Factions in Barovia: How will they work?

[Tyranthraxus]

I can see it now. A Group of Emerald Enclave adventurers arrive in the town of Barovia and immediatly setup a Greenhouse safehouse only to have the Plants turn on them all as they sleep and drain them dry of blood.

 

[Z. H. Darkstar]

I can see it now. A Group of Emerald Enclave adventurers arrive in the town of Barovia and immediatly setup a Greenhouse safehouse only to have the Plants turn on them all as they sleep and drain them dry of blood.

That sounds awesome! I think that it'd be an interesting change of pace to see an adventure where being in a faction adds an extra layer of challenge without much of a benefit.

EE Druid: "Why are the plants attacking us?"

DM: "Why do you feel the need to sow seeds everywhere you go?"

Drunkard Bard: "I told you that sowing seeds was MY job, you stupid hippie!"

 

[CapnZapp]

Well OotA had a blurb that encouraged DMs to have the party come across scrolls of Raise Dead if party members dropped in the early stages of the adventure. I wouldn't be surprised if CoS has a similar blurb.

Hopefully, the ALPG 4.0 comes out within the next week so that I have plenty of time to go over the changes before the season starts.

Scrolls come with a significant risk of failure for an underleveled caster in 5E.

In previous edition, the risk was only 5% per caster level missing. Now you need to make a DC 15 spellcasting check: that's easily a 40-50% miscast chance for many characters.

I'd say the probability any such scroll is useless has roughly doubled.

Just a FYI...

 

[Z. H. Darkstar]

Scrolls come with a significant risk of failure for an underleveled caster in 5E.

In previous edition, the risk was only 5% per caster level missing. Now you need to make a DC 15 spellcasting check: that's easily a 40-50% miscast chance for many characters.

I'd say the probability any such scroll is useless has roughly doubled.

Just a FYI...

Actually it's more like a 25-40% range (~33% avg) of failure in the case of Raise Dead. Since it's a Cleric/Druid spell, you can make the safe assumption of Guidance factoring into the equation. That means that a 1st level Cleric/Druid with Wis 16 will get +6 - +9 on the check. While it's still roughly a 1 in 3 chance that RNGesus will say no, chances are not exactly as bleak as you thought.

 

[rczarnec]

Actually it's more like a 25-40% range (~33% avg) of failure in the case of Raise Dead. Since it's a Cleric/Druid spell, you can make the safe assumption of Guidance factoring into the equation. That means that a 1st level Cleric/Druid with Wis 16 will get +6 - +9 on the check. While it's still roughly a 1 in 3 chance that RNGesus will say no, chances are not exactly as bleak as you thought.

With Guidance the Cleric should have a +4 - +7 on the check since they are only getting the +3 from Wisdom and the 1-4 from Guidance.

 

[Z. H. Darkstar]

With Guidance the Cleric should have a +4 - +7 on the check since they are only getting the +3 from Wisdom and the 1-4 from Guidance.

Why wouldn't a spellcaster be able to add proficiency bonus to a spellcasting check? That makes no sense.

 

[kalani]

Because you can't gain proficiency with such checks (as it is neither a skill nor a tool, but an unmodified ability check).... It is also why the DCs for most spellcasting ability checks are also relatively low (dispel magic/counter spell only have a DC of 10+ spell level).

A bard however, could add half proficiency bonus to a spellcasting ability check the same way they could with Initiative.

 

[rczarnec]

Why wouldn't a spellcaster be able to add proficiency bonus to a spellcasting check? That makes no sense.

I am not sure why the proficiency bonus would be included, it is an ability check using the spellcasting modifier. This would work much like Counterspell.

 

[RulesJD]

I am not sure why the proficiency bonus would be included, it is an ability check using the spellcasting modifier. This would work much like Counterspell.

It also gives a reason to be an Abjuration Wizard besides the ward. They are specifically called out as being able to add their proficiency bonus to spellcasting checks (like counterspell and dispel).

 

[CapnZapp]

I beg your pardon, but I believe you're missing my point.

Let's not get caught up on the specifics of the roll.

My point is that the DC isn't "only" 10 + spell level. A DC of 15 (for a fifth level spell) is a brutally hard DC.

Perhaps not when you're trading fireballs with your enemy, and one more or less doesn't matter much.

But it sure is a high DC when an adventure provides you with a scroll with the intention that it should give your team one extra life.

In previous edition it did. In 5th edition, that is no longer true - the miscast chance is no longer a mere 5% when you "are almost there".

Either you are of high enough level, and then you succeed 100%. Or you aren't, and then you're staring at a significant, very large risk.

Whether that risk is 25% or 50% isn't the important part. That it's there, and that veteran adventure designers may well trip up on this, is.

Thank you.