The group was down two players this session compared to last one so they decided to proceed cautiously. To start with they paid a visit to the Grand Casino of Boreon hoping to gather some intel about the mysterious fox-people who they’ve heard about but not yet actually encountered. Coming up mostly empty and failing to win big at the slots (and realizing they’re not nearly well enough equipped to knock the place over) they returned to Salt Mine dungeon and once again bribed their way past the ogre guarding the back entrance.
They’ve now got a nearly-complete map of the top level and were feeling pretty confident after dispatching some ghouls and giant rats but disaster almost struck when they decided to attack a nest of giant stink bugs: half the party (the thief and of the clerics) was rendered unconscious and the gnome cleric had to leave his pack and maul behind in order to drag his comatose companion to safety. Venturing back to retrieve the lost pack only a well-placed Sanctuary spell saved the remaining two from disaster and probable TPK. When you're low level and outnumbered AC4 and a 1d6 bite adds up quickly.
A few sacks of silver pieces was a visibly disappointing haul but was just enough to allow the thief to hit 2nd level. She also pocketed a nice-looking coral necklace that a jeweler in town offered her a cool thousand GP for but she decided not to sell, suspecting it might be magical.
Next session (set for 10/22) they’re hoping to be back to full strength, which is good because their options are narrowing - taking on the goblins or armed men they avoided this time around, venturing back down to one of the lower levels (which they’re still very afraid of), or leaving this dungeon altogether to follow up on one of the rumors they picked up at the casino - such as the mysterious goings on in the village of Veirona a day’s travel upriver, near the famous Melonath Falls.
[Fun OOC note: when they were in the casino hearing about Veirona with its lumber mill and seedy reputation and the nearby Melonath Falls, one of the players said "I'm starting to get a kind of Twin Peaks-y vibe about this area" which I appreciated because it's 100% intentional but she's the first person who's ever noticed (or at least who mentioned it out loud to me)]
Have they though about hitting the mailed guards with oil flasks yet?
ReplyDeleteAllan.
They haven't. They started one big fire with an entire barrel full of oil but haven't yet thrown an oil flask Molotov cocktail at anyone. Is that maybe not an option in 5E (which is what they've mostly all been playing before now)? If so, when someone inevitably throws one at them they'll probbably be like "you mean we could've been doing this the whole time? Why didn;t you tell us?!" and I'll just shrug and smirk knowingly.
Delete5e and other modern systems relies only on characters inate abilities, it's beyond them to use the enviroment or resources found outside of what they gain on leveling up.
DeleteWhat are the names of the PCs? I always enjoy seeing what players come up with and what other DMs allow (and it makes it easier to keep track of what's going on in play reports).
ReplyDeleteSure. Current party is:
DeleteKronk - gnome cleric 2 (Norebo)
Grain Tobblefoot - gnome thief 2 (joined in session 2)
Thron Hammersmash - half-orc fighter 1 (joined in session 2)
Elden - human magic-user 1 (joined in session 2, absent from session 4)
Tares - elf cleric 1 (Norebo) (joined in session 3)
Thorn - half-elf ranger 1 (joined in session 3, absent from session 4)
I believe Tares has a last name, but I don't have what it is written in my notes.
In session #1 Kronk was joined by Landoc, half-elf C/MU 1/1 (Fharlanghn), but that player has a difficult schedule so I don't know when or if we're likely to see him again.
Personally I'd have liked it if more of them had chosen to be human, but distant level limits that they'll almost certainly never actually see (8th for the elf cleric and ranger, 12th for the gnome cleric and half-orc) wasn't enough to dissuade them from the benefits of being demi-human (especially infravision).