Modifying Rappan Athuk I, II, and III

SHARK

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Greetings!

Modifying Rappan Athuk I, II, and III

I am running a group of about 25 characters of approximately 4th level, composed of both player characters and non-player characters. I am contemplating running the group through the Rappan Athuk series of modules, and I thought it would be interesting to read some of your thoughts on running these modules with such an assault force invading the caverns. The modules themselves are geared for the standard adventuring group, and I have some concern over how the defenses might interact with such a assault group. How would you modify the Rappan Athuk modules to accomodate such an assault force?

Semper Fidelis,

SHARK
 

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Though I'm sure you probably know this, you might get a much larger response over at the Necromancer Games forums... they have a section specifically dedicated to Rappan Athuk (and they'd probably love to help with this situation).

www.necromancergames.com
 

First of all, SHARK, let me just say...

Oh, my dear Lord.

Second, let me say that the forces probably wouldn't act a whole lot differently. They are very insular level to level, and section by section. I would note the power groups (I won't dig into spoilers here), and if there are groups that would stick together then they would likely get very organized in opposed force once they caught wind of the huge force coming.

That force would be very much similar to the original invasion by the forces of good 100 years ago (from the backstory). In fact, you could have some fun with the fallen from the group coming back as ghosts and undead... :)
 


In my opinion, no modification is needed beyond sensible strategies by the lords of Rappan Athuk - who, by the way, know the maze inside out while the players don't.

As I said on the Necro boards, a large army of assailants would immediately attract the attention of all bandit groups in the area, not to mention the spies working for the Master. This would also fundamentally alter the way the adventure runs: the original premise (as in most such adventures) is that the opponents are mostly unaware and the player characters take the battle to them.

Not in this case. The Orcus clergy would react with all of their might. They wouldn't even think twice about sealing certain passages to block advancing foes for a while. Also, the low levels would send massive amounts of troops from below, through the transporter from Tomb of Abysthor (if I recall correctly and such a device exists...) and from big Goathead's home plane.

Also unlike other dungeon expeditions, the party may not be able to return and rest. Imagine if they find that they have just descended to level 2, killed everyone and realized that on the way back, the crushing ceiling of the Mausoleum is down , and stays that way. Naturally, the dirt tunnels from level II are also out of the question - ridiculously easy to destroy. They must now find an alternate route... No teleportation at 4th level! Thus, the Well could be a natural way (level 3, river, level 3A), but the Well is under the command of General Zelkor, an unfailing servant of Orcus! The Well also has two supply routes to and from lower levels - 7A with Phase Minotaurs, 6A with several kinds of Spiders and the surface... If the Graveyard is not secured, the party may find themselves on the defensive, where the enemy has access to more minions from the surface!

Of course, not all is lost, since countering an invasion force will mean a large degree of mobilization. This upsets the power structure of a Chaotic Evil organization - several sub-factions may find this upheaval a great opportunit to shove foes in harm's way, use sabotage to let them destroyed, raid on their own (since there will be no time to investigate in the case of great turmoil) or even provide the party with subtle hints and aid! If the characters are lucky, don't let themselves be trapped and always keep one step ahead of foes, they can cause enough havoc to accomplish whatever goals they have and escape. If they stay and fight, they will fare like Bofred's group - they will be slowly ground up and annihilated, since the Master has more resources and, knows the dungeon's layout [there are several connections which could be used for complicated, elaborate supply routes and ways to set up ambushes].

That's how I would do things. :D
 

MeepoTheMighty said:
25 characters? At ONCE?? How long does it take you to get through a round of combat?

Thats exactly what I was thinking. Reminds me of some Talisman games from years ago with similar numbers..it was like 20 minutes between turns.
 
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Melan said:
In my opinion, no modification is needed beyond sensible strategies by the lords of Rappan Athuk - who, by the way, know the maze inside out while the players don't.

As I said on the Necro boards, a large army of assailants would immediately attract the attention of all bandit groups in the area, not to mention the spies working for the Master. This would also fundamentally alter the way the adventure runs: the original premise (as in most such adventures) is that the opponents are mostly unaware and the player characters take the battle to them.

Not in this case. The Orcus clergy would react with all of their might. They wouldn't even think twice about sealing certain passages to block advancing foes for a while. Also, the low levels would send massive amounts of troops from below, through the transporter from Tomb of Abysthor (if I recall correctly and such a device exists...) and from big Goathead's home plane.

Also unlike other dungeon expeditions, the party may not be able to return and rest. Imagine if they find that they have just descended to level 2, killed everyone and realized that on the way back, the crushing ceiling of the Mausoleum is down , and stays that way. Naturally, the dirt tunnels from level II are also out of the question - ridiculously easy to destroy. They must now find an alternate route... No teleportation at 4th level! Thus, the Well could be a natural way (level 3, river, level 3A), but the Well is under the command of General Zelkor, an unfailing servant of Orcus! The Well also has two supply routes to and from lower levels - 7A with Phase Minotaurs, 6A with several kinds of Spiders and the surface... If the Graveyard is not secured, the party may find themselves on the defensive, where the enemy has access to more minions from the surface!

Of course, not all is lost, since countering an invasion force will mean a large degree of mobilization. This upsets the power structure of a Chaotic Evil organization - several sub-factions may find this upheaval a great opportunit to shove foes in harm's way, use sabotage to let them destroyed, raid on their own (since there will be no time to investigate in the case of great turmoil) or even provide the party with subtle hints and aid! If the characters are lucky, don't let themselves be trapped and always keep one step ahead of foes, they can cause enough havoc to accomplish whatever goals they have and escape. If they stay and fight, they will fare like Bofred's group - they will be slowly ground up and annihilated, since the Master has more resources and, knows the dungeon's layout [there are several connections which could be used for complicated, elaborate supply routes and ways to set up ambushes].

That's how I would do things. :D

So you're saying that probably the modules would be a lot harder with 25 characters instead of 4 to 6...


I like it! :D
 

As I said on the Necro boards, a large army of assailants would immediately attract the attention of all bandit groups in the area, not to mention the spies working for the Master. This would also fundamentally alter the way the adventure runs: the original premise (as in most such adventures) is that the opponents are mostly unaware and the player characters take the battle to them.
Excellent point, Melan. If the party brings a large force, the enemy notices them and concentrates force against them.
 

Greetings!

Indeed, Melan, thankyou. I like your suggestions! The priests of Orcus shall be busy indeed bringing up reinforcements to the upper levels!:) The party should experience sheer terror!:) Gotta love it!

mmadsen: Hey there! Yeah, the larger force will of course be seen by the defending forces. Intelligence will reach back to their leaders, who will respond accordingly. The forces aren't just going to stay in their rooms and wait for the players to come knocking!:)

Semper Fidelis,

SHARK
 

It's a really tough module so it shouldn't be too hard to challenge a group of 25 adventurers; just don't tone it down as much as you would for a regular group :D

Also, the adventurer group is bringing their own supply of undead minions-Resident Evil in Rappan Athuk!
 

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