Sniktch's Story Hour - City of the Spider Queen (Updated 04/25)

[Sniktch]

Update coming soon.

Yeah, Tallarn, I believe they do miss the long distance firepower sometimes, although I have a string of failed saving throws vs. Artimas' ghoul touch spell you wouldn't believe. Also, Artimas plans on going into the True Necromancer prestige class next level which, though it won't give him access to higher level spells, will greatly increase the effectiveness of all those necromancies he's casting.

We played last night! The encounter with the statue, where we left off last time, was very anti-climactic after the long wait, but I think the rest of the action certainly made up for it. I'll be posting the continuation as fast as I can get it written.

 

[Sniktch]

Quinn takes up sculpting.

Stumpwater Jack awoke with a snort. It was a pleasant spring evening, a chill breeze gently blowing through the air. The insects were just starting their nightly song, and he could hear the soft neighs of the horses from a short distance away.

He sat up and looked around. He saw no sign of his companions; the only movements came from Artimas’ homunculus as it carried pails of water to the horses. In the distance he saw the entrance to the crypts yawning open.

“Musta gone in wi’out me,” he mused, standing up and striding in the direction of the archway. On his way the homunculus passed him, dragging a fresh bucket of water behind him. His boot shot out and he punted the nasty little thing into the bushes, sending a spray of cold droplets through the air.

He entered the crypts with a satisfied smile on his face and went to find the others.

*****

When the statue came to life Grick stumbled out of the room with an arm raised protectively before his face.

Malobar said, “There must be a catch that triggers the statue. Let me find the trap and we should be able to slip by this one.”

He knelt in the doorway and began examining the floor and frame. The statue spread its arms wide and hissed, “Defilers!” Then something issued from the sculpture, something gauzy and insubstantial that composed itself into an ectoplasmic image of the woman the statue depicted. The spirit’s face stretched and pulled into a ghastly shape and issued a supernatural scream that froze the companions momentarily, although none of the doughty heroes were effected by the acerbic gaze.

Welby went into a rage and charged into the room. He slashed at the apparition, but his blade passed right through the spirit without harming her. The ghost laughed and faded from view. At the same time, the statue came to live, smashing one of its stone fists into the side of the halfling’s face and launching him across the room.

Grick lurched past the spinning barbarian and brought his fist smashing into the statue’s chest, causing very little damage. Malobar fired a pair of arrows and cursed himself for his foolishness when they simply shattered against the stone body with no effect. He threw the useless bow to the ground and drew his sword.

A solemn chant filled the room as Quinn stepped in, lost in prayer as she invoked the earth powers of Dumathoin. She studied the statue intently as the tingling power began to course through her limbs, then she stepped forward and reached out to touch the statue. It swung a mighty blow at her but she absorbed the impact with her raised shield, then pressed her palm to the sculpture’s side. The stone split beneath her touch and began to flow towards the ground, hardening into a new form. When the spell finished working its magic the graven image of the noblewoman was replaced by a solid cube of stone!

The ghost rose from the stone howling in rage and frustration and directed its supernatural fury into a withering stare that it leveled at Quinn. The sturdy dwarf could feel the power behind that stare, but she was protected by her faith and withstood the gaze unharmed. Laughing, Artimas stretched forth his hand and a trio of streaking bolts flew from his fingers and struck the incorporeal foe.

The battle ended very quickly after that. Grick went into a blur of motion, drawing his butterfly swords and cutting at the ghost, the enchanted steel cutting the undead more often than not. Welby and Malobar took up flanking positions and also began hacking at the spirit, while Artimas stood back and cast another stream of magic missiles. The infuriated ghost ignored all of their attacks and focused its corrupting stare on Quinn, but the priestess was simply too strong for such a tactic and remained unharmed.

The ghost finally dissipated with a long wail of “Noooooo!” and the party relaxed, standing in a semicircle around the stone block that now rested in the center of the room and regaining their wind. A footstep from the doorway brought them all whirling around, weapons raised to confront a new threat.

Jack stood in the doorway, looking bemused. “What in the blazes are ya doin?” he demanded, and they all began to laugh.

*****

The small room contained four other doors beside the one they had entered through. Each contained a single plain sarcophagus that Malobar and Artimas searched, ignoring Jack’s protests. They found nothing of value in the first three they opened, but the last contained a skeleton wearing a gold ring set with a small green stone on one finger and a codpiece of rose gold fashioned to resemble a dragon’s head with the jaws opened wide.

Malobar retrieved a pair of long metal tongs from his toolkit and used them to lift the objects free. As he removed the ring a booming voice rent the air, declaring “Whosoever defiles my tomb shall be devoured by demons seven days hence!”

Startled, the elf jerked his arm away and the ring fell to the floor with a clatter. Recovering his wits, he scooped it up and placed it on his left hand, then removed the codpiece and packed it away. Jack tapped him on the shoulder.

“What day is it?” the dwarf asked him.

Malobar answered, then puzzled, asked “Why do you wish to know?”

Jack shrugged, “Cause I wanted to know what day next week I should be avoidin ya.”

At this point the companions were all exhausted from their explorations, except for Jack of course. They headed back to the wagon and set up camp, planning to delve deeper the next day. The night passed uneventfully save for an enlightening discussion between Artimas and his homunculus.

“He kicked me,” whined the battered construct, displaying the boot print on its backside.

“Oh, he did, did he?” Artimas answered. “Well, we’ll just have to keep a closer eye on our friend Stumpwater and make sure he behaves himself better in the future.”

The next morning they re-entered the catacombs, this time moving further into the crypts and down a great staircase they found hewn into the rock. At the bottom of the stairs they found themselves in a series of natural caverns, the walls pockmarked with alcoves that were filled with piles and piles of bones. More bones lay strewn about the floor, and the party knew they had passed into the commoners’ crypts.

Malobar, Welby, and the halfling’s shadow companion took up a leading position about sixty feet in front of the others to scout ahead. They passed through the first cave uneventfully and moved into the second. This vaulted chamber was exactly the same as the first, save that a huge statue stood upon a raised pedestal in the center of the room. Twenty feet tall, the sculpture depicted a gaunt emaciated man draped in heavy robes and cowl, carried a giant scythe which it had raised as if poised to cut grain.

An inscription was carved into the base of the statue, but it was written in the ancient tongues and Malobar could not decipher it. He and Welby passed the statue by and headed to the other side of the room to watch the exit while they waited for the others to catch up.

Artimas fell to one knee as soon as he saw the statue. “Lord Arawn!” he gasped, then began searching the floor of the cave carefully.

Grick stared at him curiously. “Wash you doin?” he slurred at the necromancer.

“If this area has been consecrated to Arawn then my powers may prove more potent within its confines. I would like to test that theory. Aha! This will do,” the mage finished and stood, holding the tiny furred corpse of a recently deceased fruit bat. He intoned the words of the pet cemetery spell, sprinkling the corpse with ground onyx.

As the newly animated zombie stretched its wings and took clumsy flight a crash resounded through the room. They all turned to see that the statue of Arawn had come to life, and strode toward the necromancer with great, echoing steps, scythe raised to strike.

“Now look what ya’ve done!” Jack yelled at him. “The statue were placed here ta protect the dead, not help snakes like you ta defile ‘em. Now ya’ll reap what ya’ve sewn, wizard.” Jack finished and moved to sit on a broad, flat rock, pulling his pipe from his pouch.

“I’m gonna enjoy watchin this,” he sneered as he tamped a pinch of tobacco in the pipe and readied a tinderstick.

“Mantish shleap!” Grick cried and launched himself into a flying kick towards the towering construct. He soared across the thirty foot distance separating him from the opponent, his foot striking the stone with such force that he knocked several chips free and hairline fractures spread across the statue’s broad chest. It didn’t slow, merely swatting him to the ground with an enormous hand and trampling him into the floor as it sped towards Artimas.

The wizard quailed fearfully and launched a volley of magic missiles, but they had little effect upon his rocky enemy. It moved close enough to strike and brought the giant granite scythe down with brutal force, barely clipping Artimas and sending him spinning through the air.

Welby had started rushing toward the battle as soon as he heard the statue move. He caught up to the giant figure and hacked at the back of its ankles, but failed to do more than knock a few chips from the stone. Malobar stayed by the exit with his bow ready but did not fire, fearing he could cause no more damage than he had against the smaller statue they’d fought the night before.

Quinn came to Artimas’ rescue, then, once more using her powers over earth to substantially alter the course of the battle. She reached out with her divinely granted power and softened the rock, changing it from near-impenetrable granite to soft clay. Large soft chunks of mud began dripping from the figure as it lashed out at the necromancer again, smashing him back against the wall.

Malobar saw the change in the statue and began firing. Now his arrows did not shatter but sank deep into the clay. He wasn’t sure this was doing any good, either, but at least he felt he was contributing to the fight. Meanwhile Grick had recovered from being trod upon and focused his chi abilities on his injuries, causing the bleeding to stop and the pain to subside. He sprang to his feet and jumped across the room in another flying kick. This time his attack caused catastrophic damage as the half-orc hit the clay with such force that he plunged right through, tearing the statue’s head from its shoulders. The construct stopped moving and fell sideways to the ground with a resounding boom, the spell animating the statue losing its power due to the strain of the damage it had taken.

Malobar lowered his bow without firing the last arrow he’d nocked and sighed in relief. He was certainly glad that was over, and he hoped that his next opponent would be flesh and blood. No more statues, enough was enough.

He caught movement in his peripheral vision and turned in time to see a hideous, ghoul-like creature springing from the shadows. It tore into him with teeth and claws and he lost control of his limbs, freezing in place, immobilized before he could even gasp in astonishment. The creature grabbed a handful of his hair and started dragging him away down the tunnel.

Next: The chase.

 

[Sniktch]

The chase!

Stumpwater Jack’s only contribution to the fight was to laugh when the statue slammed Artimas. Otherwise, he simply stayed out of the way, smoking his pipe and looking around. He saw the creature pounce on to Malobar by the exit and begin dragging the elf off by his hair.

“Voltare!” he yelled, hopping to his feet and racing in that direction as fast as his stubby legs could carry him. He activated the power of his boots and charged right up to the beast, surprising it with the sudden burst and getting in a nice hack. It howled in pain and raced away, dragging the elf along. He felt it focus its will upon him in an attempt to hold his body unmoving, but he resisted it easily with his rugged dwarven constitution and continued the chase.

Everyone else glanced over to see what had possessed the dwarf and just saw Malobar’s stiff legs being dragged from view with the dwarf racing after. Welby, Grick, and Quinn joined the pursuit, each running toward the new threat at top speed. Artimas strode to a pile of bones and performed a short ritual. When he completed the final words of the spell the bones snaked around him and formed a protective shell around him. Now encased with his armor of undeath, he continued to follow in the directions the others had run off.

Jack was able to catch the beast once again with the aid of his boots and delivered another jarring chop before it could dodge away. The lightly encumbered Welby and Grick had almost caught up while the armored priestess puffed along behind.

Suddenly the corridor exploded with activity. A large stalagmite grew near the side of the tunnel, almost reaching the ceiling. A large yellow eye opened in the stalagmite and a gaping maw lined with diamond hard teeth yawned beneath. Strands of tough, fibrous material shot out of small holes circling the creature and latched on to the heroes as they ran past. Welby managed to duck the attack, but Jack, Grick, and Quinn were all hit by the sticky snares, which attached to their bodies and began reeling them closer. Quinn discovered that the strands had another purpose as well, feeling her strength rapidly draining away from the glue-like substance that now adhered her to the strange monster.

Jack saw the demonic ghoul getting away from him as he struggled against the strand. Before his horrified eyes, the creature and the helpless elf faded from his sight as it turned them both invisible. No! He was not going to lose another elf! Snarling in rage, he severed the tentacle with his axe and took up pursuit, Welby now leading, tracking the beast by the sound of Malobar’s body being dragged across the floor.

A ghoul appeared before Welby and pounced at him, but he nimbly sidestepped and continued running after the noise. Jack also ignored the new opponent, batting it out of the way with his shield as he thundered past. The two of them entered another large catacomb littered with the remains of countless dead. Welby felt a prickling sensation across the back of his neck like he did when Artimas experimented with the dead, and all around him the skeletons started to rise and claw at him. He vaulted over one bony form as it started to rise and somersaulted between two more without breaking his stride.

Unfortunately, Jack was held up by the newly created undead that formed a bony wall before him. The ghoul caught up to him and jumped onto his back, but he hurled it to the floor and began to take out his frustrations on everything around him. He spun around in a great circle with his arm extended, his battleaxe reducing each undead it came into contact with into splinters. In less than ten seconds he was the only thing moving in the cavern and he sped after the retreating figure of the barbarian.

Welby came to an intersection and halted, listening. He did not hear the noises anymore! He had lost his quarry! Turning to the cat-like shadow that trailed after him he silently asked if it could detect any signs of the ghoulish creatures passing. It indicated the left branch of the fork as Jack caught up to him. “Left,” he stated and loped off.

They entered another catacomb, this one a dead end. Before them the body of their friend lay on the floor with the creature standing over him. Jack cried out helplessly as its claw descended and ripped a great gash in the elf’s throat, but the monster rushed its attack and missed the major vessels. It raised an arm for another strike and Welby went berserk, flying at the creature in a frenzy and running it through with his sword. His blade struck home once, then again, and then the creature grasped him with both its taloned hands, lifted him off the floor, and bit deep into his cheek. The halfling gasped in pain and went stiff, his muscles no longer responding to his mental commands.

Jack charged in. His assault was relentless, his axe merciless as he carved the life from the fiend. It struck him repeatedly with tooth and nail but he ignored the blows, and the beast could not overcome his hardy constitution. In desperation it attempted to flee, once again calling upon its powers of invisibility, but the pain of its wounds made it difficult for it to concentrate and it failed in the attempt. Jack’s axe flashed once more and he lopped the monster’s head off.

Seeing that his friends would take several minutes to recover, the dwarf decided to make a thorough examination of the area before they recovered. Amidst the skeletal remains, five distinct piles of gear lay on the floor of the chamber - suits of glittering mithral mail, weapons, shields, and more. He invoked a detection spell and scanned the mounds, moving anything magical to a new pile. Quite a bit of the equipment did show up as enchanted, although a large steel shield was the only thing that he found useful.

Picking it up, he saw that the front was decorated in a spider web design, the shield of a follower of the dark elf goddess Lolth. Jack snorted in disgust, searched his pack for his whetstone, and began carefully scraping the paint away while he waited.

*****

Grick and Quinn found themselves alone with an angry roper. Quinn struggled feebly against the pull but had been weakened too much from the first attack. A second lash wrapped around her and her muscles gave way completely, dropping her to the tunnel floor, too drained to even move. The tentacles reeled her in at an even faster pace now, and the sound of her platemail dragging the ground crashed through the passageway.

Grick saw his friend drop and quit trying to resist. He could also feel the strength draining from him and knew that he had to destroy the aberration quickly or they might both be lost. He pulled a flask of whiskey from his boot and drained it in two swallows, the strong alcohol fortifying him as it burned down his throat and sent warm fingers stretching throughout his body. He threw the empty container aside and charged the last few steps toward the creature, smashing his fist into its stony hide with all the strength he had remaining.

Artimas finally reached the bend in the passage and stuck his head out around the corner. The situation did not look good. Grick stood before the creature, strands wrapped around his legs, arms, and midsection, pounding at it with increasingly clumsier blows, several bleeding gashes on his body where he had not been quick enough to avoid the snapping jaws, while Quinn’s prostrate form lay unmoving a yard away.

He sighed. It seemed the only way to save the others was to give the roper a taste of its own medicine. Reaching into the spirit world, he summoned a pack of four shadows and unleashed them upon the monster. The beast screamed as the first icy claws sunk into its flesh, stealing the power from its blows and hastening it toward death. It dropped the staggering half-orc and lashed out at these new aggressors, buts its strands passed right through the immaterial beings harmlessly.

The roper’s cries changed from anger to panic as the shadows raked it again and again. Grick stumbled, dragging Quinn back away from the beast, and Artimas ran forward and started rummaging through her pack. He found her scroll organizer and perused the various titles, selecting one marked “Restoration” and reading it aloud over her spineless form. Instantly her strength was returned to normal, and the three heroes turned back to the battle, just in time to see the roper wither and collapse, a lifeless husk, under the shadow’s assault.

Their mission completed, the shadows turned on their summoner, hating any and all life. “Join us, Artimas Sendant,” they hissed as they glided over the tunnel floor, “we will take you to Arawn. You will enjoy…. Being one of us.”

Quinn stepped forward and brandished her holy symbol. “Begone, creatures of darkness!” she commanded, and the undead faded from view as they returned to the Plane of Shadows.

Artimas approached the roper’s corpse and called to his faithful torchbearer, who for once had escaped unscathed from the fighting. “Igor, come,” he said, then, “Igor, push.” The zombie faithfully toppled over the heavy body, exposing a hollow beneath its base. Reaching in, he found several precious gemstones that he handed to Grick for safekeeping.

*****

Malobar and Welby finally stirred after Jack had scraped half of the shield clean. The first thing the elf did was reach up to feel the tear in his throat, but he found it sealed, already healed by the dwarf’s magic. He approached Jack solemnly and extended his hand.

“You’ve saved my life and I am indebted to you. Both of you,” he added, hearing the halfling shifting behind him. “I am in your service now and I pray that the sun never sets on our new friendship.”

“Bah,” Jack snorted. “Didn’t do nothin fer ya that ya wouldna done fer me if the places had been reversed. Besides, an’ don’ let anyone know I told ya this or I’ll have ta kill ya, but I always have had a soft spot fer elves.”

Welby just shrugged and went to look at the gear Jack had piled next to him, then looked at the dwarf hopefully with raised brows.

“Yeah, whelp, its all magic.”

Welby pulled a shirt of fine mithral links from the pile. It was a beautiful piece of craftsmanship, even compared to the shirt he currently wore. He pulled his suit of armor over his head and tossed it to the side, then replaced it with the enchanted drow-made shirt. He nodded at the dwarf.

“Nice shield. Where others?”

“They ain’t caught up yet, Welby.” Jack jerked his thumb over his shoulder toward the main corridor. “I went back and made sure they was still alive after that roper ambushed us, and everyone’s still kickin, but then I came back ta babysit ya until ya could move again. They’re waitin fer us.”

They tramped back up the hall until they rejoined the others. When they arrived, Jack noticed something strange about a section of wall. His spell of detection, still active, revealed a ten-foot section of wall that radiated strong illusion magic.

“Uh, guys,” he said, pointing to the patch in question. “I don’t think that wall’s really there.”

Next: The refugee’s hideout.

 

[Broccli_Head]

Getting more and more exciting with each post!

keep up the good work.

B.H.

 

[Balderdash]

Arcane spell power

Yes its true Artimas does lack the huge spell power that a straight mage of equal level would have. Oh well... when i started the charecter third edition was in its infancy and I finally had my chance to play a wizard-cleric necromancer ( somthing i coulndt do in second edition ) and i ran with it . I do think the pluses do out way the the negatives alot though . My spells per day are tremendous .. allowing me to contribute considerably longer before i start complaining that we need to camp ....Spell Resistance is a problem , i hope to remedy with the addition of true necromancer PrC, especially with drow. Since arty's creation i have done alot of "research" in ploting spells and and advancement to alieviate my missing might .... but im sure it will all go to not when im smacked with some spells above level 3 and all i can do is magic missle By the way i cant spell and i was never taught grammer .. please excuse all errors

 

[Sniktch]

Bebilith nest

They stepped through the illusionary wall and found themselves in another large catacomb area, this one draped with thick layers of heavy webbing. Jack stepped into the chamber, his axe still crackling with blue arcs of electrical energy, and started into the room cautiously, the others trailing behind him.

Suddenly the fabric of space seemed to tear in front of him and a grotesque monster stepped through to the material plane. It resembled a huge, bloated spider with a mottled purple shell, its twisted abdomen curving in upon itself and ending in a pair of spinnerets that faced forward. The foremost pair of its legs ended in huge scythes of hardened exoskeleton. The fiend scuttled towards him, its razor sharp appendages raised to cut him down, while a second beast materialized in the webbing hanging from the ceiling and sprayed a sheet of web at Quinn, immobilizing her in a cocoon of dark silk.

Jack jumped forward and hacked at the creature but his axe bounced away with no effect! In response, it drove one of its claws into the seam at his shoulder, ripping a gaping wound across his chest and tearing his platemail off to fall bent and twisted to the floor, ruined. The naked dwarf staggered away bleeding, his shield raised to ward off any other incoming blows.

Malobar rolled under it and struck at the belly, hoping to find a weak point. His attack was rewarded when his short blade made a tiny crack in its shell and foul black liquid began oozing out. The magic of the sword should ensure that the wound did not cease bleeding until the creature was dead. In retaliation the creature bit into him, injecting viscous green venom that immediately began draining his constitution.

Welby and Grick also charged the monster on the floor, dodging through another spray of webs from the one above them. Grick pulled his butterfly swords as he rushed in and cut into it several times, while Welby rolled past into a flanking position and hacked the spinnerets from its abdomen with a well-placed blow, ensuring that this creature, at least, was unable to cocoon any more victims.

The beast whirled around in a rage, biting into the half-orc and injecting him with its deadly poison as well and ripping the shirt right off Welby’s body as a talon impaled the diminutive barbarian. Malobar lunged in and managed to open another small crack in the creature’s chitinous exoskeleton and another thin stream of black blood dripped from the wound, but the creature seemed to shrug off their combined efforts and appeared barely wounded.

Meanwhile, Jack had retreated from the room, healed himself, and then chanted a prayer that made his armor whole again, although it could not restore the enchantment. He was now strapping it back on and it was clear his role would be limited in the rest of the fight. Quinn had activated her flaming weapon, hoping to burn herself free, but the webs proved surprisingly inflammable and it took almost thirty seconds before she could move again. She began praying as soon as she could move her hands, summoning a giant column of fire from the heavens that engulfed both of the monsters, her nimble friends easily evading the radius of effect. The monsters, like their webs, proved highly resistant to the flames, but they could not withstand the divine energy that imbued the attack.

Artimas had been kept busy dodging webs from the creature on the ceiling, but he did manage to cast his spell of vampiric touch, transferring it to his familiar Nibbler and sending the poor bat up to attack the fiendish spider. It nipped the small flyer with a mandible as it came in, but Nibbler proved to be made of sterner stuff than most bats and resisted the poison. It touched the beast and Artimas felt his wounds from the statue healing as his spell took effect. His poor familiar lapsed into unconsciousness from the exertion and the pain of its wound and spiraled earthward, but the necromancer ran underneath and caught the fuzzy body before it landed.

The second spider dropped from the ceiling to join in the melee and Quinn called a second flame strike that engulfed them both. Grick, Malobar, and Welby dodged and chopped at the beast they had been fighting furiously, and the demonic spider did bleed from many cuts, but it did not show any sign of relenting yet and the three friends appeared to be in much worse condition than their opponent.

Finally, Malobar slipped in a patch of his own blood and fell upon his back. He screamed and raised his sword to turn aside a blow he knew he could neither block nor survive, when suddenly the beast collapsed. The two small wounds he had inflicted upon it, the only damage he had been able to do in the battle, had taken their toll. Continuously bleeding due to the power of his wounding sword, these two tiny cracks in its massive bulk had proved its undoing, and now the companions had only one opponent to face.

Or would have, if not for Artimas. The wizard had healed Nibbler and ordered him to avoid the battle, then drawn some of his own life force into another ritual, creating a disembodied, spectral hand. Now he channeled that hand with the paralyzing touch of the ghoul and sent it to grasp the last monster. His signature spell proved as effective as always, and Welby easily dispatched the helpless creature while Quinn used prayers of restoration to cure the ravages the venom had inflicted upon the bodies of Grick and Malobar.

Next: First Drow contact

 

[Broccli_Head]

You should have added another bebilith!

 

[Sniktch]

Lord, no!

Yeah, I certainly could have but I didn't feel like killing everybody (Yet ). The party was having a really hard time hurting them with the DR 30/+3 in the first place. Jack couldn't hurt them except on a crit, and stopped trying, Malobar only managed to get in his two wounding strikes because of sneak attacks which did 34 and 32 hp (for a total of 6 to the bebilith), and Welby could only damage them when he flanked (and his sword of subtlety bonus raised to +5). Grick was the only reliable source of damage, and his strength was still at 12 because of the ropers and his con was down to 10 after the first bite.

True, Artimas was able to ruin my fun when he ghoul touched the other bebilith while it still had 50 hp, and I predictably rolled a 4 for its save. This is a recurring theme in our games - almost every time Artimas declares a ghoul touch and hits with it, I pick up the die and roll between a 1 and 5 for the save. Still, if the fight had continued either Grick, Malobar, or Welby would have definitely died, no doubt in my mind. They were too badly injured from the first one, and really needed a break to drop some healing spells before continuing.

I do take account for the fact that I have 6 party members instead of 4, but quite often I will simply add hp to the existing monsters rather than add more. I find that 2 bebilith with 120 hp can create just as much havoc as 3 with 80. Am I too soft on my players? They certainly don't think so, and just wait to see what I have in store for them the next time we play...

muhahahahahaha

 

[Lazybones]

Actually, I thought that the bebelith battle was perfectly balanced for just the right near-death challenge. There were a few points where I thought that they were all going to buy it.

Just caught up to the story to date, and would like to add my praises for a well-written story with good descriptions and fast-paced action. The characters are very distinctive and I like the dialogue. I think their differences sets up an interesting dynamic (the tension between Jack and the necromancer was particularly entertaining). I will definitely be dropping in for future updates.

 

[Sniktch]

Re: Bebiliths

That was the highlight of the evening for me, even considering the furious battle coming up next. It was really touch and go the whole time, and I did not think that the entire group was going to make it through. My favorite moment was when the first bebilith dropped - Malobar and Grick had about 20 hp between them at that point and would probably both have perished, but the bebilith began the turn with 1 hp and the wounding sword took it down. And Jack say 1 hp doesn't really make a difference.

The next battle was pretty long and drawn out, and got a little confusing, what with darkness globes and stray lightning bolts and the like. I am not sure I got the sequence of events correct, and I apologize to my players if I fouled it up, but the gist is correct. Yet another fight where our arcane deficiency shows up, as they have to face a hasted, shielded, mage armored, stoneskinned, fire shielded, seeing invisible drow evoker with very little resources remaining. Even melee proved to be one-sided in the dark elf's favor, as all the spells gave it an AC of 30. Thank goodness Grick remembered the feint maneuver!

OK, before I give anymore away, here's the next update...