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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Stormonu" data-source="post: 5710845" data-attributes="member: 52734"><a href="http://community.wizards.com/stormonu/blog/2009/10/29/night_of_the_walking_dead_part_2_encounter_3" target="_blank">Night of the Walking Dead, Part 2, Encounter 3</a>   Thursday, October 29, 2009, 02:31 AM CST [<a href="http://community.wizards.com/stormonu/blog/cat/dungeons_and_dragons" target="_blank">Dungeons & Dragons</a>]      You can download the original module at <a href="http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/dnd/downloads.%C2%A0" target="_blank">www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/dnd/do...</a> You will need the module for the story, background and plot.  I will only be presenting the updated/revised encounters here.  Night of the Walking Dead, Part 2, Encounter 3 - The Madman Strikes (EL 2 - 664 XP)  Jean Tarascon sees the characters as a growing threat and he uses a foul ritual to multiply and turn the pieces of his ghoulish feasts into a deadly swarm to destroy the characters in an ambush.  Setup  The following creatures are used for this encounter  3 Crawling Claws ("C", Open Grave, p142)  2 Crawling Claw Swarm ("S", Open Grave, p142)  3 Tomb Motes ("T", Open Grave, p144)  1 Clay Scout ("H", MM, p156 - guarding the gate to the Full Moon Inn)  Read the following to start the encounter  As you pass the Full Moon Inn to your next stop, you see a rat-sized blur flash past you and into a nearby bush.  It takes you a moment to realize what you saw was a dismembered hand when you suddenly notice another such hand scuttling on the porch of a nearby cottage, clamoring to keep up with your pace.  Your observation is quickly followed by a rising, scuttling sound - like that of a swarm of approaching rats - when suddenly from around the corner, ahead and behind you, a tumbling wave of dismembered, clawing, leaping, running hands scuttles towards your group.  DM's Map[ATTACH]91345[/ATTACH]  <a href="http://community.wizards.com/stormonu/gallery/view_gallery.one?pid=91390301" target="_blank"></a><a href="http://community.wizards.com/stormonu/gallery/view_gallery.one?pid=91390301" target="_blank"></a>  Player's Map  [ATTACH]91346[/ATTACH]<a href="http://community.wizards.com/stormonu/gallery/view_gallery.one?pid=91390151" target="_blank"></a><a href="http://community.wizards.com/stormonu/gallery/view_gallery.one?pid=91390151" target="_blank"></a>  Buildings:  There are four unnumbered buildings marked on the map, showing the exterior.  The villagers have (wisely) locked their doors and refuse to open up unless a character makes a successful Hard Intimidation skill check.  The NPCs inside will then let the PCs in, but under no circumstance will they come out to fight.  Bushes:  There are rows of overgrown bushes/hedges around the block of houses and growing up the outer wall of the Full Moon Inn.  The bushes are about 5 feet tall and are considered heavily obscured squares.  Creatures in the bushes gain concealment.  Cottage (Mordu) #6:  This is Mordu's cottage.  Any character who makes a successful Hard Perception check will see the former accountant sneaking a peak at the events outside.  Like the others, he will not open his doors and keeps the windows shuddered unless the characters make a successful Hard Diplomacy or Intimidation check to get in.  However, if characters take refuge in his house, the claws swarm the windows, prying/smashing them open and flooding into the building (along with the tomb motes).  Cottage (General Store) #7:  This is Deruno the dwarf's general store.  Like the others, he locks his cottage and closes the shudders when the attack starts.  If characters make a successful Hard Diplomacy check, Deruno opens his doors and is willing to give the PCs shelter.  Like the cottage above, if the characters hide in the general store, the crawling claws flood into the building to continue the attack.  Cottage (Blacksmith) #8:  This is home to  Jordi and Nadine.  Under no circumstances, either via Diplomacy or Intimidation, will Jordi open the door.  If the characters attempt to force their way in, Jordi physically drives them out, using his smithing hammer (treat as warhammer, with Jordi having the stats of a Human Bandit).  Cypress Trees:  A clump of three cypruss trees grows between the houses in the middle of the map.  These cypress trees are about 20 feet tall.  They can be climbed with an Easy Athletics check.  They provide cover from melee and ranged attacks, and the upper branches (at least 15 feet up) are considered lighty obscured squares and grant concealment to those in the branches.  Gate:  This thick wooden gate seals off entry to the Full Moon Inn near the top of the map.  The clay scout has closed and locked the gate, filling the keyhole with detrius to make it nearly impossible to open (Hard + 2 Thievery skill check to open the gate).  It takes 120 hp of damage to break the gate open.  The gate is 8' high, and no one on the other side will come to the PCs aid.  Gazebo:  Centered near the middle of the map, this open building provides cover against melee attacks for those inside, but provides no bonus against melee attacks.  The gazebo is immune to damage.  Wall:  In the topmost section of the map is the outer wall that harbors the Full Moon Inn.  It is 15 feet tall and made of mortared stones.  The top of the wall is about 5 feet wide and can be easily walked or run along.  Characters can safely jump down in the sections not obscured by hedges.  If they jump down or fall into a hedge, they must make a saving throw or take 1d6 damage.  Mood  While this is mostly a straight-up fight, you can play up the disgusting attributes of the severed hands and the soup-stock remnants of the tomb motes and the swarming nature of these creature's attacks.  You might want to describe the clay scout as "pudding-like", made more of congealed blood than clay.  Development  The crawling claws move and strike, trying to hamper PCs from moving around, holding them in place long enough for the crawling claw swarms to envelope the PCs.  The claw swarms attempt to enter the space of the nearest character and overwhelm the victim until destroyed or the PC is dead.  The clay scout has closed the gate to the Full Moon Inn and will attack any character who attempts to open the door, prefering to strike from its cover in the bushes.  The tomb motes hang back to try and isolate a character and swarm him.  If any PC attempts to get help from one of the cottages, they are a prime target for attack.  Aftermath  Once the characters dispatch the creatures, a quick search of the area finds a small stash of red licorice near the gate to the Full Moon Inn.  There is a piece for each character, and the tip has been dipped in foul-smelling blood.  After the attack, the characters are free to continue to their next destination; Jean has been thwarted for now, but will not remain idle for long.  If any of the characters fall during the attack, the crawling claws or tomb motes attempt to drag the unfortunate character off to the cemetery to be made into a zombie.</blockquote>

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