Elves
2024-01-19, 08:20 AM
Explanation
This is a contest like Iron Chef, but to test your skills as a DM rather than as a player.
The goal is to design an exciting game encounter. Go as far as possible from "an ogre in a bare stone room" -- put unique opponents in cool and dynamic settings. The person who creates the most challenging and memorable encounter wins.
Sources: All official sources are allowed, which includes Dragon and Dungeon magazines.
An example template is given here in a Google Doc. (https://docs.google.com/document/d/125yWu_AfZ1biYuunFpHNKZi-8z_sV5h2B4K-BBSBE8w/edit?usp=sharing)
Each entry should include:
1) Title and EL. Title your encounter with a name and the encounter level (EL). For example, Bandit Attack! (EL 1). If there are multiple enemies, calculate the EL with this tool (https://ion.uwinnipeg.ca/~afrey/dnd/calculator.html) (SRD mirror (https://www.d20srd.org/extras/d20encountercalculator/)).
2) Intro. What is the basic concept of this encounter? Where can GMs use the encounter? Where, why and when is it likely to occur?
3) Environment. Describe the area where the encounter happens, including dimensions, terrain features, traps, etc. You don't have to include an actual map — although you're welcome to!
4) Creature(s). Describe the creatures the PCs will interact with.
Stats: Please use this statblock format. (https://docs.google.com/document/d/1IfvqsKHT7jBy5bbsrBzo7_ODZ-F0gPAcerddrRQPCow/edit?usp=sharing) (Link a Google docs page or use this forum-fitted version (https://forums.giantitp.com/showsinglepost.php?p=25516311&postcount=11).) You don't have to provide a full statblock if a creature is straight from the book or if only one element, such as its feats, are changed.
Tactics: What are the creatures’ objectives? What tactics do they use? What do they do on their turns? At what point, if any, will they run away?
Customized and unique creatures are highly encouraged. Be familiar with the rules on this page (https://www.d20srd.org/srd/improvingMonsters.htm). Many people aren't aware of the nonassociated class levels rule, the "adding special abilities" rule at the bottom, or the fact that monsters with class levels use the elite array with no extra CR increase.
5) Conclusion. If necessary, describe how the encounter ends (if it is more complex than simply killing the enemies) and what happens afterward, including loot and any plot seeds of further interest.
6) (Optional) Adaptation. At the bottom of your entry, you can talk about how to make your encounter easier or harder, or how to scale it for lower- or higher-level PCs.
Citations: Please cite especially obscure content, such as magazine content.
Power Level: Your encounter should be able to challenge a well-optimized party of the EL. Balance it for players who read this forum, rather than a party made up of Tordek, Lidda, Jozan and Mialee. Making something difficult and challenging is the goal.
------------
When you're done, send your entry to me in a private message. Typically, we link Google Docs rather than putting the full entry in a forum post. One advantage is that this allows you to edit your entry up until the deadline. When the deadline comes, I will make a copy of your Google Doc and post the copy in this thread, so that you can't edit the submission further.
Each person who volunteers to judge will score each entry from 0–5 on 4 categories, for a total score of 0–20.
Judges will explain why they are giving each category the score they do, citing specific elements of the entry.
1. Creatures. How well-crafted and creatively built are the creatures?
A high score is for custom-made opponents with interesting builds, template combinations, etc. Creatures taken straight from the book get a low score, not an average one.
Other forms of creature creativity can include a synergistic combination of creatures, or creative tactics, even if the creatures themselves aren't customized.
Even if a creature is customized, it might not be well-crafted (for example, a creature with class levels that provide little benefit, or a template that actually makes it worse), but don't detract points simply for using "too many templates", etc.
2. Environment. Does an interesting environment enhance the fight? This includes features of the map such as terrain, room layout, traps, and interactive objects.
0: No environment mentioned in entry.
1: Environment significantly detracts from encounter (opponent uses ranged attacks but the setting is a 10-by-10 room).
3: Environment serves encounter adequately.
5: Environment makes the encounter much more interesting, synergizing with the creatures and/or giving PCs relevant strategic options.
Posting a map is optional. A text description is just fine.
3. Challenge. Is the encounter an adequate challenge for optimized characters of the EL? Is it an unfair challenge even for extremely optimized characters of the EL? Is it an interesting challenge that players will have to strategize to beat? Does it provide a reasonable reward?
Be slow to detract points for being too hard. We're trying to make challenging scenarios — being hard is good, as long as it's beatable.
4. Flavor. How well does the entry use the prompt? Does it have a fun fluff intro or tell a story? Is the scenario coherent, or does it not make sense?
An entry might have cool concepts even if they aren't mechanically well executed, or on the contrary it might have elements that are mechanically strong yet don't make narrative or logical sense.
Process
Feel free to brainstorm and discuss ideas in this thread. When you're done with your entry, send the link to me in a private message.
(Typically, we link Google Docs rather than putting the entries in forum posts.)
On the day of the submission deadline, I will post all the entries in this thread. At that point, anyone who wants to judge can send their judgments to me in a private message (you must judge all the entries). Once everyone interested in judging has done so, all judgments will be posted at once.
If you think something a judge said about your entry was wrong, you can dispute it. Send the dispute to me in a private message and I will post it here. That judge can increase your score if they think your dispute was correct, but their response is final. Once disputes, if there are any, have been answered, winners and runner ups will be announced based on the final scores!
Contest Theme: Avid for Ravids
https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/eberron/images/6/6f/MM35_PG214a.jpg/revision/latest/thumbnail/width/360/height/360?cb=20120202141243
This time our theme is the ravid, an odd misfit of a creature that is quite fragile but has the ability to animate objects. Hailing from the Positive Energy Plane, they exude so much positive energy that things around them spring to life of their own accord.
1) Your encounter must include a ravid (https://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/ravid.htm). (It can be advanced, templated, class leveled, or otherwise modified as you like, though.)
2) It must take place in an environment where the ravid's animate objects ability can be put to good use. (Remember that different animated objects (https://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/animatedObject.htm) have different movement and attack modes, which could influence your choice of environment.)
3) The encounter level (EL) should be around 5 to 10, because above this the ravid's animated objects, its main ability, are no longer threatening.
Note: The default ravid's animate objects ability seems to have no HD limit — it could have 20 Gargantuan objects animated at once, if it wanted to, which would be completely overwhelming. Thus, for the purpose of this contest, its animate objects ability is capped as follows:
Animate Objects (Su) Once per round as a free action, the ravid can animate a random object within 20 ft. as if with an animate objects spell cast at CL 20th. It can only have as many objects animated at once as the spell could normally animate (20 HD worth).
A base ravid statblock, including an advanced version, is included here to help you out. (https://docs.google.com/document/d/125yWu_AfZ1biYuunFpHNKZi-8z_sV5h2B4K-BBSBE8w/edit?usp=sharing)
Notable Things About This Creature
✦ Its animate objects ability is random, so you have to pay attention to what kinds of objects you put in the encounter area, because they could all be animated. However, the range is only 20 ft., so you could have different parts of the encounter area with different kinds of objects that the ravid could move between.
✦ The ravid lacks offensive actions. Its animate objects ability is a free action, and its only other actions are natural attacks -- but as fragile as it is and as weak as its attacks are, it probably doesn't want to fight in melee. The key to making it stronger is giving it useful things to do with its main actions.
✦ It can fly.
✦ It's immune to fire. Can you exploit this in some way, perhaps by putting it in a fiery environment?
✦ It deals extra damage to undead and other creatures harmed by negative energy. Is there some way you could exploit this? Maybe it joins the players as an ally against an undead threat? Or maybe you modify the ability by letting it heal itself with a touch (increasing CR as appropriate, per the "adding special abilities") rule. However, don't feel like you have to make use of this ability; its other abilities offer plenty of options already.
✦ As a neutral creature, it could be a foe, but doesn't have to be. If it's a foe, think about what brings it into conflict with the players.
Now, who can make the best encounter?
Submission Deadline: Feb 19
Past Contests and Winners
1. The Dragon's Hoard (https://forums.giantitp.com/showthread.php?647599-Encounter-Competition) (🥇 Bucky)
2. Curse of the Mummy's Tomb (https://forums.giantitp.com/showthread.php?648591-Encounter-Contest-2-Curse-of-the-Mummy-s-Tomb) (🥇 Elves)
This is a contest like Iron Chef, but to test your skills as a DM rather than as a player.
The goal is to design an exciting game encounter. Go as far as possible from "an ogre in a bare stone room" -- put unique opponents in cool and dynamic settings. The person who creates the most challenging and memorable encounter wins.
Sources: All official sources are allowed, which includes Dragon and Dungeon magazines.
An example template is given here in a Google Doc. (https://docs.google.com/document/d/125yWu_AfZ1biYuunFpHNKZi-8z_sV5h2B4K-BBSBE8w/edit?usp=sharing)
Each entry should include:
1) Title and EL. Title your encounter with a name and the encounter level (EL). For example, Bandit Attack! (EL 1). If there are multiple enemies, calculate the EL with this tool (https://ion.uwinnipeg.ca/~afrey/dnd/calculator.html) (SRD mirror (https://www.d20srd.org/extras/d20encountercalculator/)).
2) Intro. What is the basic concept of this encounter? Where can GMs use the encounter? Where, why and when is it likely to occur?
3) Environment. Describe the area where the encounter happens, including dimensions, terrain features, traps, etc. You don't have to include an actual map — although you're welcome to!
4) Creature(s). Describe the creatures the PCs will interact with.
Stats: Please use this statblock format. (https://docs.google.com/document/d/1IfvqsKHT7jBy5bbsrBzo7_ODZ-F0gPAcerddrRQPCow/edit?usp=sharing) (Link a Google docs page or use this forum-fitted version (https://forums.giantitp.com/showsinglepost.php?p=25516311&postcount=11).) You don't have to provide a full statblock if a creature is straight from the book or if only one element, such as its feats, are changed.
Tactics: What are the creatures’ objectives? What tactics do they use? What do they do on their turns? At what point, if any, will they run away?
Customized and unique creatures are highly encouraged. Be familiar with the rules on this page (https://www.d20srd.org/srd/improvingMonsters.htm). Many people aren't aware of the nonassociated class levels rule, the "adding special abilities" rule at the bottom, or the fact that monsters with class levels use the elite array with no extra CR increase.
5) Conclusion. If necessary, describe how the encounter ends (if it is more complex than simply killing the enemies) and what happens afterward, including loot and any plot seeds of further interest.
6) (Optional) Adaptation. At the bottom of your entry, you can talk about how to make your encounter easier or harder, or how to scale it for lower- or higher-level PCs.
Citations: Please cite especially obscure content, such as magazine content.
Power Level: Your encounter should be able to challenge a well-optimized party of the EL. Balance it for players who read this forum, rather than a party made up of Tordek, Lidda, Jozan and Mialee. Making something difficult and challenging is the goal.
------------
When you're done, send your entry to me in a private message. Typically, we link Google Docs rather than putting the full entry in a forum post. One advantage is that this allows you to edit your entry up until the deadline. When the deadline comes, I will make a copy of your Google Doc and post the copy in this thread, so that you can't edit the submission further.
Each person who volunteers to judge will score each entry from 0–5 on 4 categories, for a total score of 0–20.
Judges will explain why they are giving each category the score they do, citing specific elements of the entry.
1. Creatures. How well-crafted and creatively built are the creatures?
A high score is for custom-made opponents with interesting builds, template combinations, etc. Creatures taken straight from the book get a low score, not an average one.
Other forms of creature creativity can include a synergistic combination of creatures, or creative tactics, even if the creatures themselves aren't customized.
Even if a creature is customized, it might not be well-crafted (for example, a creature with class levels that provide little benefit, or a template that actually makes it worse), but don't detract points simply for using "too many templates", etc.
2. Environment. Does an interesting environment enhance the fight? This includes features of the map such as terrain, room layout, traps, and interactive objects.
0: No environment mentioned in entry.
1: Environment significantly detracts from encounter (opponent uses ranged attacks but the setting is a 10-by-10 room).
3: Environment serves encounter adequately.
5: Environment makes the encounter much more interesting, synergizing with the creatures and/or giving PCs relevant strategic options.
Posting a map is optional. A text description is just fine.
3. Challenge. Is the encounter an adequate challenge for optimized characters of the EL? Is it an unfair challenge even for extremely optimized characters of the EL? Is it an interesting challenge that players will have to strategize to beat? Does it provide a reasonable reward?
Be slow to detract points for being too hard. We're trying to make challenging scenarios — being hard is good, as long as it's beatable.
4. Flavor. How well does the entry use the prompt? Does it have a fun fluff intro or tell a story? Is the scenario coherent, or does it not make sense?
An entry might have cool concepts even if they aren't mechanically well executed, or on the contrary it might have elements that are mechanically strong yet don't make narrative or logical sense.
Process
Feel free to brainstorm and discuss ideas in this thread. When you're done with your entry, send the link to me in a private message.
(Typically, we link Google Docs rather than putting the entries in forum posts.)
On the day of the submission deadline, I will post all the entries in this thread. At that point, anyone who wants to judge can send their judgments to me in a private message (you must judge all the entries). Once everyone interested in judging has done so, all judgments will be posted at once.
If you think something a judge said about your entry was wrong, you can dispute it. Send the dispute to me in a private message and I will post it here. That judge can increase your score if they think your dispute was correct, but their response is final. Once disputes, if there are any, have been answered, winners and runner ups will be announced based on the final scores!
Contest Theme: Avid for Ravids
https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/eberron/images/6/6f/MM35_PG214a.jpg/revision/latest/thumbnail/width/360/height/360?cb=20120202141243
This time our theme is the ravid, an odd misfit of a creature that is quite fragile but has the ability to animate objects. Hailing from the Positive Energy Plane, they exude so much positive energy that things around them spring to life of their own accord.
1) Your encounter must include a ravid (https://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/ravid.htm). (It can be advanced, templated, class leveled, or otherwise modified as you like, though.)
2) It must take place in an environment where the ravid's animate objects ability can be put to good use. (Remember that different animated objects (https://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/animatedObject.htm) have different movement and attack modes, which could influence your choice of environment.)
3) The encounter level (EL) should be around 5 to 10, because above this the ravid's animated objects, its main ability, are no longer threatening.
Note: The default ravid's animate objects ability seems to have no HD limit — it could have 20 Gargantuan objects animated at once, if it wanted to, which would be completely overwhelming. Thus, for the purpose of this contest, its animate objects ability is capped as follows:
Animate Objects (Su) Once per round as a free action, the ravid can animate a random object within 20 ft. as if with an animate objects spell cast at CL 20th. It can only have as many objects animated at once as the spell could normally animate (20 HD worth).
A base ravid statblock, including an advanced version, is included here to help you out. (https://docs.google.com/document/d/125yWu_AfZ1biYuunFpHNKZi-8z_sV5h2B4K-BBSBE8w/edit?usp=sharing)
Notable Things About This Creature
✦ Its animate objects ability is random, so you have to pay attention to what kinds of objects you put in the encounter area, because they could all be animated. However, the range is only 20 ft., so you could have different parts of the encounter area with different kinds of objects that the ravid could move between.
✦ The ravid lacks offensive actions. Its animate objects ability is a free action, and its only other actions are natural attacks -- but as fragile as it is and as weak as its attacks are, it probably doesn't want to fight in melee. The key to making it stronger is giving it useful things to do with its main actions.
✦ It can fly.
✦ It's immune to fire. Can you exploit this in some way, perhaps by putting it in a fiery environment?
✦ It deals extra damage to undead and other creatures harmed by negative energy. Is there some way you could exploit this? Maybe it joins the players as an ally against an undead threat? Or maybe you modify the ability by letting it heal itself with a touch (increasing CR as appropriate, per the "adding special abilities") rule. However, don't feel like you have to make use of this ability; its other abilities offer plenty of options already.
✦ As a neutral creature, it could be a foe, but doesn't have to be. If it's a foe, think about what brings it into conflict with the players.
Now, who can make the best encounter?
Submission Deadline: Feb 19
Past Contests and Winners
1. The Dragon's Hoard (https://forums.giantitp.com/showthread.php?647599-Encounter-Competition) (🥇 Bucky)
2. Curse of the Mummy's Tomb (https://forums.giantitp.com/showthread.php?648591-Encounter-Contest-2-Curse-of-the-Mummy-s-Tomb) (🥇 Elves)