D&D 5E Let's Talk About Yawning Portal

[schnee]

This has inspired me to perhaps justify special rules (no HD on short rests, reduced healing on long rests) by invoking some sort of "Acererak's Curse" that affects the dungeon. Basically, it's a Regional Effect. You can get a lot mileage out of those regional effects as an excuse to temporarily shake things up in a believable manner in an ongoing campaign.

The entire ToH was built on that. Going astral or ethereal meant immediate demon attacks, etcetera.

 

[Flamestrike]

The entire ToH was built on that. Going astral or ethereal meant immediate demon attacks, etcetera.

In my 20th level version of TOH It's random groups of Yugloths that get anyone with an arrival or departure point in the tomb. And that's after the teleporter takes 10d10 force damage (DC 19 charisma save for half) from the teleportation. The fiends also reset all of the traps and revive all the monsters and undo any damage to the dungeon caused by adventurers every 24 hours.

They also have a chance of interrupting any short rest on a 1 in a 6 on a D6. They interrupt a long rest on a 1-4 on a D6.

I also redid the inner tomb. The inner tomb is now a demi plane designed by Ackerack to drain the lifeforce of high-level adventurers that penetrate within.

Once player characters get through the one way Adamantine secret door, they find themselves trapped in the liches Demi plane (The whole inner tomb area) As their life force gets sucked out of them and they feel stretched out and thin. They incur a cumulative -1 penalty to proficiency bonus and armour class every hour they remain inside the inner tomb. In addition, spellcasters lose one spell slot of their highest level every hour they remain in the tomb. After six hours they die. Death Ward protects from this effect.

Basically my fluff for the tomb is it was designed by the Lich to steal magic items and the Lifeforce of high-level adventurers. The Lich is funnelling these powerful items and Lifeforce to become a God.

 

[Henry]

These are some good ideas, and there have been others, but it doesn't really change the fact that the TotYP "Tombs of Horrors" is more of a "Tomb of Mild Annoyances."

I am going to read White Plume Mountain later and see if it is any better.

Tomb of Yawners?

I plan to pick this up in next few weeks - still looking forward to it, but sounds like it needs a little work at first blush.

 

[zaratan]

It happens on initiative count 20. It renders him totally immune to all spellcasting and magical abilities. In addition it renders magical weapons non-magical.... which the Lich is immune to.

It is debatable whether or not divine smite is magical in nature. Seeing as it requires the expenditure of a spell slot to function, I would rule it is that it is magical and does not function in an anti-magic field. I'm also assuming the Lich is hovering from between 15 and 20 feet in the air, out of range of anyone trying to grab him or similar shenanigans.

From there the Lich is almost certainly immune to anything the party can throw at him, has his turn, and 3 legendary actions.

Howl, life drain, flight, and Energy drain can all be used in an anti-magic field. I would have it howl on its turn, then use energy drain and fly up to the roof out of reach of any melee combatants.

On turn two I would use the lair action knocking everyone prone, followed by the trap soul ability, followed by the cloud of dust and energy drain legendary actions.

I would then on turn three re-established the anti-magic field as my lair action, and use my life drain ability to heal any hit points I lost in the previous turn.

You did a nice job planning his actions. But completly forgot what lvl 13-15 characters can do.
The perfect scenario he get a surprise round agaist everyone, use howl and save the antimagic field for the first non surprising round. This is an 75k xp encounter, 3x deadly for 4 lvl 15 players. But this one can really be deadly.
But, if he don't get surprise round, he uses howl, is a Con ST more than half (or more) of the classes at that lvl can bump his saves of some way. Maybe one of four will fail.
Players can't use spells agaist acererak, but can use in his ally, recover the 0hp, or the frighteneds if they're still afgected for this. use buff spells, one round to use any spell they need for buff or recover.
Is really easy for a lvl 14 reach 20ft with magic, harder without, but not that hard, unless they lack total criativity.
Easier ways: teleport above AMF and grab him while you fall. Or climb (buff with haste +action surge or bonus action dash or normal climb speed?)
There is abou 40% of chance of someone act before lair action in initiative too.
And they still kill acererak in one nova round after antimagic field is gone.
Or the players may stay there doing nothing like giant tofus while acererak get them souls.

By what I see in my tablr, better I have a plan B and C.

 

[jimmytheccomic]

A full group of level 13s should be able to drop a demilich, yeah, those hit points are way too low. It's worth noting, however, that I don't think the game expects the PCs to have a full party at that point- it seems like it would just be one or two players heading into the last room.

Following the advice of someone else in the thread, I talked my players into being level 9 for the Dungeon- I'm keeping the session specific house rule of "Full death at 0 hit points" instead of death saves. First session of it is Monday night, I'll report in as we go along. Has anyone else run it yet?

 

[NiClerigo]

Could anyone who has the book please tell me what the suggested locations of the adventures for Eberron are? Thanks!

 

[Flamestrike]

A full group of level 13s should be able to drop a demilich, yeah, those hit points are way too low. It's worth noting, however, that I don't think the game expects the PCs to have a full party at that point- it seems like it would just be one or two players heading into the last room.

Following the advice of someone else in the thread, I talked my players into being level 9 for the Dungeon- I'm keeping the session specific house rule of "Full death at 0 hit points" instead of death saves. First session of it is Monday night, I'll report in as we go along. Has anyone else run it yet?

It has resistance to magical weapons and total immunity to non-magical weapons.

There is an excellent chance that many of the player characters will have had their equipment stripped off them via various teleportation traps. So there is a fair chance many of them will be packing non-magical weapons by the time they encounter it.

Also note you can cast an anti-magic field on itself every other round on initiative count 20. This makes immune to all weapons and all spell and magical attacks.

 

[zaratan]

Could anyone who has the book please tell me what the suggested locations of the adventures for Eberron are? Thanks!

"Appropriate sites for the tomb in Eberron include the Ashen Spires of Karrnath, or among the tors in the Vile Marsh between Droaam and the Shadow Marches. Among Shargon's Teeth Eberron's Boneyard could hide the tom and thus speak to Acererak's enmity fo Eberron's dragons."

 

[jimmytheccomic]

Could anyone who has the book please tell me what the suggested locations of the adventures for Eberron are? Thanks!

Sunless Citadel- Western Edge of the Mournland

Forge of Fury- An outpost in the Western Mror Holds

Hidden Shrine- An ancient seat of an elven cult, or a primeval location in Q'barra

White Plume Mountain- The Continent of Xen 'Drik

Dead in Thay- Beneath the Mournland, a secret project of King Kaius, or the Blood of Vol's headquarters in Khoirvare

Against the Giants- The conspiracy has it's roots in faraway Xen'Drik, or or from Drooam

Tomb of Horrors- Ashen Spires of Kaarath, or the tors of the Vile Marsh.


Each site gives about a paragraph of ideas on other ways the dungeon can blend with the setting, but I didn't want to type it out. Hope that was helpful anyway!

 

[NiClerigo]

Thanks so much jimmytheccomic and zaratan!