D&D 5E (2014) 5e with Young Kids
- Thread starter halfling rogue
- Start date
You could have them undergo a voyage similar to that of Odysseus. Greek mythology is full of great adventure ideas, and IMO the two most suitable ones are the stories of Polyphemus and that of Scylla and Charybdis.
Say they don't have enough supplies to make the whole journey, and before they run out they see an island up ahead inhabited by cyclopes. It would give a great opportunity for them to RP with creatures that have very different outlooks to them. Instead of paying with gold, they'd have to barter or trade favours for the supplies they need. Alternatively, they could steal the supplies and run, and have to escape before the cyclopes catch up or destroy their ship. Depending on how true to the narrative you want to stick, the cyclops that offers them supplies might trap them in his cave after they help it, and then the party has to find a way out before being eaten.
Scylla and Charybdis is a classic "rock and a hard place" problem: in order to make it to their destination they have to navigate a narrow passage. On one side is a whirlpool or other phenomenon that will destroy the ship if they get too close, on the other is a hydra that will eat most of the crew if they get too close. Normally there are only two options (everyone dies or some of the crew is sacrificed), but if you're set on pirates you can include a third option. Say the pirates are based outside the passage, then the party can negotiate for help to slay the monster. While a CR 9 hydra would likely result in a TPK, you could have most of the heads attack the hired help and only one or two attack the party; and once they emerge victorious they can be inducted as "honorary pirates" and given a cannon or a Jolly Roger or something for their ship.
Say they don't have enough supplies to make the whole journey, and before they run out they see an island up ahead inhabited by cyclopes. It would give a great opportunity for them to RP with creatures that have very different outlooks to them. Instead of paying with gold, they'd have to barter or trade favours for the supplies they need. Alternatively, they could steal the supplies and run, and have to escape before the cyclopes catch up or destroy their ship. Depending on how true to the narrative you want to stick, the cyclops that offers them supplies might trap them in his cave after they help it, and then the party has to find a way out before being eaten.
Scylla and Charybdis is a classic "rock and a hard place" problem: in order to make it to their destination they have to navigate a narrow passage. On one side is a whirlpool or other phenomenon that will destroy the ship if they get too close, on the other is a hydra that will eat most of the crew if they get too close. Normally there are only two options (everyone dies or some of the crew is sacrificed), but if you're set on pirates you can include a third option. Say the pirates are based outside the passage, then the party can negotiate for help to slay the monster. While a CR 9 hydra would likely result in a TPK, you could have most of the heads attack the hired help and only one or two attack the party; and once they emerge victorious they can be inducted as "honorary pirates" and given a cannon or a Jolly Roger or something for their ship.
wedgeski
Adventurer
Kraken, giant squid, giant octopus etc. I've had the most fun with these monsters by deploying them as minor encounters all over the ship: for example, this tentacle is tearing down the main mast, kill it fast! This tentacle is snatching sailors off the deck, kill it! This tentacle has started fires, put them out! The squid's beak is eating through the hull, repair it!
halfling rogue
Explorer
That sounds awesome!
Yes! That's exactly what I'm thinking. Some huge multi-armed creature wreaking havoc all over the ship. I guess I'll need to assign the ship HP?
halfling rogue
Explorer
So...going the "kraken" route. I think what I'll do is maybe beef up the Giant Octopus. Make his reach a bit longer and pump up his HP a bit. I'm also toying with the idea of having a certain amount of HP per tentacle...maybe divide the total HP evenly amongst the body and limbs? This way I have a tangible idea of when they hack through one of the tentacles?
Also, regarding damaging objects, Basic says:
How would you go about determining AC/HP for a ship?
Also, regarding damaging objects, Basic says:
How would you go about determining AC/HP for a ship?
wedgeski
Adventurer
Only if the ship actually sinking is an outcome you're happy with. You could instead measure degrees of success by the number of crewmen killed, cargo lost, damage done, etc. The voyage might take longer (and be more vulnerable to the weather or other predators) unless repairs to the sails etc. are made, or the PC's can think of other ways to help. The fight as a whole could have revealed something surprising about what the ship was carrying, or who is on board. If you do decide to wreck the ship, have the survivors wash up somewhere for extra adventures!
halfling rogue
Explorer
I think I'm going to go about it as I had above. The creature will have a certain amount of tentacles, a certain number attacking the ship and a few attacking the crew. Each tentacle will have a certain amount of HP before it is hacked through. And probably portions of the ship will be assigned certain amounts of HP as well. If the party succeeds at warding off/defeating the creature (it won't be a 5e kraken, as I don't have the MM, and they will only be around 4th level...I'm thinking modified Giant Octopus) then they get to be heroes. But if the creature takes the ship down, I'm going to have them rescued...by pirates.
halfling rogue
Explorer
So we finally had an opportunity to play yesterday and yes...they battled a kracken...
So for anyone interested in how they got there....From Lost Mine the kids cleared Cragmaw Castle, saved Gundren, and all is now well in Phandalin. Just north of the Castle the party and their goblin friend Droop met up with a blind wizard who has mysterious ties to their past. He revealed the truth of their backgrounds and sent them on a new mission across the sea. The plan was that he would travel with them. So they found a port at Neverwinter, found a merchant ship called The Dragon Spray and just before they set sail a loose end from Lost Mine showed up. Iarno the wizard showed up in dramatic fashion with 'splosions. The wizard (who had paid the captain with oodles of gold) told him to set sail and before the party could react the wizard hopped off the ship to face Iarno. The party was helpless as they watched the wizards battle it out. They know not his fate as they were out of sight before the end of the battle.
Now they were on the sea, and with instructions given on a hastily written note the party knows that they must head to Crossbridge and find Samrick. So while they were on the open sea I had them banter about with some of the sailors and the captain and they discovered that an important figure was aboard (Here I had them actually come up with who was aboard...they recommended it was the Duke of Neverwinter...so I rolled with it) The Duke of Neverwinter was the owner of the Dragon Spray and was on his way to Crossbridge to finalize a very important deal. He's not too secretive about his love of money and is always flaunting his wealth...(unknown to the party, word has gotten round to some unscrupulous folk that he's off to Crossbridge 'secretly' aboard one of his ships)
After about a day and a half and just after the ship weathers a rough storm, the kracken is spotted...
So I had no real point of reference for this encounter so much of it was just made up. I took the stats from the Giant Octopus in the Basic Document and I beefed it up. I distributed HP to 6 tentacles and its body. 4 would attack the ship while 2 would attack the crew. I soon realized that the HP per tentacle I assigned was too little so I bumped it up early on during the fight. After one tentacle was incapacitated the others had a heyday. I stated the Ship on the fly and determined that any damage could be repaired as long as it didn't drop to 0hp. One tentacle smashed the front of the ship while another got tangled in the sail. A third one swiped 9 crew members into the sea in one go. One grabbed the mast though it wasn't able to do much damage. The kids freaked out, especially when 9 crew members were swept into the drink. But they responded heroically. Dashing here and there, slicing and dicing through tentacles. Swinging on ropes from one end of the ship to the other. Saving the captain who had been nearly smashed. Things were nearing the end when my son briefly mentioned something about wishing they could see it's face. With only two tentacles (at the front of the ship) left, I had the kracken pull down the front of the boat and his head emerged with a mass of teeth. Teeth which took a hefty bite right out of the front, chomping off the dragon head of the Dragon Spray. Then the ship began to tip more and more and I had them make a dexterity saving throw to see if they could react and grab something to hold before they slid. 2 of them succeeded. My 5 year old failed the throw and was sliding to the wide gaping maw.
My son had released arrow in the back of it's throat. It hurt but not enough. And at the last second my 10 year old cast a firebolt cantrip into it's mouth. A miss would mean her sister would likely be eaten alive. Everyone held their breath...and she rolled...a natural 20!
The damage was more than enough to finish the job so I ruled that his head exploded. [Cheers!] But also that he released the ship and it more or less catapulted everyone again the other way. No harm there. Someone asked where the Duke was. "In safety down below!" was the response. "Whew" they were glad he wasn't knocked off the ship. And just as they stood up they realized they were in trouble. Their fears were confirmed when they heard the captain shout, "We're sinking! She's going down!"
And that's where we ended our session...
So for anyone interested in how they got there....From Lost Mine the kids cleared Cragmaw Castle, saved Gundren, and all is now well in Phandalin. Just north of the Castle the party and their goblin friend Droop met up with a blind wizard who has mysterious ties to their past. He revealed the truth of their backgrounds and sent them on a new mission across the sea. The plan was that he would travel with them. So they found a port at Neverwinter, found a merchant ship called The Dragon Spray and just before they set sail a loose end from Lost Mine showed up. Iarno the wizard showed up in dramatic fashion with 'splosions. The wizard (who had paid the captain with oodles of gold) told him to set sail and before the party could react the wizard hopped off the ship to face Iarno. The party was helpless as they watched the wizards battle it out. They know not his fate as they were out of sight before the end of the battle.
Now they were on the sea, and with instructions given on a hastily written note the party knows that they must head to Crossbridge and find Samrick. So while they were on the open sea I had them banter about with some of the sailors and the captain and they discovered that an important figure was aboard (Here I had them actually come up with who was aboard...they recommended it was the Duke of Neverwinter...so I rolled with it) The Duke of Neverwinter was the owner of the Dragon Spray and was on his way to Crossbridge to finalize a very important deal. He's not too secretive about his love of money and is always flaunting his wealth...(unknown to the party, word has gotten round to some unscrupulous folk that he's off to Crossbridge 'secretly' aboard one of his ships)
After about a day and a half and just after the ship weathers a rough storm, the kracken is spotted...
So I had no real point of reference for this encounter so much of it was just made up. I took the stats from the Giant Octopus in the Basic Document and I beefed it up. I distributed HP to 6 tentacles and its body. 4 would attack the ship while 2 would attack the crew. I soon realized that the HP per tentacle I assigned was too little so I bumped it up early on during the fight. After one tentacle was incapacitated the others had a heyday. I stated the Ship on the fly and determined that any damage could be repaired as long as it didn't drop to 0hp. One tentacle smashed the front of the ship while another got tangled in the sail. A third one swiped 9 crew members into the sea in one go. One grabbed the mast though it wasn't able to do much damage. The kids freaked out, especially when 9 crew members were swept into the drink. But they responded heroically. Dashing here and there, slicing and dicing through tentacles. Swinging on ropes from one end of the ship to the other. Saving the captain who had been nearly smashed. Things were nearing the end when my son briefly mentioned something about wishing they could see it's face. With only two tentacles (at the front of the ship) left, I had the kracken pull down the front of the boat and his head emerged with a mass of teeth. Teeth which took a hefty bite right out of the front, chomping off the dragon head of the Dragon Spray. Then the ship began to tip more and more and I had them make a dexterity saving throw to see if they could react and grab something to hold before they slid. 2 of them succeeded. My 5 year old failed the throw and was sliding to the wide gaping maw.
My son had released arrow in the back of it's throat. It hurt but not enough. And at the last second my 10 year old cast a firebolt cantrip into it's mouth. A miss would mean her sister would likely be eaten alive. Everyone held their breath...and she rolled...a natural 20!
The damage was more than enough to finish the job so I ruled that his head exploded. [Cheers!] But also that he released the ship and it more or less catapulted everyone again the other way. No harm there. Someone asked where the Duke was. "In safety down below!" was the response. "Whew" they were glad he wasn't knocked off the ship. And just as they stood up they realized they were in trouble. Their fears were confirmed when they heard the captain shout, "We're sinking! She's going down!"
And that's where we ended our session...
halfling rogue
Explorer
It's been quite a while since we picked up our story. Despite the cliffhangery ending and the excitement that the kids and I had to continue, we just couldn't find a good time. I'll say this though, if we didn't have something to look forward to for the next session, I could easily envision this game just dissolving into the ether. But as it is, since we ended in an exciting way, we were all ready to plunge back in even though it took a long time. That said, the ship was sinking after a major battle with a kraken...
The captain was shouting commands and assessments were made. Someone said the Duke of Neverwinter was still below, that he needed to come up for safety as the ship was taking on water. My youngest decided to help repair broken parts of the ship, the older two went to find the Duke. When they went below they discovered the inside of the ship was flooded with waist deep water. The Duke and his men all hanging from the hammocks, afraid to get in because, of course, there was a shark.
It was interesting how the kids reacted. They initially wanted to avoid the shark and rescue the Duke, but they soon discovered how hard that would be, so they set to attacking it. During the fight they heard whooping and hollaring up top. I threw this in as a sort of foreshadow for them to investigate after the fight, however, this distracted two of them and they left the fight altogether! Only one of them remained to fight the shark.
The two that went up discovered that the uproar was because a ship was sighted and the sailors believed that their salvation was at hand. Meanwhile, below deck, instead of finishing off the shark, my 5 year old lassoed the Duke and pulled him from the hammock. This led to the Duke getting bit by the shark. She did manage to rescue him however and tend to his wounds. Eventually they dealt with the shark and saved the rest of the men below. When they came back up they discovered that the ship was indeed a pirate ship. Dread swept over the crew. One of the men jumped overboard. The captain asked for a plan. He was adamant that the Duke not be discovered. The kids more or less settled on the idea of a surprise ambush. They would all hide and attack the pirates when they boarded, or sneak aboard the pirate ship, whatever seemed more possible. Only the whole crew would be unable to hide. So the captain and some men offered to use themselves as bait, to surrender to the pirates as a distraction. So the kids all hid, the Duke hiding alongside one of them, and the pirates pulled alongside their ship. The captain pled for mercy and they were easily taken aboard the pirate ship. Only the Pirate captain grabbed the poor merchant captain by the scruff of his neck and demanded to know where the Duke was. The trembling captain staunchly denied everything, playing the fool in order to buy time. The pirate drew his sword and placed it to the captain's neck and gave him one last chance. And that's where we ended.
The kids were freaking out. I'll give them the opportunity to tell me what they want to do when we play again. I have no idea what they'll come up with. Seems like every session goes far off from the intended destination. Absolutely nothing wrong with that. But I do wonder how they'll react to an entire ship full of pirates, now with their allies in bonds. Will they fight to the end, heedless of the swarming number of foes? Will they surrender when defeat is inevitable? Will they sneak aboard unnoticed? Will they befriend the pirates? One way or another, they'll end up in Crossbridge hopefully by the next session.
The captain was shouting commands and assessments were made. Someone said the Duke of Neverwinter was still below, that he needed to come up for safety as the ship was taking on water. My youngest decided to help repair broken parts of the ship, the older two went to find the Duke. When they went below they discovered the inside of the ship was flooded with waist deep water. The Duke and his men all hanging from the hammocks, afraid to get in because, of course, there was a shark.
It was interesting how the kids reacted. They initially wanted to avoid the shark and rescue the Duke, but they soon discovered how hard that would be, so they set to attacking it. During the fight they heard whooping and hollaring up top. I threw this in as a sort of foreshadow for them to investigate after the fight, however, this distracted two of them and they left the fight altogether! Only one of them remained to fight the shark.
The two that went up discovered that the uproar was because a ship was sighted and the sailors believed that their salvation was at hand. Meanwhile, below deck, instead of finishing off the shark, my 5 year old lassoed the Duke and pulled him from the hammock. This led to the Duke getting bit by the shark. She did manage to rescue him however and tend to his wounds. Eventually they dealt with the shark and saved the rest of the men below. When they came back up they discovered that the ship was indeed a pirate ship. Dread swept over the crew. One of the men jumped overboard. The captain asked for a plan. He was adamant that the Duke not be discovered. The kids more or less settled on the idea of a surprise ambush. They would all hide and attack the pirates when they boarded, or sneak aboard the pirate ship, whatever seemed more possible. Only the whole crew would be unable to hide. So the captain and some men offered to use themselves as bait, to surrender to the pirates as a distraction. So the kids all hid, the Duke hiding alongside one of them, and the pirates pulled alongside their ship. The captain pled for mercy and they were easily taken aboard the pirate ship. Only the Pirate captain grabbed the poor merchant captain by the scruff of his neck and demanded to know where the Duke was. The trembling captain staunchly denied everything, playing the fool in order to buy time. The pirate drew his sword and placed it to the captain's neck and gave him one last chance. And that's where we ended.
The kids were freaking out. I'll give them the opportunity to tell me what they want to do when we play again. I have no idea what they'll come up with. Seems like every session goes far off from the intended destination. Absolutely nothing wrong with that. But I do wonder how they'll react to an entire ship full of pirates, now with their allies in bonds. Will they fight to the end, heedless of the swarming number of foes? Will they surrender when defeat is inevitable? Will they sneak aboard unnoticed? Will they befriend the pirates? One way or another, they'll end up in Crossbridge hopefully by the next session.
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