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| Wrath River King - questions for designers and patrons |
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| richgreen01 |
 Posted: Thu Nov 05, 2009 11:12 am Post subject: |
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Location: London, UK
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Here's the write-up for Monday night's game. I can't say I blame the players for bypassing the encounter with Lord Peppick and Ashbark after what happened with the ettercaps! We're closing in on the finale...
Reunited with Krivinn, Sharden and Margarita arrive at a river gorge with a huge tree trunk acting as a bridge across. As they approach, they realise that death butterflies are swarming on the fallen tree, some of which gather into a humanoid shape, and that a treant stands between the party and the crossing. The PCs talk to Ashbark the wildfire treant who asks them first for healing potions, then for meat for his friend, Lord Peppick, the butterfly lord.
The party trudge off back into the forest where Sharden manages to bring down a deer with his avenging flame helped by the others. The PCs take the deer back to Ashbark who gives it to Lord Peppick. However, when the PCs try to cross the bridge the butterfly lord tells them they must swear fealty to him first. Only Sharden agrees and this isn’t good enough, although the dwarf is allowed to pass over to the other side of the gorge. Fed up with the situation, the PCs head upstream where Krivinn and Margarita cross the river using ropes.
From here, the party arrive at the fey door where they encountered the quicklings a few days ago. In the clearing they meet Bolval, a dwarven cleric of Ninkash, who says he went to sleep inside a colourful painted wagon in the forest and found himself in the Feywild when he woke up.
Krivinn steps inside the hollow tree but nothing happens but when Sharden performs the Fey Roads ritual, the dwarf is able to open the fey door leading to the Fey River Road. The PCs jump into the fairy ring and find themselves travelling at speed downriver.
After travelling some distance, the PCs feel themselves slowing down, appearing in marshy water next to the riverbank. Here they are attacked by nixies led by Lady Syllessi. Sharden kills one of the fey, then Bolval finishes off a second before Krivinn slays Lady Syllessi. The fourth nixie flees into deep water and escapes. The PCs loot the bodies, taking the fey’s aquamarine pendants and the lady’s circlet of authority. Take an extended rest.
Cheers
Richard |
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| richgreen01 |
| Posted: Wed Nov 11, 2009 11:20 pm Post subject: Penultimate Session? |
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The PCs arrived at the Court of the River King in Monday night's session and negotiated their way into the Rippling Hall. Here's how:
The PCs return to the river road and emerge in front of the Sluice Gate to the River King’s Court. Strangely, Margarita has vanished, but Brave Ella has appeared – the elf ranger fell through a hole in a marshy part of the forest to find herself travelling down the river road at high speed. As Krivinn and Ella get their bearings, they are called upon to rescue the two dwarves who are floundering around hopelessly in the water. Throwing them ropes, the paladin and ranger are able to stop Bolval and Sharden drifting off towards the nasty-looking merrow lurking beneath the river’s surface.
Back together again, the party heads inside the magical castle where they persuade Rumpkin the porter (a talking bear) to let them into the Outer Courtyard, despite the protestations of Redcloak who they first met in the Golden Knight tavern in Riverbend. Inside the courtyard, Krivinn and the others talk to His Excellency Silverwing (Margrave of Ravens) and Caias Gruffkin (satyr and Royal Vintner), learning some useful information about the River King and the bad advice he’s been given by Jenny Greenteeth and Ambertan the Black Fey warlock. Knurlnap the Water Bearer tries to get the PCs to carry his tea urn but they brush him aside and head towards the drawbridge to the Inner Courtyard. Here, Sharden impresses Gumphollow the frog major domo, convincing him to let the party across.
In the inner courtyard, the PCs run into Lady Sorreminx and Sir Yngress the Red. The beautiful eladrin lady grills Brave Ella on her reasons for setting aside her badge in exchange for the Birch Queen’s. Ella explains her mistake in entering the contest to become the Birch Queen’s consort and is forgiven by Lady Sorreminx who allows the PCs to head down the stairs to the Great Rippling Hall.
In the Hall, the PCs state their case to the River King Ulorian. Redcloak speaks out against them but Lady Sorreminx backs them up, talking of their bravery in battle with Tatzel and the Nain Rouge. The River King is impressed and officially withdraws his support from Lord Flax. This angers Jenny Greenteeth (disguised as a beautfiul eladrin) who challenges Sharden to a duel. The dwarf is pulled towards the hag by her beckoning call but is able to take her down with his prayers although he is unable to use his signature power, Trumpet the Star’s Fall, in the crowded throne room. With Jenny defeated, the PCs head through one of the River King’s whirlpool portals to stop Lord Flax
This was a fun session - a mixture of skill challenges and role-playing. I gave +2 bonuses out here and there to Diplomacy and Bluff checks which worked quite well, and allowed Silverwing and Caias to reveal most of the information in the Streetwise table in this section.
I do think this section of the adventure could have been much better organised - the information on the skill challenge, the NPCs and the physical layout of the castle jumped around quite a bit and in some cases I needed to refer to three different pages for the one NPC conversation. Anyway, I got round this by making my own notes beforehand but it was a bit confusing at first when prepping the session.
Next up: the final battle(s) at the False Mill. Should be good fun.
Cheers
Richard |
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| richgreen01 |
| Posted: Wed Nov 25, 2009 12:12 pm Post subject: The Not Quite Final Session! |
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Joined: 06 Apr 2008
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Location: London, UK
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Hi,
We didn't quite finish Wrath of the River King on Monday night but there's only the denouement to go next session. Here's what happened:
The PCs arrive at a millpond very similar to (but not the same as) the one in Riverbend, where they are reunited with Margarita. Arrows fly from the millhouse striking the ground in front of the party! “That’s a warning shot. Trouble us no further” cries Lord Flax from the opposite side of the dam. “We have waited long years! Now, we burn the humans out of their huts, and take their land! Spill their blood for the River King.”
The half-eladrin charges across the dam to attack the party, unleashing his Storm of Swords which dazes them as Flax’s ettercap axe guards and Black Fey raiders close in. Bolval protects the party with spirit of healing and consecrated ground while Krivinn and Ella attack Lord Flax, and Margarita and Sharden defend themselves against the shadow-jumping Black Fey. As the archers fire from the millhouse, the ettercaps throw their nets, trapping Bolval and Rita before closing in with their polearms. Flax strikes back with his howling strike but falls to Sharden’s purging flame and Bolval’s consecrated ground. His Golden Fey warhorse, Lionheart, fights on for a while before fleeing across the dam as the PCs take down the Black Fey and the ettercaps. The archers inside the mill flee, leaving the PCs the victors. Krivinn takes Lord Flax’s +2 frost greatsword, Iceriver; Ella takes his +2 sunleaf hide armour.
The party have time for a short rest before the second wave attacks the mill – this time from the river and led by Ambertan of the Black Fey. Bolval and Sharden are both some distance from the millhouse, Ella is nearby and Margarita and Krivinn are inside. Unluckily for Bolval, the dwarf is lured into the river by a merrow and is knocked unconscious by several bites from eel hounds. He fails two death saves before recovering (by rolling 20).
Meanwhile, the others defend the mill but are taken by surprise when a merrow teleports inside. Ambertan blasts Ella but the ranger uses her disruptive strike to force a miss. Sharden summons his onyx dog as the second merrow teleports inside and a couple of eel hounds slither in through the windows. Margarita stands firm in the doorway, holding back an ogre while Brave Ella continues to exchange ranged attacks with Ambertan. Eventually, the tide turns – the PCs take down the two merrow inside and the ogre at the doors while the recovered Bolval is able to get rid of most of the surviving eel hounds and eladrin warriors. Ambertan is bloodied and flees, taking the second ogre with him. The PCs have won the day!
Cheers
Richard |
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| Wolfgang |
| Posted: Wed Nov 25, 2009 3:31 pm Post subject: |
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Kobold Overlord
Joined: 30 Dec 2007
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Location: The Mines
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If I haven't said it lately, these are awesome.
_________________
Wolfgang Baur
Publisher, Kobold Press |
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| jonroberts |
| Posted: Fri Nov 27, 2009 7:38 am Post subject: |
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| Agreed, this is a great read. Thanks. |
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| richgreen01 |
| Posted: Fri Nov 27, 2009 4:23 pm Post subject: |
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Location: London, UK
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Thanks both!
It's been a great adventure to run, and has definitely been enhanced by Jon's excellent maps!
Cheers
Richard |
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| jonroberts |
| Posted: Sun Nov 29, 2009 10:31 am Post subject: |
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