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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Byrons_Ghost" data-source="post: 4443511" data-attributes="member: 7396">I have a smaller group (4-5 PCs) and we only meet once or twice a month, so I've been scaling back the module some. I removed a number of encounters that seemed either redundant or pointless, including:the burial sitethe 2nd kobold ambush on the way to the cavesthe expedition roomthe entire cavern complex on the first floorthe room of the infinite undeadAs it is, we've been playing since June, and the PCs have just now defeated Balgrim, so the pace we're moving at definately calls for the module to be trimmed. We average about 2-3 encounters per night, I'd say. I'll probably drop one of the undead rooms in level 2, and the trap, and maybe the gelatinous cube (still haven't decided yet).Other things:Valthrun- I didn't like how the module has him string PCs along, or just not be present at first. So I had him be absent from his tower, and then had his disappearance work into the plot. Since I'd taken out the burial site, I moved the magical amulet and gave it to Irontooth. Inside the amulet was a picture of a woman, who the PCs learned was Valthrun's mother. This led them to suspect foul play, and they eventually found Valthrun imprisoned in the torture chamber at the Keep. Once they'd finally rescued him (rather than just waiting for the right time in the module to meet him), they were able to get most of the keep's back story (along with a couple of scrolls). They'll get the rest from Keegan's ghost when they meet him.Keegan- I'm not sure how I'm going to handle him, as I don't really like the Q & A in the module. My plan right now is to have them encounter a ghostly scene where Keegan is slaying his family. This is either Keegan's test to them, or he is actually trapped in this recurring haunt. Either way, stopping him will put the spirits to rest and earn Keegan's trust.Balgrim the fat- He was actually captured rather than killed. No one was fooled by his attempt to hide behind the curtain, and the strikers went straight for him while the defender kept the minions busy. The fight was over pretty quickly, and Balgrim surrendered. The PCs questioned him, then decided to take him to Lord Padraig for justice. Balgrim has been holding back some information, and will attempt to negotiate his freedom with Lord Padraig (he realizes the PCs won't let him go).Pigeons- The module never said how the keep, kobolds, and cult were communicating back and forth. Presumably Ninaren was acting as courier. The PCs would never learn that, so I had carrier pigeons discovered with the notes at the kobold and goblin caves. This let the PCs know that things were organized, and that there was a spy in town. I expected them to go after Ninaren (he sent them to the kobolds, after all) but they never did. I've also decided that a hobgoblin comes up from the keep every evening to look for a pigeon, and this will alert them to the fact that the goblins are dead.Billy the kobold- He replaced Splug in the torture chamber. Billy was the name given by the players to the incompetend kobold slinger at the kobold waterfall. Due to bad dice and the will of fate, the slinger never scored a single hit, so the party just ignored him in the first encounter. Then he ran into the cave, warned the others, and joined in the second fight- where he STILL didn't score a single hit. He finally ran away as the last survivor. The party joked about him being cross-eyed and a lousy shot, and that they should adopt him as an assistant. So I had him turn up in Splug's place- Billy ran to the goblins like a good minion, told them what happened, and was promptly beaten and imprisoned. He now works for the party, and has even managed to kill a goblin with is dagger. <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /></blockquote>

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