malcolm_n
Adventurer
This is the first encounter of a new dungeon I'll be building over this next week. When the dungeon is complete, each encounter, save the last, can be completed in any order.
Encounter Level 12/13 (3500/4000 XP)
Setup
This encounter includes the following creatures at the low tier:
4 Van Hassen Estate Guard (E, reskinned as frozen enemies and soldiers of the raven queen)
1 Priest of the Raven Queen (P, lowered to level 11)
Commander Stoutbeard (S)
This encounter includes the following creatures at the high tier:
4 Van Hassen Estate Guard (E, reskinned as frozen enemies and soldiers of the raven queen)
2 Priest of the Raven Queen (P, lowered to level 11)
Commander Stoutbeard (S)
Commander Stoutbeard brought his priests with him to this desolate cavern in search of the dragon. He wanted to claim the dragon's soul and use it as a bargaining chip to get his old life, and that of his priests back. He doesn't appreciate being interrupted in his task and will order his allies to fight to the death beside him when they become aware of the party. They do so without question. Read the following:
As you round the corner, you see a dwarf and a human standing before some more of the captives you've seen frozen here. Each wears a holy symbol bearing a large, black raven's head.
The dwarf turns to you with pale, almost lifeless eyes and snarls, "What the...what in the...well, don't just stand there boys, kill something!"
Features of the Area
Illumination: Reflected Light (bright illumination)
Icy Terrain: Any creature that moves more than 2 squares on its turn, in this room, slides 1 square in the same direction at the end of that move. If the creature cannot enter the square (wall, enemy, or obstacle), it falls prone. Creatures with ice walk or a similar ability do not slide or fall prone.
Frozen Enemies (E): Frozen enemies begin combat petrified. If any character moves to within 2 squares of a frozen enemy, the enemy joins the fight immediately after the PC finishes his or her turn, attacking the nearest PC each round or moving toward the PC.
Tactics
The Commander will use Heed Death's Call every opportunity he gets, regardless of opportunity attacks and focuses on leader classes if able. When he has 2 or more enemies adjacent to him, he'll use whirlwind strike. His priests will slide anybody they can into position for him while trying to stay out of melee combat themselves.
Scaling the Encounter
Make the following adjustments to the combat based on the number of PCs present.
Four PCs: Remove the frozen enemies.
Six PCs: Add 4 frozen enemies standing with the commander.
Ending the Encounter
The encounter ends when the commander and his priests are defeated. Any inactive frozen enemies do not wake up once the commander has fallen.
If the PCs attempt to question Commander Stoutbeard, they find his corpse with a rictus grin upon its face.
If the PCs question the priests or the frozen enemies, they relate the following:
* Commander Stoutbeard brought them with him to this desolate cavern in search of the dragon. He wanted to claim the dragon's soul and use it as a bargaining chip to get his old life, as well as theirs' back. They have a phylactery already attuned to capture the soul.
* The Raven Queen has a vested interest in the soul of the dragon, but would rather send her indentured servants than hire somebody to help. What this interest is, they do not know; but she may be persuaded into rewarding the PCs if they offer her the soul once they've slain the dragon (refer to the quest, "One Queen's Promise to Another" if the party decides to do this).
* They tried to free the dragon in the room above, but the magic encasing it was too strong.
* The orbs surrounding the dragon point to key locations within the cavern, possibly ley lines of power, that they believed could be unraveled where they lay, thus freeing the dragon.
* The commander's soul would have returned to the shadowfell whether or not the party had killed him; the raven queen looks down on the failure of her more powerful conscripts. The dwarf will be lucky if she merely returns him to the underworld.
Experience Points
Each PC should receive 700 / 800 experience points for defeating Commander Stoutbeard and his priests.
Treasure
Between the commander, the priests, and the frozen enemies, there are enough snow spikes so that each party member can get a pair. Commander Stoutbeard also has on plate armor and wields a craghammer.[sblock=Encounter Map] [ ] = square, || = Wall, [x] are where PCs can start, [P2] is only there in the high tier.
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||[ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [x][x][x][/sblock][sblock=New Treasure]Snow Spikes (2)
Category: Gear
Price: 5 sp
Weight: 1 lb.
Description: Snow Spikes are tied to the feet (a standard action) and grant the wearer ice walk. On non-ice terrain, the wearer is slowed.[/sblock][sblock=Commander Stoutbeard]Level 11 Solo Soldier
Medium natural humanoid, dwarf
HP 464; Bloodied 232; Initiative +11
AC 27, Fort 25, Ref 22, Will 23 Perception +17
Speed 6, Ice Walk, Low-Light Vision
Traits
Combat Challenge: Commander Stoutbeard marks each enemy he attacks and the mark lasts until the end of his next turn. Whenever an enemy marked by Commander Stoutbeard is adjacent to him and shifts or makes an attack that does not include him, he can make a craghammer attack against that enemy as an immediate interrupt.
Standard Actions
Craghammer (brutal 2) * At-will
Attack: Melee weapon (one creature); +18 vs. AC (+16 when bloodied)
Hit: 1d10+7 damage. (1d10+13 damage when bloodied)
Whirlwind Strike * At-will
Attack: Close burst 1 (each enemy the commander can see in burst)
Effect: Commander Stoutbeard makes a craghammer attack against each target.
Triggered Actions
Heed Death's Call * At-will
Trigger: A creature within 6 squares of Commander Stoutbeard grants healing or spends a healing surge.
Effect (free action): Commander Stoutbeard attacks the target with his craghammer, charging if necessary.
Str 23 (+11), Dex 17 (+8), Wis 18 (+9)
Con 20 (+10), Int 15 (+7), Cha 15 (+7)
Alignment Unaligned Languages Common, Dwarven[/sblock][sblock=Quest: One Queen's Promise to Another]If the party encounters and defeats Commander Stoutbeard and his followers, they learn of the phylactery and the attempt to capture the dragon's soul before it is claimed by another. This major quest assumes the party took the phylactery and used it when the dragon was slain. Read the following as the party leaves the dungeon.
As you leave the cavern behind, a chill wind picks up and obscures your vision for a moment. When it clears, a pale, too thin man stands before you. The man speaks with a rasp like chalk on sand paper. "So, you have claimed the dragon's soul. Her majesty will be pleased."
If the party questions the man, he relates the following:
* His name is Riff-Raff, and he is a herald of the raven queen. He teleported himself here to speak on behalf of the goddess.
* He received a vision of the party's defeat of Commander Stoutbeard and commends them for sending him back to get the punishment he deserves. Since then, he has been making preparations while learning more of the task at hand.
* The Raven Queen requests that the party take the dragon's reclaimed soul to the queen of the red dragons. They need to get it there before they are found by followers of Orcus, who want the soul so the demon prince can raise the dragon as a dracolich under his sway.
* It is an affront to dragon-kind to have one of their kin turned in such a way. The queen of the red dragons will be sure to greatly reward the party, and the raven queen will likewise send her gift to the dragon's court for the returning party.
By accepting this quest, the party will need to locate the entrance to the dragons' court and get the soul to the queen of the red dragons before the cultists of orcus are able to defeat them or steal the phylactery.[/sblock]
Encounter Level 12/13 (3500/4000 XP)
Setup
This encounter includes the following creatures at the low tier:
4 Van Hassen Estate Guard (E, reskinned as frozen enemies and soldiers of the raven queen)
1 Priest of the Raven Queen (P, lowered to level 11)
Commander Stoutbeard (S)
This encounter includes the following creatures at the high tier:
4 Van Hassen Estate Guard (E, reskinned as frozen enemies and soldiers of the raven queen)
2 Priest of the Raven Queen (P, lowered to level 11)
Commander Stoutbeard (S)
Commander Stoutbeard brought his priests with him to this desolate cavern in search of the dragon. He wanted to claim the dragon's soul and use it as a bargaining chip to get his old life, and that of his priests back. He doesn't appreciate being interrupted in his task and will order his allies to fight to the death beside him when they become aware of the party. They do so without question. Read the following:
As you round the corner, you see a dwarf and a human standing before some more of the captives you've seen frozen here. Each wears a holy symbol bearing a large, black raven's head.
The dwarf turns to you with pale, almost lifeless eyes and snarls, "What the...what in the...well, don't just stand there boys, kill something!"
Features of the Area
Illumination: Reflected Light (bright illumination)
Icy Terrain: Any creature that moves more than 2 squares on its turn, in this room, slides 1 square in the same direction at the end of that move. If the creature cannot enter the square (wall, enemy, or obstacle), it falls prone. Creatures with ice walk or a similar ability do not slide or fall prone.
Frozen Enemies (E): Frozen enemies begin combat petrified. If any character moves to within 2 squares of a frozen enemy, the enemy joins the fight immediately after the PC finishes his or her turn, attacking the nearest PC each round or moving toward the PC.
Tactics
The Commander will use Heed Death's Call every opportunity he gets, regardless of opportunity attacks and focuses on leader classes if able. When he has 2 or more enemies adjacent to him, he'll use whirlwind strike. His priests will slide anybody they can into position for him while trying to stay out of melee combat themselves.
Scaling the Encounter
Make the following adjustments to the combat based on the number of PCs present.
Four PCs: Remove the frozen enemies.
Six PCs: Add 4 frozen enemies standing with the commander.
Ending the Encounter
The encounter ends when the commander and his priests are defeated. Any inactive frozen enemies do not wake up once the commander has fallen.
If the PCs attempt to question Commander Stoutbeard, they find his corpse with a rictus grin upon its face.
If the PCs question the priests or the frozen enemies, they relate the following:
* Commander Stoutbeard brought them with him to this desolate cavern in search of the dragon. He wanted to claim the dragon's soul and use it as a bargaining chip to get his old life, as well as theirs' back. They have a phylactery already attuned to capture the soul.
* The Raven Queen has a vested interest in the soul of the dragon, but would rather send her indentured servants than hire somebody to help. What this interest is, they do not know; but she may be persuaded into rewarding the PCs if they offer her the soul once they've slain the dragon (refer to the quest, "One Queen's Promise to Another" if the party decides to do this).
* They tried to free the dragon in the room above, but the magic encasing it was too strong.
* The orbs surrounding the dragon point to key locations within the cavern, possibly ley lines of power, that they believed could be unraveled where they lay, thus freeing the dragon.
* The commander's soul would have returned to the shadowfell whether or not the party had killed him; the raven queen looks down on the failure of her more powerful conscripts. The dwarf will be lucky if she merely returns him to the underworld.
Experience Points
Each PC should receive 700 / 800 experience points for defeating Commander Stoutbeard and his priests.
Treasure
Between the commander, the priests, and the frozen enemies, there are enough snow spikes so that each party member can get a pair. Commander Stoutbeard also has on plate armor and wields a craghammer.[sblock=Encounter Map] [ ] = square, || = Wall, [x] are where PCs can start, [P2] is only there in the high tier.
||[ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ]||
||[ ] [E] [E] [ ] [ ]||
||[ ] [E] [E] [ ] [ ]||
||[ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ]||
||[ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ]||
||[P][ ] [P2] ] [ ]||||
||[ ]
||[ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ]||||||||||||||||...
||[ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [x][x][x]
||[ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [x][x][x][/sblock][sblock=New Treasure]Snow Spikes (2)
Category: Gear
Price: 5 sp
Weight: 1 lb.
Description: Snow Spikes are tied to the feet (a standard action) and grant the wearer ice walk. On non-ice terrain, the wearer is slowed.[/sblock][sblock=Commander Stoutbeard]Level 11 Solo Soldier
Medium natural humanoid, dwarf
HP 464; Bloodied 232; Initiative +11
AC 27, Fort 25, Ref 22, Will 23 Perception +17
Speed 6, Ice Walk, Low-Light Vision
Traits
Combat Challenge: Commander Stoutbeard marks each enemy he attacks and the mark lasts until the end of his next turn. Whenever an enemy marked by Commander Stoutbeard is adjacent to him and shifts or makes an attack that does not include him, he can make a craghammer attack against that enemy as an immediate interrupt.
Standard Actions
Craghammer (brutal 2) * At-willAttack: Melee weapon (one creature); +18 vs. AC (+16 when bloodied)
Hit: 1d10+7 damage. (1d10+13 damage when bloodied)
Whirlwind Strike * At-willAttack: Close burst 1 (each enemy the commander can see in burst)
Effect: Commander Stoutbeard makes a craghammer attack against each target.
Triggered Actions
Heed Death's Call * At-willTrigger: A creature within 6 squares of Commander Stoutbeard grants healing or spends a healing surge.
Effect (free action): Commander Stoutbeard attacks the target with his craghammer, charging if necessary.
Str 23 (+11), Dex 17 (+8), Wis 18 (+9)
Con 20 (+10), Int 15 (+7), Cha 15 (+7)
Alignment Unaligned Languages Common, Dwarven[/sblock][sblock=Quest: One Queen's Promise to Another]If the party encounters and defeats Commander Stoutbeard and his followers, they learn of the phylactery and the attempt to capture the dragon's soul before it is claimed by another. This major quest assumes the party took the phylactery and used it when the dragon was slain. Read the following as the party leaves the dungeon.
As you leave the cavern behind, a chill wind picks up and obscures your vision for a moment. When it clears, a pale, too thin man stands before you. The man speaks with a rasp like chalk on sand paper. "So, you have claimed the dragon's soul. Her majesty will be pleased."
If the party questions the man, he relates the following:
* His name is Riff-Raff, and he is a herald of the raven queen. He teleported himself here to speak on behalf of the goddess.
* He received a vision of the party's defeat of Commander Stoutbeard and commends them for sending him back to get the punishment he deserves. Since then, he has been making preparations while learning more of the task at hand.
* The Raven Queen requests that the party take the dragon's reclaimed soul to the queen of the red dragons. They need to get it there before they are found by followers of Orcus, who want the soul so the demon prince can raise the dragon as a dracolich under his sway.
* It is an affront to dragon-kind to have one of their kin turned in such a way. The queen of the red dragons will be sure to greatly reward the party, and the raven queen will likewise send her gift to the dragon's court for the returning party.
By accepting this quest, the party will need to locate the entrance to the dragons' court and get the soul to the queen of the red dragons before the cultists of orcus are able to defeat them or steal the phylactery.[/sblock]
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