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[Let's Read] Odyssey of the Dragonlords
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<blockquote data-quote="Libertad" data-source="post: 7961672" data-attributes="member: 6750502"><p style="text-align: center"><img src="https://i.imgur.com/ryLd1gl.png" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></p><p></p><p><strong>Starting at Higher Level:</strong> For those pointing out the incongruity of 1st-level PCs being underpowered for the legends they’re famed for, the book suggests that gaming groups unsatisfied with their “famous heroes” starting out at 1st level can begin at 5th. In this case the DM should skip two of the three Great Labors, with the relevant deeds/treasures/etc already performed and retrieved.</p><p></p><p>The Great Labors are all in different locations, but conveniently the city of Estoria is within reasonable traveling distance of all three. Chances are the PCs may be headed there to speak with the god Pythor for their Epic Paths anyway.</p><p></p><p>Estoria is not in a good location by the time the PCs arrive. Sydon is extorting farmers to make daily sacrifices of one cow a day, keeping all of it for himself and not doing the “burn the best parts and let the mortals eat the rest” that is typical for more reasonable gods. Even worse, centaur, gygan, and cyclops forces loyal to him are gathering in large war parties across the river. Sydon promised to pull them away from Estoria should Pythor offer his daughter Anora as a sacrifice on the next night of the full moon, else the assembled armies shall invade. A sacrifice her father is unwilling to make.</p><p></p><p style="text-align: center"><img src="https://i.imgur.com/CVA467D.png" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></p><p></p><p>Estoria is a fair-sized city with 14 major sites to explore and 10 potential random encounters: most of the encounters are just set dressing, but a few involve fights or danger such as a bunch of barrels breaking off a cart and heading in the party’s direction.</p><p></p><p><strong>Bioware Trope Alert: Side Quests:</strong> One of Odyssey’s strong points is that while it has a main plot, a lot of encounters and locations are optional or can be found off the beaten path should the PCs go out of their way to explore the cities and islands of the adventure path. As completing said side quests usually nets the party more Experience and material rewards than if they bypassed them, gaming groups of a more completionist mindset will have an advantage in future encounters due to being more powerful.</p><p></p><p>So what sidequests do we have in Estoria? Well there’s…</p><p></p><p>...a Wine Festival where the party can watch mythological and historical plays expanding on Thylea’s world-building. One of the actress is a disguised green hag who will try to seduce a PC to meet her alone so she can eat their heart.</p><p>...a grave robber who stole a Necklace of Fireballs from the Necropolis and is starving to death due to the curse for his sin. The only way for him to end the curse is to sell the necklace to someone who knows that he stole it from a grave. It will teleport back into his possession otherwise.</p><p>...meet some dwarves in the Dragon’s Tooth, a local tavern. They will pay the PCs 10 gp for each dwarven skull retrieved from the Mithral Mines. The skulls are needed to bury their kin, and their race once operated the Mithral Forge. <a href="https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TwentyBearAsses" target="_blank">This one’s a subtrope all its own!</a></p><p>...meet a man and his husband in the local vineyards, whose daughter Corinna went missing. She is encountered at the Mossy Temple, one of the many teenagers who joined Demetria’s cult of Lutheria. Returning her safely home nets the PCs a Javelin of Lightning from the grateful fathers.</p><p>...convince a simple-minded yet good-intentioned cyclops that a group of poachers he’s running with are bad news, as they’re only his ‘friends’ due to the muscle he provides and nothing else.</p><p></p><p>The PCs can also visit the local tavern where they can roll on a d8 table to learn of plot-relevant rumors, several of which hint at future chapters or interesting locations in town: the local dwarf artisan Volkan claims to be the God of the Forge, a massive hurricane is approaching Mytros’ coast, etc. PCs who visit the Dragon Shrine to drink from the Horn of Balmytria will learn that some thieves broke in and stole it. Following the trail whether by Survival or Detect Magic (cuz powerful artifact) leads the PCs to the Mossy Temple deep in the Oldwoods. Finally, Volkan’s Hall is home to the God of the Forge, but most of the locals think him to be merely an eccentric dwarf. He’ll give the PCs a magic item if they sacrificed the boar to him, and even if they did not he promises to help them craft magic items if they get the Mithral Forge working again.</p><p></p><p style="text-align: center"><strong>The King’s Daughter</strong></p> <p style="text-align: center"><img src="https://i.imgur.com/gPKt75T.png" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></p><p></p><p>But before the PCs can go gallivanting around town, the city guards at the gates will mention that King Pythor is aware of their presence and issued a summons for them. They won’t force them there, but will encourage the party to make haste given that their ruler would not issue this order on a whim.</p><p></p><p>Pythor’s an alcoholic even on his better days, but given the recent troubles his worse side is out as he’s found smashing statues in the main hall. He’ll gain enough lucidity once Kyrah talks some sense into him, and he explains the above troubles regarding Sydon. Although Pythor has dozens (if not hundreds) of children, Princess Anora is very dear to him. The sacrifice in question demanded by Sydon involves tying the captive to the aptly-named Rock of Sacrifice on the river where they must remain until sunrise. It is known that a pair of basilisks will petrify and consume any offerings left there, so even though the wording does not demand death it will be almost certain. Caught between sacrificing one of his own vs the people of the city, he cannot directly fight Sydon’s forces without violating the Oath of Peace, so he begs the PCs to find a solution. The next full moon is a few weeks away, so the PCs have a generous window open to act and also do any Great Labors and various sidequests to Git Gud to fight the basilisks/centaur chieftain/etc.</p><p></p><p>How does Anora feel about this? She’s willing to sacrifice herself, but Pythor will not allow it and locked her away in the palace dungeons to prevent her from sneaking out.</p><p></p><p>One might be asking how Sydon’s forces can raze a city without breaking the Oath of Peace. Well, that’s a good question. In fact, any in-game text of the Oath proper is never revealed, although it’s heavily implied that not attacking Thylea’s major population centers is one of the terms with which the Titans must abide based on later events in the book. Which makes one ask why Estoria’s the exception. While we know that the gods’ devotees can fight each other without breaking the Oath (otherwise this AP would be impossible), the vagueness of the Oath is something the PCs will be asking about in times like this.</p><p></p><p>The PCs could challenge the centaur chieftain in ritual combat, where he and a number of his best soldiers will face the PCs in equal numbers plus one cyclops. This will be a very difficult battle given these are <strong>Centaur Heroes</strong> with better stats than the base Monster Manual kind, and Kyrah will advise against this. She will resurrect the PCs in one week’s time at Pythor’s palace rather than wasting their Divine Boons should they lose. The other option is to approach the representatives of the Order of Sydon, led by Commander Gaius who is a bit of a recurring villain in this campaign. Pythor’s offer of fifty oxen to replace Anora will be turned down, for Gaius is a Lawful Evil jerk who wants the Five Gods to suffer. He’ll only accept the PCs as an entire party as a worthy sacrificial substitute.</p><p></p><p>The PCs can look for the basilisk’s lair and kill them ahead of time, although this will result in an unforeseen yet still manageable complication. Sacrifices, be they the PCs or Anora, will be led to the Rock of Sacrifice and chained by their feet (but still retain their equipment). A dozen centaur will watch the proceedings, as well as three harpies who will use their songs to lure any escapees back to the rock. The chains limit their movement, and the basilisks will attack after twenty minutes...but if the basilisks are dead, then hours will pass and Sydon’s followers will grow increasingly worried and impatient. The harpies will be the first to break down, where they will attack the sacrifice(s) but will not be joined by their landbound comrades should the PCs retaliate. As the terms of the sacrifice do not mandate death (only a certain time limit), the centaur chieftain will grudgingly disband his army should it go awry.</p><p></p><p>Completing the quest where Anora survives will make Pythor very happy. He will give one of the PCs (ideally the Demi-God) his famous hammer, which in addition to being a great weapon can be used to craft special kinds of weapons at the Mithral Forge. If Anora dies, Pythor will drink himself into unconsciousness and be invalid for a week.</p><p></p><p><strong>Epic Paths:</strong> Pythor has relevant information regarding the destinies of the Demi-God and Lost One, but won’t aid them until they resolve the sacrifice quest. He’ll tell the Demi-God that their mother was kidnapped by the dragon Hexia who is believed to lair in the Forgotten Sea. Volkan will give said PC the blueprints for one of Pythor’s unfinished weapons, which is one of the magic weapons for this Path and must be crafted with his hammer at the Mithral Forge.</p><p></p><p>For the Lost One, he’ll mention that Estor Arkelander, one of the Dragonlords, knows where the lost treasure of the order is, but he is now an undead captain of a ghost ship which hasn’t been seen in generations.</p><p></p><p style="text-align: center"><strong>The Mithral Mines</strong></p> <p style="text-align: center"><img src="https://i.imgur.com/kPSEotH.png" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></p><p></p><p>The Mithral Forge is interesting in that it’s one of the few aspects of Thylea which directly ties the PHB races to the world’s history. The dwarven settlers found a rich mithral vein with some adamantine extending for miles beneath the mountains; the largest in the world in fact. Most of Thylea’s greatest arms and armor were crafted here, and it was this vaunted fame that made Lutheria unleash a Cerberus hound in the mines to slaughter the dwarves. The infernal beast gave birth to many children known as death dogs, meaning that nobody has yet returned it to operating order.</p><p></p><p>As can be expected, the Mithral Mines are a classic subterranean dungeon crawl. The PCs can see four massive statues in the shape of hands which are actually one of Kentimane’s many limbs, a bit of foreshadowing to the Titan’s omnipresent nature across Thylea. They can also come upon some wary centaurs who if not attacked will warn the party of a troglodyte band in the mines who kidnapped their companions. Said companions are a <strong>Side Quest</strong> where the tribe will award the PCs 3 potions of heroism for rescuing them.</p><p></p><p>The Mithral Mines are a 2-level, 22-room dungeon. Troglodytes from the Underdark sought the mines’ upper reaches as a safe haven from an undefined threat further below the world’s reaches, but ended up involved in a devastating war with the Cerberus’ death dog children. A battle which the troglodytes gained the upper hand in once they bred some cockatrices to petrify the hounds...and in turn the cockatrices started attacking their caretakers, and are thus a third pseudo-faction in the dungeon. The mines have some creepy ambience of multi-headed doglike statues, a few of which come to life shortly after the PCs enter or go on to the next room.</p><p></p><p>PCs who fall in battle against the troglodytes will not be killed, but imprisoned (granting them a Short Rest) and brought to their king. Said king wears a Headband of Intellect which has made him rather miserable upon realization that he lives among idiots. He will be initially nonviolent to the PCs and offer a game of riddles, and should they win or prove otherwise useful to him he’ll tell them the password to bypass the elevator trap leading to the lower levels.</p><p></p><p>The way to the second level is an intricate dwarven elevator with a trap. Unless the right password is uttered, dragonhead spouts will pour oil into the elevator while flaming jetstreams farther below come to life. The PCs have 3 rounds to somehow prepare or avoid this before the entire elevator is lit on fire. The damage alone from this trap can result in a TPK. The second level itself is hotter, home to a Salamander kept imprisoned by a cold-generating bronze sphere that douses her with freezing ice should she go a certain distance away from the room’s center. She was a metalsmith who helped maintain the Forge, but can tell the PCs how to restart and upkeep it should they find and give her the contract binding her (also in the dungeon). She will stay in the Forge for one year voluntarily, helping craft items.</p><p></p><p>But nothing in life is so straightforward. If the trogloydyte king is still alive, he’ll hear the loud sounds of the forge coming to life and lead a war party of 16 of his subjects down the elevator to kill the PCs, the salamander, and any surviving death dogs in order to claim the Forge for himself. The PCs have several rounds to prepare, and can also set up 4 traps in squares of their choice in the forge room to activate when someone enters. Said traps are overhanging cauldrons spilling molten metal, blast vents that shoot out boiling steam, etc.</p><p></p><p>Although the PCs have traps and a fiery monster to aid them, the potential 17-monster combat is highly lethal to PCs who are likely 2nd to 4th level. But I do like how it’s suitably climactic for the end of a dungeon, and cutting back the troglodyte numbers may be best.</p><p></p><p><strong>Epic Paths:</strong> The Forgekeeper will give the Dragonslayer one of their wish list magic items, and explain that the gygans of Yonder Island once knew the secrets to building an even greater weapon suitable for fighting dragons.</p><p></p><p style="text-align: center"><strong>The Mossy Temple</strong></p> <p style="text-align: center"><img src="https://i.imgur.com/RTHrJGi.png" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></p><p></p><p>This one’s another dungeon crawl, this time of the decaying vine-covered ruins kind. A group of goatlings stole the Horn of Balmytria so as to prevent the PCs from opposing the Titans’ plans, although they did not do a good job in covering their tracks. Said goatlings are part of a cult of Lutheria, led by the evil dryad Demetria. The cult has been tricking teenagers into thinking they’re joining a cool secret society but in actuality will become either maenads (for the women) or sacrifices (for the men).</p><p></p><p><strong>Goatlings and Maenads:</strong> With the absence of orcs, goblins, and kobolds, other monsters serve similar thematic roles in Odyssey of the Dragonlords. Centaur and Gygans more or less replace orcs and ogres as the “strong warrior race of raiders” trope. Maenads and goatlings are two new monsters in Thylea. Maenads are evil monstrous women transformed after a loved one tricks or betrays them as part of a ritual to Lutheria. Maenads are more or less always Evil and live to kill: the union of a maenad and satyr produces a goatling, who are Small-sized monsters with goat heads who are fond of taunting people in combat.</p><p></p><p>The Mossy Temple is slightly shorter than the Mithral Mines, being 16 rooms. The PCs also have more opportunities to encounter potential allies, such as an insane gnome who remains wildshaped in squirrel form whenever possible. There’s also a non-evil pair of satyrs* and a dryad who are ambassadors for the non-evil fey unsuccessfully trying to convince Demetria to stop kidnapping and torturing people. Two of them cannot provide direct aid in combat, but can tell them a bit of the dryad’s backstory: the Dragonlord Estor Arkelander cut down her sister’s tree to help build his ship, which is why she’s now evil. Finally there Corinna, one of the teenage revelers who can talk sense into her friends.</p><p></p><p>*One of the satyrs, Loreus, is not like others of his kind: he prefers the fanciful fiction of stories and poetry, and happens to be big fans of the PCs thanks to their exploits. He’ll fall in love with the party member who is the nicest to them, and if possible will covertly follow them and use his pan pipes to put to sleep a foe who begins to get the upper hand in combat.</p><p></p><p>The Temple’s dangers are nicely varied, ranging from animated root traps, camouflaged oozes in a stagnant pool, nonflying gargoyle statues that come to life if an offering is not left in a sacrificial bowl, and violently drunk goatling and maenads. The treasure has some non-standard options: two gardens can be harvested for non-magical Goodberries, truth serum, and poison to those with the proper proficiencies</p><p></p><p>Demetria and her gygan bodyguard are in one of the temple’s last rooms, hosting a feast for four girls. She is wary of the PCs but will try to engage them in conversation to buy herself some time. In reality the meat of the meal is the flesh of several murdered teenage boys, and she told the four girls that they’re away in the forest to explain their absence. The PCs can convince the girls of the truth if they visited the kitchen and found out what the meat was made of, if the crazy gnome is still with the PCsand will point this out, or if Corinna is with them and trusts the party. Otherwise, the girls will transform into maenads as they dig in, and will attack the PCs along with Demetria and the gygan. If the party convinces the girls of the truth, they’ll automatically pin down Demetria for 3 rounds but will die if the PCs don’t protect them from the gygan.</p><p></p><p>Also, some of the squickier elements of this chapter: the troglodytes and goatlings have babies among their number who can walk upright, the former case will attack the PCs and which the text explains as a ‘moral dilemma.’ Child-killing is a recurring plot element in this adventure path, albeit in most other cases is a thing done by villains rather than the heroes. Demetria has also been having sex with the teenagers offscreen. Although their ages are never stated, it’s still a creepy and predatory behavior given her intentions and the power differentials even if they all happen to be 18-19 years old.</p><p></p><p>Once the Horn of Balmytria is recovered and drunk from, the PCs will enter a collective trance where they imagine themselves upon the deck of a trireme ship rowed by undead oarsmen, a strange bronze construct in their hands. PCs skilled in the ways of visions or a suitable NPC can interpret their dream as being on the deck of the Ultros, an infamous ghost ship once commanded by the Dragonlord Estor Arkelander. Only one of his descendants would know the location of the ship: King Acatus, ruler of the city-state of Mytros. Acastus’ ancestral legacy is common knowledge in the setting, so it should be trivial for the PCs to find out about this.</p><p></p><p><strong>Epic Paths:</strong> Demetria recognizes the Doomed One on sight, will tell them that they are destined to die at the grace of Lutheria, and say that only the Fates can say more. If the PCs happen to be the “kill first, ask questions later” this information will be revealed to them once they drink from the Horn. </p><p></p><p>She also possesses one of the Haunted One’s wish list magical items. Once attuned, they will hear the voice of a family member’s soul, explaining that the other family artifact is in the hands of the Amazon Queen.</p><p></p><p style="text-align: center"><strong>The Necropolis at Telamok</strong></p> <p style="text-align: center"><img src="https://i.imgur.com/i9TdMD0.png" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></p><p></p><p>Cave Dungeon? Check. Ruins Dungeon? Check. Graveyard Dungeon? Checkaroony! Rounding out our Great Labors is a place where the party Cleric can go Turn-happy. But unlike the typical graveyard, the Necropolis is located outside any major population center and is forbidden to all but a select few. It is where the Dragonlords’ bodies were laid to rest, presided over by Damon the lich undertaker. This undead archmage is on the lookout for grave-robbers, necromancers, and general-purpose defilers. The PCs will pass more of Kentimane’s arms on the way here and also get accosted by harpies who will try to use their songs to make them fall off the cliffs. The Necropolis itself is a mist-shrouded valley where undead will be endlessly summoned should the PCs try to climb or fly past its edges.</p><p></p><p>Several bridges (all but one of which are broken) are guarded over by Damon, who will let the PCs pass if they present him the Burnished Dragonlord Coin Kyrah gave to them way back during the boar hunt. He will use nonlethal magic to those who try and pass otherwise at first, becoming lethal should they persist or fight him.</p><p></p><p><strong>Epic Path:</strong> Damon otherwise says nothing, but to the Cursed One he will give a Gem of Brightness, one of their family heirlooms. He will tell them to seek out the Lotus Witch of Scorpion Island, for she knows how to break their family curse.</p><p></p><p>A generous amount of page space is given over to the tombs of various Dragonlords, which are much greater risk than reward: although a few have some nice magic items, they’re guarded by some nasty traps. Even if the PCs successfully abscond with the goods they’ll be afflicted with the Curse of the Graverobber which will slowly starve them to death. Kyrah is uncharacteristically quiet in the tomb of Estor Arkelander; she has some bad history with the Dragonlord, and regrets the atrocities he committed during the First War but will not wish to speak of it to the PCs. One of the Dragonlord tombs houses one of their number who converted to Sydon as a symbolic gesture of peace: trying to rob it will teleport one of the offending PCs to Sydon’s throne room in Praxys, where he will most assuredly kill the offender.</p><p></p><p>But there is one tomb they can purloin without (much) negative consequence: the Tomb of Xander, which houses the treasure needed for this Great Labor! It’s a mazelike dungeon patrolled by the insane minotaur Graxis the Butcher, whose tribe were cursed to be the Necropolis’ guardians at the end of the First War. His brethren became skeletons which are one of the more common monsters encountered here, but he managed to not become undead through <strong>SHEER WILLPOWER.</strong> Graxis can be encountered either at the end of the dungeon or as a random encounter, and the maze has a few traps, such as the classic “spiked walls closing in” that can be disabled via pulling a lever or opening a portcullis.</p><p></p><p>If Graxis is still alive, he will confront the PCs in the true tomb, getting there via Plotportation. During the battle the resting Dragonlord will raise as a wight and hand one of the PCs his Axe but otherwise not intervene in combat. Once victorious, the PCs can claim the magical breastplate and mundane (but very pretty) shield from the tomb. The Axe and Shield are damaged and thus must be repaired at the Mithral Forge.</p><p></p><p><strong>Epic Path:</strong> Xander will mention that Commander Gaius, the leader of the Order of Sydon, has stolen the Vanished One’s armor and keeps it safe in a fortress at the Isle of Yonder. Xander also has a Crown of the Dragonlords to give to said PC (or the Gifted One) in addition to the existing treasure. If the party includes both the Vanished One and Gifted One, he has TWO CROWNS instead!</p><p></p><p><strong>Inter-Labor Encounters:</strong> The world at large is not docile while the PCs are going out and about. After the first Great Labor is completed, Commander Gaius will track down the party and make a dramatic entrance on his silver dragon mount, gloating at how their quest is a lost cause and call forth a centaur warband to attack the party as he flies off.* After the second Great Labor is completed, Lutheria will give them another spooky dream the next time they rest, where they see a man with stitched-shut eyes, ears, and mouth in a beautiful valley. They must make a Wisdom saving throw or gain a long-term madness that can only be magically healed.</p><p></p><p>*I do feel that if the party has the Vanished One and the Necropolis was the first Great Labor completed, then they may misread this encounter and try to chase after Gaius even though he’s meant to be a foreshadowing of things to come.</p><p></p><p>Also after the Second or Third Labor (DM’s discretion) is completed, a trio of Mytrosian soldiers mounted on copper dragons will find the PCs and explain that they bear summons from King Acastus: Sydon has sent a hurricane to the city, and they need the PCs to come to their aid. They will plead for the heroes to come but otherwise not force them, mentioning that Acastus will punish them if they come back empty-handed. Said soldiers are part of Acastus’ attempt at restoring the order of Dragonlords, who are not looked fondly upon by Kyrah and the gods due to being a poor imitation at best.</p><p></p><p>The relevant quests and city of Mytros is covered in the next chapter all on its own. So yes, the chapters in these cases can be played out of order potentially, which I like for providing a relative sense of freedom.</p><p></p><p><strong>Thoughts So Far:</strong> Overall I like the three Great Labors. Their main weaknesses is that they are quite lethal for such a low-level party, particularly the troglodytes and some of the room traps whose damage can easily lead to a TPK. But I do like how they are tied into aspects of Thylea’s history and grant the PCs several chances to learn of what came before. The addition of sidequests is a neat concept, but the ones here feel a bit simple (retrieve dwarven skulls, rescue these NPCs, etc) in comparison to ones we see later in the adventure path.</p><p></p><p>The demanded sacrifice of Pythor’s daughter is a bit of a low point, if only due to the fact that it has a rather restrictive expected outcome in that the text presumes the PCs will offer themselves up as sacrifices. It also highlights some of the plot holes in this adventure path regarding the Oath of Peace’s vagueness. Additionally, Pythor feels more like a Thor expy than an Ares: his red hair, the image of a drunken bon vivant, and using a signature hammer as a weapon feels more Norse mythology than Greek mythology.</p><p></p><p><strong>Join us next time as we visit the Big Olive in Chapter 3: Summoned by the King!</strong></p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Libertad, post: 7961672, member: 6750502"] [center][img]https://i.imgur.com/ryLd1gl.png[/img][/center] [b]Starting at Higher Level:[/b] For those pointing out the incongruity of 1st-level PCs being underpowered for the legends they’re famed for, the book suggests that gaming groups unsatisfied with their “famous heroes” starting out at 1st level can begin at 5th. In this case the DM should skip two of the three Great Labors, with the relevant deeds/treasures/etc already performed and retrieved. The Great Labors are all in different locations, but conveniently the city of Estoria is within reasonable traveling distance of all three. Chances are the PCs may be headed there to speak with the god Pythor for their Epic Paths anyway. Estoria is not in a good location by the time the PCs arrive. Sydon is extorting farmers to make daily sacrifices of one cow a day, keeping all of it for himself and not doing the “burn the best parts and let the mortals eat the rest” that is typical for more reasonable gods. Even worse, centaur, gygan, and cyclops forces loyal to him are gathering in large war parties across the river. Sydon promised to pull them away from Estoria should Pythor offer his daughter Anora as a sacrifice on the next night of the full moon, else the assembled armies shall invade. A sacrifice her father is unwilling to make. [center][img]https://i.imgur.com/CVA467D.png[/img][/center] Estoria is a fair-sized city with 14 major sites to explore and 10 potential random encounters: most of the encounters are just set dressing, but a few involve fights or danger such as a bunch of barrels breaking off a cart and heading in the party’s direction. [b]Bioware Trope Alert: Side Quests:[/b] One of Odyssey’s strong points is that while it has a main plot, a lot of encounters and locations are optional or can be found off the beaten path should the PCs go out of their way to explore the cities and islands of the adventure path. As completing said side quests usually nets the party more Experience and material rewards than if they bypassed them, gaming groups of a more completionist mindset will have an advantage in future encounters due to being more powerful. So what sidequests do we have in Estoria? Well there’s… ...a Wine Festival where the party can watch mythological and historical plays expanding on Thylea’s world-building. One of the actress is a disguised green hag who will try to seduce a PC to meet her alone so she can eat their heart. ...a grave robber who stole a Necklace of Fireballs from the Necropolis and is starving to death due to the curse for his sin. The only way for him to end the curse is to sell the necklace to someone who knows that he stole it from a grave. It will teleport back into his possession otherwise. ...meet some dwarves in the Dragon’s Tooth, a local tavern. They will pay the PCs 10 gp for each dwarven skull retrieved from the Mithral Mines. The skulls are needed to bury their kin, and their race once operated the Mithral Forge. [url=https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TwentyBearAsses]This one’s a subtrope all its own![/url] ...meet a man and his husband in the local vineyards, whose daughter Corinna went missing. She is encountered at the Mossy Temple, one of the many teenagers who joined Demetria’s cult of Lutheria. Returning her safely home nets the PCs a Javelin of Lightning from the grateful fathers. ...convince a simple-minded yet good-intentioned cyclops that a group of poachers he’s running with are bad news, as they’re only his ‘friends’ due to the muscle he provides and nothing else. The PCs can also visit the local tavern where they can roll on a d8 table to learn of plot-relevant rumors, several of which hint at future chapters or interesting locations in town: the local dwarf artisan Volkan claims to be the God of the Forge, a massive hurricane is approaching Mytros’ coast, etc. PCs who visit the Dragon Shrine to drink from the Horn of Balmytria will learn that some thieves broke in and stole it. Following the trail whether by Survival or Detect Magic (cuz powerful artifact) leads the PCs to the Mossy Temple deep in the Oldwoods. Finally, Volkan’s Hall is home to the God of the Forge, but most of the locals think him to be merely an eccentric dwarf. He’ll give the PCs a magic item if they sacrificed the boar to him, and even if they did not he promises to help them craft magic items if they get the Mithral Forge working again. [center][b]The King’s Daughter[/b] [img]https://i.imgur.com/gPKt75T.png[/img][/center] But before the PCs can go gallivanting around town, the city guards at the gates will mention that King Pythor is aware of their presence and issued a summons for them. They won’t force them there, but will encourage the party to make haste given that their ruler would not issue this order on a whim. Pythor’s an alcoholic even on his better days, but given the recent troubles his worse side is out as he’s found smashing statues in the main hall. He’ll gain enough lucidity once Kyrah talks some sense into him, and he explains the above troubles regarding Sydon. Although Pythor has dozens (if not hundreds) of children, Princess Anora is very dear to him. The sacrifice in question demanded by Sydon involves tying the captive to the aptly-named Rock of Sacrifice on the river where they must remain until sunrise. It is known that a pair of basilisks will petrify and consume any offerings left there, so even though the wording does not demand death it will be almost certain. Caught between sacrificing one of his own vs the people of the city, he cannot directly fight Sydon’s forces without violating the Oath of Peace, so he begs the PCs to find a solution. The next full moon is a few weeks away, so the PCs have a generous window open to act and also do any Great Labors and various sidequests to Git Gud to fight the basilisks/centaur chieftain/etc. How does Anora feel about this? She’s willing to sacrifice herself, but Pythor will not allow it and locked her away in the palace dungeons to prevent her from sneaking out. One might be asking how Sydon’s forces can raze a city without breaking the Oath of Peace. Well, that’s a good question. In fact, any in-game text of the Oath proper is never revealed, although it’s heavily implied that not attacking Thylea’s major population centers is one of the terms with which the Titans must abide based on later events in the book. Which makes one ask why Estoria’s the exception. While we know that the gods’ devotees can fight each other without breaking the Oath (otherwise this AP would be impossible), the vagueness of the Oath is something the PCs will be asking about in times like this. The PCs could challenge the centaur chieftain in ritual combat, where he and a number of his best soldiers will face the PCs in equal numbers plus one cyclops. This will be a very difficult battle given these are [b]Centaur Heroes[/b] with better stats than the base Monster Manual kind, and Kyrah will advise against this. She will resurrect the PCs in one week’s time at Pythor’s palace rather than wasting their Divine Boons should they lose. The other option is to approach the representatives of the Order of Sydon, led by Commander Gaius who is a bit of a recurring villain in this campaign. Pythor’s offer of fifty oxen to replace Anora will be turned down, for Gaius is a Lawful Evil jerk who wants the Five Gods to suffer. He’ll only accept the PCs as an entire party as a worthy sacrificial substitute. The PCs can look for the basilisk’s lair and kill them ahead of time, although this will result in an unforeseen yet still manageable complication. Sacrifices, be they the PCs or Anora, will be led to the Rock of Sacrifice and chained by their feet (but still retain their equipment). A dozen centaur will watch the proceedings, as well as three harpies who will use their songs to lure any escapees back to the rock. The chains limit their movement, and the basilisks will attack after twenty minutes...but if the basilisks are dead, then hours will pass and Sydon’s followers will grow increasingly worried and impatient. The harpies will be the first to break down, where they will attack the sacrifice(s) but will not be joined by their landbound comrades should the PCs retaliate. As the terms of the sacrifice do not mandate death (only a certain time limit), the centaur chieftain will grudgingly disband his army should it go awry. Completing the quest where Anora survives will make Pythor very happy. He will give one of the PCs (ideally the Demi-God) his famous hammer, which in addition to being a great weapon can be used to craft special kinds of weapons at the Mithral Forge. If Anora dies, Pythor will drink himself into unconsciousness and be invalid for a week. [b]Epic Paths:[/b] Pythor has relevant information regarding the destinies of the Demi-God and Lost One, but won’t aid them until they resolve the sacrifice quest. He’ll tell the Demi-God that their mother was kidnapped by the dragon Hexia who is believed to lair in the Forgotten Sea. Volkan will give said PC the blueprints for one of Pythor’s unfinished weapons, which is one of the magic weapons for this Path and must be crafted with his hammer at the Mithral Forge. For the Lost One, he’ll mention that Estor Arkelander, one of the Dragonlords, knows where the lost treasure of the order is, but he is now an undead captain of a ghost ship which hasn’t been seen in generations. [center][b]The Mithral Mines[/b] [img]https://i.imgur.com/kPSEotH.png[/img][/center] The Mithral Forge is interesting in that it’s one of the few aspects of Thylea which directly ties the PHB races to the world’s history. The dwarven settlers found a rich mithral vein with some adamantine extending for miles beneath the mountains; the largest in the world in fact. Most of Thylea’s greatest arms and armor were crafted here, and it was this vaunted fame that made Lutheria unleash a Cerberus hound in the mines to slaughter the dwarves. The infernal beast gave birth to many children known as death dogs, meaning that nobody has yet returned it to operating order. As can be expected, the Mithral Mines are a classic subterranean dungeon crawl. The PCs can see four massive statues in the shape of hands which are actually one of Kentimane’s many limbs, a bit of foreshadowing to the Titan’s omnipresent nature across Thylea. They can also come upon some wary centaurs who if not attacked will warn the party of a troglodyte band in the mines who kidnapped their companions. Said companions are a [b]Side Quest[/b] where the tribe will award the PCs 3 potions of heroism for rescuing them. The Mithral Mines are a 2-level, 22-room dungeon. Troglodytes from the Underdark sought the mines’ upper reaches as a safe haven from an undefined threat further below the world’s reaches, but ended up involved in a devastating war with the Cerberus’ death dog children. A battle which the troglodytes gained the upper hand in once they bred some cockatrices to petrify the hounds...and in turn the cockatrices started attacking their caretakers, and are thus a third pseudo-faction in the dungeon. The mines have some creepy ambience of multi-headed doglike statues, a few of which come to life shortly after the PCs enter or go on to the next room. PCs who fall in battle against the troglodytes will not be killed, but imprisoned (granting them a Short Rest) and brought to their king. Said king wears a Headband of Intellect which has made him rather miserable upon realization that he lives among idiots. He will be initially nonviolent to the PCs and offer a game of riddles, and should they win or prove otherwise useful to him he’ll tell them the password to bypass the elevator trap leading to the lower levels. The way to the second level is an intricate dwarven elevator with a trap. Unless the right password is uttered, dragonhead spouts will pour oil into the elevator while flaming jetstreams farther below come to life. The PCs have 3 rounds to somehow prepare or avoid this before the entire elevator is lit on fire. The damage alone from this trap can result in a TPK. The second level itself is hotter, home to a Salamander kept imprisoned by a cold-generating bronze sphere that douses her with freezing ice should she go a certain distance away from the room’s center. She was a metalsmith who helped maintain the Forge, but can tell the PCs how to restart and upkeep it should they find and give her the contract binding her (also in the dungeon). She will stay in the Forge for one year voluntarily, helping craft items. But nothing in life is so straightforward. If the trogloydyte king is still alive, he’ll hear the loud sounds of the forge coming to life and lead a war party of 16 of his subjects down the elevator to kill the PCs, the salamander, and any surviving death dogs in order to claim the Forge for himself. The PCs have several rounds to prepare, and can also set up 4 traps in squares of their choice in the forge room to activate when someone enters. Said traps are overhanging cauldrons spilling molten metal, blast vents that shoot out boiling steam, etc. Although the PCs have traps and a fiery monster to aid them, the potential 17-monster combat is highly lethal to PCs who are likely 2nd to 4th level. But I do like how it’s suitably climactic for the end of a dungeon, and cutting back the troglodyte numbers may be best. [b]Epic Paths:[/b] The Forgekeeper will give the Dragonslayer one of their wish list magic items, and explain that the gygans of Yonder Island once knew the secrets to building an even greater weapon suitable for fighting dragons. [center][b]The Mossy Temple[/b] [img]https://i.imgur.com/RTHrJGi.png[/img][/center] This one’s another dungeon crawl, this time of the decaying vine-covered ruins kind. A group of goatlings stole the Horn of Balmytria so as to prevent the PCs from opposing the Titans’ plans, although they did not do a good job in covering their tracks. Said goatlings are part of a cult of Lutheria, led by the evil dryad Demetria. The cult has been tricking teenagers into thinking they’re joining a cool secret society but in actuality will become either maenads (for the women) or sacrifices (for the men). [b]Goatlings and Maenads:[/b] With the absence of orcs, goblins, and kobolds, other monsters serve similar thematic roles in Odyssey of the Dragonlords. Centaur and Gygans more or less replace orcs and ogres as the “strong warrior race of raiders” trope. Maenads and goatlings are two new monsters in Thylea. Maenads are evil monstrous women transformed after a loved one tricks or betrays them as part of a ritual to Lutheria. Maenads are more or less always Evil and live to kill: the union of a maenad and satyr produces a goatling, who are Small-sized monsters with goat heads who are fond of taunting people in combat. The Mossy Temple is slightly shorter than the Mithral Mines, being 16 rooms. The PCs also have more opportunities to encounter potential allies, such as an insane gnome who remains wildshaped in squirrel form whenever possible. There’s also a non-evil pair of satyrs* and a dryad who are ambassadors for the non-evil fey unsuccessfully trying to convince Demetria to stop kidnapping and torturing people. Two of them cannot provide direct aid in combat, but can tell them a bit of the dryad’s backstory: the Dragonlord Estor Arkelander cut down her sister’s tree to help build his ship, which is why she’s now evil. Finally there Corinna, one of the teenage revelers who can talk sense into her friends. *One of the satyrs, Loreus, is not like others of his kind: he prefers the fanciful fiction of stories and poetry, and happens to be big fans of the PCs thanks to their exploits. He’ll fall in love with the party member who is the nicest to them, and if possible will covertly follow them and use his pan pipes to put to sleep a foe who begins to get the upper hand in combat. The Temple’s dangers are nicely varied, ranging from animated root traps, camouflaged oozes in a stagnant pool, nonflying gargoyle statues that come to life if an offering is not left in a sacrificial bowl, and violently drunk goatling and maenads. The treasure has some non-standard options: two gardens can be harvested for non-magical Goodberries, truth serum, and poison to those with the proper proficiencies Demetria and her gygan bodyguard are in one of the temple’s last rooms, hosting a feast for four girls. She is wary of the PCs but will try to engage them in conversation to buy herself some time. In reality the meat of the meal is the flesh of several murdered teenage boys, and she told the four girls that they’re away in the forest to explain their absence. The PCs can convince the girls of the truth if they visited the kitchen and found out what the meat was made of, if the crazy gnome is still with the PCsand will point this out, or if Corinna is with them and trusts the party. Otherwise, the girls will transform into maenads as they dig in, and will attack the PCs along with Demetria and the gygan. If the party convinces the girls of the truth, they’ll automatically pin down Demetria for 3 rounds but will die if the PCs don’t protect them from the gygan. Also, some of the squickier elements of this chapter: the troglodytes and goatlings have babies among their number who can walk upright, the former case will attack the PCs and which the text explains as a ‘moral dilemma.’ Child-killing is a recurring plot element in this adventure path, albeit in most other cases is a thing done by villains rather than the heroes. Demetria has also been having sex with the teenagers offscreen. Although their ages are never stated, it’s still a creepy and predatory behavior given her intentions and the power differentials even if they all happen to be 18-19 years old. Once the Horn of Balmytria is recovered and drunk from, the PCs will enter a collective trance where they imagine themselves upon the deck of a trireme ship rowed by undead oarsmen, a strange bronze construct in their hands. PCs skilled in the ways of visions or a suitable NPC can interpret their dream as being on the deck of the Ultros, an infamous ghost ship once commanded by the Dragonlord Estor Arkelander. Only one of his descendants would know the location of the ship: King Acatus, ruler of the city-state of Mytros. Acastus’ ancestral legacy is common knowledge in the setting, so it should be trivial for the PCs to find out about this. [b]Epic Paths:[/b] Demetria recognizes the Doomed One on sight, will tell them that they are destined to die at the grace of Lutheria, and say that only the Fates can say more. If the PCs happen to be the “kill first, ask questions later” this information will be revealed to them once they drink from the Horn. She also possesses one of the Haunted One’s wish list magical items. Once attuned, they will hear the voice of a family member’s soul, explaining that the other family artifact is in the hands of the Amazon Queen. [center][b]The Necropolis at Telamok[/b] [img]https://i.imgur.com/i9TdMD0.png[/img][/center] Cave Dungeon? Check. Ruins Dungeon? Check. Graveyard Dungeon? Checkaroony! Rounding out our Great Labors is a place where the party Cleric can go Turn-happy. But unlike the typical graveyard, the Necropolis is located outside any major population center and is forbidden to all but a select few. It is where the Dragonlords’ bodies were laid to rest, presided over by Damon the lich undertaker. This undead archmage is on the lookout for grave-robbers, necromancers, and general-purpose defilers. The PCs will pass more of Kentimane’s arms on the way here and also get accosted by harpies who will try to use their songs to make them fall off the cliffs. The Necropolis itself is a mist-shrouded valley where undead will be endlessly summoned should the PCs try to climb or fly past its edges. Several bridges (all but one of which are broken) are guarded over by Damon, who will let the PCs pass if they present him the Burnished Dragonlord Coin Kyrah gave to them way back during the boar hunt. He will use nonlethal magic to those who try and pass otherwise at first, becoming lethal should they persist or fight him. [b]Epic Path:[/b] Damon otherwise says nothing, but to the Cursed One he will give a Gem of Brightness, one of their family heirlooms. He will tell them to seek out the Lotus Witch of Scorpion Island, for she knows how to break their family curse. A generous amount of page space is given over to the tombs of various Dragonlords, which are much greater risk than reward: although a few have some nice magic items, they’re guarded by some nasty traps. Even if the PCs successfully abscond with the goods they’ll be afflicted with the Curse of the Graverobber which will slowly starve them to death. Kyrah is uncharacteristically quiet in the tomb of Estor Arkelander; she has some bad history with the Dragonlord, and regrets the atrocities he committed during the First War but will not wish to speak of it to the PCs. One of the Dragonlord tombs houses one of their number who converted to Sydon as a symbolic gesture of peace: trying to rob it will teleport one of the offending PCs to Sydon’s throne room in Praxys, where he will most assuredly kill the offender. But there is one tomb they can purloin without (much) negative consequence: the Tomb of Xander, which houses the treasure needed for this Great Labor! It’s a mazelike dungeon patrolled by the insane minotaur Graxis the Butcher, whose tribe were cursed to be the Necropolis’ guardians at the end of the First War. His brethren became skeletons which are one of the more common monsters encountered here, but he managed to not become undead through [b]SHEER WILLPOWER.[/b] Graxis can be encountered either at the end of the dungeon or as a random encounter, and the maze has a few traps, such as the classic “spiked walls closing in” that can be disabled via pulling a lever or opening a portcullis. If Graxis is still alive, he will confront the PCs in the true tomb, getting there via Plotportation. During the battle the resting Dragonlord will raise as a wight and hand one of the PCs his Axe but otherwise not intervene in combat. Once victorious, the PCs can claim the magical breastplate and mundane (but very pretty) shield from the tomb. The Axe and Shield are damaged and thus must be repaired at the Mithral Forge. [b]Epic Path:[/b] Xander will mention that Commander Gaius, the leader of the Order of Sydon, has stolen the Vanished One’s armor and keeps it safe in a fortress at the Isle of Yonder. Xander also has a Crown of the Dragonlords to give to said PC (or the Gifted One) in addition to the existing treasure. If the party includes both the Vanished One and Gifted One, he has TWO CROWNS instead! [b]Inter-Labor Encounters:[/b] The world at large is not docile while the PCs are going out and about. After the first Great Labor is completed, Commander Gaius will track down the party and make a dramatic entrance on his silver dragon mount, gloating at how their quest is a lost cause and call forth a centaur warband to attack the party as he flies off.* After the second Great Labor is completed, Lutheria will give them another spooky dream the next time they rest, where they see a man with stitched-shut eyes, ears, and mouth in a beautiful valley. They must make a Wisdom saving throw or gain a long-term madness that can only be magically healed. *I do feel that if the party has the Vanished One and the Necropolis was the first Great Labor completed, then they may misread this encounter and try to chase after Gaius even though he’s meant to be a foreshadowing of things to come. Also after the Second or Third Labor (DM’s discretion) is completed, a trio of Mytrosian soldiers mounted on copper dragons will find the PCs and explain that they bear summons from King Acastus: Sydon has sent a hurricane to the city, and they need the PCs to come to their aid. They will plead for the heroes to come but otherwise not force them, mentioning that Acastus will punish them if they come back empty-handed. Said soldiers are part of Acastus’ attempt at restoring the order of Dragonlords, who are not looked fondly upon by Kyrah and the gods due to being a poor imitation at best. The relevant quests and city of Mytros is covered in the next chapter all on its own. So yes, the chapters in these cases can be played out of order potentially, which I like for providing a relative sense of freedom. [b]Thoughts So Far:[/b] Overall I like the three Great Labors. Their main weaknesses is that they are quite lethal for such a low-level party, particularly the troglodytes and some of the room traps whose damage can easily lead to a TPK. But I do like how they are tied into aspects of Thylea’s history and grant the PCs several chances to learn of what came before. The addition of sidequests is a neat concept, but the ones here feel a bit simple (retrieve dwarven skulls, rescue these NPCs, etc) in comparison to ones we see later in the adventure path. The demanded sacrifice of Pythor’s daughter is a bit of a low point, if only due to the fact that it has a rather restrictive expected outcome in that the text presumes the PCs will offer themselves up as sacrifices. It also highlights some of the plot holes in this adventure path regarding the Oath of Peace’s vagueness. Additionally, Pythor feels more like a Thor expy than an Ares: his red hair, the image of a drunken bon vivant, and using a signature hammer as a weapon feels more Norse mythology than Greek mythology. [b]Join us next time as we visit the Big Olive in Chapter 3: Summoned by the King![/b] [/QUOTE]
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