Matt James
Game Developer
I'm just going on record as saying that I am much cooler (and better looking) than my older brother.
Dear bloody god: Calystrx (Threats to Nentir Vale Preview)
- Thread starter Aegeri
- Start date
I'm just going on record as saying that I am much cooler (and better looking) than my older brother.
Talaeden_Denthiir
Explorer
Matt James,
Edited the post for you
Nullzone,
i like the idea of using zones and the environment. Any idea on the appropiate stats or specifics flavorwise on the zones? Environment seems like a no brainer with lava/fire/magma/etc.
Riastlin,
sounds like a good time. Thanks for the spoilers. My group has great tactics, but one character always seems to change his character, sometimes mid-game, which seems to throw the group dynamic off a bit. Especially since the PC's in my group tend to work more cohesively the more they work together. Eveyone has had the same PC, except for the one who died ligitimately and even he has been with the group with his new PC since 12th level.
Edited the post for you
Nullzone,
i like the idea of using zones and the environment. Any idea on the appropiate stats or specifics flavorwise on the zones? Environment seems like a no brainer with lava/fire/magma/etc.
Riastlin,
sounds like a good time. Thanks for the spoilers. My group has great tactics, but one character always seems to change his character, sometimes mid-game, which seems to throw the group dynamic off a bit. Especially since the PC's in my group tend to work more cohesively the more they work together. Eveyone has had the same PC, except for the one who died ligitimately and even he has been with the group with his new PC since 12th level.
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Nullzone
Explorer
You need some context to make terrain features work; what kind of monster is it and where is he?
Red dragon? Magma pits (and/or cooling magma slag), steam geysers, sulfur clouds are all contextually flavorful...sulfur clouds can obscure sight, cause an attack penalty due to choking for air, and ignite if they come into contact with flame. Steam geysers are in various places on the map, and on a specific initiative count (preferably not the dragon's, give the players a chance to react to that bit separately) approximately 25% of them erupt (roll dice to determine which), causing damage and sliding a few squares. Magma pits/slag cause damage if you enter or start your turn in one and immobilize with an escape dc.
Use terrain effects that are both semi random and synergistic with the solo himself; and when possible (again based on context), try to set them up so the players can exploit them against the monsters too (but give them potentially better odds at avoiding it or otherwise mitigating some of the effects; most solos aren't stupid, they aren't going to stand around something that is hazardous to their own safety without knowing they can shrug it off).
Tune up your solo to use some of these sort of effects to his advantage (fire attacks on the sulfur clouds is an obvious one, while something like a wing buffet push to send people into the magma is a little less apparent), and it should give the players a little more to think about on the battlefield than whether or not the Cleric should use Healing Word this turn.
Red dragon? Magma pits (and/or cooling magma slag), steam geysers, sulfur clouds are all contextually flavorful...sulfur clouds can obscure sight, cause an attack penalty due to choking for air, and ignite if they come into contact with flame. Steam geysers are in various places on the map, and on a specific initiative count (preferably not the dragon's, give the players a chance to react to that bit separately) approximately 25% of them erupt (roll dice to determine which), causing damage and sliding a few squares. Magma pits/slag cause damage if you enter or start your turn in one and immobilize with an escape dc.
Use terrain effects that are both semi random and synergistic with the solo himself; and when possible (again based on context), try to set them up so the players can exploit them against the monsters too (but give them potentially better odds at avoiding it or otherwise mitigating some of the effects; most solos aren't stupid, they aren't going to stand around something that is hazardous to their own safety without knowing they can shrug it off).
Tune up your solo to use some of these sort of effects to his advantage (fire attacks on the sulfur clouds is an obvious one, while something like a wing buffet push to send people into the magma is a little less apparent), and it should give the players a little more to think about on the battlefield than whether or not the Cleric should use Healing Word this turn.
[MENTION=97538]Nullzone[/MENTION]: Those are some great ideas. Doing seemingly "little" things like this when designing the lair of a red dragon for instance, can go a long way toward making an encounter that much more memorable and challenging.
This is actually the type of thing that can make Cal a really dangerous recurring villain. The first encounter may well be out in the open or some other relatively neutral ground. The PC's batter her around until she sprouts a new head and then flies off.
Next time, she chooses the terrain, finding a nice place to ambush the party. Maybe there's lots of difficult terrain to make it more difficult for them to move around and avoid her attacks. Still though, she gets battered again. Now, she's really worried about the PCs. They've proven that the first encounter was no fluke. They are powerful, and they are generally well prepared.
She retreats and now spends a great deal of time and resources learning as much about the PCs as she can. Learning their strengths and their weaknesses. Perhaps she decides that they are not worth the trouble of searching out and getting revenge -- after all, they have made her more powerful as she now has five heads. So she decides to hole up in her lair, making small forays only when needing to feed -- or perhaps just has some of her followers bring her food. She's worried about the PCs though so she makes sure her lair has as much synergy with her attacks as possible. If the PCs want her treasure -- and her heads -- they'll have a heck of a fight on their hands. The entire battlefield will be against them to an extent. Sure, there'll be places they can walk -- after all her worshippers need to come in to bring her food, treasure, etc., but by and large, this is her playground. When the PCs are defending their homes, they'll make the battlefield as friendly to them as they can, so its only natural someone like Cal would do the same.
Then if you're truly a rat bastard DM, give her an exit route through a lava stream or somesuch.
This is actually the type of thing that can make Cal a really dangerous recurring villain. The first encounter may well be out in the open or some other relatively neutral ground. The PC's batter her around until she sprouts a new head and then flies off.
Next time, she chooses the terrain, finding a nice place to ambush the party. Maybe there's lots of difficult terrain to make it more difficult for them to move around and avoid her attacks. Still though, she gets battered again. Now, she's really worried about the PCs. They've proven that the first encounter was no fluke. They are powerful, and they are generally well prepared.
She retreats and now spends a great deal of time and resources learning as much about the PCs as she can. Learning their strengths and their weaknesses. Perhaps she decides that they are not worth the trouble of searching out and getting revenge -- after all, they have made her more powerful as she now has five heads. So she decides to hole up in her lair, making small forays only when needing to feed -- or perhaps just has some of her followers bring her food. She's worried about the PCs though so she makes sure her lair has as much synergy with her attacks as possible. If the PCs want her treasure -- and her heads -- they'll have a heck of a fight on their hands. The entire battlefield will be against them to an extent. Sure, there'll be places they can walk -- after all her worshippers need to come in to bring her food, treasure, etc., but by and large, this is her playground. When the PCs are defending their homes, they'll make the battlefield as friendly to them as they can, so its only natural someone like Cal would do the same.
Then if you're truly a rat bastard DM, give her an exit route through a lava stream or somesuch.
Matt James
Game Developer
I did a quick little video where I unboxed this product. I thought it would be neat considering I worked on it. The quality of my video is "meh" because I was broadcasting live on uStream. Anyways, some might find it of value.
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wDCi-ZPCQuw]YouTube - Unboxing - Monster Vault: Threats to the Nentir Vale[/ame]
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wDCi-ZPCQuw]YouTube - Unboxing - Monster Vault: Threats to the Nentir Vale[/ame]
Talaeden_Denthiir
Explorer
@ Riastlin and Nullzone,
you guys are geniuses and should work for WotC! Thank you so much for all of your insightful responses so far. Ironically enough I used a wing buffet attack way back when 4E 1st came out and my imagination was working on all sorts of awesome. That was when I was really looking forward to Mike Mearls' design based off his previous work on Iron (somesuch, there's a psot on the WotC boards about how Mike Mearls sucks where I go on to say how he doesn't, so i can @$$ kiss almost as good as Matt James lol).
I will use hordes of minions!
The steam idea is awesome in the sense that it can go multiple ways. It reminds me of an FR adventure I sent to WotC some time back that had an encounter with greenspawn razorfiends and acid vats. Which in turn reminds me of the encounter where the PC's are fighting inside a hollow dragon...
[MENTION=82885]Matt James[/MENTION],
Which reminds me that adventure is still in limbo so if Matt u can please poke Chris Thomasson err Chris Youngs wait Steve Winter about Child of the Dragon I'd appreciate it Yes, that adventure went through his name changes
On your video, @$$ kissing aside, where's your beard? That unboxing video was not only informative but entertaining (I'm trying to increase my @$$ kissing level, notice a theme
Take that all you people that think 4E has no story and RP! I personally think it has room within the rules for most of that since OD&D, 1E BECMI etc.!
From what u've shown us the art is amazing! I really enjoyed the art from the Shadowfell 'Box Set' and was thinking the same thing, worth it for the art alone. The only thing I didn't like about the Shadowfell one was the box itself. It was so crappy I ended up throwing it out! The flaps would never stay closed and the stuff (incluiding tokens) would fall out! I'm glad this is more of a 'sleeve'.
Any comments you can give us on the design change from a smaller book to one like the Shadowfell? Why the change in box format to sleeve? Cost?
But my most important question, something lacking in MV, DM's Kit, and RC...
Any Monster Creation Rules in MV Threats to the Nentir Vale where we get the Math? You know, HP = 10*Level + whatever; attack and damage per level per brute, lurker, controller, etc.; etc.?
That last bit would really come in handy.
~Teo
you guys are geniuses and should work for WotC! Thank you so much for all of your insightful responses so far. Ironically enough I used a wing buffet attack way back when 4E 1st came out and my imagination was working on all sorts of awesome. That was when I was really looking forward to Mike Mearls' design based off his previous work on Iron (somesuch, there's a psot on the WotC boards about how Mike Mearls sucks where I go on to say how he doesn't, so i can @$$ kiss almost as good as Matt James lol).
I will use hordes of minions!
The steam idea is awesome in the sense that it can go multiple ways. It reminds me of an FR adventure I sent to WotC some time back that had an encounter with greenspawn razorfiends and acid vats. Which in turn reminds me of the encounter where the PC's are fighting inside a hollow dragon...
[MENTION=82885]Matt James[/MENTION],
Which reminds me that adventure is still in limbo so if Matt u can please poke Chris Thomasson err Chris Youngs wait Steve Winter about Child of the Dragon I'd appreciate it
Yes, that adventure went through his name changes On your video, @$$ kissing aside, where's your beard? That unboxing video was not only informative but entertaining (I'm trying to increase my @$$ kissing level, notice a theme
Take that all you people that think 4E has no story and RP! I personally think it has room within the rules for most of that since OD&D, 1E BECMI etc.!
From what u've shown us the art is amazing! I really enjoyed the art from the Shadowfell 'Box Set' and was thinking the same thing, worth it for the art alone. The only thing I didn't like about the Shadowfell one was the box itself. It was so crappy I ended up throwing it out! The flaps would never stay closed and the stuff (incluiding tokens) would fall out! I'm glad this is more of a 'sleeve'.
Any comments you can give us on the design change from a smaller book to one like the Shadowfell? Why the change in box format to sleeve? Cost?
But my most important question, something lacking in MV, DM's Kit, and RC...
Any Monster Creation Rules in MV Threats to the Nentir Vale where we get the Math? You know, HP = 10*Level + whatever; attack and damage per level per brute, lurker, controller, etc.; etc.?
That last bit would really come in handy.
~Teo
Matt James
Game Developer
There's no specific information on monster creation, as I recall.
Talaeden_Denthiir
Explorer
Matt,
So you designers just, "wing it"?
~Teo
So you designers just, "wing it"?
~Teo
Yeah, there is both science (the basic mathematics that governs monsters) and a distinct art (how their powers interact with one another and PCs). The best monsters are not just collections of mathematics, but rather reflect their monsters fluff and theme through the way their powers (mechanics) interact with the game. Hence why things like Calystrx and the Hound of Ill Omen are such great monsters.
Matt James
Game Developer
We design compelling monsters. I wouldn't say we "wing it".
