Out of the Abyss: Pursuit! (Spoilers)

[Goober4473]

The pursuit system in OotA is kinda cool, but I thought I'd make it a bit more exciting, and clue the players in on the stress-inducing imminence of their capture.

Here's my plan: Give the players three cards (https://drive.google.com/file/d/0Bwir5V4Ifx5dd2NSM24tY3ZxN2s/view?usp=sharing), two representing scouts and one representing the main drow force. Each card has five pursuit track boxes, which increase/decrease as the original pursuit track did, plus the scouts advance an extra box every day. One set of scouts begins at 4 boxes, the other at 2 or 3, and the main force at 1 or 2. When a pursuer reaches 5 boxes, they overtake the PCs and a chase or combat happens. Since it's an encounter, each other pursuer also gets a box checked, so the very fast scouts should be encountering the players pretty constantly if they don't travel at a fast pace consistently, and each time they do, the main force advances a little bit faster.

I'm thinking perhaps the two sets of scouts shouldn't ever share a pursuit level, so I might have them leapfrog over each other if that would happen. And my plan is to have covering your tracks reduce only the pursuit track of the closest pursuer, as they pick up the trail again.

My plan is for the scout parties to be initially quite potent for the party's level, but they might be able to eventually start taking them out, though new scouts will take their place eventually.

What you you all think?

[mgshamster]

It's a solid plan, although it may be too much work. All I did was tell my players that they were being tracked and them told them about their speed options (but I did not tell them how their speed options effected the pursuit level).

They chose fast pace until they felt comfortable that they weren't being pursued. Lasted about 10 days of travel, at which point they easily lost their pursuers. To make up for food, they had the Druid cast Goodberry every day.

[Goober4473]

It's a solid plan, although it may be too much work. All I did was tell my players that they were being tracked and them told them about their speed options (but I did not tell them how their speed options effected the pursuit level).

They chose fast pace until they felt comfortable that they weren't being pursued. Lasted about 10 days of travel, at which point they easily lost their pursuers. To make up for food, they had the Druid cast Goodberry every day.

The two main ideas here are:
1) I want to make the pursuit visible to the players, as part of my general plan to give the players a much information as possible, and to give them a visible reminder that their enemy is jsut behind them.
2) I want the chase to last for the entire first half of the campaign. Their main motivation to stop at all these weird places is going to largely be to escape their pursuers. For instance, in Gracklstugh, the primary reward for them is safe passage out of the city, without the drow's knowledge, which will reset the pursuit tracks. When they finally confront the drow before their escape to the surface, I want it to really matter.

[mgshamster]

The two main ideas here are:
1) I want to make the pursuit visible to the players, as part of my general plan to give the players a much information as possible, and to give them a visible reminder that their enemy is jsut behind them.
2) I want the chase to last for the entire first half of the campaign. Their main motivation to stop at all these weird places is going to largely be to escape their pursuers. For instance, in Gracklstugh, the primary reward for them is safe passage out of the city, without the drow's knowledge, which will reset the pursuit tracks. When they finally confront the drow before their escape to the surface, I want it to really matter.

It's fairly easy to bring it back. My players lost the drow on the way to Gracklstugh. But Gracklstugh has its own Drow Embassy (which is currently run by an ally of Ilvara's house (determined randomly), and one of my players accidentally called one of them Sarith.

They know who Sarith is, they know he was sent to Velkynvelve. They're now going to spend a day or two contacting Ilvara to see what's up with these surfaces who know Sarith. Ilvara now knows to go to Gracklstugh and continue the chase.

[Goober4473]

It's fairly easy to bring it back. My players lost the drow on the way to Gracklstugh. But Gracklstugh has its own Drow Embassy (which is currently run by an ally of Ilvara's house (determined randomly), and one of my players accidentally called one of them Sarith.

They know who Sarith is, they know he was sent to Velkynvelve. They're now going to spend a day or two contacting Ilvara to see what's up with these surfaces who know Sarith. Ilvara now knows to go to Gracklstugh and continue the chase.

True, it's easy to bring back, but I think I want to keep it a big focus, and keep everyone's nerves on edge for as long as possible. My current plan is to use only one scout card to start, probably starting both the scouts and main force at 2 pursuit, and add the second set of scouts soon after Gracklstugh, once the PCs are more capable of offing the scouts without too much trouble. And have the scouts get replaced after a few days if they all die.

[mgshamster]

Something to help: elves only need 4 hours of sleep before they continue tracking. You can easily have their pursuit increase at opportune moments for their higher rate of overland travel.

I like this idea you've made and I think it'll work wel for your intended purpose. Your players may get on edge of their efforts to rid themselves of the drow don't seem to work, though. My players made an active effort and really sacrificed for it.