, Nos was always driven by the desire to know things. This predilection for knowledge lead him down other avenues of study, methods that were taboo. Such studies lead him down more circuitous and dangerous paths to the realms of the forbidden, and it was soon after that Nos found himself without eyes, having sacrificed them for the knowledge now gained from his patrons beyond the stars.

Initially, his instructors at the Academy were unaware of Nos' extracurricular activities, only noting his sudden skill at the more esoteric arts. But when his pact was made, the depths of Nos' madness was made clear and he was expelled. Outcast from his family, Nos set out on his own, driven by his thirst to know and the strange visions that haunted his waking hours and plagued his sleepless nights.

stonegod

Talon, my Dragonborn Paladin of the Raven Queen, met his fate and joined his mistress last Thursday at the culmination of KotS. We had two things go wrong, one our fault, one not:
- First, we shoved the Underpriest from above the final chamber into the final room and he survived. The DM had him fully healed as well after our short rest.
- Second, we only four players (and do so for most of the game) and thus were down on available surges and potential damage output.

The battle was tense, and was close, but when three of your party is down w/ no more surges, no more healing words/etc., and hoping for several Nat 20's (which did happen) while the BBEG is still not bloodied and capable of healing to full essentially given a few rounds, you know you're boned.

C'est la vie. Overall, KotS was an okay run, but far to crunchy w/o a lot of variation. Our DM (new to DMing) is now planning to create some of his own stuff, and I already have a blind half-elf star-lock in the works. One door closes...

stonegod

In my RL Keep on the Shadowfell game, my dragonborn paladin of the Raven Queen just leveled up. Playing him is great: His only interest is tending to the dying and making sure fate is not cheated. Its sort of an Eastern mystic/Euthanatos feeling to him. He's given our party wizard fits by guarding over him at night and proclaiming Good... it was not your time yet. every morning.

Anyway, here is his stats plus his background:

Her Talon of Immaculate Fate


Appearance and Personality
Her Talon is an imposing figure nearing 6'8" in statue. His dragonborn features are concealed under fine dark robes inscribed with runes of the Raven Queen's faith over his solid steel plate armor. His cloak is made out of many fine raven's feathers, he bears a raven's skull amulet, and wears a skull helmet made out of the bones of a dragon or large bird. What draconic features can be seen reveal a male dragonborn with dusky red scales.

Her Talon is taciturn, speaking the fewest words possible and always directly‚ his imposing presence provides all the communication he needs. Her Talon's speech is rife with allusions to death, fate, entropy, and finality. While he appears quite dour, Her Talon is very sanguine about his duty as a paladin of the goddess of Death and Fate.

Background
Her Talon of Immaculate Fate is a contradiction for most dragonborn: The faith of the Raven Queen is not primary amongst them. Her Talon's unusual occupation stems from his parent's stint as guards for itinerant Ravenite clerics. When they had their firstborn, one Ravenite seer said that the child would be instrumental in carrying out their Queen's will; this sealed Her Talon's fate. Because of this, Her Talon's mannerisms seem more humanish than dragonborn, though his obvious otherness does not make him fit exactly in human communities either. This fits Her Talon of Immaculate Fate fine, for his life is his Queen's; issues of "fitting in" and such are only distractions.

Talon met Ostran the halfling tending those passing to his Queen's realm in a no-name town on his travels. The halfling decided that traveling together would be safer than doing so apart and Talon agreed with the ranger's wisdom. Along the way, they joined with the charismatic leader Eldarion and the traveling wizard Arkan and are not traveling as one.

stonegod

Driving back from Memphis the other day (its a long drive) gave me ample time to think of stuff for my planned (and still unnamed) Eberron 4E game (though none of it is 4E specific). Here's the lists as it stands today.
- Characters are hired by the Twelve to go to Xen'drik (not main fiddles; they're 1st?)
- Ice block w/ giant talon
- Primitive warforged guarding something (?)
- Giant ruins
- Two part ritual; defend NPC while its performed
- Release something *BIG* (destroys airship)
- Have to put it back together? Other way back?
- Deal with surviving attack on Stormreach: Big skill challenge (too big to fight it directly)
- Sharn air battle (taxi; airsleds; etc.)
- Zombies
- Imprisoned with trapped ghoul that they don't know until later
- Others?
Any other fun thoughts from the peanut gallery? Run something similar?

stonegod