u/underdabridge

It's a city. I know my players. They will want to just hit each tower as fast as they can and ignore the rest.

I don't want to let them look at the whole map and say "I'm going there!” pointing to the next Tower. I want to simulate looking through a city. On the other hand, they are towers so should be reasonably visible from afar.

Anyway, I haven't used a map like this before and just want to know how you did it or are planning to do it. I mean mechanically. Did you show them the whole map, show them part of it and fog the rest? Or just use theatre of the mind to describe the surroundings? Or what?

Thanks!

Like many of you I'm trying to change up the Chain Lightning game. This will be done on an appropriate battlemap similar to lots that have shown up in this subreddit.

For the first match the PCs will have no way to learn the rules.

They will need to figure it out, find the rules in a tower or library, and win a match to get the McGuffin from the evocation tower, as per the Expanded Tower of Ythryn rules.

Chain Lightning "Fantasy Dodge Ball"

Teams: 5 PCs vs. 5 galvan magen.

Goal: First team to 7 points.

Initiative: Not used. Coin toss for first possession. Play proceeds one player at a time from each team. (one Pc, one magen, second PC second magen etc.). Getting hit gives team possession.

Scoring: Normal ball hit = 1 point. Charged ball hit = 2 points. Players are not eliminated when hit.

Activations: Teams alternate activating one player. Everyone must activate once before anyone can activate again.

Turn: Move up to Speed and take one Game Action. Picking up a loose ball is free.

Pass: Automatically succeeds to a teammate within 40 ft. unless intercepted.

Intercept: If a pass travels within 5 ft. of an opponent, that opponent can use its Reaction to make a Dexterity save against the thrower's Throw DC. Success = catch the ball. One interception attempt per pass.

Throw DC: 8 + proficiency bonus + Strength or Dexterity modifier, thrower's choice.

Shoot: Target within 40 ft. makes a Dexterity save against Throw DC. Failure = hit and score. Success = miss; ball becomes loose.

Pressure: If an opponent is within 5 ft. of the thrower, the target has Advantage on its save.

Charging: A pass whose path crosses a lightning mast charges the ball. The receiver catches it normally. Charged balls can be passed and intercepted while retaining their charge.

Live Ball: A creature carrying a charged ball has half Speed and cannot take Reactions.

Overload: If a creature ends its activation holding a charged ball without passing or shooting it, the charge dissipates.

Charged Shot: Scores 2 points. Shooting consumes the charge whether the shot hits or misses.

After scoring: Both teams reset to their halves. The team that conceded receives the ball and activates first.

Legal character abilities: Ordinary movement and appropriate movement-enhancing class features are permitted.

Penalty Stasis: Illegal actions immediately end the player's activation. The player drops the ball and cannot move, take actions, Bonus Actions, or Reactions through the end of their next scheduled activation.

Illegal actions: Spells, teleportation, flight, magical manipulation of the ball, forced movement, and abilities that charm, restrain, stun, or otherwise directly interfere with another contestant.

Violence: Deliberately attacking or damaging another contestant outside the game's ball mechanics ends the match and causes the magen to become hostile.

Magen: Speed 30 ft.; Throw DC 15; Dexterity save +4; flight is illegal.

The encounter stat block is here on Google Drive

I've changed up the Rime of the Frostmaiden module to have an Eldritch twist. There are fissures in the lost Netherese city of Ythryn through which a Lovecraft level threat is coming. Picture, coming through the metal of the city a being that's too big to fit. Instead it's "tentacles" are coming through like a finger through the crack in the door.

When they get to Ythryn this is going to be their first and main encounter with that creature. (Their ultimate goal will be to shoot Ythryn into space far far away.)

I don't want this to kill my party of 5 level 9 adventurers. I want it to feel awe inspiring. And I want the creatures that fall off the monster to suck out some knowledge so that the creature plausibly knows what they are planning.

Appreciate any help and advice.

The encounter stat block is here on Google Drive

I've changed up the Rime of the Frostmaiden module to have an Eldritch twist. There are fissures in the lost Netherese city of Ythryn through which a Lovecraft level threat is coming. Picture, coming through the metal of the city a being that's too big to fit. Instead it's "tentacles" are coming through like a finger through the crack in the door.

When they get to Ythryn this is going to be their first and main encounter with that creature. (Their ultimate goal will be to shoot Ythryn into space far far away.)

I don't want this to kill my party of 5 level 9 adventurers. I want it to feel awe inspiring. And I want the creatures that fall off the monster to suck out some knowledge so that the creature plausibly knows what they are planning.

Appreciate any help and advice.

This is one of the most upvoted posts on this subreddit

The grand re-working has the players defeat Auril at Grimskalle, only for her to reveal she was trying to keep the lost city frozen to keep a greater evil at bay. For some of you, the twist was wrapped up in Levistus. Others used Father Llymic.

I want to use a Great Old One who is inscrutible but who makes pacts with the Arcane Brotherhood to further his plans.

Those who did this kind of path - what is your advice? How did you make it Eldritch Horror? What did you toss from the adventure and what did you keep? What monsters did you gu

The eject button in my car has fallen off. The front display comes up revealing the CD insert when the car hits a bump, causing various complications.

I don't really like Honda's base unit anyway so I'm shopping for after market replacements. I've done a fair amount of reading and research in this subreddit and elsewhere but I'm a bit overwhelmed and worried about finding out about complications after replacement that I didn't expect. Is there a primer you can point me to? Or some good advice on what to get and what to watch out for? Or should I ultimately just find a second hand Honda replacement unit?

• If I get a new unit I want to be able to make use of Android Auto.
• I mostly use my phone for GPS mapping and Youtube music
• I still want the radio to work
• I still want to be able to use my steering wheel to adjust things on the display, like I can now (skipping songs, controlling volume)
• I want simple installation. Rather not change to a new back up camera.
• still need my side camera to work.
• Still need to be able to control other settings within the Honda, like, for example, changing how the door locks work upon touch.
• I don't care about audio sound and won't be upgrading any of that.

I don't really know what I don't know, so I'm giving up and asking for help and warnings.

I am running a published adventure where the PCs need to pass through a relatively small room with a basilisk in it. But the PCs are a party of five 8th level characters. A basilisk isn't going to last a full round. So I thought about making it a multiple basilisk encounter. But then I realized *basilisks are not immune to basilisk gazes!*

​

So a multi basilisk encounter like that makes entirely no sense, right?

​

Right?

Marta Marthannis is possessed by an old party member from her adventuring day. I read the book so I know that she stays possessed because she doesn't want to get rid of the ghost.

What I'm asking is more of the meta reason why. This seems very random. It seems like a Chekhov's Gun that doesn't go off.

So my real question is: does this come up somewhere else? Is this relevant in some forgotten realms novel or another module or something?

Marta Marthannis is possessed by an old party member from her adventuring day. I read the book so I know that she stays possessed because she doesn't want to get rid of the ghost.

What I'm asking is more of the meta reason why. This seems very random. It seems like a Chekhov's Gun that doesn't go off.

So my real question is: does this come up somewhere else? Is this relevant in some forgotten realms novel or another module or something?

In my world the PCs are about to arrive at Revel's End to interview or prison break Vaelish Gant. But they're too late!! Avarice has broken him out already! How did she do it? What mess does it leave for the PCs to clean up??

More details:

• In my world, the PCs are level 8. They are leaving the fortress of Grimskalle on the isle of Solstice having defeated Auril and her Roc, ended the Rime, and gotten the Codicil of White.

• They are going directly to Revel's End because much earlier in the adventure they met Avarice who tried to get them to go prison break out Vaelish Gant because he knows where to find the entrance of the lost city of Ythryn.

• (The party needs to find Ythryn to stop an Eldritch Horror from breaking free and destroying the world)

• But Avarice didn't wait around. When the PCs declined to take on the quest to free Vaelish Gant she advanced the story herself and, through her efforts, left the PCs an awful mess to clean up. What's the mess? Did she:

a) Drop a false hydra in the sewers? If so where and how would she come by such a thing?

b) Drop in a Slaad Egg and cause the Slaad infestation to happen (nobody in my group has a Slaad egg).

c) Do something else? What?

All ideas welcome.

What would you do under these specific circumstances?

1. We are using 5e2024 but we're fine using 5e2014 rules when 5e2024 is silent.

2. I know the (optional) rules in 2014 are a contested acrobatics check (DMG p. 271)

3. KEY QUESTIONS: a) If the monk gets up on the Rocs back - what would you let the Roc do to the monk? b) What checks would you have the monk make to stay on the bird?

Do I need body text to post?

This is related to another thread I just posted but a different question. Looking for advice.

A PC got a berserker axe. After a fight with the party, the PC was knocked unconscious and relieved of the axe. The PC should want the axe back desperately. The player obviously does not.

The party plans to leave the axe behind on a remote island or drop it in the icy blue sea, and head into town to get the curse removed.

What tools can I and should I use to enforce this conflict, if any? The player will already have disadvantage with other weapons, which may be enough. But should there be a charisma saving throw that causes the player to attack anyone trying to dispose of the axe? or, alternatively to try to leave the party and return to the axe? Or even to dive into the water after it? What would you do?

The player in question is pretty non-confrontational and unmotivated so I don't expect them to rise to the roleplaying occasion.

Cursed berserker axe - the party throws it into the deep blue sea (despite its owner being unwilling to part with it - they manage). Take the cursed party member to get the curse removed. Remove curse is cast. Problem solved?