- The city council has agreed to turn over the abandoned barracks and jail complex to a local merchant's coalition for conversion to a warehouse. Neither side is exactly sure what might be found in the old jail, so they're looking for a group of adventurous types to accompany a party of surveyors and engineers into the warren of buildings and cellars.
- Recent flooding, caused by heavier than usual spring rains, have forced town officials to condemn the town's main well. The militia has been called upon to provide labor for digging a new well, while a local noble is beginning construction on an aqueduct to bring fresh water to town from nearby highland streams.
- A local festival, delayed due to terrible rainstorms, has been rescheduled three days hence. The festivities include the unveiling of a new memorial to a local priest who died recently, an open market catering to local potters and craftsmen, and a huge game of tag involving everyone in attendance.
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Showing posts with label campaign. Show all posts
Showing posts with label campaign. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Random Events
Today, a few random events and rumors for your consideration. A while back I wrote an article about adapting news articles to your campaign. These ideas were all pulled from today's paper. Well today's paper on the day that I'm writing this, so actually sometime last week. I've actually kept my New Year's Resolution to keep at least a few day's buffer on posts.
Monday, February 15, 2010
Terrain is the Monster
A while back Neitherworld Stories posted up an article entitled Monsters as Terrain. As I commented then I've been thinking about the opposite situation, terrain as the monster. What follows isn't directly related to the Neitherworld article, which is a very interesting read. This post has been primarily influenced by my recent Moria game, so I'm mostly talking about a dungeon crawl environment, but the ideas should apply elsewhere as well. Of course the most obvious form of terrain monster is the trap, but I'm going to talk more about natural features than constructed obstacles.
In game terms monster usually means an opponent that must be overcome by guile, negotiation, or force. Terrain can fill this role admirably, though negotiating with it may be difficult. Monsters also serve to regulate access to other areas, and often guard treasure, again, things terrain can handle. Terrain's biggest weakness, when considered as a monster, is that it doesn't really move, so initial placement is more important than with a typical monster. Similarly, pursuit situations are unlikely to result from a terrain encounter, though using monstrous terrain to affect the outcome of a pursuit is certainly an option. Here are a few guidelines when placing terrain as monsters:
Define the Threat - As GM you should have a clear understanding of what danger the terrain represents. A monster that represents no threat at all is not really a monster. Some of the typical threats posed by terrain include:
Sketch the Solutions - I'm not proposing you come up with one true way to defeat the terrain, but think about reasonable approaches to resolving the encounter. You should reward your players for creative thinking in this regard so don't get too hidebound by whatever solutions you come up with. As part of this process it's also worth considering the long term ramifications of whatever solution the players use to defeat the terrain, they may well affect the local balance of power, particularly if the terrain presented a formidable obstacle.
Make it Worthwhile - Defeating the terrain monster should offer some reward to your players, otherwise they may see it as a grand waste of time. Treasure is one possibility, perhaps a less fortunate adventurer didn't quite make it across that chasm or pool. Access to a new area is another potential reward. Crossing that river of lava might open an entire area of the dungeon to exploration. Alternate routes are a third reward. Perhaps the underground river provides a means to bypass a particularly dangerous foe.
Weaknesses
Terrain as the monster does have a few weaknesses.
Examples
Here are a few of the terrain encounters I used in my Moria game, along with the solutions implemented by the players:
The Spiral Descent - This is a large conical chamber with a single narrow ledge winding from top to bottom. One entrance is located near the narrow top, with two other exits near the bottom, which is littered with large, jagged boulders. The threat here is falling damage, and as the party discovered, a pack of annoying little Jermalaine occupying a network of tiny crevices and caves in the cavern walls. After demonstrating they could kill the Jermalaine if they could see them, the party began throwing food into the creature's den before beginning their descent, which negated the creature threat. This allowed them to easily defeat the falling threat using the relatively safe ledge (safe assuming they weren't trying to defeat Jermalaine traps along the way). The reward here (at least as far as the characters know), was access to the deeper caverns.
The Mud Pit - Several springs feed down sloping passages into this chamber, which is filled with thick viscous mud up to ten feet deep. The threat here is division and damage, with drowning in mud a real possibility for armored characters. Careful testing revealed a shallower path through the pit, and eventually one of the characters noticed someone had scratched directions in the ceiling of the cavern. With this information the room is fairly easy to navigate, and the party now has a hint that someone passes this way often enough to create the path through the room.
The Maelstrom - An underground river feeds a waterfall that splashes down into a lake-like chamber, then pours down a second passage into a broad swirling pool of water. A vast whirlpool sucks anything swept into the pool down and out of sight. The primary threat here is division and drowning (luckily no one fell into the pool). Unfortunately for the party, the stream bed provides the primary access route into the depths. The party overcame this obstacle by affixing a rope to one side of the swift running stream, allowing the them to traverse it with minimal risk. They got the idea (and a reward for defeating the Maelstrom) because someone had left behind a similar arrangement using a length of magical Elven Rope.
So there you have it, some thoughts on using terrain as the foe. Hopefully I've inspired you to give the rocks another chance. If this article was interesting, you may want to take a look at something I wrote last year entitled Approaching the Vertical, which also talks about elevation changes and terrain as features of the dungeon. Until next time, keep your ten foot poles handy and bring some extra spikes and rope!
In game terms monster usually means an opponent that must be overcome by guile, negotiation, or force. Terrain can fill this role admirably, though negotiating with it may be difficult. Monsters also serve to regulate access to other areas, and often guard treasure, again, things terrain can handle. Terrain's biggest weakness, when considered as a monster, is that it doesn't really move, so initial placement is more important than with a typical monster. Similarly, pursuit situations are unlikely to result from a terrain encounter, though using monstrous terrain to affect the outcome of a pursuit is certainly an option. Here are a few guidelines when placing terrain as monsters:
Define the Threat - As GM you should have a clear understanding of what danger the terrain represents. A monster that represents no threat at all is not really a monster. Some of the typical threats posed by terrain include:
- Blockade - the terrain presents a real obstacle to travel. Part of the typical dungeon game is exploration and blocking terrain reduces opportunity for discovery unless overcome. Blocking terrain can also provide a tactical advantage for other monsters with a mode of travel unaffected by the terrain. Flying creatures often have an advantage when dealing with this sort of terrain.
- Division - the party is split by the actions of terrain, be it a swift flowing river, a deep chasm with a limited crossing, or maze-like passages presenting multiple confusing choices.
- Damage - falling damage is a favorite attack form for terrain-based monsters. Drowning (rivers and lakes) or burning (lava) are two other popular options.
Sketch the Solutions - I'm not proposing you come up with one true way to defeat the terrain, but think about reasonable approaches to resolving the encounter. You should reward your players for creative thinking in this regard so don't get too hidebound by whatever solutions you come up with. As part of this process it's also worth considering the long term ramifications of whatever solution the players use to defeat the terrain, they may well affect the local balance of power, particularly if the terrain presented a formidable obstacle.
Make it Worthwhile - Defeating the terrain monster should offer some reward to your players, otherwise they may see it as a grand waste of time. Treasure is one possibility, perhaps a less fortunate adventurer didn't quite make it across that chasm or pool. Access to a new area is another potential reward. Crossing that river of lava might open an entire area of the dungeon to exploration. Alternate routes are a third reward. Perhaps the underground river provides a means to bypass a particularly dangerous foe.
Weaknesses
Terrain as the monster does have a few weaknesses.
- Static - Terrain generally doesn't move, so the decision to engage the encounter is totally up to the players. It's difficult as GM to 'play' the monster so leveraging a terrain encounter requires active interest by the players. Hints or clues that lead through monstrous terrain are a good way to encourage player interest.
- Magic - At higher levels of play, terrain can easily become trivial, especially if the party has access to magical flight or other transportation spells. Using monstrous terrain as a lair for a creature unaffected by the conditions is one potential solution to this problem.
- Eternal - Terrain usually lasts forever, so consider carefully before you place it. Defeating a terrain encounter once is interesting. Doing it every time the party goes by, less so.
Examples
Here are a few of the terrain encounters I used in my Moria game, along with the solutions implemented by the players:
The Spiral Descent - This is a large conical chamber with a single narrow ledge winding from top to bottom. One entrance is located near the narrow top, with two other exits near the bottom, which is littered with large, jagged boulders. The threat here is falling damage, and as the party discovered, a pack of annoying little Jermalaine occupying a network of tiny crevices and caves in the cavern walls. After demonstrating they could kill the Jermalaine if they could see them, the party began throwing food into the creature's den before beginning their descent, which negated the creature threat. This allowed them to easily defeat the falling threat using the relatively safe ledge (safe assuming they weren't trying to defeat Jermalaine traps along the way). The reward here (at least as far as the characters know), was access to the deeper caverns.
The Mud Pit - Several springs feed down sloping passages into this chamber, which is filled with thick viscous mud up to ten feet deep. The threat here is division and damage, with drowning in mud a real possibility for armored characters. Careful testing revealed a shallower path through the pit, and eventually one of the characters noticed someone had scratched directions in the ceiling of the cavern. With this information the room is fairly easy to navigate, and the party now has a hint that someone passes this way often enough to create the path through the room.
The Maelstrom - An underground river feeds a waterfall that splashes down into a lake-like chamber, then pours down a second passage into a broad swirling pool of water. A vast whirlpool sucks anything swept into the pool down and out of sight. The primary threat here is division and drowning (luckily no one fell into the pool). Unfortunately for the party, the stream bed provides the primary access route into the depths. The party overcame this obstacle by affixing a rope to one side of the swift running stream, allowing the them to traverse it with minimal risk. They got the idea (and a reward for defeating the Maelstrom) because someone had left behind a similar arrangement using a length of magical Elven Rope.
So there you have it, some thoughts on using terrain as the foe. Hopefully I've inspired you to give the rocks another chance. If this article was interesting, you may want to take a look at something I wrote last year entitled Approaching the Vertical, which also talks about elevation changes and terrain as features of the dungeon. Until next time, keep your ten foot poles handy and bring some extra spikes and rope!
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Return to Moria: First Session Recap
The tldr for the lazy: Very successful first session with lots of encounters.
I'm writing this after spending a long day driving back from the game followed by a cold night in front of the fireplace. I got home about 7 PM Monday to discover my furnace had died while I was gone. Please bear with me if this article sounds a bit frazzled. Since you've been patient enough to read my ramblings about this campaign I thought it only fair to share the fruits of the preparation.
Friday Afternoon & Evening
After a quick bit of organizational work (we dealt with most of that before the session in email) the entire 18 man party plus two mules set off for Moria, loaded with gear, food and grain. Their intent was to first verify the map, left to Darren, Digs and Dahryl by their somewhat deranged uncle, was actually accurate, then find a secure campsite relatively close to the entry, then start their delve, leaving part of the group on watch at the base camp. The trip was relatively easy, the only sour note the sight of three or four riders shadowing the party along their route. After discovering a promising cave leading into the mountainside the party established a base camp and headed in.
The group spent the better part of a day exploring a series of natural caverns centered around a huge, watery, maelstrom in a central chamber. They ran into a pack of diminutive humanoids that set traps for them along a cliff-side trail, discovered a massive millstone door that they haven't figured out how to get past, traveled through a fungus-filled cavern, discovered a pair of skeletons beneath a pair of obsidian spires, and rescued a deranged old man who was apparently the survivor of a previous expedition. After backtracking and leaving the old man at the camp, the party finally found a (relatively) safe route to the Dwarf-made wall mentioned by the 3 D's uncle.
Further scouting by the party's thieves revealed a fortified wall occupied by goblins beyond a broad stepped passage over 200 feet long. The party, a bit itchy for action, decided to harass the wall guards to see what the reaction was. With a bit of shuffling around in the dark the party managed to get the jump on the guards, killing most of them, but not before one sounded the alarm. The party started to fall back, only to be blitzed by a pack of swift running wargs. Realizing the beasts would easily run them down, the party used their elevated position on the wall to their advantage, and made pretty short work of them. The fight delayed them long enough for the warg's handler, a bestial goblin with glove-mounted blades on his hands, to attack. They eventually killed him too, and beat a hasty retreat from the additional forces approaching across a fairly open cavern beyond the wall.
After an uneasy night at camp the party returned, intent on assaulting the remainder of the goblins. They discovered they were up against a moat protected fortification with an elevated balcony providing cover fire over most of the approach. The party started an assault, but realized they were not prepared to face a determined adversary in a fortified position and fell back. This ended Friday night's gaming.
From the GM perspective, the entry area was a bit too complex. There were quite a few physical obstacles and I think the players got a little frustrated. I had anticipated the goblins would have been defeated by the end of Friday night's play, but it was late when the party got there. The players decided not to force a major encounter when everyone was tired, which was, in retrospect, a very good choice. I also rolled exactly zero encounters for the party camped outside.
Saturday Morning
The party's first attempt at the fort was side-tracked by a group of orcs, who were waiting to ambush the party near the entrance to the fort area. After a bit of indecisiveness, the party attacked in force and wiped the orcs out in short order (all hail hold person!)
Using some clever tactics, spider climbing a fighter and cleric supported by thieves onto the balcony to take out the archers while the main force went for the main gate, they got through the defenses and pretty much wiped out the goblin force. Their leader, a tougher goblin wearing a fine shirt of Dwarven mail, challenged the party's ranger to a one on one duel, quickly knocking him unconscious. The party's paladin was going to take the next shot at him, but the others were less patient and attacked en masse. Seeing he was going to die no matter what, the goblin leader turned and jumped off the parapet, plunging over 500 feet to the cavern floor far below. The party secured the gates leading further into Moria, and searched the fort, uncovering the goblin hoard. After some debate they decided to use the fort as a base of operations and move the camp inside, uncomfortably aware that at least one goblin had escaped the fight. The party also left their mules in the care of the crazy old man they rescued from the caverns above. Apparently he was able to communicate with them somehow.
The rest of the morning was spent securing the fort and exploring beyond the two gates leading further into the depths. The south gate led to a cavern with a huge bubbling pool in the center. A pair of frog-like humanoids retreated into this pool after being surprised by the group, and the paladin spotted something very large and EVIL in the depths. That, combined with the trio of exceedingly lifelike 'statues' near the pool's edge convinced the party they should go the other way, at least for now.
The other gate led to a stable or stall area, where the party found the remains of three dead creatures, an over-sized wild boar (long dead), an orc skeleton, and a tiny elven figure with lime-green spots all over its skin. Beyond was a huge arena-like area with bleachers around the periphery. Several passages led away from this area and the party followed several, discovering a complex of residences and workshops taken over by a giant ant colony (which almost lead to a huge fight), a fortress held by more orcs, and a switchback descent guarded by iron drawbridges that led to a miles long passage leading further into the depths.
GM notes: Hero points saved at least three character lives during last night's and this morning's battles. We use a deadly critical hits chart, and the players all used hero points to avoid getting hit by one. The goblin fight was a tough one, but the players did a great job of coming up with a plan and actually implementing it.
Saturday PM
The party spent some time arguing their next steps. Some wanted to explore further, others wanted to clear out the ant colony, while another group wanted to hit the orc-held fort. Eventually the third group prevailed, leading to a major battle. The fort consisted of a pair of walls surrounding an inner bailey, the inner higher than the outer. A stone bridge led from the top of the outer wall to a barred gate that gave access to the inner bailey. There was also a heavy timber in place that connected the two walls.
The party managed to stealth some members to good firing positions outside the wall, then began the assault. Surprisingly most of the orcs retreated, releasing wargs to attack the party as they tried to penetrate the gates. With the party's primary combatants tied up with the wargs, the thieves and clerics were free to engage in the prime activity of the night, falling off high spots. No fewer than five characters plunged off the walls at various times, and the party's many clerics (six total) were kept busy keeping people alive. Even the poor halfling thief managed to fall off the same wall no fewer than three times.
Eventually the party defeated the defenders, but not before they discovered the wargs were actually some sort of demi-human/wolf shape-shifters. They also encountered a gaunt and pallid human who had the ability to form weapons from his hands and fold himself into the shadows and move without being seen. At least one of the orcs disappeared beyond the interior gates, and the party, pretty banged up and almost out of spells, decided to retreat. On the way back they ran into a lone Dwarf with an obsidian staff who pretty much ignored them and disappeared into the darkness. Back at camp the night's rest was disturbed by a weird black blob-creature that disappeared in a cloud of rainbow light when slain (?).
From the GM point of view the afternoon dragged a bit. The party got a bit tied up figuring out where to go and what to do, wasting about an hour before deciding to hit the orc fort. One of the hazards of such long sessions is we tend to not take breaks when we should and people get tired and grumpy. The fight at the fort was both hilarious and overly long. We all had a cold streak on dice and spent a couple rounds missing each other. Everyone falling off the beam between the walls was really funny, especially when the cleric actually saved someone by breaking their fall with their own body. The folding man really threw the party for a loop too. At the end of the fort fight everyone was done for the night, so we took the rest of the night off to socialize.
Sunday AM
Sunday sessions are generally short, as everyone generally heads for home around noon. The party bypassed the 'pool of evil' and explored the tunnels beyond, discovering a huge lake-filled cavern with yet another fortress within, a collapsed cavern full of rubble, and a nest of carrion crawlers, which they easily defeated. When they explored the nest they discovered a paralyzed but still-living Dwarf among the victims and rescued him.
Backtracking they eventually found a natural granite shelf leading out and down into the gigantic cavern beneath the original goblin fort. They wanted to recover the nice mail shirt the goblin leader took with him so they followed this down to a hilltop covered in ruins. A pack of undead Dwarves jumped them among the ruins, leading to the final big battle of the game. With so many clerics and two paladins the party managed to kill many of the undead with those turned revealing several paths down into the cavern below. A search of the ruins turned up a very nice stash of coins and several magic items, leftovers from a previous expedition slain by the undead.
With time running out the group retreated all the way back out of the depths and headed back to town to cash in their loot. When they returned to their original base camp they discovered the old man and their mules had vanished (hey, what do you expect if you leave your stuff in the hands of a madman?) The trip back to Hollin was uneventful, and everyone returned alive.
GM notes: Everyone lived. Not one party death. Clearly I need to step up the deadly factor a bit. Combats with 12-18 characters are SLOW, even with a relatively quick system like 1st edition. I think the players are likely to reduce the active characters in use next time we play.
Final Thoughts
Reading back over this, it doesn't seem like we did much, but that might be deceiving. Some of the encounters were huge. The goblin fort, for example, was protected by over 60 goblins and wargs. The fight there ended up being three or four separate encounters. This group is big on tactical challenges, and I accommodate them, so even simple encounters tend to be pretty deep when it comes to the actual battle.
My only disappointment with the game was that I didn't get to expand on the story elements touched on in the game. It's kind of a mixed blessing in that I have plenty of material ready for next time, but I think the story people in the group felt the lack. Hopefully I can address that next time.
I view the game as a real success. It was initially proposed as a one shot game, and by the end of the weekend everyone was talking about 'next time'. One player suggested everyone chip in some cash to defray my travel costs so they could play more often (they're all in the greater Washington DC area, I'm in Indiana). With that kind of enthusiasm, I can't wait to play again.
I'm writing this after spending a long day driving back from the game followed by a cold night in front of the fireplace. I got home about 7 PM Monday to discover my furnace had died while I was gone. Please bear with me if this article sounds a bit frazzled. Since you've been patient enough to read my ramblings about this campaign I thought it only fair to share the fruits of the preparation.
Friday Afternoon & Evening
After a quick bit of organizational work (we dealt with most of that before the session in email) the entire 18 man party plus two mules set off for Moria, loaded with gear, food and grain. Their intent was to first verify the map, left to Darren, Digs and Dahryl by their somewhat deranged uncle, was actually accurate, then find a secure campsite relatively close to the entry, then start their delve, leaving part of the group on watch at the base camp. The trip was relatively easy, the only sour note the sight of three or four riders shadowing the party along their route. After discovering a promising cave leading into the mountainside the party established a base camp and headed in.
The group spent the better part of a day exploring a series of natural caverns centered around a huge, watery, maelstrom in a central chamber. They ran into a pack of diminutive humanoids that set traps for them along a cliff-side trail, discovered a massive millstone door that they haven't figured out how to get past, traveled through a fungus-filled cavern, discovered a pair of skeletons beneath a pair of obsidian spires, and rescued a deranged old man who was apparently the survivor of a previous expedition. After backtracking and leaving the old man at the camp, the party finally found a (relatively) safe route to the Dwarf-made wall mentioned by the 3 D's uncle.
Further scouting by the party's thieves revealed a fortified wall occupied by goblins beyond a broad stepped passage over 200 feet long. The party, a bit itchy for action, decided to harass the wall guards to see what the reaction was. With a bit of shuffling around in the dark the party managed to get the jump on the guards, killing most of them, but not before one sounded the alarm. The party started to fall back, only to be blitzed by a pack of swift running wargs. Realizing the beasts would easily run them down, the party used their elevated position on the wall to their advantage, and made pretty short work of them. The fight delayed them long enough for the warg's handler, a bestial goblin with glove-mounted blades on his hands, to attack. They eventually killed him too, and beat a hasty retreat from the additional forces approaching across a fairly open cavern beyond the wall.
After an uneasy night at camp the party returned, intent on assaulting the remainder of the goblins. They discovered they were up against a moat protected fortification with an elevated balcony providing cover fire over most of the approach. The party started an assault, but realized they were not prepared to face a determined adversary in a fortified position and fell back. This ended Friday night's gaming.
From the GM perspective, the entry area was a bit too complex. There were quite a few physical obstacles and I think the players got a little frustrated. I had anticipated the goblins would have been defeated by the end of Friday night's play, but it was late when the party got there. The players decided not to force a major encounter when everyone was tired, which was, in retrospect, a very good choice. I also rolled exactly zero encounters for the party camped outside.
Saturday Morning
The party's first attempt at the fort was side-tracked by a group of orcs, who were waiting to ambush the party near the entrance to the fort area. After a bit of indecisiveness, the party attacked in force and wiped the orcs out in short order (all hail hold person!)
Using some clever tactics, spider climbing a fighter and cleric supported by thieves onto the balcony to take out the archers while the main force went for the main gate, they got through the defenses and pretty much wiped out the goblin force. Their leader, a tougher goblin wearing a fine shirt of Dwarven mail, challenged the party's ranger to a one on one duel, quickly knocking him unconscious. The party's paladin was going to take the next shot at him, but the others were less patient and attacked en masse. Seeing he was going to die no matter what, the goblin leader turned and jumped off the parapet, plunging over 500 feet to the cavern floor far below. The party secured the gates leading further into Moria, and searched the fort, uncovering the goblin hoard. After some debate they decided to use the fort as a base of operations and move the camp inside, uncomfortably aware that at least one goblin had escaped the fight. The party also left their mules in the care of the crazy old man they rescued from the caverns above. Apparently he was able to communicate with them somehow.
The rest of the morning was spent securing the fort and exploring beyond the two gates leading further into the depths. The south gate led to a cavern with a huge bubbling pool in the center. A pair of frog-like humanoids retreated into this pool after being surprised by the group, and the paladin spotted something very large and EVIL in the depths. That, combined with the trio of exceedingly lifelike 'statues' near the pool's edge convinced the party they should go the other way, at least for now.
The other gate led to a stable or stall area, where the party found the remains of three dead creatures, an over-sized wild boar (long dead), an orc skeleton, and a tiny elven figure with lime-green spots all over its skin. Beyond was a huge arena-like area with bleachers around the periphery. Several passages led away from this area and the party followed several, discovering a complex of residences and workshops taken over by a giant ant colony (which almost lead to a huge fight), a fortress held by more orcs, and a switchback descent guarded by iron drawbridges that led to a miles long passage leading further into the depths.
GM notes: Hero points saved at least three character lives during last night's and this morning's battles. We use a deadly critical hits chart, and the players all used hero points to avoid getting hit by one. The goblin fight was a tough one, but the players did a great job of coming up with a plan and actually implementing it.
Saturday PM
The party spent some time arguing their next steps. Some wanted to explore further, others wanted to clear out the ant colony, while another group wanted to hit the orc-held fort. Eventually the third group prevailed, leading to a major battle. The fort consisted of a pair of walls surrounding an inner bailey, the inner higher than the outer. A stone bridge led from the top of the outer wall to a barred gate that gave access to the inner bailey. There was also a heavy timber in place that connected the two walls.
The party managed to stealth some members to good firing positions outside the wall, then began the assault. Surprisingly most of the orcs retreated, releasing wargs to attack the party as they tried to penetrate the gates. With the party's primary combatants tied up with the wargs, the thieves and clerics were free to engage in the prime activity of the night, falling off high spots. No fewer than five characters plunged off the walls at various times, and the party's many clerics (six total) were kept busy keeping people alive. Even the poor halfling thief managed to fall off the same wall no fewer than three times.
Eventually the party defeated the defenders, but not before they discovered the wargs were actually some sort of demi-human/wolf shape-shifters. They also encountered a gaunt and pallid human who had the ability to form weapons from his hands and fold himself into the shadows and move without being seen. At least one of the orcs disappeared beyond the interior gates, and the party, pretty banged up and almost out of spells, decided to retreat. On the way back they ran into a lone Dwarf with an obsidian staff who pretty much ignored them and disappeared into the darkness. Back at camp the night's rest was disturbed by a weird black blob-creature that disappeared in a cloud of rainbow light when slain (?).
From the GM point of view the afternoon dragged a bit. The party got a bit tied up figuring out where to go and what to do, wasting about an hour before deciding to hit the orc fort. One of the hazards of such long sessions is we tend to not take breaks when we should and people get tired and grumpy. The fight at the fort was both hilarious and overly long. We all had a cold streak on dice and spent a couple rounds missing each other. Everyone falling off the beam between the walls was really funny, especially when the cleric actually saved someone by breaking their fall with their own body. The folding man really threw the party for a loop too. At the end of the fort fight everyone was done for the night, so we took the rest of the night off to socialize.
Sunday AM
Sunday sessions are generally short, as everyone generally heads for home around noon. The party bypassed the 'pool of evil' and explored the tunnels beyond, discovering a huge lake-filled cavern with yet another fortress within, a collapsed cavern full of rubble, and a nest of carrion crawlers, which they easily defeated. When they explored the nest they discovered a paralyzed but still-living Dwarf among the victims and rescued him.
Backtracking they eventually found a natural granite shelf leading out and down into the gigantic cavern beneath the original goblin fort. They wanted to recover the nice mail shirt the goblin leader took with him so they followed this down to a hilltop covered in ruins. A pack of undead Dwarves jumped them among the ruins, leading to the final big battle of the game. With so many clerics and two paladins the party managed to kill many of the undead with those turned revealing several paths down into the cavern below. A search of the ruins turned up a very nice stash of coins and several magic items, leftovers from a previous expedition slain by the undead.
With time running out the group retreated all the way back out of the depths and headed back to town to cash in their loot. When they returned to their original base camp they discovered the old man and their mules had vanished (hey, what do you expect if you leave your stuff in the hands of a madman?) The trip back to Hollin was uneventful, and everyone returned alive.
GM notes: Everyone lived. Not one party death. Clearly I need to step up the deadly factor a bit. Combats with 12-18 characters are SLOW, even with a relatively quick system like 1st edition. I think the players are likely to reduce the active characters in use next time we play.
Final Thoughts
Reading back over this, it doesn't seem like we did much, but that might be deceiving. Some of the encounters were huge. The goblin fort, for example, was protected by over 60 goblins and wargs. The fight there ended up being three or four separate encounters. This group is big on tactical challenges, and I accommodate them, so even simple encounters tend to be pretty deep when it comes to the actual battle.
My only disappointment with the game was that I didn't get to expand on the story elements touched on in the game. It's kind of a mixed blessing in that I have plenty of material ready for next time, but I think the story people in the group felt the lack. Hopefully I can address that next time.
I view the game as a real success. It was initially proposed as a one shot game, and by the end of the weekend everyone was talking about 'next time'. One player suggested everyone chip in some cash to defray my travel costs so they could play more often (they're all in the greater Washington DC area, I'm in Indiana). With that kind of enthusiasm, I can't wait to play again.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Return to Moria: Experience
There have been a few recent blog posts concerning experience points in the campaign recently, this one from Jeff's Gameblog, and this and this from The Tao of D&D. Here's how I'm handling experience in Moria.
XP for Treasure
I'm using 1 XP = 1 GP for treasure recovered from the dungeon. There are some pretty nice stacks of coin hidden away in the Mines, almost all of it protected by something mean and nasty. I figure Moria has been empty for a long time, so any wealth, unless it was very well protected, has long since been redistributed. XP for treasure is handed out only after it's safely returned to civilization, in this case the town of Hollin. This might sound a bit arbitrary, but it makes for some interesting choices for the players. Who goes back to town, what do you do with the treasure once it's there, and who stays behind to guard it suddenly become tough questions.
XP for Killing Things
For monster-slaying I use a version of the 1st Edition D&D experience value calculations. For this game I'm awarding accelerated experience so the numbers have been tweaked up a bit. I don't do adjustments for individual hit points; to be honest I don't really do individual HP in most cases. I have a cheat sheet listing each creature's XP value and a simple spreadsheet to plug in numbers killed for a quick total calculation. I have my laptop at the table (since all my notes are in TiddlyWiki). It takes about ten seconds to plug in kills and come up with an XP total. Kill XP is awarded at the end of combat and is split by everyone involved in the fight. On the low end sub 1-HD creatures are worth maybe 20 XP, on the upper end, well there's a unique creature in Moria that's worth about 12,000 XP right now.
XP for Completing Encounters
I give an XP bonus for completing encounters during the course of play. Completing might mean killing all the goblins, but it could also mean negotiating passage through their stronghold or getting them involved in a conflict with the neighboring trolls so the party can slip in and loot their camp. I base this on the potential threat and hostility of the encounter. This XP is sort of a "discretionary fund" and I'll admit to using it as a reward for play that I find entertaining (the GM is there to have fun too!) This XP is awarded on the spot, and is split between everyone who helped complete the encounter, so all characters involved in a multi-attack plan, for example, would receive a share.
The relative amounts of the three types of experience are weighed toward loot, then kills, then encounters. Loot first, because it allows clever play to bypass risk for immediate gain. Kills, because my players like combat, and encounters, because hey, I have needs too. I've used this system in the past and it's worked well. It probably sounds more complex than it is.
It's likely any responses to this post will be delayed, since I'm actually driving from Indiana to Virginia today for this game.
XP for Treasure
I'm using 1 XP = 1 GP for treasure recovered from the dungeon. There are some pretty nice stacks of coin hidden away in the Mines, almost all of it protected by something mean and nasty. I figure Moria has been empty for a long time, so any wealth, unless it was very well protected, has long since been redistributed. XP for treasure is handed out only after it's safely returned to civilization, in this case the town of Hollin. This might sound a bit arbitrary, but it makes for some interesting choices for the players. Who goes back to town, what do you do with the treasure once it's there, and who stays behind to guard it suddenly become tough questions.
XP for Killing Things
For monster-slaying I use a version of the 1st Edition D&D experience value calculations. For this game I'm awarding accelerated experience so the numbers have been tweaked up a bit. I don't do adjustments for individual hit points; to be honest I don't really do individual HP in most cases. I have a cheat sheet listing each creature's XP value and a simple spreadsheet to plug in numbers killed for a quick total calculation. I have my laptop at the table (since all my notes are in TiddlyWiki). It takes about ten seconds to plug in kills and come up with an XP total. Kill XP is awarded at the end of combat and is split by everyone involved in the fight. On the low end sub 1-HD creatures are worth maybe 20 XP, on the upper end, well there's a unique creature in Moria that's worth about 12,000 XP right now.
XP for Completing Encounters
I give an XP bonus for completing encounters during the course of play. Completing might mean killing all the goblins, but it could also mean negotiating passage through their stronghold or getting them involved in a conflict with the neighboring trolls so the party can slip in and loot their camp. I base this on the potential threat and hostility of the encounter. This XP is sort of a "discretionary fund" and I'll admit to using it as a reward for play that I find entertaining (the GM is there to have fun too!) This XP is awarded on the spot, and is split between everyone who helped complete the encounter, so all characters involved in a multi-attack plan, for example, would receive a share.
The relative amounts of the three types of experience are weighed toward loot, then kills, then encounters. Loot first, because it allows clever play to bypass risk for immediate gain. Kills, because my players like combat, and encounters, because hey, I have needs too. I've used this system in the past and it's worked well. It probably sounds more complex than it is.
It's likely any responses to this post will be delayed, since I'm actually driving from Indiana to Virginia today for this game.
Thursday, January 21, 2010
The Wavering Expanse
This is a bit more thinking aloud about the metaphysics touched on in my Nexus of the Mad God post a short while back.
The Wavering Expanse
An extra-dimensional plane of twisted light and sound, the Wavering Expanse is a vast sea of existence. The mundane realms float upon this plane like driftwood and detritus, slowly shifting and moving as waves of colorless light and surges of noiseless sound become currents and tides in this vast ocean.
The Wavering Expanse is an uninhabited realm, its extra-dimensional nature inimical to most forms of life. Some creatures of the mundane realms are capable of existing for short periods of time in this place, and some powerful beings are capable of crossing the voids between worlds, breaking through to alternate realities. Some, like the Mad God, can establish conduits between realms, linking two or more realms with nebulous passages that draw energy and matter from one realm to the other.
Traveling the Wavering Expanse
Creatures transported to the Wavering Expanse remain connected to the mundane realm they arrived from (unless making use of a Conduit, see below). Mundane creatures suffer from disorientation/confusion, (Legendary difficulty to shake off, recheck every ten minutes with a cumulative reduction in difficulty), though they eventually become acclimated to the realm's bizarre sensations. Some typical examples:
Movement in the Expanse is chaotic at best. Each mundane realm casts shadows of solidity into the maelstrom, allowing normal modes of travel, but the terrain constantly shifts and twists beneath the tides and currents. An hour's walk within the Expanse might cross ten feet or half a continent in the real world, depending on conditions.
From time to time the Wavering Expanse breaks through to the mundane realm, creating a temporary passage back to the normal world. Experienced travelers in this twisted space become attuned to the currents and energies of the Expanse, and can sometimes predict and locate these breaks. A lucky few can make their escape in this manner.
Conduits
Some beings of supreme power can establish Conduits, linkages between mundane realms that allow the passage of energy and matter. Establishing a Conduit requires some form of anchoring at either end of the connection. Conduits are bidirectional, but most favor a flow in one direction over the other. Traveling through a Conduit has various effects:
Inhabitants
Though the Wavering Expanse is, for the most part, uninhabited, some few creatures are able to travel freely within this twisted realm. Others, trapped here by chance or fate, have become immune to the Expanse's mind-twisting effects and spend their endless days searching for a means of escape.
The Wavering Expanse
An extra-dimensional plane of twisted light and sound, the Wavering Expanse is a vast sea of existence. The mundane realms float upon this plane like driftwood and detritus, slowly shifting and moving as waves of colorless light and surges of noiseless sound become currents and tides in this vast ocean.
The Wavering Expanse is an uninhabited realm, its extra-dimensional nature inimical to most forms of life. Some creatures of the mundane realms are capable of existing for short periods of time in this place, and some powerful beings are capable of crossing the voids between worlds, breaking through to alternate realities. Some, like the Mad God, can establish conduits between realms, linking two or more realms with nebulous passages that draw energy and matter from one realm to the other.
Traveling the Wavering Expanse
Creatures transported to the Wavering Expanse remain connected to the mundane realm they arrived from (unless making use of a Conduit, see below). Mundane creatures suffer from disorientation/confusion, (Legendary difficulty to shake off, recheck every ten minutes with a cumulative reduction in difficulty), though they eventually become acclimated to the realm's bizarre sensations. Some typical examples:
- Hear a wave of sour green light
- See a roaring wall of sweet silence
- Step into a pool of buzzing blue that clings like the scent of honey
Movement in the Expanse is chaotic at best. Each mundane realm casts shadows of solidity into the maelstrom, allowing normal modes of travel, but the terrain constantly shifts and twists beneath the tides and currents. An hour's walk within the Expanse might cross ten feet or half a continent in the real world, depending on conditions.
From time to time the Wavering Expanse breaks through to the mundane realm, creating a temporary passage back to the normal world. Experienced travelers in this twisted space become attuned to the currents and energies of the Expanse, and can sometimes predict and locate these breaks. A lucky few can make their escape in this manner.
Conduits
Some beings of supreme power can establish Conduits, linkages between mundane realms that allow the passage of energy and matter. Establishing a Conduit requires some form of anchoring at either end of the connection. Conduits are bidirectional, but most favor a flow in one direction over the other. Traveling through a Conduit has various effects:
- Energies transmitted via a Conduit are attenuated, losing potency as distance increases.
- Creatures traveling through a Conduit see only a fuzzy white passage of drifting, noiseless fog, a dim patch of brightness their only guidance. The time required to travel the length of a Conduit is subjective, some survivors say they traveled for days, others seconds.
- Items are slowly pushed by the directional flow of the Conduit and are eventually ejected from the outbound end. This extends to items that are still anchored in the originating realm, so entire rooms, structures or landscapes can be pulled through a Conduit and remain intact.
Inhabitants
Though the Wavering Expanse is, for the most part, uninhabited, some few creatures are able to travel freely within this twisted realm. Others, trapped here by chance or fate, have become immune to the Expanse's mind-twisting effects and spend their endless days searching for a means of escape.
Friday, January 8, 2010
Return to Moria: Lost in the Maze
It's been a while since I've posted anything about my Moria game, so I thought an update was in order.
Characters
The holidays threw a wrench into my schedule so there was a lull in my side of the process. Most of my players had some time off over the holidays, so everyone has finalized their characters. We've also done a bit of preparation via email, so everyone knows a bit about the locale. The group has discussed their clues and potential entrances to Moria, and have determined they're going to follow the map the trio of orphans from up north received from their uncle. From my perspective, the character side of things is pretty well done, a good thing, since there's a lot left for me to do elsewhere.
Maps
I've finished off all the broad scale maps of Moria. These reflect each level of the mines in broad strokes and provide a framework of connectivity and general layout. I posted up a sample of this style of map here. My mapping work is now focused on two separate tasks:
Area Descriptions and Encounters
This is where my activities are really focused now. With a firm commitment from the players on their entry point, I've been able to buckle down and start creating content. After a bit of flailing about with some standard templates for TiddlyWiki I've finally started making progress. I've mapped out the three 'levels' surrounding the party's chosen entrance in preparation for their arrival, and I plan on expanding this coverage over the next couple of weeks.
The problem I'm facing now is with sprawl. There are four additional levels connected to the area I've already mapped, and each of those levels leads to four or five other levels. I'm planning on taking an organic approach and expanding the coverage in all directions as the mood strikes. If the players choose to fully explore the area I've already mapped I have plenty of material for the first weekend session, but players never do what you want. I'm sure they'll go haring off into undefined areas within a couple hours of play.
Speaking of sessions, readers might be thinking this is an awful lot of prep work for a single session game. I should probably explain. The group I'm running this for consists of people I've gamed with for many years (in some cases 30+ years). We're now scattered from Indiana to Maryland, so we only get to game together a couple times a year, and the sessions are weekend-long affairs lasting from Friday afternoon til mid-day Sunday. We probably pack in 6-7 'normal' sessions during these games. Even with a minimalist approach to prep there's a substantial amount of stuff to get ready, and I'm not really a minimalist on the preparation front.
Yeah, I'm sweating a bit.
Characters
The holidays threw a wrench into my schedule so there was a lull in my side of the process. Most of my players had some time off over the holidays, so everyone has finalized their characters. We've also done a bit of preparation via email, so everyone knows a bit about the locale. The group has discussed their clues and potential entrances to Moria, and have determined they're going to follow the map the trio of orphans from up north received from their uncle. From my perspective, the character side of things is pretty well done, a good thing, since there's a lot left for me to do elsewhere.
Maps
I've finished off all the broad scale maps of Moria. These reflect each level of the mines in broad strokes and provide a framework of connectivity and general layout. I posted up a sample of this style of map here. My mapping work is now focused on two separate tasks:
- Geomorphs - I've been sketching out general purpose mini-maps for use and reuse throughout the session. These maps include stuff like variations on clan halls, defensive works, mines and tunnels, and similar common features.
- Singular maps - These are maps of one shot areas, unique locations that need a map to clarify the layout. I'm trying to minimize these as Moria is huge. Doing unique maps of every area is a near impossible task.
Area Descriptions and Encounters
This is where my activities are really focused now. With a firm commitment from the players on their entry point, I've been able to buckle down and start creating content. After a bit of flailing about with some standard templates for TiddlyWiki I've finally started making progress. I've mapped out the three 'levels' surrounding the party's chosen entrance in preparation for their arrival, and I plan on expanding this coverage over the next couple of weeks.
The problem I'm facing now is with sprawl. There are four additional levels connected to the area I've already mapped, and each of those levels leads to four or five other levels. I'm planning on taking an organic approach and expanding the coverage in all directions as the mood strikes. If the players choose to fully explore the area I've already mapped I have plenty of material for the first weekend session, but players never do what you want. I'm sure they'll go haring off into undefined areas within a couple hours of play.
Speaking of sessions, readers might be thinking this is an awful lot of prep work for a single session game. I should probably explain. The group I'm running this for consists of people I've gamed with for many years (in some cases 30+ years). We're now scattered from Indiana to Maryland, so we only get to game together a couple times a year, and the sessions are weekend-long affairs lasting from Friday afternoon til mid-day Sunday. We probably pack in 6-7 'normal' sessions during these games. Even with a minimalist approach to prep there's a substantial amount of stuff to get ready, and I'm not really a minimalist on the preparation front.
Yeah, I'm sweating a bit.
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Nexus of the Mad God
This idea has been stuck in the back of my head for a few days now, so I thought I would write it up and see where it goes. It's not quite a seed for campaign, but maybe getting it down on paper will solidify it.
The Mad God
It exists in a void of blackness and empty space, god of a dead world, unhinged by the loss of its followers and the slow decay of its realm, which was destroyed long ago in some forgotten cataclysm. Its divine power curls and twists in the void like so many black and terrible serpents, constantly seeking that which a god desires most. Worshipers.
The Mad God sends shards and fragments of its own being across trackless space and twisted dimension, seeking sentient creatures to make its own. It cannot challenge the gods of other realms in their own places of power. Instead it nibbles at the edges of their worlds, the lost places, the hidden tunnels and caverns in the depths, the sunken wrecks of galleons, and forgotten cities long covered by jungle vines. When the dark reflections of the Mad God touch these places they are altered, becoming conduits to its own dead realm. Those that explore these forgotten sites sometimes find themselves traveling through a strange reality inhabited by races and creatures from unknown worlds. The Nexus.
The Nexus
An aggregation of lost places drawn together by the Mad God, the Nexus is an endless maze of black caverns, tunnels carved by unknown hands, and lost cities crumbling to ruin; the forgotten places of a thousand worlds. There is no sky in Nexus, only dark vistas and endless depths. Those that find themselves in the Nexus are often lost forever, the conduits to their own world shifting and vanishing in the endless maze. Some despair and lose hope. Others struggle on, seeking a way back to their own realm and former life. Some chose another path and begin anew in this strange and terrible place.
For there is hope here. Islands of light and stability in the endless night. Conduits between worlds, once established, never entirely vanish, allowing powers from other realms to manifest in this place, diminished perhaps, but never lost. Wizards of lost worlds light the darkness with powerful alchemical spells while priests intone rituals to distant gods and warriors defend these new realms against the encroaching night. Disparate races gather together in common purpose and form communities bent on one goal: survival.
But there is despair here too, for between these points of light lie many hazards. The power of the Mad God touches only the forgotten places of distant realms and most of those regions were forgotten for good reason. There are dangers in the darkness, some mundane, some so terrible they exceed the boundaries of sane thought. Dark things creep from tunnel and cavern, seeking to destroy the islands of order in the middle of chaos.
And the Mad God remains hidden in the center of it all, a vortex of need and hunger driven by endless desire.
The Mad God
It exists in a void of blackness and empty space, god of a dead world, unhinged by the loss of its followers and the slow decay of its realm, which was destroyed long ago in some forgotten cataclysm. Its divine power curls and twists in the void like so many black and terrible serpents, constantly seeking that which a god desires most. Worshipers.
The Mad God sends shards and fragments of its own being across trackless space and twisted dimension, seeking sentient creatures to make its own. It cannot challenge the gods of other realms in their own places of power. Instead it nibbles at the edges of their worlds, the lost places, the hidden tunnels and caverns in the depths, the sunken wrecks of galleons, and forgotten cities long covered by jungle vines. When the dark reflections of the Mad God touch these places they are altered, becoming conduits to its own dead realm. Those that explore these forgotten sites sometimes find themselves traveling through a strange reality inhabited by races and creatures from unknown worlds. The Nexus.
The Nexus
An aggregation of lost places drawn together by the Mad God, the Nexus is an endless maze of black caverns, tunnels carved by unknown hands, and lost cities crumbling to ruin; the forgotten places of a thousand worlds. There is no sky in Nexus, only dark vistas and endless depths. Those that find themselves in the Nexus are often lost forever, the conduits to their own world shifting and vanishing in the endless maze. Some despair and lose hope. Others struggle on, seeking a way back to their own realm and former life. Some chose another path and begin anew in this strange and terrible place.
For there is hope here. Islands of light and stability in the endless night. Conduits between worlds, once established, never entirely vanish, allowing powers from other realms to manifest in this place, diminished perhaps, but never lost. Wizards of lost worlds light the darkness with powerful alchemical spells while priests intone rituals to distant gods and warriors defend these new realms against the encroaching night. Disparate races gather together in common purpose and form communities bent on one goal: survival.
But there is despair here too, for between these points of light lie many hazards. The power of the Mad God touches only the forgotten places of distant realms and most of those regions were forgotten for good reason. There are dangers in the darkness, some mundane, some so terrible they exceed the boundaries of sane thought. Dark things creep from tunnel and cavern, seeking to destroy the islands of order in the middle of chaos.
And the Mad God remains hidden in the center of it all, a vortex of need and hunger driven by endless desire.
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Return to Moria: Status Report
In my last post about my upcoming Moria-based campaign I talked about the three main tasks I was pursuing at the time, character creation, mapping, and encounters. The last two weeks have seen some good progress on all three fronts (my players keep out).
Characters
All my players have now created their characters. Yes, characters, plural. Since the first session of this game is going to be a full weekend of gaming (my gaming group is 4 states away), we're setting things up to insure a couple of character deaths don't lead to excessive downtime for the players. Here's the full list of characters:
A trio from Gondor:
Mapping
I now have a near complete set of level maps for the entire dungeon. After doing rough drafts of each major level by hand I switched to using Open Office's Impress, which is theoretically presentation software, but does a very nice job of creating flow-chart style maps. Compare my lame rough draft with this close to final version.
Using Impress I've been able to color code a ton of information into the basic map. I can also jump between levels with the application's interactive features, which link slide navigation to mouse-clicks on objects.
I'm still working on naming and tweaking the level maps. I'm also adding at least two more layers of connectivity between the levels: sewers and natural waterways. Other potential links include natural unmapped caves and volcanic vents.
Next steps for mapping include descriptions of the blocked out areas of each level map. I'll be starting this process with the levels most likely to be visited, then work inward from there. The party has a few clues about various entrances into the Mines, so I'll be focusing my efforts on those levels. As I do this I'll also be sketching in sewer lines and waterways, and drawing up unique maps as needed.
Encounters
I've continued sketching out the various groups that currently inhabit the depths of Moria. I now have 20 major groups inhabiting the depths. My biggest challenge now is placing them all in some sort of reasonable fashion. There's a lot of connectivity between the Mine levels and I'm trying to lay out groups so there's some rhyme or reason to it. Some of the recent additions to the bestiary include:
All in all I'm pleased with how Moria is developing, though I find myself spending way too much time thinking about it. I've also discovered I can waste hours tweaking map layouts, something I have to put a stop to if I want to keep moving forward. There's still a ton of work to do, but I love world building, so it's all good!
Characters
All my players have now created their characters. Yes, characters, plural. Since the first session of this game is going to be a full weekend of gaming (my gaming group is 4 states away), we're setting things up to insure a couple of character deaths don't lead to excessive downtime for the players. Here's the full list of characters:
A trio from Gondor:
- 2nd paladin Man of Gondor
- 1st cleric Iron Hills Dwarf
- 1st fighter/magic-user Elf of Lothlorien
- 1st fighter Man of the North
- 2nd cleric Man of Rohan
- 1st thief Man of the North
- 2nd cleric Man of Gondor
- 1st paladin Man of Gondor
- 1st/1st fighter/thief Western Dwarf
- Man of Gondor, Ranger, 2nd Lvl
- Hobbit, Thief, 1st Lvl
- Iron Hills Dwarf, Cleric, 1st Lvl
- Man of the North 2nd level magic user
- Iron Hills Dwarf 1st level cleric
- Elf of Lothlorien - 1st level fighter/magic user
- Iron Hills Dwarf fighter, 2nd level
- Iron Hills Dwarf cleric, 1st level
- Man of the North magic user, 1st level
Mapping
I'm still working on naming and tweaking the level maps. I'm also adding at least two more layers of connectivity between the levels: sewers and natural waterways. Other potential links include natural unmapped caves and volcanic vents.
Next steps for mapping include descriptions of the blocked out areas of each level map. I'll be starting this process with the levels most likely to be visited, then work inward from there. The party has a few clues about various entrances into the Mines, so I'll be focusing my efforts on those levels. As I do this I'll also be sketching in sewer lines and waterways, and drawing up unique maps as needed.
Encounters
I've continued sketching out the various groups that currently inhabit the depths of Moria. I now have 20 major groups inhabiting the depths. My biggest challenge now is placing them all in some sort of reasonable fashion. There's a lot of connectivity between the Mine levels and I'm trying to lay out groups so there's some rhyme or reason to it. Some of the recent additions to the bestiary include:
- A cult of curiously twisted Dwarves who worship at a strange stone altar dedicated to a previously unknown God.
- The reptilian Grimmve, primitive tribal creatures who use living weapons in combat.
- The Ettercap, my own take on the original, half-spider / half-human cross-breeds that serve one of the other groups in Moria.
All in all I'm pleased with how Moria is developing, though I find myself spending way too much time thinking about it. I've also discovered I can waste hours tweaking map layouts, something I have to put a stop to if I want to keep moving forward. There's still a ton of work to do, but I love world building, so it's all good!
Monday, November 16, 2009
Return to Moria: First Victi... err Characters
I thought I'd give a brief update on the status of this campaign setting. I took a few days off after my last significant post on the subject, primarily to let things stew in my head for a while. Since then things have moved forward a bit.
Characters
After I tweaked the available characters and racial level limits a bit, I opened up character creation to the players. Since the group that's going to be playing this is scattered over three states, we do all character creation via email. There are three methods of attribute generation available:
[My players, stop reading!]
Bestiary
I've spent a fair bit of time laying out stat blocks for the various creatures and races inhabiting Moria. When populating a dungeon like this I try to come up with at least three variants of each major inhabitant, and for important races, five or six. I've also laid out the named NPCs found in the dungeon. Using Goblins, as an example, I have the following information:
Dungeon Layout
I've finally settled on how I'm going to map out Moria. The sheer size of the dungeon is rather daunting and I spent some time spinning my wheels as I contemplated how to map the beast. I finally decided to use three detail levels to lay things out.
Hollin
The other thing I've been pushing on is fleshing out the NPCs in Hollin, the starting town outside Moria. I have a pretty good handle on the main NPCs now, and have most of the locals at least sketched out. I used the NPC trait generator from the 1st edition AD&D DMG to fill in some of the blank characters in the NPC list. I've based Hollin's cast on a popular TV series from the recent past so I have a clear picture of how things work in the town. I'll be curious to see if any of my players pick up on the relationship.
Next Steps
That's about where things stand for now. This week I'm planning on finishing out the level maps for Moria, polishing off the last NPCs in Hollin, and starting on some detailed dungeon maps. Stay tuned.
Characters
After I tweaked the available characters and racial level limits a bit, I opened up character creation to the players. Since the group that's going to be playing this is scattered over three states, we do all character creation via email. There are three methods of attribute generation available:
- Pick from a pre-generated list.
- Roll using a 4d6 drop lowest, in order method.
- Roll using a 3d6 best of twelve, choose order method.
- A pair of Iron Hills Dwarves, fighter (2nd) and cleric
- A Man of the North magic-user
- A paladin of Gondor (2nd)
- An Iron Hills Dwarf cleric
- A human cleric (race TBD) (2nd)
- A paladin of Gondor (squire of the other paladin)
- A Western Dwarf fighter/thief with extremely low HP
- A ranger of Gondor (2nd)
- A Hobbit thief
- A lame Dwarf cleric (the only character rolled randomly)
[My players, stop reading!]
Bestiary
I've spent a fair bit of time laying out stat blocks for the various creatures and races inhabiting Moria. When populating a dungeon like this I try to come up with at least three variants of each major inhabitant, and for important races, five or six. I've also laid out the named NPCs found in the dungeon. Using Goblins, as an example, I have the following information:
- Three main tribes, each with three or four important named NPCs.
- Seven variants of basic Goblins (including sneaky, tough, very tough, spell using, and leader types).
- Three creatures that associate with or are used by Goblins.
- Relationships between the Goblin tribes and the various other groups in Moria.
Dungeon Layout
I've finally settled on how I'm going to map out Moria. The sheer size of the dungeon is rather daunting and I spent some time spinning my wheels as I contemplated how to map the beast. I finally decided to use three detail levels to lay things out.
- A top level map. This corresponds to a standard "level layout" map, showing each major area as a simple block diagram. I've altered the maps in the linked post a bit, but they're a good approximation of the top level maps I'm using.
Level maps. These are block diagrams that show the overall structure of each level in Moria. There's no real detail beyond general connectivity and a note or two for each main area.- Detail maps. These will be traditional dungeon maps, showing actual corridors, walls, tunnels and features. I plan on doing unique maps for some areas and using generic maps for others.
Hollin
The other thing I've been pushing on is fleshing out the NPCs in Hollin, the starting town outside Moria. I have a pretty good handle on the main NPCs now, and have most of the locals at least sketched out. I used the NPC trait generator from the 1st edition AD&D DMG to fill in some of the blank characters in the NPC list. I've based Hollin's cast on a popular TV series from the recent past so I have a clear picture of how things work in the town. I'll be curious to see if any of my players pick up on the relationship.
Next Steps
That's about where things stand for now. This week I'm planning on finishing out the level maps for Moria, polishing off the last NPCs in Hollin, and starting on some detailed dungeon maps. Stay tuned.
Saturday, November 7, 2009
Return to Moria: Millstone Doors
These are one of the defensive constructs that will be appearing in Moria:
Defensive doors consisting of a great circle of granite designed to roll in front of a narrow tunnel entrance. The entry is sunken so the stone is held vertically in a trough. It overlaps the frame of the door and can be wedged in place, making it nearly impossible to roll aside from the outside. From the interior it is quite easy to move.
A variant of this door features a narrow hole bored through the center of the stone, allowing a steel rod to be pushed through. One end of the rod features a "T" that unfolds flat against the stone's surface, the other end is held in place with a metal pin. This allows a bar to be fastened across the stone, held in place by the rod and the walls of the tunnel.
The locking version of this door is often used to create cul-de-sac style traps. The enemy is led into a large chamber with multiple looping corridors leading back to the entry area. The pursued party loops through the corridors, exits and seals the door, trapping the pursuers within. Water or poison gas can be used to kill the enemy, or they can simply be left to starve.
Defensive doors consisting of a great circle of granite designed to roll in front of a narrow tunnel entrance. The entry is sunken so the stone is held vertically in a trough. It overlaps the frame of the door and can be wedged in place, making it nearly impossible to roll aside from the outside. From the interior it is quite easy to move.
A variant of this door features a narrow hole bored through the center of the stone, allowing a steel rod to be pushed through. One end of the rod features a "T" that unfolds flat against the stone's surface, the other end is held in place with a metal pin. This allows a bar to be fastened across the stone, held in place by the rod and the walls of the tunnel.
The locking version of this door is often used to create cul-de-sac style traps. The enemy is led into a large chamber with multiple looping corridors leading back to the entry area. The pursued party loops through the corridors, exits and seals the door, trapping the pursuers within. Water or poison gas can be used to kill the enemy, or they can simply be left to starve.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Return to Moria: Next Steps
In the last article on my Return to Moria campaign, I closed with the intent of focusing this article on setting up the main inhabitants of Moria for the campaign. I quickly discovered that wasn't the only thing I was doing however, so rather than stick to plan, I'm going to write a bit about what I'm really working on (My players keep out!).
At the close of the previous article I had enough in the way of notes and ideas that I needed to get them organized. My go to method of organizing campaign notes these days is Tiddlywiki, a single file wiki implementation that requires no hosting, runs in a browser, and is very easy to use. I use it to write articles for this blog, to maintain a personal to do list, and for campaign notes. If you haven't tried tried Tiddlywiki, I'd urge you to check it out. A couple key features I like:
Once I was organized, I spent some time working on a really rough map of Moria. Moria is gigantic and I've realized I can't map every square inch, so I'm going to be using a mix of graph-style maps that show linkages, geomorph-style maps that I can use to piece together secondary areas, and traditional dungeon maps. With this mix I think I can quickly lay out a reasonable map for any section of the Mines that the players choose to explore.
I also spent some time thinking about how Moria is laid out, and drew a few conclusions based on that. I already talked a bit about the major areas within Moria in the sandbox article, but a few more details emerged:
Organization
At the close of the previous article I had enough in the way of notes and ideas that I needed to get them organized. My go to method of organizing campaign notes these days is Tiddlywiki, a single file wiki implementation that requires no hosting, runs in a browser, and is very easy to use. I use it to write articles for this blog, to maintain a personal to do list, and for campaign notes. If you haven't tried tried Tiddlywiki, I'd urge you to check it out. A couple key features I like:
- Tagging - Any tiddler (Tiddlywiki's term for 'article') can be tagged with one or more terms that serve as categories, making it easy to find things by topic. I have regional (Moria, Hollin, Eregion) tags, category (item, bestiary, location) tags, purpose (encounter, lore, overview), and status (incomplete, published) tags, about 30 in total.
- Inclusion - Any tiddler can be included within another with a one line command. This is extremely useful for encounters as you can include the stat block tiddlers (always written up separately) for all participants in each encounter tiddler without rewriting a bunch of stuff.
- Navigation - You can customize the main navigation bar to reflect your content easily, as the navigation bar is just another tiddler. Moria currently lists the home page article for each major region, plus links to my player site, and a few other external resource sites.
Moria Expanded
Once I was organized, I spent some time working on a really rough map of Moria. Moria is gigantic and I've realized I can't map every square inch, so I'm going to be using a mix of graph-style maps that show linkages, geomorph-style maps that I can use to piece together secondary areas, and traditional dungeon maps. With this mix I think I can quickly lay out a reasonable map for any section of the Mines that the players choose to explore.
I also spent some time thinking about how Moria is laid out, and drew a few conclusions based on that. I already talked a bit about the major areas within Moria in the sandbox article, but a few more details emerged:
- Moria was a city, so there must be places to live and work. I made the decision that Dwarves live in clan halls that house many multi-generational families. This decision allows me to design a few clan hall layouts geomorph style and get a lot of mileage out of them. Similarly, workshops and smithies are clan focused so a similar approach can work there.
- Dwarves are defensive and isolationist. Moria is riddled with defensive fortifications and stonework tricks and traps. Each Hall and Deep can be locked down and isolated from the others and secret tunnels and doors allow flanking maneuvers and troop movements without enemy interference. A combination of geomorph and unique maps will cover these features.
- The Lower Caves are cold and wet. Gandalf hints at this a few times in LotR. I'm going to run with it. The Lower Caves contain vast lakes and rivers of chill black water. With little lore concerning this area, I will take quite a few liberties with the depths.
Occupants
I spent quite a bit of time over the past week sketching out a bestiary for Moria. I've been working in broad strokes, from the known to the unknown. I ended up doing three passes, beginning with what was known about Moria. The first pass gave me the following list:- Goblins, Orcs, Trolls - These are very much evident in LotR and other historic references to Moria so they'll definitely be included. They also make great fodder for more powerful groups, allowing me to set up some internal politics in the Mines.
- Dwarves - By canon, the Dwarves were driven from Moria long ago, but there's no reason to assume they all left. I've sketched out four general groups of Dwarves that remain in Moria:
- Slaves - Some Dwarves were captured and enslaved by Goblins, Orcs or other inhabitants. Their descendants labor on in the dark.
- Survivors - Isolated groups that remained independent or colonies of escaped slaves.
- Turned Dwarves - Cultists, power-mad or overly greedy, these Dwarves aligned themselves to the dark powers found within the depths, becoming hated outcasts.
- Returnees - Dwarves that have returned to reclaim Moria for the Dwarves.
- The Balrog - To my reading it's pretty clear that Gandalf utterly defeated the Balrog, but I'm listing it here just in case I change my mind.
- Watcher in the Water - Gandalf believes this creature was driven from the waters beneath Moria. I'll run with that. There is no longer a lake outside Hollin gate and the Watcher has returned to the depths, but it is not alone.
- Spiders - Shelob is one of my favorite villains in LotR, and spiders appear elsewhere in Tolkien's works, so it seems natural that a lesser daughter of Shelob and some of her spawn will find their way into Moria.
- The Corrupt of Angmar - The realm of the Witch King was defeated long ago, but some of the most powerful and corrupt sorcerers of that evil empire escaped into the deep tunnels and passages beneath the Misty Mountains, eventually finding their way to Moria.
- The Nameless - Gandalf said "Far, far below the deepest delvings of the Dwarves, the world is gnawed by nameless things. Even Sauron knows them not. They are older than he. Now I have walked there, but I will bring no report to darken the light of day." Yeah, gotta use that.
- Khazad-azun - Dwarf cultists who worship The Nameless as Gods, a faith shared by...
- The Deep Ones - Foul aquatic beings of the Lower Caves, minions of The Nameless. With the fall of the Balrog they are free to expand their realm.
- Herders - As the Ents watch over the great forests of Middle-earth so do the Herders watch over the fungal woods and their inhabitants in the depths.
- Minions of the Corrupt - The dark magic of Angmar perverts flesh and mind to its purpose. Bestial Weres, demonic Imps, stony Gargoyles and spidery Ettercaps serve the sorcerers of the dead Witch King.
- Golems - Some of the automatons of the Dwarves remain active in the Halls and Deeps of Moria, forever executing their last commands to work or protect the Mines.
- The Aquatics - The Nameless and the Deep Ones are not the only creatures inhabiting the Lower Caves, the Beingreip and Grimmve, hard-shelled and scaly, also lurk in the depths.
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Return To Moria: Some Maps
These are two quick maps I pulled together for my Moria campaign using Open Office Draw to lay them out. Note to my players: Don't be peeking!
They show the main upper halls, the lower deeps, the two gates into the Mines, a number of upper and lower natural cavern complexes, and Durin's Tower, with a few miscellaneous markers up too.
The first one is a top-down view of the main areas of Moria.
The second is a side view showing relative elevations.
Of course there's no real scale here, other than a rough 40 miles between the gates.
They show the main upper halls, the lower deeps, the two gates into the Mines, a number of upper and lower natural cavern complexes, and Durin's Tower, with a few miscellaneous markers up too.
The first one is a top-down view of the main areas of Moria.
The second is a side view showing relative elevations.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Return To Moria: The Sandbox
A while back I posted the pitch I made to my gaming group. The response from my players was overwhelmingly positive, so the game is afoot. Since mega-dungeons and sandbox play are recurring threads in the blog-sphere and that's the direction I'm taking with this game I thought I'd throw down some information about how I'm preparing for this game.
Since the game is set in Tolkien's Middle-earth, my first step was to find some inspirational resources. A quick web search turned up two sites that look useful, The Encyclopedia of Arda and The Thain's Book. I also spent the weekend watching the The Lord of the Rings
.
My next step was to define the potential roles for player characters. Tolkien's world provides many options for races and backgrounds, but doesn't really fit the classic old-school class model very well, but I've already decided to play fast and loose with the setting, so coming up with a collection of races and classes wasn't all that hard.
My initial pitch sketched out the very basic outlines of the sandbox, so my next step was to firm up the area of play. I had visualized Hollin, the player's base of operations, as a gold rush town, populated by those drawn by the potential wealth of Moria. With that in mind I laid out a list of businesses:
The next step was to lay out an overview of Moria. Moria is a huge place, something like 40 miles east to west, so a broad strokes layout is going to be very helpful in planning who or what lives where. Clearly laying out 40 miles of dungeons a grid at a time is the work of a lifetime, so I needed a framework to hang the important bits on. I did a little digging into the history of the Dwarves and discovered the number seven has some significance to them (seven Dwarf clans, seven rings of power), so I decided to play up that theme. Moria, I decided, was made up of seven Great Upper Halls, cut into the slopes of Silvertine. Twenty-one Great Deeps (seven times seven [edit: clearly my math is flawed]) were cut beneath the mountain's roots and housed the mines, armories, and workshops of Moria. I also picked out some of the major features of Moria mentioned by Tolkien, Durin's Tower, the Endless Stair, Dimrill Gate, the Bridge at Khazad-dum, and added them to the list. I then did a very rough layout of these levels on paper.
So far so good, but all those levels are carved by Dwarves. I wanted a little more variety, so I defined a few different areas as well:
At this point I have a pretty good idea of how things are laid out in and around Moria:
My next steps are going to be focused on the occupants and features of Moria proper, but that's fodder for the next article.
Since the game is set in Tolkien's Middle-earth, my first step was to find some inspirational resources. A quick web search turned up two sites that look useful, The Encyclopedia of Arda and The Thain's Book. I also spent the weekend watching the The Lord of the Rings
.My next step was to define the potential roles for player characters. Tolkien's world provides many options for races and backgrounds, but doesn't really fit the classic old-school class model very well, but I've already decided to play fast and loose with the setting, so coming up with a collection of races and classes wasn't all that hard.
My initial pitch sketched out the very basic outlines of the sandbox, so my next step was to firm up the area of play. I had visualized Hollin, the player's base of operations, as a gold rush town, populated by those drawn by the potential wealth of Moria. With that in mind I laid out a list of businesses:
- Durin's Rest - A slightly better quality inn and tavern
- Farin's Provisions - General supplies and provisions
- Gamling's Mounts - A stable
- Garden of the Valar - Shrines to the various Valar
- Mithril's End - A smithy
- Moria Tours - Guided tours of Moria
- Sheriff's Office - The local law enforcement
- The Common - The open central square of the village, generally a muddy morass
- The Dancing Dwarf - A tavern, brothel, casino and inn, all rolled into one
- The Market - A bazaar held outside the palisade three days a week
The next step was to lay out an overview of Moria. Moria is a huge place, something like 40 miles east to west, so a broad strokes layout is going to be very helpful in planning who or what lives where. Clearly laying out 40 miles of dungeons a grid at a time is the work of a lifetime, so I needed a framework to hang the important bits on. I did a little digging into the history of the Dwarves and discovered the number seven has some significance to them (seven Dwarf clans, seven rings of power), so I decided to play up that theme. Moria, I decided, was made up of seven Great Upper Halls, cut into the slopes of Silvertine. Twenty-one Great Deeps (seven times seven [edit: clearly my math is flawed]) were cut beneath the mountain's roots and housed the mines, armories, and workshops of Moria. I also picked out some of the major features of Moria mentioned by Tolkien, Durin's Tower, the Endless Stair, Dimrill Gate, the Bridge at Khazad-dum, and added them to the list. I then did a very rough layout of these levels on paper.
So far so good, but all those levels are carved by Dwarves. I wanted a little more variety, so I defined a few different areas as well:
- The Upper Caves - natural caverns that honeycomb the slopes of Silvertine.
- The Lower Caves - lightless caverns deep beneath the Dwarven diggings inhabited by creatures even Gandalf didn't understand.
- The Black Reaches - Caverns tainted by the foul presence of the Balrog.
At this point I have a pretty good idea of how things are laid out in and around Moria:
- I have thumbnail descriptions of the important businesses and points of interest in Hollin
- I've written a line or two about most of the named NPCs in Hollin.
- I have the general layout of Moria in place, and have solved the "how to get in" problem.
- I've also accumulated some rough notes about who or what might be found in Moria.
My next steps are going to be focused on the occupants and features of Moria proper, but that's fodder for the next article.
Friday, October 23, 2009
Return to Moria: Player Races
A couple days ago I posted up the pitch I offered my regular gaming group for one of our mega-weekend gaming sessions. It met with much enthusiasm, so it looks like we'll be playing Return to Moria soon. Time to start planning! Here's the race and class combinations we're probably going to be using. I wanted to give things a Tolkienesque feel without deviating too far from old school D&D.
Races / Classes
Potential class and race combinations listed below. These are tentative at this point. Maximum levels possible for each race/class combination are listed in parenthesis where appropriate.Iron Hills Dwarf
Representatives of the Iron Hill Dwarfs. Dain's kinsmen are fascinated with Moria and expeditions from the Iron Hills are quite common. Unfortunately, like Balin's original foray, they have ended in failure.- Classes: Cleric (8), Fighter (9)
- Multi-class: Cleric/Fighter
- Bonuses: Dwarf racial bonuses, Lore of the Dwarfs
Western Dwarf
Often scorned by their more noble cousins, the Western Dwarfs represent the scattered clans inhabiting hills and valleys west of the Misty Mountains. They are a less reputable class of Dwarf, though they are just as greedy as their distinguished cousins.- Classes: Fighter (9), Thief (8)
- Multi-class: Fighter/Thief
- Bonuses: Dwarf racial bonuses, +5% Hide in Shadows, Move Silently
Elf of Mirkwood
Elves rarely have anything to do with the works of Dwarfs and Men, but King Thranduil has a streak of avarice larger than most of his kind, so he encourages the boldest among his folk to join the exploration of Moria.- Classes: Druid (7), Fighter (7)
- Multi-class: N/A
- Bonuses: Elf racial bonuses, speak with animals 1/day
Elf of Lothlorien
Since the fall of Sauron, most of the inhabitants of Lothlorien sailed into the West. Those that remain are seemingly lost in a world that has left them behind, lost in a dream of past glories. Some of these Elves still seek to oppose the darkness left by Sauron's fall, and some of the Elves in Hollin fall into this group.- Classes: Fighter (7), Magic User (11), Ranger (7)
- Multi-class: Fighter/Magic User
- Bonuses: Elf racial bonuses, detect evil 1/day
Half-Elven of Rivendell
Though their leader Elrond has departed Middle-Earth, many of his kindred, loyal to Arwen and the new king in Gondor, remained behind. The adventuresome among their ranks are sometimes found in Hollin, seeking their fortunes and pursuing the hated Orcs that dwell beneath the Misty Mountains.- Classes: Druid (7), Fighter (7), Magic User (11), Ranger (7)
- Multi-class: Druid/Ranger, Fighter/Magic User
- Bonuses: Half-elf racial bonuses, Lore of the Elves
Man of Gondor
The power of Gondor is on the rise, but not all are content with the peace. The bold, the discontent, the greedy, and the adventurous souls of Gondor are drawn to Moria, seeking glory, riches and power.- Classes: Cleric, Fighter, Magic User, Paladin, Ranger
- Multi-class: N/A
- Bonuses: Family Heirloom, Lore of Men
Man of Rohan
The fury of the Rohirrim, guided and channeled by Lord Eomer, still burns. The Riders of Rohan pursue the foul remnants of Sauron's army wherever it hides. Though unused to the deeps of Moria, the Rohirrim have come to see pursuit of their hated enemies in the depths as a test of manhood.- Classes: Cleric, Fighter, Ranger
- Multi-class:N/A
- Bonuses: Mount, Free weapon proficiency
Man of the North
The Men of the North receive undue scorn from the noble Men of Gondor. They are the Northmen and Dunlendings. Lesser men, perhaps, than the noble line of Gondor, but Men with the same desires as their betters, wealth, power and fame.- Classes: Fighter, Magic User, Thief
- Multi-class: N/A
- Bonuses: 2d6x10 extra gold, A map
Hobbit
Rare is the Shireling that makes the journey to Hollin, but other Hobbits of less renowned communities do show up from time to time. Like all Hobbits, they place comfort and food first, but some desire something more.- Classes: Fighter (6), Thief
- Multi-class: Fighter/Thief
- Bonuses: Hobbit racial bonuses, 8 weeks rations
Friday, October 16, 2009
Oooh Spooky!
Halloween is almost upon us, which means:
(and don't forget the Milky Ways)
- People are buying lots of candy.
- People are thinking about horror-themed games.
- Curses are a good place to start. My personal favorites are the Crawler's Curse and the Curse of Crows. Two troublesome maledictions with a horrific theme.
- Taking a psychological approach, the Demon Vial offers a different view on horror, where the possessor must face an assault delivered through dreams and visions.
- The Demon Spawner provides a potent foe with a horrific nature.
- Have a horrible foe lined up and need some props for them? Consider arming them with the Demon Bone Flail or setting them up with the Circlet of Mental Mastery, two magic items with a dark tone suitable for horror.
- Need to make your zombies and ghouls more potent? Consider infecting them with a nice disease or giving them a poisonous touch. My personal favorites from these categories are right here.
- Need a cast? Consider adapting the Jungle Ghoul, Door Haunts, Revenant Spiders, or Mind Eaters to your campaign.
- Finally this adventure arc isn't necessarily straight up horror, but there are certainly horrific elements to the story, particularly the Horrid Minions that appear in the adventure.
(and don't forget the Milky Ways)
Thursday, October 15, 2009
The Ogre Gang
This band of four ogres has been preying on travelers along a dilapidated road that passes through a stretch of wild land between two neighboring kingdoms. Unlike most ogres, this gang robs then leaves their victims alive instead of serving them up as the evening meal. The ogre's area of operation consists of hilly woodlands dotted with rock outcroppings and stream-cut ravines. The muddy dirt road winds through fifteen miles of this rough terrain, offering many locations to stage an ambush.
The Ogres
Merch - The leader of the gang, Merch is far too clever to be a normal ogre; in fact he is anything but normal. Merch was once human, the apprentice to a powerful magician. His master polymorphed him into an ogre for some minor infraction, but in the process Merch lost his memories of being human (he wears a fine silver amulet as his sole link to his past). He realizes he is not a normal ogre and uses his superior intellect to hide this fact from Grotch and Dorg, cultivating Bregosh's friendship as a shield against the pair.
Merch has the Good strength and toughness of a typical ogre, but only Mediocre combat skills. He has Good intellect, and a Fair grasp of some minor illusion and alteration magic. If forced to fight he wields a massive quarterstaff, though he prefers to use his magic abilities to avoid combat.
Bregosh - A towering, fearsome ogre, Bregosh would be a real terror if he had more than a child's mind. A serious head wound (which left a rather hideous scar) left Bregosh as something of a simpleton, a fact that Merch has taken great advantage of. Bregosh has an affinity for small animals and Merch caters to this by insuring there is always a little grain available so he can feed his 'pets'. He also views Merch as a friend and will protect him if he is threatened.
Bregosh is a brute of an ogre with Great strength and toughness and Good combat skills. His Poor intellect makes him a tool for Merch. In combat Bregosh wields a oak cudgel wrapped with iron bands and studded with bent and rusty spikes.
Grotch and Dorg - A pair of brothers cut from the same pattern, these two ogres are very typical of the breed, dull, strong and hungry. They provide the surly muscle for the gang, their baser tendencies held in check (barely) by Merch's wily scheming and the Bregosh's superior muscle.
Grotch and Dorg are typical ogres, with Good combat skills, strength and toughness, but Mediocre intellects. They're good in a fight, but not much use otherwise. The brothers use a matched pair of Great quality heavy axes in combat (see below).
The Operation
The gang's usual method of operation is to fell a tree across the road, then rob anyone that comes along, taking valuables, food and drink, along with the occasional horse or mule. Bregosh and Merch are usually stationed near the deadfall, while Grotch and Dorg block any escape once the trap is sprung. Merch will do the talking, while the others guard against treachery. They will defend themselves if necessary, but even Grotch and Dorg's dim brains have realized that stealing is less risky than killing.
If forced to fight the ogres, particularly Grotch and Dorg, will do so. If sorely pressed, Merch will order the retreat, making use of an obscuring illusion to cover their retreat. His favorite tricks include an illusion of additional ogres appearing from nearby cover, a wall of fog, and an alteration spell that obscures and alters the caster's trail, leading any pursuit astray.
The ogres have several crude camp sites scattered along the road. Each features a crude lean-to, a fire pit, and perhaps a small cache of foodstuffs secured beneath some heavy stones. They have a more permanent base in a small cluster of caves in the hills. Grotch and Dorg share a cave while Bregosh and Merch have dens of their own. Each ogre has their own cache of valuables and food. A fourth cave serves as a sort of common hall, with a communal cache of food and a big fire pit.
Treasure
Hooks
The Ogres
Merch - The leader of the gang, Merch is far too clever to be a normal ogre; in fact he is anything but normal. Merch was once human, the apprentice to a powerful magician. His master polymorphed him into an ogre for some minor infraction, but in the process Merch lost his memories of being human (he wears a fine silver amulet as his sole link to his past). He realizes he is not a normal ogre and uses his superior intellect to hide this fact from Grotch and Dorg, cultivating Bregosh's friendship as a shield against the pair.
Merch has the Good strength and toughness of a typical ogre, but only Mediocre combat skills. He has Good intellect, and a Fair grasp of some minor illusion and alteration magic. If forced to fight he wields a massive quarterstaff, though he prefers to use his magic abilities to avoid combat.
Bregosh - A towering, fearsome ogre, Bregosh would be a real terror if he had more than a child's mind. A serious head wound (which left a rather hideous scar) left Bregosh as something of a simpleton, a fact that Merch has taken great advantage of. Bregosh has an affinity for small animals and Merch caters to this by insuring there is always a little grain available so he can feed his 'pets'. He also views Merch as a friend and will protect him if he is threatened.
Bregosh is a brute of an ogre with Great strength and toughness and Good combat skills. His Poor intellect makes him a tool for Merch. In combat Bregosh wields a oak cudgel wrapped with iron bands and studded with bent and rusty spikes.
Grotch and Dorg - A pair of brothers cut from the same pattern, these two ogres are very typical of the breed, dull, strong and hungry. They provide the surly muscle for the gang, their baser tendencies held in check (barely) by Merch's wily scheming and the Bregosh's superior muscle.
Grotch and Dorg are typical ogres, with Good combat skills, strength and toughness, but Mediocre intellects. They're good in a fight, but not much use otherwise. The brothers use a matched pair of Great quality heavy axes in combat (see below).
The Operation
The gang's usual method of operation is to fell a tree across the road, then rob anyone that comes along, taking valuables, food and drink, along with the occasional horse or mule. Bregosh and Merch are usually stationed near the deadfall, while Grotch and Dorg block any escape once the trap is sprung. Merch will do the talking, while the others guard against treachery. They will defend themselves if necessary, but even Grotch and Dorg's dim brains have realized that stealing is less risky than killing.
If forced to fight the ogres, particularly Grotch and Dorg, will do so. If sorely pressed, Merch will order the retreat, making use of an obscuring illusion to cover their retreat. His favorite tricks include an illusion of additional ogres appearing from nearby cover, a wall of fog, and an alteration spell that obscures and alters the caster's trail, leading any pursuit astray.
The ogres have several crude camp sites scattered along the road. Each features a crude lean-to, a fire pit, and perhaps a small cache of foodstuffs secured beneath some heavy stones. They have a more permanent base in a small cluster of caves in the hills. Grotch and Dorg share a cave while Bregosh and Merch have dens of their own. Each ogre has their own cache of valuables and food. A fourth cave serves as a sort of common hall, with a communal cache of food and a big fire pit.
Treasure
- Merch wears a Good quality silver amulet, inscribed with his former master's personal seal. He also carries a pouch with an Average quantity of silver and gold coin.
- Bregosh carries a pouch of 'pretties', random stones and pebbles that have he's picked up in his travels. He's added a few pieces of jewelry to his collection, including a Good quality ruby ring and a Great quality sapphire pendant that bears a minor enchantment.
- Grotch and Dorg are more mercenary, each carries a pouch with a Fair quantity of silver and gold coin.The axes they wield are Great quality weapons (with a little cleaning and sharpening at least), serving as two-handed weapons for human-sized creatures.
- Each of the ogres has a Good stash of minor trinkets and valuable goods (silverware, pewter, silks, etc.) stashed in their respective caves. Merch's stash is hidden by a minor illusion.
Hooks
- Merch's former master is trying to find his former apprentice to reverse his condition. The party is tasked with finding the ogre and returning him alive to his master's care.
- A rival of Merch's former master wants to recover the seal Merch wears and use it in a complex fraud scheme. The rival will pay well for item, no questions asked.
- One of the two towns flanking the ogre's area of operations, wants them gone, they interfere with trade and are a hazard to the local populace. The other town wants them to stay, viewing them as a buffer against potential aggression from their neighbor. In fact the local lord has been paying off Merch and his crew to insure the road remains hazardous.
- The axes used by Grotch and Dorg were actually made by a famous Dwarf craftsman at the behest of a local noble, a gift for the twin sons of his ruling lord. He wants them back!
- The ogres have stolen the McGuffin and stashed it back at their caves. The party must find and recover it. Simply killing the ogres is not an option as the McGuffin's location dies with them.
- Grotch and Dorg are scheming against Merch. They've secretly hired kobold assassins to take down their leader, leaving them in charge. The kobold gang has been spotted in the area and the party is tasked with getting rid of them.
- Merch has begun to recall his past and is trying to find out more about it. He and Bregosh head into human lands to try and uncover his past.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Events from Life: Your local newspaper
Need some rumors and color for you campaign's village or town? The answer may be as close as your local newspaper (or their web site if you don't subscribe). The idea is pretty simple really. Scan the local headlines and community events calendar for ideas, twist to fit your campaign setting, and write yourself a short note. If your local paper does provide the inspiration you desire, check out the web and look for a locale that's a better match.
One of the nice features of this technique is it provides a never-ending source of rumors and local color, and things tend to hold together pretty well over time. Here's a list of thirteen events I adopted from my local newspaper over the last couple weeks:
One of the nice features of this technique is it provides a never-ending source of rumors and local color, and things tend to hold together pretty well over time. Here's a list of thirteen events I adopted from my local newspaper over the last couple weeks:
- A runaway wagon crashes into the market, one of the vendors is trampled to death by the horses.
- A man is found drowned in his neighbor's pond. The constable suspects foul play, but has no suspects.
- A herd of cattle stampedes through a local hamlet. No one is injured but the owner is forced to pay property damages.
- Heavy rains flood the local river, forcing dozens to abandon their riverfront homes. The displaced are housed at a local church. The baron condemns many of the properties and forces the refugees to move.
- A suspicious barn fire inspires a barn raising. The constable suspects arson (and subsequently arrests a drifter).
- A bridge or ford is being rebuilt or improved.
- The annual spring boat race down the river draws a larger than usual crowd of spectators.
- The baron is nearly crippled by a hard fall from his horse while out hunting. Discord ensues while he recovers from his wounds.
- The Autumn apple harvest brings the usual gang of migrant laborers to the area. Locals are on the watch for suspicious activities.
- A local farmer is convicted of stealing and killing his neighbor's geese.
- A woman is stabbed to death by her drunken accuser while arguing her case before a magistrate.
- A new road is being built or an old one improved.
- A balcony collapses at local inn / tavern, with multiple injuries. The structure is condemned by the magistrate as a hazard.
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Roadside Meetings
"You can't get there from here." -- unknown roadside sage
Adventurers often do quite a bit of traveling, and roads make perfect locations for encounters, both mundane and unusual. The presence of a road indicates someone or something travels the route regularly, yet as a GM we often fail to consider exactly who these travelers are. A few minutes work can turn a boring, empty road into an interesting trip. Here are a few questions you can ask yourself to help bring your road to life:
Where does it go?
Roads connect things. Knowing what a road connects will greatly influence who or what uses it. It pays to consider not only local connections, but the bigger picture. To the locals a road might just be a way to get between two villages, but it could also be part of a byway that avoids an unfriendly tax collector or a shortcut that's only passable part of the year. Road connect not only destinations, but other roads. A villager might believe the road to the next village ends there, but a tinker or trader knows better.
The road's endpoints will help determine its course. Roads will tend to follow the easiest path between locations. Geography will play a great part in this, especially on major roads. Moving goods with draft animals or marching troops to their destination is easier on flat, open ground. Natural obstacles like rivers, ravines or mountains need to be crossed or avoided. Safety will play a role as well. A longer route through a well-patrolled area will be used more often than a shortcut through dangerous territory.
Who built it and how is it maintained?
In today's modern age, road construction is big business. In the typical fantasy campaign things may be less clear cut, but the origins of a road can add color to the scene. Was it a game trail that grew into a cart path? A significant trade route connecting cities? A road designed to move military forces along an unstable border? A bypass to avoid a hostile area? Once you know where it came from you can determine how it's maintained. Does a local government clear the verges? Is it overgrown and potentially blocked by fallen trees or rock? Is the route marked with blazes or mileposts? Are there bridges, tunnels or fords? Are they guarded? Are there tolls? Is the road patrolled?
Who uses it?
The meat of the matter, who travels this stretch of highway? The answers to the previous questions should provide some ready answers. A trade route will feature caravans, merchants and traders. A local cart path will have locals going to market, tinkers or farmers moving their harvest. A detour or bypass might have shady characters intent on avoiding authorities. Well patrolled and maintained roads will have a military presence and work crews in evidence.
Who supports the travelers?
Once you know who uses the road, you can figure out what services they might need and where they can be found. A trade route might be dotted with inns built to accommodate entire caravans. Free-wheeling mercenaries might frequent the area looking for work. On less traveled roads, accommodations might be less common, but a trading post, a farmer willing to rent a field for camping, or a traveling merchant might be more common. Busy routes will be more likely to have dedicated locals working to support the traffic, whereas on less frequented roads, travelers might be viewed with suspicion. There's also the matter of taxes, tariffs and tolls, all requiring some official presence along the route.
Who preys on the travelers?
Lastly, travelers will draw those looking for an easy mark. Highwaymen, corrupt officials, scamming innkeepers, card sharks and shady 'guides' will all appear if there is traffic to support their trade. Intelligent monsters might view the road as a good source of treasure and food. Not only will PCs traveling have to watch their backs, but they may garner suspicion from other travelers, who might view the typical adventuring party with some trepidation.
So there you have it, a few simple questions that should help develop the humble roadway into something a bit more interesting. Using these simple questions as a guide coming up with a few encounters for any roadway should be pretty easy.
Adventurers often do quite a bit of traveling, and roads make perfect locations for encounters, both mundane and unusual. The presence of a road indicates someone or something travels the route regularly, yet as a GM we often fail to consider exactly who these travelers are. A few minutes work can turn a boring, empty road into an interesting trip. Here are a few questions you can ask yourself to help bring your road to life:
Where does it go?
Roads connect things. Knowing what a road connects will greatly influence who or what uses it. It pays to consider not only local connections, but the bigger picture. To the locals a road might just be a way to get between two villages, but it could also be part of a byway that avoids an unfriendly tax collector or a shortcut that's only passable part of the year. Road connect not only destinations, but other roads. A villager might believe the road to the next village ends there, but a tinker or trader knows better.
The road's endpoints will help determine its course. Roads will tend to follow the easiest path between locations. Geography will play a great part in this, especially on major roads. Moving goods with draft animals or marching troops to their destination is easier on flat, open ground. Natural obstacles like rivers, ravines or mountains need to be crossed or avoided. Safety will play a role as well. A longer route through a well-patrolled area will be used more often than a shortcut through dangerous territory.
Who built it and how is it maintained?
In today's modern age, road construction is big business. In the typical fantasy campaign things may be less clear cut, but the origins of a road can add color to the scene. Was it a game trail that grew into a cart path? A significant trade route connecting cities? A road designed to move military forces along an unstable border? A bypass to avoid a hostile area? Once you know where it came from you can determine how it's maintained. Does a local government clear the verges? Is it overgrown and potentially blocked by fallen trees or rock? Is the route marked with blazes or mileposts? Are there bridges, tunnels or fords? Are they guarded? Are there tolls? Is the road patrolled?
Who uses it?
The meat of the matter, who travels this stretch of highway? The answers to the previous questions should provide some ready answers. A trade route will feature caravans, merchants and traders. A local cart path will have locals going to market, tinkers or farmers moving their harvest. A detour or bypass might have shady characters intent on avoiding authorities. Well patrolled and maintained roads will have a military presence and work crews in evidence.
Who supports the travelers?
Once you know who uses the road, you can figure out what services they might need and where they can be found. A trade route might be dotted with inns built to accommodate entire caravans. Free-wheeling mercenaries might frequent the area looking for work. On less traveled roads, accommodations might be less common, but a trading post, a farmer willing to rent a field for camping, or a traveling merchant might be more common. Busy routes will be more likely to have dedicated locals working to support the traffic, whereas on less frequented roads, travelers might be viewed with suspicion. There's also the matter of taxes, tariffs and tolls, all requiring some official presence along the route.
Who preys on the travelers?
Lastly, travelers will draw those looking for an easy mark. Highwaymen, corrupt officials, scamming innkeepers, card sharks and shady 'guides' will all appear if there is traffic to support their trade. Intelligent monsters might view the road as a good source of treasure and food. Not only will PCs traveling have to watch their backs, but they may garner suspicion from other travelers, who might view the typical adventuring party with some trepidation.
So there you have it, a few simple questions that should help develop the humble roadway into something a bit more interesting. Using these simple questions as a guide coming up with a few encounters for any roadway should be pretty easy.
Monday, July 6, 2009
Grim Monday: Random Jungle Stuff
I spent the morning picking blueberries (Mmmmm blueberries), so I'm not in much of a Grim Monday mood today. Here's a list of random events I wrote up for a jungle trip in an old campaign instead:
- Snake bite – One party member will be bitten by a snake as they move through the jungle. The snake will be: 1-4 non-poisonous, 5-6 Average poison, 7-8 Good poison
- Insect Swarm – Group stumbles into a swarm of fierce biting flies. Each member takes Poor damage each round while in the swarm. Running will escape the swarm in 1d8 rounds. Animals will be driven mad by the bites and stings. Each person stung has a 10% chance of being stricken with a disease.
- Antelope herd – Group of 2d12 antelope. Party can hunt for food.
- Predator – Encounter with large predator. 1 Tiger, 2 Jaguar, 3 Leopard, 4 Serpent, 5 Crocodile, 6 Carnivorous Apes. Most carnivores will avoid party, but will fight if cornered/pursued.
- Large enraged herbivore – The party has surprised a large herbivore that will attack blindly. 1 Elephant (1-3) 2 Water buffalo (1-6) 3 Great Ape (3-12) 4 Hippo (2-8). Creatures attack until destroyed.
- Ape troupe – The party will be pursued by a group of tree dwelling moneys/apes (10-40) who will throw sticks and branches at the group, scream and generally make the party miserable. Clever parties can probably scare them off. The apes will follow the party for 2d8 hours. Party will always be surprised if being followed.
- Quicksand – Someone has stumbled into quicksand. They will sink in 2d4 rounds (-2 rounds if in metal armor). Must have help to be pulled free.
- Deep stream crossing – The party must carefully work any pack animals across the stream and swim themselves. Any animal panics on a roll of 1 on a D6. Uncontrolled animals lose one carried item per round uncontrolled.
- Dense vines and creepers – The party must hack a way through. Double the party’s normal chance of surprise.
- Large bog – The party encounters a large boggy area. They will take 2d4 hours to travel through it. Each hour of travel there is a 50% chance someone will fall into quicksand.
- Heavy downpour – Party is drenched by rain. Can refill all water skins if desired. There is a 10% chance per person that a random item will be water damaged.
- Deep chasm – A deep crevice crosses the party’s path, impassable to pack animals. It is 60% likely the lair of a predator that will be very aggressive if the party enters. A detour will take 1d4 hours.
- Cliff – A stone face that is impassable to pack animals. Detour will take 1d4 hours. The cliff can be climbed by characters (Climb walls +30%)
- Snare/Deadfall Trap – 1-3 light snare, 4-5 medium snare, 6 heavy snare. Trap will catch a party member. Light snares do no damage, medium snares do 1d3 damage, heavy snares do 1d8 damage.
- Pit Trap – A party member will stumble into a pit trap. Take 1d4 damage from the fall. There is a 30% chance of a large enraged herbivore in the trap, 20% chance of a predator.
- Tribal Marker – The party encounters a tribal marker appropriate to the area.
- Trail – The party discovers a trail paralleling the nearest watercourse. The trail will be 2d4 miles long before petering out.
- Corpse – The party discovers a corpse that is 1-3 animal 4-5 human 6-7 unidentifiable 8 Yuan-ti. The corpse will be picked over and bare.
- Ruin/foundation – The party finds a wood or stone ruin. A search might turn up some remnants of tools or gear. 30% of the found ruins will be dragon statues (Yuan-ti).
- Campsite – The party finds a recently used tribal campsite. Remains of a fire, markings from sleeping pallets and food scraps are evident. 1-4 human, 5 Orc, 6 Yuan-ti.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Celebrations of Life and Death
I was going to skip today's post, because it's my birthday, and I don't work on my birthday. Instead I started thinking about birthdays, weddings and funerals, and how rarely they're featured in RPGs. Sure there are many games where they don't fit the play style, but where appropriate they can add color and depth to the campaign.
The average game group features four or five main characters and a host of NPCs, major and minor. If you take all those and lay out their dates of ritual importance on a calendar, you'll quickly discover, as I did, that the days fill up very quickly. Now there's no reason to turn these dates into full fledged encounters or game-shattering events, but they can add some flare and help develop your NPCs into more believable characters. Here are a few examples of how this idea can be used:
Birth and Growth
The average game group features four or five main characters and a host of NPCs, major and minor. If you take all those and lay out their dates of ritual importance on a calendar, you'll quickly discover, as I did, that the days fill up very quickly. Now there's no reason to turn these dates into full fledged encounters or game-shattering events, but they can add some flare and help develop your NPCs into more believable characters. Here are a few examples of how this idea can be used:
Birth and Growth
- The party's favorite merchant is a new father. He follows the tradition of announcing his child's birth and offering wine to all visitors to his shop on the third day of the child's life. Guests usually give a small gift of silver coin as a token of congratulations.
- A favored hireling asks the group's priest to oversee a young cousin's initiation into the family's religion, a task that will require a trip to the cousin's small outlying village.
- The village celebrates the annual coming of age festival in the late spring after the crops are planted. A public feast followed by a drunken celebration brings business in the village to a standstill. There are usually two or three children conceived as a result of the festival, callously referred to as Crop Kids.
- A wedding is a good excuse for a Festival especially if the couple has high place in society.
- Of course weddings aren't always happy affairs. Consider the early scene in Tombstone
where a wedding becomes the setting for a bloody and violent confrontation.
- Anniversary celebrations are easily ignored by everyone but the married couple. Woe betide the spouse that forgets an anniversary. Perhaps the group is hired to obtain the perfect gift for a nervous spouse, providing an adventure with a built in deadline.
- Adventurers are quite familiar with death (usually). It's funny how rarely it's rites and rituals are integrated into play. A funeral is a good way to bring closure to a story arc (the death of a nemesis or a sponsor) or start another (the appearance of a vengeful relative of the fallen).
- Something as simple as an annual visit to a grave site on the anniversary of a parent's death becomes a challenge when the adventurers are miles away. Failing to pay homage might have no real effect, but appearances can be just as important as magical powers. The disrespectful son or daughter might find themselves treated with disdain or anger by their relatives or friends.
- Of course dungeon crawling player characters often find themselves in situations dispassionate observers would classify as grave robbing. Sure they might be really old graves, but how are the locals going to react to a bunch of outsiders trying to pawn funerary objects?
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