D&D 5E Goonalan's 5th Ed Games- The Union in the Red Larch Adventure Session #72 to #75 (12/04/17)

[Goonalan]

Good gravy, this is absolutely nail-biting stuff! 5e really seems to do these combats well - or you do!
If I tried this in 3.5 half the enemy couldn't touch the PCs and the big bads would be either punch bags or too strong. Very well played, sir!

In truth a lot of the little bad guys didn't do much but get in the way, and make the guys make choices- and soak up all the Union's spells/powers/resources. That said I mod all the bad guys, just a touch, so that have a little more oomph. The players get a little panicked (almost always) when a host of little bad guys start filtering around the front line (sometimes taking hits to get there) and making it through to the squishier members of the group. When this happens the players usually start 'telling' each other what they should do, 'for the best', I love it when this happens- the threat perceived is (most times) greater than the actual threat.

Thanks for reading, and commenting, it is very much appreciated.

Cheers goonalan

 

[Goonalan]

UPDATE

My main game the EU Campaign playing the Red Larch adventure- Session #67 added.

Note- My players come here, I'm obviously not going to put the real name of the adventure we are playing- although in truth I've ripped apart at least four adventures, added lots of stuff of my very own, and welded it all back together into, well... you'll see.

1) On the Road to Phandalin.
2) The Rescue Mission.
3) Out of the Frying Pan...
4) Meet the Redbrands.
5) A Meeting of Minds.
6) The Invasion.
7) An Accidental Slaying.
8) Death to the Router.
9) Glory to the New Router.
10) Dead Bad.
11) Kill or Care.
12) Ongoing Investigations AKA WTF?
13) A Sudden Death.
14) Let's Slay Together.
15) Venomfang!
16) King Grol!
17) Fire & Lightning.
18) Grimm the Wanderer.
19) Fire & Nice.
20) Caught by the Ghoulies!
21) Bugbears Are Go!
22) The Black Spider is a Bastard.
23) The Showdown.
23a) Downtime Activities.
24) To Triboar.
25) Gnolls in the Rusty Gorgon.
26) Rescue Gordo.
27) Grimm's Curvy Fruit.
28) Red Larch.
29) The Bandits.
30) The Union.
31) Lance Rock.
32) Beholder Riding & Inspiration Points.
33) The Bonus Session.
34) Unbelievers!
35) The Temple of Moving Stones.
36) The Believers & Tricklerock.
37) Goodbye to Red Larch.
38) Avarthel's Kobold Story.
39) Kobold War.
40) Gone in 48 Seconds.
41) Behold Trimat!
42) Womford Chatter.
43) Fire & Acid.
44) Taking the Tower- Sqwelch's Plan.
45) Ironwrought.
46) Raging Bull!
47) Let's Play Darts.
48) Beneath Bargewright.
49) The Bronzehammer & the Drow.
50) The Big Bloody Spider!
51) The Ironwrought Finale Part One.
52) The Ironwrought Finale Part Two.
53) More Bloody Plot.
54) Rescue Sir Gustav.
55) Zyler, Destroyer of Worlds.
56) Smells Like Dungeoneering.
57) Down Down Deeper & Down.
58) Ghastronomy.
59) The Enemy of my Enemy is my Enemy.
60) The Cursed Bronzehammers.
61) Rescue Rowan.
62) The Lord of War and the Weather!
63) Madness in Bargewright.
64) Kobolds of Dhol Kuldhir.
65) High Priestess Sha-Ron.
66) Paradise of the Dragon Lords.
67) The Door at the End.

The Union fight on... and survive, just. My poor Tendriculos, and my broken dice. Then the Union open the door- within is another door, and a mystery, and none of the guys are happy.

Thank You.

 

[carborundum]

Oh your poor players!

 

[Goonalan]

UPDATE

My main game the EU Campaign playing the Red Larch adventure- Session #68 & 69 added.

Note- My players come here, I'm obviously not going to put the real name of the adventure we are playing- although in truth I've ripped apart at least four adventures, added lots of stuff of my very own, and welded it all back together into, well... you'll see.

1) On the Road to Phandalin.
2) The Rescue Mission.
3) Out of the Frying Pan...
4) Meet the Redbrands.
5) A Meeting of Minds.
6) The Invasion.
7) An Accidental Slaying.
8) Death to the Router.
9) Glory to the New Router.
10) Dead Bad.
11) Kill or Care.
12) Ongoing Investigations AKA WTF?
13) A Sudden Death.
14) Let's Slay Together.
15) Venomfang!
16) King Grol!
17) Fire & Lightning.
18) Grimm the Wanderer.
19) Fire & Nice.
20) Caught by the Ghoulies!
21) Bugbears Are Go!
22) The Black Spider is a Bastard.
23) The Showdown.
23a) Downtime Activities.
24) To Triboar.
25) Gnolls in the Rusty Gorgon.
26) Rescue Gordo.
27) Grimm's Curvy Fruit.
28) Red Larch.
29) The Bandits.
30) The Union.
31) Lance Rock.
32) Beholder Riding & Inspiration Points.
33) The Bonus Session.
34) Unbelievers!
35) The Temple of Moving Stones.
36) The Believers & Tricklerock.
37) Goodbye to Red Larch.
38) Avarthel's Kobold Story.
39) Kobold War.
40) Gone in 48 Seconds.
41) Behold Trimat!
42) Womford Chatter.
43) Fire & Acid.
44) Taking the Tower- Sqwelch's Plan.
45) Ironwrought.
46) Raging Bull!
47) Let's Play Darts.
48) Beneath Bargewright.
49) The Bronzehammer & the Drow.
50) The Big Bloody Spider!
51) The Ironwrought Finale Part One.
52) The Ironwrought Finale Part Two.
53) More Bloody Plot.
54) Rescue Sir Gustav.
55) Zyler, Destroyer of Worlds.
56) Smells Like Dungeoneering.
57) Down Down Deeper & Down.
58) Ghastronomy.
59) The Enemy of my Enemy is my Enemy.
60) The Cursed Bronzehammers.
61) Rescue Rowan.
62) The Lord of War and the Weather!
63) Madness in Bargewright.
64) Kobolds of Dhol Kuldhir.
65) High Priestess Sha-Ron.
66) Paradise of the Dragon Lords.
67) The Door at the End.
68) Into the Cold.
69) Gorgon Begone!

#68 The Union clear up a few loose ends in Bargewright & Womford (including accepting another offer of paid employment), grab Sqwelch, and then make the dash into the cold and snow to the Forlorn Hills, and an ancient Dwarven (wouldn'tyaknowit) ruin that was last seen inhabited by the Bugbear Eye/High Lord the guys have been hearing plenty about. En route the Union run into a showdown between a clutch of terrified farmers and a bunch of nasty Hobgoblins- the guys pick a side.

#69 The Union continue on to the ancient Dwarven ruins- a gatehouse, get ambushed by a bunch of Gargoyles and then chase after the winged fiends. Soon after they encounter the Gorgon (in the title of the session) and then the remainder of the wounded Gargoyles.

Note Grimm takes a beating in both sessions- I used to look up to him, where did it all go wrong for the big guy?

Thank You.

 

[Goonalan]

UPDATE

My main game the EU Campaign playing the Red Larch adventure- Session #70 & 71 added.

Note- My players come here, I'm obviously not going to put the real name of the adventure we are playing- although in truth I've ripped apart at least four adventures, added lots of stuff of my very own, and welded it all back together into, well... you'll see.

1) On the Road to Phandalin.
2) The Rescue Mission.
3) Out of the Frying Pan...
4) Meet the Redbrands.
5) A Meeting of Minds.
6) The Invasion.
7) An Accidental Slaying.
8) Death to the Router.
9) Glory to the New Router.
10) Dead Bad.
11) Kill or Care.
12) Ongoing Investigations AKA WTF?
13) A Sudden Death.
14) Let's Slay Together.
15) Venomfang!
16) King Grol!
17) Fire & Lightning.
18) Grimm the Wanderer.
19) Fire & Nice.
20) Caught by the Ghoulies!
21) Bugbears Are Go!
22) The Black Spider is a Bastard.
23) The Showdown.
23a) Downtime Activities.
24) To Triboar.
25) Gnolls in the Rusty Gorgon.
26) Rescue Gordo.
27) Grimm's Curvy Fruit.
28) Red Larch.
29) The Bandits.
30) The Union.
31) Lance Rock.
32) Beholder Riding & Inspiration Points.
33) The Bonus Session.
34) Unbelievers!
35) The Temple of Moving Stones.
36) The Believers & Tricklerock.
37) Goodbye to Red Larch.
38) Avarthel's Kobold Story.
39) Kobold War.
40) Gone in 48 Seconds.
41) Behold Trimat!
42) Womford Chatter.
43) Fire & Acid.
44) Taking the Tower- Sqwelch's Plan.
45) Ironwrought.
46) Raging Bull!
47) Let's Play Darts.
48) Beneath Bargewright.
49) The Bronzehammer & the Drow.
50) The Big Bloody Spider!
51) The Ironwrought Finale Part One.
52) The Ironwrought Finale Part Two.
53) More Bloody Plot.
54) Rescue Sir Gustav.
55) Zyler, Destroyer of Worlds.
56) Smells Like Dungeoneering.
57) Down Down Deeper & Down.
58) Ghastronomy.
59) The Enemy of my Enemy is my Enemy.
60) The Cursed Bronzehammers.
61) Rescue Rowan.
62) The Lord of War and the Weather!
63) Madness in Bargewright.
64) Kobolds of Dhol Kuldhir.
65) High Priestess Sha-Ron.
66) Paradise of the Dragon Lords.
67) The Door at the End.
68) Into the Cold.
69) Gorgon Begone!
70) The Dead Elf.
71) Death in the Family.

#70 The Union make hard work (briefly) of the Gorgon (mostly courtesy of the DMs '20'), discover lots of minor treasures- and a bunch more coded notes (which Zalt has figured out to decipher). Next the Union head in to the Bronzehammer ruins proper, and run into a horde of Skeletons, Grimm gets isolated and takes a beating (regular as). The guys win through and then follow a blood trail to a dead Elf.

#71 Goren (Lord T) knows the dead Elf- see the write up for the full story. The Union explore a little further and run into a bunch of Ghasts and Ghouls, it gets nasty. After a brief pause the guys discover another repaired (and locked) door, within they find a secret chamber and a trap. Lord T manages to trigger it twice, the Rogue is having a nightmare. Eventually the guys win through- although now they have all taken multiple hits.

Note Grimm takes a beating in both sessions- again.

Thank You.

 

[Goonalan]

UPDATE

My main game the EU Campaign playing the Red Larch adventure- Session #72, #73, #74 & #75 added.

Note- My players come here, I'm obviously not going to put the real name of the adventure we are playing- although in truth I've ripped apart at least four adventures, added lots of stuff of my very own, and welded it all back together into, well... you'll see.

1) On the Road to Phandalin.
2) The Rescue Mission.
3) Out of the Frying Pan...
4) Meet the Redbrands.
5) A Meeting of Minds.
6) The Invasion.
7) An Accidental Slaying.
8) Death to the Router.
9) Glory to the New Router.
10) Dead Bad.
11) Kill or Care.
12) Ongoing Investigations AKA WTF?
13) A Sudden Death.
14) Let's Slay Together.
15) Venomfang!
16) King Grol!
17) Fire & Lightning.
18) Grimm the Wanderer.
19) Fire & Nice.
20) Caught by the Ghoulies!
21) Bugbears Are Go!
22) The Black Spider is a Bastard.
23) The Showdown.
23a) Downtime Activities.
24) To Triboar.
25) Gnolls in the Rusty Gorgon.
26) Rescue Gordo.
27) Grimm's Curvy Fruit.
28) Red Larch.
29) The Bandits.
30) The Union.
31) Lance Rock.
32) Beholder Riding & Inspiration Points.
33) The Bonus Session.
34) Unbelievers!
35) The Temple of Moving Stones.
36) The Believers & Tricklerock.
37) Goodbye to Red Larch.
38) Avarthel's Kobold Story.
39) Kobold War.
40) Gone in 48 Seconds.
41) Behold Trimat!
42) Womford Chatter.
43) Fire & Acid.
44) Taking the Tower- Sqwelch's Plan.
45) Ironwrought.
46) Raging Bull!
47) Let's Play Darts.
48) Beneath Bargewright.
49) The Bronzehammer & the Drow.
50) The Big Bloody Spider!
51) The Ironwrought Finale Part One.
52) The Ironwrought Finale Part Two.
53) More Bloody Plot.
54) Rescue Sir Gustav.
55) Zyler, Destroyer of Worlds.
56) Smells Like Dungeoneering.
57) Down Down Deeper & Down.
58) Ghastronomy.
59) The Enemy of my Enemy is my Enemy.
60) The Cursed Bronzehammers.
61) Rescue Rowan.
62) The Lord of War and the Weather!
63) Madness in Bargewright.
64) Kobolds of Dhol Kuldhir.
65) High Priestess Sha-Ron.
66) Paradise of the Dragon Lords.
67) The Door at the End.
68) Into the Cold.
69) Gorgon Begone!
70) The Dead Elf.
71) Death in the Family.
72) Zyler & Grimm Skywalker.
73) The Forge & the Bell.
74) The Seven Dwarves.
75) The Apokalypse.

#72 Further exploration of the Bronzehammer ruins, then a brief chat with Devek, the dead Elf (and brother of Goren), all followed by a titanic battle with a bunch more Gargoyles and some crazy flying Monks. Grimm takes a beating, of course.

#73 Smoke in the trees, and Sqwelch is taken- perhaps by a big flying lizard, you know what I'm talking about. Then the final encounter in the ruins- the Forge, and a strange discovery.

#74 Back to Womford, and lots and lots of chatter- the plot is beginning to show through. The Union also encounter the Seven Dwarves, an odd crowd- back to the Door at the End.

#75 More chatter with the Seven Dwarves and back to Womford, including a meeting with Mr. Sausages- not to be missed. Then up-river to Pike's Landing, where bad things happen, the Union are going to rescue Lord Thaelond (the real one).

Thank You.

 

[carborundum]

It's been a while since I checked in (RL work monster) and hey, four sessions

 

[carborundum]

Hey folks, it's been a while. Are you all still playing?

Sent from my EVA-L09 using EN World mobile app

 

[Goonalan]

We're still playing, session 98 this Wednesday coming, the Obsidian Portal version of events has I'm sad to say bitten the dust- I just don't have the time, this mainly due to the fact that it was me updating all the other parts of the wiki trying to keep up with rumours, and NPCs and... well, I took on too much stuff, and other activities got in the way.

So now we have a new player- there's been a line-up change or two, and the new guy can draw. So, I've been rewriting (a little) or else reviewing the story and uploading it here-

http://www.enworld.org/forum/showth...on-a-potentially-amusing-campaign-(with-Pics)

That's right, now with pics!

Apologies, I should have mentioned this here- in truth I had forgot this thread existed.

Oh and in-game atm, the guys are travelling on an Underboat (Dwarven Submarine), captained by a Dwarven Ghost Pirate (called Captain Aaaarrrgghhh!)- who is actually the unearthly remains of an ancient Bronzehammer Queen. They are also accompanied by another Dwarf- Mr. Sausages (he only knows two words- 'Sausages' = things are all good; and 'Owlbear' = things are very bad) who may also be one of the lost Bronzehammer Kings, and... they're fairly certain that Zalt's stone servitor "Wodger" is actually a third ancient Bronzehammer King. Things have gotten a little strange, oh and they are just about to go to war- and you're the first person to learn this, they have no idea as of yet... I'll soon catch up in the new thread though, and then you can find out how it all goes down (LOL).

Cheers goonalan

 

[carborundum]

Glad you're still going strong! I've finished the Obsidian Portal bits - up to ...78? I'm looking forward to whatever you have time to add to the new thread (subscribed!) as the whole Bronzehammer Clock thing is fascinating.

I'm also darned impressed how tough the combats seem to be
Our only attempt at 5e so far left players compaining about "not enough options" and "not enough spells/ spells nerfed". They are inveterate 3.5 min-maxers though. Have you noticed that at all?

And can I steal Mr Sausages? :-D