Vargyr Feywolves

These savage beast-men hail from the dark woods of the Feywild, descended from both wolves and wild elves.  Feral, they live in tribes and hunt the untrammeled moon-lit forests of the deepest depths of that enchanted land.  In appearence they are much like wild elves, small of stature but strong and fast, with light beards that grow into wild sideburns, long, furry ears, and pronounced cannine teeth.

Occasionally a great warrior will arise from the Vargyr and lead their tribes in forays into the lands of the seelie fey, raiding, killing, and tearing down the strongholds of the Eladrin nobles.

This adventure is the tale of one Eladrin's war to revenge himself upon the horde of Vargyr who descended upon his family's lands, killed every member of his family and household, and left him for dead upon the battlefield.  Now he quests for a group of heroes who will return with him to his family stronghold, drive the Vargyr warriors out, and slay the mighty warrior who leads them.  This is the war of the last Silma-Eltha.

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Vargyr Feywolf ✦ Level 16 Skirmishers
Size origin type ✦ XP 1,400

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Initiative +15 Senses Perception +8
HP 148; Bloodied 74
AC 30; Fortitude 28, Reflex 28, Will 28
Speed 8

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Powers

Claw ✦At-Will, Standard Action, Melee 1
melee basic
The wolf-elf lunges at you with tearing claws.
Attack: +21 vs. AC
Hit: 2d8 + 7 damage.

Short Bow ✦At-Will, Standard Action, Ranged 10/20
ranged basic
Attack: +19 vs. AC
Hit: 1d8 + 5 damage.

Longtooth Shifting ✦ Encounter, Minor Action, Personal
Healing
The wolf-elf unleashes the primal beast within and takes on a more savage countenance.
Special: The Vargyr Feywolf must be bloodied to use this power.
Effect: Until the end of the encounter or until rendered unconscious, the Vargyr Feywolf gains a +2 bonus to damage rolls. In addition, for as long as the Vargyr Feywolf is bloodied, it gains regeneration 4.

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Alignment neutral Languages Common
Skills Athletics +20, Nature +13
Str 24 (+15) Dex 21 (+13) Wis 11 (+8)
Con 12 (+9) Int 10 (+8) Cha 21 (+13)

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Equipment:small hand weapon, leather armor, short bow

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MilleniumCon 13 & Pathfinder

We rolled up to Round Rock last weekend to play some D&D, and ended up playing Pathfinder all weekend.

For those who don't know, MilleniumCon is a yearly convention put on by Lone Star Historical Miniatures and is primarily focused on, as their name implies, historical miniature wargames. It's pretty much the closest convention to us here in Austin, so we usually make it. They generously provide space for the RPGA folks, and this year they also had Pathfinder Organized Play set up in one of the four-table conference rooms.

contemplating the entrence to the dungeon

Originally Dan and I had intended to get in some XP for our 4e RPGA characters. I was looking forward to honing my tactics with my elven barbarian Sithadel, specifically figuring out how to play him without getting him killed. He tends to die once per convention - that's what I get for making a dex-based barbarian I guess. I like to play unconventional characters.

That all got derailed when I took the Pathfinder core book to work. Dan picked them up when they came out however long ago but I had only read the alpha version they put out online when Pathfinder was first announced. At any rate, I decided to roll up a character just for grins. I came up with Kes, a 1st level wizard specialized in abjuration and prohibited from casting evocation and necromancy. At the end of the process I was really curious to see how this character played, and how Pathfinder played.

So when we got to MilleniumCon we went ahead and jumped in on a Pathfinder game and played. It reminded me a bit of the old RPGA, with the adventure record sheets given out at the end of each session. I liked how some of the organized play elements were structured. For example, at the end of each adventure you get a list of magic items you can buy with the gold you've accumulated. By the end of four adventures we had a decently broad list to pick from. Overall it seems nicely structured to keep the characters balanced and play fun.

Facing an owlbear skeleton

So, we played two slots of Pathfinder on Friday night, and two more slots on Saturday. At the end of it all I have to say that I enjoyed playing Pathfinder quite a bit. Of course I think the changes to skills in PF are great moves: I've hated Hide vs Spot and Move Silently vs Listen since the first time I had to roll them both when 3e first came out. The changes to the classes are great, too. My 1st level wizard was able to contribute to the combat on every round because now 0th level spells aren't used up when you cast them, so I could throw an acid splash or cast daze every round. The changes to concentration and spell casting times also pleased me - I've always thought that spellcasters had it too easy in melee. Now you really have to think twice about where you put your wizard. The changes to how poison work also impressed me.

There were a few downsides, or course. Over and over again I had to hear from the other players how much more they liked Pathfinder then 4th edition D&D. I play 4e, 3.5e, and a little Pathfinder in one game, and I don't like the "us vs them" these conversations usually take, so I always get turned off when the topic comes up. And of course the Pathfinder fans trotted out the same old saw about how confusing grapple was in 3e. I have always disagreed - 3e grapple wasn't a blocker for us, and as far as I can tell it's pretty similar in Pathfinder.

But the real downside for me was all the minmaxing. Just like in the bad old days of ultimate 3.5 cheese some of the players were rolling with some uber powerful summoner class that they couldn't stop talking about. I was lucky enough to not actually have to play with the roll-players, but it reminded me of how much less 4e games seem to breed uber-powergamers. And I was reminded once again how much I disliked that.

But that was really minor for me and was totally overshadowed by how much fun I had and by how well-organized the mustering and gaming was. Kudos to the Pathfinder Organized Play folks. Next year I'll definitely be back for more.

my wizard Kes at the end of 4 adventures



Frost Maiden

Daughters of the frost giants, these ice-cold maidens stalk the frozen wastes, luring unwary warriors to their death on the chill bettlefields of the north.

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Frost Maiden ✦ Level 16 Controller
Medium elemental humanoid ✦ XP 1,400

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Initiative +13 Senses Perception +10

HP 154; Bloodied 77

AC 29; Fortitude 28, Reflex 30, Will 28

Speed 6, Icewalk

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Traits

Icewalk

Frost Maidens move at normal speed on difficult or challenging terrain that is icy or snowy.

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Standard Action Powers

Maddening Mock ✦ At-Will, Close Burst 10

Charm, Psychic

Hahahahahahaha!

Target: one creature
Attack: +20 vs. Will
Hit: 3d8 + 11 psychic damage.

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Minor Action Powers

Alluring Lure ✦ At-Will, Range 10
Charm, Psychic
Come, warrior, catch me if you can!
Target: One Creature
Attack: +20 vs. Will
Hit: The Target is pulled 4 squares and dazed until the end of the Frost Maiden's next turn.

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Alignment neutral Languages Giant, Common Skills Intimidate +20, Thievery +18
Str 13 (+9)     Dex 21 (+13)  Wis 15 (+10)
Con 18 (+12) Int 10 (+8)      Cha 24 (+15)

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Equipment: Gossamer garment.

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The Ruins of Soguer - The Mages's Guild Tower, Part 2

Once again we return to the adventure The Ruins of Old Soguer, being posted piece-by-piece here on Tailslap.  Today's post details the first two floors of the Mage's Guild Tower in the central portion of the ruins.  There, a figure from the past languishes under a mysterious curse.

Previous sections of the adventure can be found here:
The Ruins of Soguer - Introduction
The Ruins of Soguer - Start of the Adventure in Aguies Town & Castle
The Ruins of Soguer - River Journey to the Ruins
The Ruins of Soguer - The Western Ruins
The Ruins of Soguer - the Central Ruins
The Ruins of Soguer - The Mages's Guild Tower, Part 1

Journeyman's Hall

I - Haunted Mirror - here a cursed magic mirror shows the night of Soguer's destruction and serves as a conduit to the Shadowfell.

Stepping into the thick fog at the top of the stairs you see the corpse of a long-dead man in worn leather armor. Patches of fog fill the room and partially conceal the tables and chairs scattered about. Corpses of men in ragged leather armor and light hand weapons surround a stand-up mirror near the center of the hall.

A DC 10 Arcana check reveals that the mirror is magic. DC 16 Arcana reveals that is is useful for scrying, DC 21 Arcana to know that it is somehow broken. A DC 25 Arcana check reveals that the barrier between the worlds is thin in the city, and that the mirror is stuck showing scenes from the land of the dead - the Shadowfell.

Looking at the mirror causes it to show scenes of the twilit city as it once was - bustling with people and commerce - with the regal king in gleaming mail astride a green dragon outside a magnificent palace. Then, the scene turns to night. Some type of calamity seems to grip the city. Some people shuffle down the street with blank looks, transfixed by some type of ominous droning, while others scream and flee in the opposite direction. Then shadowy figures are drawn to the scene, approach the mirror's view, and come out of the mirror into the hall.

Encounter (level 12 +, xp 2400 / 3000 / 3600)- Wraiths from the Shadowfell come through the mirror and attack the players. A DC 28 Arcana check is required to control the mirror enough to stop the additional wraiths from coming through, or a DC 25 Strength check to break it will stop the tide of wraiths. Otherwise another wraith comes through the mirror every other round.
2 x oblivion wraiths (level 14 brute - xp 1000)
1, 2, or 4 vortex wraiths (level 9 soldier - xp 400 each) + one additional vortex wraith every other round.

Treasure - the dead adventurers carry shoddy armor and weapons, and 500 gold worth of scavenged jewelry, flatware, and other art objects.


J - Dead Journeyman's Apartment - Here a dead journeyman, Malaki guards his chambers and his spellbook.

These chambers feature two small apartments, each with a disheveled bed, and a chair and small table broken and knocked to the ground. Debris litter the floor, including a large illuminated tome lying open on the floor, its pages open to reveal some type of arcane diagram. Standing above the book is a ghostly apparition of a young mage wearing robes and wielding a runed dagger and a wand of oak.

Encounter - xp 1200
1 x watchful ghost (with magic ritual dagger instead of sword and spectral wand instead of crossbow) - (Open Grave)

Treasure (parcel 8) - The ghost's ritual book contains the following rituals: Water Walk, Phantom Steed, Silence, Shadow Walk, Wizard's Sight, Water Breathing, Arcane Barrier, Detect Treasure and Shrink.


K - Crumbling Masonry - An open pit that falls through to area A.

Hazard
Level 10 Warder - xp 500

The bottom ten feet of these stairs have collapsed, leaving a large hole that plunges down to the floor of the main hall twenty feet below.

Hazard - Careful climbing or a great leap are needed to ascend these stairs. Failure results in a painful fall.

DC 21 perception or dungeonering check to notice the cracked stonework at the edges of the pit.

Trigger - If anyone comes within 5' of the edge of the pit.
Attack - immediate interrupt
Target - the first creature coming within 5' of the stairs
+13 vs Reflex
Hit - 2d10 falling damage and secondary attack from falling stones
-Secondary Attack - +13 vs Fortitude, 1d10+5 damage
-Effect - the floor at the edge of the pit crumbles, widening the pit that looks down into the Main Hall (area A).

Countermeasures
- DC 16 Acrobatics check to to gingerly stand at the edge of the pit without the masonry opening up further (player is attacked as above on failure).
- DC 21 Athletics or Acrobatics check to cross the pit (player falls for 2d10 damage on failure).


Master's Chambers - these rooms contain only fine furniture in various states of decay, except one chamber.

R - Alidol's chamber

This chamber's walls and ruined furniture bear are cracked, scorched, and twisted. Above the door a curse still burns on the wall in letters of cold black magical flame - it reads "Alidol - you are cursed to languish here, un-helped within your tower until you have died here."

Master's Workshops - The landing at the top of the stairs leading up to this floor features doors carved with stars and constellations over tall mountain peaks.

L - Master's Workshops - these chambers contain tables and a few pieces of discarded alchemical equipment but are otherwise empty.

M - Alidol's Private Laboratory - The door is arcane locked and requires a DC 21 Strength or Thievery check to open it. The laboratory is currently occupied by a mute, mad naked old man who is an incomplete simulacrum that looks just like Alidol, and a shield guardian that guards the clone.

Overturned tables and broken alchemical equipment litter this chamber. A stone door leading to a side chamber on the north wall lies broken on the ground. A large humanoid made or stone, wood and metal stands still near the southwest corner for the room, and in the middle of the chamber stands a naked old man with a long beard that hangs to his knees and a mad gleam in his eyes. Catching sight of you, he screams wordlessly and lunges at your throat!

A DC 16 Arcana check identifies the old man as some type of magical copy of Alidol. DC 21 Arcana reveals that it is a simulacrum - a copy made of snow - that is incomplete and therefore not controlled by its creator.

Encounter - level 12 - xp 2800
Uncontrolled simulacrum (use flesh golem stats) - xp 1400
shield guardian - xp 1400


N - Warded Treasury - The secret door to this area is DC 21 Perception check to find, unless they specifically search that wall, in such chase it is a DC 16 Perception check. Within is a magic staff and a tome guarded by two deadly traps.

Opening the secret door reveals a small vault, with a table at the west end. Upon the table are a steel staff tipped with a pointed mason's plumb and a brass-bound tome.

Traps - spectral tendrils - level 13 trap - xp 800 - (DMG p.91) will attack any entering the treasury, and a kinetic wave (level 19 trap - xp 2400) which wards the staff's display table and will also attack any who approach the table.

Treasure - PARCEL #1 - Architect's Staff +3 (level 15, Arcane Power), Summoner's Tome +1 (level 5, Arcane Power) - contains the Summon Fire Warrior (Arcane Power) and Summon Shadow Serpent (Arcane Power) powers.


O - Simulacrum Creation Chamber

The stone door to this chamber lies broken on the floor outside in the laboratory. Within a large metal coffin covered with runes lies empty, and various labeled vials and boxes of reagents stand on some shelves and a table.

A DC 16 Arcana check reveals that this coffin is the focus for a ritual used to make magical copies of oneself.

Treasure - PARCEL #9 - 1,000 gp worth of arcanum and 2 emeralds worth 500 gold each.


P - Master's Hall

A large stone table is set in the middle of this solemn hall, surrounded by four stately chairs and flanked by stout pillars. Surrounding the table is an engraved magic circle.

A DC 10 Arcana check reveals that the circle is some type of runes of protection or privacy, and a DC 16 Arcana check determines that the circle is inactive.

Q - Roof

From the wide, flat platform that is the top of the mage's guild tower there is a magnificent view of the ruins of the city - the river, the trees, the ruined buildings, the walls and gates, and towards the sea, another stone tower. Near the south edge of the roof there are faintly glowing arcane runes in several overlapping circles.

A DC 21 Arcana check reveals that these hastily summoned but very powerful runes ward the tower and permanently protect it from intrusion by demons.

Character Race: Treant

Wise and long lived, these fey creatures are guardians of the forests and the wild places of the world. Sometimes, when they are very young, these tree-people will venture out into the world to explore it, or to defeat an evil that threatens their homes.

RACIAL TRAITS

Average Height: 4´ 2˝– 7´ 2˝

Average Weight: 150–520 lb.

Ability Scores: +2 Constitution, +2 Wisdom

Size: Medium

Speed: 5 squares

Vision: Normal

Languages: Common, Elven
Skill Bonuses: +2 Nature, +2 Insight
Nature's Health: You have one additional healing surge per day.

Firmly Rooted: You can use Firmly Rooted as an encounter power.

Firmly Rooted ✦ Treant Racial Power
Digging your root-toes in, you hunker down and stand your ground.Encounter ✦ Immediate Reaction when effected by a push, pull or slide
Target: Personal
Effect: You are not moved by the push, pull or slide that triggered the power.

Nature's Stilness ✦ Treant Racial Power
Composing yourself and standing still, you become indistingushable from a normal tree to the untrained eye.
Encounter - Standard Action
Target: Personal
Effect: As long as you stay still, you are indistingushable from a normal tree. An opposed Nature Skill Check is required for a observer to notice your true nature.

Play a Treant if you want . . .
✦ to play a tough character who is connected to the natural world
✦ to play a wise champion of nature
✦ to be a member of a race that favors the cleric, fighter, shaman, and warden classes.


Physical Qualities
Treant resemble humanoid trees, with two thick legs ending in many root-like toes, two arm-like branches with twiggy fingers, and generally with leaves and foliage sprinkling their bodies and as hair and beards. Young treants can be anywhere from 4 feet to 7 feet tall, and quite heavy due to their woody bodies.

Playing a Treant
To a Treant the natural state of the wilderness is home. Not hunted by predators, they are not combatative in the way most other humanoids are. Generally the only threat to their lives comes from those other humanoids, either by the destruction of their natural habitats or directly. Not requiring food or shelter the way most races do, they are generally uninterested in wealth and posessions beyond the simple things they need to live. Ocassionally, a young treant will have a curiosity about the world and will go wandering, generally unnoticed by those they pass among.

Treant Characteristics: Most treants are slow, thoughtful, sedentary, in tune with nature and the wilderness, solitary, and traditional.

Male Names:  Treebeard, Quickbeam, Fangorn, Leaflock, Finglas, Skinbark, Fladrif, Beachbone, Bregalad,

Female Names: Fembrithil, Wandlimb

Treant Adventurers
Three sample Treant adventurers will appear in upcomming posts.

Jäällätaudin - Icetongue

This ancient blade's full history is known only to the most studious Dwarven sages of the Dunheng Kingdoms. In its centuries of existence it has appeared in the hands of many heroes only to be lost again with their passing. Most recently it was wielded by Jak, a King of the Fridon people who in tales is called the Giant Slayer. He was a king of the Fridon many years ago, when his people were attacked by the giants from the Danor Mountains. He fought against them wearing the hide of a dragon and wielding Jäällätaudin, and drove them back to their burning peaks.

Icetongue - Paragon Level
Description
Icetongue is a +4 mithrail fullblade (Adventurer's Vault - superior weapon, +3 profeciency, 1d12 damage, high crit (+2d12 on crit))
Critical: +4d6 cold damage
Power (At-Will ✦ Cold): Free Action. All damage dealt by this weapon is cold damage. Another free action returns the damage to normal.
Power (Daily ✦ Cold): Free Action. Use this power when you hit with the weapon. The target takes an extra 2d8 cold damage and is slowed until the end of your next turn.


Goals
Cold forged of mithrail, Icetongue was made by the Dwarves of Danor to slay fire giants and all their thrall. Any creature with the fire subtype is an enemy to Icetongue, be it azer, elemental, or dragon, and it will demand their death without consideration.


Roleplaying Icetongue
Icetongue speaks in a clear, ringing voice.  It speaks Common, Dwarven, Giant and Draconic.

Flame and passion are anathma to Icetongue, and its will is deliberate and implacable as a glacier. It will calculatedly drive its wielder to confrontation with its hated foes.  Patient, unforgiving and heartless, Icetongue does not care what cost must be paid for victory.



Concordance
Starting Score 5
Wielder gains a level: +1d6
Wielder kills a creature with the fire subtype (max 1 / day) +1
Wielder refuses to fight a creature with the fire subtype -3
Wielder refuses to obey Icetongue's command -1

Pleased (16-20)
Icetongue becomes a +6 weapon that deals +6d6 cold damage on a critical.
Power (Daily ✦ Cold): Free Action. Use this power when you hit with the weapon. The target takes an extra 4d8 cold damage and is restrained until the end of your next turn.
Power (Encounter ✦ Cold): Standard Action, Melee 1.  Thrust Icetongue into any normal fire to douse it.  If the fire is magical in nature, such as a zone or conjuration of fire, make a weapon attack against the caster's Will defense to end the effect.

Satisfied (12-15)
Icetongue becomes a +5 weapon that deals +5d6 cold damage on a critical.
Power (Daily ✦ Cold): Free Action. Use this power when you hit with the weapon. The target takes an extra 3d8 cold damage and is immobilized until the end of your next turn.
Property: The wielder gains Icewalk, the ability to move through difficult icy or snowy terrain at normal speed.

Normal (5-11)
Icetongue's statistics are as listed above (+4 weapon, +4d6 cold on a critical).

Unsatisfied (1-4)
Icetongue becomes a +2 weapon that deals +2d6 cold damage on a critical.
Icetongue will not use its daily slow power.
The wielder gains vulnerable 5 cold.

Angered (0 or lower)
Icetongue is considered a non-magical weapon for the purposes of attack and damage.
If Icetongue's wielder rolls a 1 on an attack roll, they take 2d8 cold damage and are slowed for one turn.


Moving On
When Icetongue has defeated the fiery menace that it arose to battle it will leave the stage again.  Typically it is buried with the corpse of whatever hero it chose to wield it for that battle, as Icetongue's heartless drive often causes the death of its bearer even as they slay its foes.  If by terrific fortitude or cunning they win Icetongue's epic battle with their life intact he will either make them seek out a new fiery foe or else make them leave him in a desolate, icy location, such as thrust into the ice atop a glacier or hurled into a mountaintop lake.

The Ruins of Soguer - The Mages's Guild Tower, Part 1

Once again we return to the adventure The Ruins of Old Soguer, being posted piece-by-piece here on Tailslap.  Today's post details the first two floors of the Mage's Guild Tower in the central portion of the ruins.  There, a figure from the past languishes under a mysterious curse.

Previous sections of the adventure can be found here:
The Ruins of Soguer - Introduction
The Ruins of Soguer - Start of the Adventure in Aguies Town & Castle
The Ruins of Soguer - River Journey to the Ruins
The Ruins of Soguer - The Western Ruins
The Ruins of Soguer - the Central Ruins

5 - The Mage's Guild Tower, A reclusive old mage named Alidol lives within this tower, trapped by a curse.

Standing here among the ruins of the city is a tall square tower with smooth, windowless, slightly tapered sides. The once-fine facade is cracked and crumbling and vines crawl up the walls. A single wide doorway stands open, the door long gone. You see an old man in tattered clothes and with long, tangled beard and hair peering at you from the doorway.

If the players apprach, the old man greets them cautiously. If not threatened, he will converse with them, telling them that his name is Alidol, and that he was the Master of the Mage's Guild of Soguer before the fall, and that he has lived in the tower since then. He is hesitant to reveal more detail then that, though he can be convinced to reveal some of his secrets with a skill challange (below).

What he cannot reveal are the details of the curse that he languishes under.

Skill challenge - xp 200 (4 successes before 3 failures)
DC - 14 Diplomacy, Bluff, Intimidate and Arcana skill checks to learn the old man's history - that when he was young the pleasures of the flesh and his ambition consumed him and he pledged his soul to Grazz't. After he amassed great power he became the high mage of the guild, and that then he used forbidden magic to share his soul to make simmalacrum of himself (magical copies who share his soul - and therefore his pact with Grazz't). He goes on to tell that when the city was attacked he used up all of his power to ward the tower against the demon god that rose up out of the sea and now has no more magic in him.

He then tries to say "With my power gone my simmalacrum were free to act as they willed. They made separate deals with Grazz't, I believe, then betrayed and cu... cur..." (as part of his curse he is unable to say that they cursed him and left him here to die, and will become angry at this point and begin tearing at his hair and beard in frustration. Once he calms down a bit he will implore the players to help him, though he is unable to say anything about the curse or its nature - he can't even say that he can't speak about it.

If asked about creatures in the tower, he will mention his shield guardian, but will say it should not be hostile - it will just protect him, though that's useless since it is trapped above, where he cannot reach due to the stairs having fallen apart.

If asked about his past and his pact with Grazz't, the old man will sadly relate that he once burned with ambition and lust, but that after spending forty years alone in the tower he has repented those things and now just wishes to live out the rest of his days in peace.

If the players try to leave the tower, Alidol warns them about the hezrou (toad demon) that stalks the ruins. He will go on to say that his final spell - a ward against demons - still protects the tower and that the Hezrou cannot enter.

Minor Quest (Level 10 - xp 500 for each player): Free the guildmaster from his tower.
The curse laid on Alidol prevents him from leaving the tower until he has died there. It also prohibits him from helping anyone lift his curse in any way. If the players kill his simmalacrum he has technically died in the tower and is then free to leave.

Success - If the players free Alidol from the tower, he will thank them gratefully and promise to assist them any way he can. If the subject of the inquisition comes up he will inquire about it, and if the church of Baccob is mentioned he will let them know that one of his simmalacrum was working to join the church of Boccob many years ago. He will accompany them out of the ruins if they will allow him to join them, eventaully making his way back to Aguies with them. While with the party, he will happily share his vast knowledge of the arcane, making Arcana skill checks to identify creatures and help with arcane skill challanges at +30.

Tower Locations

Much of the tower is shrouded with patches of dense fog, all corridors are filled with fog, all doors are Arcane Locked (DC 21 Theivery or Strength to open), and there are some illusionary features thoroughout. The entire tower is also warded by a spell that protects against demons - Alidol's ward from the fall of Soguer - that keeps the hezrou out.

Ground Floor

A - Main Hall

A chair stands alone near the door in this large open room. The floor is littered with dirt and bits of wood and fallen masonry. Pillars support the ceiling twenty feet above, which shows cracks and some dark holes where pieces of stone are missing. A door leads to a hallway with smaller chambers - also with long-rotted chairs and tables. At the end of the hall is a spiral staircase leading up. Empty sconces and burned out torches line the walls.

B - Meeting Rooms - These chambers contain only the broken remains of tables and chairs.


C - Guest Chambers - Here three bedrooms hold simple furniture that looks fragile with age - a bed, chair, table, and empty chest.


D - Kitchen - This kitchen features a large rusty stove, and some tables and shelves still stand among the debris.

A simple wooden spoon lies on the table, next to a worn wooden bowl. The spoon is magical - if it is placed in the bowl or any container it fills with plain-tasting but nutritious gruel (as Everlastng Provisions - it provides food and water for up to 5 people a day). If Alidol sees the players examining with the spoon - his only source of food - he becomes agitated and takes it away from them.

Novice's Chambers

E - Warded Door (Arcane Locked - DC 21 Theivery or Strength to open) - The password is "korth" (draconic for danger), but Alidol's curse prevents him from telling them what it is.


F - Scribe's Workshop

Two long tables with benches and a bookshelf fill this chamber. Scraps of paper and a set of quills sit on the tables. Some books stand on the shelves. A few small vials, bits of paper and a few books sit among the thick dust that coats the floor.

This is where books and documents were copied and some scrolls were made - a search of the papers on the floor (easy perception check - DC 10) will turn up a complete scroll of water breathing. The books on the shelves that have survived the ages and vermin cover arcane and mundane topics, history "Wars of the Fridon", philosophy "Natural Science of the Rivers", "On Rulership", religion "Tracts of Truth and Guidance", fiction "There and Back Again", erotica "Ten Tales of Romance". There are 10 salvagable books all told.


G - Novice's Dormotories

These simple rooms hold a single bed, a footlocker, a small table and a chair in various stages of decay.

The rooms are empty, the novices having taken their posessions with them as they left the city after the fall.


H - Unstable Masonry - Hazard

Level 10 Lurker - XP 500

Small debris litter the dusty staircase here.

Hazard - These crumbling stairs could collapse at any moment - plunging the unwary down to the hall below and leaving a pit that must be climbed or jumped over.

Perception - A DC 21 Perception or Dungeoneering notices the cracked and dangerous stonework on the stairs.

Trigger - The first creature to climb the stairs causes them to crumble under them. The stairs make the following attack.

Attack - immedeate interrupt
Target - the first creature climbing the stairs
+13 vs Reflex
Hit - 2d10 falling damage and secondary attack from falling stones
-Secondary Attack - +13 vs Fortitide, 1d10+5 damage
-Effect - the staircase crumbles, opening up a pit that looks down into the Main Hall (area A). Once the pit opens, a DC 21 Athletics or Acrobatics check is required to cross it.

Countermeasures
- DC 16 Acrobatics check to carefully cross the stairs one at a time without triggering the stairs to collapse (player is attacked as above on failure).
- DC 16 Athletics check to run and jump over the stairs without triggering the collapse (player is attacked as above on failure).
- DC 21 Athletics or Acrobatics check to cross once the stairs have collapsed (player falls for 2d10 damage on failure).

New Structures for Skill Challanges

Skill challenges are a great addition to Dungeons & Dragons.  They take those non-combat obstacles that players face and turn them into legitimate encounters with clear criteria and consequences for success and failure.  Perhaps more importantly for the players they also provide experience point rewards for overcoming the challenges.

However, I have found that when I'm DMing the structure presented in the DMG for skill challenges doesn't always make a lot of sense for the encounter I'm presenting the players.  Sometimes I present a challenge that requires a single skill check - one success or failure right there and the challenge is over - like climbing over a wall or jumping a chasm.  Other times the skill challenges I present have a clear chain of skill checks that need to be performed in the correct order, and the traditional skill challenge structure doesn't make sense for those challenges.  For example, if the players fail their Perception skill check to notice the scrap of parchment in the top branches of a tree, there's no reason for them to make Athletics checks to climb up there.  Some puzzles and trap skill challenges benefit from this structure as well.

Because of these structural differences in how skill challenges can be played, I came up with two new structures for skill challenges that I run: minion skill challenges and chain skill challenges.


Minion Skill Challenges

Structure

As mentioned above, some skill challenges are a simple yes or no, success of failure on one skill check.  Can the party sneak past the napping guard dog?  Can they bribe the watchman?  Can they swing on the rope across the chasm?  One skill check is all it takes, and if they succeed, they pass the challenge and move on to the next one.  If they fail, there are consequences.  The watchman rejects their bribe and shouts the alarm.  The guard dog wakes up and begins barking.  They lose their grip on the rope and plunge into the chasm.

The minion skill challenge is also useful when playing in a more free-form fashion.  The players may be at court on a diplomatic mission, trying to win over allies to their side.  I may be presenting the players with NPCs that they meet, but I don't have any specific goals in mind for most of them.  But I know that they players are going to find some hook about some NPCs interesting and try to win them over as allies, or stymie their plans if they become enemies.  So I let them make skill checks as they want, treating each as a minion skill challenge: if they succeed they impress the NPC, if they fail they make a bad impression and likely an enemy.  The minion skill challenge structure lets me DM this scene in a nice free-form fashion, awarding XP for success and consequences for failure as I go.

As mentioned in the DMG, every skill check does not qualify as a minion skill challenge.  Only when there are consequences for failure should a skill check be considered a minion skill challenge.

Skill challenge DCs for minion skill challenges should be set by level, using the DCs by level chart in the DMG.

Experience

For each successful minion skill challenge, award experience points for a minion of the level used to set the skill challenge's DC.


Chain Skill Challenges

Structure

Chain skill challenges are designed for situations where skills have to be used in a certain order in order to successfully complete the whole challenge.  Often, these skill challenges might be part of overcoming a trap or a hazard. 

An example of this might be a magically protected, hidden wall safe.  Step one of the skill challenge would be a Perception skill check to determine if any of the party members notices the hidden safe.  If no one makes that check the challenge can't proceed and ends.  If someone notices the safe, they then must overcome the magical ward protecting it.  This might be an arcana check to disable the Glyph of Warding, or a Strength or Thievery check to bypass the Arcane Lock placed on the safe.  If they can open the safe they get experience and whatever valuables are in the safe.  If not they might get blasted, or else are just unable to open the safe.  If they spend a lot of time retrying their Thievery checks, a monster is likely to come to investigate the noise.  Either way the skill challenge fails and there are consequences.

Skill challenge DCs for chain skill challenges should be set by level, using the DCs by level chart in the DMG.

Experience

To award experience points for a chain skill challenge, count up the total number of successful skill checks needed to complete the challenge and compare them to the following chart:

Complexity Successes      XP
     1                4-5           1 monster worth
     2                6-7           2 monsters worth
     3                8-9           3 monsters worth
     4                10-11       4 monsters worth
     5                12-13       5 monsters worth
 
Award XP for successfully completed chain skill challenges by handing out XP for a number of monsters of the skill challenge's level equal to the complexity of the challenge. For example, if a 10th level chain skill challange requires 7 sucessful skill checks to complete, award 1000 XP for the challange upon success.
 
If the chain skill challenge requires less than 4 successes, award experience for a number of minion monsters equal to the number of surceases required.


Other Thoughts on Running Skill Challanges

For more on different ways to handle skill challanges in your game, check out this post at At-Will.

Talk Like a Pirate Day!

Ahoy there!  As ye my know this Sunday be international Talk Like a Pirate Day! 

To celebrate we're shanghing you to embark on a grand adventure to search for 20 hidden treasure chests, containing all sorts of fantastic and TOTALLLY FREE eBooks!

So get to hunting, ye scurvey dogs!

-C'pn Thompson, ISS Unicorn Rampant

Two-Headed Hound

Living in small packs in the deepest wilds of the Feywild, these Two-Headed Hounds are terrifying monsters that the seelie fey tell their children frightening tales of.  Those who wander into the green depths of the Feywild sometimes find that the tales are no exaggeration.  Occasionally, some of the wilder Fey will befriend a lone male of these creatures and accompany them through the wilds.

Standing almost as tall as a horse at their shoulders, these shaggy wolves bear two heads where most have one, each large enough to eat a child up in one bite.

Two-Headed Hound ✦ Level 16 Elite Soldier
Medium Fey Magical Beast ✦ XP 2,800
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Initiative +17 Senses Perception +8
HP 296; Bloodied 148
AC 34; Fortitude 30, Reflex 28, Will 30
Saving Throws +2
Action Points 1
Speed 8
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Powers

Bite ✦At-Will, Standard Action, Melee 2
melee basic
Attack: +21 vs. AC
Hit: 3d8 + 11 damage.

Horror of Tearing Teeth ✦At-Will, Standard Action
Effect: The hound makes two bite attacks.

Leaping Death ✦Encounter, Standard Action, Melee 2, Recharge 6
The hound hurls itself across the battlefield, knocking down and tearing those it lands on.
Special:  The hound may make this attack as part of a charge.
Attack: +23 vs. Reflex against up to 4 targets
Hit: 3d6 + 8 and the target is slid 1 and knocked prone.

Overwatch ✦ At-Will, Minor Action, Melee 2
The hound's heads look around, ready to take advantage of any opportunity to strike.
Effect: The Hound marks one or two targets within 2 squares.  If those targets make an attack that does not include the Hound, the Hound may make an opportunity attack against that target.

Rending Counterattack ✦ Encounter, Immedeate Reaction
Special: Triggered when first bloodied.
Effect: the hound's Leaping Death power recharges and the hound uses the Leaping Death attack as a free action.  For the rest of the encounter, while still bloodied, the hound recieves a +2 to damage.
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Alignment neutral Languages Sylvan
Skills Athletics +20, Nature +13
Str 24 (+15) Dex 21 (+13) Wis 11 (+8)
Con 12 (+9) Int 10 (+8) Cha 21 (+13)
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Two-Headed Hound Lore
The following can be recalled about Two-Headed Hounds with the following Nature skill checks:
15:  Two-Headed Hounds are dangerous predators from the depths of the feywild.  Though some understand Sylvan, few choose to speak it.
20:  Two-Headed Hounds prefer to leap upon their prey and knock them down, and become very dangerous when seriously hurt.

GenCon 2010

I'm just now getting a chance to write about the great time I had at GenCon this year, but I wanted to make sure y'all saw the pictures I got of all the great games, costumes, and miniatures I got.  So welcome to Unicorn Rampant's virtual walking tour of GenCon 2010!

Games and Minis

In the "big tables" category, I saw a giant version of Ticket to Ride that looked like a lot of fun.  Also present but not pictured were giant Settlers of Catan and a few other giant versions of some great board games.

Geek Chic had their beautiful gaming tables in evidence as well.  This year they've branched out some and have many styles of hand-made, beautifully finished game tables, end tables, coffee tables, all with lots of neat hidden compartments, removable tops, drink holders, die cubbies, and such.

I love Babba Yaga, and these guys had put together a fun 3' x 3' piece of terraced terrain for her hut to live on.

Close up of the chicken-legged hut itself.

Speaking of terrain, if you want to make assloads of walls and caverns for cheap, this is for you.  Molds that you pour your own resin into and then paint the resulting walls yourself.  Available in castle flavor, gothic cathedral flavor...

...and of course Egyptian flavor.

I was really impressed by the level of detail, and the multiple levels of these paper playscapes.  Also, super-affordable compared to any of the resin pieces.

Arr, that be a fine-lookin' vessel, ripe for the plundering!  And a bargain at twice the price!

In terms of high-quality finished work, these guys always stand out head and shoulders above everyone else.  Of course you get what you pay for in this case.  This Caribbean Spanish settlement actually gave me flashbacks to my trip to San Juan in Puerto Rico.

And of course the miniatures.  First of all, you need a bunch of dragons.

No.  More dragons.

One of Reaper's display cases.  I love those guy's work.

Close up of a Remorahaz.

Frost giants!  We got your frost giants!

Scorpion-man-things and dinosaurs.

A good specimen of a Type 6 demon.

Demons, djinn and dastardly dark steps.

And of course a plague rat-a-pult?

I love digging around for old gaming books, particularly anything from the late 70's and early 80's when I first started gaming.  I found some real gems, like this.  Who doesn't love a game of hot man-to-man combat?

My assembled loot from the Exhibitor's hall; the 1980 D&D red box, just like the one I bought in the toy store at 7 years old, a couple of AD&D adventures from the same era, and a couple of vinyl transfers from Berserk.

Costumes

One of the highlights of GenCon for me is always all the great costumes everyone puts together.  Most are hand-made. 

Satyr girls always make me horny (pun intended - sorry).

Not sure if these girls were officially supporting the new DC comics game that just came out, but I really liked the costumes either way.

Steampunk, Victorian styles, corsets and bustiers continued to be popular costume themes this year.  I also saw a lot of savage or primitive costumes this year, a newer trend.

Nice brass jetpack!

A couple of Paizo's iconic characters made an appearance at their booth.

A picture of me enjoying the costumes.  That's my renfaire garb, minus the cowl.

Some fun and overtly sexy costumes - I particularly like the caution tape miniskirt.  Caution indeed!  In seriousness, I really like the atmosphere of acceptance at GenCon when folks want to let their freak flag fly.  Last year there were kids going around with "gay gamer" shirts, and this year there was a fair amount of cosplay / anime / genderqueer / raver costuming going on.

This lady put together an excellent Goblin King costume, a'la David Bowie in Labyrinth.  I tried to take several pictures of her costume, but I think she cast blur on my camera.

The blur spell took a while to wear off my camera.

Another savage-looking outfit from this pink-haired elven sorceress or shaman.

The world's tallest leprechaun.

Games

And of course, I played a lot of games at GenCon this year.  In years past I had made a point of trying to promote Unicorn Rampant, either by meeting people in the industry that we have partnerships with, like Paizo and RPGnow, or by running games.  Of course that meant I was either exhausted or missed out on having fun playing myself.  This year I tried to maximize the fun by playing as much as I wanted to, and giving myself breathers between games if I wanted.  As a result, I had the most fun this year that I've had a GenCon.

I played some great RPGA games - the Ravens of Winter's Mourning game was lots of good investigative fun, and the Curse of the Gray Hag was simply awesome.  Here are a few pics from the Curse of the Gray Hag game.

Here we're trying to get away from the shambling mounds and into the Hag's tower, since I had convinced her that we were there to help free her.  I played the eladrin priestess of Loth that is in the rear of the party there.

Some of the unfortunate other players in the Curse game.  Notice the 'cursed' status markers on half the party?  That meant they took 20 damage or lost their highest level spell every time they attacked the hag or her defenders.

The actual battle against the Hag, a solo monster, and her flesh golem, an elite monster.  With half the party unable to effectively attack, this ended up being too tough of a fight for us, and some of the players got frustrated and called it quits when we hit the end of the time slot.  Since my character had already accomplished her objective of getting some deadly nightshade from the surrounding fey-swamps, she had no problem bailing on the fight at that point.  In one of my prouder moments, I took no damage at all in the entire adventure, and managed to parley past two of the combat encounters.  Note my strategic position hiding on the stairs.

Then, of course, there was the Tower of Gygax.  This event has become the highlight of the con for me.  I even got a chance to run the Tower for a bit late Saturday night.  Now with a Facebook group, even!  Check it out for even more pics and memories from the Tower: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=145288208818624

I feel like this character sheet I found illustrates the excitement that the tower created.

Here's Steve, another of Unicorn Rampant's writers, running a room he contributed to the Tower of Gygax.  We had lots of girls playing in the Tower, which is always nice to see.  In fact, it seemed like more women come to GenCon to play every year.

The chamber that Steve ran: a chasm, rope bridges, sinkholes in the floor, rushing torrents, and an enormous air elemental.

The master of the Tower: Save Versus Death and Kobold Quarterly's Scott A. Muarry running The Tomb of Horrors for the Tower players Saturday night.  I was thrilled to survive a few rooms delving into the Tomb.

One of the Tower's deadly rooms: the Arcane Monolith.  I won't ruin the details, but I'm stealing parts of this for my home game.

Towards the wee hours, Scott decided to throw out the books and wing it off the cuff.  Hilarity and death ensued.

Finally, in the wee hours of the night, I stepped in to run a few rooms in the Tower.  This is me explaining how the chest they just opened is full of poisonous vipers that are now biting them.

Here I am describing how the lever that they just pulled has sent half the party to their deaths at the bottom of a 100 foot pit.

Finally, once they removed the treasure from one of the tests, a fusillade of darts strikes those nearby.  The dwarf grabbing the box survived and got away with a magic ring of protection.  Those who dare win!

Of course, this was just a fraction of the gaming going on, but with 20,000 gamers gathered and playing, there's no way I could see everything.  It was awesome.

One of the many rooms full of gamers.

Until next year, thanks for reading, and happy gaming!

-Adam A. Thompson

Unicorn Rampant