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Jan 16, 2013 -- 11:13AM, merb101 wrote:

This weekend my 4E group is turning its attention to a new story arc. They are traveling to the Lake Nen region in the Nentir Vale (we are using and love the points of light campaign setting) to find information on a dragon's lair in the Feywild. They've basically said they are riding directly to the town of Nenlast, unless something interesting catches their eye along the way (ie "DM, toss us something interesting along the way").

The setup is simple: The party comes across a fight already in progress. Among snow-covered ruins and rocky terrain, a group of Dragonborn (low-level members of Dythan's Legion) are fending off an attack by the Tiger Claw Barbarian tribe (both groups in the Threats to the Nentir Vale book). The party can watch the fight play out to a stalemate, can jump in and help either side, doesn't matter to me.

Story hooks
- The Dragonborn are searching the ruins for an artifact of Arkhosia. They have found a large stone door leading to an underground complex but can't figure out how to open it.
- The initial attack by the barbarians killed several members, forcing one of the Dragonborn to be field promoted. Another officer lies dying and has been poisoned by a Tigerclaw weapon. The poison prevents them from magically healing him, and his wounds are getting worse.
- The Tigerclaw tribe are attacking for two reasons: The ruins are considered sacred ground and the Dragonborn have captured one of their tribe and are holding her hostage.
- The Dragonborn believe the hostage, a young shifter woman, is the key to opening the door. They plan on forcing her to cooperate, one way or another.
- The shifter girl was to be a vassal of the white dragon Bitterstrike. If the tribe cannot deliver her within X time limit, the dragon will come after the tribe. And, if the tribe can convince Bitterstrike the Dragonborn is the enemy, possibly after the girl.
- The Dragonborn are outnumbered. They are growing increasingly desperate.
- A plant called Blueroot is in the hills near the tribe's camp. It can cure the poison which ails the Dragonborn officer who is dying.
- Unbeknownst to both sides, something powerful and hungry waits on the other side of the stone door.

And here is the real trick to the whole scenario: Neither side is the bad guys. Both have clear goals, believe they are right, and are doing what they believe is best.

Enter the heroes.

Im planning on introducing both Bitterstrike, Dythan's Legion and Tiger Claw clan into the campaign (quite the coincidence). do you mind if i borrow (steal) this encounter?

Jan 18, 2013 -- 4:59AM, merb101 wrote:

Edit: Autocorrect caused me to call Zez Zeke. Sorry bout that.

you monster...

@Iserith, welcome back.  It's good to "see" you again.  Also, thanks for posting; I like what you've come up with there.


@nerraDetroK, that sounds like an interesting win/loss scenario.  I don't know that I have anything to add other than, imo the PCs need to find out what was at stake as soon after the encounter as possible.

Just got to use this one again in the play-by-post games.

So after the nasty encounter with 3 elite controllers, 5 lvl-1 soldiers, and a bunch of minions (this is a tough, penultimate fight of the adventure), when looting the bodies, there is a magic pouch--bag of holding--that is moving.

Remember that Bag-of-Rats abuse tactic? Well, now it is a TRAP. Bag of holding filled with Rat Swarms. When openned, it is a close burst 1, each unoccupied square is filled with a Rat Swarm.

This is not a challenging encounter for the party unless they failed to take an extended rest before opening the sack.
First party I ran with this didn't even let me finish the sentence. "You find implements, mundane sickles, coin pouches, a magic bag--" "I open the bag." No encounter powers, no second wind, no healing... I did take pity and limit it to 3 swarms because I didn't want to kill the party.
Second party was play-by-post, and they specifically did rest and heal and recover from the tough fight, so this time round it is just a joke-fight, but one I will take seriously.

Caravan Guard Duty:
OK, the party was assigned to escourt the caravan in exchange for major incentives (would take to long to explain). So, the caravan is very long--it is going to build an entire new settlement: Over 100 wagons. So, the caravan is going to be attacked several times. Does the party want to spread out to cover more of the caravan, or cluster to concentrate in one area? Or some other plan?
If they concentrate, the goblin raiders will have 1d6 rounds of looting/sabotage before the players arrive. If they spread out, one player (random roll) is at the scene for round one, and one player(or pair) arrives each round after. The goblins will fight when attacked, but any goblin not in melee will be trying to rob supplies from the carts or cause damage instead of focussing on the characters. So theses are pretty easy fights, but each round a goblin is able to cause damage to the caravan slows it down or risks the success of the caravan in the first place. Skill rolls can help the caravan recover in between attacks. How much damage do the goblins do to the caravan each round? Roll a d6--that's how many hours delay the attack causes. Or maybe something else. It isn't just a combat about killing, and it isn't a pure skill challenge, but somewhere in the middle, and allows the players' choices to directly affect the outcome.