D&D 5E Quests From The Infinite Staircase

[Lazybones]

In an effort to understand D&D better (I have only ever been a player in a long-term homebrew 5E campaign), I started reading Quests from the Infinite Staircase and the 2024 DMG.

For Infinite Staircase, I've gotten through the first module, The Lost City, and I have a few questions.

1. If a character with a Passive Perception equal to or higher than the DC approached close enough to the door to notice any signs (e.g., scrape marks on the floor, a slight gap in the blocks of the wall), I would give them a hint. Otherwise they have to make an active check to find secret doors.

2. If the party is using a light source (remember that using only Darkvision applies Disadvantage to Perception checks), the stirges should wake and attack immediately. I would be fine giving them surprise, especially since Surprise isn't as big a deal in 2024 as it was in the 2014 rules. If a) no character with a light source was standing close to the door when it was opened, and b) a character said they were looking around after hearing the room description, I would have them automatically notice the stirges since they aren't really "hiding" per se. But if they just waltzed on in holding a torch or making noise, it would be time for Initiative.

3. I will often add a bit of miscellaneous description to "empty" rooms for flavor, your idea is a good one.

4. There's no way I'd use the encounter provided with a low-level party. As you note the adventure indicates that the level holding Zargon is completely optional, and should probably only be used if the DM has fleshed out the underground city with sufficient content to bring the party up to a reasonable level, or if they are able to leave the pyramid and return once they have gained sufficient experience to be able to handle a CR17 opponent. I don't particularly like the idea of a far superior monster tormenting player characters that don't really have any chance of beating it.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

For Infinite Staircase, I've gotten through the first module, The Lost City, and I have a few questions.

1. Experienced players will likely check periodically for secret doors as a matter of course, but I assume these are new players, so you should give them hints.

2. Inexperienced players will most likely stumble in and wake the stirges. If someone tries to sneak in, grab the loot, and run back out again, assume they are too focused to look at the ceiling, unless they say something like "I look around the room carefully for any threats". Make the stealth check. If players somehow manage to enter the room without waking the stirges, then someone will probably say something like "I look around for anything valuable", at which point they notice the stirges. But remember to take light levels into account. If the players are overwhelmed by stirges, subtly encourage them to run away and slam the door.

3. The original adventure was intended to get a DM started on a campaign, so it had levels full of empty rooms. Put something in them if you think of something interesting, but feel free to leave them empty as an indicator that this is a dying civilisation. In the novella that inspired this adventure, Red Nails (REH), Conan and Valeria search through lots of empty rooms before encountering anything.

4. As already mentioned, the original adventure was designed to start a campaign, with this guy as the final boss. If your players are working for Nalfas, they have no reason to confront him at all. Players just need to report back to Nalfas that the people are beyond saving (if you want to stay faithful to the original source material). If players do encounter the boss, it's time for you to put on your ham actor hat and roleplay him as a scenery-chewing villain, but one who finds the PCs too entertaining to be bothered obliterating them. He might say something like "Send Nalfas my regards, I'll be coming for him later".

 

[Paul Farquhar]

Oh, if anyone is interested, I have just started running expedition to the Barrier Peaks from this book.

 

[Parmandur]

Oh, if anyone is interested, I have just started running expedition to the Barrier Peaks from this book.

The most completely changed of the Adventures here, interesting stuff.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

The most completely changed of the Adventures here, interesting stuff.

I’m noticing what hasn’t been changed, compared to modern adventures. It’s still still spacious, has lots of empty rooms, and large numbers of enemies per encounter. It does have a suggested talk to the veggies approach.

 

[Parmandur]

I’m noticing what hasn’t been changed, compared to modern adventures. It’s still still spacious, has lots of empty rooms, and large numbers of enemies per encounter. It does have a suggested talk to the veggies approach.

It is a pretty cool mix of fidelity to tge original vibe while massively streamlining it: still lots of space to get that cavernous feel, but waaaaaaaaay smaller in direct comparison.

I'm so happy thst the map us color coded for the keycards.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

It is a pretty cool mix of fidelity to tge original vibe while massively streamlining it: still lots of space to get that cavernous feel, but waaaaaaaaay smaller in direct comparison.

I'm so happy thst the map us color coded for the keycards.

I kind of miss the Hello Nurse! android art.

 

[el-remmen]

I’ve been running my own conversion of When a Star Falls but decided to check this book for gibberling stats and was surprised (maybe I shouldn’t have been) that they have been turned into fiends (like gnolls, I guess. And like gnolls, I guess I’ll be keeping them as humanoids).

 

[Wolfpack48]

I’ve been running my own conversion of When a Star Falls but decided to check this book for gibberling stats and was surprised (maybe I shouldn’t have been) that they have been turned into fiends (like gnolls, I guess. And like gnolls, I guess I’ll be keeping them as humanoids).

Not really paying attention to this but I do find all these new classifications kinda confusing.

 

[Parmandur]

I’ve been running my own conversion of When a Star Falls but decided to check this book for gibberling stats and was surprised (maybe I shouldn’t have been) that they have been turned into fiends (like gnolls, I guess. And like gnolls, I guess I’ll be keeping them as humanoids).

Yeah, this changeover gas been going on for about 4 years now across the line.