Defeated by puzzle - campaign over: Here is the offending puzzle!

[LondonReign]

Ya know? The more I look at the puzzle, the more it starts to remind me of the old Avalon Hill game Feudal.

Maybe it's a version of the tired old "You are the chess pieces" riddle, except the players are supposed to be a Prince, Duke or King. Maybe a troop of Pikemen or Sergeants...Oooh, I see where the Archers go....

I had that game! Damn, I wonder what ever happened to it??

 

[DonTadow]

Awe man a year, and for it to end like that.

I know with me a lot of my anger comes from feeling that hte DM abused his power. It's like if you're a cop and you see a cop abuse his power, you get pissed off because it undermines the sanctity of the position. There's a hidden agreement between a pc and the players that regarduless, the game is to be fun and to be fare. That puzzle sounds like neither. Again, its like seeing someone in an abused relationship, because they don't realize the abuse. So you get angry at the person abusing because you don't want to be angry at the person abused, even though they put themselves in that situation. If this was the final battle then maybe those ends would be justified, but for a campaign to end on some high end calculus puzzle is sacraledge to everything dungeons and dragons stands for. :atriotic music:: The founding fathers of dnd did not intend for this.

This isn't about puzzles in dungeons and dragons or your player's retreat plan, this is about a dm abusing his power and trying to justify a TPK in a long term campaign, when the pcs only fault was exploring. .

 

[Hypersmurf]

I guess it is something like the famous experiment with frogs. When you throw a frog into boiling water it will jump out (or at least try doing so). When place a frog into cool water and gradually heat it up to boiling point it will happily boil. (Not sure if the actual experiment is true, but it is famous!)

Not according to Dr Victor Hutchison!

-Hyp.

 

[darkelfo]

Aside, from the lousy puzzle and the bogus limitation on the PCs abilities, let me also add belatedly that the whole "ecology," layout and story behind this temple is totally contrived.

 

[Greylock]

I had that game! Damn, I wonder what ever happened to it??

Well, I bought my latest version of it at CRM Hobbies in St.Louis about ten years ago. Bought it new, so it was available as recently as then. Got my first copy of it a heck of a lot longer ago. In high school we had a long running game that combined Risk and Diplomacy, where set piece battles were determined by Feudal. Worked pretty well for me, as I sucked at Diplomacy but was unbeatable in Feudal.

 

[Coredump]

Roman,

I am one of those that called 'bad DM'. And I stand by that. He had to know that entering that temple meant death, since he knew that puzzle was there. It would be the same if the door magically shut, and 10 ancient red dragons appeared and killed everyone first round.

Tomb of Horrors had a 'doorway' that was a sphere of annihilation, but at least you could detect it a number of ways, and you could successully avoid it, and even if you didn't, it would only kill one (or two).

He may be a great DM in some ways, but a great DM that occasionally TPK's without a chance to avoid it, is still a bad DM in my book. Now, you guys seem to like playing with him, so that is cool. I just think you like playing with a bad DM.

Granted, you guys had the chance to leave after the first few rooms; and so the players are also guilty. But there should have been lots of clues that it wasn't just 'hard', but actually impossible. And with that puzzle, that makes it impossible. Even the 10 red dragons would have been 'easier'.


And I think there is a notable difference between 'coddling' the players so that they can never die, and placing CR 1,000 traps that they can't solve or bypass.

 

[Gorrstagg]

Errrmmm... This thread started so nicely. And we're seeing strange behavior from someone "in the business," no less. You're prominently displaying your association -- and web address -- and being a horse's hindquarters.

No need to drag a moderator into things... I'll just avoid CMG's products.

I got this great idea.. let's stop going at each other for any reason.. and try to get Roman to use that really cool ancient device ... The Telephone and call his DM and tell him most of the EN world gaming community is starting to froth at the mouth and want the answer..

*hint* *hint* Roman...

pick up the phone.. and call and get the answer.. tell him to email it to you if it's too difficult to explain over the phone..

 

[RSKennan]

I got this great idea.. let's stop going at each other for any reason.. and try to get Roman to use that really cool ancient device ... The Telephone and call his DM and tell him most of the EN world gaming community is starting to froth at the mouth and want the answer..

*hint* *hint* Roman...

pick up the phone.. and call and get the answer.. tell him to email it to you if it's too difficult to explain over the phone..

Good call.

 

[Mark]

Good plan

 

[Altamont Ravenard]

This puzzle is the PUZZLE OF ZIZANY!

I remember when a friend of mine who was DMing came up with a "puzzle dungeon", that contained sheets of flame, rivers of steam, and a bunch of thing that we never EVER figured out. Our characters just exited that place and never came back. Boy was he pissed, and we still joke about it today (6 years later). The DM never gave us the answer.

As for the puzzle at hand, I hope there's a solution soon...

AR