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Three-plus years has meant a lot of gaming! I'm not particularly frustrated as the issue with setting up a good ambush often detracts from what the rest of the party wants to do, and that's okay with me. Frankly, getting surprises off these days often means he takes out a major threat in one...

As a quick aside, I have a 19th level Assassin/Fighter in AL that has gotten off less than 10 surprise attacks in his career. Most of this is due to the nature of AL, with a heavy emphasis on player inclusion and keeping solo adventures down due to time constraints. That said, as a DM I've had...

I'd be cautious about making surprise an easier-to-achieve situation in your game. As you know, it confers a lot of advantage to the ones surprising. I only provide the Rogue with Advantage in situations where they emerge from Hiding to attack once battle is joined (except for Surprise and...

Let the assassin player know that this is an issue. The rest of the group do not have to accommodate just one player's style as they're there to have fun, too. That said, there's not much you can do about the Assassinate ability if they successfully surprise opponents. Play it out as it...

Adventure-crafting is a skill that takes more than some empty formula to determine what is challenging to a party. Things like encounters-per-day and CR are hazy variables that only tell a small part of the story. As a DM you will get a feel for what your party enjoys and can handle. Don't be...

It's up to you to fill in the holes you're looking for. Don't feel like you need to conform to any previous concepts regarding Acererak, the atropal or the rest. You've done the homework, now roll those ideas around in your head along with anything else you want, come up with a theme and roll...

This comes to mind. From the Vampire entry of the DMG on Players becoming vampires... The character's alignment becomes lawful evil, and the DM might take control of the character until the vampirism is reversed with a wish spell or the character is killed and brought back to life.

Acererak found an Atropal and thought it would be groovy to make a new death god. Chult was chosen long ago when he engineered the destruction of Omu and facilitated the construction of the Tomb. In my game the players went to Grandfather Zitembe, who could not see the location or nature of...

Read the R.E. Howard Hyborian story fragment Wolves Beyond the Border for a chilling description of a man and snake who's spirits are exchanged in an eerie ceremony. Very creepy!

Check ToA, pp.6-7. The Soulmonger creates a wasting disease on those who have benefited from magical resurrection magic in the past, with them losing 1hp/day until they die. The souls of any humanoid that dies during the Death Curse is stored in the Soulmonger and cannot progress to the...

Be aware a Vampire's charm is a very potent effect. The charmed target regards the vampire as a trusted friend to be heeded and protected. Although the target isn’t under the vampire’s control, it takes the vampire’s requests or actions in the most favorable way it can, and it is a willing...

Point impacted some peripheral point of the body and ripped big gobbets of flesh loose? Doesn't need to be a center hit, after all. But even stranger how does one HIT-MISS-HIT with this method? "You strike the orc and the lance rips through them. Oh, there's a bit of a jostle as the lance...

I noted something similar in one of posts in the Enhancing ToA thread. Connecting everything up while keeping a good narrative and keeping a careful eye on party progression vs anticipated challenge level is really a juggling act. As for starving liches, I assume there are souls-a-plenty for...

Typically an undead form of a creature must be destroyed before the creature can be raised.

I don't think a dead level is all that bad for what you're probably getting via MCing. But of the advise given, I like the choosing a Fighting Style option.

One to-hit roll per 3 feet of lance penetrating the target?

No deities care? Who do you think got hordes of adventurers to Chult, sustained them through the jungles and kept them hearty & hale through a killer dungeon to destroy the thing?

Maintaining my devil's advocate stance, the only problem I see is that this just makes players covet higher bonus weapons. And what about Legendary or other 'descriptive' effect weapons? Do they suffer because they lack a given +? Perhaps instead of a bonus to hit, eligibility is also handled...

I remember that!

So Charm Person lasts 1 hour per casting. Once it expires the person you charmed knows you charmed them and may not be all that receptive to you twisting their free will in this fashion. How does that days...weeks...months thing work in this case?