This game design competition challenges competing DMs to create an exciting, dynamic and memorable encounter for use in a pulp-focused Eberron adventure.
The Rules:
Competitors may create an encounter at any encounter level, though bare in mind some level ranges (epic, for example) are less useful to other DMs.
The encounter must challenge a typical Eberron party make up. An encounter assuming an entire party of wizards is unlikely to be useful to others.
The encounter should require the party to make at least one of each of the following dice rolls:
An attack roll.
A physical skill check (Jump, Climb, Swim etc.).
A mental skill check (Bluff, Knowledge (any), Sense Motive etc.)
The encounter need not use monsters or NPCs, nor be combat focussed.
Perhaps most importantly, the encounter must be dynamic. The situation or environment must change round by round, keeping players on their toes. Changes may follow a cycle, a single or random path of events (though enough to last the encounter) or perhaps even a flow chart.
A time limit must apply during some part of or the entire encounter.
There is no word limit, but bare in mind that long, drawn out entries may not be read in their entirety by voters.
Entries may be edited only up to the time of the following post in the thread. After that, editing will result in disqualification from the competition.
Post your entries in this thread. The deadline for submissions is midnight GMT on Friday 27th October, after which a poll will be opened and voting on entries will begin.
Have fun, and good luck!
The Dragon Above - Eberron news and new content for both 3E and 4E. Home of the Eberron Bestiary.
Glad to see you're interested I'm afraid 'Reserving space' is not really an option here. Post it in a new, separate post when your entry is complete. That way no confusion with the rules will arise as to how a post was edited and when. Don't worry about being at the top for the voters, all the entries will be posted at the start of the poll thread anyway.
In fact, I'll make things a little easier...
Please do not post comments/questions in this thread...save it for the entries. I'll open up a new thread for those kinds of posts.
The Dragon Above - Eberron news and new content for both 3E and 4E. Home of the Eberron Bestiary.
The Premise "A fight breaks out in the tavern. Roll initiative." Yeah. Sure. Booooooring. "Fine. You're in a tavern in Skyway, at the very top of Sharn, and a fight breaks out. The tavern's supports are dispelled. Make balance checks to stay upright now that the building is plunging to the city below. Roll initiative." Now that's more like it.
The Setting The Edge of the Sky is a rather high-class restaurant that teeters at the edge of Skyway, the floating district that hangs above Sharn like a colonized cloud. Use your standard Tavern or Restaurant map for combat, if you desire. As long as its got walls, a floor, a ceiling, and furniture, it'll work.
The Reason Why the PCs happen to be at the Edge of the Sky is up to you. For the example provided below, the PCs are there to arrange a trade with a rather shady lord of Aundair, and House Tarkanan wants a piece of the pie. The whole pie, really. The tower is brought down by associates of the lord, who'd rather bury the evidence (ie: the PCs), and Tarkanan just gets caught in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Other suggestions: - The Edge of the Sky serves really good food. Perhaps your PCs are there simply to celebrate a completed quest, and a group of thugs are there to rob the place. As Pulp Fiction told us, a restaurant's got more money in it than a liquor store, and the employees aren't half-as-likely to risk defending it. The tower comes down because the thugs are incompetent (as thugs often are), mistakenly dispelling the building's Flying Butresses to bury the evidence before the robbery actually takes place. - Lady Elaydren, a member of the Citadel, or any other contact of the PCs has arranged a meeting, and Tarkanan or Daask or The Emerald Claw or whoever would rather the contact turn up dead. Unbeknownst to the thugs, the tower's coming down because the contact actually wants the PCs dead (or it was not in fact the patron that asked the PCs to meet him/her in the first place, but instead another individual or group that would like to the PCs to kick that nasty oxygen habit). - The intruders are after the PCs, and are after them with a vengeance. They intentionally bring the structure down to ensure the PCs are eliminated, and hope that their prepared methods of featherfalling serve them well.
The Rules
Surprise Round: The PCs, doing whatever they're doing, may make Listen checks to hear the sounds of climbing and bickering out the window. If they are successful, they are not surprised (and thus flat-footed) when the enemy (Tarkanan thugs in this case) burst in through the windows, swinging on ropes in classical villainous henchman fashion.
First Round: The first round of combat unfolds like any other standard "Roll Initiatives!" combat. The thugs are not unintelligent, so they use reasonable tactics like flanking and attacking from higher ground (leaping atop tables) to subdue/strike down any perceived threats, obvious adventurers being the most likely. PCs may make a DC 20 Sense Motive check to get a general hunch as to why the intruders are here, though most players will probably guess anyway.
Second Round, 360' up: The second round of combat is when things get interesting. Someone (in this case, a different foe of the PCs) dispels the Flying Butresses that support the structure and allow it to spit in face of physics, causing physics to give it a good smack to remind it who's in charge. Read or paraphrase the following: The everbright lanterns that light the room suddenly flicker and go out, and the various spells that keep the tower a comfortable atmosphere appear to fail. The room grows immediately cold and drafty as it goes dark. There is a moment’s silence, broken suddenly by the great rumble of crumbling masonry and scream of flexing iron. There is a sudden feeling of disorientation as the room pitches over, plummeting from its place at the edge of Skyway and out into the open air. The floor of the room immediately tilts to an awkward angle, requiring everyone to make Balance checks (DC 10) perform any action requiring motion on their part (move, attack, pull out a sword, etc). A Knowledge (Architecture and Engineering) check of DC 5 informs the character of the probable reason for the collapse, if that actually matters to them. Physics does not triumph entirely over magic, however, because the district of Skyway (and city of Sharn in general) are semi-prepared for events such as this. The tower is slowed by featherfall effects such that it descends at a rate slower than gravity would intend (allowing multiple rounds of descent, rather than an immediate splat upon the ground below). A successful Intelligence check (DC 10) made by a character who can judge the speed of descent (typically by being next to a window and seeing the ground coming) reveals how many rounds until the building hits the ground and stops. Throughout the building's descent, the thugs continue to attack the PCs.
Third Round, 300' up: Tables and chairs begin to loosen from their locations and slide down the angled room. Furniture performs a Bullrush against every occupant of importance (namely the PCs and enemies). Treat the furniture as being a medium creature with 10 Strength and 10 Dexterity for this instance. Failure on the part of the character indicates he has been knocked back by the falling furniture a number of feet determined by the Bullrush check. Regardless, everyone must make a DC 15 Balance check to remain on their feet as the room tips to an even steeper angle.
Fourth Round, 240' up: The room tips further, causing the rest of the furniture to fall and unimportant occupants (restaurant patrons) to lose their footing completely and fall as well. Treat these onrushes of obstacles as large creatures with 10 Strength and 16 Dexterity (for a net +4 bonus to bullrush and +2 bonus to touch attacks) as they make another Bullrush check against every important occupant. In addition, everyone still standing must make another DC 20 Balance check or fall prone and slide a number of feet equal to 20 minus a Climb check made on the part of the character. A character who maintains his footing may attempt to catch a falling comrade by making a touch attack as an attack of opportunity against AC (10 + comrade's size modifier to AC), and halt his comrade's descent provided he can drag a weight equal to both his own and his comrade's weight.
Fifth Round, 180' up: The room tips to such an extent that it now falls fully on its side, sending occupants crashing to the wall below and potentially out the windows that now gape open to the ground below. Occupants of importance must make DC 20 Climb checks to maintain their grasp on the "floor" (now a wall). Failure indicates they fall to the "wall" below (now the floor), taking any necessary fall-damage, and potentially falling out the windows. Every character now on the floor must make a DC 12 Reflex save to avoid this fate. Characters that fail fall through the windows. The broken glass is sharp, dealing 1d6 slashing damage with a successful attack roll (+0 attack bonus) against a falling character's flat-footed AC. From now on, any character adjacent to a window may attempt to leap through it and escape the falling building. A successful DC 10 Escape Artist check denies the windows an opportunity to "attack." Any character able to see the building's path of descent (ie: straight down) may make a DC 15 Spot check to notice the onrushing balcony of a tower. Characters who succeed (or are informed by their comrades) may brace themselves against the imminent impact (a move action), granting a +2 circumstance bonus to any Reflex saves made as a result of the collision. Henceforth, in addition to bracing, a character may make a DC 20 Knowledge (Architecture and Engineering) to place themselves in a structurally strong location, granting a further +2 circumstance bonus to Reflex when bracing against impact. From this point on, any character that can climb to a face of the building that is not currently the floor (ie: they climbed to the side wall and out a window this round) may attempt to leap to a nearby tower, rather than plummet further, with a DC 15 Jump check. Failure by less than 5 indicates he misses the balcony (or ledge, or outcropping) that he aimed for, but lands upon another 1d4x10 feet below, taking appropriate damage from the fall. Failure by more than 5 indicates the character misses any useful ledges and falls, faster than the building (unless his fall is also slowed), to the ground. Climbing out of the tower through a window (rather than jumping out) requires a DC 15 Climb check in addition to the Escape Artist check to avoid being slashed at by broken glass. Failure of the Climb check causes the character to lose their grip and fall from the building.
Sixth Round, 120' up: The falling building strikes the ledge of a tower. The impact causes the room to spin again, now to an upside-down orientation. Characters clinging to the outside of the building are thrown from it unless they make a DC 20 Climb check. Characters next to a window must make a DC 12 Reflex save to avoid falling out (and suffer an "attack of opportunity" of sorts from the broken glass). As the room jostles about from the impact, everyone still inside the building takes 1d6 bludgeoning damage (Reflex DC 14 for half) and falls prone upon the "ceiling" (now the floor). Any character able to see the building's path of descent may make a DC 15 Spot check to notice the skybridge below. Characters who succeed (or are informed by their comrades) may brace themselves against the imminent impact, again granting a +2 circumstance bonus to any Reflex saves made as a result of the collision.
Seventh Round, 60' up: The falling building smashes through a skybridge that spans between two towers, shattering it and tearing away a portion of itself. One third of the floor breaks away as it and the walls around it disintegrate. Roll to determine what third does so (1d4, 1: top third, 2: right third, 3: bottom third, 4: left third, assuming a square room). Characters in that area take 1d4 each of piercing and slashing damage, 2d6 bludgeoning damage (Reflex DC 15 for half bludgeoning) and are now free-falling, free of the building's slowed descent. This could be beneficial or more dangerous, depending on one's ability to survive falls. Everyone still inside the building takes 1d6 bludgeoning damage (Reflex DC 15 for half). Anyone actually on the skybridge takes 6d6 damage and falls as the bridge collapses under the falling building (Reflex DC 10 negates damage and fall). Any character that can see the onrushing ground below may make a DC 5 Knowledge (Architecture and Engineering) to correctly judge that the plateau below will win the upcoming contest of strengths between it and the Edge of the Sky, causing the falling building to stop falling rather suddenly. Once again, a character may brace themselves for impact as a move action, granting a +2 circumstance bonus to relevant Reflex saves. The falling building is now 1 round's worth of slowed descent from its final resting place.
Eighth Round, Impact: The building lands upon the unyielding surface of a tower plateau. Everyone within takes 3d6 bludgeoning damage as they strike the ground and the building collapses on them (Reflex DC 16 for half. Anyone actually under the falling building when it stops falling takes 5d6 damage (Reflex DC 16 for half). Any character that takes damage from this fall (either within or outside of the building itself) is buried under 1d6 pieces of rubble, each piece weighing d% pounds.
If the enemies are particularly hardy (or just really lucky), the fight may continue now that they and the PCs have hit the ground. Otherwise, all that's left to do is dig your comrades out and beat feet before the Watch shows up and decides to pin the catastrophe on you.
Characters with high Reflex Saves and/or physical skills (like a Rogue or Monk), characters with Damage reduction against some physical attacks (like an adamantine- or darkwood-bodied warforged), characters knowledgable about architecture (like some wizards, bards, and artificers), characters able to slow their own falls (such as arcane spellcasters or anyone willing to shell out for a Talisman of Feather Fall), and anyone who has no need to fear falls (such as a character capable of flight) are most effective in this encounter.
Sample foes:
Tarkanan Thug: Male Human Warrior3; CR 2; medium humanoid; HD 2d8+4; 13 hp; Init +6; Speed 30; AC 13 (17 with Shield), touch 11, flat-footed 12 (17 with Shield); Base Atk +3; Grp +5; Attack +5 melee (1d8+2, longsword) +4 ranged (1d4+2, dagger); SP Shield 1/day, caster lvl 1; AL CE; SV Fort +5, Ref +3, Will +0; Str 14, Dex 12, Con 14, Int 10, Wis 8, Cha 8. Skills and Feats: Intimidate +4, Jump +7, Spot +4; Aberrant Dragonmark (Shield), Improved Initiative. Possessions: Masterwork Studded Leather, Longsword, dagger, featherfall token, dirty cloak
Tarkanan Thief: Female half-elf rog2; CR 2; medium humanoid (elf); HD 2d6 + 2; 9 hp; Init + 2; Speed 30; AC 14, touch 12, flat-footed 11; Base Atk +1; Grp +2; Attack +3 melee (1d4+1 19-20/x2, mwk dagger) or +4 ranged (1d4+1 19-20/x2, mwk dagger); SA Sneak Attack +1d6; SQ trapfinding, evasion; SP: abberant dragonmark; AL NE; SV Fort +1, Ref +5, Will –1; Str 12, Dex 14, Con 12, Int 9, Wis 8, Cha 12. Skills and Feats: Balance +7, Bluff +6, Climb +6, Jump +6, Listen +4, Search +4, Spot +4; Aberrant Dragonmark. Possessions: leather armour, 2 mwk daggers, featherfall token, travelling cloak
The thieves tend to have, Burning Hands, Cause Fear, or Produce Flame from their marks.
Someone of great importance to the PCs has been captured (family, significant others, powerful NPC) by bloodthirsty pirate cultists and is about to be sacrificed at the height of a storm!
The Setting:
This encounter is set on a pirate ship Black Shadows, while the heroes pursue in another vessel known as The Sparrow. The sacrifice is occurring to the aft of the ship, above the captain’s cabin. In this example, the sacrifice is the wife of a PC, named Anna.
The Rules:
The Storm: Throughout the entire encounter, a massive storm rips through the high seas, battering everything in its path. The rain and waves washing over the gunnels of the ship reduces visibility beyond 15 feet to half, resulting in 50% cover and 75% cover beyond 30 feet.
Boarding the Ship: Every character must make a DC 12 Use Rope check to swing from one boat to the next. Alternatively a character may make a DC 17 Jump check to clear the 15 foot gap between boats, assuming a running start.
The Ritual: The sacrifice is occurring on the poop deck of the ship, located above the Captain’s cabin, with five priests forming a circle around Anna. A successful Knowledge (religion) check against a DC of 20 identifies which priest is currently leading the ritual.
On the first round after any of the PCs board the pirate’s ship, the priests begin chanting and the pirates engaged the PCs in melee, possibly with a few archers from above to peg off spellcasters.
On the second round ghostly wails can be heard and illusionary wraiths circle Anna. This imposes a -2 penalty on saving throws against fear effects and a -5 penalty against Listen checks. A Knowledge (Arcana) check or a Will save against a DC of 17 allows the character to realize that the wraiths are illusionary, negating the penalty against fear, but not against listen checks. This effect lasts for three rounds.
By the third round, the Captain finally activates the concealed elemental at the aft of the ship, in order to anyone else from boarding the Black Shadow. The sudden burst forwards forces everyone to make a DC 10 Balance check to remain on their feet if they are on deck, or a DC 15 Climb check to avoid falling out of the rigging. Spellcasters must make a DC 17 Concentration check.
At the beginning of the fourth round, a mystic red mist spreads across the breadth of the ship as the ritual nears completion. Everyone gains fast healing 2 until the ritual ends.
The fifth round heralds the arrival of a massive wave, chrashing into the side of the ship. Everyone must make a DC 17 Balance check or DC 20 be knocked prone. All spellcasters must make a DC 23 Concentration check or lose their spell.
On the sixth round, the sacrifice is complete and the leading priest stabs Anna with the sacrificial dagger, slaying her instantly.
The sacrifice can be interrupted in three ways, making the lead priest fail a Concentration check, by normal means, inflicting 25 points of damage to the lead priest in one round, or by killing all five priests involved in the ritual. Both of the former two options force the priests to begin the ritual again from round one, while the latter example ends the ceremony permanently.
Adaptation:
This encounter can be used for a rescue encounter from any cult, such as the Dragon Below, Blood of Vol, the Dark Six or Radiant Idols. Perhaps they wish to free a powerful servant of the Rajahs, fulfill some fell passage of The Prophecy, or they simply revel in the slaughter of innocents.
The Domains of the Priests should be adapted as appropriate. Likewise, it may be appropriate to change the race of the pirates to fit the theme of the cult.
This encounter can be quickly adapted to any of the seas of Eberron. Likewise, it can also be adapted to a land based setting. Take for example a sacrifice on an erupting volcano. Change the gap between ships to a ravine filled with lava at the base of the mountain. The pirates become ‘ordinary’ cultists or hunters. The ash or dust from the eruption provides the same cover as the rain, while tremors from the eruption can force balance and concentration checks.
The Premise and Setting You’re all fighting in a house, or maybe it’s a cottage or an tavern. A cottage (or tavern) on a hill… no, not exactly a hill. Is it on the shield of a turtle? Actually, it’s not (although that definitely would be interesting). It’s a mountain! Which is kind of like a hill, only taller and more importantly snowier.
Because there will be snow, maybe this tavern (or house/cottage/inn) is resting on the snowy caps of the Icetop Mountains of Karrnath, maybe on the Blackcaps or Howling Peaks in Breland, it’s up to you! The only thing that’s important is that there’s snow, lots of snow. Why? Because snow is fun… and dangerous. Especially when said snow is roaming down from the mountaintop in the form of a horrific and ever destroying AVALANCHE! You heard me! Avalanche! It’s a fight, in some sort of small tavern (or maybe a tent), but there’s an avalanche coming, threatening to destroy trees, tavern and everybody inside.
What will kill the players first? The cottage crumbling down on the heads of the players, or the undead soldiers inside of the cottage?
Inside the cottage There are enemies inside. In this tavern there’s an artifact that the players got their hands on, on their last quest to Xen’Drik. However, recently an agent of the Emerald Claw stole the item from the PCs, and finally after weeks of pursuit, they encounter the thief in before mentioned tavern on the side of the mountain.
Only problem is, he isn’t alone. He was meeting a necromancer who could help him identify the artifact. And this necromancer brought friends… well, not so much friends as former Karrnathi undead soldiers. When the players confront the agent and the necromancers, hooded characters in the tavern suddenly show themselves, they’re zombies and skeletons, and the fight is on. Roll for initiative.
The Situation The players want their artifact. The Emerald Claw agent wants it too. The players need to fight their way through zombies and skeletons to get to their artifact, before the avalanche hit. But this is a tavern, and there will be innocents there too. Some of them might help the players, some will panic and some will be unable to do anything out of fear of the zombies and skeletons suddenly revealing themselves. Will the players be able to save the people in the tavern? Will they just get the artifact and leave the people to die a snowy death? Or maybe try and stop the avalanche by means of magic? The necromancer and agents have to fear the avalanche too, however, their undead soldiers won’t. Since they are mindless… and undead. You don’t like the Emerald Claw? Zombies and necromancers? Here are some other suggestions:
- The Lord of Blades. You can easily switch Emerald Claw with disciples of the Lord of Blades. If they can shield themselves from the crushing snow, they can survive even if they are buried under the snow, and eventually dig themselves out. - The Inspired won’t care about their humanoid hosts. They would probably just try and keep the PCs in the tavern, and then retrieve the artifact later. - Maybe it’s fanatic members of the Cult of the Dragon Below, willing to die for their cause. “Better the artifact stay buried under the snow, than it falling in the hands of no good adventurers!”
The Rounds Surprise round: Nobody is aware of the avalanche just yet. Except of course people who make the Listen DC 30 to hear it.
The foe is revealed. Mexican stand off. What the players don’t know, that some of the people in the tavern (sitting shadow, behind stuff or simply hooded) are undead. Thus the players might be a little reckless, and maybe even arrogant. A typical party will probably have more members than just two, and will then outnumber the agent and his necromancer ally.
A spot DC 25 will reveal the undead in the crowd.
Round 1: The undead reveal themselves. Use the Karranthi Undead in the ECS for these foes. The fight is one, the people in the tavern are panicking. Maybe there’s a couple of warriors, or maybe even a Paladin of the Silver Flame in the tavern to help the players.
The rest of the rounds will be a lot of fighting, and also the players will have to help the people in the tavern. A good way to make that a little more interesting is to make the player use some social skills, intimidate to force a panicking man to snap out of it, or maybe diplomacy to convince the young mother to stop hiding under the table.
Also, how close is the tavern to a town? It may be too far away for the guests to find safety; it may be close enough for the players to simply convince everybody to flee.
After a number of rounds (2d8 or whatever you feel like) the avalanche will hit. The DC for hearing it will go down by 5 every round. When the DC hits 10 it’s clear to everybody what’s happening. When either the Necromancer or the Agent of the Emerald Claw becomes aware of the avalanche, they’ll try to flee and leave their minions to take care of the PCs.
The Enemies Like I mentioned before the undead are the Karranthi troops mentioned in the ECS (p.292). A lso for both the necromancer and the Emerald Claw agent there are fine examples of those in the ECS. Under The Order of the Emerald Claw (p.245), and the Necromancer (p.228).
Both of them will try and escape when they realize an avalanche is about to hit. The necromancer can use his Cause Fear spell to really spread panic in the tavern, if the threat of the avalanche and the undead soldiers aren’t enough.
The Avalanche As noted before, the DC in the first surprise round to hear the Avalanche is 30, and will decrease by 5 for every round. If the PC happened to end up outside for some reasons, or look through the window they’ll be able to spot the avalanche from as far away as 1d10x500 feet, spot DC20. When the avalanche has moved half of that distance, everybody can see it no spot check required.
From the SRD about avalanches: “A landslide or avalanche consists of two distinct areas: the bury zone (in the direct path of the falling debris) and the slide zone (the area the debris spreads out to encompass). Characters in the bury zone always take damage from the avalanche; characters in the slide zone may be able to get out of the way. Characters in the bury zone take 8d6 points of damage, or half that amount if they make a DC 15 Reflex save. They are subsequently buried (see below). Characters in the slide zone take 3d6 points of damage, or no damage if they make a DC 15 Reflex save. Those who fail their saves are buried. Buried characters take 1d6 points of nonlethal damage per minute. If a buried character falls unconscious, he or she must make a DC 15 Constitution check or take 1d6 points of lethal damage each minute thereafter until freed or dead.”
Depending on the level of the party, I’d may amp up the damage a little bit. Also the building crushing down ought to cause some damage. I’d either add another 6d6-12d6 for the building, depending on how big parts hit the players. Reflex save dc 18 for half damage.
If/when the avalanche hits the tavern; the building will collapse after 1d6 rounds.
The speed of the avalanche is 500 feet per. I’d probably slow it down a little bit to let the player’s escape a little easier, especially if you use the wagonrescuething mentioned later in this thread.
Stuff to change and add I mentioned before how you can change the enemies. But there’s also a lot of other stuff to do to fit this encounter into your adventure. The tavern could really be anything, but if the buildings is too big and solid, like a castle or fortress or something, the avalanche will become less of a threat. Also, if it’s not a public place, there might not be any other people than the PCs and the foes. Thus eliminating the challenge of saving people, and be heroes. You can change the building into something that won’t get destroyed, but maybe get buried. Now the villains and the players are in the same boat, buried under tons of snow.
You can also always add levels to the villains if you’re players are high levels, it’s easy. The artifact can be anything, maybe it wasn’t stolen from the players, and maybe the players want to steal it themselves. It doesn’t even have to be an item; it could be a person they have to rescue.
If you don’t like it to be a tavern, you can make it a small temple where the villains are performing a ritual and are about to kill some innocent people when the PCs show up. Then there’s villains to fight, and people to save. Maybe the villains are trying to summon something, and they have to fight that thing too.
Solutions Well, how do they survive all of this? The easy way is some sort of portal or teleport spell, easy and maybe a little boring.
Maybe the wizard uses some sort of shield spell to guide the avalanche into another direction. If you really want to amp the pulp, and it does say pulp encounter in the title thread, there’s always the possibility that there’s a couple of wagons outside the tavern/temple/inn and the players have to ride the avalanche down into safety.
A lot of fire spells could ease up the avalanche a bid, maybe preventing it from hitting the tavern as hard as it would have. A wall of spell can also be helpful.
I hope you guys can use this, I had a lot of fun making it.
I'd like to thank my wife, my agent, and all the little people that believed in my talent enough to elevate me beyond their crude little world. We did it, guys!
Kidding. I don't have a wife.
Seriously though, thanks to all who voted for me, and thanks as well for all those that competed against me. I wasn't really looking forward to winning by default. Well, not too much, anyway. Virtual back-pats all around!
