FitzTheRuke
Legend
So I TPK'd my 2nd level party last night in KotS.
Quick story: We've been playing 4E for over a month, so my PCs were just turning 2nd level when I got KotS, and I've got six of them: Eladrin Fighter, Human Cleric, Human Paladin (both of an unaligned Death God), Tiefling Wizard, Elf Rogue, Half-Elf Ranger. So at the start of the adventure, this party "balances" encounters at 750xp rather than the 500xp that it's written for. So I've been adding 200-300xp to each encounter.
What happened is not a big surprise, for those of you who are running it:
[Sblock]The Kobold lair is an insane encounter. I added "only" one dragonshield and one Skirmisher (I knew it would be hard, but I figured, this was written for 5 first-levels, right?) and I had Irontooth WEAR the +1 Dwarven Chain (What? I can't stand when monsters don't use their treasure. He's a big goblin, and he had it "taken in" a bit.)
They were doing really well at first, they dispatched the ambush on the road and blasted the kobolds outside the lair (stopping any from raising the alarm quite handily). I'd warned them to be on the lookout for encounters that were purposefully scaled against them. They were pretty ready for this being a tough fight. They'd done fine for the first three rounds agianst the minions and the skirmishers, but when Irontooth, the Wyrmpriest, and the Dragonshields came out it all started to go wrong.
Our Ranger (with a multiclass Warlord feat) called the retreat, and it looked like it might be okay, as everyone got out and were picking off the leftover minions and skirmishers who Irontooth ordered to chase the rout, but when Irontooth himself leapt through the waterfall landing next to the rogue, and proceded to pound him (and the paladin, who was flanking for the rogue) into unconciousness it all went really wrong. The Cleric risked an Op Attack to help (idiot) and went down too. The Wyrmpriest fired orbs at the Wizard and Ranger (as usual the only two to REALLY retreat) and the last skirmisher and two dragonshields surrounded the fighter on the other side of the river to the fight with Irontooth.
Soon enough, I had a TPK on my hands. Much to the frustration of the Ranger, who'd not only been trying to get everyone to REALLY retreat, but couldn't roll higher than a 6 for about 9 rounds in a row. Irontooth couldn't roll lower than a 15.[/sblock]
So, a TPK. I put alot of work into making those characters, and I wasn't looking forward to making new ones AGAIN (I had a partial TPK three weeks ago where half the party was lost, or as my wife called it an HPK.)
But I got to thinking. None of them were DEAD as the encounter ended. They were "just" unconscious. The module has a few possibilities within it for story reasons why the party might be captured rather than killed outright:
[Sblock]
1: The underpriest's sacrifices. Where do you think all the blood in area 18 & 19 is from?
2: The hobgoblin Bloodreavers. The Hobgoblin Warchief is already thinking about selling slaves, as mentioned in area 14
3: The cellblock next to the torture chamber in Area 2. Torture the party for information - and fun. [/sblock]
It's going to be tough on them, but here's how it will go next week:
[sblock] Irontooth decides to send a runner (one of the dragonshields) to the Keep, to ask Kalarel what he wants done with them. Sure enough, Balgron won't let the dragonshield get that far. "The master must not be disturbed!" But he's heard from the Hobgoblins about selling slaves, so he sends some goblins with the slave-wagon (left by the now-dead bloodreavers, and used to capture prisoners used in the Underpriest's sacrifices) to pick up the party.
The party are beaten silly and only half-remember the trip to the Keep in a haze. They've been stripped of all their gear (sorry guys, but they would!) and Irontooth kept most of it for himself, while he recruits more kobolds for the lair, but some things he sends with them. Irontooth is given a reward for them. He thinks it's from Kalarel, but it's really from Balgron, as no-one of higher authority than Balgron and Irontooth know about the party yet.
They are sent to the cells. This process takes most of the night, and the somewhat nocturnal Balgron turns in in the morning, leaving his torturers to enjoy some time with the party, while he contemplates the ritches he will get when he contacts the Bloodreavers.
[/Sblock]
I'm going to allow the party to have what I'll call a "partial" extended rest, and have them come to at their "bloodied" HP value, and give them their second wind, an action point, and their pick of two encounter powers OR one daily (not the wizard on the daily, her spellbook is - lucky for her - still hidden in the forrest where they left their backpacks - the kobolds and goblins would have destroyed it.) They will be in their cells, some of them bound as well, and I will start a Skill Challenge to escape.
[sblock]I'll have Splug have secreted a dagger into the prison, so if they promise to let him go or intimidate him, he will give them the only weapon they will have. I'll probably have the torturer grap the pally or cleric and strap 'em to the rack. The goblins have the Holy symbols, but they've probably at least defaced them.[/sblock]
If the party makes it back to town, it'll be at Interlude 3, and Lord Padraig will, while being a little unimpressed that the party got themselves captured and disarmed, need all the help he can get and have his guard captain gear them back up (with mundane gear, anyway). Perhaps I will have the shopkeep give them some better stuff on a "pay me later" basis. Depends on how screwed the players are feeling by that point.
What do you think? Feel free to use it if you have a similar situation. If you're nicer than me you can have the party's gear thrown in the cage in the torture chamber.
Any comments?
Fitz
Quick story: We've been playing 4E for over a month, so my PCs were just turning 2nd level when I got KotS, and I've got six of them: Eladrin Fighter, Human Cleric, Human Paladin (both of an unaligned Death God), Tiefling Wizard, Elf Rogue, Half-Elf Ranger. So at the start of the adventure, this party "balances" encounters at 750xp rather than the 500xp that it's written for. So I've been adding 200-300xp to each encounter.
What happened is not a big surprise, for those of you who are running it:
[Sblock]The Kobold lair is an insane encounter. I added "only" one dragonshield and one Skirmisher (I knew it would be hard, but I figured, this was written for 5 first-levels, right?) and I had Irontooth WEAR the +1 Dwarven Chain (What? I can't stand when monsters don't use their treasure. He's a big goblin, and he had it "taken in" a bit.)
They were doing really well at first, they dispatched the ambush on the road and blasted the kobolds outside the lair (stopping any from raising the alarm quite handily). I'd warned them to be on the lookout for encounters that were purposefully scaled against them. They were pretty ready for this being a tough fight. They'd done fine for the first three rounds agianst the minions and the skirmishers, but when Irontooth, the Wyrmpriest, and the Dragonshields came out it all started to go wrong.
Our Ranger (with a multiclass Warlord feat) called the retreat, and it looked like it might be okay, as everyone got out and were picking off the leftover minions and skirmishers who Irontooth ordered to chase the rout, but when Irontooth himself leapt through the waterfall landing next to the rogue, and proceded to pound him (and the paladin, who was flanking for the rogue) into unconciousness it all went really wrong. The Cleric risked an Op Attack to help (idiot) and went down too. The Wyrmpriest fired orbs at the Wizard and Ranger (as usual the only two to REALLY retreat) and the last skirmisher and two dragonshields surrounded the fighter on the other side of the river to the fight with Irontooth.
Soon enough, I had a TPK on my hands. Much to the frustration of the Ranger, who'd not only been trying to get everyone to REALLY retreat, but couldn't roll higher than a 6 for about 9 rounds in a row. Irontooth couldn't roll lower than a 15.[/sblock]
So, a TPK. I put alot of work into making those characters, and I wasn't looking forward to making new ones AGAIN (I had a partial TPK three weeks ago where half the party was lost, or as my wife called it an HPK.)
But I got to thinking. None of them were DEAD as the encounter ended. They were "just" unconscious. The module has a few possibilities within it for story reasons why the party might be captured rather than killed outright:
[Sblock]
1: The underpriest's sacrifices. Where do you think all the blood in area 18 & 19 is from?
2: The hobgoblin Bloodreavers. The Hobgoblin Warchief is already thinking about selling slaves, as mentioned in area 14
3: The cellblock next to the torture chamber in Area 2. Torture the party for information - and fun. [/sblock]
It's going to be tough on them, but here's how it will go next week:
[sblock] Irontooth decides to send a runner (one of the dragonshields) to the Keep, to ask Kalarel what he wants done with them. Sure enough, Balgron won't let the dragonshield get that far. "The master must not be disturbed!" But he's heard from the Hobgoblins about selling slaves, so he sends some goblins with the slave-wagon (left by the now-dead bloodreavers, and used to capture prisoners used in the Underpriest's sacrifices) to pick up the party.
The party are beaten silly and only half-remember the trip to the Keep in a haze. They've been stripped of all their gear (sorry guys, but they would!) and Irontooth kept most of it for himself, while he recruits more kobolds for the lair, but some things he sends with them. Irontooth is given a reward for them. He thinks it's from Kalarel, but it's really from Balgron, as no-one of higher authority than Balgron and Irontooth know about the party yet.
They are sent to the cells. This process takes most of the night, and the somewhat nocturnal Balgron turns in in the morning, leaving his torturers to enjoy some time with the party, while he contemplates the ritches he will get when he contacts the Bloodreavers.
[/Sblock]
I'm going to allow the party to have what I'll call a "partial" extended rest, and have them come to at their "bloodied" HP value, and give them their second wind, an action point, and their pick of two encounter powers OR one daily (not the wizard on the daily, her spellbook is - lucky for her - still hidden in the forrest where they left their backpacks - the kobolds and goblins would have destroyed it.) They will be in their cells, some of them bound as well, and I will start a Skill Challenge to escape.
[sblock]I'll have Splug have secreted a dagger into the prison, so if they promise to let him go or intimidate him, he will give them the only weapon they will have. I'll probably have the torturer grap the pally or cleric and strap 'em to the rack. The goblins have the Holy symbols, but they've probably at least defaced them.[/sblock]
If the party makes it back to town, it'll be at Interlude 3, and Lord Padraig will, while being a little unimpressed that the party got themselves captured and disarmed, need all the help he can get and have his guard captain gear them back up (with mundane gear, anyway). Perhaps I will have the shopkeep give them some better stuff on a "pay me later" basis. Depends on how screwed the players are feeling by that point.
What do you think? Feel free to use it if you have a similar situation. If you're nicer than me you can have the party's gear thrown in the cage in the torture chamber.
Any comments?
Fitz
