CD3: -=- THULLGRIM -=- please read last page

[Conaill]

The formula is simple: you divide the number of critters by 2 for every EL 2 increment.

Thus EL 6:

8 x CR 1/2
4 x CR 2
2 x CR 4
1 x CR 6

Not quite right, as DiFier pointed out. The rules for CR < 1 are somewhat different. IIRC, N critters of EL 1/N are an EL 1 encounter. So 8 CR 1/2 is equivalent to 4 CR 1, or an EL 5 encounter.

In order to add in the Brown Mold, and not get a totally overpowered encounter, I'd drop the number of zombies down to 4 or 6, and only put the mold on *one* of them. "Doubling in size" then means that you infect a nearby square - either the wall, or one of the other zombies. Effectively making the mold mobile raises it's CR to at least 3. Add four CR 1/2 zombies, and that makes for a tough EL 5 encounter. Six zombies would be an EL 6+ encounter.

 

[Ferret]

Looking good everyone. I like Damnation's room!

Any problems with mine?

 

[Ovinomancer]

In order to add in the Brown Mold, and not get a totally overpowered encounter, I'd drop the number of zombies down to 4 or 6, and only put the mold on *one* of them. "Doubling in size" then means that you infect a nearby square - either the wall, or one of the other zombies. Effectively making the mold mobile raises it's CR to at least 3. Add four CR 1/2 zombies, and that makes for a tough EL 5 encounter. Six zombies would be an EL 6+ encounter.

Been thinking about this at work all day. I think you're right. How about two zombies with brown mold (CR 3 each?) and 4 normal zombies ( CR 1/2 each). Should be about CR 5 at that point. If anyone has comments, I'll leave the edit till I get home tonight. Let me know.

 

[der_kluge]

how do you deal with total consealment cover with this trap. with magic missle we have always played that you can't target someone that has total consealment/coverage. (someone that you can't see) wheather invisible or behind something. if the PC's make the guy, who is touching the door, invisible have they beaten the trap? what if they all stand so that their bodies are blocking him from the line of sigth of the statues. what if someone has a tower shield? just some thoughts.

Those questions should be up to individual GMs. I could have gone on and on about this particular room, and decided not to. I would rule that simply touching the door is enough for the statues to target you. It's magic, after all. So, even an invisible creature could still get pelted, because the statues are keyed off the touch of the door. They can't see anything, anyway, since they have no eyes. Tower shields don't block magic missiles as far as I know. Though, I suppose if you were nice you could give someone behind a tower shield a miss chance.
If everyone stands behind him, then I would blast *them* with magic missiles.

 

[DiFier]

After working on CD 1 I knew it was gonna be cool. but I think that CD3 is gonna be better.

I think tonight I'm gonna try running 4 sample 5th level charachters throught this and see what happens.

 

[Leopold]

Well now it's all about tying one room into another. I wouldn't mind seeing my chef go out to harvest some of the purple fungus stuff or the russet mold to feed the wights and other zombies, just going through the motions.

Random encounter table applicable now?

 

[Conaill]

Been thinking about this at work all day. I think you're right. How about two zombies with brown mold (CR 3 each?) and 4 normal zombies ( CR 1/2 each). Should be about CR 5 at that point. If anyone has comments, I'll leave the edit till I get home tonight. Let me know.

That might be more like an EL 6+. Two CR 3's by themselves form an EL 5 already. And one single fire-based spell could instantly turn it into an EL 7 encounter (four CR 4's). Heck, a single dose of Alchemist's fire could turn it into an EL 8, because the AF does damage twice.

Because of the way the brown mold interacts with the zombies, it's hard to put a firm EL number on this encounter. The CR 3 for the "brown mold zombies" is just a rough guess, and the infectious nature of the mold could raise the EL by a lot. Making the mold non-infectious (i.e. only spreading to the floor and walls, not to other zombies), starting with only a single BMZ, or lowering the number of infectable normal zombies would make things more predictable.

 

[Conaill]

Any problems with mine?

Looks pretty good. I like the Fiendish Rat Swarm, even though it's not quite "by the book" (can't apply Fiendish template to Swarm type, but who cares?) Looks like you forgot the DR 5/magic though.

Were you planning on doing anything with that "multitude of insects that crawl from it with trapped hunger" inside the barrels? You could always add an extra CR 1 insect swarm (based on Spider Swarm) for flavor. Even if the PC's don't open the barrels, any crit miss adjacent to the barrels could burst the rotten wood and release the swarm.

You should also clarify exactly how close they can step to the crates before the rats attack, and probably add some sort of Spot check to notice the rats. Where is the derro zombie to begin with, and why doesn't the party see him - inside one of the crates?

Remove the line "There is nothing else of interest in the room" from the description. At best it would be "You don't see...", but then again that's rather redundant as well.

OOPS... looks you forgot to apply a bunch of the zombie template features. Including ability adjustments: "A zombie’s Strength increases by +2, its Dexterity decreases by 2, it has no Constitution or Intelligence score, its Wisdom changes to 10, and its Charisma changes to 1.". Saves need to be recalculated as well (poor Ref save).

Mind if I as why a zombie Derro? Doesn't seem like a great combo, because the Derro loses all his cool stuff (poison use, sneak attack, spell-like abilities). Actually, he should probably lose his Madness SQ as well, since he's now mindless anyway (plus the Zombie template fixes his CHA and WIS stats).

 

[Malk]

Well now it's all about tying one room into another. I wouldn't mind seeing my chef go out to harvest some of the purple fungus stuff or the russet mold to feed the wights and other zombies, just going through the motions.

Random encounter table applicable now?

well if it makes you feel any better leopold i got the idea of Sir Merinol's "squire" from you, figured he came from the same group of goblins.



you know one of the things that ive always disliked about undead was the whole static mindlessness of it all. I really like the idea of "community" in this dungeon. Of it having heirarchy and interactions...something ive never really thought about with undead. It makes this place seem very much more alive (maybe not quite the word i should have used). This is not something that should nessacarily go into the final product but it does make the whole thing seem much deeper to me, if i ran this I would deffiantely play up the sense of community.

 

[DiFier]

well I just ran throught the adventure. It turned out poorly. Quick summary:

Room 1:

-the rogue sees the bodies in the columns but no one else does. no one notices the shadows and they attack the rogue as he investigates the othe columns. he looses 7 str in the surprise round.

-Round 1 the wizard does 11 points of damage with magic missle to one of the shadows.

-The the shadows kill the rogue taking another 3 strength.
-Then the cleric fails his turning check (1+cha bonus of 1 =2 cleric's level -3 = (5-3)=2: less than Shadow's HD.)
-the fighter doesn't have a magic weapon so he can't hit the incoporeal creatures.
-The Wizard casts shield, the shadows both go after the cleric and miss.
-The cleric get an 11 +1, 12 on his turing check cleric's level: 5, he can attempt to turn the shadows. he rolls 13 (7roll + 5 (5th level)+1 cha) the shadows flee.

The fighter busts in the door between room 1 and 2.

Room 2:

the fighter takes soem damage from the magic missles They can't get get through the door from room 2 to 3 with out the rogue; end of adventure.

This was all the dice's fault. I used 5 dice one for each charachter and 1 for the "DM" The charachters all rolled very average sometime good sometimes bad. but the DM die never rolled below a 16. (I think I'm gonna use that one next session) I pulled that die after the rogue died. and gave the DM the rogue's die. (probablly why the shadows both missed the cleric)

Well I'm gonna try again maybe I'll get further this time. I ignored the fact that the rogue would have risen as a shadow in 4 rounds (i rolled it) cause if the shadow that made the spawn ran away who would control it?