Last week, we met at Morningstar Games for a new twist on an Encounters session. We got together to build our characters for the upcoming adventure starting this coming Wednesday. I also have decided not to DM Encounter this session so I can have a change to play along side my daughter as opposed to opposed to her (pun intended).
We have two new DMs for this season, one of which was my first DM, and another who I can't wait to see her style of DMing. Should be interesting.
This new season, lots of Dwarves and Elemental themes. The Elder Elemental Eye is the name of the Adventure and you can read more about it at http://wizards.com/dnd/Event.aspx?x=dnd/4new/event/dndencounters.
Hope to see you there. Feel free to RSVP so we can make sure we have seats and tables enough for everyone to enjoy.
Showing posts with label Encounters. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Encounters. Show all posts
Saturday, February 25, 2012
Saturday, February 18, 2012
Encounters Session 13 - The Finale
It is done. Our party slayed Soryth, whom had just completed stealing all of Caerwyn's sould, releasing the trapped soul back into the crypt that contained Porpherio and Caerwyn. As soon as that concluded, all the fey creatures that were barred from entering the Palace of Spires came and in turn called forth their Fey Lords. All were allowed to drink from the Fountain Heal All without the curse of being trapped on the island forever and be granted one wish each. Juliana and Orlando were wished back to their realm to live happily ever after and our heroes were celebrated in the three cities. A heroes reception waited for them Sybar where they were rewarded from completing the Count's Task. From their, our adventuring heroes broke apart and went their separate ways, to find the results of their wishes waiting for them (and we heard fame, glory, and power among a few of the wishes).
The End.
I hope to have some announcements for you shortly regarding the next adventure and what we will be up to this coming Wednesday at Morningstar Games on Montgomery Crossroads.
The End.
I hope to have some announcements for you shortly regarding the next adventure and what we will be up to this coming Wednesday at Morningstar Games on Montgomery Crossroads.
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Encounters Sessions 9-12
Sorry for the delay in updating the story notes. Sometimes work gets in the way of my D&D habit :)
Lady Anya Tamora, Ruler of Crystal Brook
Lord Carric, Ruler of the Sildaine Forest
Count Varis Sybar, Ruler of Sybar (mediator between Tamora and Carric)
Juliana, daughter of Carric
Orlando, son of Tamora
Caerwyn, inside Juliana, daughter of Oran
Porpherio, inside Orlando, adopted son of Tiandra
Oran, archfey, Green Lord
Tiandra, archfey, Summer Queen
Ragnar, agent of Oran, a verbeeg mercenary
Uma, agent of Tiandra, a briar witch dryad
Basal, Ragnar's cousin, sent to kill Orlando/Porpherio
Soryth, Dream Queen, hag, at the Palace of Spires
Kalbon, Soryth's partner in crime?
In Encounter 9, our party traveled with Basal and Orlando back to Ragnar's camp. They fey were more united now. Uma asked that the party be gentle on any fey that Soryth must certainly be swaying if at all possible and the party is led to the maze entrance that guards the Palace of Spires. Before getting to rest fully, our party is ambushed by Xivorts rolling down logs down a hill toward their camp. Our party is ultimately successful, and finally gets a much needed long rest before entering the maze.
In Encounter 10, the wander the maze getting lost several times and upon finally finding the center, where they enter their leaf keys, two boggles steal their keys and run off in the maze. Our party gives chase and fights these boggles in the close and confusing confines of the maze. Some neat tricks of the boggles allowed them to divide the party some but, as seems typical in these matters, the party ends up victorious once again. They come back to the center and reinsert the keys, to be whisked away to a glorious courtyard in front a palace.
In Encounter 11, our heroes fought two possessed fey berserkers, two xivorts, a boggle snatcher, and a xivort shadow caller. The party broke the spell on the two berserkers and dispatched the rest of the foes. The few turn out to be from the rescue party and are brothers. Alain finds a magical chrysanthemum in the courtyard and decides to take it with him. They then figure out a puzzle where the door to the palace is reflective and has no reflection, but their reflections in the pool in the center seem "independent". They ultimately ask their reflections to op en the door for them and they do. Two lifelike statues around the door speak "Enter in Peace," Our heroes sheath their weapons and enter.
Lastly for this update, in Encounter 12, the party explores the castle entrance and finds a fountain with nymphs playing. They ask the party to solve a few puzzles in the room. Our party takes some damage removing some glyphs that turned a room for night to daylight, and they located some "crystal" ware that chimes to teach some squawking birds to sing. Having completed these two challenges, the nymphs form a water stairway to the chamber above, just as Kalbon and two pixies drop from above to engage the party.
In nearly one hit, a party member bloodies a pixie, who then recognize the party as friends thanks to their saving of previous fey creatures such as the two fey berserkers from the previous encounter. They flee the battle. Unfortunately, when our characters draw their weapons, the status just outside the door come to life and engage the enemy. They do not engage Kalbon because he fights with his horns. Our party concentrates their attacks on Kalbon, nearly avoiding the statues, killing Kalbon in three rounds and quickly sheathed their weapons. Once all sheathed, the statues immediately regress back to their pedestals and turn back to the stone. They hear a scream from upstairs and approach up the stairs as the session ends.
The final encounter of Beyond the Crystal Cave, Session 13, will be this Wednesday at 6pm at Morningstar Games on Montgomery Crossroads. If you would like us to save you seat, and allow us to prepare for the right number of folks, please feel free to RSVP by commenting here.
Lady Anya Tamora, Ruler of Crystal Brook
Lord Carric, Ruler of the Sildaine Forest
Count Varis Sybar, Ruler of Sybar (mediator between Tamora and Carric)
Juliana, daughter of Carric
Orlando, son of Tamora
Caerwyn, inside Juliana, daughter of Oran
Porpherio, inside Orlando, adopted son of Tiandra
Oran, archfey, Green Lord
Tiandra, archfey, Summer Queen
Ragnar, agent of Oran, a verbeeg mercenary
Uma, agent of Tiandra, a briar witch dryad
Basal, Ragnar's cousin, sent to kill Orlando/Porpherio
Soryth, Dream Queen, hag, at the Palace of Spires
Kalbon, Soryth's partner in crime?
In Encounter 9, our party traveled with Basal and Orlando back to Ragnar's camp. They fey were more united now. Uma asked that the party be gentle on any fey that Soryth must certainly be swaying if at all possible and the party is led to the maze entrance that guards the Palace of Spires. Before getting to rest fully, our party is ambushed by Xivorts rolling down logs down a hill toward their camp. Our party is ultimately successful, and finally gets a much needed long rest before entering the maze.
In Encounter 10, the wander the maze getting lost several times and upon finally finding the center, where they enter their leaf keys, two boggles steal their keys and run off in the maze. Our party gives chase and fights these boggles in the close and confusing confines of the maze. Some neat tricks of the boggles allowed them to divide the party some but, as seems typical in these matters, the party ends up victorious once again. They come back to the center and reinsert the keys, to be whisked away to a glorious courtyard in front a palace.
In Encounter 11, our heroes fought two possessed fey berserkers, two xivorts, a boggle snatcher, and a xivort shadow caller. The party broke the spell on the two berserkers and dispatched the rest of the foes. The few turn out to be from the rescue party and are brothers. Alain finds a magical chrysanthemum in the courtyard and decides to take it with him. They then figure out a puzzle where the door to the palace is reflective and has no reflection, but their reflections in the pool in the center seem "independent". They ultimately ask their reflections to op en the door for them and they do. Two lifelike statues around the door speak "Enter in Peace," Our heroes sheath their weapons and enter.
Lastly for this update, in Encounter 12, the party explores the castle entrance and finds a fountain with nymphs playing. They ask the party to solve a few puzzles in the room. Our party takes some damage removing some glyphs that turned a room for night to daylight, and they located some "crystal" ware that chimes to teach some squawking birds to sing. Having completed these two challenges, the nymphs form a water stairway to the chamber above, just as Kalbon and two pixies drop from above to engage the party.
In nearly one hit, a party member bloodies a pixie, who then recognize the party as friends thanks to their saving of previous fey creatures such as the two fey berserkers from the previous encounter. They flee the battle. Unfortunately, when our characters draw their weapons, the status just outside the door come to life and engage the enemy. They do not engage Kalbon because he fights with his horns. Our party concentrates their attacks on Kalbon, nearly avoiding the statues, killing Kalbon in three rounds and quickly sheathed their weapons. Once all sheathed, the statues immediately regress back to their pedestals and turn back to the stone. They hear a scream from upstairs and approach up the stairs as the session ends.
The final encounter of Beyond the Crystal Cave, Session 13, will be this Wednesday at 6pm at Morningstar Games on Montgomery Crossroads. If you would like us to save you seat, and allow us to prepare for the right number of folks, please feel free to RSVP by commenting here.
Sunday, January 15, 2012
Encounters Session 8
Would you like to join us this Wednesday at 6pm? We play at Morningstar Games on Montgomery Crossroads. No experience or materials needed. We do recommend you RSVP by commenting on this post. Also, if you usually come and can't make it, post a comment and let us know. If you are running late the same.
A note on coming late: We really want to let EVERYONE who wants play. This last encounter was difficult, and possibly less fun, because our party of 6, became a party of 9 (before 1 regular dropped out to make room - THANK YOU!) after 6pm. If we would have known you were coming, we could have easily set up a 2nd game in preparation. Food for thought; now for our regularly scheduled program.
As has become tradition for this campaign, let's update our list of names. For the record I am not listing EVERY name, or this would be a VERY long post. Just the names that seem to matter for the overall story:
Lady Anya Tamora, Ruler of Crystal Brook
Lord Carric, Ruler of the Sildaine Forest
Count Varis Sybar, Ruler of Sybar (mediator between Tamora and Carric)
Juliana, daughter of Carric
Orlando, son of Tamora
Caerwyn, inside Juliana, daughter of Oran
Porpherio, inside Orlando, adopted son of Tiandra
Oran, archfey, Green Lord
Tiandra, archfey, Summer Queen
Ragnar, agent of Oran, a verbeeg mercenary
Uma, agent of Tiandra, a briar witch dryad
Basal, Ragnar's cousin, sent to kill Orlando/Porpherio
Soryth, Dream Queen, hag, at the Palace of Spires
Kalbon, Soryth's partner in crime?
Overall, a simple encounter, where our party finally comes the protected Water Palace and discovers Orlando/Porpherio in a trap door hiding from would be captors (our party). He is cordial enough once he finds out who the party is and that they know of Julianna/Caerwyn and that she has been captures. He is ready to head off and help us rescue her. However, as our party turns to head out they find the large Verbeeg Basal, Ragnar's cousin, barring the door. Before blood shed, he offers a contest (a fight until submission) for the rights to Orlando/Porpherio. Our party of EIGHT succeeds in 3 rounds of beating him to submission, and they head off back to Ragnar with Orlanda/Porpherio. They also find roses on the island giving our party their fourth and final key to the Palace of Spires (Soryth's base), though no one know hows to get there, so far.
Hope to see you Wednesday!
A note on coming late: We really want to let EVERYONE who wants play. This last encounter was difficult, and possibly less fun, because our party of 6, became a party of 9 (before 1 regular dropped out to make room - THANK YOU!) after 6pm. If we would have known you were coming, we could have easily set up a 2nd game in preparation. Food for thought; now for our regularly scheduled program.
As has become tradition for this campaign, let's update our list of names. For the record I am not listing EVERY name, or this would be a VERY long post. Just the names that seem to matter for the overall story:
Lady Anya Tamora, Ruler of Crystal Brook
Lord Carric, Ruler of the Sildaine Forest
Count Varis Sybar, Ruler of Sybar (mediator between Tamora and Carric)
Juliana, daughter of Carric
Orlando, son of Tamora
Caerwyn, inside Juliana, daughter of Oran
Porpherio, inside Orlando, adopted son of Tiandra
Oran, archfey, Green Lord
Tiandra, archfey, Summer Queen
Ragnar, agent of Oran, a verbeeg mercenary
Uma, agent of Tiandra, a briar witch dryad
Basal, Ragnar's cousin, sent to kill Orlando/Porpherio
Soryth, Dream Queen, hag, at the Palace of Spires
Kalbon, Soryth's partner in crime?
Overall, a simple encounter, where our party finally comes the protected Water Palace and discovers Orlando/Porpherio in a trap door hiding from would be captors (our party). He is cordial enough once he finds out who the party is and that they know of Julianna/Caerwyn and that she has been captures. He is ready to head off and help us rescue her. However, as our party turns to head out they find the large Verbeeg Basal, Ragnar's cousin, barring the door. Before blood shed, he offers a contest (a fight until submission) for the rights to Orlando/Porpherio. Our party of EIGHT succeeds in 3 rounds of beating him to submission, and they head off back to Ragnar with Orlanda/Porpherio. They also find roses on the island giving our party their fourth and final key to the Palace of Spires (Soryth's base), though no one know hows to get there, so far.
Hope to see you Wednesday!
Monday, January 9, 2012
Just Grrrr...
Okay, I'm still new to D&D. I hear stories of D&D being out for 40 years, and I am playing 4th edition. 4th edition which is new, like only 4 years old. Now I hear that 5th edition is well in the works.
http://games.yahoo.com/blogs/plugged-in/dungeons-dragons-plans-comeback-200249601.html
Remember, I am the cheapest gamer I, or most people I play with, know. I think I can still invest time in D&D, though this was not my first reaction. I just will not buy anything else that is not reusable. Minis, fine (I hope). D20s? Surely sacred. More rule books and add ons? Forget it.
I'm just so...grrrr... I don't know the word. Wait a minute? Is this one the 3.5 fan boys sounds like to me?
Fortunately, all 1 of our followers has signed up to be a beta tester. Dude, keep up informed!
I am glad to see that they are taking feedback, but I also hope they keep in mind that the loudest isn't always the best. One thing, in my uninformed, only played 4e opinion, is that 4e is structured enough to bring in fresh blood and is less scary to start. Kudos to the Encounters initiative as well for being accessible and a gateway a drug.
Sound off!
http://games.yahoo.com/blogs/plugged-in/dungeons-dragons-plans-comeback-200249601.html
Remember, I am the cheapest gamer I, or most people I play with, know. I think I can still invest time in D&D, though this was not my first reaction. I just will not buy anything else that is not reusable. Minis, fine (I hope). D20s? Surely sacred. More rule books and add ons? Forget it.
I'm just so...grrrr... I don't know the word. Wait a minute? Is this one the 3.5 fan boys sounds like to me?
Fortunately, all 1 of our followers has signed up to be a beta tester. Dude, keep up informed!
I am glad to see that they are taking feedback, but I also hope they keep in mind that the loudest isn't always the best. One thing, in my uninformed, only played 4e opinion, is that 4e is structured enough to bring in fresh blood and is less scary to start. Kudos to the Encounters initiative as well for being accessible and a gateway a drug.
Sound off!
Sunday, January 8, 2012
Encounters Session 7
Interested in joining an Encounters game? Read the bottom. If you want to participate in a group story telling experience, you can catch up on the story in this blog and then come join us Wednesday at 6pm.
As has become tradition for this campaign, let's update our list of names. For the record I am not listing EVERY name, or we would be here all day. Just the names that seem to matter for the overall story:
Lady Anya Tamora, Ruler of Crystal Brook
Lord Carric, Ruler of the Sildaine Forest
Count Varis Sybar, Ruler of Sybar
Juliana, daughter of Carric
Orlando, son of Tamora
Caerwyn, inside Juliana, daughter of Oran
Porpherio, inside Orlando, adopted son of Tiandra
Oran, archfey, Green Lord
Tiandra, archfey, Summer Queen
Ragnar, agent of Oran, a verbeeg mercenary
Uma, agent of Tiandra, a briar witch dryad
Soryth, Dream Queen, hag
Kalbon, Soryth's partner in crime?
After questioning Rosaline last week, your party starts by going to visit Oakstaff,a treant who was chjarged with protecting Orlando/Porpherio. The long winded, and frequently reminiscant Oakstaff, reveals that he as taken Orlando/Porpherio to an enchanted island that is full of magic wards to protect him. He gives you each a bottle of Rider's Water, that allows you to convert any tiny creature, to a large mountable creature. He then points you off in the direction of the island.
When you arrive, you find a raft with room for 4 and a large expanse of crystal clear, 8' deep water. Your party boards, with your pixie member flying. Brandis grabs the pushing stick with both hands and starts to push your party across the water. A good ways in, a loud voice sounds from the shore you just left. As you look back, a pixie with a cloud like face above its head is the source of the sounds. The face commands the pixie to stop you, but fades as the pixie crosses the water. The pixie, Ariel, summons 4 water spouts, and creates a large area of tempest hendering your party.
Your party is clever, and decides to spend their move actions, standard actions, and action points, pushing the raft across the water. A solid plan, except for that the player pixie, Briarthorn, is flying and gets left behind. Briarthorn's diminutive health is quickly overwhelmed and she falls unconcious into the water. The remaining party decides to get to the otherside first. While pushing the raft, Fargrim lasso's an otter that was nearby, pulls him in, then uses his Rider's Water to make him large and mountable. He hops on the otter, and starts to ride to Briarthorn's rescue. Simultaneously, Brandis reaches the far shore, and then tuns back to assist with Briarthorn. He quickly gets in range and heals Briarthorn. They then make their way swimming and attacking where they can back to the far shore. Other party members, continue their ranged attacks from the shore. Once on shore, they take a few more shots, and drop Ariel dead. After evaluating their position, with several surges gone, most healing spells used, our party wisely continues onto the island leaving the water and its deadly creatures behind.
I will note that I enjoyed DMing this particular session more than any other session I have ever done. I have hard from a couple of other players that said they also enjoyed this one more than most.
Hope to see you guys this coming Wednesday at 6pm at Morningstar Games on Montgomery Crossroads. Anyone can come, no preperation needed.
As has become tradition for this campaign, let's update our list of names. For the record I am not listing EVERY name, or we would be here all day. Just the names that seem to matter for the overall story:
Lady Anya Tamora, Ruler of Crystal Brook
Lord Carric, Ruler of the Sildaine Forest
Count Varis Sybar, Ruler of Sybar
Juliana, daughter of Carric
Orlando, son of Tamora
Caerwyn, inside Juliana, daughter of Oran
Porpherio, inside Orlando, adopted son of Tiandra
Oran, archfey, Green Lord
Tiandra, archfey, Summer Queen
Ragnar, agent of Oran, a verbeeg mercenary
Uma, agent of Tiandra, a briar witch dryad
Soryth, Dream Queen, hag
Kalbon, Soryth's partner in crime?
After questioning Rosaline last week, your party starts by going to visit Oakstaff,a treant who was chjarged with protecting Orlando/Porpherio. The long winded, and frequently reminiscant Oakstaff, reveals that he as taken Orlando/Porpherio to an enchanted island that is full of magic wards to protect him. He gives you each a bottle of Rider's Water, that allows you to convert any tiny creature, to a large mountable creature. He then points you off in the direction of the island.
When you arrive, you find a raft with room for 4 and a large expanse of crystal clear, 8' deep water. Your party boards, with your pixie member flying. Brandis grabs the pushing stick with both hands and starts to push your party across the water. A good ways in, a loud voice sounds from the shore you just left. As you look back, a pixie with a cloud like face above its head is the source of the sounds. The face commands the pixie to stop you, but fades as the pixie crosses the water. The pixie, Ariel, summons 4 water spouts, and creates a large area of tempest hendering your party.
Your party is clever, and decides to spend their move actions, standard actions, and action points, pushing the raft across the water. A solid plan, except for that the player pixie, Briarthorn, is flying and gets left behind. Briarthorn's diminutive health is quickly overwhelmed and she falls unconcious into the water. The remaining party decides to get to the otherside first. While pushing the raft, Fargrim lasso's an otter that was nearby, pulls him in, then uses his Rider's Water to make him large and mountable. He hops on the otter, and starts to ride to Briarthorn's rescue. Simultaneously, Brandis reaches the far shore, and then tuns back to assist with Briarthorn. He quickly gets in range and heals Briarthorn. They then make their way swimming and attacking where they can back to the far shore. Other party members, continue their ranged attacks from the shore. Once on shore, they take a few more shots, and drop Ariel dead. After evaluating their position, with several surges gone, most healing spells used, our party wisely continues onto the island leaving the water and its deadly creatures behind.
I will note that I enjoyed DMing this particular session more than any other session I have ever done. I have hard from a couple of other players that said they also enjoyed this one more than most.
Hope to see you guys this coming Wednesday at 6pm at Morningstar Games on Montgomery Crossroads. Anyone can come, no preperation needed.
Sunday, January 1, 2012
Encounters Session 6
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
No, I am not so obsessed with Dungeons and Dragons that it is the first thing I did on the new year. Scheduled posts are awesome!
Light attendance this Wednesday, most likely due to the holiday (and flu) season. With our three players we experimented a little and all played more than one character. An interesting treat.
Let's first update you on the name game again:
Lady Anya Tamora, Ruler of Crystal Brook
Lord Carric, Ruler of the Sildaine Forest
Count Varis Sybar, Ruler of Sybar
Juliana, daughter of Carric
Orlando, son of Tamora
Caerwyn, inside Juliana, daughter of Oran
Porpherio, inside Orlando, adopted son of Tiandra
Oran, archfey, Green Lord
Tiandra, archfey, Summer Queen
Ragnar, agent of Oran, a verbeeg mercenary
Uma, agent of Tiandra, a briar witch dryad
Soryth, Dream Queen, hag
Yes, I agree. The list of names is getting ridiculous. Imagine reading through this adventure the first time as DM.
So you finally earned your way to see Ragnar. You learn in your conversation that the Soryth's spell caused the agents to forget how to get to the Palace of Spires. Ragnar has also enlisted his cousin Basal to hunt down and kill Porpherio/Orlando as that would thwart the hags plans (apparently the dispute between he and Uma was exactly this kind of thinking - kill for a solution, or find another way). The Dream Queen, Soryth, wanted control over this magical island, but the control was with the souls of Porpherio and Caerwyn. To prevent triggering the wards on the couples' souls, she devised a plan that involved Juliana and Orlando. It now seems as if a partial soul swap has occurred (there is some conjecture here on Ragnar's part, but he is pretty confident). It's safe to say that a full soul swap was Soryth's goal before being interrupted.
Ragnar knows that Porpherio is still alive because he has not heard from Basal yet. He last saw Porpherio in the arms of a lovely nymph. As you give chase you run into some plants and barkburrs that give you a challenge.
After completing that encounter, you find a hill where the nymph, more radiant and lovely than previously described, waits. What happens next is for Session 6, but we did take a sneak peak as a party.
The nymph, Rosaline, tells you that she lured Orlando/Porpherio here for his protection. She has since placed him under the care of Oakstaff, a treant. She tells you that Juliana/Caerwyn is safe with Soryth for so long as Orlando/Porpherio is safe. She gives you 2 bottles of Horse's Breath for agreeing to seek out Oakstaff and do as he bids.
Looking forward to seeing everyone at Morningstar Games on Montgomery Crossroads Wednesday by 6pm. For our regular players, if you know you can or can't make it, comment here, with the character you intend to play. As new players show up early, I will now what characters are taken and how many seats are available.
New players, RSVP if you can as well. A lack of RSVP won't stop you from coming, but it will certainly help us better prepare for you. We now have 2 Dungeon Master's available, so if we know we are going to have a party of 8 or more again, we can break it into 2 sessions.
No, I am not so obsessed with Dungeons and Dragons that it is the first thing I did on the new year. Scheduled posts are awesome!
Light attendance this Wednesday, most likely due to the holiday (and flu) season. With our three players we experimented a little and all played more than one character. An interesting treat.
Let's first update you on the name game again:
Lady Anya Tamora, Ruler of Crystal Brook
Lord Carric, Ruler of the Sildaine Forest
Count Varis Sybar, Ruler of Sybar
Juliana, daughter of Carric
Orlando, son of Tamora
Caerwyn, inside Juliana, daughter of Oran
Porpherio, inside Orlando, adopted son of Tiandra
Oran, archfey, Green Lord
Tiandra, archfey, Summer Queen
Ragnar, agent of Oran, a verbeeg mercenary
Uma, agent of Tiandra, a briar witch dryad
Soryth, Dream Queen, hag
Yes, I agree. The list of names is getting ridiculous. Imagine reading through this adventure the first time as DM.
So you finally earned your way to see Ragnar. You learn in your conversation that the Soryth's spell caused the agents to forget how to get to the Palace of Spires. Ragnar has also enlisted his cousin Basal to hunt down and kill Porpherio/Orlando as that would thwart the hags plans (apparently the dispute between he and Uma was exactly this kind of thinking - kill for a solution, or find another way). The Dream Queen, Soryth, wanted control over this magical island, but the control was with the souls of Porpherio and Caerwyn. To prevent triggering the wards on the couples' souls, she devised a plan that involved Juliana and Orlando. It now seems as if a partial soul swap has occurred (there is some conjecture here on Ragnar's part, but he is pretty confident). It's safe to say that a full soul swap was Soryth's goal before being interrupted.
Ragnar knows that Porpherio is still alive because he has not heard from Basal yet. He last saw Porpherio in the arms of a lovely nymph. As you give chase you run into some plants and barkburrs that give you a challenge.
After completing that encounter, you find a hill where the nymph, more radiant and lovely than previously described, waits. What happens next is for Session 6, but we did take a sneak peak as a party.
The nymph, Rosaline, tells you that she lured Orlando/Porpherio here for his protection. She has since placed him under the care of Oakstaff, a treant. She tells you that Juliana/Caerwyn is safe with Soryth for so long as Orlando/Porpherio is safe. She gives you 2 bottles of Horse's Breath for agreeing to seek out Oakstaff and do as he bids.
Looking forward to seeing everyone at Morningstar Games on Montgomery Crossroads Wednesday by 6pm. For our regular players, if you know you can or can't make it, comment here, with the character you intend to play. As new players show up early, I will now what characters are taken and how many seats are available.
New players, RSVP if you can as well. A lack of RSVP won't stop you from coming, but it will certainly help us better prepare for you. We now have 2 Dungeon Master's available, so if we know we are going to have a party of 8 or more again, we can break it into 2 sessions.
Friday, December 30, 2011
Encounters Sessions 1-5 The Story So far
This post is to catch us up on the Encounters series of Dungeons & Dragons. As a reminder, anyone can join us for a D&D session Wednesdays, 6pm-8pm at Morningstar Games on Montgomery Crossroads in Savannah, GA. No preparation, experience, or knowledge required. If you like, feel free to comment and we save a seat for you. I'm usually there by 5pm or so setting up if you want to stop in early.
Name Summary so far:
Lady Anya Tamora, Ruler of Crystal Brook
Lord Carric, Ruler of the Sildaine Forest
Count Varis Sybar, Ruler of Sybar
Juliana, daughter of Carric
Orlando, son of Tamora
After volunteering to help Sybar, he sends you to visit with Tamora and Carric to talk to each. Between the two you piece together the clues and decide to follow Juliana and Orlando to the Crystal Cave. Lord Seldaine believe that the Crystal Cave is a crossing into the Feywild. Once our party passes through the Crystal Cave (and its challenges) they come upon Juliana surrounded by frolicking leprechauns. She seems confused and lost and also calls herself Caerwyn.
From Caerwyn's confused dialogue, and the leprechans' riddles you discern that Caerwyn also had a lover; his name was Porpherio. Orlando/Porpherio ran off with some radiant super good looking women when he arrived here. You are an island in the Feywild sea called Porpherio's garden. Juliana/Caerwyn requests you take her to see an agent of the archfey. Caerwyn is the daughter of the Green Lord, Oran (an archfey). Porpherio was Caerwyn's husband. They ruled the island together a long time ago and have since "slumbered" here. A hag named Soryth, the Dream Queen, cast a spell to reawaken them, but were interrupted the Oran's agent Ragnar, and the Summer Queen's, Tiandra's, agent Uma. Uma is also the adopted mother of Porpherio. The came as they sensed the slumber of Caerwyn and Porpherio become disrupted. The interruption caused a problem of its own. Juliana and Orlando were there as prisoners but escaped during the interruption.
Your party also learned the hag, Soryth, is now staying in the Palace of Spires, which requires a magic key set. The keys are leaves, one each of shamrock, mistletoe, oak and a rose. The leprechauns give you a shamrock as you set out to talk to the archfey agents.
You could work with either, but each blames the other for the problems that occurred in interrupting Soryth's spell. They want to prevent a civil war among them, and enlist you to do a little meddling in the others camp. You decided to meddle for Ragnar and successfully recruit 2 unicorns in Uma's camp to come with Ragnar.
And that is where we left off at the end of Session 5. Session 6 occurred this Wednesday, 12/28/11, and since it is still fresh, I will post that separately shortly. That will get us all caught up on the story and ready to look ahead to Session 7, the first Wednesday of the new year. Hope to see you there!
Name Summary so far:
Lady Anya Tamora, Ruler of Crystal Brook
Lord Carric, Ruler of the Sildaine Forest
Count Varis Sybar, Ruler of Sybar
Juliana, daughter of Carric
Orlando, son of Tamora
After volunteering to help Sybar, he sends you to visit with Tamora and Carric to talk to each. Between the two you piece together the clues and decide to follow Juliana and Orlando to the Crystal Cave. Lord Seldaine believe that the Crystal Cave is a crossing into the Feywild. Once our party passes through the Crystal Cave (and its challenges) they come upon Juliana surrounded by frolicking leprechauns. She seems confused and lost and also calls herself Caerwyn.
From Caerwyn's confused dialogue, and the leprechans' riddles you discern that Caerwyn also had a lover; his name was Porpherio. Orlando/Porpherio ran off with some radiant super good looking women when he arrived here. You are an island in the Feywild sea called Porpherio's garden. Juliana/Caerwyn requests you take her to see an agent of the archfey. Caerwyn is the daughter of the Green Lord, Oran (an archfey). Porpherio was Caerwyn's husband. They ruled the island together a long time ago and have since "slumbered" here. A hag named Soryth, the Dream Queen, cast a spell to reawaken them, but were interrupted the Oran's agent Ragnar, and the Summer Queen's, Tiandra's, agent Uma. Uma is also the adopted mother of Porpherio. The came as they sensed the slumber of Caerwyn and Porpherio become disrupted. The interruption caused a problem of its own. Juliana and Orlando were there as prisoners but escaped during the interruption.
Your party also learned the hag, Soryth, is now staying in the Palace of Spires, which requires a magic key set. The keys are leaves, one each of shamrock, mistletoe, oak and a rose. The leprechauns give you a shamrock as you set out to talk to the archfey agents.
You could work with either, but each blames the other for the problems that occurred in interrupting Soryth's spell. They want to prevent a civil war among them, and enlist you to do a little meddling in the others camp. You decided to meddle for Ragnar and successfully recruit 2 unicorns in Uma's camp to come with Ragnar.
And that is where we left off at the end of Session 5. Session 6 occurred this Wednesday, 12/28/11, and since it is still fresh, I will post that separately shortly. That will get us all caught up on the story and ready to look ahead to Session 7, the first Wednesday of the new year. Hope to see you there!
Thursday, December 29, 2011
Encounters Sessions Introduction
I've been DMing at Morningstar Games on Montgomery Crossroads for 6 weeks now. For those that don't know, the makers of Dungeons and Dragons (Wizards of the Coast) has a series of games on Wednesday nights called the Encounters Series. WotC provides a 13 week adventure broken into 13 encounters (one a week). The encounters are streamlined and designed so that a new player can walk in and be able to play a game. At the same time, experience players can do the same, or bring their own character. All the rules are identical to a real game, its just the encounters are designed with time in mind. Two hours, and your out.
Talking with the gang at Morningstar Games, we decided to exchange links and I would start commenting on the Encounters games.
Now that the introductions are done, here's more on the story we are telling in this 13 week adventure. It's titled "Beyond the Crystal Cave". The back page was a fascinating history of the adventure. This adventure was first published nearly 30 years ago in the UK. Apparently that region of the world is not as fascinated by hack and slash as us American's and the original story rewarded players for avoiding conflict and using diplomacy. From the same page, I also found a favorite quote on this page I shared with our players on Session 1, "The adventure is designed to be both amusing and irritating to players, though simply amusing to the Dungeon Master." I love that.
From the DM perspective, this adventure was TOUGH to wrap my head around. It got easier once I took this story one encounter at a time, but it is full of pairs of names all related to other pairs of names. In trying to be brief I will summarize the story and names so far in Sessions 1-5.
Strange mists, winds, and creatures are now roaming the areas around the town of Crystalbrook. The Crystalbrookers blame the fey (a reace of magic/natural creatures) in the nearby Sildaine Forest. The fey, in turn, blame the Crystalbrookers for these problems and accuse them of practicing black magic. This has been escalating for a year now.
A final straw in this escalation causes the rulers of these two lands to attempt to come to resolution. Lady Anya Tamora, ruler of Crystalbrook, finds her son Orlando missing. On the same day, Lord Carric, ruler of the Sildaine Forest, finds his daughter Juliana missing. They both suspect that their children may be lovers, but disagree on the specifics and intentions. Count Varis Sybar, ruler of nearby Sybar, is called in to mediate and aid. Varis searches for heroes to be his agents in this matter. What do you know, several frequent Morningstar Games every Wednesday night at 6pm.who answered the call.
Talking with the gang at Morningstar Games, we decided to exchange links and I would start commenting on the Encounters games.
Now that the introductions are done, here's more on the story we are telling in this 13 week adventure. It's titled "Beyond the Crystal Cave". The back page was a fascinating history of the adventure. This adventure was first published nearly 30 years ago in the UK. Apparently that region of the world is not as fascinated by hack and slash as us American's and the original story rewarded players for avoiding conflict and using diplomacy. From the same page, I also found a favorite quote on this page I shared with our players on Session 1, "The adventure is designed to be both amusing and irritating to players, though simply amusing to the Dungeon Master." I love that.
From the DM perspective, this adventure was TOUGH to wrap my head around. It got easier once I took this story one encounter at a time, but it is full of pairs of names all related to other pairs of names. In trying to be brief I will summarize the story and names so far in Sessions 1-5.
Strange mists, winds, and creatures are now roaming the areas around the town of Crystalbrook. The Crystalbrookers blame the fey (a reace of magic/natural creatures) in the nearby Sildaine Forest. The fey, in turn, blame the Crystalbrookers for these problems and accuse them of practicing black magic. This has been escalating for a year now.
A final straw in this escalation causes the rulers of these two lands to attempt to come to resolution. Lady Anya Tamora, ruler of Crystalbrook, finds her son Orlando missing. On the same day, Lord Carric, ruler of the Sildaine Forest, finds his daughter Juliana missing. They both suspect that their children may be lovers, but disagree on the specifics and intentions. Count Varis Sybar, ruler of nearby Sybar, is called in to mediate and aid. Varis searches for heroes to be his agents in this matter. What do you know, several frequent Morningstar Games every Wednesday night at 6pm.who answered the call.
Thursday, December 1, 2011
My First Encounters DM Experience
DMing for someone else's campaign, for complete strangers, is/was a daunting experience. Mind you, I enjoyed it immensely, but didn't feel like I was prepared enough. Darn J-O-B getting in the way this week :) Of course the J-O-B is what allows me to do this in the first place.
Next week I will try and get more details on the monsters ahead of time, that was the main challenge. We had 7 players Wednesday, and I was teaching D&D to some, updating a few players, learning some new rules of the Feywild, and trying to figure out how to play some fairly complex low level monsters (poison darts, nets, and basic attacks, all with instant reactions to various PC actions, and this darn fog kept moving around the board - never had to role play weather before).
I did get some nifty game tokens out of it. Nothing fancy, but some colored token to represent monsters that are color coded and numbered. Should be handy for monsters in a pinch, instead of finding (if they exist) tokens with right faces drawn on them.
Can't wait until Saturday's "Thank you, but our princess is in another castle!"
Next week I will try and get more details on the monsters ahead of time, that was the main challenge. We had 7 players Wednesday, and I was teaching D&D to some, updating a few players, learning some new rules of the Feywild, and trying to figure out how to play some fairly complex low level monsters (poison darts, nets, and basic attacks, all with instant reactions to various PC actions, and this darn fog kept moving around the board - never had to role play weather before).
I did get some nifty game tokens out of it. Nothing fancy, but some colored token to represent monsters that are color coded and numbered. Should be handy for monsters in a pinch, instead of finding (if they exist) tokens with right faces drawn on them.
Can't wait until Saturday's "Thank you, but our princess is in another castle!"
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