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General Tabletop Discussion
D&D Older Editions
Invading the castle:Small rooms, small fights, and 4e
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<blockquote data-quote="Quickleaf" data-source="post: 6269531" data-attributes="member: 20323"><p>Whether its the wrong tool or not, I used 4e for a megadungeon crawl of Dragon Mountain and it worked great. All changes I made were on the DM's side, not core rules. YMMV.</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Ok, I've got a better feel for the adventure from what you and [MENTION=5590]jodyjohnson[/MENTION] have said, and I think "castle raid" is a better description. I would not do *room-by-room* exploration, in this case, and instead think of group of rooms as *combat zones*. Some other tips:</p><ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Stop thinking of the castle as a collection rooms with orcs. Start thinking of it from the Player's perspective: what interesting areas are there? Think of it from the orc's perspective: how defensible are different parts of the castle? The map says "4 orcs in room X", but those orcs might be patrolling the nearby hall or banquet room, or one might be reporting to the chief, and so on. Total the orcs forces before the PCs invade - that's what they're really up against (unless, perhaps killing the leader breaks their morale completely), and it's up to you to pace it in a way that is convincing and fun, and it's up to the players to think how they can divide and conquer.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Consider either using mostly minions or as [MENTION=2804]Dragonblade[/MENTION] recommends house-ruling "mooks." Another option is what I call "Humanoids": 1/3-1/2 standard HP, old MM1 damage expression (as an average, they don't roll damage just like a minion), half XP, simple monster design with no encounter powers or reactions. Any of these options is easier to handle at the table, makes for faster combat, and lets you use lots of enemies without totally overwhelming the PCs. Remember to make frequent use of waves.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">After they first roll initiative, stay in initiative count while raiding the castle. It will save time and emphasize that the threat is far from over.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Come up with a list of "escalate options" in advance that explain why PCs cannot normally rest in the castle. How do the orcs use their resources to repel invaders? For example: pound gong to alert other orcs, threaten the hostages, close the portcullis, position orcish archers at ramparts (if not there already), unleash a strong monster (e.g. Ogre or krenshars) in courtyard, break down a wall PCs are brhind or smoke them out, etc.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">If PCs do manage to take a short rest in the castle thru clever thinking or magic, have the orcs make use of those 5 minutes as well...barricade door/gate X and Y, pour boiling tar down passage Z, gather reinforcements who were patrolling outside the castle, stage an ambush outside of where PCs are resting, etc.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">4e's milestone mechanic is easy to forget. It can be "every 2 encounters" or you can define mission appropriate objectives that count as milestones. Also, in a series of back-to-back encounters like this castle raid sounds like it will become, you can also let each PC recharge an encounter power at a milestone (or whatever dramatic point you think is appropriate), since they probably won't be resting.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">You can still keep a bit of exploration, just do so in the context of imminent threat and urgency. If the players dawdle, hit them with an escalate option. The orcs worked hard to sack this castle, so they'll work hard to defend it from the PCs!</li> </ul></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Quickleaf, post: 6269531, member: 20323"] Whether its the wrong tool or not, I used 4e for a megadungeon crawl of Dragon Mountain and it worked great. All changes I made were on the DM's side, not core rules. YMMV. Ok, I've got a better feel for the adventure from what you and [MENTION=5590]jodyjohnson[/MENTION] have said, and I think "castle raid" is a better description. I would not do *room-by-room* exploration, in this case, and instead think of group of rooms as *combat zones*. Some other tips: [LIST][*]Stop thinking of the castle as a collection rooms with orcs. Start thinking of it from the Player's perspective: what interesting areas are there? Think of it from the orc's perspective: how defensible are different parts of the castle? The map says "4 orcs in room X", but those orcs might be patrolling the nearby hall or banquet room, or one might be reporting to the chief, and so on. Total the orcs forces before the PCs invade - that's what they're really up against (unless, perhaps killing the leader breaks their morale completely), and it's up to you to pace it in a way that is convincing and fun, and it's up to the players to think how they can divide and conquer. [*]Consider either using mostly minions or as [MENTION=2804]Dragonblade[/MENTION] recommends house-ruling "mooks." Another option is what I call "Humanoids": 1/3-1/2 standard HP, old MM1 damage expression (as an average, they don't roll damage just like a minion), half XP, simple monster design with no encounter powers or reactions. Any of these options is easier to handle at the table, makes for faster combat, and lets you use lots of enemies without totally overwhelming the PCs. Remember to make frequent use of waves. [*]After they first roll initiative, stay in initiative count while raiding the castle. It will save time and emphasize that the threat is far from over. [*]Come up with a list of "escalate options" in advance that explain why PCs cannot normally rest in the castle. How do the orcs use their resources to repel invaders? For example: pound gong to alert other orcs, threaten the hostages, close the portcullis, position orcish archers at ramparts (if not there already), unleash a strong monster (e.g. Ogre or krenshars) in courtyard, break down a wall PCs are brhind or smoke them out, etc. [*]If PCs do manage to take a short rest in the castle thru clever thinking or magic, have the orcs make use of those 5 minutes as well...barricade door/gate X and Y, pour boiling tar down passage Z, gather reinforcements who were patrolling outside the castle, stage an ambush outside of where PCs are resting, etc. [*]4e's milestone mechanic is easy to forget. It can be "every 2 encounters" or you can define mission appropriate objectives that count as milestones. Also, in a series of back-to-back encounters like this castle raid sounds like it will become, you can also let each PC recharge an encounter power at a milestone (or whatever dramatic point you think is appropriate), since they probably won't be resting. [*]You can still keep a bit of exploration, just do so in the context of imminent threat and urgency. If the players dawdle, hit them with an escalate option. The orcs worked hard to sack this castle, so they'll work hard to defend it from the PCs![/LIST] [/QUOTE]
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