Faerie Encounters

[evilbob]

the results

The group started by encountering the crone. They were extremely warey (what's this old lady doing out here in the middle of nowhere?) but decided to help find her Henry and easily found the ogres. Since the group had just started playing and were eager to try out their stuff, they quickly laid waste to the two poor ogres after having used the better part of their resources for the day. Only one player caught that the donkey was Henry - the rest kept looking for the "guy," who they thought would be her husband or son. Eventually they got it, though, and accepted the turnips and advice for a reward (they never ate them). They completely missed/ignored all hints about the crone being strong or powerful, although they did take her advice on searching the tower, and they found the area below it. The funniest part of the whole adventure was them trying to figure out the well at the bottom of the tower. They probably spent 30 minutes discussing it, throwing things into it (including one of the newly discovered MW stones), and finally sending a character down into it to check it out. It was hilarious how long it took them to figure out it really was just a well, although it almost had a negative effect on a later encounter... My guess is that they weren't used to so much descriptive text.

Later, they encountered the farm house and rested there (and dried out from the previous harrowing well experience!). They noticed the comb on the farmhouse's well, and took it to be an ill omen: they were convinced that between the comb and the ribbons some little girl had drowned there, and that the cover was not to be moved or else! They very nearly left the well alone entirely - especially after their last "well" experience - but I think I managed to drop enough hints that they finally convinced themselves to open the well. They expected the worst, and so they never even got any water from the well and were hardly surprised when a head floated to the surface.

The encounter with the heads went pretty smoothly; for some reason they never really heavily questioned the orders of these non-undead-but-still-animated heads. (The fact that they were not undead puzzled them quite a bit, however.) It took them only a few tries to get the skill checks, and they only needed one Diplomacy check to get some bonus information (the checks were only 2 higher for 6th level characters - this made the encounter possibly too easy). They got the bag of gold easliy, although the "wrong" character went after the sword - not through greed; it was just more efficient that way. I had to drop a few more hints in order to get them to understand the situation; otherwise they were assuming that the head had simply lied and that was that. Maybe one brother only tells lies? (I'm sure they've never encountered a quest that was "person-specific" before.) When finished, they dutifully noted everything they had been told, and when the heads bounced back into the well they covered it up and left the comb(!) for anyone else who came along. (I thought that was such a nice and unexpected gesture I gave them a small XP reward.)

They passed into faerieland without much todo - although in my campaign as well I had one character who preferred to stay far away from the others (he hated how loud they were when he was so good at being sneaky). When I passed him a note that said "you are hopelessly lost" he laughed - he knew his stand-offish practices had come back to bite him.

They accepted Bryne of Lig without incident and figured out the clue about feeding him. No one ever took the bait about eating the forbidden fruit in faerieland, especially after they had been warned; maybe my players have all seen Pan's Labyrinth or something... (Also, food and water are generally de-emphasized in my campaigns because characters have ready access to magic that can provide them.) They also took the advice about staying on the path VERY seriously; I think it may have traumatized them! Then, after only a couple of hints (did I mention they were all fairly new players?) they realized they hadn't seen the sneaky guy in a while. They had to burn one "use" of Bryne to get him back, and honestly it was one of the best interactions I've seen in the game: the stand-offish player learned his lesson well and has stuck with the group ever since (even after leaving faerieland).

They later came to the house of "stone" and burned a detect magic; they quickly discovered it was actually made of bone. They tried to heed the head's advice, but the character who knocked on the door stated after trying to parlay with the old man: "Come to the door and I'll give you what you want." To which the old man replied, "Done!" Much head-hanging was done at that point. Needless to say, the character was frustrated when he realized the bargain he'd made, but to his credit he decided he would make it good and he did. He tried to offer the old man more of the good red wine - which a successful Diplomacy check helped a great deal - and then I came up with a good idea that used the character's abilities well. The old man offered the stick only for a "large quantity" of blood - and when asked how much, he presented a bucket. (Yikes!) However, this character had an ability to heal a small amount of damage each round once he fell below half HP. So, the way it worked was: he bled. And he bled and bled and bled. The bucket (magical, of course) wasn't going to be full until it held over three times the blood of a single human, and so he continually used his ability (slowly losing ground each time) to heal himself to have more blood to give. Finally, when the group's other healer had to use some of their abilities to keep him from unconciousness, that was enough. I figured this was pretty justified, so they got the staff.

(Continued below...)

 

[evilbob]

more results

They moved on through the mountain pass, and were attacked by the imps and the old man's cat simultaneously. They fought them off without much trouble, although the hardest part was just staying literally -on- the path in order to fight. The cat was turned to dust once they discovered (via spot checks) that it was undead (I figured the cat wasn't trying -too- hard to disguise itself) and the imps were chased away.

Next they hit the "crossroads" which was there partially as a plot device and partially as a place for the third head's treasure. They almost had the wrong character grab the loot again - again, not due to greed but efficiency - and so another hint was dropped to help them recall what had happened last time. They successfully grabbed the item and continued on their way.

This next encounter was particularly interesting because one player immediately recognized the character of the green knight from the tales of Sir Gawain. However, none of them picked up on the clue to use only the copper coin (even the guy who had been in Merchant!). The way it went was: they quickly deduced the head's clue, and asked the green knight for a game. He said, "Ah, so you too enjoy a good game of chance? Very well. The rules are simple: we both flip a coin; the side with a visage wins. Three times we flip, and he who wins the most flips wins the game. If you win, you shall receive a prize worthy of the coin you pick. If I win, then you must accept my previous offer. Since you have issued the challenge, I shall allow you to choose your coin first. You may choose from the humble copper, the stately silver, or the kingly gold coin. Choose your coin, and accept that which fate plays you."

Even with all that hinting, they still went for the silver coin - partially because they fell for the "prize worthy of the coin you pick" bit which was specifically there to distract them. Needless to say, they lost. This caused them to get rather worried; they figured out that he was angry due to the "turnips" they carried (they hadn't eaten any, but they still had them) and the knight was not being persuaded otherwise. They REALLY didn't want to trade blows with this fellow. So, they decided to call Bryne of Lig again to help them out. I considered this a fair usage, so I had them make another Diplomacy check with his help. I said that Bryne added a choice word here or there, eventually suggesting whole phrases, and by the time the speech was done he had somehow managed to make it sound like the players had specifically brought these heads here to give them to the green knight in order for him to properly bury them, while they would of course try to hunt down the crone responsible. The green knight accepted their gift gratefully, and allowed them to continue on their way. (I thought that was pretty fair, as Bryne is specifically there to give them "outs" when they need them - so I just ruled that they didn't get any XP for this encounter and counted it good.)

The players quickly caught on about the longstones, however. They recognized - partially because the "clues" were all done - that these were the gates of faerieland, or at least they strongly suspected. However, this didn't really dilute their desire to stay on the path. But they were confident enough that they called Bryne of Lig one last time in order to identify the staff. I figured that was fair enough, so when he came he examined the staff closely all over for several minutes and then promptly said, "I have no idea." However, he did say that he had heard that such a staff might do X... And so they got the information they wanted. However, they knew they had used up all their opportunities with Bryne of Lig.

They continued through the stones and met the party of bees. Even though they were very sure they were out of faerieland at that point, the "off the path" experience from before was so heavily stuck in their heads they did not want to leave it and discover they were wrong - so there was still an encounter to be had. However - and again, this comes more from the characters' level - it was easily overcome. The arcane caster simply cast "rope trick" and the characters climbed up into an extradimensional space and allowed the party of bees to move through. They had not "left the path," but neither side had to cede or fight. (They were a bit worried about fighting at that point, because even though they suspected they could heal their wounds, they had not.) In the end, I thought that was such a good use of a spell to avoid an encounter they received full XP for defeating it.

Later that evening it got dark and they were very happy to have left faerieland. However, the funny thing is that even days later - in another part of the country far away - there was a battle where one of the characters was still very apprehensive about leaving the path. Talk about a pavlovian response!


In the end, everyone had a really good time and they enjoyed the heavy role-playing and "puzzle-solving" aspect of the game quite a bit. The entire thing was probably a bit easier for them, due to their higher level, but overall it scaled pretty well - and many of the challenges are effectively "level neutral." Overall: a great bit of storytelling!

 

[Lord Zack]

I know this thread is dead, but I have some questions I'd like to ask if anybody wants to answer them. I'm creating a new campaign setting and I'm wondering how to fit faeries into the world. I'm thinking of mixing in some Eastern traditions like Kitsune and Kappa. There's a lot of cultural diffusion between different parts of the world due to the fact that there are such magics as portals and airships. Similar to the modern idea earlier they may have "brought they're spirits with them". Also I'd like some opinions on the idea of Fey becoming mortal, like Pathfinder's Gnomes.

 

[Raven Crowking]

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[Lopke_Quasath]

Good fun, thank you!

Raven Crowking, I just want to say a big thank you for writing your encounters up. I used them with my group when they were 2nd level and it was a blast!

One night we only had 2 players show, so I decided to do a one-shot adventure using Paizo's "Hollow's Last Hope". The players had 2 characters each. We had so much fun playing that we decided to continue with that story and characters when we could. I already had your encounters on file for a while, and I decided now was a good time to bust them out. So I made the villains of Falcon's Hollow the "Dark Fey". This was before I knew anything about Paizo's actual fey storyline regarding Falcon's Hollow, so it was an awesome coincidence.

So, the dark fey had poisoned the town, and the group decided to follow up stories of small winged creatures seen near the poisoned well. They entered the forest and soon enough they met the old crone. I made her Ulizmila, the Witch of Darkmoon Vale. Her house was abandoned because she has been in Faerieland and time played havoc with her return. She was still tired of her journey from Faerieland so the ogres got to do some damage to her when she appeared. The group doesn't really trust her, but they fight the ogres to get the 'donkey'. She's happy she got her servant back and tells the group about the abandoned farmhouse with the well.

At the well they manage to make the first head happy, and find the pouch of gold. The second head gets angry the first time and the paladin gets dirt in her eyes. The sorceress calms him down, and after a successful 2nd try (the paladin tried again) he becomes happy. The paladin gets her magic sword (i don't care too much about wealth levels, so the keen longsword was fine). The third head only gets satisfied, but the group leaves it at that.

The cross-over was done by entering the lake in Darkmoon Vale. It was autumn. They enter, and figure out they have to submerge themselves completely to be taken to Faerieland. Once in Faerieland they meet Brynn of Lig and give away all their rations and some regular meat they had hunted. They recall the head's story of the red-headed man. Brynn tells them where they are and the rules, and how to call him. The group goes on the path. I tempt them off the path, but they don't take the bait. Good for them!

Soon enough they reach the House of Bone. Again they recall what the 2nd head said and approach warily. They decide to knock and try for the 'stick'. The paladin knocks, while the dwarf ranger decides to 'flank' the door, to get the drop if things go bad, as it were. Well, beyond the door was off the path, so he vanishes. The group panics and call on Brynn, who brings back the dwarf safely. Breathing relief, they knock on the door. A voice tells them to open the door and come in. They open the door, but don't enter. I can't remember their excuses, but they were alright. So, the old man hobbles from around the kitchen and invites them in again. The sorceress had some red wine in her inventory (from the previous adventure) and offered it. The old man said it was the wrong red wine. The paladin clued in and offered an exchange. One bite on her wrist for the 'stick'. The paladin was trying to follow the rules of the land. It turns out later the group thought they HAD to get the 'stick'. Or else they would have avoided this

Anyway, so the deal is struck and the old man hands the stick over. Then, for some reason, the paladin WALKS INTO THE HOUSE to offer her wrist. With a look of glee the old man slams the front door! There's some grappling as the old man starts gobbling blood from the struggling paladin. The dwarf breaks down the front door, only to have the freaky cat jump on his face, draining his body heat. The dwarf panics and fights off the cat. In his feverish retreat, he goes off the path again! The cat follows him! Meanwhile the cleric lets out burst of Channel Energy (Pathfinder rules) and the sorceress also goes in the house to help drag out the paladin. With some luck, the paladin escapes, but is in horrible shape. Running out the front door, the pair escapes as the old man can't leave the house. But I made it that he can target those who entered the house, so he fires off magic spells at the sorceress. Meanwhile the dwarf is still fighting the cursed cat! Luckily the cleric called for Brynn again who brought the dwarf back...with the cat. With the help of Channel Energy, the feline is finally destroyed. They escape, everyone except the cleric is in very bad shape. The 'stick' turns out to be a magical (unique) staff whose powers grow with the wielder. The sorceress now has a special Staff of Cold who manifests new powers as her own powers grow.

Next I had the group go to the Faerie court, as the group wanted to find our more about the Dark Fey, their weaknesses, and permission to hunt them. So, I made up a fun encounter attending the court and the group trying to follow the rituals and etiquette of faerie nobility. Their excuses for not eating and drinking the food from the feast were greatly entertaining. At one point the dwarf just chocked up and all he could say was that as a dwarf he only ate dirt and drank his own urine. So he had to 'perform' that for the court, at the request of a noble. They also danced (that almost proved deadly), had a food fight, avoided a duel, and made the Queen smile. The Queen apparently already knew the group and dropped hints they had met before. That puzzled the group. Once the feast was done they had an audience with the Queen, who talked about the Dark fey and how they no longer had any ties to her court. The group had permission to hunt them. They also found out some weaknesses. The group left to find their way home.

The found the gate (though they didn't know it was a gate) guarded by the Green Knight. I can't remember the exact offense, but one of the players had broken a rule of Faerieland. The Green Knight demanded payment. The paladin accepted the challenge and lopped his head off. He picked it up and promised he would return in a year and a day to fulfill the bargain. The paladin player was in a panic for the next few sessions about dying

They crossed they gate and returned to the real world. Of course they didn't know that. The season is now summer. They meet the Faeire entourage with the Queen. She doesn't recognize them, and the group clues in, introducing themselves 'for the first time'. However, they didn't clue in that they were outside Faerieland yet. The cleric accepts the challenge of the duel, and pumps herself up with spells. They fight, and though Humm-a-buzz has an advantage, the cleric keeps managing to heal herself. The group tries to help with healing too (giving a clw potion), but are swarmed by the bees, and they back off. The cleric wins narrowly, with only 2 hp remaining. The Faeries applaud and the Queen announces "time tarries not". The group clues in about their location.

So, they appeared in a different season from their departure, so they try to figure out where they are and WHEN they are.

The adventure continues with another series of encounters made by me, then I mix with Paizo modules (Revenge of the Kobold King, Return of the Kobold King, Carnival of Tears [nice seque with these encounters])

So, all in all, we had a blast. The players said they were truly scared of disobeying the faerie rules and had a great time working within them.

Thanks a bunch, Raven Crowking!

 

[Raven Crowking]

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[Lord Zack]

What are you're opinions on the Feywild?

In the history of my world the Titans discovered the primordial Material Plane and shaped the worlds to suit they're needs. The Titans crafted or birthed many races, including the Oni, the Giants, Nymphs and certain Abominations. The Titans and some of they're creations became the first Gods. Some of these creatures like Nymphs are traditionally Fey. But in my campaign they are connected to the Gods. Could these creatures still be considered Faeries?

 

[Raven Crowking]

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[MythMage]

That was my thought as well regarding 4e's fey.

Personally, what I initially define fey by is their link to nature. But then, there's always room for interesting interpretations of just what "nature" encompasses...

I can't believe I never saw this thread before. I intend to take a good hard look at it. In the meantime, let me just say I'm glad to see someone else around as interested in using fey as I am. I've been doing some serious work on a webbook for fey (link in my signature) and I hope you'll take a look at my stuff while I take a look at yours.

 

[Raven Crowking]

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