Eminence_Grise
Explorer
I was thinking the exact same thing!
-
NOW LIVE! Into the Woods--new character species, eerie monsters, and haunting villains to populate the woodlands of your D&D games.
Imaro's First 13th Age Session: "Six Months and a Day" Campaign
- Thread starter Imaro
- Start date
I was thinking the exact same thing!
I think this is a clever idea.
Out of curiosity, where does this PC get the bonus relationship die?
Imaro
Legend
Long Post Ahead!!
Hey everyone, first I apologize for the tardiness of our first play post, I had alot going on this weekend and it's definitely not an easy thing typing up the contents of a game session. If I continue in this thread I think I'll probably switch to a more "Highlights of the Game" type format. But for now I've typed up our first play session which took place the same night as character creation, so it's not very long but we did get tot est out some mechanics, get a feel for combat and a little skill use. I was only able to work in one of the icon rolls during this session, but because it was such a short session we decided to keep those icon rolls for two sessions as opposed to one (Honestly I'm contemplated having the icon rolls for an entire adventure as opposed to every session, but I'm not sure yet.). Well let me know if you guys have any questions, comments, etc. and I'll be back online later today to answer some of the previous comments and questions along with any new ones that pop up.
Session 1.5 : Character Creation/Actual Play
Before the adventure started my group and I had come to an earlier agreement that citizens of the Dragon Empire are all required to do a year and a day of service in the legions (the Dragon Empire’s standing army) and that our campaign would be focused (at least at the beginning) on the remaining 6 months and one day that the PC’s had left to serve for their required time… hence the title of the Campaign, “Six Months and a Day”. The initial set up was that they were assigned to the 111th legion, which had orders to patrol and protect the outer wilds surrounding the city of Glitterhaegen. This first adventure was going to be off the cuff since it happened right after character creation and I didn’t have the characters beforehand. So I had a basic situation in mind and with that established, I had my players roll their icon dice and the 5/6 results were as follows…
Vince : Prince of Shadows 6 (conflicted)
Quinnton: The Three: 5 (negative),
Kal Ruin: The Orc Lord: 6 (negative); Priestess: 6 (positive).
I noted these off to the side on a piece of paper and figured as the opportunities arose in the adventure I’d improvise particular icons into it.
Our first session opened with the PC’s eating their meager morning rations of lukewarm porridge when they received a summons from the camp messenger informing them that they had been ordered to report to Captain Gurdain’s tent and should join him within the hour. After some philosophical back and forth between Vince (who expressed his belief in himself as opposed to the divine) and Kal Ruin (who espoused the benefits of faith without actually identifying what he actually puts his faith in) the heroes finished their food and headed to the captain’s tent where, after stating their business and showing the summons to the guards posted outside, they are admitted.
The tent is large with a banner bearing the symbol of the Dragon Emperor that flutters and snaps wildly atop it in the strong winds that also hint at the approaching autumn season. Inside the tent is sparsely furnished. Off to one corner rests a single bed. The center of the structure is dominated by a large table surrounded by wooden stools and covered in various maps and parchments. To one side of the table rests a large wooden cask and a number of crudely carved wooden mugs while on the other side of it is a small fire pit filled with dying embers. Captain Gurdain is a dwarf with gray hair braided tightly against his head and a beard of the same color that is waxed and also braided but in a more complex pattern. His plate armor is archaic in design but in good working condition. And running across one of his brown eyes is a scar into which have been rubbed flecks of silver. Previously I had decided that the mark of a traitor to the dwarf king was ritual scarification and the rubbing of silver (as opposed to gold) into the wound as it healed.
Captain Gurdain greeted the PC’s warmly offering them some drink and joking that they knew the mission must be dangerous if he’s giving them a taste of his best. Each character poured a cup of the dark dwarven ale from the cask then took a seat at the table in Gurdain’s tent. He tells them that a goblin scouting party of unusual size has been sighted along the northeastern edge of the Bitterwood. Gurdain explains that normally this wouldn’t be remarkable except that the current movement of the goblins puts them on course with a Dragon Empire lumber town, named Mistwood, in theregion. Well that and the fact that these goblins seem strangely organized compared to what is the norm for their kind. The PC’s are given orders to investigate, and if necessary deal with the goblin patrol, they are also given a secondary mission to visit the town of Mistwood as a show of force and reassurance on the part of the Dragon Empire. The PC’s are given an hour to make preparations for their journey and told to rendezvous with the legion in 5 days’ time at Glitterhaegen.
With their orders received the PC’s head off in the general direction (north of the position of their camp along the edge of the Bitterwood) that the goblins were sighted. Here I decided that each check to track would be 30 mins worth of in-game time and that the goblins were about 2 hours away. I also decided that the goblins weren’t being especially stealthy so I made the DC normal (15). Each check was a group check with any applicable background and the highest roll being used to determine success or failure. On a successful roll I allowed the player who had the highest check to describe scenery, what was taking place as they traveled and what obstacles they overcame successfully during their travels in that 30 min block. With four successful rolls the PC’s would get to the goblins in two hours without a problem. However, each roll they failed would set them back 30 minutes and allowed me to roll on a pretty simplistic random encounter table I had designed spur of the moment (listed below).
Roll 1d6
1. 1d6 deserters from your legion
2. A caravan roll 1d6 on 1-2 mercantile/3-4aristocrat/5-6religious
3. A group of rogue goblins
4. A natural animal 1-2 bear/3-4 wolves/5-6 deer
5. A physical impediment to travel (cliff/gorge/ pool/stream/etc.)
6. Strange or weird scenery (The skeleton of a behemoth, a sky island, a newly birthed living dungeon etc.)
The players rolled the following backgrounds while hunting for the goblins… I had each player relate a brief flashback as to why the background they selected was applicable, which I’ve summarized for brevity below. I also noted that Kal’Ruik’s experienced adventurer” background could be trouble because of its breadth but ultimately I decided it wasn’t an issue because the player Je had only invested a single background point in it and (upon further reflection) there were still a wide range of situations it wouldn’t be applicable to
Vince: Bounty Hunter for the Elf Queen + Wis + lvl (Sy told us of a time when an elven village had come under attack by goblins and Vince along with others had been dispatched to bring the leader of the responsible parties, a hobgoblin chieftain, to justice. During his time hunting him and his tribe he learned the ways, tracks, etc. of goblins on the move.)
Kal ‘Ruik: Experienced Adventurer +Wis+lvl (Je related how he had once traveled with a ranger named Valon as a companion, Kal’Ruik converted the ranger into a believer but in order to gain the rangers trust he had to learn the basics of woodland lore .)
Quinnton: Former investigator for the Emperor + Wis + lvl (Aj told the story of the strange mental exercises and alchemical treatments that the Emperor’s investigators are subjected to in order to heighten their perception and awareness)
Link: Forrester for a noble of the Dragon Empire + Wis+ lvl (Sa told the story of the time Link had to hunt down goblin poachers who had hunted and stolen meat from his lords lands)
My thoughts as DM on our first use of backgrounds were that I wanted everyone to relate a story since it was our first time interacting with the mechanic in the game. I like the concept of stories for backgrounds because not only do they fill in parts of the world but they are also story fodder for the GM (I can’t wait for the Dragon Emperor’s investigators to make an appearance). The cons were that It did take a nice chunk of time for everyone to do this (and I know it would be even longer with more players) so I decided that after this I would allow backgrounds that could obviously be applied to stand with or without a story (players choice) and only require stories for backgrounds that felt like a stretch IMO. Of course after all these great stories, the first roll was a group failure. Not one total was above 15. This resulted in me rolling on the table I listed above and getting the rogue goblins, which would be our first combat in the system (Yes I know my players and they are the type that won't suffer a goblin to live, lol!!).
I decided that this would be a minor encounter whose main purpose would be to introduce everyone to the basics of the combat system without being overly difficult. I also wanted some practice running mooks so I decided the encounter would consist of 15 goblin scum. This was a pretty easy encounter (which it should have been since it’s below the 13th Age budget for a group of 4 PC’s ) and it didn’t take long for the PC’s to dispatch all but one of the goblins. We used the escalation die, but I’ll reserve judgment on that until we get a major battle under our belts since I don’t think its effect is all that noticeable on a quick and dirty fight like this one. I’ll also hold back on commenting about the speed of 13th Age combat just yet since this was purposefully created to be a quick fight, which it was.
From a DM perspective I liked the feel of mooks more than minions from 4e for one major reason… mooks keep the amount of damage dealt significant as opposed to just making it a binary hit or don’t hit situation (IMO mooks actually feel more like low level opponents in earlier editions of D&D while still being a threat to the PC’s). This opens up the possibility that a PC might not do enough damage to kill a mook, but it also allows the chance to kill more than one by doing higher amounts of damage, in other words variability which for my group was a more interesting outcome that hit= dead, miss = alive. The only issue I had was that sometimes it’s awkward explaining how two or more mooks were killed when the damage is high enough but the fiction and descriptions don’t necessarily fit with the resolution. It’s not a major issue and my players were able to think up different ways of killing multiple goblin scum with only a slight bit of effort. So overall, at this point I’m enjoying the mook rules for 13th Age.
With the entire band of rogue goblins, save one, defeated the PC’s decided to interrogate their captive. I kept this relatively simple and straightforward since goblin scum doesn’t strike me as the brave type. Quinnton the fighter, who has linguist as a feat was able to translate the words of Kal’Ruik who used his background as a slum pit fighter+ (Charisma) on top of a couple of thinly veiled threats to intimidate the goblin into talking. The PC’s learn that these goblins fled the main tribe when their chief was slain and leadership usurped by an Orc (This is where I partially take care of that 6/negative for the Orc Lord!). They also learned that the Orc has marshaled more than one goblin tribe under his leadership in order to attack the town of Mistwood, though regrettably the goblin doesn’t know when. Once the information is attained the PC’s decide that the goblin is too dangerous to let live and Link dispatches him. With these goblins taken care of the PC’s return to tracking the original group they had been given orders to deal with.
The PC’s didn’t fail anymore checks, thus finding the goblin scouting party and (because of certain descriptions in the fiction they created) I ruled that they had surprise over the goblins once they found them (Yay DM fiat!!). The goblins were discovered in a clearing along the edge of the Bitterwood, dominated by a small wooden hut that was adorned with bones, feathers and other hedge magic talismans. Many of the goblins were hollering out curses and taunts (translated to common by our resident language expert… Quinnton ) while others in the group viciously beat an old woman a few feet from the entrance to the hut under the direction of what appeared to be a larger, stronger goblin. This was an “at level” encounter according to the encounter build rules from 13th Age. It consisted of 1 goblin grunt and 15 goblin scum.
We used the rules for ambushes from 13th Age in this combat and it went well. In the end the whole thing was resolved in about 15-20 mins (which felt right for a minor encounter like this). In 13th Age, during the surprise round, only the two characters with the highest initiative get to act. It was Vince and Quinnton, which worked out even better for the party since Vince in essence got his own attacks and that of the tiger (I’m now wondering if the call I made on this was wrong, but I’ll look into it later to be sure). Vince was first and he rushed into the crowd of goblins assaulting the woman and killed two of the five with his first attack, his tiger rushed in killing another and leaving only 2 goblins left in that group. Next up Quinnton pulled his bow and attacked the goblin grunt, doing a hefty bit of damage though not staggering (reduced to half hit points) him. After this the monsters rolled initiative and regular combat ensued. I won’t detail blow by blow but Just a quick note about the escalation die and recoveries.
In general my players really enjoyed the escalation die and the effect it has on later rounds in a combat. the escalation die helps to minimize the type of combat grind that can ensue when there are a few low rolls even when the combat is at the point where it's pretty much over. It also interacts with the game in ways other than just a bonus to hit, an example is Vince's wood elf ability where he can get an extra standard action if he is able to roll under the amount of the escalation die on a d8. I also think Quinnton had a fighter maneuver that also relied on the escalation die to be activated. It did feel like the escalation die might be a little to powerful, however I'm thinking part of that was the relative weakness of the antagonists and also that the PC's really are supposed to be heroic in nature. I'm curious to see how a combat with one of the rare monsters who uses the escalation die plays out as well. the party did suffer some damage (though none were ever staggered, both Vince and Link came close) which they healed afterwards with recoveries.
Let me note here that I also like the randomness of recoveries, as opposed to the surges in 4e where healing is dependable and consistent. Recoveries have to be rolled so that players sometimes find themselves in the position of having to decide if they’ve rolled enough hit points and are ok with what they have or whether they should use another recovery and gamble on getting some more hit points at the expense of the recovery. In 4e one knows with certainty exactly how many surges to use in order to get exactly how many hit points they want. I think the uncertainty of the 13th Age recoveries fits the style of my group much better.
After the battle the PC’s helped the woman into her hut where she introduced herself as Rainya. After the introductions were completed Rainya informed the PC’s that she was attacked because she had stumbled upon the goblin’s wagon village to the west of Mistwood. She also informed the PC’s that the rest of the goblins were massing for an attack on the town, and that in killing these goblins they have only delayed the inevitable. While speaking to the players Rainya used a small cauldron over the fire pit in her hut to brew a sour smelling liquid. She told the PC’s it was a healing salve and provided enough for two doses for them. The PC’s asked Rainya for directions to Mistwood, then thanked her and departed. The party has a brief discussion about what to do with the information they have gleaned so far and come to the conclusion that for now they will finish out their orders and make the legions presence known in Mistwood.
I decided that with the directions from Rainya and in an effort to speed up play that the trip to Mistwood was uneventful, though the PC’s did learn why the town was named Mistwood. The trees directly surrounding the town had strange properties which caused a thick mist to form from their sap, cloaking the area in a dense fog. Upon arriving in the town, the PC’s come upon a mob of villagers, equipped with clubs, torches, pitchforks and other improvised weaponry standing near the entranceway of the town’s single legion watchtower. They are involved in a shouting match with two legionnaires standing between the mob of townsfolk and a small girl. The players are able to glean from snippets of the heated conversation between the two parties that Mistwood has recently become the victim of a widespread plague and that the townspeople believe the girl, that the two legionnaires are protecting, is responsible for the calamity that has fallen upon Mistwood.
At this point the party decides to intercede. Quinnton and Kal’Ruik use appropriate backgrounds to cower the townsfolk into silence, I used a normal DC (15), but decided making them scared was only partially effective. The town folk were quiet but didn’t move from their position outside the watchtower and were now regarding the PC’s fearfully but also with resentment and sullenness. Sensing the situation was still at a standstill Link stepped up and said that he would negotiate with them using the tone and body language he used with his wife and son. He promised them that they would look into the matter and discover whether the girl was in fact responsible for the plague and that they would have a judgment on the matter in 3 days’ time. I made this a hard difficulty (DC 20) since I felt the effort to intimidate the towns people would affect this approach adversely. Sa rolled Link’s Loving Father and Husband background + Cha+1 and succeeded. The towns people grudgingly agreed to his terms, making sure to let him know they would be back in 3 days’ time for the girl (There was no doubt in their mind the girl was guilty).
Once the townspeople dispersed, the legionnaires introduced themselves to the PC’s and the PC’s stated their orders concerning Mistwood. At this point everyone moved inside the watchtower.
The watchtower was a sparsely furnished tower of wood with all the signs of neglect and age (Dust, peeling paint, creaking wood, etc) that one would expect in an isolated out of the way legion outpost. The younger of the two legionnaires, a blonde haired youth named Ian, made a side comment that they weren’t expecting anyone from the legion and not-so-subtly challenged the PC’s concerning the legitimacy of their orders and business in Mistwood. Of course players being players this is almost enough to set off a fight but they realize Ian can’t be more than 16 years of age and it cools their tempers somewhat. The older of the two, a dark haired human in his 30’s named Von quickly apologizes for the manners of the young boy, citing the relative isolation of their post and his youth as the reasons for his bad manners. Ian goes to reply but a stern look from Von sends the boy storming off. Vince makes a joke/threat concerning the leniency they have granted the boy due to his age as he departs.
The PC’s leave Ian to cool his head and make sure the girl is comfortable in one of the beds on the first floor. They then sit down with Von to talk about exactly what is happening in Mistwood… and this is where we stopped for the night.
Hey everyone, first I apologize for the tardiness of our first play post, I had alot going on this weekend and it's definitely not an easy thing typing up the contents of a game session. If I continue in this thread I think I'll probably switch to a more "Highlights of the Game" type format. But for now I've typed up our first play session which took place the same night as character creation, so it's not very long but we did get tot est out some mechanics, get a feel for combat and a little skill use. I was only able to work in one of the icon rolls during this session, but because it was such a short session we decided to keep those icon rolls for two sessions as opposed to one (Honestly I'm contemplated having the icon rolls for an entire adventure as opposed to every session, but I'm not sure yet.). Well let me know if you guys have any questions, comments, etc. and I'll be back online later today to answer some of the previous comments and questions along with any new ones that pop up.
Session 1.5 : Character Creation/Actual Play
Before the adventure started my group and I had come to an earlier agreement that citizens of the Dragon Empire are all required to do a year and a day of service in the legions (the Dragon Empire’s standing army) and that our campaign would be focused (at least at the beginning) on the remaining 6 months and one day that the PC’s had left to serve for their required time… hence the title of the Campaign, “Six Months and a Day”. The initial set up was that they were assigned to the 111th legion, which had orders to patrol and protect the outer wilds surrounding the city of Glitterhaegen. This first adventure was going to be off the cuff since it happened right after character creation and I didn’t have the characters beforehand. So I had a basic situation in mind and with that established, I had my players roll their icon dice and the 5/6 results were as follows…
Vince : Prince of Shadows 6 (conflicted)
Quinnton: The Three: 5 (negative),
Kal Ruin: The Orc Lord: 6 (negative); Priestess: 6 (positive).
I noted these off to the side on a piece of paper and figured as the opportunities arose in the adventure I’d improvise particular icons into it.
Our first session opened with the PC’s eating their meager morning rations of lukewarm porridge when they received a summons from the camp messenger informing them that they had been ordered to report to Captain Gurdain’s tent and should join him within the hour. After some philosophical back and forth between Vince (who expressed his belief in himself as opposed to the divine) and Kal Ruin (who espoused the benefits of faith without actually identifying what he actually puts his faith in) the heroes finished their food and headed to the captain’s tent where, after stating their business and showing the summons to the guards posted outside, they are admitted.
The tent is large with a banner bearing the symbol of the Dragon Emperor that flutters and snaps wildly atop it in the strong winds that also hint at the approaching autumn season. Inside the tent is sparsely furnished. Off to one corner rests a single bed. The center of the structure is dominated by a large table surrounded by wooden stools and covered in various maps and parchments. To one side of the table rests a large wooden cask and a number of crudely carved wooden mugs while on the other side of it is a small fire pit filled with dying embers. Captain Gurdain is a dwarf with gray hair braided tightly against his head and a beard of the same color that is waxed and also braided but in a more complex pattern. His plate armor is archaic in design but in good working condition. And running across one of his brown eyes is a scar into which have been rubbed flecks of silver. Previously I had decided that the mark of a traitor to the dwarf king was ritual scarification and the rubbing of silver (as opposed to gold) into the wound as it healed.
Captain Gurdain greeted the PC’s warmly offering them some drink and joking that they knew the mission must be dangerous if he’s giving them a taste of his best. Each character poured a cup of the dark dwarven ale from the cask then took a seat at the table in Gurdain’s tent. He tells them that a goblin scouting party of unusual size has been sighted along the northeastern edge of the Bitterwood. Gurdain explains that normally this wouldn’t be remarkable except that the current movement of the goblins puts them on course with a Dragon Empire lumber town, named Mistwood, in theregion. Well that and the fact that these goblins seem strangely organized compared to what is the norm for their kind. The PC’s are given orders to investigate, and if necessary deal with the goblin patrol, they are also given a secondary mission to visit the town of Mistwood as a show of force and reassurance on the part of the Dragon Empire. The PC’s are given an hour to make preparations for their journey and told to rendezvous with the legion in 5 days’ time at Glitterhaegen.
With their orders received the PC’s head off in the general direction (north of the position of their camp along the edge of the Bitterwood) that the goblins were sighted. Here I decided that each check to track would be 30 mins worth of in-game time and that the goblins were about 2 hours away. I also decided that the goblins weren’t being especially stealthy so I made the DC normal (15). Each check was a group check with any applicable background and the highest roll being used to determine success or failure. On a successful roll I allowed the player who had the highest check to describe scenery, what was taking place as they traveled and what obstacles they overcame successfully during their travels in that 30 min block. With four successful rolls the PC’s would get to the goblins in two hours without a problem. However, each roll they failed would set them back 30 minutes and allowed me to roll on a pretty simplistic random encounter table I had designed spur of the moment (listed below).
Roll 1d6
1. 1d6 deserters from your legion
2. A caravan roll 1d6 on 1-2 mercantile/3-4aristocrat/5-6religious
3. A group of rogue goblins
4. A natural animal 1-2 bear/3-4 wolves/5-6 deer
5. A physical impediment to travel (cliff/gorge/ pool/stream/etc.)
6. Strange or weird scenery (The skeleton of a behemoth, a sky island, a newly birthed living dungeon etc.)
The players rolled the following backgrounds while hunting for the goblins… I had each player relate a brief flashback as to why the background they selected was applicable, which I’ve summarized for brevity below. I also noted that Kal’Ruik’s experienced adventurer” background could be trouble because of its breadth but ultimately I decided it wasn’t an issue because the player Je had only invested a single background point in it and (upon further reflection) there were still a wide range of situations it wouldn’t be applicable to
Vince: Bounty Hunter for the Elf Queen + Wis + lvl (Sy told us of a time when an elven village had come under attack by goblins and Vince along with others had been dispatched to bring the leader of the responsible parties, a hobgoblin chieftain, to justice. During his time hunting him and his tribe he learned the ways, tracks, etc. of goblins on the move.)
Kal ‘Ruik: Experienced Adventurer +Wis+lvl (Je related how he had once traveled with a ranger named Valon as a companion, Kal’Ruik converted the ranger into a believer but in order to gain the rangers trust he had to learn the basics of woodland lore .)
Quinnton: Former investigator for the Emperor + Wis + lvl (Aj told the story of the strange mental exercises and alchemical treatments that the Emperor’s investigators are subjected to in order to heighten their perception and awareness)
Link: Forrester for a noble of the Dragon Empire + Wis+ lvl (Sa told the story of the time Link had to hunt down goblin poachers who had hunted and stolen meat from his lords lands)
My thoughts as DM on our first use of backgrounds were that I wanted everyone to relate a story since it was our first time interacting with the mechanic in the game. I like the concept of stories for backgrounds because not only do they fill in parts of the world but they are also story fodder for the GM (I can’t wait for the Dragon Emperor’s investigators to make an appearance). The cons were that It did take a nice chunk of time for everyone to do this (and I know it would be even longer with more players) so I decided that after this I would allow backgrounds that could obviously be applied to stand with or without a story (players choice) and only require stories for backgrounds that felt like a stretch IMO. Of course after all these great stories, the first roll was a group failure. Not one total was above 15. This resulted in me rolling on the table I listed above and getting the rogue goblins, which would be our first combat in the system (Yes I know my players and they are the type that won't suffer a goblin to live, lol!!).
I decided that this would be a minor encounter whose main purpose would be to introduce everyone to the basics of the combat system without being overly difficult. I also wanted some practice running mooks so I decided the encounter would consist of 15 goblin scum. This was a pretty easy encounter (which it should have been since it’s below the 13th Age budget for a group of 4 PC’s ) and it didn’t take long for the PC’s to dispatch all but one of the goblins. We used the escalation die, but I’ll reserve judgment on that until we get a major battle under our belts since I don’t think its effect is all that noticeable on a quick and dirty fight like this one. I’ll also hold back on commenting about the speed of 13th Age combat just yet since this was purposefully created to be a quick fight, which it was.
From a DM perspective I liked the feel of mooks more than minions from 4e for one major reason… mooks keep the amount of damage dealt significant as opposed to just making it a binary hit or don’t hit situation (IMO mooks actually feel more like low level opponents in earlier editions of D&D while still being a threat to the PC’s). This opens up the possibility that a PC might not do enough damage to kill a mook, but it also allows the chance to kill more than one by doing higher amounts of damage, in other words variability which for my group was a more interesting outcome that hit= dead, miss = alive. The only issue I had was that sometimes it’s awkward explaining how two or more mooks were killed when the damage is high enough but the fiction and descriptions don’t necessarily fit with the resolution. It’s not a major issue and my players were able to think up different ways of killing multiple goblin scum with only a slight bit of effort. So overall, at this point I’m enjoying the mook rules for 13th Age.
With the entire band of rogue goblins, save one, defeated the PC’s decided to interrogate their captive. I kept this relatively simple and straightforward since goblin scum doesn’t strike me as the brave type. Quinnton the fighter, who has linguist as a feat was able to translate the words of Kal’Ruik who used his background as a slum pit fighter+ (Charisma) on top of a couple of thinly veiled threats to intimidate the goblin into talking. The PC’s learn that these goblins fled the main tribe when their chief was slain and leadership usurped by an Orc (This is where I partially take care of that 6/negative for the Orc Lord!). They also learned that the Orc has marshaled more than one goblin tribe under his leadership in order to attack the town of Mistwood, though regrettably the goblin doesn’t know when. Once the information is attained the PC’s decide that the goblin is too dangerous to let live and Link dispatches him. With these goblins taken care of the PC’s return to tracking the original group they had been given orders to deal with.
The PC’s didn’t fail anymore checks, thus finding the goblin scouting party and (because of certain descriptions in the fiction they created) I ruled that they had surprise over the goblins once they found them (Yay DM fiat!!). The goblins were discovered in a clearing along the edge of the Bitterwood, dominated by a small wooden hut that was adorned with bones, feathers and other hedge magic talismans. Many of the goblins were hollering out curses and taunts (translated to common by our resident language expert… Quinnton ) while others in the group viciously beat an old woman a few feet from the entrance to the hut under the direction of what appeared to be a larger, stronger goblin. This was an “at level” encounter according to the encounter build rules from 13th Age. It consisted of 1 goblin grunt and 15 goblin scum.
We used the rules for ambushes from 13th Age in this combat and it went well. In the end the whole thing was resolved in about 15-20 mins (which felt right for a minor encounter like this). In 13th Age, during the surprise round, only the two characters with the highest initiative get to act. It was Vince and Quinnton, which worked out even better for the party since Vince in essence got his own attacks and that of the tiger (I’m now wondering if the call I made on this was wrong, but I’ll look into it later to be sure). Vince was first and he rushed into the crowd of goblins assaulting the woman and killed two of the five with his first attack, his tiger rushed in killing another and leaving only 2 goblins left in that group. Next up Quinnton pulled his bow and attacked the goblin grunt, doing a hefty bit of damage though not staggering (reduced to half hit points) him. After this the monsters rolled initiative and regular combat ensued. I won’t detail blow by blow but Just a quick note about the escalation die and recoveries.
In general my players really enjoyed the escalation die and the effect it has on later rounds in a combat. the escalation die helps to minimize the type of combat grind that can ensue when there are a few low rolls even when the combat is at the point where it's pretty much over. It also interacts with the game in ways other than just a bonus to hit, an example is Vince's wood elf ability where he can get an extra standard action if he is able to roll under the amount of the escalation die on a d8. I also think Quinnton had a fighter maneuver that also relied on the escalation die to be activated. It did feel like the escalation die might be a little to powerful, however I'm thinking part of that was the relative weakness of the antagonists and also that the PC's really are supposed to be heroic in nature. I'm curious to see how a combat with one of the rare monsters who uses the escalation die plays out as well. the party did suffer some damage (though none were ever staggered, both Vince and Link came close) which they healed afterwards with recoveries.
Let me note here that I also like the randomness of recoveries, as opposed to the surges in 4e where healing is dependable and consistent. Recoveries have to be rolled so that players sometimes find themselves in the position of having to decide if they’ve rolled enough hit points and are ok with what they have or whether they should use another recovery and gamble on getting some more hit points at the expense of the recovery. In 4e one knows with certainty exactly how many surges to use in order to get exactly how many hit points they want. I think the uncertainty of the 13th Age recoveries fits the style of my group much better.
After the battle the PC’s helped the woman into her hut where she introduced herself as Rainya. After the introductions were completed Rainya informed the PC’s that she was attacked because she had stumbled upon the goblin’s wagon village to the west of Mistwood. She also informed the PC’s that the rest of the goblins were massing for an attack on the town, and that in killing these goblins they have only delayed the inevitable. While speaking to the players Rainya used a small cauldron over the fire pit in her hut to brew a sour smelling liquid. She told the PC’s it was a healing salve and provided enough for two doses for them. The PC’s asked Rainya for directions to Mistwood, then thanked her and departed. The party has a brief discussion about what to do with the information they have gleaned so far and come to the conclusion that for now they will finish out their orders and make the legions presence known in Mistwood.
I decided that with the directions from Rainya and in an effort to speed up play that the trip to Mistwood was uneventful, though the PC’s did learn why the town was named Mistwood. The trees directly surrounding the town had strange properties which caused a thick mist to form from their sap, cloaking the area in a dense fog. Upon arriving in the town, the PC’s come upon a mob of villagers, equipped with clubs, torches, pitchforks and other improvised weaponry standing near the entranceway of the town’s single legion watchtower. They are involved in a shouting match with two legionnaires standing between the mob of townsfolk and a small girl. The players are able to glean from snippets of the heated conversation between the two parties that Mistwood has recently become the victim of a widespread plague and that the townspeople believe the girl, that the two legionnaires are protecting, is responsible for the calamity that has fallen upon Mistwood.
At this point the party decides to intercede. Quinnton and Kal’Ruik use appropriate backgrounds to cower the townsfolk into silence, I used a normal DC (15), but decided making them scared was only partially effective. The town folk were quiet but didn’t move from their position outside the watchtower and were now regarding the PC’s fearfully but also with resentment and sullenness. Sensing the situation was still at a standstill Link stepped up and said that he would negotiate with them using the tone and body language he used with his wife and son. He promised them that they would look into the matter and discover whether the girl was in fact responsible for the plague and that they would have a judgment on the matter in 3 days’ time. I made this a hard difficulty (DC 20) since I felt the effort to intimidate the towns people would affect this approach adversely. Sa rolled Link’s Loving Father and Husband background + Cha+1 and succeeded. The towns people grudgingly agreed to his terms, making sure to let him know they would be back in 3 days’ time for the girl (There was no doubt in their mind the girl was guilty).
Once the townspeople dispersed, the legionnaires introduced themselves to the PC’s and the PC’s stated their orders concerning Mistwood. At this point everyone moved inside the watchtower.
The watchtower was a sparsely furnished tower of wood with all the signs of neglect and age (Dust, peeling paint, creaking wood, etc) that one would expect in an isolated out of the way legion outpost. The younger of the two legionnaires, a blonde haired youth named Ian, made a side comment that they weren’t expecting anyone from the legion and not-so-subtly challenged the PC’s concerning the legitimacy of their orders and business in Mistwood. Of course players being players this is almost enough to set off a fight but they realize Ian can’t be more than 16 years of age and it cools their tempers somewhat. The older of the two, a dark haired human in his 30’s named Von quickly apologizes for the manners of the young boy, citing the relative isolation of their post and his youth as the reasons for his bad manners. Ian goes to reply but a stern look from Von sends the boy storming off. Vince makes a joke/threat concerning the leniency they have granted the boy due to his age as he departs.
The PC’s leave Ian to cool his head and make sure the girl is comfortable in one of the beds on the first floor. They then sit down with Von to talk about exactly what is happening in Mistwood… and this is where we stopped for the night.
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Imaro
Legend
Thanks pemerton.
Ah, as part of our campaign structure everyone either got a bonus background "Servant of the Dragon" at +1 or a +1 to a background that was tied into service with the legions of the Dragon Empire. Je placed his bonus in "Demoted Captain of a Dragon Empire Legion" which we agreed means he was actually a higher rank then he is now but was demoted to his current position sometime in the past. We left this kind of vague but will be exploring this in more detail as the game progresses.
Imaro
Legend
Yeah I can see this, I think I agree that Icons do grant the players narrative power though it's a subtle and slightly random narrative power. It definitely gives the GM signals about what antagonists and allies the players want in the sessions. At this point we are 3 sessions in and I have 3 players that want the Orc Lords head (and one who has hinted at wanting to usurp his place as an icon) I also see a conflict arising as 2 players have strongly hinted at the fact that their loyalty to the Elf Queen is above their loyalty to the legions... one of which has informed me in private that he is actually a spy for the Elf Queen.
Hey how'd your first session go? Yeah in full disclosure we have finished our third session and the player of Quinnton still hasn't decided on his OUT. In his defense he is one of our youngest players so I'll probably sit down with him and go over some ideas with him before our fourth (and final intro session next week). The group also decided that during this first adventure (multiple sessions) people would be allowed to refine or even change their OUT since this is our first time playing this game and we are still learning the ropes.
About your group, how do you intend to use their OUTs and have it impact the story?
PS: I'm curious enough to read a summary of the first game session!
Well my plan after this initial intro arc, which we should be finishing up next weekend is to have everybody create a goal concerning their OUT that is appropriate for their level and, since this is a round robin game, whichever GM is running the game will randomly select 1-2 player's goals the week before so that they can give the players a chance to attain those goals during the game session they run. I think doing this at each level would help to make sure the OUT's are integrated and impact the campaign... while still giving whichever GM is running the latitude and creative freedom in deciding the situations and adventures around those goals. One thing I'm already considering is how to handle transitioning OUT's if the player becomes bored or resolves whatever things he wanted to explore with his OUT before the campaign ends. I have some thoughts but nothing concrete yet.
Scrivener of Doom
Adventurer
This was great.
Thanks for posting, Imaro.
One of the things I particularly enjoyed was the scene where they were handed their mission: "Captain Gurdain greeted the PCs warmly offering them some drink and joking that they knew the mission must be dangerous if he’s giving them a taste of his best."
I just have to use that.
Thanks for posting, Imaro.
One of the things I particularly enjoyed was the scene where they were handed their mission: "Captain Gurdain greeted the PCs warmly offering them some drink and joking that they knew the mission must be dangerous if he’s giving them a taste of his best."
I just have to use that.
Yep, that makes sense for the backgrounds. I was wondering about the Icon relationships.
Imaro, the comments below follow the sequence of your post and so I make no promise about the logical coherence of my sequence of thoughts!
Do you do a long rest at the end of every session? If not, rolling once per long rest could be another compromise option - apart from anything else, the passage of time during a long rest creates the veneer for concealing GM manipulation of the backstory to give effect to the icon rolls.
This would have implications for the impact on the story of these player choices - but you said in your OP, didn't you, that you're aiming for a long campaign.
Do you do a long rest at the end of every session? If not, rolling once per long rest could be another compromise option - apart from anything else, the passage of time during a long rest creates the veneer for concealing GM manipulation of the backstory to give effect to the icon rolls.
Did the players know this? Or otherwise pick up on it?
Did they go gonzo or gritty? The general vibe I get from the 13th Age rulebook is gonzo, but the general vibe I get from your posts is a somewhat gritty tone.
Did they suffer any consequence for being half-an-hour late other than the encounter? Would the situation with the hut and woman have been different if a different amount of time had passed?
My 4e game is approaching mid-Epic, and we don't use the Expertise feats because in general I've felt that to-hit bonuses were adequate without it. But I am thinking of introducing the escalation die for some of those epic combats against high-level opponents like gods, demon lords etc. Because it's not a general feature of the 4e mechanics I would be looking for some ingame rationale for those cases where it applies (eg a magical boon).
I wasn't sure about this when I read the rules - you don't have to commit to your number of recoveries first, and then roll to see how many hp you get back? If you don't roll enough, it's OK to spend more and roll more dice?
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