Rhenny
Adventurer
Since Basic has launched, we will be switching over, starting the Starter Set adventure some time this week. I'll be playing in that game, so I decided to wrap up the adventures of Fid, Darhgel, Nalcon, Fawnsworth, Rheagar and Triss.
This is the 2nd to last session in the campaign. We all loved participating in the playtest experience, and feel as if the game has allowed us to live through an interesting story.
******
Travensburg Campaign – Part 23 – 7/12/2014
“Into the Tower”
We played for about 2 ½ hours…3 players –– 7th level PCs – Continuing our Campaign
T’rissril Eilsndar the Drow Bard (not present)
Fid (the Dwarven Fighter who transformed into a Warforge Fighter)
Fawnsworth the Gnome Illusionist ex-jester (not present)
Nalcon the Noble Cleric of Pelor
Darhgel the Tiefling Evoker
Rhaegar the Dragonborn Paladin (Bounty Hunter – Oath of Vengeance Build - Acid) (not present)
Fid and Darhgel waited outside Abracadamus’ Tower. They were a little weary from their encounters, hoping that one or more of their companions would catch up to them before entering this site. A few hours later, Nalcon on horseback arrived. Together, the small group ascended the stone stairway that led to a door on the south side of the tower. The door was cracked open so the group peered inside after Nalcon created magical light within. Then he called upon his deity to grant Aid to all three of the heroes.
Close to the doorway, the group noticed a horrible stench of death and a strange bluish white light that crackled irregularly in the darkness. Fid pushed open the doors and found a half-dozen or more mangled humanoid bodies. Nalcon realized they were zombies, but for some reason they did not animate. After searching the ground floor of the tower, Fid found nearly a dozen of these cut up creatures. He also found two inward passages sealed by crackling electricity. Being cautious, Fid dragged all the dead bodies out into the snow and Nalcon performed a religious ritual using sacred flame to cleanse each body in turn.
Eventually, the group searched the areas near the electrical discharge, and Darhgel found that these arcane traps could only be bypassed by “the rightful owner.” Since Fid had the deed to the tower in his pack, he took it out and unraveled it. As he looked it over, he saw some of the writing on the deed flare brightly, the magic extinguishing the electrical surges so that the group could pass inside to a spiral staircase cut into stone, winding upward.
Fid took the lead, clattering up the stairway. When he got to the top, he saw a few skeletons in chainmail prepare for attack. The group pushed up to the 2nd floor landing and engaged 5 skeletons and a more powerful Chillborn Skeleton. Darhgel’s Thunderwave made short work of the normal skeletons, but the Chillborn was not so easily vanquished. His sharp talons raked Fid for icy damage, and as Fid stood near the creature, he felt icy cold chill him to the core. Ultimately, Fid’s powerful hammer attacks, shattered the Chillborn skeleton so the group explored further.
To the north, Darhgel noticed runes etched into the floor tiles. He could not deactivate them, but he did discern that they would trigger magical defenses. Before the others could do anything else, Darhgel found a skeleton ribcage and threw it on to the runes. They flared and brightened. Then he heard the sound of stone on stone, scraping, and the thumping of heavy footsteps coming toward him. The runes had transformed two statues into gollum creatures. Soon, Darhgel saw a hill giant gollum, stride towards him from the north. Nalcon, who was further south, spied a statue of a huge displacer beast, which also came to life. Waiting for the hill giant gollum to move forth, Fid readied his magical warhammer. When the creature moved up to Darhgel, and raised its mighty club, Fid sprung into action, smashing the beast with his weapon. On a solid hit, the weapon flashed with magical light and the hill giant gollum smashed to pieces right before the group. Fid’s pride shone nearly as brightly as the magic from the weapon. (Construct killer weapon CON 12 Save on Crit or destroy!!! Bad rolling by DM). On the other side of the corridor, Nalcon unleashed sacred flame to harm the displacer beast gollum, but then he moved back. The displacer beast rushed forward, and even with Nalcon’s flare, making it harder for the beast to connect, the beast slapped Nalcon on the side of the face with its tentacle. Darhgel was able to send rays of fire to damage the beast, and then Fid pushed up front and took another swing with his magical hammer. Bam, he hit the mark and again the construct beast went down.
After the others showed their appreciation and awe, Fid opened a nearby door and the group heard beautiful music from a box on a pedestal in the room. The tiles in the room were black with blood red veins, and on the north side of the room Fid saw a large weapon rack that held dozens of various weapons from greatsword, to halbard, to spear, to morningstar, etc. Fid was able to shake off the impulse to move forward toward the music, but neither Darhgel nor Nalcon could resist. They both started walking into the room toward the box. Then, they found that the floor itself was draining their life energy. Darhgel, especially was drained considerably. To thwart this trap, Fid threw hand axes at the box on the pedestal, missing twice. In that time, Nalcon broke the compulsion, but Darhgel did not. Nalcon tried to pull Darhgel back, but Darhgel’s devil blood gave him strength. Then, when Fid’s axe finally hit the box solidly, the box shattered and the music stopped. At that point, Nalcon could pull Darhgel back out of the room. The party decided to save this room for later, and explored more of the tower.
In a library of sorts, the group rested for an hour, and tended to their wounds. They also searched the papers and books it contained, and Nalcon found a slate tablet that said, “#1 Stegnos” In another room, the group found two animated zombies who they took down, along with 2 lock boxes, each containing ritual robes of black and red, and 15 gp. In still another room, the group saw more tables with vials, potions and papers on them. When Fid, Nalcon and Darhgel moved forward, a wind spirit materialized and began creating a swirling air vortex. Fid took damage as the wind lifted papers off the tables and scattered them around the room. The wind was so strong that the vials and potion bottles started to get pushed around on the tables. The three heroes fought the wind spirit, but the potion bottles clashed to the floor. When the ingredients mixed, a noxious cloud filled the room and got swirled around in the air vortex. All three heroes tried to hold their breath, yet they still took damage from the deadly fumes. Finally, the cloud dissipated and the party defeated the wind vortex. It was Darhgel who found another slate tablet. This one said, “#2 Belfourvious” Darhgel drew upon arcane knowledge to determine that these may be the names of other planar beings, perhaps a code or way to obtain more magical power.
Before resting in a safe room on the first floor of the tower, the group dragged wooden tables over to the armory, and placed them on the tile floor so that they could walk upon them without touching the magical tiles. After doing this, the group found that one of the weapons seemed much finer than the rest. It was a short sword with a ruby, emerald and diamond in the pommel. With that, the party retreated down to the first level and locked themselves in an empty guard room to rest for the night. As Darhgel studied the new weapon they had found, he realized it was a magic item named “Clickstalker.” If the ruby is pressed the weapon becomes a +1 short sword. If the emerald is pressed, the weapon becomes a +1 mace. If the diamond is pressed, the weapon becomes a +1 spear.
Comments
The gang is getting ready to finish the campaign and make a final assault on the last portion of the Tower.
Everyone seems to enjoy his or her PC, and even though Fid's weapon was able to smite the two more powerful construct monsters in this session, the joy that he got from doing it was worth it. This is one of the reasons why I am not so concerned about items and or PCs becoming overpowered. Succeeding is much better than failing, as long as there is a small chance of failure.
Overall, the ease of using ability checks makes the game move quickly and gives players a lot to do throughout all phases of the game -- combat, exploration and interaction. I really like using checks to keep the players engaged and to sometimes encourage them to roleplay or think more like their characters.
This is the 2nd to last session in the campaign. We all loved participating in the playtest experience, and feel as if the game has allowed us to live through an interesting story.
******
Travensburg Campaign – Part 23 – 7/12/2014
“Into the Tower”
We played for about 2 ½ hours…3 players –– 7th level PCs – Continuing our Campaign
T’rissril Eilsndar the Drow Bard (not present)
Fid (the Dwarven Fighter who transformed into a Warforge Fighter)
Fawnsworth the Gnome Illusionist ex-jester (not present)
Nalcon the Noble Cleric of Pelor
Darhgel the Tiefling Evoker
Rhaegar the Dragonborn Paladin (Bounty Hunter – Oath of Vengeance Build - Acid) (not present)
Fid and Darhgel waited outside Abracadamus’ Tower. They were a little weary from their encounters, hoping that one or more of their companions would catch up to them before entering this site. A few hours later, Nalcon on horseback arrived. Together, the small group ascended the stone stairway that led to a door on the south side of the tower. The door was cracked open so the group peered inside after Nalcon created magical light within. Then he called upon his deity to grant Aid to all three of the heroes.
Close to the doorway, the group noticed a horrible stench of death and a strange bluish white light that crackled irregularly in the darkness. Fid pushed open the doors and found a half-dozen or more mangled humanoid bodies. Nalcon realized they were zombies, but for some reason they did not animate. After searching the ground floor of the tower, Fid found nearly a dozen of these cut up creatures. He also found two inward passages sealed by crackling electricity. Being cautious, Fid dragged all the dead bodies out into the snow and Nalcon performed a religious ritual using sacred flame to cleanse each body in turn.
Eventually, the group searched the areas near the electrical discharge, and Darhgel found that these arcane traps could only be bypassed by “the rightful owner.” Since Fid had the deed to the tower in his pack, he took it out and unraveled it. As he looked it over, he saw some of the writing on the deed flare brightly, the magic extinguishing the electrical surges so that the group could pass inside to a spiral staircase cut into stone, winding upward.
Fid took the lead, clattering up the stairway. When he got to the top, he saw a few skeletons in chainmail prepare for attack. The group pushed up to the 2nd floor landing and engaged 5 skeletons and a more powerful Chillborn Skeleton. Darhgel’s Thunderwave made short work of the normal skeletons, but the Chillborn was not so easily vanquished. His sharp talons raked Fid for icy damage, and as Fid stood near the creature, he felt icy cold chill him to the core. Ultimately, Fid’s powerful hammer attacks, shattered the Chillborn skeleton so the group explored further.
To the north, Darhgel noticed runes etched into the floor tiles. He could not deactivate them, but he did discern that they would trigger magical defenses. Before the others could do anything else, Darhgel found a skeleton ribcage and threw it on to the runes. They flared and brightened. Then he heard the sound of stone on stone, scraping, and the thumping of heavy footsteps coming toward him. The runes had transformed two statues into gollum creatures. Soon, Darhgel saw a hill giant gollum, stride towards him from the north. Nalcon, who was further south, spied a statue of a huge displacer beast, which also came to life. Waiting for the hill giant gollum to move forth, Fid readied his magical warhammer. When the creature moved up to Darhgel, and raised its mighty club, Fid sprung into action, smashing the beast with his weapon. On a solid hit, the weapon flashed with magical light and the hill giant gollum smashed to pieces right before the group. Fid’s pride shone nearly as brightly as the magic from the weapon. (Construct killer weapon CON 12 Save on Crit or destroy!!! Bad rolling by DM). On the other side of the corridor, Nalcon unleashed sacred flame to harm the displacer beast gollum, but then he moved back. The displacer beast rushed forward, and even with Nalcon’s flare, making it harder for the beast to connect, the beast slapped Nalcon on the side of the face with its tentacle. Darhgel was able to send rays of fire to damage the beast, and then Fid pushed up front and took another swing with his magical hammer. Bam, he hit the mark and again the construct beast went down.
After the others showed their appreciation and awe, Fid opened a nearby door and the group heard beautiful music from a box on a pedestal in the room. The tiles in the room were black with blood red veins, and on the north side of the room Fid saw a large weapon rack that held dozens of various weapons from greatsword, to halbard, to spear, to morningstar, etc. Fid was able to shake off the impulse to move forward toward the music, but neither Darhgel nor Nalcon could resist. They both started walking into the room toward the box. Then, they found that the floor itself was draining their life energy. Darhgel, especially was drained considerably. To thwart this trap, Fid threw hand axes at the box on the pedestal, missing twice. In that time, Nalcon broke the compulsion, but Darhgel did not. Nalcon tried to pull Darhgel back, but Darhgel’s devil blood gave him strength. Then, when Fid’s axe finally hit the box solidly, the box shattered and the music stopped. At that point, Nalcon could pull Darhgel back out of the room. The party decided to save this room for later, and explored more of the tower.
In a library of sorts, the group rested for an hour, and tended to their wounds. They also searched the papers and books it contained, and Nalcon found a slate tablet that said, “#1 Stegnos” In another room, the group found two animated zombies who they took down, along with 2 lock boxes, each containing ritual robes of black and red, and 15 gp. In still another room, the group saw more tables with vials, potions and papers on them. When Fid, Nalcon and Darhgel moved forward, a wind spirit materialized and began creating a swirling air vortex. Fid took damage as the wind lifted papers off the tables and scattered them around the room. The wind was so strong that the vials and potion bottles started to get pushed around on the tables. The three heroes fought the wind spirit, but the potion bottles clashed to the floor. When the ingredients mixed, a noxious cloud filled the room and got swirled around in the air vortex. All three heroes tried to hold their breath, yet they still took damage from the deadly fumes. Finally, the cloud dissipated and the party defeated the wind vortex. It was Darhgel who found another slate tablet. This one said, “#2 Belfourvious” Darhgel drew upon arcane knowledge to determine that these may be the names of other planar beings, perhaps a code or way to obtain more magical power.
Before resting in a safe room on the first floor of the tower, the group dragged wooden tables over to the armory, and placed them on the tile floor so that they could walk upon them without touching the magical tiles. After doing this, the group found that one of the weapons seemed much finer than the rest. It was a short sword with a ruby, emerald and diamond in the pommel. With that, the party retreated down to the first level and locked themselves in an empty guard room to rest for the night. As Darhgel studied the new weapon they had found, he realized it was a magic item named “Clickstalker.” If the ruby is pressed the weapon becomes a +1 short sword. If the emerald is pressed, the weapon becomes a +1 mace. If the diamond is pressed, the weapon becomes a +1 spear.
Comments
The gang is getting ready to finish the campaign and make a final assault on the last portion of the Tower.
Everyone seems to enjoy his or her PC, and even though Fid's weapon was able to smite the two more powerful construct monsters in this session, the joy that he got from doing it was worth it. This is one of the reasons why I am not so concerned about items and or PCs becoming overpowered. Succeeding is much better than failing, as long as there is a small chance of failure.
Overall, the ease of using ability checks makes the game move quickly and gives players a lot to do throughout all phases of the game -- combat, exploration and interaction. I really like using checks to keep the players engaged and to sometimes encourage them to roleplay or think more like their characters.
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