Out of the Abyss Module Playthrough *SPOILERS*

[ZenBear]

I'm not sure how much effort I really care to put into this, but I might make this an ongoing log of my game through Out of the Abyss. I'm playing the Eldritch Knight I've been theorycrafting for some time.

Str 16 - Dex 10 - Con 14 - Int 14 - Wis 11 - Cha 10 Fighter (Eldritch Knight) Lawful Good Guild Artisan/Clan Craftsman.
Proficient in Arcana, Athletics, History, Insight, Persuasion.
Variant Human Feat: Heavy Armor Master.
Party Comp:Myself (Tank), Life Cleric w/ Healer Feat (PURE DPR), Rogue w/ Mobile (Harass/DPR), GOOLock w/ Lucky (Blaster Caster/Provocateur), Earth Genasi Barbarian (Groot).

So we start off our campaign in jail. Feels like Elder Scrolls. Our Rogue, Pain Emo*, breaks us out by picking the Drow guard's pocket and I subdue him with a grapple check. After a quick coup de grace we hustle along the spider web bridges from one stalactite to another, Earth Genasi Onyx's racial ability to cast Pass Without Trace being a huge boon here. We come across the first guardhouse and take down one mook and some kind of veteran. Being unarmed and unarmored except for Pain getting a short sword and studded leather armor and Onyx and I taking daggers, we were a bit on edge about the altercation. The details elude me a bit - this happened last week - but I know I lead with a Shove Prone on the big guy after the team took down the mook on the surprise attack. We take down what was apparently a CR 5 encounter with a bit of damage done to myself, Onyx and the Warlock who took a crossbow bolt and fell asleep.

*I gave him and his brother the Warlock, Mourn, the last name.

Above the guardhouse we find an armory full of Drow gear; studded leather, chain shirts, short swords, hand crossbows, etc. We gear up as best we can, leaving myself and the Cleric Mei Wu at 15 AC, not ideal and I don't get the benefit of HAM. We take a short rest to heal up, then move for the next stalactite. The heat is on now with Drow patrols after us, so we don't hesitate to light ourselves up and run, cutting the bridge behind us. We come up against a staggered encounter; first a couple mooks ping us with hand crossbows and then a veteran and a priestess come along and really mess us up. The veteran downs me in one hit with a crit on his poisoned blade. I almost die outright, but it wasn't quite enough. Mei saves me, Onyx brings down the priestess and we converge on the veteran. After missing nearly every Eldritch Blast the entire night and failing his Dissonant Whispers on the priestess, Mourn decides to try a different tact. He loots the priestess, stealing her holy symbol of Llolth and tossing it into the air, then blasting it apart with EB (finally rolls an 18), all while taunting the veteran. The vet is triggered and decides to charge out of combat with myself and Onyx, dying to OAs.

We go down into another stalactite, locking the trap door behind us and finding to our great joy our gear stash. I finally get my armor, 19 AC with chainmail, shield and Defensive Style and DR-3 on non-magical martial damage. Stoked at our new potency but still wary because I'm sitting at 9 HP and our resources are already completely exhausted, we at first try to hide from the next patrol that comes along. While we argue whether to hide or attack, they come in on us and we're up against a mook, a Quaggoth and another priestess. My +1 AC from Defensive Style saves me twice and HAM keeps me in the fight with just 1 HP for two extra rounds. Mourn plays provocateur again on the priestess and goes down to her tentacle whip. I go down to the Quaggoth's multi-attack. Eventually the priestess goes down to a crossbow bolt in the eye from Pain and the Quaggoth dies to a mace/greataxe combo.

Finally we get to take a long rest as we barricade ourselves in the stalactite chambers. With all our fights we've burned through half a healer's kit and reached level 3 in one fell swoop. I'm stoked to finally get to play with Action Surge and my spells. Picking up Shield (DM will allow me to cast with a shield equipped even though I wont have War Caster until 4), Absorb Elements and Expeditious Retreat.

[Gastronomie]

Our Rogue, Pain Emo*,Oh you.

*I gave him and his brother the Warlock, Mourn, the last name.OH YOU

Well, nice with the escape, but what bugs me is that it seems the DM found the moldy motley crew to be too taxing. That, or Pain Emo was too skillful as a rogue.

Either way, I really love those NPCs so I'm sorta sad to not find them in this playthrough, but were they there (just that the PCs didn't interact) or did the DM simply remove them from the campaign?

[mgshamster]

I'll definitely be watching this story. Thanks for posting!

[ZenBear]

Well, nice with the escape, but what bugs me is that it seems the DM found the moldy motley crew to be too taxing. That, or Pain Emo was too skillful as a rogue.

Either way, I really love those NPCs so I'm sorta sad to not find them in this playthrough, but were they there (just that the PCs didn't interact) or did the DM simply remove them from the campaign?

No mention of NPCs yet. We were the only ones in the cell. I've heard before about how the NPCs of this module are interesting, but also that they're like MMO NPCs; they'll wait around forever until the party decides to finally complete their quest, rather than actually having any sense of urgency. Is that true?

I'm not sure how much the DM fudged things for us, but I did catch him once killing off a mook that should have still had 3HP left. I suspect the module doesn't typically start out with a prison break, because it got extremely hairy several times.

[mgshamster]

No mention of NPCs yet. We were the only ones in the cell. I've heard before about how the NPCs of this module are interesting, but also that they're like MMO NPCs; they'll wait around forever until the party decides to finally complete their quest, rather than actually having any sense of urgency. Is that true?

I'm not sure how much the DM fudged things for us, but I did catch him once killing off a mook that should have still had 3HP left. I suspect the module doesn't typically start out with a prison break, because it got extremely hairy several times.

The NPCs attitudes are entirely on the GM to roleplay them. I've been running them like an MMO for the most part - mostly inactive and providing benefits to the PCs via the NPC cards/companion system that Goober came up with.

However, they can easily be roleplayed with their own agendas and personalities. I do this a little bit with each of them, and sometimes have one or two of them act out to force the PCs to engage with them or to make the story interesting. And they've lost several NPCs based on the NPC's wishes and interests.

There's nothing in the campaign that specifically says you should roleplay them passively. They can be very actively roleplayed. It's all up to the GM.

Likey, you're GM has decided that's there's too many and was going to introduce them later on one at a time or is just reducing the number of NPCs. I know a lot of people struggle with playing all their different personalities. I did - it's why I used Goober's companion system instead of treating them like true NPCs.

[ZenBear]

Alright, so another session done! This time we went really off the rails in conversation, partly because my gf wasn't there until 3 hours in because of work, so we didn't get a lot done. Still, good times!

So we got ready to take a long rest in the now dead priestess's bed chamber. We argued over night watch shifts last week. I felt perfectly justified in taking a full 8 hours sleep after being such a dutiful tank and taking so many crits in the last couple hours since our escape, but Mourn insisted I take a shift. Pain takes first watch and Mei second, and she hears a knock at the barricaded trap door. They're speaking in Undercommon, which only Mourn knows, so she wakes him and he bluffs his ass off pretending to be the priestess we murdered. They buy it completely (nat 20) but when they ask what happened to the escaped prisoners, his voice cracks as he claims we've already been "taken care of" (rolled a 3). After a tense pause, the guards accept this and leave (nat 1 from the DM!). Mourn tries to wake me for third watch, but I roll over and keep sleeping. Despite not having a third or fourth watch, we complete the long rest. Now that we're level 3, we all come into our identities.

Mourn Emo, the Great Old One Warlock Pirate on the run from an ex-Captain and crew out for blood, reveals his passion for music as he takes a level of Bard. Not 100% sure what he's planning, but he's our only guy with Darkvision (Devil's Sight) so he's covering our asses.

Pain Emo, the Criminal fence for his brother's larcenous former career, recovered his poisoner's kit and has refined his Assassin technique. He plans to go Shadow Monk from 4-20, so he's our ninja. Mourn is really looking forward to some shenanigans when Pain picks up Darkness. For that matter I will be too at 10, so we can really leverage that synergy.

Onyx, the Genasi Barbarian from the roving camp Pewter City, has a dream about his adorable puppy he used to own but accidentally crushed with love (Lenny from Of Mice and Men) that plays with him and teaches him to hunt. He's chosen Wolf Totem, which really cranks up our killing potential.

Mei Wu, Cleric of Selune and Princess of Asyettobenamed-istan, has her holy symbol back and has learned 2nd level spells (Spiritual Weapon is her favorite). She's pure healer and really enjoys being so helpful to the party. She also likes the godly power bit.

Barda von Heinrick, Guild Artisan (blacksmith) and body guard to Her Highness, recovers his travel size copy of Arcane Magic For Dummies. I get my spells! Woo! Absorb Elements and Shield, obviously, but instead of Expeditious Retreat I pick up Feather Fall. My paranoia got the better of me, and I'm certain I will both appreciate and regret this decision at some point in the campaign. Funny story about that...

We sneak out of our stalagmite and go deeper underground, just trying to find some way out. We come across a pair of Drow and two Quaggoths chained to and cranking a lift with four more Drow coming up to join them. Seizing the element of surprise, Pain drops one Drow with a well placed hand crossbow bolt and Mourn knocks the other into the hole to its death. I cast Fire Bolt at the spider silk rope holding the lift and with a nat 20 I drop them to their deaths too! The Quaggoths being chained up it wasn't really fair to call it a fight, but we're still getting EXP, right?

I suggest we chain together the Quaggy corpses and tie them to the spider silk lift as a makeshift platform, but then I remember that Feather Fall can target up to 5 people! I consider just having us all jump and burning the spell slot, but figure frugality is the better part of valor and continue prepping the Quaggy platform. Mourn, the little dickens, tries to push me off the edge with Eldritch Blast. He misses, as he is wont to do, and I kick him over the edge instead. I tried my hardest to cast Feather Fall in time, but I yawned and fudged the pronunciation. If only my sleep hadn't been interrupted the previous night... :smallamused:

Mei Wu is compelled by her Hippocratic Oath to heal our unconscious friend at the bottom of a fourty foot elevator shaft, so I hook up the platform and we almost fail our Dex saves when the corpses flop around beneath our feet. Pain follows carefully down the rope, and Onyx slithers down the stone wall like he's part of it (nat 20). We travel a short while and come across an intersection. I take out my spellbook (re AMFD), sit cross-legged in the middle of the chamber, and cast an arcane ritual... "Einie, meenie, miney, moe. Catch a tiger by the toe. If he hollers, let him go!" Before we can follow the clear road to safety my infallible magics have directed us to, we hear another patrol coming so we make ready for battle! I realize in hindsight that our DM really isn't playing these Drow right.

We ambush the surprisingly unstealthy Drow patrol of another two mooks and two Quaggies, dropping both Drow before they can act. The Quaggies give us a rougher time of it. Onyx, or Steelyx as he calls himself while raging, takes quite a pounding as he Recklessly Attacks, but with the Advantage he grants us the party drops the Quaggies pretty quick. They swipe at me a couple times, but fail miserably without me even needing to cast Shield, and it dawns on the DM what an absolute a-hole I am. :smallbiggrin: I will be picking up War Caster at 4 to get those sweet Booming Blade AoOs, and I intended to grab Resilient: WIS at 6, but I wonder if I shouldn't grab Sentinel instead so I can punish enemies for targeting Onyx over me.

In the midst of the fight, an Ooze pops out of the wall and tries to attack Mei Wu. She blocks it with her shield and its touch corrodes the metal, decreasing its AC bonus by 1. Mei Wu is lucky, because it could have been worse...

I once ran a game for a short while with my gf. She played a Cleric then too, and was attacked by just such an Ooze before. Being that my gf is Korean I felt it might increase her immersion if I made things as anime as possible, so her armor was corroded into a chain mail bikini. I take immense pleasure in teasing my gf with racism and watching her adorable little tantrums. It dawned on my gf that day what an absolute a-hole I am. :smallbiggrin:

We beat the Ooze and now we're getting ready to set off into the Underdark! What will happen next week in Out of the Abyss?!