Thoughts and Observations on episode 1 of Savage Tide (SPOILERS!)

[Wik]

Alright, so I got my dungeon yesterday, and quickly read through the start of the newest adventure path. Good god, YES. I love it already - but how can I not? I mean, we have pirates, the promise of dinosaurs, THE ISLE OF DREAD, and even a little side quest to Tamoachan (squee!) to look forward to. What's not to love?

So, here I want everyone who's run this adventure, or is thinking of running this adventure, to post what youlove,awesome scenes that have occured, concerns about the game that you might have, or possible changes you plan on enacting, to post what you think.

And, yar, there will be spoilers, so...

If Ye Be a Player in the Savage Tide campaign, Keep Out! Yarr!

 

[wayne62682]

I read through it... although I doubt I will be able to run it (toying with running it online, but I do not want to wait for the rest of it to play out so I'll probably run Shackled City instead as I have the hardcover).

I liked the tone and theme of the entire thing.. it had that whole... cinematic feel with the combats, especially the encounter on the ship (Blue Nixie?) in the beginning and the ravenous undead.. although that scene I think will be vicious on players (DR 10/Silver and the only silver weapon is a dagger that's hidden?!).

Sorry my comments do not add much to the discussion.. as I said I have not really sat down to read it yet as I know there will be no chance of my running it unless I were to do it online, and I like to see how it plays out before I commit to start a campaign with it.

Regards,
Wayne

 

[Wik]

Now, my opnions....

First, this is going to be the first time I run an adventure path, so I'm not used to the idea of constant PC deaths that I've heard were common in Shackled City. My group isn't really used to dying (although they're coming around to the idea, what with the lethality of my d6 games as of late), so I figure I need to ease them into things a bit. I was thinking of making the session easier on them by giving the group a classed NPC to fill a role that they haven't filled (it's only a three person group, so I think they'll need an NPC to round them out, anyways), and then give them a 1st level warrior companion of some sort who'll help soak up blows.

I also want to "Cheat" in the group's favour a bit, and run some adventures on the side so the group will get something of an XP "edge" in things, although this edge won't be particularly large. Since only one of my players is what you'd call an "optimizer", I have a feeling the encounters will be a bit too tough on the group, so I need to give them something to even things up.

How do adventure paths reward magical items? Does it presume that the PCs are buying magical items on the side? This will be an issue in the campaign, so I'd like to get the heads-up before I run this adventure next month.

I really loved a lot of the encounters in "There is No Honor". The combination lock is an excellent puzzle, but one I have a feeling is going to be too hard for my group to figure out (but then, you never know....).

The tunnels involving the "Hungry Dead" are my favourite part of the adventure, and I really plan on playing that scene to the hilt. I've got most of it in my head already.

I like how the PCs receive a city commendation at the end of the adventure - that's a pretty cool, "Starwarsy" reward, and I think it'll go over well with the group.

One big worry about this adventure is the fact that the game sort of expects the group to make multiple forays into the thieves' den. Since, historically, I've made most of my site-based adventures around the presumption that the PCs will do it in one fell swoop (and I mock the group that tries to run away) I have a feeling my group will press on, no matter how hurt they are. I might drop in a wand of cure light wounds or something in place of that brooch of shielding.

Also, the notes/handouts are kind of silly. I mean, they're WRITTEN in pirate speak? What's with that? I just know they'd get a huge laugh out of the group that wouldn't fit well, so I'm going to be re-writing them. A minor point, and it might fit with most groups, but it's not fitting with mine.

Finally, the end of the adventure, when Rowyn offers the group to work for her side....? YEah, I could totally see my group taking her up on that offer. Hats off to Mr. Jacobs for thinking of just this happening, and writing a short blurb on what to do if the PCs switch sides. I have a sneaky suspicion I'll be using that sidebar (unless I can convince one of the players to play the paladin....)

One quick note about the future campaign: I just re-read Hidden Shrine of Tamoachan to get ready for this campaign, and I came across a gem I had forgotten. I'm thinking of the talking crayfish and the giant crab - I'm totally going to drop them into the Tamoachan portion of the Savage Tide.

 

[Wik]

I liked the tone and theme of the entire thing.. it had that whole... cinematic feel with the combats, especially the encounter on the ship (Blue Nixie?) in the beginning and the ravenous undead.. although that scene I think will be vicious on players (DR 10/Silver and the only silver weapon is a dagger that's hidden?!).

Holy crap, I hadn't noticed the DR! I don't think the scene will be that bad, because from the gist of it, I imagine the group encounters Veldimar more or less by himself, but it could be a really tough fight for 1st level PCs.

Thanks for mentioning that - I hadn't noticed it at all.

I guess I should run an encounter earlier, maybe, where someone tries to pawn off Holy Water for the PCs? He should sell other things, as well, such as Acid and Alchemist's Fire, so I'm not giving the group any major hints.... but it might make things a little easier for them.

 

[James Jacobs]

Yeah... the DR for that monster's pretty high, but that's actually a reason I put it in there—to get the PCs ready for combats later in the campaign where you can't really just hack away with weapons. It's good for fights now and then to reward the wizard who has magic missile and disrupt undead spells, or the rogue who packed a lot of vials of acid, or the cleric who can channel curing spells into damage; lets them take the spotlight now and then.

And I hear ya about the handouts written in "Pirate talk." I went back and forth on how to handle the handouts, and in the end went with pirate talk since it helps to build flavor for the campaign. If you don't like the concept, rewriting the notes is fine. Alternately, you could have Penkus's non-combat ghost rise up to deliver his speach as a monologue...

In any event, we're going to be including a "Switching Sides" sidebar in every adventure that'll give tips on how to adapt or run the thing if the PCs ended up working for the Lotus Dragons (or otherwise chose to abandon their patron and go it alone).

And thanks for the kind words, by the way! Good to hear that the adventure's being well-recieved... it was a little nerve-wracking writing the one to kick off a 12 part campaign!

 

[Mouseferatu]

James, let me add my kudos. I've liked both adventure paths so far, but this is the best first chapter of any of 'em. If the rest lives up to the groundwork you've laid down, this is going to be a fantastic campaign.

Quick question, though. Are these really designed for parties of 4? (I refer not just to ST, but to all three adventure paths.) The chapter introductions say so, but there's at least one spot in the Shackled City hardcover that says 6, and the challenges and rewards to (at least on very casual inspection, I admit I haven't delved into them) seem appropriate for that number as well...

 

[Beckett]

I've read through it and liked it. My game starts this Sunday. It feels a little odd; with my Age of Worms game, it wasn't until about the 10th or 11th adventure was out that I suddenly realized, "Hey, this whole thing is pretty cool. I should run it." I don't think I'll get ahead on Savage Tides, since I can only run it every other Sunday, but with Age of Worms I could peak ahead and know what was coming up. Here, I was worried that the Dungeon or Dragon wouldn't show up before Sunday (Dragon arrived yesterday, Dungeon a bit before, so I'm set).

James, are you running the staff through ST like Erik did with AoW? And if so, are we going to hear about it the editorials (and hear about Mike McArtor's characters getting killed)?

 

[Wik]

I've read through it and liked it. My game starts this Sunday. It feels a little odd; with my Age of Worms game, it wasn't until about the 10th or 11th adventure was out that I suddenly realized, "Hey, this whole thing is pretty cool. I should run it." I don't think I'll get ahead on Savage Tides, since I can only run it every other Sunday, but with Age of Worms I could peak ahead and know what was coming up. Here, I was worried that the Dungeon or Dragon wouldn't show up before Sunday (Dragon arrived yesterday, Dungeon a bit before, so I'm set).

James, are you running the staff through ST like Erik did with AoW? And if so, are we going to hear about it the editorials (and hear about Mike McArtor's characters getting killed)?

You know, Shackled City didn't really catch my attention. It seemed incredibly "high fantasy" for me and my group, and we just passed it by. Age of Worms would have been cool, were it not for the Kyuss connection (as a huge fan of the band Kyuss, I think my group would have labelled me "fanboi" or something). I suppose I could have converted it, but.... I'm lazy.

Savage Tide is the first time an Adventure Path has had me excited.... I have a feeling it's going to be pretty damned cool.

***

In other news, are there going to be any swarms in the near future of the adventures? I'm thinking I might throw a rat swarm into the hungry dead part of the adventure, just for some cool cinematics, but if there's a swarm coming up, I'll just drop it. (one of the nice things about knowing what's coming up... you can feel free to add stuff without being afraid it'll bite you later!)

 

[James Jacobs]

I'm running a Savage Tide game for my Saturday group every other week (who pretty much consist of the guys in the playtest credits); the Age of Worms game here at the office is still going, so there's not really enough time to do a second after-work game, alas. But you'll probably be hearing about the game now and then in my editorials anyway.

Savage Tide is designed for 4 players... but it's rough. Probably not as rough as Age of Worms, but it should work fine for groups of 5 or even 6 with minimal adjustment. The adventure paths expect smart play by experienced gamers, and even then, they're tough.

Of course, that's by design. One popular theory here at the office is that players look back more fondly on the tough adventures, the ones where they honestly felt that it was due to their skill and tactics and planning that saved the day, not just the fact that they had tough characters. We build the adventure paths tough as a result.

If you run the game for five or six, the only real adjustments you'll probably need to do is to add a few more mooks to each encounter. Eventually, the fact that a group of six players gets less XP than five or four due to the split means things'll start evening off. Sort of...

I don't think there's going to be many swarms in Savage Tide, but rat swarms would certainly find a home in Sasserine...

 

[Lucias]

Let me toss in my kudos also on a great start to the new adventure path!

I've liked the other two paths, but this is definitely the best starting adventure of the three. It just has an air of excitement that holds throughout the whole thing. Here's hoping the rest of the path is just as good!