[3.5] An Eberron-flavored Red Hand of Doom Campaign Journal

[Kol Korran]

regarding what you asked help with, i have an idea. bear in mind that i do not know the campaign, but this might be nicely done, if a bit cheating

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just add another group of the red hand, an elite group meet the party and engage them, also ensuring your guy escapes. there could be several reasons for them showing up:

• the party has allready given some trouble to the horde. these elite group was sent to make sure everything was up to plan. once they spot the characters, and their captive, they decide to try and tackle them, while getting back an importent asset. the might kill the caster if they can't get him free though, to silence him up.
• either him, the wyrmlord or the drgaon got some other kind of alaram away, maybe to the lizardmen tribe that had been sending them all the troops? not the tribe and their shaman is up to avenge their god, and possibly rescue his helper.
• replacement forces that have come? one is a friend of the captive and tries his best to free him?

as to what group, well that depends heavily on the reasons. in any case i suggest diversion forces, and a small sneaky force who goes t ofree the captive. and then retreat. but if the party stands up to it, let them have their captvie, they've earned it!

hope this helped,
Kol.

P.S. so the ghostlord was a blighter all along? thought that was a master touch of yours. oh well, you have enough of these allready...

[AslanCross]

P.S. so the ghostlord was a blighter all along? thought that was a master touch of yours. oh well, you have enough of these allready...

I don't know about master strokes; the disastrous battle yesterday put me in my place. >_o; And I thought I'd planned well for it.

The Ghostlord is indeed a Blighter by default. The only thing I changed about him is his history (and his race, but that's largely irrelevant given most of his power comes from being a caster).

I have a rough plan already for next session. Thanks for the suggestions, guys.

Btw, any suggestions regarding

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The Ghostlord's lair? The Ulwai encounter looks like it's highly vulnerable to Kikkeni's shake n' bake strategy, which she won't have much trouble doing. Unless they party's resources get dampened by a random encounter once they enter the Thornwaste and by Varanthian, they just have to saturate the area.

I'm not sure if they're going to get that far next session. Most likely I'm going to throw them some of the Elsir Vale encounters to slow them down. As it is, the Red Hand hasn't even reached Drellin's Ferry yet.

I do plan on having them witness the sack of Drellin's Ferry from afar, though. It would be an ominous sight---clouds billowing up from the horizon, as well as the flashes from the War Adepts' spells and Abithriax's breath.

[Eldariel]

Btw, any suggestions regarding

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The Ghostlord's lair? The Ulwai encounter looks like it's highly vulnerable to Kikkeni's shake n' bake strategy, which she won't have much trouble doing. Unless they party's resources get dampened by a random encounter once they enter the Thornwaste and by Varanthian, they just have to saturate the area.

I'm not sure if they're going to get that far next session. Most likely I'm going to throw them some of the Elsir Vale encounters to slow them down. As it is, the Red Hand hasn't even reached Drellin's Ferry yet.

I do plan on having them witness the sack of Drellin's Ferry from afar, though. It would be an ominous sight---clouds billowing up from the horizon, as well as the flashes from the War Adepts' spells and Abithriax's breath.

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For Ghostlord's lair, maybe some magic (given transparency) sapping traps or "dead magic" areas or such? He's an old blighter and has drawn magic from the land for a long time so some of it developing dead magic traits wouldn't be weird and it'd certainly make the whole dungeon more scary.

But I'd frankly be more inclined towards some magic/psionics sapping effects (or creatures, even) that trigger when such powers are used in a given locale or such. Of course, nothing major to truly counteract her, but some small surprises could be interesting for the dungeon. Some undead naturey creatures such as plants would make sense given Ghostlord for what he is. Unfortunately I can't think of anything perfect off-hand.

Also, Ulwai could have some increased anti-magic/psionic capability, such as a Ring of Spell-Battle (some redirection). This would also make sense given the potential enmity of Ghostlord who is a powerful caster on his own right; Ulwai would likely be prepared to fight him if need be.


Bleh, I have little to offer here; I never put that much thought into changing anything with the Ghostlord's lair. It just didn't feel necessary, although buffing Ghostlord himself definitely helps given what a debuff Blighter is. Extra Blighter-level helps a lot, as does giving him some animated animals to work with. It's a real pity Undead lack Con-score; few Zombie Shambling Mounds would make perfect "guards" for Ulwai.

[AslanCross]

My plans for next session (Warning: Wall of text and players keep out )

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1. The party was able to turn away the lizardfolk initially, right? Well, not all of them are that dumb. I'm planning on introducing a half-black dragon blackscale sorcerer. He was originally supposed to be one of the random encounters, so I have stats for him. He's not related to Regiarix in any way, but he tried to pass himself off as Regiarix's son to gain control of the blackscales. It never really worked since the other blackscales just thought he was scary, but Regiarix allowed this superstition to persist to cause the blackscales to be easier to subjugate.

The explosive death of a dragon over a lake isn't hard to miss. This new character, Korrovok, saw this as an opportunity to consolidate the blackscales and even attempt to join the Red Hand (though he probably won't get that far; only Korrovok himself might be recruited). He takes some of the warriors loyal to him to investigate Rhest this same day, and will lay out an ambush on the roof. Most of the blackscales will be speedbumps, but with Kikkeni out of PP, the group really has no way of laying down withering fire. All Nurkulnaak needs to do is relay a telepathic message to Korrovok, knowing his ambitions, and forward the info to the Red Hand. Korrovok can fly (Large half-dragon wings), and by this time the fly potions have expired. Even then, the half-dragon can fly much faster than any of the PCs under fly. He can definitely escape while his thugs cover for him.

Another silly plan related to Nurkulnaak's telepathy is to have him speak to the characters using Daelkyr, bluffing as he goes. None of the characters know Daelkyr, but they do know that Rhest was the epicenter of the local Daelkyr invasion centuries ago. The elves have told the PCs that some life forms tainted by the Lords of Madness still dwell in the ruins.

It will probably just keep them guessing, but it will buy him time. He could then feign an "seizure" by casting blur on himself---it's the only spell he can cast while bound, gagged, and without material components (Silent Spell bonus feat). The party can't use Spellcraft to identify the spell without detecting any of the components, at least initially. Hopefully this will distract them long enough to prevent/interrupt any interrogation. (The party's highest Sense Motive modifier is +5; Nurkulnaak's Bluff is +13 and given the history of the place is fairly believable.)

2. The players have made it clear that they will execute the beguiler (they still think he's a wizard) after interrogating him, as per their SOP. As long as he gets to relay his message (the invaluable info will likely allow Korrovok a place in the Red Hand), the horde's high command can start sending out their death squads.

3. Now one problem presents itself: the party hasn't really tried making the elves friendly. No diplomacy checks, no gifts, nothing. They've only tried asking, but didn't really make any rolls. I'm using The Giant's alternate Diplomacy rules, so I need to draw up the DCs for this, but while the PCs have rid Rhest of the Red Hand presence and killed all the Razorfiends, none of them have really showed any interest in talking to the elves, except for them trying to console Trellara (to get her to cast Identify). As it stands, their Alliance score is a paltry 7. The owls would have been very helpful.

4. On the way back, assuming Nurkulnaak either gets away or manages to relay his message (highly likely given the party's current resources---I can't believe it took THAT MANY encounters to drain Kikkeni's PP), they'll be facing the Marked For Death encounter soon after hitting Elsir Vale. This time it will definitely be a pincer attack, potentially putting the soft casters in grave danger of damage.

5. I still don't know what the PCs have planned by the time they return to Elsir Vale---will update this as necessary. By this time, however, the Red Hand brass can easily dispatch the assassin---likely the Naztharune Rakshasa---who's supposed to kill Holden's wife in Flamekeep. (The player asked for this since it was part of his character's backstory in a higher-level adventure we'd played a couple of years ago.)

6. Along the way to the Thornwaste, the party is going to witness the burning of Drellin's Ferry on the horizon. They're also going to meet some of the horde advance parties---the easy skirmish, then the Barghest Reavers. I'm probably going to save Miha Serani for later so I can make her a full-blown Rakshasa instead of a Zakya. If I do make her a Zakya, though, she'll be coming in earlier.

7. Here's my redone random encounter table for the Thornwaste. Due to the area's diseased nature and the Ghostlord's power, the area has become a haven for all sorts of predators---the Ghostlord's undead, and the remnants of the Daelkyr-tainted wildlife that fled Rhest after it was destroyed. (My fluff for the Daelkyr lord that inhabited Rhest before the Ghostlord slew it was that he was some guy who liked tentacles; conveniently enough the Hound of the Gloom and pseudonatural animals are pretty much tentacle monsters.)

{table="head"]|%|Encounter|EL
1st|01-04|Varanthian|10
2nd|5-10|hound of the gloom (LOM)|9
3rd|11-15|2 pseudonatural dire lions (LOM)|8
4th|16-19|bulette|7
5th|20-29|1d4 dire lions|7
6th|30-34|1d4 ghost brute lions|7
7th|35-38|1 ghost dire lion|7
8th|39-46|1d4 ambush drakes (MM3)|7
9th|47-52|2 boneclaws (MM3)|7
10th|53-57|1d4 lesser bonedrinkers (MM3)|6
11th|58-72|1 megaraptor|6
12th|73-78|1d6 wights|6
13th|79-85|1d4 deinonychus|5
14th|87-94|tendriculos|5
15th|95-100|demonthorn mandrake (MM5)|5[/table]

Apparently the editors forgot that Varanthian was half-fiend, and listed her EL as only 8, despite the appendix stat block listing her as her proper CR 10. I already rolled. Sadly the party is encountering Demonthorn Mandrakes, though I guess it would be their first time to fight plants, so this will be interesting.


8. Varanthian will not remain at 109 HP. The party's shown it can deal 20-45 damage easily. While the behir will resist a lot of Kikkeni's blasting, the beatsticks have torn everything to shreds. I'm not sure how the encounter will play out yet. I might playtest it today.

9. Ulwai's monks have been buffed up to Monk 2/Unarmed Swordsage 3. Strangely enough this seems to be the appropriate level for them given the encounter's listed EL in the book. Their Evasion ought to protect them from shake n' bake, but they can only keep their luck up so much. I'm planning on swapping out one of the clerics for a Kulkor Zhul War Adept so they can at least blast back.

10. The Ghostlord is getting another Blighter level, definitely-- and a flunkie, just to make fighting him seem a lot less feasible. I'm throwing in a half-Farspawn bugbear psychic warrior 6; one of the Ghostlord's Daelkyr-tainted friends whom the Ghostlord respected enough to let live--if you haven't read my BG on the Ghostlord yet, he was a hobgoblin druid who worked with the goblinoid inhabitants of Rhest to kick out the Daelkyr who invaded it. The bugbear's all wrenched out of shape (Willing Deformity [Tall]), and has unsettling tentacle growths.


EDIT: I've playtested Marked for Death. It's freaking brutal! Largely due to luck, though: In my playtest Holden critfailed a Charm Monster save and grappled Kikkeni, while Linnea got torn to shreds by an Enlarged, Bull's Strengthed critical falcion c/o a Blackspawn full attack. Granted Kikkeni can still manifest powers when grappled, she can't move to save her life. Halfway through the second round, one caster is dead, one fighter practically out of the battle, and the second caster is down to half HP and grappled. The pincer attack locked out Lyka (who rushed ahead to attack the ogre) who rolled highest initiative and went first.

They're going to need to maintain their luck if they want to make it out of this one alive.

[AslanCross]

Tangent while we wait for this Saturday's session:

I'm trying to help Linnea's player look for a PrC. We're both aware that a full casting PrC is the way to go, and as such that severely limits our choices. A lot of cleric PrCs seem to have partial casting.

Her current build stands as such:
Human Cloistered Cleric 7 (Aureon)
Domains: Magic and Force
Feats:
1st: Knowledge Devotion
1st Bonus: Craft Wand
3rd: Divine Defiance
6th: Imbued Healing

My initial suggestion is Sacred Exorcist (CDiv) if she wants to pursue the demon hunter theme, with Paragnostic Apostle (CChamp) being a distant second---it fits the cloistered cleric. Both of them have highly situational abilities (as RHOD isn't really heavy on undead or evil outsiders until the end), and Paragnostic Apostle's abilities are even more situational.

While Paragnostic Apostle is only 5 levels long, it doesn't really have a capstone and as such seems kind of boring. Only upside is that it has the Lore ability to, but trivia isn't going to help much later on against the foes in chapter 3, 4, and 5.

Sacred Exorcist seems like a good choice for now, but I can't see it being of much use; it might just end up being a PrC for the sake of having a PrC. (Though I guess with the addition of

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the Rakshasa Talons of Tiamat to the adventure

it might be slightly more useful than in the garden-variety RHOD module.)

The player herself isn't really sure what direction to take with the character; her concept for her anyway was more of a joke character than anything, but I told her it might not be a good idea to give her 5 levels in Commoner. @_@ (She wasn't intending to do that anyway.)

Since she's not a general Sovereign Host cleric, Sovereign Speaker is out, as are any other religion-specific Faiths of Eberron PrCs.

I'm toying with the idea of Mystic Theurge, but even if she took the requisite 3 levels of Wizard and the remaining 2 in MT, she's only going to end up with 3rd level Wizard spells and 5th level Cleric spells. Against the later enemies, she's definitely going to need 6th level spells, and of course giving up CL is bad.

Any suggestions?

[KillianHawkeye]

How did she take Craft Wand at 1st level? It has Caster Level 5th as a prerequisite.

[Eldariel]

Cloistered Cleric is just fine without PrCs. Otherwise you may homebrew some PrC that matches CC in mechanics instead of standard Cleric (BAB, HD, skills). What's her alignment? When it comes to Cleric PrCs, that's the 1000-dollar question.

Also, any specific interests outside her usual field of study? Fighting undead? Interest in arcane magic? Purity of her own church? Knowledge and information? Divination?

[AslanCross]

How did she take Craft Wand at 1st level? It has Caster Level 5th as a prerequisite.

Ah, I interchanged the order in which she took her feats. They're legal.

Cloistered Cleric is just fine without PrCs. Otherwise you may homebrew some PrC that matches CC in mechanics instead of standard Cleric (BAB, HD, skills). What's her alignment? When it comes to Cleric PrCs, that's the 1000-dollar question.

Also, any specific interests outside her usual field of study? Fighting undead? Interest in arcane magic? Purity of her own church? Knowledge and information? Divination?

She's NG. I haven't been able to talk to her much about that. I asked her what further interests she might have, but she hasn't given me any definitive answers yet. I'll ask her again when I get to meet her online.

[kjones]

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Don't worry about the players not making friends with the Tiri Kitor - if they want to treat them as NPCs rather than as people, that's their call, and they'll pay for it later. (In my game, the owl-riders served a valuable reconnaissance function in invalidating Ulwai's successful bluffs. And the owls were nice, too.)

But make sure they realize that befriending the Tiri Kitor is a possibility. Play up the personalities of key elves. Have them try to make friends with the PCs (yes, this is against their secretive nature, but if the party clears out Rhest, that will earn them some goodwill). This will make it more clear that the elves are amenable to an alliance, but only if the PCs are diplomatic about it.

I would suggest that you find some way to emphasize the military might of the Tiri Kitor, to get the players to recognize how valuable an alliance would be, but this could backfire - your players may start asking the valid question, "If the elves are so tough, why can't they deal with Rhest on their own?" Or conversely, "If the elves aren't even strong enough to take on Rhest, then how would they be helpful in the defense of Brindol?" There are workarounds for this - the elves have other reasons for avoiding Rhest - but be careful.

I think the best thing you can do is just let it play out naturally. Which I guess is probably what you were doing anyway, so ignore these last few paragraphs.

[Kol Korran]

just an idea that might fit a cleric of Aureon- what about divine oracle? i suggest only the 3 first levels, the rest are crap.

this is only usefull if she uses a lot of divination spells though. if not, then it's utterly wasted.

you can replace the prequisite of knoweldge (religion) with the knowledge devotion perhaps?

other suggestions:
1) she could "come to see the truth of the host" and become a cleric of all of it, and so be eligable to soverign speaker, which is a more than decent PrC. if she stil lwants the character to be a joke, you can have her be a sort of holy woman made partially mad by the voices and whispers of the host, so she keeps alternating her own speech and behaviour accordingly. just a suggestion.

2) in the wizards boards, quite a long time ago, there was a thread creating a PrC for each of the host disciples. (part of the reason for my nick name. the PrC for Kol Korran all revolved around "everything has a price" theme) i hope it's still there, good luck hunting. don't remember where it was.

3) there is always contemplative. i realy dislike that PrC though, it doesn't realy give much i think, and it's flavour makes it quite hard for the character to continue adventuring. it's only positive side is that it doesn't have that special prequisites. only problem- she oculd take it only at level 11 due to the religion preq. but you can always lower that to fit in your campaign...

hope this somehow helps,
Kol.

[AslanCross]

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Don't worry about the players not making friends with the Tiri Kitor - if they want to treat them as NPCs rather than as people, that's their call, and they'll pay for it later. (In my game, the owl-riders served a valuable reconnaissance function in invalidating Ulwai's successful bluffs. And the owls were nice, too.)

But make sure they realize that befriending the Tiri Kitor is a possibility. Play up the personalities of key elves. Have them try to make friends with the PCs (yes, this is against their secretive nature, but if the party clears out Rhest, that will earn them some goodwill). This will make it more clear that the elves are amenable to an alliance, but only if the PCs are diplomatic about it.

I would suggest that you find some way to emphasize the military might of the Tiri Kitor, to get the players to recognize how valuable an alliance would be, but this could backfire - your players may start asking the valid question, "If the elves are so tough, why can't they deal with Rhest on their own?" Or conversely, "If the elves aren't even strong enough to take on Rhest, then how would they be helpful in the defense of Brindol?" There are workarounds for this - the elves have other reasons for avoiding Rhest - but be careful.

I think the best thing you can do is just let it play out naturally. Which I guess is probably what you were doing anyway, so ignore these last few paragraphs.

Well, the session where the PCs first met the Tiri Kitor didn't have my regular players around; due to bad weather and ornery parents they weren't allowed to go. The new players ended up having to sub ("bot" would be a more appropriate term, as this is what Kikkeni's player calls them) for them. As such they didn't really know how to RP the characters and only managed a few terse thank yous and pleases. They kind of backed off once the elves said they aren't willing to leave their town.
Kikkeni's player realized that they might be helpful, so she kind of facepalmed when I told her the bot-players didn't try to make any interaction checks. She plans on fixing that next session.


Kol> Thanks for the suggestions. I'm planning on talking to her some more. She hasn't come online yet, and I don't want to decide for her.

[Eldariel]

Out of the box, Loremaster seems better than Divine Oracle with more skillpoints and an expanded skill list along with continued Lore and some other handy class features. Though whether it's worth losing 2 SP per level is a big question mark.

[AslanCross]

Out of the box, Loremaster seems better than Divine Oracle with more skillpoints and an expanded skill list along with continued Lore and some other handy class features. Though whether it's worth losing 2 SP per level is a big question mark.

Well, she has 17 Int and is human, so 2 less skill points isn't really such a big dent.

[AslanCross]

5:24 PM

Session 9: An Alliance and An Assassination

Day 13: Twilight Telepathy

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After raiding the dragon's hoard and finding the important plot-relevant items in the Rhest town hall, the PCs figure out what to do with Nurkulnaak.

They plan to tie him to the side of the boat partially immersed in the water, among other grave threats and such. They even laughed at the irony of finding his torture implements inside his Haversack.

However, at this point things don't go as they've planned and go surprisingly well according to my plan.

Using his telepathy, Nurkulnaak sends messages to the PCs heads in Daelkyr. None of them know the language, but the term "Daelkyr" is used. Nurkulnaak himself acts shocked and horrified, and begins looking around him in horror. Loven quickly rips off the gag while holding his rapier sharply against the beguiler's throat (they still don't know that he is one) and demanding what was going on.

"You fools, it's the Daelkyr! Don't you know the history of this place? It's tainted!"

All this while, the same line keeps repeating in the heads of the PCs:
Fathk nrathkyl quyrafl uytrlk Daelkyr
Fathk nrathkyl quyrafl uytrlk Daelkyr
Fathk nrathkyl quyrafl uytrlk Daelkyr

Using Silent Spell, Nurkulnaak casts blur on himself---the only spell he can cast---and feigns a seizure.

Everyone does their best to try to figure out what's going on, but without any spell components to identify the spell with, Linnea couldn't really tell whether he had cast a spell or not.

Thoroughly spooked, they decide to quickly get the hell out of there and drag Nurkulnaak behind them. When they get onto the roof, they realize they're surrounded.

Where things do NOT go according to plan.

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Four blackscale lizardfolk stand on the roof. These guys are enormous. Three of them are carrying tree-sized greatclubs, while the fourth has the telltale horns and wings of a half dragon.

Nurkulnaak secretly sends telepathic messages to the blackscales, telling them to run quickly and inform the Red Hand, and they will be rewarded. Despite their dim wits, they respect Nurkulnaak as a herald of Regiarix and fight a little longer only to escape. The half-dragon is the most intelligent and fastest, and as such is an ideal messenger, but Nurkulnaak broadcasts it to them just in case.

Once on the roof, Kikkeni begins to use her backup dorje of energy ray as she is out of PP.

Holden, however, quickly takes out the winged half-dragon via a lucky Divine Surge. The beast falls to the ground and almost pins him, but he successfully gets out of the way.

One of the remaining blackscales grabs Nurkulnaak from Holden, tucks him under his shoulder, and leaps into the water. The others do likewise, scattering in different directions.

Lyka manages an amazing leap onto the back of the blackscale holding Nurkulnaak and proceeds to hack at him, while the flying Holden pursues. Linnea plants an Ice Knife in the blackscale's back, but it keeps on paddling. The two other blackscales escape unmolested.

Eventually Linnea uses her Rod of Viscid Globs on the blackscale, and Lyka shanks it dead. With the blackscales gone, their escape from the accursed ruins is going to be easier. More importantly, Nurkulnaak is alive. Still frothing and blurred, but alive.

They decide to paddle back to where they left the boat, using the dead lizard as a raft.

Don't look at me, I just DM here. o_o;

Return to Starsong.

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Much to the shock of the elves, the PCs paddle in triumphantly, towing the corpse of an ogre-sized lizard behind them. The community gathers to welcome them, only to gape at their grisly trophy.

Killiar arrives and congratulates the PCs. He asks if they need to see the elders, to which they reply "Yes, we need items identified." (SIGH.)

Trellara comes in and identifies Nurkulnaak's gear, while Illian easily deduces that the PCs have been had. He dispels Nurkulnaak's blur. Much wincing around the table.

Sellyria arrives and asks them what they plan on doing. "We wish to interrogate our 'guest'."
The old druid says she understands their needs, but says they may not shed any blood within Starsong. Holden assents, and they bring Nurkulnaak into a tent for interrogation.

In Your Face, Jack Bauer

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Holden and Lyka decide to use both the candle of truth and the elixir of truth for redundancy. Nurkulnaak fails his save against the candle.

Despite the zone of truth's effects, Nurkulnaak is able to remain dodgy. He knows how these effects work, and as such only answers yes/no questions. He also replies with questions, making it harder for the PCs to get any info out.

Here's how the interrogation played out:

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<H> What is the Red Hand's strategy?
<N> What kind of strategy do we need against an army of farmers, farriers and stable boys?
<H> What are the Red Hand's plans?
<N> You have the map. You tell me.
<H> Irrelevant. I asked you a question.
<N> I don't know.
<H> Any specifics? What was the Red Hand's purpose in Rhest?
<N> You saw the hatchery, didn't you? We were breeding Greenspawn Razorfiends for use as shock troops.
<H> How many are your forces?
<N> *shrug*
<H> I want a number.
<N> I don't know the exact numbers.
<H> Are there other spellcasters like you?
<N> Yes.
<H> To what platoon or organization do you belong?
<N> I am a member of the Kulkor Zhul, the elite spellcasting brigade.
<H> What do they specialize in?
<N> I'm sure you would consider any spellcasting special, Mr. Mundane Dwarf.
<H> *annoyed* I was asking what kinds of sorcery the others could do.
<N> Various kinds.
<H> How many casters are there?
<N> I'm not sure. I've been stationed here for a while. Not many survive our training.
<H> How many do you know survived?
<N> About two dozen.
<H> How do you intend to deal with Brindol?
<N> How does any large army deal with a fortified city?
<H> So you're planning on laying siege to it?
<N> *shrug*
<H> What about the dragons? How many dragons serve---
<Kikkeni interrupts Holden> Dragons serve no one.
<H> Fine, how many dragons fight with the horde?
<N> One.
<H> What type?
<N> Red.
<H> Name?
<N> Abithriax.
<H> How old?
<N> I am not well-versed enough in draconic lore to know.
<H> Who is in command of the horde?
<N> Wyrmlord Hravek Kharn.
<H> Who are his direct subordinates?
<N> It wouldn't matter anyway, would it? Two of them are dead.
<H> Who is still alive?
<N> Wyrmlord Ulwai.
<H> Where is Ulwai stationed?
<N> I don't know.
<H> Who reports to Ulwai?
<N> The Wyrmlords are assigned specific tasks, and typically don't directly command the armies.
<H> Why does the Red Hand have the Ghostlord's phylactery?
<N> What is every lich's greatest fear?
<H> What is your relationship with the Ghostlord?
<N> Liches never make friends with anyone.
<H> What are you asking him to do?
<N> I don't know. Ask Ulwai.
<H> Where is the Ghostlord's lair?
<N> Ask Ulwai.
<H, tries to intimidate> You're lucky we aren't allowed to spill your blood here. Tell me what you know.
<N, laughs, grins> I know how these things go. This was my JOB in the Red Hand! I know all about interrogation and torture. You're doing it wrong, and your precious principles are holding you back.

Presently, Killiar enters and asks them how things are going. They reply that they haven't been getting much, and feel they're about done. They escort Nurkulnaak off the grounds, asking Killiar to keep the archers' bows trained on the hobgoblin as they leave the community.

Loven begins to turn into a cyborg Belkar as he says "You know, I don't like killing. But I can kill in the name of the greater good. And you know what?" he glowers as he pushes his rapier against the hobgoblin's throat.

"THIS IS THE GREATER GOOD!" *STABBITY* (At this point, the pizza arrives and we break for lunch.)

Day 14: Recovering the Hoard and New Allies

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The group purchases some sacks to carry the cash from Regiarix's hoard, and spend the first half of the day doing this. They then return to a banquet in celebration of their feats, and Sellyria tables the alliance dialogue.

One by one, the elves state their cases.
Killiar: Is not convinced the Red Hand directly threatens them; thinks dividing their military to help the humans is a bad idea.
Trellara: Wants vengeance for her brother, but is not too confident of her opinion as she is the youngest of the elders. She also thinks that acting out of passion may be a bad idea.
Illian: Wishes to help Linnea, a fellow Sovereign Host cleric (though Illian is a cleric of Balinor and Linnea is a cleric of Aureon), but does not want to put Starsong's leaders into a situation where they are cut off from Starsong itself in the event that the Red Hand lays siege to Brindol.
Sellyria: As the oldest of the elves, she remembers the ancient wars fought between the humans, and she knows all of the Last War's history. She is not convinced the humans are trustworthy enough, and while she is aware that war devastates her beloved nature, she knows its destruction need not come if she can avoid it.

The players break into a very long and well-Rped discussion among themselves, excusing themselves while they put together their case.
Holden, being the party face, leads the discussion.

Holden admits all four of them have good cases and wants to concentrate on convincing Killiar. He thinks that Starsong's military need not be divided, as all of them could march to Brindol and take all the people with them.
Kikkeni and Lyka react, saying that bringing even more refugees to the likely overburdened Brindol is not feasible.
Holden doesn’t see refugees but an army; Kikkeni says there are a good number of noncombatants who might be put directly into harm's way.
Lyka echoes this.
Kikkeni also brings up the matter of Starsong Hill being sacred ancestral ground; it's not a plot of land to be abandoned so easily.
Holden realizes this and begins formulating other suggestions.

-The proximity of Rhest to Starsong Hill suggests that it is likely that once the Razorfiend army was completed, Starsong Hill would have been used as a testing ground.
-The leaders of Starsong need not go to Brindol.
-Kikkeni suggests that if the Horde is indeed able to lay siege to Brindol, then it is likely that an army able to deal with a fortified city can easily breach a grove of trees. The red dragon alone could smoke them out like rats by setting fire to the entire tree wall.
-Holden tables a substantial offer of gold to the elves.

The PCs conclude that staying in Starsong Hill is not the right course of action, considering the power of the horde. Holden makes his checks, and the others, having contributed to the discussion, make their aid another checks as well.

Poker-faced, the elves break for their own huddle. They return, still poker-faced, and begin with their response.

Alliance point tally:
-Killiar: Completely convinced. (DC 31) +2 alliance points.
-Trellara: Completely convinced. (DC 23) +2 alliance points.
-Illian: Partially convinced. (DC 32 to convince completely). +1 alliance point
-Sellyria: Partially convinced. (DC 34 to convince completely). +1 alliance point.
-Razorfiends slain: 3. +3 AP
-Rhest cleared of Red Hand presence: +2 AP
-Generous gift of gold: +2 AP
Total: 13 AP

Impressed by their performance, the elves offer a cadre of archers to bolster Brindol. Killiar and Trellara will go as well. Illian will remain behind in Starsong to manage it while Sellyria goes off to Brindol to meet with its leaders. She will then promptly return to Starsong.

Illian hands the PCs a sending stone for them to use to call on the elves; only then will they send the army and their representatives.

Sellyria concludes: "While we elves live long lives, not many of us live to see times as dark as these. It is fortunate, however, that in these dark times we have allies as honorable as you."

The players rejoice, though I tell them what they would have gotten if they had been slightly more successful: They missed out on the owls. Massive groaning. They also remember now that they had left their mounts at the edge of the swamp. They give up their mounts for dead, and figure it would be best to depart quickly.

They travel the remaining half of the day and camp out in the burnt-out shell of the Rhest blockade.

Days 15, 16, and 17

Day 15: Random weather says Heat Wave. They decide they would rather risk the fatigue and nonlethal damage than have the potential obliteration of Brindol on their heads. They press on and fail a lot of saves, but none of them passes out.

Day 16: Uneventful.

Day 17: They march through the day and arrive at noon at Witchcross, which has become a ghost town. They decide to make use of the remaining half of the day and spend time to train for teamwork benefits. Lyka and Holden primarily gain the use of Crowded Charge, Massed Charge and Like A Rock. They camp.

Day 18: Marked For Death

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Half a day's journey from Brindol, they come to a clearing in the road early in the evening and spy two men being tortured by a gang of hobgoblins and an ogre. Loven is unable to see well in the gloom and can't spot whether the men are still alive; the distance makes his check worse. He slips into the woods and brings out his crossbow.

They decide to throw caution to the wind and attack; it's late in the evening, so they can afford to spend all their spells and power points. Kikkeni launches a devastating augmented energy missile at the gang, dropping almost all of them dead in one shot. Holden and Lyka close in on them rapidly.

Then the excrement collides with the ventilation.

Linnea and Loven begin walking towards the woods. An enormous hobgoblin materializes, swinging a wicked-looking heavy flail. He takes two swings at her, smashing off about half her HP. Breaking invisibility, two other large creatures appear---9-foot tall black-scaled dragon men wielding giant falchions, their eyes gleaming with cunning and wickedness.

Almost immediately, Linnea is dropped to -2 HP by a critical hit. A voice enters Holden's mind, speaking to him in Goblin, saying "Hold tightly onto the Kalashtar and it will be over quickly." (Holden fails his save vs the Charm Monster (Sp), and grabs Kikkeni).

Kikkeni struggles against the grapple, and two more blackspawn appear in the forest, bearing down on Loven. Lyka uses her incredible speed to reach one of the giant blackspawn and cuts it down. Kikkeni is able to use energy missile once more, augmenting it to its maximum level, and hits the greater barghest and two of the blackspawn. The barghest is damaged and responds by casting blink on itself, while the blackspawn goes down. Meanwhile, the sinister voice compels Holden to drag Kikkeni into the woods where the newly-materialized blackspawn await the slaughter.

Seeing this as an opportunity, Loven makes a break for Linna and uses a potion of cure moderate wounds on her. The cleric woozily gets up and immediately identifies the giant hobgoblin as a Greater Barghest, a soul-devouring lupine fiend. Immediately another Barghest materializes right beside Kikkeni. The compulsion on Holden seems to let up for a bit, as the Barghest takes swings against the psion. Kikkeni manages another maximized energy missile on the first Barghest, sending it shrieking back into the void.

Ultimately only one Barghest and one Blackspawn are left. Attempting to take out the psion once and for all, the remaining blackspawn attempts to grapple Kikkeni and hold her down for the Greater Barghest to feast on. While she manages to land an AOO on the Blackspawn, her nonmagical staff simply bounces off his DR (YAY DR/MAGIC WAS USEFUL FOR ONCE). At this point, Kikkeni is down to 4 HP.

Without the compulsion forcing him to act, Holden uses Revit Strike to hit the Barghest and heal Kikkeni up to more comfortable levels. The Barghest dimdoors away to safety, considering the day's work done, while the remaining Blackspawn drags the psion away from the party. Linnea puts a smoldering hole in its head with her wand of scorching ray.

Shaken, but not stirred not slain, the party heals up and rests uneasily.

To The Slaughter
Day 19. The party wakes up and begins to continue walking toward Brindol, which is half a day's journey away. As soon as they clear the Witchwood, they see a massive column of smoke rising in the west. Its base is periodically illuminated by flashes of blue-white light and long, slow blasts of red fire.

Drellin's Ferry has fallen.

End of session.

Postmortem:

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-We started really late and only had two combat encounters, but this is seriously one of the best sessions I've ever DMed. The roleplaying was good, and I was able to make the Red Hand troops look far more competent. Suddenly they aren't grab bags of XP anymore; they can think, they can fool the players, and have an intelligence network that makes them dangerous. Even Lyka's player said she found "finding out we were beguiled was honestly very awesome."

-This session, IMO, epitomizes all of the good things about RHOD. It's malleable enough to fit in any campaign setting, allows the PCs to perform their own actions while sticking to an urgent timeline.

-This high-risk, high-reward session really carried the feel of urgent danger and lucky saves that Eberron is all about.

-I was really happy with the roleplaying in both the interrogation encounter and the negotiation with the elves.

-It was hilarious how they first thought that the burning column of smoke was Brindol. I had to explain that the smoke was coming from the direction of Drellin's Ferry.


-The Marked for Death encounter happened almost exactly as I had playtested it. My heart was pounding really hard as they fell for it, and I was honestly worried about one of them getting eaten by the Barghests. Still, they pulled through with perseverance, teamwork and heroism. They really deserved that big chunk of XP they got from it.

[kjones]

My apologies for not stepping earlier with my highly valued and extremely helpful commentary. I've been off in the woods.

That sounds like a fantastic session. I wish I could have had the opportunity to role-play Nurklenak the way you did - both times I ran the battle of Rhest, he was killed instead of captured. You did an excellent job there.

It also sounds like the Marked for Death encounter went very well. (and I'm mightily impressed that you actually play-test your encounters - that's much more dedication and time than I can muster!) You successfully shifted your encounter difficulties from low/moderate level (in my mind, level 6 and below) to moderate/high level (level 7 and up - 4th level spells make a big difference). This is something I had a lot of trouble with, and the party breezed through a few sessions worth of encounters before I successfully re-calibrated the difficulty level.

I guess my point is, watch this closely. In my opinion, the module continues to overstate the difficulty of its encounters in the face of full casters - up until Chapter 4 and the Battle of Brindol. Depending on how well your party manages resources, those can get tough, and when pumping up the encounter levels for Chapter 4, throw caution to the wind.

Just out of curiosity, since you mentioned that you told your players about the owls they could have earned. Under what circumstances do you tell your players about things that could have happened in the game, but didn't? I find myself doing this fairly frequently, mostly because I'm always a little disappointed when my players manage to miss something cool I've concocted. However, I sometimes find that I regret it later, since I'll end up in a situation in which I could have re-used the idea if I hadn't told them already.

[AslanCross]

Thanks, I was really happy with how it all turned out. (And thanks for the reply as well, was afraid this thread would go extinct.XP )

I began to playtest because it gets pretty frustrating when the encounter is described as dangerous in the book and thus logically be more difficult when upgraded, but then it gets overrun by the players. At least this way I'm able to plan the monster tactics and gauge how well the players can tackle it. As for time, I get off work at 12:30 pm, so I do have a lot of free time.

Future plans:

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-I've mentioned before that I was considering making Varanthian stronger. However, I've playtested the encounter a few times and I've come to the conclusion that there will be at least one death.
--It is impossible to sneak up on her without any foreknowledge. Her scent will detect anyone walking up to the foot of the stairs.
--It is possible for Varanthian to crawl up to the ceiling and hang over the entrance. With her massive Climb modifier, she can get up there without worrying about her speed. Her reach will allow her to bite anyone from there, making it difficult for any melee characters to hurt her. Lyka can possibly jump that high (there is enough space for her to move 20 feet and make the DC 32 Jump), but that's not very reliable.
--I've only ever seen someone break out of the behir's grapple twice---Lyka through the use of rage and an action point, and Holden through a natural 20 plus a natural 6 on his action point roll.
--Furthermore, she's immune to electricity (Kikkeni's favorite) and has both SR and energy resistance. While this doesn't make her unkillable, it makes her last a lot longer.
--Despite the 25 damage threshold of the behir's gizzard, it's a lot harder to do than usual with only a light weapon. (This is also the reason behind my other thread about ToB and grappling.)
--The gizzard's grinding hurts a LOT. They might have to use the Staff of Life after this encounter---assuming that the characters who die don't do so in Varanthian's belly. It would really REALLY suck if the character was carried off when Varanthian escapes. (I intend to have her try her best to escape, especially since it adds a further threat in Chapter IV)

-I swapped out the lesser bonedrinkers for standard bonedrinkers. The little rats are going to get swatted practically instantly.
-I've yet to see how the PCs might deal with the incorporeal monsters. That might be the subject of my next playtest.
-The Ulwai encounter is going to get a Kulkor Zhul War Adept. The fight's going to turn one-sided really quickly if Kikkeni resorts to her shake-and-bake.
-The Ghostlord's getting an upgrade and a lackey, as I've mentioned in the post above, just to add a further reason it might not be a good idea to fight him now.

Linnea's player has settled on getting Paragnostic Apostle for her PrC. She says it fits her character concept and kind of enhances her blaster spells (Earth Reaver, Ice Flowers, etc) so the class would make her a secondary blaster. This worries me a bit considering how blasting has allowed the party to easily kill encounters so far, but for now, they can bring it on.

[AslanCross]

DAY 19, Noon

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The PCs arrive in Brindol at noon. They pay the gate tax and enter, and meet a group of clerics of Dol Arrah tending to a whole bunch of sick people by the roadside who are being evacuated into wagons headed for Vathirond in the East. The clerics ask the PCs for help, and they oblige.

Players keep out.

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I MEAN IT!

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SERIOUSLY!

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"Miha Serani" is actually a common identity shared by the Talons of Tiamat, the Rakshasa cell working with the Red Hand. Their Detect Thoughts ability, along with their shapeshifting, makes them excellent spies. "Miha Serani" is known to the citizens of the Vale as a wandering sorcerer, a storyteller who performs at children's parties and performs minor spellcasting. This persona has been in the Vale for months already.

This particular Rakshasa is the default spellcasting variant, with illusion and offensive spells. Her most recent contribution is the spreading of plague throughout Brindol, along with spreading melee-dampening stories about the horrors of war. The frightened children in the wagon are among her victims.

They notice Miha, who immediately tells them that she's something of a fan and would like to join up once her arm gets better. Kikkeni is suspicious as she's the first to notice the unusual amount of attention she was giving them, but the rest of the PCs don't really catch on. They think she might either be a spy or a legitimately noble person, but have no reason to absolutely believe either case.

Insert a hilarious exchange between Holden and Lyka. Lyka threatens to write to Holden's wife back in Thrane about his supposed temptation to have extramarital dalliances with Miha, to which he violently reacts. ("TALL WOMEN DO NOT TURN ME ON!") He orders her to do pushups and sits on her back. She simply retorts that his wife would not approve of this close contact, to which he orders her to do 50 more pushups.

In any case, the clerics order the wagon to move on ahead and also mention that Cpt. Sorrana was looking for them.

The PCs run into her soon, and she embraces the PCs she's met before. Lyka and Linny introduce themselves. The cleric does not fail to mention her novels, which she offers to Sorrana. The soldier actually expresses interest, while Lyka warns her that the books deal with forbidden romances between hobgoblins and dwarves. "And the hobgoblins sparkle too," she adds.
"They sparkle? I thought they just stank."

She brings the PCs to Brindol Keep, where they meet with Lord Jarmaath and Cpt. Ulverth.

The PCs introduce themselves and tell the two everything they know---the information about Abithriax is news to Jarmaath and Ulverth, but the reports of Koth's and Saarvith's deaths help their spirits a lot.

The PCs attempt some discussion regarding siege tactics, but none of this is much help at the moment considering Lady Kaal isn't around. One interesting idea that Holden floats is un-petrifying the stone wyvern (which I'd described as a Thrane air cavalry unit that had been downed during the Last War and petrified, so they can actually use it as a mount) for them to use as a quick means of transporting them around the battlefield when the attacks reach their climax.

The PCs then mention the phylactery and ask for help regarding information about the Ghostlord and the Thornwaste. Jarmaath directs them to Immerstal THE RED.

They proceed to Immerstal and meet Alandri. She tells the PCs that Immerstal can't be bothered right now, and then changes into her sphinx form, offering to allow them to bother Immerstal if they can cough up a riddle. Kikkeni makes an Int check and rolls a 26, but the player didn't have anything on hand so I let her think of one to give it another time.

Immerstal comes down and haggles with them over the price of information that they can get regarding the Thornwaste and the Ghostlord. They refuse to pay the 400 GP it will take for an immediate rush job, so they instead let him hit the books overnight. They also make the very clever move of talking about the phylactery and then ask HIM to pay them 20 GP for the information. He grumpily grants them a 20 GP discount on his research fee.

The PCs then return to the Keep, asking more about Miha along the way. They learn that she was a traveling sorcerer, and Loven believes her story checks out enough to trust her. They also learn that she had blown away a guard who was making inappropriate advances at her (and broke her arm). The PCs can't agree on whether to recruit her or not, and in the end say it would be a good idea to keep her close in any case.

They talk to Ulverth again about the state of the army. He tells them that while the Lion Guard is capable, the militia is pretty much a collection of maggots. Their equipment is pretty decent, but that's pretty much it.

Finally, the party convinces Ulverth to loan them mounts.

The PCs go rest (we have lunch).

Day 20-26: To the Thornwaste

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Early the next morning, the PCs get their info from Immerstal---apparently Linny's knowledge was pretty much complete, but it's Immerstal's info that points them to the actual location of the Ghostlord's Lion---12 miles into the Thornwaste.

They also learn that the Thornwaste is home to a the Daelkyr-tainted wildlife that escaped the corruption and subsequent destruction of Rhest. The badlands are home to all sorts of predators---natural, undead, and aberrant.

They then buy provisions for the journey and get a wagon as well. They take their horses and ride off as fast as they can.

The PCs move as quickly as they can, stopping in Prosser, then Dauth. The weather gets pretty nasty, but they continue anyway; their rationale is that the visibility is just as bad for whoever is watching them anyway.

Day 22: The PCs encounter a small band of hobgoblins with a dire wolf marching down the road. (Easy skirmish). The PCs wipe them out easily--Kikkeni opens up with an Energy Ball that incinerates the grunts. They're surprised the dire wolf and the bladebearer survive, but Holden charges in on his horse anyway. This was a bad move. The wolf overpowers the horse and trips it, sending the dwarf sprawling onto the ground.

Lyka charges the bladebearer with Two-Weapon Pounce, but rolls two natural ones. Pathetic.
Loven and Linny take potshots from the wagon, but it's Kikkeni's energy missile that kills the dire wolf. Finally, Lyka finishes off the bladebearer with Death From Above. Easy XP.

Day 26: I swear this is random. I roll a tornado on the random weather table. Instead of blowing them away (almost did, but it didn't make any sense for a twister to appear out of the blue and blow them away), I have the storm rage on the horizon, with the twister rampaging across the prairie. A sign of things to come.

The Temple of the Rotting Lion

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The PCs decide not to stop at the edge of the Thornwaste; I decide to dispense with the random encounters I rolled (it was just a bunch of demonthorn mandrakes anyway; if it had been a Hound of the Gloom or a Pseudonatural Megaraptor I'd have gone with that).

They didn't want to be caught dead sleeping in the Thornwaste, so they decided to continue pushing towards the Lion. The trip is made much easier by Lyka's ranks in Survival, so she pulls them through.

They arrive at the Lion at sunset. One by one, the ghostly lion shapes wink into vision around the monolith, and the PCs gape in awe at those for a while. Linny assures them that the vestiges aren't harmful, and that they might be bound magically to the monolith. Before they enter, a brief debate flares up over what exactly to do with the phylactery. Holden and Lyka want to destroy the Ghostlord; Loven wants to blackmail him; Kikkeni doesn't want to fight him either way, and finally Linny is neutral. They still don't know what to do.

The PCs see the mouth and the cavern in the Lion's chest; they decide that it would be better if all of them enter together as not everyone can make the climb up the monolith's side.

And they walk straight into Varathian's lair.

Crushing Coils

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The behir had smelled, spotted and heard them way before they even entered the cavern. She is poised to strike, hanging upside-down from the ceiling, 15 feet up.

Everyone forgets to make Spot and Listen checks (which is kind of silly, as Holden and Loven's player was continuously rolling during the journey). As such, Varanthian gets a surprise round. However, my bad luck and the players' stellar luck figure heavily in this battle once more---Varanthian rolls a 1 on Initiative.

Immediately she uses her Smite Good with her bite, ripping a huge chunk out of Holden and grabbing him into her coils. The rest of the party decides to run, but Holden curses at Lyka for even thinking of abandoning him.

Using her Whirling Frenzy to boost her strength and squeezing out every last bit of bonus by using an action point, she jumps up and grabs Holden.

And beats Varanthian's grapple check (she rolls a natural 1).

I did forget to ask for a Jump check (hard to beat that massive Jump DC), but considering how awesome the situation was, I decided to go with Rule of Cool and let her extricate her superior officer.

Kikkeni has nothing that can work well on the behir at the moment, so she decides to go for broke and manifests Death Urge. Varanthian's SR is breached, and she fails her save (+5 will save on a boss? WTH?!).

The party hightails it out of the cavern while Varanthian attacks herself. She shreds herself real badly, roaring all the time and yelling out threats to the Kalashtar.

Once outside, Kikkeni fires an Energy Ball into the cavern, using Electricity. The behir crashes out of the cavern, unscathed. Lots of PPs gone right there. Loven and Linny's attempts at hurting the behir with wands simply bounce off her SR; Kikkeni resorts to Energy Missile due to her target being smack dab in the middile of the party, but this bounces off her SR. but the Behir grabs Linny and begins crushing the life out of her (she goes from full HP to 12 in one attack)

Lyka chops down the Behir to 7 HP with Soaring Raptor Strike, and Holden, in a livid rage, uses Divine Surge on the Behir. Varanthian splits apart and explodes in a huge mess out of which Linny emerges, covered in steaming black blood.

The party pushes on into the Lion.

The Lion's Path

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What would've been the most flavorful encounters in this chapter get laughed at. The first two ghost brute lions get slaughtered despite their incorporeal miss chance; Holden smashes them into oblivion. The dire lion fares only slightly better by hitting Holden and draining away 1 point of strength; Linny Turns Undead and sends it fleeing. Disappointing.

Guests

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Long story short: Fog Cloud is awesome. The line of sight made fighting highly frustrating for everyone. Since Ulwai's retinue is well-prepared (lots of noise from Varanthian), they're able to set up a rather effective ambush. The monks (now Monk 2/Swordsage 3) make nuisances out of themselves, although their attempts at grappling with the dragonchains fail repeatedly.
The Kulkor Zhul war adept is able to summon a Fiendish Dire Wolf into the middle of the party, but Kikkeni is able to pull away in time. The wolf is eventually taken down by Loven, but Lyka walks straight into the monks.

Despite their buffs, the Mass Shield of Faith that Linny had cast on the party was working wonders in frustrating their attacks. The Evasion that the Monks had kept them alive longer than the PCs expected, but ultimately they went down thanks to the PCs' persistence. The War Adept raved about taking down the PCs with him and began casting his final Scintillating Sphere, but he miserably failed his Casting Defensively Concentration check (YES IT CAN FAIL), and tried to run away. Holden cut him down.

However, one critical boo-boo in this fight---Ulwai got away. Casting Haste on her party and drinking a potion of gaseous form, she was able to slip away and get her Phantom Steed going. The monks in the guardroom escaped as well. Things aren't always in the PCs' favor, and they'll have to deal with that.

The episode ends with the PCs going deeper into the Ghostlord's lair and entering the Chamber of Rebirth.


Thoughts

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-I'm surprised at how roleplay-heavy this day was, but the battles that they fought really mattered. Holden/Loven's player is beginning to say that the encounters really feel like they're taking a toll; that STR drain really stung him.
-Again, my luck is miserable.
-The ghost brutes were pretty useless. How did you guys run them? They just popped like bubbles here.
-The party still does not know how to deal with the Ghostlord. I hope they choose wisely.

Plans; players keep out

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You thought I was kidding?

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You've got to be kidding me. :P

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YOU SHALL NOT PASS!

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-The lesser bonedrinkers have been swapped out for true bonedrinkers. I might throw in a boneclaw for AOO goodness, or maybe a ghost dire lion.
-The escape of Ulwai and the Staff of Stormclouds is going to make life difficult for the PCs, but how does it actually affect the course of the battle? I know they're definitely going to have to deal with more fires c/o Abithriax.
-That does it. I want a dragon battle that is as grueling as their first one. Abithriax is most definitely going to be a Young Adult. I'm thinking of giving him Tempest Breath to add extra insult to injury.

And please feel free to comment. I don't want to look like I'm talking to myself here. ):

[Saph]

The ghost brutes are pretty much speedbumps, yeah. They just can't do enough. The ghost dire lions are something else, though. Sure, you can turn them, causing them to flee through the walls, but they just come back 10 rounds later. Several Str drain hits can add up.

The behir fight sounds like it was swung by good luck in the PCs' favour. That's just how it goes. If the PCs are abilities like Divine Surge, though, you should probably bump up the monsters' HP to compensate; they won't last long otherwise.

Future plans:

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The bonedrinkers should be much more of a challenge, especially since the PCs haven't yet rested. A boneclaw would be a nasty surprise too, with its reach. Make sure to doublecheck the floorplans before the fight, though; the conditions are very cramped.

Ulwai escaping means two things; firstly, she'll be able to pump up the fires at the Battle of Brindol, and second, she'll be accompanying Kharn in the final battle. Having her around to cast haste on the ogres and giants makes quite a difference!

[AslanCross]

The ghost brutes are pretty much speedbumps, yeah. They just can't do enough. The ghost dire lions are something else, though. Sure, you can turn them, causing them to flee through the walls, but they just come back 10 rounds later. Several Str drain hits can add up.

The behir fight sounds like it was swung by good luck in the PCs' favour. That's just how it goes. If the PCs are abilities like Divine Surge, though, you should probably bump up the monsters' HP to compensate; they won't last long otherwise.

Future plans:

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The bonedrinkers should be much more of a challenge, especially since the PCs haven't yet rested. A boneclaw would be a nasty surprise too, with its reach. Make sure to doublecheck the floorplans before the fight, though; the conditions are very cramped.

Ulwai escaping means two things; firstly, she'll be able to pump up the fires at the Battle of Brindol, and second, she'll be accompanying Kharn in the final battle. Having her around to cast haste on the ogres and giants makes quite a difference!

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-Yeah, since they've continued pushing all the way through, they aren't in tip-top shape anymore. Although they've been using the wand of lesser vigor to stay full, Kikkeni expended a lot of PP in those two encounters, and Linny's dispel magics are expended.

-The birthing chamber is quite cramped, yeah. The funny thing is, Holden's player has gotten incredibly annoyed by all the grappling that's been happening since the Varanthian fight. I wonder how he'd feel once his bones get liquefied.

-I still don't know if they're planning to fight the Ghostlord or not. Loven plans to blackmail the Ghostlord into working for THEM, but given the Ghostlord's irritation at this tactic, I'm pretty sure the lich is not going to like this. Their diplomacy worked on a repentant werebear in chapter I, but the Ghostlord is no Vraath.

[Eldariel]

Loved the exchange between Lyka and Holden - that was hilarious. And yeah, the Ghost Brute Lions are worthless - it's a simple matter of fact that they actually have no damage output. A level 1 commoner with standard array has a similar average damage output; that said, when kjones was running them, we couldn't really come up with anything to make them relevant (even Aid Another is pretty useless with them since aiding a Ghost Dire Lion's touch attacks is largely redundant and aiding its AC when its primary defense is incorporeality is equally pointless; the only thing they really do is take space - Bloodcurling Howl is literally all they have). Mostly, they're just losers. Like, a-member-of-town-militia-eats-them-for-breakfast-given-weapons-that-hit-them kinda losers.

The Dire Lion is much more impressive if the miss chance rolls don't go horribly weird. The Str-drain and Cha-damage abilities make it quite able to be a very real threat. If you want to make the standard Brutes more like Dires and more scary, give them the Draining Touch too; it's a fair game according to the Ghost-creation guidelines (right now they have Corrupting Touch, which is frankly completely worthless without a lot of work). But yeah, Turning them is hardly very efficient at all as it's still around and will come back once the effect wears off.

[Rising Phoenix]

Thanks for the update! :-)

My party opted to enter via the mouth...so I had Varanthian and the monks flank them...'Unfortunately' Varanthian rolled miserably low and the cleric activated his travel domain power and thus the party got away without anyone getting swallowed. In order to terrify them even more I had Varanthian chase them via smashing the doors all the way to the stairwell... (read: trapped in the Ghostlords lair ). They did deal the beast 32 points of damage but only one of the monks had time to use his healing potion ( x2).

The encounter with Ulwai was... pathetic... the monks and clerics didn't have any staying power and thus Ulwai surrendered to them naked pretending to be a victim... (you did read my other thread) None of my PCs believes her but they haven't figured out ways to get the truth out of her just yet...

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Am planning to have her turn invisible and bolt off as soon as they run into the bonedrinkers next door. Perhaps she will try to grab the phylactery as well if they tell her that they have it...

Future plans:

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Even for my unoptimized (though stat roll happy) party the bone drinkers are just too weak. So I will probably be boosting them as well...
As for the Ghostlord I upped him to lv 13 (CR 15) and gave him access to life ward . He's meant to be powerful and scary and it would be too much of an anticlimax if the party cleric approached him and just cast cure spells on him. If the party is going to be cocky...they're gonna pay for it...either by a ghost lion swarm or via finger of death...I am planning to houserule that anyone who dies under the GL influence automatically becomes a ghost under his control (so long as the person is willing to give up their character of course...)

[AslanCross]

I knew the book's stats for the Doom Hand Monks were pretty pathetic; they were among the first I boosted since I was including Tome of Battle.

The Ulwai encounter contained:
-Ulwai, HP maximized to 72.
-Kulkor Zhul War Adept (Hobgoblin Warcaster [MM5] Wizard 2)
-Doom Fist Monk, HP maximized to 50. (Monk 2/Unarmed Swordsage 3) x3
-Doom Hand Cleric

The fog made it really difficult for the party casters to target the monks (as the fog was centered on the door), and the melee guys couldn't see past the monks. The narrow entrance and the fog made it impossible for Holden, the Dwarf Crusader, to charge.

[AslanCross]

Okay, the encounter with the Ghostlord is coming up. I'm not exactly sure what the players are planning to do with him at this point, but there's a burning question here:

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The Ghostlord has a lot of loot in his treasury. Obviously if (IF) the PCs defeat him, he's going to be leaving behind his entire lair for them to plunder. However, if they manage to convince him to take back his phylactery in exchange for withdrawing his support from the Red Hand, how do they go about getting his treasure?

It seems from the fluff that he doesn't care much for it anymore since he did destroy quite a bit of it when he rampaged after losing the phylactery, and I think they need the cash. However, would he still be okay with the PCs plundering his trove even after they returned his phylactery? I wouldn't think so.

(That said, the fat wad of XP from convincing him to withdraw his support is actually a pretty good reward.)

[Eldariel]

Okay, the encounter with the Ghostlord is coming up. I'm not exactly sure what the players are planning to do with him at this point, but there's a burning question here:

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The Ghostlord has a lot of loot in his treasury. Obviously if (IF) the PCs defeat him, he's going to be leaving behind his entire lair for them to plunder. However, if they manage to convince him to take back his phylactery in exchange for withdrawing his support from the Red Hand, how do they go about getting his treasure?

It seems from the fluff that he doesn't care much for it anymore since he did destroy quite a bit of it when he rampaged after losing the phylactery, and I think they need the cash. However, would he still be okay with the PCs plundering his trove even after they returned his phylactery? I wouldn't think so.

(That said, the fat wad of XP from convincing him to withdraw his support is actually a pretty good reward.)

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If you want, you could have him offer it in the trade. His phylactery is quite a bit more valuable to him anyways so getting it back could easily make up for all the treasure and it's not like he wants to work for the Red Hand anyways.

That said, I would only do that if they negotiate well. They don't really need the treasure though I'm sure they'd appreciate it. I'd say keep it as an extra reward for negotiation well done, or have the Lord part with parts of it depending on how the deal goes.

[Saph]

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How they're supposed to get the treasure - they aren't. They get the treasure if they can successfully rob or kill the Ghostlord, which is supposed to be crazy difficult. And he's not the generous type either.

My suggestion: After the Ghostlord episode is over and the party heads back to Brindol, ask everyone for their total character wealth, compare it to WBL, and have them receive the difference (plus a bit more) from the government of Brindol in the form of stuff they can use to help defend the city. This makes far more sense than having a maniacally selfish lich just decide to hand them goodies. :)

[Rising Phoenix]

Hello

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"However, if they manage to convince him to take back his phylactery in exchange for withdrawing his support from the Red Hand, how do they go about getting his treasure?

However, would he still be okay with the PCs plundering his trove even after they returned his phylactery? I wouldn't think so."

Simple: They don't unless he allows/ gives it to them (unlikely). It's still his stuff and he can do whatever he wants with it. He would certainly not take kindly to it being stolen... If a sneaky type manages to run off with some items have a ghost or two go after them. If they survive that, let them keep the stuff.

I also like Eldariels' idea of trade. However, remember that the ghostlords has a lot of ghosts at his disposal if the PCs become greedy...

*In a somewhat sarcastic voice*

GL: "Tell me, young one, who am I?"
PC: "The Ghostlord"
GL: "And how long have I lived?"
PC: "A long time"
GL: "And what do I like to do?"
PC: "Ummm...make ghosts?"
GL: "Correct... how many ghosts would that make?" *have ghosts enter the room from everywhere "So then... What were you saying upon not handling me my phylactery?..."

Edit: AslanCross: The Warcaster Stats are tasty...I will have to use them now... thanks...

[KillianHawkeye]

I'm not sure if it was written in the book, or if this is just how I ran it, but after he got his phylactery back he basically said "Alright, a deal's a deal. Now get the hell out of here before I kill you." I also had him get progressively angrier the longer the PCs tried to talk to him.

That's about the only time I ever managed to intimidate my players with a villain. Darth Vader doesn't scare them, but the Ghostlord did.

[AslanCross]

Hmm, thanks for all the suggestions.

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I think having them get the money from the Brindol government as a reward instead makes much more sense. I see the Ghostlord as the type to threaten the PCs with undead animation if they try to mooch of him more than he's willing. (Given that in my version of his lore, he dates back to the Dhakaani Empire, 5000+ years before the present.)

It seems the players have a consensus that the Ghostlord is bad news if they fight him. Not so sure yet what they're going to do as a whole, though.

Killian> that's pretty much what the book says. His good mood doesn't last long. And given the lore I've built around him, he's rather crazy.

Rising Phoenix> No problem. The base stats for the War Adepts are kinda weaksauce and they don't have much variety.

[kjones]

With regards to the session:

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Your players got extremely lucky in the battle with Varanthian. Beating him on a grapple check? The dice gods were smiling.

Good job on the battle with Ulwai - when my party was confronted with the fog cloud, they simply waited for it to disperse, then approached more carefully. Ulwai's survival will make the battle with Kharn much more interesting. My party saved a feeblemind throughout the entire Battle of Brindol just for her, so she didn't really get to do much, but had she survived she would have had a grand old time. (You think the War Adept's Concentration is bad? Wyrmlord Koth doesn't even have any ranks in Concentration. I found this out the hard way.)

Ghost brute lions are completely useless, save for the fact that they make it hard to rest and recuperate within the lair. If you want to be mean, swap them out for ghost dire lions, but this will probably be too difficult, especially if your party is not well-prepared to fight incorporeal foes. I wish there were more incorporeal monsters that didn't drain your strength, since I'm always wary about throwing too many of those at the party at a time.

If you haven't done so already, upgrade the Lesser Bonedrinkers to regular ol' Bonedrinkers. Pare down their HP a little if you're worried about their strength. Small-sized grapple-based foes are just lame.

Have fun roleplaying the Ghostlord - that was one of my favorite moments of the campaign.

Regarding the Ghostlord:

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The Ghostlord should get angry if they try to take his treasure. If they manage to get away with it... well, with his phylactery back the Ghostlord has no reason to side with the Red Hand, but if the players steal his treasure, he may reconsider. That's how I'd play it, at least.

Are you worried about the players attacking the Ghostlord?

[AslanCross]

Regarding the Ghostlord:

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The Ghostlord should get angry if they try to take his treasure. If they manage to get away with it... well, with his phylactery back the Ghostlord has no reason to side with the Red Hand, but if the players steal his treasure, he may reconsider. That's how I'd play it, at least.

Are you worried about the players attacking the Ghostlord?

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Well, it seems OOC they weigh heavily towards trying to convince him not to join the Red Hand, which is good. However, Loven wants to convince him to join THEM---don't know how yet, but the DC to do this (using the Giant's alternate diplomacy rules) is astronomical, and if Loven tries to do it by blackmailing the old lich again, he's not going to take it sitting down. Being blackmailed by a horde of hobgoblins with powerful clerics is one thing. Being blackmailed by a motley crew of adventurers is another altogether. (Although he will definitely attack anyone who blackmails him, he will let those who try to escape instead escape.)

Edit: I noticed there's a really stupid misprint on the Blighter entry in CDiv: "resist elements" and "protection from elements." These spells do not exist. I think they mean resist energy and protection from energy. <_< It's not even addressed in the errata, as the errata only fixes the duplicate printing of harm on the list.

Re: Bonedrinkers
I immediately swapped them out for true bonedrinkers. I have two really strong frontliners, and Holden was still able to extricate himself from the Doom Fist grapple monks despite his drained strength. I actually gave the Ghostlord the Corpsecrafter and Nimble Bones feats so the Bonedrinkers are much tougher and faster. Hopefully this encounter will be hard enough to drain most of their resources and make it clear that going medieval on the Ghostlord is a patently bad idea.