Anthony Winter
Explorer
what level and where in teh campaign are you?
D&D 5E Enhancing "Hoard of the Dragon Queen" (Practical stuff to try at your table!)
The Green Hermit
Hero
So far, we are only 3rd level and in the Dragon Hatchery. After completing Hoard, though, we are going to do Palace of the Red Pasha and then transfer to Scales of War to kill off Tiamet once and for all, so we've got lots of room in our campaign to play with.
We are also using XP, not milestone achievements, so we will probably need side quests at some point, just to be at the proper level.
We are also using XP, not milestone achievements, so we will probably need side quests at some point, just to be at the proper level.
The Green Hermit
Hero
Nice. My characters just talked it into going away. What really gave them trouble were the rat swarms!
Weiley31
Legend
I hate the cutscene introducing the Rat Swarm too!
I'm starting Tyranny of Dragons with a group of five Level 1 adventurers shortly (2 experienced, 2 with a few games under their belt, 1 new), and after reading this and several other threads / posts, am thinking of modifying the introduction as listed below. I'd appreciate any feedback from those who've played or run Hoard of the Dragon Queen as to viability, or any issues it may raise for later.
I'm going to start the group in Greenest. They've arrived that day for various reasons, maybe passing through, maybe one of the bonds from the AP.
It's evening in Greenest, and Leosin Erlanthar meets the characters at the Inn (walled building to top left of map), as he wants them to pose as merchants to buy a dragon's egg (modified Mission 1 from the DDAL Defiance in Phlan). This is an opportunity to describe him, and mention the necklace he wears and staff he carries, which are found later when he's "captured". The rest of the mission will play out mostly as described, in an abandoned barn a half hour outside Greenest. The thugs will be cultists though, searching for an egg that was stolen from the hatchery.
The next morning, Castellan Escobert will meet the adventurers at the Inn, to check on their purposes for visiting Greenest, and see if they're up for occasional adventurer work. The party includes a dwarf, so he'll likely chat a bit. They'll be interrupted by screams outside, meet Millivent (Mission 2 from Defiance in Phlan) and Escobert will ask them to rescue her family and offer a reward of 50GP and 10 healing potions. She'll probably have been part of a small travelling merchant family rather than farmer, attacked before dawn. The monsters will be kobolds rather than goblins, and the lair is/was a staging post for a large kobold force, but they're mostly off raiding.
It will be too late to make it back to Greenest that day, so they'll likely camp somewhere, with another encounter of kobolds. This will get them to level 2 (milestone) and give them a long rest.
The next day, as they head back toward Greenest, they'll (hopefully) notice lots of kobold tracks, and they'll come across one of the random chapter 1 encounters. After this, near the outskirts of Greenest they'll meet a couple of clerics of Chauntea, sent to help the captured farmers, who will also be able to heal the adventurers.
Depending on how observant they were they'll either know an attack is incoming and want to rush to the keep to inform the Governor, or maybe head there to claim their reward or they may even be oblivious and ready to head to the Inn first (in which case the clerics will take the rescued family to the keep). Shortly after this, the dragon, cultists and kobolds will attack. They'll hear shouts and screams, and they'll run into the Linan Swift encounter, with the intent of getting her to the keep. Standard encounters (3 or 4) on the way to the keep will ensue. If they don't have the clerics of Chauntea with them, they'll catch up with the Millivent family & accompanying clerics if they need.
Upon reaching the keep they'll advance to Level 3. Escobert will give them their reward of GP & healing potions, and introduce them to Governor Nighthill, who will then ask if they can help the townspeople and promise them healing from clerics within the keep, between missions. Cue the selection of missions, and off we go, just with the adventurers one level higher than the AP has them, and some extra healing potions.
Thoughts / problems?
I'm going to start the group in Greenest. They've arrived that day for various reasons, maybe passing through, maybe one of the bonds from the AP.
It's evening in Greenest, and Leosin Erlanthar meets the characters at the Inn (walled building to top left of map), as he wants them to pose as merchants to buy a dragon's egg (modified Mission 1 from the DDAL Defiance in Phlan). This is an opportunity to describe him, and mention the necklace he wears and staff he carries, which are found later when he's "captured". The rest of the mission will play out mostly as described, in an abandoned barn a half hour outside Greenest. The thugs will be cultists though, searching for an egg that was stolen from the hatchery.
The next morning, Castellan Escobert will meet the adventurers at the Inn, to check on their purposes for visiting Greenest, and see if they're up for occasional adventurer work. The party includes a dwarf, so he'll likely chat a bit. They'll be interrupted by screams outside, meet Millivent (Mission 2 from Defiance in Phlan) and Escobert will ask them to rescue her family and offer a reward of 50GP and 10 healing potions. She'll probably have been part of a small travelling merchant family rather than farmer, attacked before dawn. The monsters will be kobolds rather than goblins, and the lair is/was a staging post for a large kobold force, but they're mostly off raiding.
It will be too late to make it back to Greenest that day, so they'll likely camp somewhere, with another encounter of kobolds. This will get them to level 2 (milestone) and give them a long rest.
The next day, as they head back toward Greenest, they'll (hopefully) notice lots of kobold tracks, and they'll come across one of the random chapter 1 encounters. After this, near the outskirts of Greenest they'll meet a couple of clerics of Chauntea, sent to help the captured farmers, who will also be able to heal the adventurers.
Depending on how observant they were they'll either know an attack is incoming and want to rush to the keep to inform the Governor, or maybe head there to claim their reward or they may even be oblivious and ready to head to the Inn first (in which case the clerics will take the rescued family to the keep). Shortly after this, the dragon, cultists and kobolds will attack. They'll hear shouts and screams, and they'll run into the Linan Swift encounter, with the intent of getting her to the keep. Standard encounters (3 or 4) on the way to the keep will ensue. If they don't have the clerics of Chauntea with them, they'll catch up with the Millivent family & accompanying clerics if they need.
Upon reaching the keep they'll advance to Level 3. Escobert will give them their reward of GP & healing potions, and introduce them to Governor Nighthill, who will then ask if they can help the townspeople and promise them healing from clerics within the keep, between missions. Cue the selection of missions, and off we go, just with the adventurers one level higher than the AP has them, and some extra healing potions.
Thoughts / problems?
The Green Hermit
Hero
Question: How long do you plan to stay around Greenest? The campaign has you just surviving the dragon attack and going to the raiders' camp twice before leaving for good. Unless you are changing that for your campaign, I would make sure your players know this is just the starting point.
Thanks!
They'll have arrived that day either passing through, or one of the Greenest bonds (looking for Talis, investigating for Ontharr, one possibly even meeting Leosin leading into the dragon egg mission).
Other than that nothing to want to make them to stick around long term, when Nighthill/Leosin sends them off to Elturel.
The Green Hermit
Hero
Let us know how this goes.
