MarauderX
Explorer
This probably could get bumped to "plots, etc." but until it does...
Try the 'thinning of the herd' type of setting to get them in the mood of surviving as 1st level. Have twenty 1st level guys leave to investigate some wilderness area several days travel away with a 4th level fighter leader, and have only the PCs and maybe 2 NPCs come out alive. Have them attacked by, say, a 5th level druid with a large pack of worgs and kill the 4th fighter outright in the first battle. The whole objective of the PCs during the first session would be to escape to the town they came from and fend off the worgs there.
Experienced players will be kinda frightened, and will look for a quick exit if the rest of the NPCs are running away. Let them know not to stay and fight after that by having a few couragous paladin type 'examples' that get chewed up quickly, along with a bunch of cowardly NPCs that the PCs will be glad to see eaten later. Have them attacked in the middle of the night on their way home, and keep track of fatigue and encumberance details, and feel free to kill another NPC that was carrying too much stuff to let them know to get moving.
The PCs might try to climb the trees or set up some sort of defense, but let them know that this is the druid's home turf by having the trees groan a warning, squirrels get in the way as they climb, etc. Don't give them any good defensible terrain to work with, and make them do intuitive direction checks a lot (if they have it - if they don't, then they might want to keep a certain NPC alive to get home, making surviving that much more interesting). Any rogues may try to 'sneak' their way out of it, so make an example out of another NPC that tries to hide and the worgs catch his scent. Have another NPC wander away from the group too far and get taken out within 100 yards so they can hear her last screams. Tag out another NPC after one of those designated to do the 'watch' falls asleep late on the second night, and feel free to make it the most lawful PC in the party so that he will be wracked with guilt.
But they are only first level after all, so let them get away with some things, such as if they decide to try and rescue a NPC, let them get away with it by having the attacking worg run away (Don't forget to give the PCs any AoOs), and then have a row of 6 worgs waiting to pounce if they don't start running immediately.
The whole motivation of the main bad guy may be to keep the PCs away from a certain area, or to make an example of any who enter that part of the woods. The baddie is just herding the PCs, and in no particular direction, but instead relys upon waiting for the PCs guard to drop. The goal of the baddie is to kill as many of them as possible without loosing any worgs, so have the worgs retreat if they are ever hit, allowing the PCs to get away before they are surrounded completely.
Have fun with them, have lots of howling and barking in the distance as the worgs communicate to one another minutes before they try to attack. The players will catch on quick and will start running every time there is howling after the first few attacks. And if the PCs are making good time by running, throw in some bats that confuse them while they are running in the dark to get them all confused about what direction they are moving in at night.
Try the 'thinning of the herd' type of setting to get them in the mood of surviving as 1st level. Have twenty 1st level guys leave to investigate some wilderness area several days travel away with a 4th level fighter leader, and have only the PCs and maybe 2 NPCs come out alive. Have them attacked by, say, a 5th level druid with a large pack of worgs and kill the 4th fighter outright in the first battle. The whole objective of the PCs during the first session would be to escape to the town they came from and fend off the worgs there.
Experienced players will be kinda frightened, and will look for a quick exit if the rest of the NPCs are running away. Let them know not to stay and fight after that by having a few couragous paladin type 'examples' that get chewed up quickly, along with a bunch of cowardly NPCs that the PCs will be glad to see eaten later. Have them attacked in the middle of the night on their way home, and keep track of fatigue and encumberance details, and feel free to kill another NPC that was carrying too much stuff to let them know to get moving.
The PCs might try to climb the trees or set up some sort of defense, but let them know that this is the druid's home turf by having the trees groan a warning, squirrels get in the way as they climb, etc. Don't give them any good defensible terrain to work with, and make them do intuitive direction checks a lot (if they have it - if they don't, then they might want to keep a certain NPC alive to get home, making surviving that much more interesting). Any rogues may try to 'sneak' their way out of it, so make an example out of another NPC that tries to hide and the worgs catch his scent. Have another NPC wander away from the group too far and get taken out within 100 yards so they can hear her last screams. Tag out another NPC after one of those designated to do the 'watch' falls asleep late on the second night, and feel free to make it the most lawful PC in the party so that he will be wracked with guilt.
But they are only first level after all, so let them get away with some things, such as if they decide to try and rescue a NPC, let them get away with it by having the attacking worg run away (Don't forget to give the PCs any AoOs), and then have a row of 6 worgs waiting to pounce if they don't start running immediately.
The whole motivation of the main bad guy may be to keep the PCs away from a certain area, or to make an example of any who enter that part of the woods. The baddie is just herding the PCs, and in no particular direction, but instead relys upon waiting for the PCs guard to drop. The goal of the baddie is to kill as many of them as possible without loosing any worgs, so have the worgs retreat if they are ever hit, allowing the PCs to get away before they are surrounded completely.
Have fun with them, have lots of howling and barking in the distance as the worgs communicate to one another minutes before they try to attack. The players will catch on quick and will start running every time there is howling after the first few attacks. And if the PCs are making good time by running, throw in some bats that confuse them while they are running in the dark to get them all confused about what direction they are moving in at night.
