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

[el-remmen]

In the first adventure, the PCs only get to see Vanthus once, and that's right before he slams shut his trap...

Yes, well that doesn't really answer my question.

For those familiar with the two past adventure paths (assuming they had this kind of recurring NPC villian that is supposed to be around 'til the end), how is it handled in th eadventures to make it viable?

 

[Mouseferatu]

Yes, well that doesn't really answer my question.

For those familiar with the two past adventure paths (assuming they had this kind of recurring NPC villian that is supposed to be around 'til the end), how is it handled in th eadventures to make it viable?

There's a sidebar regarding what to do if another "supposed-to-recur" villain is instead slain. While there's not one for Vanthus, I imagine we'll see such a thing in the next adventure or two.

 

[James Jacobs]

Yes, well that doesn't really answer my question.

For those familiar with the two past adventure paths (assuming they had this kind of recurring NPC villian that is supposed to be around 'til the end), how is it handled in th eadventures to make it viable?

It's handled on a situation by situation basis, mostly by not having the PCs directly interact with the villains until the final battle. In other cases, where the villain needs to get away, we include a sidebar with advice on how to adjust the adventure if the villain DOESN'T get away when that villian shows up again later in the campaign.

 

[James Jacobs]

I don't have it in front of me, but the way to swim out of the Parrot Island dungeon is described in the text but missing from the map. Any chance of getting a better map for this? I also found the entrance scene to that dungeon just a tad railroady. I don't know any experienced party that allows a shifty guide to remain behind when entering a dangerous location that can be sealed from behind. But, hey, maybe I'll catch my group off guard.

Sure, it's railroady, but it's also fun. And if your group's too paranoid or careful to let themselves fall for this trap, you should absolutely reward them by NOT springing the trap by not having Vanthus show up to lock them in until no one's around to stop him. This is a little less fun, since it doesn't give the PCs a chance to interact with him, but them's the breaks. Alternately, NOT locking them in won't really hurt the adventure, but it does change the theme of the Parrot Island section from one of survival horror into just another dungeon crawl. It's CERTAINLY not a trick you should pull more than once a campaign, and certianly not one you CAN pull when they're higher level... which is why it's one of the first things that happens in the first adventure.

There won't be a revision to the map. We don't have the budget or time to provide something like this, and the route the tunnel takes is incidental in any event for most encounters. Feel free to place it anywhere you want.

As for the huecuva's Damage Reduction... it's high, sure, but the monster itself isn't THAT tough. It doesn't have much hit points and can't do a LOT of damage, and DR doesn't save it from magic or acid or fire or anything like that. And in the end, the monster's there to show the PCs that not all combats can be easilly solved with standard weapon attacks. It's serving the same purpose the acid beetle swarm did in "The Whispering Cairn," although hopefully in a less murderous manner.

 

[DungeonmasterCal]

Alright, so I got my dungeon yesterday

Via post or FLGS? I really want to take a gander at this Adventure Path (Neither I or my players have ever liked running pre-gen'd adventures). We're currently running a sea faring game, and this sounds really good.

 

[sckeener]

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.

....wonderful reasoning.

I love doing that for my players. I did that in my last low level campaign. I tossed in two gricks...

 

[iwatt]

*Wishes the mail would move faster so he could see this too*

You an me both buddy. Although I'll probably have to wait longer than you, since I just got #137 a couple of days ago. Well, I do live far away of the normal shipping lanes.

 

[Wik]

Via post or FLGS? I really want to take a gander at this Adventure Path (Neither I or my players have ever liked running pre-gen'd adventures). We're currently running a sea faring game, and this sounds really good.

FLGS. I picked it up on friday, the day it came out there.

I'm not used to running pre-gen adventures, and the few times I've run a dungeon adventure (The last one I ran was "The Hive", and it went horribly wrong), they've more or less imploded. So, this time around, I'm really making sure I look ahead and think things through (which is why I started this thread; I think it would be nice for people to point out the trouble points ahead of time before I encounter them).

One thing that's getting me worried is "The Crucible" encounter in area D9. While the rising water is really cool (I've done similar things in the past), the crocodile scares me a little bit. And, even more worrisome are the archers shooting down on the party. While the group will (hopefully) be around 2nd level by this time, I can see this as being a really tough encounter - especially if the croc scores a lucky crit or something. But then, as with a lot of fights against one big threat, the PCs could just knock the croc out in a round or two and then easily be able to focus on the rogues. So, I don't know...

...if there's going to be a TPK in this adventure, I think the crucible might just be where it's at.

 

[el-remmen]

It's handled on a situation by situation basis, mostly by not having the PCs directly interact with the villains until the final battle. In other cases, where the villain needs to get away, we include a sidebar with advice on how to adjust the adventure if the villain DOESN'T get away when that villian shows up again later in the campaign.

Thanks for the answer!

 

[BryonD]

So far it looks very good to me.

Among the various fun elements, one that I have not yet seen called out is that once the party gets to the Isle of Dread they are harrased by a monster gorilla. Granted it is a demon ape rather than a giant gorilla. But to me that just makes the story original with a tip of the hat, rather than a rip off. Great idea.