My gaming group has just finished The Indomitable Fire Forest of Innenotdar. I'm pretty sure it went down well (as did The Scouring of Gate Pass).
We have a week off next week, but then we'll be starting Shelter from the Storm, which is the most complex adventure so far. Luckily I have two weeks to prepare!
I'm enjoying running this series immensely (partly, probably, because I'm publishing it, so there's some inbuilt enthusiasm there!) I didn't really enjoy running the WotC H1-H2-H3 series of modules, and we stopped halfway through Pyramid of Shadows. I think it's definitely clear that DM enthusiam for an adventure very much affects the way it comes across to the players!
We have 4-5 players (depending on who's there that night), plus of course the ever-expanding retinue of NPCs (Torrent, Crystin, Haddin, Tiljann). I'm finding them very useful as a way of dialling the difficulty of an encounter up and down - rather than adjusting the encounters, we just have the NPC involvement in the encounter increase or decrease as needed. The players run the NPCs in combat, with some guidelines form the DM - such as "Haddin will only act if attacked" or what-have-you - whch can be adjusted depending on the encounter. So, if we're a couple of players down and the encounter is tough, I might say "Haddin will actively fight, but only use at-wills" and so on.
So, c'mon, spoiler alert. What sorts of war crimes has your group committed so far? Or do we have to wait for the storyhour?
__________________ Ryan "RangerWickett" Nock
Author of the War of the Burning Sky serialized novel, free at EN World. Part Two, The Irons Have Tolled, now available.
They did consider letting the forest die. I think they were most impressed with the fact that they could do that - that they could make those major moral descisions, have an effect, and the campaign still continue.
I resent the suggestion that we're a bunch of war criminals. The worst we did was allow some ages-past-her-prime obsessive-depressive tree-hugger to get stabbed in the chest by some equally-depressed cthonic winged dude because we were all too stupid to think that he might do something right in the middle of his own village.
I deny any suggestion that the resulting deaths were our responsability. I point the finger of blame fairly and squarely at the cthonic entity.
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This message was posted by Eccles, the percussive maintenance technician.
How did you handle NPC involvement? Do your players get upset if the NPCs do not get involved?
I was also planning on have the NPCs intervene in encounters according to how well they are related to the party.
Do you see this as something feasible.
Currently most of my tables are somewhat resentful of Torrent when she isn't involved in combat, even when I tell them that I would have to adjust the encounter if she did.
On another note, it seems that you have an actual play of this, could you post a link?
How did you handle NPC involvement? Do your players get upset if the NPCs do not get involved?
No, not at all. Why would they? I don't let the NPCs run the show.
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I was also planning on have the NPCs intervene in encounters according to how well they are related to the party.
Do you see this as something feasible.
I'm not sure I understand. How well they are related to the party? You mean how much they like the party? Or something else?
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Currently most of my tables are somewhat resentful of Torrent when she isn't involved in combat, even when I tell them that I would have to adjust the encounter if she did.
That seems like an unfortunate player issue. I'd have a word with the players to resolve the issue. If you can't resolve it with them, drop Torrent and adjust the encounters. The most important thing is that everyone's having fun, after all.
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On another note, it seems that you have an actual play of this, could you post a link?
No, not at all. Why would they? I don't let the NPCs run the show.
Me neither, but I had some players complaining that the NPC involvement was below the one that it appeared to be.
For example, Torrent wants to take the case to Lyceum, but she is mostly quiet when talking to Erdran.
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Originally Posted by Morrus
I'm not sure I understand. How well they are related to the party? You mean how much they like the party? Or something else?
Yes, depending on how much they like the party, they may intervene more in combat.
For example, by default Torrent would get involved if more than half of the party is downed.
If she was in not so good terms, she would surrender and leave the adventurers to their fate.
If she was in good terms, she may begin using at-wills as soon as one PC gets downed.
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Originally Posted by Morrus
That seems like an unfortunate player issue. I'd have a word with the players to resolve the issue. If you can't resolve it with them, drop Torrent and adjust the encounters. The most important thing is that everyone's having fun, after all.
I think you are right here.
It seems a player issue.
I'll have a talk again.
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Originally Posted by Morrus
A play of it? You mean a story hour?
Yes
I meant a Story Hour.
(in other forums it's called Actual Play, or AP, sorry for the confusion)
I'm so far behind on the Story Hour, it's insulting.
And honestly we do get very cross at the NPCs. We now have 4 of them trotting around with our (sometimes 3 person!) party. We've had to be rescued by the NPCs when we've bitten off more than we can chew, so it doesn't do to be too rude to them in case they withdraw their services.
Besides, one of them's so ungodly powerful (he's about 11th level when we've been 6th), that if he took a hand in our combats, he could solo them...
__________________
This message was posted by Eccles, the percussive maintenance technician.
And honestly we do get very cross at the NPCs. We now have 4 of them trotting around with our (sometimes 3 person!) party. We've had to be rescued by the NPCs when we've bitten off more than we can chew
My feeling from a "gamist" level is that, given that our group varies from 3 players to 5 at random, the NPCs provide a helpful level of flexibility at the expense of verisimilitude. Essentally they can be involved on a sliding scale.
Don't worry - once you reach Seaquen, they all have their own things to do! There's a romance in store for Crystin!
My feeling from a "gamist" level is that, given that our group varies from 3 players to 5 at random, the NPCs provide a helpful level of flexibility at the expense of verisimilitude. Essentally they can be involved on a sliding scale.
Don't worry - once you reach Seaquen, they all have their own things to do! There's a romance in store for Crystin!
I'm not having a go at the NPCs. They're actually a very neat little mechanic, especially when our group's a bit on the small side at the moment!
The 'aaargh, NPC is taking fire' moment (especially when Crystin would go bloodied after a heavy sneeze) was pretty frightening - sort of like 'lost' xp which is the most unimaginably terrible thing for a roleplaying group!
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This message was posted by Eccles, the percussive maintenance technician.
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