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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Goonalan" data-source="post: 5481996" data-attributes="member: 16069">Fallcrest- Finding DreusSession 14 Part 3We fight on- you, of course, guessed as much.Jebediah is getting overwhelmed himself, he can't shake off the Poison damage and is hit again by the Rotslammer's Rotting Burst, he's very bloodied and not coping with things (on 3 HP).To make matters worse a second Myconid Rot Priest now joins the action, also flailing at Jeb with its Stipe Staff, Jeb dodges just in time and unleashes Sword of Sigils (for 11 HP damage each), cutting in to both of his attackers, alas neither are bloodied.And another of the Gas Spores appears and floats forward at speed, and just collides with Rogar, or rather doesn't the Halfling Monk is too quick, and gets out of the way.Neb lets loose the fire again- Burning Hands this time, but with similar effects (again 15 Fire damage each)- only the Rotslammer's Roots of the Colony power prevents the newly arrived Rot Priest being bloodied by the attack- as it is the Rotslammer is bloodied and worse.Resolute moves over to help Jeb, hits out with his Funneling Fury and smashes both Myconids (for 10 HP damage each), both are now bloodied and the Rotslammer barely grips to life. But he's not done (Action Point), Resolute launches his Dual Strike and connects with both Myconids again, the result of which is the Rotslammer slumps down and flops to the cold stone floor. The Rot Priest looks to be on the way out also.Drake meanwhile takes aim and launches another Lance of Faith at the Gas Spore, and connects, the thing explodes and catches Rogar in its Poisonous burst (although with Second Chance I miss my attack and Rogar is fine).Drake calls over to Rogar, in chat- 'Oh yeah, sorry I forgot about that.'Drake makes the hurt go away- his second Healing Word is for Jeb, the Githyanki is now no longer bloodied, and all PCs within range of his Holy (Nimbus) Symbol are again boosted.Rogar rushes over to the Rot Priest, the last Myconid left standing (again), and attempts his Steel Wind assault again (and rolls another '1').Maldor therefore strides in, intones his Oath of Enmity and with his usual Overwhelming Strike (for 13 damage) cuts down the Rot Priest, it's Life Burst as it expires heals all of the PCs save Drake- they had the creature surrounded.Jeb shouts a warning, there are more Myconid's shuffling towards them, and the sound of movement in the catacomb... everywhere, in all directions.And yet there's time to move off again, to get clear of the catacombs, but... the PCs don't.And so the I make mention again of the fact that there are lots of noises- many creatures approaching.And still they stay.<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/40504969@N08/5478576543/" target="_blank"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5132/5478576543_7a950a8b19.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " data-size="" style="" /></a>I'm Sporeticus!A Myconid Rotslammer rushes in and Fungal Slams Resolute but high and wide, while a pair of Myconid Guards shuffle in to the light, the first delivers a stinging Spiny Strike to an exposed Drake (for 14 HP damage), the second is content to flail wildly at Maldor.Neb backs away and launches a... Fire Shroud, one of the Myconid Guards is charred (for only 13 Fire damage this time) and continues to burn, alas the other two Myconids are somehow shielded from the flame. Neb suddenly realises he's not alone, he turns around to find himself staring at a swarm of tiny toadstools- a Myconid Colony Swarm, the creatures swarm and swamp him- biting and scratching at his at his lower legs- he's cut, bitten and bleeding (and takes 13 HP damage).Jeb meanwhile fails again to throw off the Posion spores which choke him still (that's five attempts at the save and his highest roll is a '6').Resolute meanwhile lands another Grappling Strike (and another '20') and grabs up and chokes one of the Myconid Guards (and 11 HP damage).Rogar skips in to the action and lets loose his Steel Wind attack, he catches one of the Myconic Guards and the Rotslammer, he follows up with his Ironsoul Flurry- the Myconids however shrug off the damage- still strong (14 HP damage on Guard & 8 HP on the Rotslammer).Rogar strikes again (Action Point), leaps in to the air and with his Steel Strike again manages to connect once more with the Rotslammer (another 10 HP damage), alas he fails to connect with the Myconid Guard.Maldor is caught by a Spiny Strike from a Myconid Guard (for 12 HP damage), the Elven Avenger strikes back Overwhelming Strike (for 11 HP damage)- it's a slog fest, the second Myconid Guard flails at Maldor but is high and wide.Jeb continues to take Poison damage, he's almost bloodied. He uses his Dimensional Warp to rearrange the battlefield- teleporting Drake out of danger and himself in to the action, alas his Booming Blade is ill-judged, he does however manage to finally shake off the Poison damage.Drake uses his Light of Arvandor to deliver a Radiant Burst to one of the Myconid Guards and the Rotslammer (both take 10 Radiant damage), the Guard is at last bloodied. The badly damaged Myconid Guard spews out a fog of spores- Pacification Spores, catching Jeb and Maldor and leaving both unable to take Standard Actions, and a little further damage- Jeb is now bloodied.The other Myconid Guard continues to burn (courtesy of Neb's Fire Shroud), Resolute is bashed again with Spiny Strike (for 15 HP damage), the creature also manages to stamp out the flames that lick and curl around his fungus form.Neb takes a little Poison damage as he starts by the Myconid Colony Swarm, he shuffles back and unleashes his patented Scorching Burst, this time at a target ideally suited for this attack, but somehow fails to find his target.The Swarm comes forward in a wave and unleashes it's myriad Fungal Slams, Neb immediately throws up a Shield spell and wards of all attacks.Resolute uses his Grappling Strike to grab and crush the already battered Myconid Guard (leaving the Guard on 9 HP only). Rogar follows up with his Eternal Mountain move, and then his Eternal Mountain attack- he connects with the Rotslammer (for 17 HP damage) and the creature is very bloodied; he also spins out yet another sling stone and catches one of the Myconid Guards, bloodying it also.Maldor shuffles back, attempts to stay out of the way (unable to make Standard Actions), he fails to shake of the Myconid's Pacification effect.<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/40504969@N08/5478576731/" target="_blank"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5252/5478576731_0291af5a50.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " data-size="" style="" /></a>The Rotinator (Myconid Colony Swarm) nibbles at Neb's toes.The Myconid Rotslammer fires its Rotting Burst and catches Rogar, Drake, Maldor and Jeb, (for 9 Necrotic damage each, and 5 ongoing) the latter is now bloodied (and on 14 HP, while Drake is now on 12 HP).Jeb, Pacified like Maldor, does his best to stay out of the way- he continues to take Necrotic damage however (and is now on 9 HP), he does however shake off all ill effects- ready for action.Drake continues to take Necrotic damage (down to 7 HP), he sets his Astral Seal on the Myconid Rotslammer, he shuffles back again but does not get out of the burst of Pacification Spores from the second Myconid Guard, alas- for the young Priest he is unaffected by the spores.However Rogar and Jeb are caught within the cloud- Rogar is left pacified and almost bloodied, while Jeb is left unconscious on the floor (0 HP).The other Myconid Guard flails with its Spiny Strike at Maldor, but fails to connect. Neb continues to dodge back, after being caught in the Swarm once again for a little Poison damage, his Scorching Burst is glorious, catching the Swarm square-on (for 22 Fire damage), almost bloodying it in an instant. The Colony Swarm moves up again- nips, bites and scratches at Neb but to no effect.Rogar takes a little more Necrotic damage, he's still not bloodied, he is however still Pacified- which is most inconvenient. For Maldor it's the other way around- he starts with a little Necrotic damage (he is bloodied now- on 20 HP), he shakes off his Pacified state but not the ongoing damage.The Myconid Rotslammer wails on Rogar with its Fungal Slam, and now the Halfling Monk is bloodied (down to 16 HP).While Jeb throws off his Pacified state but fails his first Death Save, he lies still upon the cold stone floor.Drake to the rescue unleashes his Healer's Mercy, and in an instant Rogar and Maldor are now no longer bloodied, while Jeb opens his eyes (he's on 16 HP). Drake is not finished however (Action Point), he takes his Second Wind (now on 15 HP), the effort leaves him spent (Weakened).Jeb alas is not met by a pleasant sight, before he can even get back to his feet one of the Myconid Guards uses its Spiny Strike to thump at him again (Jeb's back down to 7 HP left). The second Guard flails at Resolute but fails to connect.Neb meanwhile repeats his actions, almost exactly- he starts by taking a little Poison damage, he's still not bloodied however, he shuffles back and then drops another Scorching Burst on the Colony Swarm (for 20 more Fire damage), the Swarm is bloodied (and down to 9 HP).The Colony Swarm decides that Neb is not nice at all, and so chooses to try to get away from the Tiefling Wizard's fire attacks- it spots a much easier target- Jeb. Shuffles forward and attacks with its myriad Fungal Slams- and Jeb is down again (reduced to -3 HP).Resolute crushes the last drop of life out of the Myconid Guard he is Grabbing with his Grappling Strike, he tosses the spent fungi aside and moves to help- his friends.Rogar, still Pacified, manages to keep out of trouble using his Lion's Den move to keep out of the way, he throws off all ill effects upon him- ready for action next time.Maldor launches his Shared Madness attack, scoring a critical effect on the Rotslammer- the attack also effects the last standing Myconid Guard (for 15 Psychic damage each). The Rotslammer is well bloodied- the last Myconid Guard is destroyed.The Rotslammer uses its Fungal Slam again on Maldor, the Elven Avenger dodges and avoids the blow- just the Colony Swarm and Rotslammer left, and both are very bloodied.Alas Jeb is still in the Swarms aura, he suffers dozens of little poisonous bites (down to -6 HP), The Colony Swarm however is not finished, Drake attempts to rush by the thing to get to the fallen Jeb, the Swarm lurches forward and unleashes another tide of Fungal Slams (for 17 HP damage), Drake slumps and falls (now on -3 HP).Neb unleashes another Scorching Blast but the Swarm is already out of the way- the Tiefling Wizard misses. The Swarm is however still not done- it shuffles forward again and another wave of Fungal Slams rain down upon Neb (for 12 HP damage), the Wizard is bloodied- and on his last legs (with 6 HP left). He launches his Infernal Wrath (for 19 HP damage) and the Swarm is burnt and scoured from the earth.Just the Myconid Rotslammer left then.Resolute rushes over to the fallen Drake, grabs out a Healing Potion and presses it to the young Priest's lips- soon enough Drake's eyes are open.Rogar rushes over, a Steel Wind Move, followed by a Steel Wind attack, with Ironsoul Flurry when he connects (for 18 HP damage), and the Rotslammer is beaten and broken, it slumps forward and comes to rest.Drake crawls over to Jeb and delivers his Healer's Gift, and Jeb's eyes are open too.And in chat Jack (Drake) adds- 'grab the necklace and run', which is a little late- me and my players have an extended chat after the game has ended (which it has now).My point to them goes a little like this- the fight was about recovering the necklace, I deliberately set the encounter up (with the much staggered entrance of the bad guys) so that the PCs could retreat without taking too much (if any) damage. Same with the idea that the catacombs could be locked shut, and the same again with the Fallcrest Guards et al awaiting top side. My point was this- they didn't need to fight everything, don't get me wrong it was a great fight- and at the end I threw everything I had at them. But it took the best part of two hours to play out, a long time on Skype in one combat.As with the Kruthik combat earlier I felt that the players were limiting their tactics, or else deliberately deciding that what they wanted was a lot of toe-to-toe combat. If that's what they want.... well, I'll do more of it but that's what ended our last attempt at 4e.I want to get the players thinking that not all encounters can overcome by just standing there and unloading all their powers, the result of our chat is that even though the players knew all of the above, and realised that they could get out after recovering the necklace they decided (or rather didn't decide- I think Bob (Maldor) in game said- 'should we get out now?' to no reply) that they would fight on so that they could 'clear out' the catacombs. As in search for any treasure.Which I thought was a little odd at the time, but now I write this even odder, it's very power-gamer, a little like the very easiest thing to do, and as there was no actual conversation about it that I could detect then really just... lazy, perhaps. I don't mean to be insulting here, I'm doing my best to make this 4e campaign nothing like our previous effort (H1-3 combat grind). The players are matching me with RP, but in-combat, they're doing the same things they did previously.I can't think of a single time when they have actually retreated from a combat...Should I design a combat specifically to teach them this tactic? Although I fear I may kill a few of them in attempting to do so.The decision we made in the end was that I should state, in a loud voice, the conditions for victory for fights such as this... I have no problems in doing this, I don't want to do it- I want the players to work it out for themselves, I told them time and time again- 'all you need to do is recover the necklace', the same with the Kruthik encounters, 'you just need to destroy the nests'.I'm actually more peeved about this now than I was at the time- and aware that my players are going to answer back, possibly in this column. Rest assured we're having a cracking game, we played session #16 on Thursday last- it was fantastic. I want to make my players make decisions, in RP and in Combat- I don't want them to approach either situation with one set solution. The RP is great- that's working; the combat I'm less convinced. They seem to think toe-to-toe is the only option- last man standing.We'll see, and if anyone has any suggestions et al then pile in please.</blockquote>

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