Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen - The Knight's Tomb (Part II)

Spoilers follow for the adventure…

The skeletons certainly shocked the adventurers, but they quickly turned them back to inanimate bones. With the threat past and the evidence of necromatic energy present, Asterius found himself more morally flexible, and the adventures found some treasure amongst the dead.

Next, Gringle spied a hidden door, which led to a lower chamber dominated by a still pool of water. As the adventures moved into the chamber, the water formed into an elemental creature, angry at its long imprisonment. Though the angry elemental fought hard, the adventurers soon defeated it. 

The party then spent the next hour or two searching for secret doors because they had yet to encounter the mummies that the preparatory materials indicated was in the tomb.

Eventually they found secret door in the stairwell from the front entrance, and through it entered an inner crypt. Within they fought three sarcophagi. The adventurers attempted to open one and awoke three wights. Asterius’ armored form helped block most of the wights attacks, and the spellcasters blasted down the undead knights.

At last they opened the secret door to another inner crypt, and were confronted by the awakened mummy of the leader of the knights of the tomb. He demanded that they leave and explained that the dead could not rest here because of the treachery of the master of Daargard Keep to the West. The foul energy of this betrayal had kept these knights’ spirits from departing, and they had slowly gone mad from their time in the tomb. The party attacked the knight after discovering all this…

GM Reflections

While I like the map I used for this tomb, it illustrated one issue Justin Alexander has also called out—placing essential story or rewards behind a secret door halts story progression. I will heed the warning better next time. This dungeon is so small though that it feels a bit sad not to use the entire thing. Next time though I’ll put the required reward in a place not blocked by a secret door and then have greater rewards for the secret area that are nonessential to the story.

Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen - Emperor of the Waves (Part III)

Spoilers follow for the adventure Salvage Operations from Ghosts of Saltmarsh…

Finally hoisting the heavy box up, Asterius and Fallon laboriously hauled it up the ladder from the hold as tentacles continued to batter the hull near them and water gushed in. Gringle and Davgin were already well up the stairs, and dodging tentacles. Gringle was knocked prone as the ship shuddered and began to list. He scrambled up, screaming towards the Spirit of Winter for the jollyboat to come pick them up. Davgin fired a firebolt into the air to act as a flare.

The boat began its slow approach, eventually reaching them as everyone had finally clambered to the top of the quarterdeck to avoid the rising waters. As they paddled away, the Emperor of the Waves cracked in two and sank into the depths.

After a long day the adventurers returned to Kalaman, and took the box to Aubreck Drallion. The shabby merchant could barely contain his excitement, and promised them that he would send their payment in a few days once he had time to liquidate the property and credit notes.

The merchant’s word, and his money, were good. Within a few days the characters found their coffers swollen with gold. Naturally they decided to go spend some of their hard earned cash.

First they went shopping at an Oddities shop. The. Went to an Apothecary owned by a mysterious dark mage of the Mages of High Sorcery. Her name was Wyham, and based upon her knowledge of his exploits, she extended Davgin an invitation to Red Robes of High Sorcery. She wrote to the tower on his behalf. 

While there, Asterius purchased a long sword of dragon slaying, and Fallon bought a short sword of vengeance which they quickly discovered was cursed. Inquires suggested that magic to dispel such a curse might be found in a tomb of Solamnic knights to the South of the city.

Additionally, during their downtime, the party dispatched spies to examine the Red Dragon Army’s logistics and defenses. They also discovered that the Red Dragon Army attempted to raise a unit but failed. However, some of their spies paid dearly for this information, being captured and hanged as a warning.

GM Reflections

The short adventure Salvage Ops is pretty outstanding. It’s a compelling adventure with a hefty reward that acts as a really good payoff for the pain the characters have to go through. Like most ship exploration the map is cramped, which is a negative. But I loved the extended action sequence with the attacking tentacles and the terrain shifting. It was the first time I've used any such effects in a game, and I thought it worked really well.

This was also an interesting opportunity to employ domain actions and the intrigue system too from Kingdoms & Warfare. My notes on this are below:

Espionage to discover enemy domain defenses. Red dragon army attempts and fails to raise unit. Hangs spies in response to espionage, -1 comms for Avengers of the Crossing.

While my players are having a hard time with the intrigue and organization system, I think with the right group they can definitely facilitate roleplaying, much as I’ve seen with the journey system in my Empire of the Ghouls campaign.

Variety in RPG Play

I realized this past week how open I am in my RPG preferences. I don’t on if this will change over time, as I become a one of the probably many 5e converts to RPG play that will grip the 2014 or 2024 versions of the game with white knuckles, insisting that it was and is and will always be the best version of this game. Nostalgia certainly is a thing, even now as I reflect on my first campaign and games. 

Now, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with having certain games that you love. There’s a reason for that. If you love a certain game system, that actually makes me wish I could play with you, and experience the passion you have for that particular game. But for myself, I’ve realized that I love the variety. I enjoy discovering new mechanics, or the insights about the systems I know well that I gain from trying something new. This was made apparent as I crack open my copy of Warhammer: Wrath & Glory (2nd Edition, by Cubicle 7), and discovered that skill checks are made by rolling a dice pool of d6’s. The different solutions we have come up with to inject that most interesting and game specific element into our stories: chance. 

Again, I don’t judge anyone for having strong preferences. And perhaps I could be more discriminating regarding RPG design choices (that I think will happen as I learn and play new systems). I have a dear friend who falls into the camp of having preferred systems. I introduced him to Classic Traveller, and he related to me how a few weeks ago he found Dragonbane, a system I’ve heard of, but yet to try. 

My first reaction, and I hope my continued reaction was “that sounds cool! I’d love to try a game with you sometime!” While we might have preferred systems, rules, opinions on characters, and stories, I want to always remember that the real reason I feel happier playing these games is because I’m playing at a table with other people that I want to learn from and build relationships with.

5e GM Reference: Master NPC Source List

I've long been frustrated by the amount of great NPC stat blocks available for 5e, but by the fact they're spread across so many sources. So for myself (and you) I'm creating this post to list all of the generic NPC stat blocks, a brief description of what they can be used for, and their source as a reference. I found this as I was selecting stats to represent NPCs for the Ptolus wedding event I put together for my first game session of that campaign. This article is (one of many) works in progress. 

Generic NPC Stat Blocks

• Acolyte (Monster Manual (MM)): CR 1/4, low level divine spellcaster.
• Apostle (Tome of Beasts III (TOB III)): CR 6, a more generic, mid-level representation of a cleric.
• Archdruid (MPMM): CR 12, mostly bare stat block. Does have a wild shape ability.
• Archer (MPMM): CR 3, not quite a ranger.
• Archmage (MM): CR 12, extremely powerful wizard.
• Assassin (MM): CR 8, powerful assassin rogue equivalent. Can potentially one-shot some surprised targets.
• Atavist (TOB III): CR 4, mutated stronger cultist.
• Bandit (MM): CR 1/8, as simple and generic an NPC adversary as you can get.
• Bandit Captain (MM): CR 2, the beefiest bandit with more abilities. Pirate captain is a variant.
• Bandit Lord (Tome of Beasts I (TOB I)): CR 4, more powerful than the captain. Makes a good enemy leader for bandits.
• Bard (Mordenkainen Presents Monsters of the Multiverse (MPMM)): CR 2, NPC approximation of a low level player bard. Includes spellcasting and a vicious mockery-type ability.
• Berserker (MM): CR 2, a barbarian without the rage. Does have reckless attack.
• Blackguard (MPMM): CR 8, Oathbreaker Paladin NPC.
• Black Knight Commander (TOB I): CR 5, evil fighter. Doesn't have the magic of a paladin.
• Breathstealer (TOB III): CR 7, rogue-type with psychic abilities.
• Champion (MPMM): CR 9, stronger NPC champion fighter. Simpler than the subclass (if you can believe it).
• City Guard Captain (TOBI): CR 4, more powerful version of the guard with some controller capabilities.
• Commoner (MM): CR 0, the most vanilla, weak NPC.
• Cultist (MM): CR 1/8, the cannon fodder of cultists.
• Cult Fanatic (MM): CR 4, more powerful cultist with magic.
• Dwarven Ringmage (TOB I): CR 7, uses ring magic, a unique dwarven spellcaster. Functionally a regular mage, with cool flavor.
• Elvish Veteran Archer (TOB I): CR 3, stealthy, ranger-type archer.
• Field Commander (TOB III): CR 10, smells like a paladin, even if the flavor text is fighter. Strong.
• First Servant (TOB III): CR 12, religious leader. Some interesting and innovative abilities.
• Fixer (TOB III): CR 2, cleans up messes by killing people and destroying evidence.
• Frost-Afflicted (TOB III): CR 3, basically an NPC with low-level cold powers, from surviving in a cold environment.
• Illrigger (Original MCDM Illrigger): CR 12, this is actually Lady Dazran's stat block, but I think the point is to use it as a Painkiller Illrigger. Fairly complex and powerful. Dope hell knight.
• Martial Arts Adept (MPMM): CR 3, NPC monk.
• Master Thief (MPMM): CR 5, NPC thief, no sneak attack.
• Psychophant (TOB III): CR 9, psychic cultist leader.
• Swashbuckler (MPMM): CR 3, not like the rogue subclass at all. 
• War Priest (MPMM): CR 9, war cleric NPC. Pretty beefy.
• Warlock of the Archfey (MPMM): CR 4, kinda like the subclass, but not. No Eldritch Blast.
• Warlock of the Fiend (MPMM): CR 7, like above, but fiendish. Also no Eldritch Blast. 
• Warlock of the Genie Lord (TOB III): CR 5, elemental warlock.
• Warlock of the Great Old One (MPMM): CR 6, like above, lots of at will spells.
• Warlord (MPMM): CR 12, stronger fighter with legendary actions, including one controller power.
• Wind Acolyte TOB III): CR 5, basically a mid-level air bender...
• Apprentice Wizard (MPMM): CR 1/4, lame little wizard. Strangely seems to have Eldritch Blast...
• Abjurer Wizard (MMPM): CR 9, interest wizard with abilities to protect other creatures around it.
• Conjurer Wizard (MPMM): CR 6, 
• Diviner Wizard (MPMM): CR 8,
• Enchanter Wizard (MPMM): CR 6, 
• Evoker Wizard (MPMM): CR 9, 
• Illusionist Wizard (MPMM): CR 3, they made this one super weak with no interesting abilities.
• Necromancer Wizard (MPMM): CR 9, 
• Transmitter Wizard (MPMM): CR 5, 

Non-Named Villain NPC Stat Blocks

This section might be ill-advised, but I have a hard time remembering lower level and non-legendary monsters to use as villains, so I thought making a list might help. We'll see. The above section will hopefully be more helpful.

• Bheur Hag (MPMM): CR 7, winter hag.
• Deathlocks (MPMM): Three varieties, CR 3, 4, & 8. Undead warlock still working for patron.
• 
  

RPG Scenario - The Fancy Party

You wouldn't know it, but I have always had a secret enjoyment of Pride & Prejudice. The BBC mini-series (with Colin Firth!) is the best version and closest to the novel. I'm told there actually is a Jane Austen-inspired RPG, which maybe I'll take a look at sometime, but today I wanted to briefly touch on a scenario structure I have yet to try, but definitely want to employ in my games in the future: the dinner party.

Now this often includes the connotation of high society, hobnobbing with the nobility—but it doesn’t have to be. This could just as easily be a feast in a Northern Viking hall. Where music and dancing are featured, while people eat and take and find side nooks for private conversation deep into the night. And the mead flows as thick as the stories of great deeds. 

Then of course you can have the balls or dinner parties we all think of—or the masquerade parties, where you may not be able to tell to whom you are speaking. 

There’s plenty of interesting mechanical and GM ideas to make these social encounters really interesting. In fact, I feel as though this type of event is almost like a boss battle in terms of a social encounter if you build it up enough. I would certainly consider awarding XP or other appropriate rewards for creative play and accomplishing your goals during these situations.

Perhaps the best article I’ve come across on this topic is from the Alexandrian. This boils the process of designing these scenarios into four basic steps: 1) creating a location with multiple areas to congregate. 2) Make a list of characters attending. 3) Come up with some events for the event, and finally 4) create topics of conversation. 

Another recent article that I think provides some great ideas is from the Kobold Press blog. This article offers some great random tables of things that could happen during an event, along with some lair actions for a royal ballroom that could be repurposed for any large social environment, or could inspire custom ideas. These elements combined with Justin Alexander’s advice could help us create events for the party, or come up with topics of conversation.

I’m working on a battle tutorial and intro scenario for my mercenary company campaign idea. I think a good capstone if the characters do well in the battle would be a victory feast as a social event. I’ll provide my write up of that scenario as an example of these techniques and potentially revisit this topic once I’ve tried running a party myself with any new thoughts. I’m also working on a wedding for my Ptolus campaign’a first session. I’ll do the same for that scenario too.

My Homebrew World: The Cascades of Saints

This article is player focused lore for character creation. There will be a GM focused addendum providing additional information at some point. This article is also a bit of a work in progress, but I want my players to be able to use it (that means sorry for any blanks or more typographical errors than normally slip through this one man show).

There are many saints in the world, some obscure and relatively unknown in certain areas, others (and some we don't discuss because of that power that trumps the divine: copyright law. But I assure you that they exist too, at the game table). Saints are meant to provide a niche into which a player can shoehorn an odd cleric or archetype, while gaining the in game benefits of being associated with the Church and following the Nine rather than some other god. There is opportunity to collaborate on creating a saint for such players to follow. Given enough time, some retired or deceased characters may become saints in their own right.

St. Adelard

Title(s): The Sage, He Who Walked After Wontor

Alignment: NG

Domain(s): Knowledge, Travel

Associated Paladin Oaths: 

St. Adelard is said to have been a disciple of Wontor, so devoted that he walked the paths between worlds, seeking the great god’s knowledge. When at last he arrived at the gates of heaven, he was greeted as if by an old friend. Many followers of Wontor revere the saint and seek to emulate this journey in a spiritual, if not literal sense.

St. Adevalia

Title(s):

Alignment: 

Domain(s): 

Associated Paladin Oaths:

Story

St. Anne

Title(s): Lioness of the Faith, The Shield of Rosh-Haigar, Founder-Commander of the Holy Knights of the Nine

Alignment: LG

Domain(s): Justice, Knowledge, War

Associated Paladin Oaths: Battle, Conquest, Devotion, Eagle, Glory, Guardian, Safeguarding, Zeal

Saint Anne is a larger than life figure, said to have defended the holy city of Roshe-Haigar against some sort of great evil. The details are lost to time, but her order of the Holy Knights of the Nine makes up a major portion of the military strength the church can call upon.

St. Brirea 

Title(s): 

Alignment: 

Domain(s): 

Associated Paladin Oaths:

Story

St. Erstopholos

Title(s): Unknown

Alignment: Unknown

Domain(s): Unknown

Associated Paladin Oaths: Unknown

The story of St. Erstopholos is lost to time. Few devotees of his survive other than an isolated monastery in the mountains called the Light House of Morning Snow. Few have ventured there in many years, and none of its residents have ever come down to other settlements. What is told of the legend is that Erstopholos was martyred by the servants of a Demon Prince and his bones carried up to the monastery to be enshrined.

St. Heliodora

Title(s): The Radiant Star, Prophecier of 

Alignment: 

Domain(s): 

Associated Paladin Oaths: 

Story

St. Hurbert

Title(s): 

Alignment: 

Domain(s): 

Associated Paladin Oaths: 

Story

St. Lukricus

Title(s): Patron of Gamblers

Alignment: CN

Domain(s): Arcana, Avarice, Beer, Trickery,

Associated Paladin Oaths: Acquisitions, Mercy, Vengeance 

Unlike many Saints, Lukricus was not a cleric or a devoted follower of a deity. He was a great debaucher by all accounts, and most identified with the aspects of Culsani engaging in great excess, with none of the redeeming qualities of romanticism or love. But according to legend St. Lukricus won his salvation in a gambling contest with Cernunnos, in which he secured a promise from the god that he would ransom his soul back from the Devil Lord to whom he had lost it and grant him a place in the Heavens. Cernunnos dispatched great champions, including St. Brirea, to win back the scoundrel’s soul so that he could then rest in eternal bliss. Gamblers and those who live by fortune seek to emulate St. Lukricus’ cunning and guile.

St. Meynard

Title(s): The Scientist

Alignment: Chaotic Neutral

Domain(s): Arcana

Associated Paladin Oaths: N/A

Story

St. Navrejar

Title(s): The Reaver Priest, Northern King, Wrath of Tsovinar

Alignment: CN

Domain(s): Apocalypse, Dragon, Tempest, Ocean, Serpent, War, Wind

Associated Paladin Oaths: Ancients, Battle, Conquest, Devotion, Redemption

A devotee of Toutatis and Tsovinar, St. Navrejar was a northern raider who rose to be a jarl and a king of his people. Originally a cruel tyrant, he found religion when healed by a priest of the Church after contracting a terrible disease from the bite of a lycanthrope. St. Navrejar remained a raider, but was tempered by his experience, focusing his wrath upon monsterous peoples that raided the cities and towns of his jarldom. His tomb is in the Chapel of the Bastion at Vraugate. It is said he will rise to battle the creatures of the pit alongside Tsovinar at the end of all time. Raiders, sailors, and barbarians revere him for interceding to Tsovinar on their behalf. His followers recognize lycanthropes for bringing St. Navrejar to his rebirth, but loathe them, believing their condition is the result of the corruption of the endless Abyss and its Demon Princes.

St. Nithtari

Title(s): The Redeemed, Rebuker of Devils, The Gem Among Snakes, The Risen Angel

Alignment: LG

Domain(s): Atonement, Justice, Knowledge, Life, Light, Martyr, Mercy

Associated Paladin Oaths: Glory, Perfection, Purification, Redemption, Watchers

A tiefling woman, St. Nithtari stands as a symbol of transcendence. St. Nithtari rebuked her family in the name of the Nine. Her family were devoted disciples of Asmodeus. Nithtari was martyred by her uncle, the evil Lord Karcius, a powerful Illrigger said to have been dragged down to the Hells for his failures, but left to live on in eternal torment as a Dread Knight (Monsterous Menagerie). St. Nithtari herself is said to have so humbled Wontor that he persuaded Lucan to relinquish her soul from death and made her a Planetar angel of the Chorus of the Moon-Bathed Crescent. Thus some of her devotees revere both her aspects as a risen angel, and a martyred saint.

St. Orpheus

Title(s): Of the Iron Spike

Alignment: 

Domain(s): 

Associated Paladin Oaths:

Called St. Orpheus of the Iron Spike. Disciple of Tarin.

St. Protogonia 

Title(s): The Chained Scholar

Alignment: 

Domain(s): Knowledge, Prophecy 

Associated Paladin Oaths:

Story

St. Samira

Title(s): The Wise, Slayer of Liches, Most Holy Hierophant

Alignment: CG

Domain(s): Arcana, Travel, Speed, Trickery, Portal 

Associated Paladin Oaths: Ancients, Watchers, Zeal

St. Samira was a great wizard, trained in both the arcane arts at Uqance, the City of Mages, and a follower of Cernunnos. Samira is said to have discovered much deep magic and traveled to distant worlds searching the secrets of the Nine and the magical weave. Her final resting place is unknown, but her staff is kept in a shrine at the great Cathedral of St. Samira in Uqance, and her writings are part of the great arcane library also in the city.

St. Sucro

Title(s): Ashen-faced, 

Alignment: N

Domain(s): Death, Grave

Associated Paladin Oaths: Giving Grave, Vengeance

Sucro was said to be a grave-digger in the necropolis of Rosh-Haigar. His shrine and tomb are there, though he is revered by grave-diggers and those who have suffered great loss across the lands once claimed by the Empire and beyond. Little record remains of his life and legacy.

St. Selene

Title(s):

Alignment: 

Domain(s): 

Associated Paladin Oaths:

Story

St. Tedmund

Title(s):

Alignment: 

Domain(s): 

Associated Paladin Oaths:

Story

St. Tevra

Title(s): Holy Lancer, Apprentice, Golden Crown

Alignment: CG

Domain(s): 

Associated Paladin Oaths: 

Born a poor child in Uqance, St. Tevra is said to have been cast a blessed coin by St. Tedmund as he rode through the city on his departure to slay the green worm Goavraynth. She almost spent the coin on a bit of bread and a warm drink, but instead her feet led her to a wheelwright's shop where she was apprenticed. Many years later she embarked on adventures, the details of which are lost to time, until she was knighted and made a Holy Lancer of the Order of the Nine. 

St. Valdra

Title(s): Blessed of Culsani, Cleanser of Orzberg, Patriarch

Alignment: Neutral

Domain(s): Avarice, Moon

Associated Paladin Oaths: Acquisitions

St. Valdra was a unique Patriarch of the Church by becoming an Archbishop after working through the ranks of the deaconry. A dedicated follower and cleric of Culsani throughout her career, Valdra took over the Archbishopric of Orzberg following the revelation that the clerics of the city had been corrupted by a vampire. Through this experience she was a fierce and pragmatic defender of the faith. Her fellow archbishops elected her to the Patriarchy upon the death of Horeshtus IV. She is credited for revitalizing and expanding the greatest cathedrals of the Church (though it is rumored that she did this by collecting indulgences, or payments for the sins of nobles and great merchants). Her followers dismiss any of this as hearsay, and instead focus on her expansion of the great Cathedral and monuments at Rosh-Haigar, the holy city of the Church.

Hammer & Anvil Reactions

Hammer & Anvil, along with the not yet completed sister work Mortar & Pestle, are the latest 5e vault products from Cubicle7. I’ve looked at Uncharted Journeys and A Life Well Lived previously, and I’m slowly going through Broken Weave while working on other projects. 

This book offers a crafting system for players which builds on the downtime and camp craft activities in A Life Well Lived. I like this consistency, which lets me just roll these systems together. Additional camp craft activities are great for giving your players interesting and flavorful things to do during these resting periods.

The main mechanic, which is featured in previous titles, is extended tests. These require three skill or tool checks which are compared against both a difficulty class, as normal, and a goal number. In addition to succeeding at the DC, the total over the DC on the check is tallied up and results determined based on how much or by how little the goal number provided.

This core mechanic really is why I think will make this system easier to implement in your own game. Bespoke, often complex resolution mechanics for crafting systems can make them difficult to implement. I think the system here is simple enough to implement, and modular enough to alter yourself should you choose to do so. The other piece of crafting systems that can be complex is crafting components because it creates more complexity as simple components are used to create more complex components, which in turn allow something else to be made with enough diverse components (i.e. Monster Hunter). This system largely abstracts this, but does provide some example attributes for equipment and items that you can create with potential components that enable a given attribute. It is similar with the enchantments system. The great thing about this is that you can then create your own traits for equipment, or you own enchantments, based on the examples in the book, and assign components. You can do this when your player comes to you with a zany idea that should work, but lacks a template. Then you go through the crafting or enchanting process to see if it is actually possible for them to produce it.

The enchantment system also introduces the idea that you can only learn a certain number of enchantments as a character, balancing against the mundane crafting rules for equipment quite well. The lists of enchanted items available also provide a good sample of how to set your own costs, requirements, and components for existing magic items. They’re also additional items that you can hand out in your games, some of which are quite cool. Even better, they have provided a table with the information for every item in the 5.1 SRD, which was literally the one thing I would have asked if it wasn’t here. 

The majority of the book them is made up off artifact level magic items. These are all really cool, with developed backstories and adventure hooks for you to throw into your own game. Nothing to complain about here.

So this system checks pretty much all the boxes as far as my asks and expectations. I really need to see it in play to make any true or final judgments, but having used downtime activities from A Life Well Lived with the same resolution mechanic previously, I think this book will be very valuable as a resource going forward, especially to help players using artificers or wanting to engage the fantasy of producing their own items and equipment. I might even use it in Planegea to encourage hunting and gathering behavior appropriate to the setting. Resources in that case would be a great motivator to go adventuring. So as an initial reaction, I would definitely recommend Hammer & Anvil.