Category: 4e DnD
Likely the most succinct argument to keep playing 4E
WotC has recently put up a podcast of Acquisitions Inc. attempting to convert their 4E characters into a version compatible with DnDNext. A fairly decent way to promote the upcoming version and get players of 4E behind the latest edition being worked on. However, there is a short minute and a half (16:00 to 17:35) where Mike Krahulik brings up a question about needing to plunge into DnDnext.
“Like, I already felt like I could do with whatever I wanted with these rules. So I don’t understand why I need a new set of rules that I do with whatever I want with.”
It’s a straightforward question. The response is something I think the WotC staff feels wholeheartedly. They don’t want people to be marginalized for playing older editions, especially 4E. They want to make a very inclusive edition that can get everyone around the table. Yet, I still feel that trying to crank out another edition will mean pushing that product, and also mean trying to get as many players on board with it.
Support for 4E will likely evaporate. Players are going to have to decide to take the plunge with the new books or be lumped in the folks that are lovers of past editions. I am rather boggled why WotC is even bothering to release an new print version of 3.5 with DnDnext on the horizon. Especially as DnDnext is to be the great unifier of all editions.
So with one foot in developing a new game, and another shuffling around with releasing older rules and material, I wonder what role DnDnext will have on gamers tables. Will it be heralded as a new edition like 3.0 and 4E, or will it peter out like D&D Essentials?
In defense of skills and training
I am a fan of skills in RPGs. More importantly, I’m a fan of being able to increase skill abilities as a part of character progression.
DnDnext is having skills take the backseat somewhat to primarily focus on ability scores. Skills are there, but associated with specific backgrounds, or tagged bonuses using certain equipment. I appreciate the simplicity of that concept. How high you can jump, how quickly you can diffuse a tense situation, or how well you can follow a trail in the woods, all of it primarily depends on the PC ability scores. It’s a very convenient way to express what situations a player can expect they will excel, or do poorly, in.
Yet, I like that added layer of training for particular skills to that concept. Yes, how quickly you can climb might well be determined on your strength, but having training and experience in athletics will give you an edge. I particularly like how 4E added a huge bonus from skill training that would nearly equal a max ability score bonus of the same skill (or exceed it). However having training and a high key ability bonus for particular skills would just about trivialize all but the most difficult skill checks.
One thing I didn’t like was the continual level bonus players got with skills in 4E. For my next game, I’m planning on throwing that out and just keep DC values at first level for everything. To me it was sort of silly to keep adding bonuses to skills when the DC values also went up proportionally. However I admit there was a concept there that never quite got much traction.
Given skill challenges and DC values were based on the level of players, I always felt relative level could have been a factor for determining DC values. Epic and paragon tiers had this somewhat for certain skills, where each respective tier would bump up DC values for stuff like knowledge checks. Yet the level bonus was ever really tweaked much. It all fell upon whether it was an easy, moderate, or hard check. However sometimes I think relative level might have added another gradient in resolving skill checks.
I could easily see a 1st level PC having a more difficult time interacting with lower-tier nobility compared to a mid-heroic PC. With both DC values based on the same difficult check, I could pick a single DC value for a level 4 NPC. That mid-heroic PC might likely have as much renown and recognition as the trivial lord, so their level bonus would come into play. Instead it seems that idea just never cemented and 4E fell back on using just the 3 types of DC values that continually shifted as the player leveled up.
Still with some of these shortfalls, I like the idea of skills. I think it gives players a way to further customize their character. I particularly liked how 4E allowed players to learn new skills through feats. Want to gain more training in religion? Just pick up a skill training feat. In the end if I wanted to play a fighter that was very educated and a learned scholar, I could do so getting training in select skills (or picking up feats to do so). While my PC might not be on par with that wizard’s trained knowledge of history, I could certainly pull my mental weight if needed. Having skills instead primarily based on ability scores, without a bonus due to skill training, sort of takes away that flexibility.
So I am a fan of skills. I’m a fan of being able to increase proficiency with them (or at least be able to pick up new skills). 4E wasn’t too bad handling skills. Yet, I sort of liked how 3.5 allowed for continual skill progression (not a fan of the expanded skill lists though and found it almost too specific for skill checks). I’ve been thinking of adding a flat bonus to trained skills every 4 levels as a house rule for my next game (ditching the continual level bonus in the rules). While I appreciate the trimmed down resolution of tasks based on ability scores in DnDnext, I sort miss having that skill list.
Big combats in 4E
For my game I wanted to try and have a pitched battle and struggled a bit to think about how I could run something like that on the tabletop. Some ideas were a combination of a skill challenge in tandem with a few fights. Successful (or failed) rounds for the skill challenge would result in advantages (or disadvantages) in the following fights of the battle. Although it still was a bit longer than I wanted, and I didn’t want to get bogged down in a massive combat with tons of participants on each side.
A long while back I touched on handling fights through an abstract way. Another past post of mine looked at randomizing attacks of opportunity. So looking at these ideas I whipped up some quick and dirty rules how I would handle a mass combat.
Players fight the leaders – Recreating a massive battle where players hacked through nameless throngs of minions would be boring. I wanted the PCs trading blows with the main villain as something heroic. The goal was simple, either they kill the lead baddies, or end up worm food themselves, or potentially so beaten and battered they surrendered and end up as captives.
In my game I had the players fighting against a wizard that had a huge golem in toe. These guys were the big threat. If the group took them out, the remaining forces would likely break and run. I think that is key to having this kind of engagement. Don’t just throw bodies at the players, give them a few personalities on the field. Maybe a general and a few commanders scattered about. If the players drop enough of them, morale for the opposing army will wane and eventually make them rout.
All sides suffer attacks of opportunity – I figured out the appropriate bonus for attack and typical minion damage for the player’s level and used this as a battle attack of opportunity. Then each turn, including for the villain NPC’s I employed the following rules:
1. At the beginning of the turn, they provoked a battle attack of opportunity.
2. If the players (or creatures) moved up to ½ their speed, each square of movement, ignoring shifts, would provoke a battle attack of opportunity on a 1 in 8 (using a d8).
3. If they moved greater than ½ their speed, they provoke a battle attack of opportunity for each square of movement on a 1 in 4 (using a d4).
4. Players make their move as normal, and then the battle attacks of opportunity are resolved.
All sides can suffer combat advantage – At the end of their turn players (or monsters) may be in a poor tactical position. On a 1 in 4 all opponents have combat advantage against them. If they moved less than half their speed (including shifts), they suffer combat advantage on a 1 in 8. Players offer combat advantage until the beginning of their turn.
Narration, Narration, Narration – The most important part of the fight is describing the scene. Players are going to see very few tokens and monsters on the map. Effectively, they are going to pair off against a handful of monsters at most representing the main villains and command elements of the enemy army. However it’s important to stress that there are others all around them. Every one of them are in a pitched battle, parrying attacks and making several attacks themselves, but all of these actions are never rolled.
It’s important to paint a picture that the players have fellow soldiers flanking them, and if they are lucky, find their opponents distracted by unnamed foot soldier giving them an opportunity to effectively land a powerful attack. Be graphic and try to paint a scene. If a player runs across the battlefield to engage an orc commander, quickly count the squares, roll all the dice and describe the action.
If a player gets suffers a few attacks and takes a bit of damage, describing how a brutish orc hurled a spear at them, catching them in the side as they bolted across the ground to face the orc leader, is engaging. Just telling the player they opened up three attacks of opportunity, with two hitting for 12 points of damage just doesn’t cut it. Frequently remind the players they are darting and weaving, parrying attacks and aiding fellow comrades, even if there is nothing on the map to show these other participants in the battle.
What comes out of this is that players are under constant threat of attack. It’s assumed that surrounding them are allies and enemies alike. If they are moving slowly, they maintain some form of rank with allies and suffer less attacks of opportunity. If they break ranks and whirl around the battlefield, they have less companions watching their back.
Finally, throughout the battle they could be dodging missile fire, or having their attention split among several attackers. The greater the movement their turn, the more likely they will allow opponents to have combat advantage against them. If they stand firm, or move little during their turn, it’s less likely that someone can flank them.
For my group it worked well. Constantly having an attack against them, right at the start of their turn, having the potential of offering combat advantage, all the while trying to take out the main villains made for an exciting fight. It takes a lot of handwaving and describing the action, but in the end I think my players had a memorable fight of a large battle that worked using a few additional rules and a lot of narrative action.
Tweaking 4E – Advantages and Disadvantages
I’ve yet to get a game of DnDNext in. I’m chugging along with my Savage World’s treatment of Traveller. A few folks will be out of town for a while. I might try to run the playtest with a smaller group. However, I’ve been wanting to get back into a 4E game again.
I’ve really been thinking about tweaking with 4E to streamline some parts of it. I’m also thinking on going gridless. So there have been some things rolling around in my head as of late that I might try out for a few sessions.
One thing I definitely like about DnDNext is the concept of advantages and disadvantages. In a nutshell, a player rolls two d20s and either takes the higher or lower roll, depending on their state. 4E has a lot of temporary modifiers floating around during combat. So rather than fiddling with temporary bonuses to hit and defences, I like the idea of the advantage/disadvantage mechanic in DnDNext.
I’ve got a set of beads for baduk (Go) that I’ve used as markers to keep track of successes and failures in skill challenges. My plan is to use these beads as a simple way to keep track of bonuses for having an advantage (or suffering from a disadvantage).
As players use powers that give them a temporary bonus to hit, they place white beads near their targets. If the target has a bonus to their defenses, they use the other color beads. If either side has a higher total of beads, then that would translate to either an advantage (more white) or disadvantage (more black) to the player. In case of a tie, the player rolls to hit as normal.
Additional temporary bonuses to hit, or for defenses, would just be another bead added to the total. This is going to result in huge bonuses and penalties, even for a minor +1 to hit. However I am liking the idea of the big swings to allow more attacks (or possibly really hamper the player).
For marking conditions, monsters would have a disadvantage hitting other targets, but an advantage against the player that marked them. Something that will definitely add a nice bonus to other players, but be a meaningful hindrance to that defender. Granting combat advantage will also become a larger issue, really granting the enemy a tactical advantage doing so.
I’ve already altered how I handle critical hits in my game. Players do max damage on a natural 20. If they crit on any other number, they do at least ½ damage. It does curb the output on extended crits, but at least they are guaranteed not to do a trivial amount of damage. I’ve been toying with the idea of maybe allowing a reroll of damage and taking the highest total for extended crits, but I think that’s something that might slow down the game.
I’ll see how this works. It’s a major shift from straight up bonuses to trying to stack different temporary conditions. I like the idea of players and monsters going back and forth with temporary bonuses using simple markers, and it’s the side that works together as a team which will likely get the greatest benefit. Combat advantage, having an additional cover bonus, all these little +1’s could add up to a big effect. It’s something that will take a few games to play out, but I’m liking the idea.
EDIT: Sly Flourish has also visited the concept of advantages and disadvantages in 4E. He of course adheres to a regular schedule of posts, methodically setting up weeks of content that rolls out every week in a timely fashion, so you are offered a great post every Monday with your morning coffee. While I am a spaz that is all over the place when I post. He had the idea first. Check out his blog. It offers some great thoughts on advantages in 4E I think are really good, and are far more robust than the simple idea I have here.
Expeditions of Amazing Adventure: The lone, obliterated tower of Ulaam of the One Eye
Few sorcerers of legend carry a name that both inspires awe and incites dread than that of Ulaam of the One Eye. The human spell practitioner is claimed to have hailed from the icy north, an outcast of the nomad tribes. Not much is known of his past. Some claim that he was a medicine man of prominence with his people, but vied for power and attempted to wrest it from the warrior chieftains of his tribe. Others state that his power and insight into the magics of the world set him at odds with the simple nomad warriors that revered the power of muscle and steel. Fewer still state that his lust for power caused him to look to gods of other beings. That it was his dabbling in the powers of Gruumsh which resulted in the loss of his eye, and his resulting banishment from his lands.
Rumors of his calling towards the darker arcane arts had always haunted Ulaam of the One Eye. His manner was always recorded as detached, distant, and sought little in the company of others. Even the more benevolent acts he had committed ridding strange beasts and vile monsters from the civilized lands were marred with whispers of him obtaining odd trophies from the slain creatures. His most revered act of defeating the evil wizard, Al’Khameed, still to this day have some claiming it was primarily jealousy and a desire of obtaining similar dark powers that drove Ulaam to battle him.
In his last years, Ulaam of the One Eye became more reclusive. He constructed a simple tower and created a force of golems to protect him and act as servants. He refused all that sought his counsel, and took to having his powerful golems ever patrol the fields that surrounded the tower to ward off visitors.
Some claim that these last years were when the sorcerer delved deeper into the mysteries of the black magics. Fewer even speak that powerful artifacts of the god, Vecna, were in his possession, that his final efforts were to decipher the arcane powers within these vile instruments of the evil god in an attempt to prolong his life. Such claims are supported by the rumors of cemeteries from neighboring villages being raided by golems of flesh and earth.
None really knew the direction of his arcane research, save that one black night under the new moon a tremendous explosion was heard. The lone tower where the reclusive sorcerer resided burst into a bright green configuration. Flaming chunks of stone and mortar were seen hurtling through the night sky in high, trailing arcs of embers and smoke.
The next day, a handful of brave souls had travelled to the remote tower to see what had happened. In the distance, they could see the sundered tower. The top shorn off and one side completely missing, with the remaining stonework a gutted, blackened, scaffold of the structure. Some wanted to inspect further, however the lumbering creatures Ulaam had created to secure his isolation were still seen patrolling the grounds, seemingly oblivious to what had become of their master.
The tower to this day draws adventurers. Many rival wizards have financed large companies of sellswords to breach the defenses of automatons and seek what became of Ulaam of the One Eye. Despite efforts to destroy the arcane constructs, their forms seemingly reassemble the following day, and begin their tireless duty walking around the tower.
The few that have managed to investigate the tower found nothing within the destroyed remains. Although some claim that beneath the tower’s foundations, some secret chambers are still intact. Within might be some powerful artifacts acting as a source of magical energy that seems to continually restore the golem guards. To obtain such a power, and study its secrets, is something that many spellcasters covet deeply.
But there are still greater mysteries of the tower. What happened that night long ago? What great calamity befell Ulaam? And what happened to the remains of the great sorcerer? Questions to this day remain unanswered, and what some scholars claim are key to unlocking the great mystery of the magics that remain in play around the tower ruins.
Is Save or Die even needed?
Posted last month, WotC’s Legends and Lore column mused a bit about the Save or Die mechanic throwing a few ideas about how they were part of the older game, and if they had a role in the newest edition. I’m not a fan of save or die, and was glad to see it go in 4E. However given the poll results that were provided the following week, it looks like I am in a minority.
I never got how some people felt 4E lacked the sense of danger of previous editions. Things were too balanced and players had too easy of a time. This got me because the DM always had the option to crank things up when making up an adventure. Throw a few trolls at that level 1 party and voila, you have a dangerous encounter where the PCs should have to run.
I’ll concede one point however. Heroic level games seemed to run just fine, but paragon and epic tier things likely would get a little wonky. Especially at higher level play, where out of the book battles could become a cakewalk with a fully rested party. Yet, even that could be overcome with some some tweaks and employing a different design philosophy that Fourthcore has explored.
Another point I’ll agree with is having a saving throw does engage a player a bit more. 4E effect mechanics were very streamlined and uniform, but did lack the interaction of previous editions. Rolling to hit against defence for spells are great when players were attacking, but being the target of these effects could become dull as all the action was in the DM’s hands. With saving throws, at least the PC could have some action in trying to counter a spell, rather than depending on a passive stat. However having something like that for everything could drag down the game, meaning you might have one way of resolving effects for players and another against monsters. In the end, with different systems to resolve spells and effects it could be a headache.
I’m just not a fan of wildly chaotic play that save or die encourages. It becomes harder to help maintain that story. With lots of checks built in 4E, I knew if I threw a high level encounter at the party, they would have a tough time and possibly a few might not make it. All of us could then craft the story around those big, momentous combats that telegraphed the idea that the players might have to make the ultimate sacrifice for the rest of the group.
Another problem I have with save or die is that with most adventures, the DM has control over everything. They are the ones that decide what the PCs will go up against. Having a random lethal outcome be layered on what I decide to throw at the players makes my job harder in trying to make a fun fight. If you were running a module that had been playtested extensively, this would be less of an issue. But most DMs are making their own game. It can be difficult to judge how much of a challenge fights will be using monsters with severe penalties if players don’t make their saving throw. Having one PC drop dead might make for an interesting side quest or push for roleplay, frequent TPKs however don’t seem to make for a fun time.
I don’t want save or die part of the core rules for DnDNext. I do however, want a little section in the next DMG to give advice on how they can ‘turn their game up to eleven.’ Having some suggestions on some stock abilities, or methods for putting save or die mechanics into your game would be great. So if a DM wanted to increase the lethality and danger of their games, they have some tried and true methods to do so.
An example might be to suggest encounter powers for creatures rely on saving throws instead of to hit rolls, and do max damage or ½ damage whether the player makes their appropriate save. For a more 4E-centric mechanic, how about a suggested disease track for level drain, and also add a condition that permanently removes 1 healing surge from a PC’s total? Fourthcore introduced the idea of a new power keyword, Kill. If a player did not have a particular amount of healing surges available, they’d die outright. Having a good 5-10 methods and suggestions for introducing save or die into the game, with some additional pointers on appropriate use would likely be a great addition to a new DM’s arsenal of information.
Someone like me? Likely I’d never use it in my game. Yet other DMs out there would have solid, play-tested means to add save or die aspects to their game. I want it out of the game, but as an optional rule, this could have a place in folk’s games. I’m hopeful, as a core mechanic, save or die simply stays dead.
Virtual tabletop roundup
I’ve not used virtual tabletop software in my games. I’m a sit-around-the-table kind of guy. However I have to admit the sheer connectivity via skype and google hangouts is drawing me towards possibly looking at running online games. I think for 4E tabletop software there are some kinks to work out. However stuff I have thought about before will likely never see the light of day given the edition change coming.
I’m curious how the development of the official DDI Virtual Tabletop will go. Sadly, I guess the 4E support for that will evaporate. But with a looser, gridless system possibly in the works for DnDNext, this might get more support. Dread gazebo put up a nice old beta tutorial on his blog.
There are some other paid versions out there like such as the one at Fantasy Grounds. I’ve heard some give the software positive reviews and it looks pretty nifty. Typically I shy away from trial versions, but I might give this a spin. They also seem pretty committed to updates for the program too.
While possibly not as full featured as others out there, you’ve got Map Tool which is free. A bonus in my book as you can try it out without having to worry about any hassle with a trial version. I understand quite a few folks have used and enjoy this for a while now.
Something else on my radar has been the Roll20 Virtual Tabletop. A few things I like is that it is web based. Also while the program is geared for 4E, it is also system neutral. A plus with the new D&D playtest on the horizon. They’re currently in closed beta, but I’ll be keeping an eye on how they progress. It seems to have some potential.
EDIT: As expected I just scratched the surface. There are a few other programs out there that folks have brought up. I’ll just provide a list of the links here:
Gametable Project – a java opensource program
Tabletop Forge – that utilizes Google+ hangout
d20 Pro – a paid program but has a 30 day free trial
Upcoming DnDNext playtest
I think the internet and twitter likely exploded among RPG fanatics last week with the announcement that Monte Cook left the DnDNext project. At first I was spouting off maybe he left due to differences in what direction the newest D&D would be going. Then the other shoe dropped and the public playtest of DnDNext would be coming out late May. After that I’m falling in the camp that maybe there was a division on how ready the ruleset was for public input between some of the designers and Hasbro/WotC.
All in all it’s sort of giving me a sinking feeling about the next version of DnDNext. At times I even wonder if it’s to get that chunk of 3E/Pathfinder consumers. I could have seen some fictitious conversation months ago like this:
Hasbro Suit: Hey, I was taking my kid to Barne’s and Nobles to spend this gift certificate. He bought this Pathfinder book. You’ve seen this thing?
WotC Designer: Yes.
Hasbro Suit: You have? Man, we gotta get our attorneys on this. I looked through this thing. It’s got wizards, sword guys, dwarves, it’s just like D&D. Those guys stole our IP!
WotC Designer: Actually, it’s closer to our older editions, published under OGL.
Hasbro Suit: OGL material? God don’t bring up that mistake again. So all this stuff in the book is under that massive screw up. Okay, no lawyers. What are we doing about getting these geeks back to our product?
WotC Designer: Well, a lot of people enjoy the older editions of D&D. Pathfinder sort of built on that rules-wise. Fourth edition has gone in a slightly different design direction. I mean it’s pretty much the same game, just utilizing some unique game mechanics.
Hasbro Suit: What do you mean different? There are wizards, spells, dragons, friggin’ orcs. This Pathfinder and our product are the same thing. They’re both Dungeons and Dragons. So why aren’t they playing our product?
WotC Designer: Again, they are fairly similar. However 4E has some interest-
Hasbro Suit: You aren’t listening to me. Why aren’t they playing our product? Fix it. Get these mama’s basement dwellers playing our game. And for God’s sake don’t put that OGL anywhere near it.
Okay, I’m actually sure something like that never really even came up but I’m certain folks have been looking over at the Pathfinder camp and wondering how they could get players back to ‘official’ D&D. I like the concept. Get just about everyone under the banner of D&D. I just don’t think it is going to happen.
First off you have the OGL of 3E/Pathfinder. Even with a newer edition out there that can incorporate older editions, I don’t expect for a minute it will have an open licensing scheme. I’m going to be massively unpopular stating this, DnDNext shouldn’t have an OGL. They should however, be very open to licensing the game. Whether it’s cash up front or an agreement to split profits, other publishers should be able to put out D&D products with an agreement that encourages this. I think that was one reason why support for 3/3.5 sort of evaporated. If WotC supported that edition it’d give it legs, and meant other companies could use that as a sign to keep putting out stuff WotC would never get a dime off of.
Lastly I think the community is split. Folks have set up tents in respective camps and are unwilling to get behind another product. In a way, I don’t blame them. If they love AD&D or Pathfinder is their edition, they have the rules they want to play. Why try something ‘new’ that is drawing them away from games they already enjoy? This point I think should give WotC pause about how much effort should go into calling back lovers of past editions. Which audience is really the future of D&D?
I’m hopeful they can pull it off. That they can make something with enough working parts to get everyone behind. But I’m unsure if players of older editions (including 4E) will be willing to make that jump. Just because the game worked one way in an earlier edition doesn’t mean it was better or ‘more true’ to D&D now. If something might not fly with new player expectations, but is some classic ruleframe from an older edition, new players should get the rule shift every time. The focus should be getting new players into playing the game. Getting lovers of the older editions, the fans of existing rules, may not be the best in the long run. Instead I’d be trying to make a game that future generations would want to play.
Expeditions of Amazing Adventure: the esoteric monasteries of the Etholician Monks
This religious order is a prominent player in the political structure of Etholita, and their various temples scatter the densely wooded region. The order comprises of followers of Sehanine and is known for their generosity. The Etholician monks open many of their grounds to the weary and needy, offering protection against the elements and their expertise in the medicinal arts if needed.
Their openness and willingness to offer aid has raised ire with some the ruling nobility of Etholita. The country has always had a strained relationship with its neighbors, especially the Kormerrian barbarian tribes that lead frequent raids. The order has offered aid to the wounded of both warring sides if asked, and many times have been requested by foreign parties to act as arbitrators in political disputes with Etholita. The monks are known for their fairness and impartiality, and at times have even ruled against the very state that houses their monasteries in legal disputes.
The monks themselves avoid bloodshed whenever possible. However, they do train with simple weapons favoring the club and staff. Their martial prowess in unarmed combat is renowned, and much of a monk’s daily routine is designed to focus their minds and bodies into formidable weapons.
The constant accompaniment of dogs is another characteristic of their order. The common presence of large mastiffs can be observed as these dogs appear to have free reign within the monastery grounds. These are not spoiled beasts however, despite the occasional frolicking of young pups among the common halls. The dogs are well disciplined and follow their master’s command with resolute obedience. It is rumored that brigands or humanoids foolhardy enough to raid the order have not only met the martial might of the monks but also the savage fury of their beast companions.
From their deeds to their effective command of the martial arts, the monks have established themselves as a major player in the politics of Etholita. This brings some worry with the land’s nobles, while a few would even admit to desiring the order be abolished completely (such talk however is a topic of secret council).
It is such tension with the order that has likely lead to some of the more astounding rumors regarding the monks. Some claim that the order is cursed. Their oldest members are afflicted with a horrible disease that transforms them into beasts. The reverence of the moon is a secret admission of their affinity with lycanthropy.
It is immensely uncommon to come across werebeasts in Etholita, however it does not keep the circulation of such rumors falling among commoners. Some will swear the many dogs that are devout companions to the order are actually monks themselves which have succumbed to the long standing curse. The monks in their benevolence open their hearts and temples to these animals in hopes to bring them peace.
The Etholician monks respond to these rumors with much mirth and deny any truth to such astounding tales. Yet some nobles would clearly find such evidence immensely valuable to strengthening their position in Etholita. The order, while committing many charitable acts, would find their supporters wary of the practice of such magics, and likely erode the standing of their order from the very commoners they aid.
Fallcrest – where a new 4E DM should start
Cruising the WotC boards a while back I came across a new DM struggling with the notion of all the work they’d need creating a starting town for their players. Thinking up locations, inns, and NPCs all seemed like a daunting task. I was happy to point out however of a fantastic starting town right in the DMG, Fallcrest.
First off you have a decent starting delve to get the players going that is high on action and low on plot, Kobold Hall. There are a lot of resources online to help with running that adventure including a great starter kit from Newbie Dm. It’s a decent one shot adventure to allow the players to get a feel for their characters, gain a little wealth and notoriety around town, and give the DM a little time to formulate a more intricate campaign story.
But after they clear out Kobold Hall, what’s next? They won’t have to travel much out of Fallcrest to find excitement. The town has a ton of potential ideas and possible avenues for adventure right within the town walls.
Barstomun Strongbeard and Kelson – Both are unsavory guys with their hands in the underworld. Barstomun has the porter guild under his control. Kelson has his criminal gang in the lower quays. It’s only a matter of time before they butt heads. Clearly the elimination of one group is highly advantageous for the other (not to mention merchants that would be happy to see both go). Or maybe some sort of negotiation needs to be brokered between them before a gang war spirals out of control leading to open murder in the streets? A great opportunity to get your players into a gritty criminal underworld adventure for certain.
Armos Kamroth – Jerk noble? Check. Secret cult leader of Tiamat? Check. Guy for the players to handle? Absolutely.
What makes this guy work wonders as an NPC is that he stays within the law and his suspicious activity is secret. This could easily be played as a noble with the political connections, wealth, and decent reputation in town to be a difficult adversary. A tough reputation to smear publicly, so the ‘he said/players said’ game can easily shift in Armos’s favor. A decent villain for the characters to face off with for sure. And where would his secret cult meet? Why in…
The Catacombs – Yup. A network of old tunnels running right under the bluff. Just what a DM needs for a little dungeon action. How else could the River Rat gang transport stolen goods through the city? Not to mention a few secret areas where some evil cultists could meet (and move some poor sacrificial peasant to a ritual chamber). Clearly some sections would be unexplored. Sealed off sections with secret passageways leading to unknown horrors and wealth. Fun stuff indeed.
Tombwood Cavern – A nice wooded location in the middle of town with a series of old crypts and entrances to Moonstone Caverns. Most have been explored, but there are rumors of some tunnels that lead to the caves. Who knows what lurks in there or what treasures might be found? Tombwood is a fair size (about 200 x 300 ft across) so you could easily have a decent dungeon jaunt right within the woods exploring a few old crypts or a network of caves.
The Tower of Waiting – Still not enough dungeon ideas for you? How about an old abandoned tower (spoiler alert at link). How about a cool looking map to serve as more inspiration. Yeah, another spooky abandoned place for the players to dig around in. This place might be haunted by ghosts. Or maybe the players could be employed to investigate and find some clues to a secret dark past of Lord Markelhay’s family. After all there is that dubious guy hanging out in the Nentir Inn…
Serim Selduzar – Maybe the tower of waiting might hold some evidence that the father of Lord Markelhay was really not quite that nice ruler everyone remembers. Evidence of torture and human remains locked away behind a secret wall might do a lot of damage to the public reputation of Lord Markelhay, something Selduzar would love to take advantage of. Could the players end up being duped into helping this evil tiefling? (insert soap opera music here)
Yeah, Fallcrest has a lot of neat NPCs, locations, and potential stories right within its walls. Not to mention if you dig around you can find a ton of material out there like this wonderful map I lifted from D&D Doodle. Did I mention he even has a DM friendly version?
Nentir Vale was going to get some support from WotC, but long ago that official campaign setting was dropped from the upcoming products listing. Still with the published adventures already available, not to mention the free Keep on the Shadowfell, there is a lot of potential for a long campaign in the area. With some wonderful maps of the area and specific regions over at D&D Doodle, you won’t be short on sources for inspiration.
All of this can be kicked off with a group spending a little time in Fallcrest, building up their chops at being local heroes. If you’re a new DM struggling to think of a place to start. Don’t turn your nose up at this great location right in the DMG.
Geek Ken 