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D&D Older Editions
Stonesky Delve - from OSRIC to 3.5 edition
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<blockquote data-quote="aboyd" data-source="post: 5981782" data-attributes="member: 44797"><p>As a nod to the author, I'll be using photos & videos of the Krubera cave system as inspiration for my read-aloud text.</p><p></p><p><span style="font-size: 22px">0. Player introduction</span></p><p></p><p>The author does provide some read aloud text for the module introduction. I rewrote the whole thing, but I don't feel safe posting it as it contains at least <em>some</em> remnants of his copyrighted text. So instead, let me outline the big changes.</p><p></p><ol> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">The 2nd half of the 2nd paragraph begins "Each of you has mapping material...." If you're like me, you'll want to remove that 2nd half of the paragraph. Why? It tells the PCs that they have a bunch of gear which they may or may not actually have. It makes sense in a tournament module with pre-gen characters, but in my ongoing game, the players are responsible for picking out gear and they've only got what they've bought.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">In place of the text you just removed, add the flavor text below to help them visualize it.</li> </ol><p></p><p><span style="font-size: 18px">Read-aloud text</span></p><p></p><p><em></em></p><p><em>So you stand at the side of this cliff-like opening, approximately 10 feet wide and 8 feet tall. The elevation is high; light snowfall rests in the shadowy pockets where the sun has not yet reached. Still, there is plenty of green grass and shrubbery on the ground surrounding you. Frigid water drips into the cave entrance, enabling moss and lichen to flourish on the walls. From the looks of it, the ground will drop sharply after just a few feet. It appears that this will be rough going; unless you have other means, ropes will be needed to rappel in.</em></p><p></p><p><span style="font-size: 22px">1. Cave mouth</span></p><p></p><p><span style="font-size: 18px">Read-aloud text</span></p><p></p><p>The read-aloud text from the player introduction is describing the cave mouth, so there really doesn't need to be text here.</p><p></p><p><span style="font-size: 18px">Other</span></p><p></p><ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">listen check DC to hear the bats' shrill noises deep within the caves: 10</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">spot check DC to notice the bat guano on the ground: 7</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">use rope DC to secure rope for rappelling: 10 (regardless of whether it is tied to an outcropping of rock, which is prevalent, or via use of a grappling hook; also note that according to the rules, this check should be rolled by the DM in secret so that the players do not know if the rope will hold them, though I prefer that they simply make the check once the first PC is halfway down; finally, note that a silk rope confers a +2 to the roll)</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">climb DC to get down a normal rope: 5 (due to sloping wall)</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">climb DC to get down a knotted rope: 0 (sloping wall & knots = easy)</li> </ul><p></p><p>Note that climbing is at <em>quarter speed</em> which means anyone with a move speed of 30' will need to spend a full round to descend 15' (two move actions), and it will require 2 climb checks. Getting to the ground 45' below thus requires at least 6 checks! Therefore even though the DC is extremely low & easy, there are a lot of chances to roll badly. Don't forget that a player needs to miss the DC by 5 to fall. If they miss by 1 to 4 points, they're just failing to make progress.</p><p></p><p><span style="font-size: 18px">Example</span></p><p></p><p>A fighter in full plate climbs at a -8 (offset by strength & ranks). Thus, a fighter using a knotted rope might <em>seem</em> like a sure thing, but it's not. Unless he has bonuses to offset the -8, he needs to roll an 8 or higher just to hit the DC of 0, and he needs to do it at least 6 times in a row. If any of his rolls are a 3 or lower, he falls. Because his movement in plate armor is reduced, his speed is likely only 20' normally, meaning that a full round of climbing for him only allows him to get 10' down. Thus, <strong>characters with a move speed of 20' need to make 9 checks</strong> (technically, 10 checks, but I let the players jump down the last few feet, as the rules provide no possible way to get hurt from a fall of just 5 feet).</p><p></p><p><span style="font-size: 18px">Notes</span></p><p></p><p>Options to tie the heavily-armored types with a 2nd rope (and have someone above to hold that 2nd rope) to catch them if they fall would prevent falling damage. However, as with the 1st rope, I would expect them to make a use rope check <em>at the time the PC falls</em> to ensure that the 2nd rope holds. They cannot make the check beforehand. They don't get to know the outcome of their rope checks until it's in action.</p><p></p><p>Falling damage is 1d6 per 10' of fall. Tumble checks can remove 10' of falling damage (effectively removing a d6 from the total damage roll).</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="aboyd, post: 5981782, member: 44797"] As a nod to the author, I'll be using photos & videos of the Krubera cave system as inspiration for my read-aloud text. [SIZE="6"]0. Player introduction[/SIZE] The author does provide some read aloud text for the module introduction. I rewrote the whole thing, but I don't feel safe posting it as it contains at least [i]some[/i] remnants of his copyrighted text. So instead, let me outline the big changes. [list=1] [*]The 2nd half of the 2nd paragraph begins "Each of you has mapping material...." If you're like me, you'll want to remove that 2nd half of the paragraph. Why? It tells the PCs that they have a bunch of gear which they may or may not actually have. It makes sense in a tournament module with pre-gen characters, but in my ongoing game, the players are responsible for picking out gear and they've only got what they've bought. [*]In place of the text you just removed, add the flavor text below to help them visualize it. [/list] [SIZE="5"]Read-aloud text[/SIZE] [i] So you stand at the side of this cliff-like opening, approximately 10 feet wide and 8 feet tall. The elevation is high; light snowfall rests in the shadowy pockets where the sun has not yet reached. Still, there is plenty of green grass and shrubbery on the ground surrounding you. Frigid water drips into the cave entrance, enabling moss and lichen to flourish on the walls. From the looks of it, the ground will drop sharply after just a few feet. It appears that this will be rough going; unless you have other means, ropes will be needed to rappel in.[/i] [SIZE="6"]1. Cave mouth[/SIZE] [SIZE="5"]Read-aloud text[/SIZE] The read-aloud text from the player introduction is describing the cave mouth, so there really doesn't need to be text here. [SIZE="5"]Other[/SIZE] [list] [*]listen check DC to hear the bats' shrill noises deep within the caves: 10 [*]spot check DC to notice the bat guano on the ground: 7 [*]use rope DC to secure rope for rappelling: 10 (regardless of whether it is tied to an outcropping of rock, which is prevalent, or via use of a grappling hook; also note that according to the rules, this check should be rolled by the DM in secret so that the players do not know if the rope will hold them, though I prefer that they simply make the check once the first PC is halfway down; finally, note that a silk rope confers a +2 to the roll) [*]climb DC to get down a normal rope: 5 (due to sloping wall) [*]climb DC to get down a knotted rope: 0 (sloping wall & knots = easy) [/list] Note that climbing is at [i]quarter speed[/i] which means anyone with a move speed of 30' will need to spend a full round to descend 15' (two move actions), and it will require 2 climb checks. Getting to the ground 45' below thus requires at least 6 checks! Therefore even though the DC is extremely low & easy, there are a lot of chances to roll badly. Don't forget that a player needs to miss the DC by 5 to fall. If they miss by 1 to 4 points, they're just failing to make progress. [SIZE="5"]Example[/SIZE] A fighter in full plate climbs at a -8 (offset by strength & ranks). Thus, a fighter using a knotted rope might [i]seem[/i] like a sure thing, but it's not. Unless he has bonuses to offset the -8, he needs to roll an 8 or higher just to hit the DC of 0, and he needs to do it at least 6 times in a row. If any of his rolls are a 3 or lower, he falls. Because his movement in plate armor is reduced, his speed is likely only 20' normally, meaning that a full round of climbing for him only allows him to get 10' down. Thus, [b]characters with a move speed of 20' need to make 9 checks[/b] (technically, 10 checks, but I let the players jump down the last few feet, as the rules provide no possible way to get hurt from a fall of just 5 feet). [SIZE="5"]Notes[/SIZE] Options to tie the heavily-armored types with a 2nd rope (and have someone above to hold that 2nd rope) to catch them if they fall would prevent falling damage. However, as with the 1st rope, I would expect them to make a use rope check [i]at the time the PC falls[/i] to ensure that the 2nd rope holds. They cannot make the check beforehand. They don't get to know the outcome of their rope checks until it's in action. Falling damage is 1d6 per 10' of fall. Tumble checks can remove 10' of falling damage (effectively removing a d6 from the total damage roll). [/QUOTE]
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