Need Guidance on running a large group

[erleni]

Well, you probably don't need to retool a solo at all--just add supporting troops. Instead of 9 PCs on one solo dragon, you send them up against a dragon + 4 regular creatures, or maybe a dragon plus 6 regular creatures. You can also try things like 9 PCs on 2 solos, but that will in many ways be like a normal 5 PCs on 1 solo fight--it can work, but the solo really needs to be up to snuff.

I would also suggest to look for solos with multiple turns (like the behir). They have a larger-than-life pool of actions and with some lackeys support will be perfect for a large group.

 

[GameDoc]

I like the suggestions to effectively create more than one encounter group per area. Basically the party will face two squads or units of monsters, and I can always drop one unit from the encounter if we lose some players.

Also, I like the suggestion of having solos not be solo and ensuring they have multiple actions.

Keep those suggestions coming!

 

[GameDoc]

So, the next session is upcoming this Thursday, Using the advice offered here, this is my plan:




1. I capped the group to 10 characters.

• I gave the 10th spot to a friend who has DM'd with 4e before. I can use him as an "assisstant DM" if the need arises.
• I won't take on new players until an existing one drops out.
• I plan on asking the players to arrange themselves at the table so that those who haven't played 4e before this game have a "veteran" next to them who can answer basic questions.

2. I created two squads of monsters @ 500 XP each.

• The second sqaud is easy to whittle down if players don't show so that the encoutner stays on target (100 XP per character), or if half the players don't show, I will just drop it altogether.
• I doubled the damage of all monster attacks and halved the HP of the non-minions.
• Please feel free to give feedback on the monster squads below.

THE SCENARIO:

A noble and his enterage are expected in town, but only a lone rider shows up, injured and panicked. He reports that the enterage was attacked by goblins on the road and the noble was taken captive. All others but were slain. The party is deployed to track down the goblns and try to rescue the prisoner.

First is a fairly basic skill challenge of tracking the goblins from the scene of the attack, through the forest, and finally to a swampy bog, where the goblins are hiding out in a stolen river barge. Recon shows 4 goblins on watch. However the characters decide to take on the challenge they will find:



Squad #1

• 4 Goblin Snipers = Minions (i.e., the guards)
• 1 Goblin Beast Marshal = Skirmisher (de facto leader)
• 3 Poison Beeltes = Brutes (reskinned fire beetles, because who would bring fire beetles on a wooden ship?)

Squad #2 (which will be redced as needed for a smaller party):

• 1 Goblin Hex Hulrer = Controller/Leader
• Up to 14 Goblin Snipers = Minions (the first 10 will actually engage in melee).

Notes:

• The 4 snipers/guards, armed with bows, will be posted on the maind deck, whihc is the same level on which the party has to board (and where the battle will presumable take place). The party could eliminate one or all of them if they are sneaky.
• The beast marshal will be in a cabin on the main deck and try to emerge undetected when alerted.
• The beetles are in the cargo hold and will emerge on the deck the round after the beast marshal signals for them.
• Up to 10 snipers (who will serve as melee troops) are in the cabin with the marshal and will deploy, using the beetles as their front line.
• The hexer and any remaining snipers (artillery) emerge on the upper deck above the main cabin.

So, any last minute advice would be appreciated. We'll see how this works.

 

[frankthedm]

• Be clean or be gone. You stink of B.O. or fragrance, You leave.
• Have your own powers printed up / Photocopied / on card
• Players sit in order of initiative bonus.
• Player group gets one initiative roll and take their tuns in that order
• Delaying requires the person to change seats for the duration of the battle.

 

[Crazy Jerome]

First is a fairly basic skill challenge of tracking the goblins from the scene of the attack, through the forest, and finally to a swampy bog, where the goblins are hiding out in a stolen river barge.

Too late to help you before the session, and probably doesn't matter in an intro, but going forward, I'd try to have two skill challenges, each suitable for around five characters. (Same as with having two encounters. You can also have a skill challenge and a combat encounter mixed.)

For example, you have one skill challenge as you listed. The other one is maybe something like concealing the party from the goblins and other denizens of the area, while the tracking goes on. That example is kind of lame, as it is essentially splitting a core idea into two parts mechanically, when they could just as easily overlaps. It is difficult to provide a better example without more context. I will say that if you try to do this, it gets easier and better, very rapidly and naturally.

(If I were doing something like this intro, there would be another, mostly unrelated hook in town, perhaps a thieves guild, a corrupt mayor, or whatever. The second skill challenge would be about that. )

This is also handy for enforcing failure. If you have a skill challenge sufficient for 10 characters, it almost has to be fairly large. That means failure can be quite nasty, if pushed to its logical conclusion. I use "partial failures" in skill challenges as well, to mitigate this. But its easier to be hardcore with the results of one skill challenge if the challenge is appropriate for half the party.

 

[GameDoc]

Too late to help you before the session, and probably doesn't matter in an intro, but going forward, I'd try to have two skill challenges, each suitable for around five characters. (Same as with having two encounters. You can also have a skill challenge and a combat encounter mixed.)

For example, you have one skill challenge as you listed. The other one is maybe something like concealing the party from the goblins and other denizens of the area, while the tracking goes on. That example is kind of lame, as it is essentially splitting a core idea into two parts mechanically, when they could just as easily overlaps. It is difficult to provide a better example without more context. I will say that if you try to do this, it gets easier and better, very rapidly and naturally.

(If I were doing something like this intro, there would be another, mostly unrelated hook in town, perhaps a thieves guild, a corrupt mayor, or whatever. The second skill challenge would be about that. )

This is also handy for enforcing failure. If you have a skill challenge sufficient for 10 characters, it almost has to be fairly large. That means failure can be quite nasty, if pushed to its logical conclusion. I use "partial failures" in skill challenges as well, to mitigate this. But its easier to be hardcore with the results of one skill challenge if the challenge is appropriate for half the party.

Actually, the session is in T-4hrs and this is a good suggestion on the skill challenge. I was worried about that part dragging on. I am going to have them split up in two groups and have each group run the skill challenge seperately.

Thanks!