Post your Lair Assault Results Here (Spoilers)

[Nullzone]

As a Swordmage I want to kick this module's author in the shins. If you're going to screw entire class builds out of their distinctive features, you'd better damn well have given those builds plenty of warning about it so they can make an informed choice, or at least penalize the monsters to some extent as well, instead of allowing them to abuse that aspect with self-impunity.

Our group still won, but my character was flat out useless after round 4. It sucked.

 

[Saagael]

As a Swordmage I want to kick this module's author in the shins. If you're going to screw entire class builds out of their distinctive features, you'd better damn well have given those builds plenty of warning about it so they can make an informed choice, or at least penalize the monsters to some extent as well, instead of allowing them to abuse that aspect with self-impunity.

Our group still won, but my character was flat out useless after round 4. It sucked.

I'm not quite sure how this adventure invalidated the swordmage class. Why were you rendered useless?

 

[Nullzone]

I'm not quite sure how this adventure invalidated the swordmage class. Why were you rendered useless?

Because teleporting after round 4 was penalized by unresistable 10 fire damage to every creature in a burst 3 of the origin square (which most of the monsters resisted anyway so I couldn't even use it as a nuke). I couldn't enforce my mark or use most of my good attacks without nuking the party in the process.

 

[Saracenus]

I think your DM was off script. There is no effect making you blast your teammates when teleporting (I am prepping to run this next Sunday).

Now there may have been a monster that that I haven't gone over that will penalize you, but I sincerely doubt it.

And certainly when my wife's Eladrin Rogue bamfed after round 4 she didn't have this happen.

Don't blame the author...

My two fire blasted copper,

 

[Nullzone]

That's disappointing if that's the case, I wouldn't expect that from the guy who ran it for us. I'll have to see if I can get a look at the material (I don't really think it's possible to cheat since the DM has so much control over the game anyway, and once you've seen it once you know how the rounds are going to progress plus the general terrain features)...

 

[KarinsDad]

I think your DM was off script. There is no effect making you blast your teammates when teleporting (I am prepping to run this next Sunday).

Now there may have been a monster that that I haven't gone over that will penalize you, but I sincerely doubt it.

And certainly when my wife's Eladrin Rogue bamfed after round 4 she didn't have this happen.

Don't blame the author...

My two fire blasted copper,

You're mistaken.

Anyone teleporting and anyone within 3 squares of the teleporter takes 10 fire damage.

And, it occurs in round 1. You do not have to wait for round 4.

The offensive Swordmages are screwed. It is a screwup by WotC.

 

[Taed]

Our second time through was basically a win. We ran out of real-world time because the store was closing, but we were down to just the main baddie and all but one of us was at full HPs (and some temp HPs) with a zone of regeneration and 5 rounds left. So, we were probably going to win (though the DM was probably only 60% sure), though we don't know yet how tough the main baddie is, so that's just my feel.

The big difference the second time through was that we were all more focused on having regeneration and healing abilities. Two of us (Warden and Swordmage) had the Armor of Sudden Recovery, which gave us Regeneration 10 after being hit by the fire elemental. A third character also had it, but the DM had the elemental be smart about it and not fall into that trap.

We were also able to get a character with a rope and climbing kit across the lava room before the "walls came crashing down", so we set up a system to climb along the walls which went much better than jumping (especially since I was the only character with decent Athletics). Knocking down that wall was difficult as I was the only strong character and it was felt that there was only enough room for 1 character to aid me, so that took us about 6 rounds, but that also gave us extra time to use our regeneration and other healing.

Our goal is to finish it for real on our third attempt, and then try it on nightmare mode.

I also have to say that I just started using Fortune Cards with Lair Assault, and they've been an additional bit of fun and I used them twice today (a +2 move, allowing me to do a double-move to catch up to the party, and a free move, allowing me to get to the baddie across the room without doing a charge).

 

[Taed]

I think your DM was off script. There is no effect making you blast your teammates when teleporting (I am prepping to run this next Sunday).

I haven't read the module, but both DMs that I ran it with also had damage at the origin of a teleport, and I think it was also a burst 3 for 10 fire damage. So given that, I think that it must be written in there somewhere.

We actually used it against the baddies a bit, though we were also getting hurt ourselves, so I suspect those players will avoid it next time.

 

[Rerednaw]

[sblock=Dwarf Warden 5]====== Created Using Wizards of the Coast D&D Character Builder ======
Warvin, level 5
Dwarf, Warden
Build: Earth Warden
Guardian Might Option: Earthstrength
Auspicious Birth (Auspicious Birth Benefit)
Theme: Noble

FINAL ABILITY SCORES
STR 20, CON 18, DEX 10, INT 10, WIS 13, CHA 8

STARTING ABILITY SCORES
STR 17, CON 15, DEX 10, INT 10, WIS 13, CHA 8


AC: 23 Fort: 19 Ref: 15 Will: 15
HP: 65 Surges: 13 Surge Value: 16

TRAINED SKILLS
Athletics +10, Dungeoneering +10, Endurance +10, Nature +8

UNTRAINED SKILLS
Acrobatics –1, Arcana +2, Bluff +1, Diplomacy +1, Heal +3, History +2, Insight +3, Intimidate +1, Perception +3, Religion +2, Stealth –1, Streetwise +1, Thievery –1

POWERS
Basic Attack: Melee Basic Attack
Basic Attack: Ranged Basic Attack
Noble Utility: Noble Presence
Dwarf Racial Power: Dwarven Resilience
Warden Feature: Warden's Fury
Warden Feature: Warden's Grasp
Warden Attack 1: Weight of Earth
Warden Attack 1: Thorn Strike
Warden Attack 1: Thunder Ram Assault
Warden Attack 1: Form of Mountain's Thunder
Endurance Utility 2: Endure Pain
Warden Attack 3: Earthgrasp Strike
Warden Attack 5: Boiling Cloud

FEATS
Level 1: Dwarven Weapon Training
Level 2: Crippling Crush
Level 4: Bludgeon Expertise

ITEMS
Maw of the Guardian Craghammer +1 x1
Iron Armbands of Power (heroic tier) x1
Gauntlets of Ogre Power (heroic tier) x1
Heavy Shield x1
Magic Hide Armor +2 x1
Collar of Recovery +1 x1
====== End ======
[/sblock]

Here are the bonuses to Weight of Earth:

1d10(b2) Craghammer
+5 Str
+2 feat (DWT)
+2 item (IAoP)
+4 Con (Crippling Crush)
+4 Con (Maw of the Guardian)
+5 Str (Form of Mountain's Thunder)
+2 power (Gauntlets)

1d10(b2)+24, average is 30.5.

If I didn't feel expertise was so essential, I would have gone with barbarian MC for another +2.

Nice build!
Just have a few questions:
Crippling Crush is when you slow/immob a target on a hit. How do you get this for each attack per round?
Iron Armbands are L6,
+2 Armor is L6.
Don't have DM's kit, not sure what the level/price of a rare is (Gauntlets) so how are they obtained?
I thought the starting gear was L6, L5, L4, 840 gp, max 2 consumables of L5.
Neverwinter Noble has a race pre-req of human with possible half-elf/orc.

Still a pretty good starting point.

 

[Zuche]

The offensive Swordmages are screwed. It is a screwup by WotC.

That was not a screwup. I'm not going to feel bad because someone made an unfortunate build choice here. I'll commiserate with them on the basis of a bad roll, and I'll be glad to applaud them on a clever or lucky moment, but an unfortunate choice of build? In a campaign, sure, but here?

Live and learn, princess. As one of my players said, "If you can't stand repeat failures, grad school is not for you."

Sometimes, life's just not fair. Thank goodness this is only a game, where you can go back and try the whole thing again with a character that doesn't have that limitation. If you're feeling really bold, you could even decide to go back in with a party of five eladrin to earn bragging rights for winning despite having each party member teleport once within the burst radius of every other PC.

Seriously, KD, first you complained that modestly observant players could clue into the fact that fire protection was not a bad idea for this challenge, then you complain because there's a feature that can catch them completely offguard, maybe even kill them outright? Meanwhile, I thought the former was a nice treat for the forward thinking player, and the latter the sort of potential rude shock that made the original Tomb of Horrors a classic.