Norse Campaign Journal

[Ragnarok]

Re: Norse Campaign Journal

 

Manic, I think that at some point during the summer I told you not to include nightvision. I didn't think that it was quite the right feel. Standard dwarves should rely by the torchlight/magical illumination to get by, with some of the more mystically-inclined dwarves possessing nightvision.

 

I did forget a couple important things in the previous post.

 

First of all, the caster's magic killed a captive for every turn until she was K.O.ed/killed. The PCs made it out with 6/18 villagers.

 

Second of all, Jax picked up a nice pair of (magical) boots from the caster. This makes two magical items not paid for in points, so his axe is going bye-bye, since it served its purpose in quickly dispatching the Alfar caster.

 

My house rule is only one "freebie" magical item in the group at a time, and once it becomes useful in a big way, it goes away. So, the PCs should use them as tools rather than crutches throughout the entire campaign.

[Shadowsoul]

Re: Norse Campaign Journal

 

Don't know if you've read it before but here's a link to a campaign write-up that I always thought was good descriptively. Mine was a bit clunky in comparison I think.

And Off We Go!

[Ragnarok]

Re: Norse Campaign Journal

 

Session #10:

 

The PCs report to Alric about the content of the previous session. Alric tells them to rest, as he will need them again soon. They take some time and repair equipment, sharpen weapons, train, etc. They also volunteer to help out with tasks around the fort. Ragnar, the guard captain (and Hersir), sends them out with 8 other men to help repair and rebuild the village outside the fort. The other men are not wearing armor, but are carrying weapons. In fact, everybody carries their weapons, all the time. After a good day's work, they head back to the mead hall where they refuel and rest. Alric approaches them with another task.

 

During the two weeks or so when they were traveling to and from Alfgard, a messenger came in from the Bear Clan, one of the Northern Clans. He reported that villages were being destroyed, completely wiped out with no known survivors. Mists are moving southward, leaving only death and destruction in their path. Sounds like a perfect side job for the PCs! Alric sends the PCs to Hammerfall, the center of power for the Bear Clan, which also happens to be a nearby trading port village. He sends them down to Knudsen, who will swiftly ferry them in the Long Serpent over to Hammerfall along with some trading supplies. Early in the morning, the PCs, Knudsen, and some other warriors set off for Hammerfall. They sail for most of the day until a storm sets in, then they make camp on a small island about halfway between Carrock and Hammerfall. The island is rocky, but heavily wooded with mostly coniferous trees. Before the Year of Blood, there used to be a thriving trading village on this island, a sort of waypoint from one port to another. Now the village is an abandoned wreck, a shadow of its former prosperity. Nevertheless, the group approaches cautiously, wary of anyone or anything that might have taken up residence in the meantime. They find nothing. It rains heavily through the night, but they manage to find enough shelter.

 

They get up early the next morning and sail the rest of the way to Hammerfall. The terrain is similar of that of the island, rocky and rugged with thick, dark coniferous forest. The village itself is fairly large, with earthworks and spiked log fortifications around the perimeter, ending at the shore. The building layout consists of a large mead hall in the middle of the village, with four groups of four longhouses in each quadrant surrounding the mead hall. The architectural ornamentation is slightly different from Carrock, in that there are a lot of carvings depicting bears, or forests, or both! The people of this clan are of a slightly different appearance as well. Whereas the people of Carrock are usually tall, lean, with large percentages of blond hair and blue eyes, the people of the Bear Clan tend to be a little stockier, with larger percentages of dark brown and red hair. Many of the thanes, like the ones from Carrock, have tattoos. Most of the people wear bear pelts, or have bear-focused ornamentation, such as claws. However, they are very respectful of the bears, and bear hunting is regarded as a very honored event, a rite of passage for many men of the bear clan. Not far from the village is a large cavern system next to wooded hills, where many bears live. The Bear Clan do not take kindly to encroaching hunters killing their bears. Among the warrior elite are the berserkers, fearsome warriors who are basically the Jarl's vanguard.

 

The PCs are hailed by the dockmaster, who is expecting their arrival and directs them to the mead hall, where the Jarl Torvald resides. He greets them, invites them to partake of his food and drink, and tells them of the destruction of the villages. The destruction is taking place in the Northern villages, starting from the coast. They don't know who or what is causing it, but they don't think it's the Wolf Clan, as their territories have been hit too. Torvald tells them to go to Estwick, the village he thinks is next to be hit. On the way out, the PCs see Sigurd, the lucky NPC from the fight at the Thing. His weapons and armor look very nice, and are certainly an upgrade from last they saw him. Apparently, Alric put in a good word for him, citing his valor at the Thing (Torvald is Eiric's heir), and Sigurd managed to land a pretty hefty promotion. Not to mention lots of attention from the pretty ladies in town...

 

The PCs travel for a couple days toward Estwick on horses, but when they get close they see lots of smoke rising above the treeline. They cautiously approach, and see that the village has been burned fairly recently, and the corpses of the slain defenders litter the village. They also find a few bodies similar to what they saw chasing them in ships in the first session, the Draugr. In their searching the PCs find a dying man with several large arrows in his chest. He has enough life in him just to croak out "They came...in....the mist..." and dies. Meanwhile, they PCs see through the trees that a large mist is moving Southward along the coast. The PCs gallop back to Hammerfall and alert Torvald, who puts the village on alert and defensive measures are taken. The PCs help prepare the village for the rest of the night, and fog starts rolling in with heavy rain and thunder by early morning. Jax puts up some ice walls, and Felnor tries to inspire the men. The fog gets thicker, but soon white eyes start to emerge from the mist, then the outline of Draugr warriors forms. They stride toward the village from all sides, including walking up from the bottom of the sea, emerging from the shoreline. A fierce combat ensues. The Draugr are very tough opponents, and kill most of the defenders, but the Bear clan manages to hold out. Torvald takes a few hits, and loses half of his berzerkers. The PCs get beat up pretty badly, but Hadhood especially. He was posted at the gate, in the thick of the fight, and one of the Draugr got a lucky hit with his sword, a headshot that did almost full damage. The blow split his helmet and cut him pretty badly on his head, dealing 14 out of Hadhood's 15 BODY, and dealing an unholy amount of stun. Luckily, a berserker pulled him to relative safety, but he was out for pretty much the remainder of the fight.

 

Reactions:

 

The players seemed to enjoy this new area. The first night in Hammerfall, they were challenged by some of the clansmen to arm-wrestling matches (opposed STR rolls). They seemed to heartily enjoy this. Jax lost his roll, Felnor tied his, and Hadhood won his. I think they liked a slightly different cultural exposure. Jax's player liked how the Draugr came out of the water, though he wasn't expecting it. I think the combat was a little frustrating due to some bad rolls, and I think the whole mass combat thing is getting a little old (though I must confess, I think I am actually much more tired of it than they are). I think the players also enjoyed the abandoned village bit. I'll have to expand on that. Overall, a good session I think. It's always nice to get a positive reaction from the detail I've put into an area.

[Casper]

Re: Norse Campaign Journal

 

Yes that last fight was rather rough on my skull...

 

I would agree Rag that the massed combat would get tiresome expecially for a GM as it is difficult to make the battles different and challenging at the same time?

 

Since you've been asking us about what we want for our final session (were not ending on that note right?) perhaps a non-combat session which raps up the current mission in Hammerfall, and perhaps explains why Felnor suddenly has to depart, and leaves us in a place to easily explain Manic's enterence into the campaing might be a good waypoint for next fall?

[Manic Typist]

Re: Norse Campaign Journal

 

To spice up the combats, especially mass combats, I´d suggest adding specific objectives or goals to accomplish (beyond ¨Be standing at the end of the fight.¨)

 

Kill this Specific Person. Stop this Person from doing This, or going There. Rescue so and so. Break this Item, open this door for Reinforcements. Relieve this group. Escape!

 

All kinds of stuff.

[Ragnarok]

Re: Norse Campaign Journal

 

Session #11: The last one until Fall.

 

The PCs take a breather after the battle at Hammerfall. Jax searches through the Draugr bodies to find anything special, and finds a rather nice helmet that had belonged to what appeared to be the Draugr Hersir. It is an iron helmet, with chainmail attached around the bottom so it covers the neck. It has gold inlays of various sea monster motifs and ornate tribal symbols. In an act of kindness that seemed to go rather unappreciated, Jax gave this very nice helmet to Hadhood, who gruffly took it with some mumbling. I suppose I would be grumpy too if I had nearly been split in two, but still. The PCs then assist with repairing the defenses, while riders from Hammerfall go out to gather the people of the Bear clan from the surrounding villages to bolster Hammerfall's defenses. The PCs stay for about three days, alternately resting and working. Jax lays some more ice down to fortify the palisade walls, and Felnor uses inspiration to fortify the resolve and confidence of the men. After a while, the riders and clansmen arrive, and Torvald asks the PCs to send a warning to Alric that his territory might be in danger, since it lies on the coast. The PCs ask about the origin of the Draugr, and discover from Torvald that there was a human clan far to the North that were especially feared raiders that had sea monster motifs on their gear and ships. They never were a part of the alliance of the 5 clans, so nobody really knew much about what was going on with them. Their raiding stopped shortly after the Year of Blood, and then soon after the Draugr mists started appearing in the seas. The PCs prepare to head out the next morning.

 

The PCs arise and start to depart. It is a cold, foggy day, though thankfully the fog is not of Draugr origin. As they start to ride out, they notice a rather large raven hopping around outside the gate. It looks at them, cocking its head from side to side, croaking and clicking. The PCs leave it and carry on with their three day journey to the Raven Clan territory, which they must cross in order to get back to Alric. For the first two nights, their are normal watches with the exception that they see a raven every night. The third night, they make camp in a heavily wooded area in the middle of some large stones. During Jax's watch, the raven reappears. Jax, who had been passing the time by trying to blast flies out of the air with his ice spell, decides to throw a stick at the raven. His attack roll is so bad that he almost hits the sleeping Felnor in the face. The raven flies off, and Jax sits down among the stones. He falls into an irresistable sleep, and so begins the dream vision shared by all the PCs.

 

The view is of this ring of stones, which now goes into timelapse mode to show the reversal of the many decades of weathering and erosion that have transformed what once was a ritual circle into the fallen, crumbling stones they now are. A mystical fog rolls in, and out of it appears a large, muscular, bearded man with armor decorated with raven feathers. The view then flies far to the North, where they now see a large village with ships and decorations very much alike to the Draugr gear. The humans in this village seem to be prospering, and their ships set off in all directions. The view swings over the shore, into what appears to be a tidal cave. Out of the darkness they see two burning red eyes and feel a sense of dread. Another timelapse, and the view shifts over to a fierce struggle. A tall, muscular blond man wielding a sword and axe fights off many draugr, as dragons spew fire from the skies above. He just finished stabbing the Draugr behind him, and as he brings his axe up to swing at the one in front of him, he lets loose a battlecry as the fierce wind blows his hair. Everything suddenly blacks out, and then transitions into a view following a flock of ravens through fog. The ravens draw toward the ground, then swirl together and transform into an older looking man, whose gray hair betrays his physical fitness and musculature. The man turns around to face the "camera," showing his white (almost glowing white) eyes and a scar on his face. He laughs, not particularly evilly but not particularly assuringly either. *end of dream*

 

Jax starts awake, realizes it was just a dream, then settles back into a comfortable place, sitting against one of the stones. Just as he gets comfortable, he feels a stinging in his neck. It's a dart. Unable to scream or say anything, and his strength quickly fading, he turns around to see a Dvergar in leather armor, sneaking forward, blowgun in hand. Jax crumples on the ground, but still watches the Dvergar, who makes his way over to the sleeping group, spots Felnor, and quietly says to himself, "He'll be wanting that one, for sure." Jax blacks out, and the session is over.

 

Reactions:

 

I enjoyed this session greatly, and I think the players did too. There was a good bit of roleplaying with the helmet, and the players used their various skills to the benefit of Hammerfall. I'm pleased that they asked questions about the origin of the Draugr. The bit with the raven was quite amusing. At first, they were quite unsettled, knowing that the Raven clan wasn't particularly friendly. They didn't quite know what to do about it, but Felnor's player had a bad feeling about it. I think they enjoyed the dream sequence, and I believe that it stimulated renewed interest and many questions for when we resume in the fall. I think they greatly enjoyed the cliffhanger at the end, and it provides a great reason for the absence of Felnor, since his player will be studying abroad in Japan fall semester.

 

So, for when we start up again, we'll have Jax and Hadhood in the captivity of this dwarf, one PC who'll be gone (Felnor), another who will need to track the group down and rejoin them (Sol) and a newcomer who'll need to drop in somehow (Manic Typist's character).

 

It's going to be an awesome session, that's for sure.

[Manic Typist]

Re: Norse Campaign Journal

 

Excellent. Updated characters will be posted soon. As soon as the players send me their point expenditures...*sigh*

 

Sol's coming back? I thought he said he was sitting next season out.... guess I imagined wrong!

[Ragnarok]

Re: Norse Campaign Journal

 

Manic -

 

Apparently he was unaware we would be continuing, even though I'm pretty sure I mentioned it at least a few times. He was hardly around during the end of the semester though. At this point he's done the sort of tentative, maybe I'll have time response. We'll see what comes of that.

 

I'll be sending out an email to the players shortly to goad them into giving me what we want.

[Manic Typist]

Re: Norse Campaign Journal

 

 

I'll be sending out an email to the players shortly to goad them into giving me what we want.

 

Don't forget the money! Lots and lots of money.

[Manic Typist]

UPDATED Character Sheets

 

Hey everyone!

 

I've updated the characters for the fall. One player is dropping out, thus his is not present... another (Felnor) is studying abroad in Japan in the fall, but he gave me his point expenditures so I went ahead and updated him for your viewing pleasure and his eventual return next Spring. He has a picture now, so be sure to check that out!

 

Soon enough I'll have finished up my character backstory and you'll see a draft of MY character, who will join the group in the Fall.

 

Note: doh! 5 file max upload... I'll have to put the HD file for Hadhood in the next post. So, scroll down if you want to download that.

[Manic Typist]

Re: Norse Campaign Journal

 

Hadhood

[Manic Typist]

Re: Norse Campaign Journal

 

Thread necro with a purpose:

 

Here is my character who will be joining the campaign in a few weeks time, when we resume with the start of our senior year (boo! hiss!)

 

He is 5 points over, so I welcome suggestions on how to be more point efficient or things I could eliminate. Some things are not optional (the Alfar are supposed to be very scary when angry, so the PRE thing is mandatory... but perhaps I could find a better way to model it?), but feel free to comment about everything. Please.

[Shadowsoul]

Re: Norse Campaign Journal

 

Presumably this extra Presence can only be used to frighten other people or bolster the character against fear?

 

It cannot, for example, be used to seduce people?

 

That should earn you another disadvantage. Something like - 'Can Only Be Used To Perform Or Defend Against Hostile Presence Attacks' (-1/2).

 

You might also be able wangle 'No Conscious Control' (-2) instead of 'Only When Enraged' (-1/2). Since it is not something that the character can use at will. You might want to reduce this Disadvantage to make it fit the power better e.g. 'No Conscious Control, Linked To Emotional State' (-1).

[Manic Typist]

Re: Norse Campaign Journal

 

Presumably this extra Presence can only be used to frighten other people or bolster the character against fear?

 

It cannot, for example, be used to seduce people?

 

That should earn you another disadvantage. Something like - 'Can Only Be Used To Perform Or Defend Against Hostile Presence Attacks' (-1/2).

 

You might also be able wangle 'No Conscious Control' (-2) instead of 'Only When Enraged' (-1/2). Since it is not something that the character can use at will. You might want to reduce this Disadvantage to make it fit the power better e.g. 'No Conscious Control, Linked To Emotional State' (-1).

 

I thought about adding something in about how it can only be used for fear/anger/intimidation type PRE attacks... but I figured that'd likely be a -0 Lim since that's still pretty useful.

 

But.... the No Conscious Control? Did NOT think of that. Higher Lim, but better expresses it, saves me a few points.... yeah, I dig. I wonder if that's legit though. I mean, I don't have an Enraged Disad, so it's more of a "when my character is angry." Generally that's the player's call, which would make this Lim not really a Lim. Perhaps I'll upgrade the previous Lim to a (-1).

[Ragnarok]

Re: Norse Campaign Journal

 

Session #12:

 

After a long hiatus, the Norse group reconvened the weekend before last to kick off the year with the opener session. A barrel full of twists and a new character to introduce, so here we go.

 

The alfar swordsman Celox Gladiel has successfully returned from a campaign to crush the enemy of his city state of Aiur, located in the southern gulf region. Aiur is growing in size and power, as the central, most important village is starting to snowball with other villages and consolidate into a larger city-state that is swiftly dominating any opposition. The King of Aiur, Tyrius, is a youthful, energetic, warlike firebrand of a king who genuinely wants the best for his people. Without divulging too much information about particular secretive elements of Celox (which will come later, I'm sure of it), let's just say that he was sent out to explore the interior, and possibly open diplomatic relations with useful political entities found therein. This is also an adventurous journey for him, and a chance to break out of the normal routine and challenge himself. He, and a small expedition force are sent North.

 

In the meantime, Hadhood awakes to find himself strapped on the back of a mule, being led through some rather desolate area at night. The drug in the blowdart is strong, so he loses consciousness again.

 

Sol, who is still at Carrock, sets off in a wide sweep to patrol around the area, and discovers a set of tracks. Five persons, headed fast and light to the North. He follows them over a couple days, until he comes across one of their used campfire sites. He breaks off the pursuit and heads back to Carrock.

 

While the expedition force sets up on a small island near the territory of the Five Clans, Celox sets off in search of the nearest clan. He lands, and makes his way inward on a trading path until he reaches an outpost, which he learns belongs to the Raven Clan. He asks the way to their main village, and therefore is directed to Ravenhold.

 

Hadhood and Jax awake to find themselves bound and gagged in individual cells, in what appears to be a small cave. Hadhood tries to remove the gag as best he can and tries to wriggle forward to grab a bite of bread, on a plate in front of him. His captor, another dwarf, decides it would be amusing to scoot the plate farther away from him.

 

Celox makes his way toward Ravenhold, and it gets dark before he arrives. He approaches at night, and spots the village: a rather large arrangement of buildings around a hill, with a circular wooden wall spanning the outside. At the center of the rocky hill, a large crag juts up into the air, into which the Raven Clan has carved a crude tower. Just at the edge of his vision, Celox spots a fwoosh of flame come from the tower, and faintly hears a bellowing roar. He moves off the road and cautiously approaches. As he draws nearer, the distinctive light of widespread fire lights up the cold winter night just around the city. By the time Celox reaches the gate, Ravenhold is burning, and not a soul in sight. He enters through a small burned out section in the wall, and cautiously approaches the main road that spirals up to the tower. The sizzling of flesh and the sight of scores of hideously burnt corpses meet his gaze. He sees that a blazing is working its way down the path, so he gets into a building and hides, watching the road. A couple minutes later, he hears footsteps, and spots an aging man (though well-built and still retaining some vestiges of his original hair color) walk down the road. The man stops, turns, and teleports Celox to right in front of him on the road. After some understandably awkward conversation, the man reveals that the people of the 5 clans call him "The Prophet." When asked what happened to the town, the man replies, "They were being rude. They tried to make me stay." Celox informs him that he is looking for someone. With a knowing gaze, the man teleports him into a stretch of woods, far, far away, in front of a cave mouth.

 

Celox stealths his way up to the entrance, and spots a raven on a tree above him. The raven croaks a couple times and flies off. Right about the time Celox is at the cave entrance, a bolt whizzes past his face and impacts percussively against the cave wall. Celox ducks in the cave, and discovers the prison cells. Jax and Hadhood awake, and Hadhood manages to burst his bonds and starts to bend the bars in front of him. Celox tips over a table and takes cover behind it, as the dwarf, who reveals himself as Gileas Darkhammer, announces his intent to kill the intruder. He is not able to be persuaded otherwise, so the dwarf rushes at the fallen table, swinging his axe back, intending to knock the table into Celox. Celox's brings both his alfar sword down with a mighty swing, splitting the table in half. Gileas swings, Celox catches the axe between his swords and locks it in place. In reply, Gileas gives him a good kick in the cojones. He did that just to knock some reality into the cocky little elf, and allows him to recover to continue the fight. Celox recovers, and unfortunately for Gileas, lunges forward and sticks him through the throat. Celox tries to get the bounty hunter to divulge his employer, but Gileas dies too quickly of blood loss. Celox begins to free the prisoners, as Sol, who got help in the form of horses and two extra fighters from Carrock, follows a different set of tracks to the cave mouth (the tracks of Gileas.) After a brief tense moment of uncertainty about who the riders are, the PCs walk out and meet up with Sol.

 

Reactions:

 

It was kind of a pain to rotate slowly between the different groups to get them all in one area, and it took a while, but I think that most, if not all, of the players enjoyed it. It certainly gave Celox a flashy entrance and a bit of advantage in relation to the other players. They "owe him one." I believe that there are enough questions sparked in the players' mind to keep them entertained.

[Ragnarok]

Re: Norse Campaign Journal

 

I'm a little behind, so I'm posting the last two sessions hopefully by the weekend.

 

Session #13: Present: Celox, Hadhood, Jax

 

The PCs decide to stay and camp there (at the bounty hunter's cave) for the night. Bjorn (who was used as an NPC for this session) was sent out to hunt up some food. Celox stands watch, and spots Bjorn dragging a stag through the snow toward the cave mouth. All of the inhabitants are awoken as Bjorn drags the stag into the main room. Bjorn stands, throws back his hood and turns around. Yup, it's not Bjorn. Before the PCs can react, the imposter violently claps his hands together and a blast of energy knocks everyone out.

 

The PCs awake to find a well-dressed Dokkalfar (dark elves, for our purposes. Minus the white hair) sitting in the chair facing them, with the swords of the four Dokkalfar bodyguards biting at their throats. (Yes, it was their tracks Bjorn spotted last session, but neglected to mention that he saw them) The PCs discover that there is an iron collar around the neck of each of them. It is revealed that this guy is the employer of Gileas Darkhammer, and is sort of the local authority of various trade (both legal and illegal) in the region. Apparently, Gileas was acting rashly, and becoming a liability. Still, he tells the PCs that normally he would just kill them for depriving him of resources, but it just so happens that there is a situation he could use them for. A vicious beast has been wreaking havoc on local villages and especially trading caravans. Bloodthirsty rampaging beasts are bad for business. He tells them that they may still live if they go out and rid him of this beast. They are expendable, he is not, he claims. Apparently the only one who knew of the beast's whereabouts was Gileas. Problem? Not exactly.

 

The elf's eyes glow red as he magically levitates the Gileas' rigid and glazed-eyed corpse from the ground, which promptly inhales ghastly and croaks out a single word from it's gurgling, blood-crusted throat: "Laaaaaake". The dwarf drops after this, and the elf grins, blinks and shakes his head a couple times and the red is gone.

 

The PCs are allowed to cook up the stag, and are then sent out. It takes them a few hours to find this lake, and a large drag-mark leading from the dirt road to the lake, into the water. After some more searching, a water-level tunnel into a cave is found, and Hadhood, whose magical shield allows him to breathe underwater, promptly plops in and has a look-see. The tunnel leads down, straight, and back up into a rather large cavern inside the hill at the water's edge. The others are not so keen to go underwater in the dead of winter, so Celox searches for an alternate entrance, and finds a small gap at the top of the hill crag that they can barely squeeze through. A rope is lowered down, and the team descends (attempting stealth.)

 

The cavern has ripples of slightly luminescent rare minerals running over the walls, allowing for dim illumination. Jax, whose vision power allows him to read heat signatures, spots a large warm blob at the back of the cave. The team goes from rock to rock to approach it, and Jax walks right up the center, in the middle of the chamber, towards it. Well, they weren't as quiet as they thought they were, and a Wyrm raises up and spews forth a fiery blast that scorches the edge of Jax's armor (lucky bastard).

 

A brilliantly executed struggle is fought, which results ultimately in a hole being blown in the Wyrm's head by Jax. The thanes go to work skinning the thing, and in the process of hacking off the beast's head, Hadhood is almost fried as the two flammable chemicals stored in glands in the Wyrms neck slosh together. The poor creature is deprived of its teeth, and large strips of its tough, scaly skin are sliced off (Wyrm bacon was the way it was described, I believe). Celox discovers a pile of gold coins in the back (rather small as far as draconic hoards come, however.)

 

Reactions:

 

The first part of the session ran much longer than I intended. This was good in the sense that the characters interacted more, and plenty of roleplaying went down, but it was bad in that it doubled the anticipated length of the session. I have a habit of overestimating how quickly they will get through things. This was the first "boss fight" that the players had encountered, and they handled it exceedingly efficiently. If anything, I felt that it was too easy. The Wyrm only dealt a total of 5 BODY to the party. This was largely because of their savvy use of tactics, such as Flash and Entangle spells. It was also due in part to some very lucky shots by Bjorn, who frustratingly was the character whose player wasn't even there! He sank 2 or 3 shots deep into the soft spot on the Wyrms body. The Wyrm missed almost all of his talon swipes because he was almost perpetually blinded by the Flash, and so the OCV penalty was just enough to botch the attacks. Its Mind Control roll was phenomenal, nearly the maximum, but Bjorn passed his first Breakout roll so nothing really appreciable happened on that front. Pity, I would have used his accuracy against the PCs and made them a little less complacent. I had originally thought the Wyrm was too powerful, and was worried because it had the capability to one or two-hit everyone there. I didn't realize it was such a cakewalk until the thing was almost dead, by which time it was getting late so I decided just to let things play out.

 

In short, this session was less of a challenge than I thought it would be, though it seemed that the players enjoyed the different fight style. I learned that it's better to start off too strong and tone it down if they're getting overwhelmed rather than act on my concern that the boss is too powerful. I awarded the present players 5 character points for their excellent strategic implementation of their abilities.

[Manic Typist]

Re: Norse Campaign Journal

 

Well, I thought it was pretty challenging. Remember, Hadhood and I did (and could do) essentially no damage to the thing. So we served to distract it, along with Jax, while Bjorn was the only one able to hurt it by having the time to aim at its weakspot and not having to defend himself. Things could have gone very differently, especially if Jax hadn't smartly used his Variable Advantage and gotten a 3 for Hit Location on his last attack....

 

Plus, in my estimation, it's easier to turn the dial up, but once a challenge is engaged it can be very hard to take things down a notch if it turns out to be too tough. For example, I'm definitely not interested in having NPCs (especially if they make it look easy) come save my bacon, and that's a tendency that I think most roleplayers share, which can make it really hard to explain why something became a whole lot easier. Not impossible... just, I think we did a really good job of handling a tough challenge, rather than that the challenge was easy.

[Ragnarok]

Re: Norse Campaign Journal

 

I think we did a really good job of handling a tough challenge' date=' rather than that the challenge was easy.[/quote']

 

Good player performance and a challenging fight are not necessarily inversely related. You guys definitely did a good job, as was referenced by the last sentence of my previous post. That's not the issue. The main thing was, I had decided to use Bjorn as extra support because I thought that the Wyrm would be too difficult. The way it turned out, it would have been just right with just you three, and the fact that Bjorn did almost half BODY to the thing made the whole encounter less challenging than it should have been, period, even though if you were to fight as well as you did. The idea of a boss fight, in my opinion, is to present players with a struggle that really tests their limits. That way, when they emerge victorious they have a genuine sense of accomplishment and a rush of adrenaline. I would hardly call a boss that does only 5 BODY as testing your limits and getting your adrenaline pumping. Three of the four characters emerged completely untouched. To my mind, it would have been a more appropriate challenge if the rest of the party took some more hits, and things were more desperate. But, through dogged determination and skill, you finish the beast off just before things get out of hand. That's what a good boss fight sounds like to me.

 

You fought quite well, I agree with you. Just against a monster that went down twice as fast as it should have, before it could rough you up a bit.

 

I'm glad you found it challenging though. I would hate for you guys to be majorly disappointed after that. It's OK in any event, because I now have a better handle on what you guys should go up against.

[Manic Typist]

Re: Norse Campaign Journal

 

The way it turned out' date=' it would have been just right with just you three, [/quote']

 

Maybe, maybe not. Again, Hadhood and I did essentially zero damage to the thing, and after several unsuccessful attempts we concentrated on keeping its attention of Bjorn, and Jax. Jax is the one who was REALLY essential in that battle. If Bjorn had been gone, we probably would have come out ok with Jax's help. If Jax hadn't been there... it could have been really ugly, Bjorn or no.

 

If you had suddenly increased the difficulty of the challenge, depending on how it was done, it could have easily made us feel punished for doing a good job, which equals no fun.

 

I agree that challenging us is important, because that's what's fun! However, nasty damage dealing monsters do not a challenge make, by virtue of their deadliness alone at least. Just because something can or does kick me around doesn't me it was challenging. Likewise, just because I can trounce something physically doesn't mean it can test me to my limits. Putting me (the player) in the ring to fight Mike Tyson doesn't constitute a challenge, whereas asking me (the player or the PC) to "fight" my way past a group of people that are (for example) under mind control, are frail, and that I don't want to hurt definitely IS a challenge (since I have to fight smart and restraint my use of force).

 

I think we overcamea significant challenge in terms of teamwork. We still have a lot, and I mean a LOT, of room for improvement in terms of fighting together. But then again, we're really just getting to know each other as well... that's my biggest regret for Bjorn's player not being there. Still, I think me using his character has alerted him to Bjorn's further potential utility if used more adroitly.

 

Really, the only thing I have to say beyond that I enjoyed the session is that your final statement about "starting off too strong" and then toning it down, which set off a yellow alert in my head because of the potential player/GM disconnect. That's why I raised it, so you would be aware of at the very least my perception, and can more appropriately respond to any developments that might occur in another game with a more detailed base of knowledge.

[Ragnarok]

Re: Norse Campaign Journal

 

If you had suddenly increased the difficulty of the challenge, depending on how it was done, it could have easily made us feel punished for doing a good job, which equals no fun....

 

If I made it painfully obvious and lacked any subtlety and craft as a GM, this might be the case.

 

However, nasty damage dealing monsters do not a challenge make, by virtue of their deadliness alone at least. Just because something can or does kick me around doesn't me it was challenging...

 

Perhaps I was being unclear. My intention was not to provide a blanket statement of what ALL boss fights should be like, rather this particular type. Not all boss fights are about running around a Jotun and stabbing it in the foot until it falls, of course. A good variety of boss fights will include different skills and methods need to accomplish various objectives. For THIS specific scenario, when you ARE running around a big scary lizard with razor sharp talons and napalm-breath, I, as a player, would almost feel slighted if it didn't put the fear of death in me. Which, for me, doesn't really come about until an example of its lethality is manifested. My objective isn't to beat you to within an inch of your lives every session. That would be pointless. My objective is to show you once in a while that you're not the mightiest power in the land, and you are inevitably squishy to some extent. Much like Hadhood took a massive blow to the head last year. And much like the latest firefight with Jack in your DC game. You said you were glad that we had a sense of being squishy and in danger. The very same applies here.

 

I think we overcamea significant challenge in terms of teamwork

 

You most certainly did. None of my previous posts were meant to downplay that. On the contrary, I specifically noted your proficiency.

 

 

I think the main issue here is that I, imbued with my GM knowledge, felt that the fight would had much more suspenseful potential had not an NPC sniper tipped the balance. If just you, as the three players (or even four, if Bjorn's player had been there) did the very exact same thing, I would be more satisfied. However, I experienced GM frustration (on your behalf, really) that the second most effective character in the fight was not even represented. For example, if one of the players in your DC game was absent, but his character was more effective at achieving the objective than 2 of the 3 players PRESENT, I would be very dissatisfied.

 

Perhaps much of this is subjective, dependent upon particular gaming styles and expectations. All I'm doing is relaying how I felt as a GM, and how I would feel as a player under those circumstances.

[Manic Typist]

Re: Norse Campaign Journal

 

If I made it painfully obvious and lacked any subtlety and craft as a GM' date=' this might be the case.[/quote'] I think that might be a bit too hard on you as a GM. It's a tough task, and lots of good GMs have to work hard at having just the right touch. If we were to notice, it doesn't mean you lack craft or subtlety or that we weren't enjoying ourselves.

 

 

 

My objective is to show you once in a while that you're not the mightiest power in the land, and you are inevitably squishy to some extent.

 

I don't think you have to worry about THAT too much.

[Ragnarok]

Re: Norse Campaign Journal

 

Session #14:

 

The PCs continue their butchery of aforementioned wyrm, deciding to take back the heart as proof of the kill. They trudge back to the bounty hunter's cave, where the Dokkalfar are waiting. The leader sees the heart, considers things for a moment, then with a flick of his wrist gestures almost dismissively and the iron collars that were around the neck of the PCs split and clatter on the rock floor. He says something to the effect of "I see no reason to kill you at the moment, at least not until it became unavoidable. It would be a waste of resources..." The PCs are allowed to go their own way without harm (other than wounded dignity for at least two of the characters.)

 

The thanes journey back to the cave to gather up their wyrmskin strips, several wyrm's teeth, and pack up all the gold. The original PCs (Jax, Hadhood, Bjorn) express a desire to return to Carrock, and Celox accompanies them. On the way, Celox and Jax split off to further investigate Ravenhold. During the time since Celox saw Ravenhold burn, various patrols and caravans discovered what had happened, and it appears the Raven clan is pulling personal from the outer reaches of their territory to repopulate and repair Ravenhold. Celox and Jax talk to a guard at the gate about what happened. Before the guard went on patrol outside Ravenhold, he heard Harold and the Seer in heated argument, though he could not hear the particulars. When he returned from patrol, Ravenhold was burnt to a crisp, Harold was dead, and the Seer was gone. Vagn, Harold's former champion now rules Ravenhold.

 

Celox and Jax rejoin their companions, and after many days of traveling they reach Carrock. After the introduction of Celox, they brief Alric on what has happened, and go about crafting their various wyrm-based weapons and armor. After months of traveling and fighting, they are finally in the closest thing to home they have.

 

Reactions:

 

This was a significantly shorter session than the previous fight with the wyrm. For the relatively short amount of time, however, I thought that the PCs learned a great deal about what has been happening. For example, they've learned that there was bad blood between Harold and the Seer, and that the man who now rules Ravenhold is the imposing warrior they met from the very beginning of the campaign. Jax's player did not immediately notice this, but I thought it worth pointing out, that this time the Raven clan did not attack him on sight for possessing one of Alric's rings. I didn't really expect him to pick up on this, at least not right away. There could be a myriad of reasons for this, not the least likely being that attacking one of Alric's thanes might provoke a retaliation that the Raven clan is in no position to deal with at the moment. I think that the PCs enjoy the trophy armor and weapons they are crafting from the wyrm. Not only are they a very valuable status symbol, but they are also a memento from a hard fought battle. The armor especially is incredibly strong. Little do they know that they will need it for what's going to happen next...

[taxmusquo]

Re: Norse Campaign Journal

 

I think that might be a bit too hard on you as a GM. It's a tough task, and lots of good GMs have to work hard at having just the right touch. If we were to notice, it doesn't mean you lack craft or subtlety or that we weren't enjoying ourselves.

 

 

 

 

 

I don't think you have to worry about THAT too much.

I had originally thought the Wyrm was too powerful, and was worried because it had the capability to one or two-hit everyone there. I didn't realize it was such a cakewalk until the thing was almost dead, by which time it was getting late so I decided just to let things play out.

[Manic Typist]

Re: Norse Campaign Journal

 

Um...Whiskey Tango Foxtrot?

 

The only think I can figure is that you're trying to quote Ragnarok to show that his previous statements address what I say... except that would be incorrect. If you read the conversation, you'll realize the part that you quote of mine is addressing a later issue than the part you...quote... of his.

[Ragnarok]

Re: Norse Campaign Journal

 

Session #15:

 

The PCs spend some time in Carrock, about two months in total, crafting their various weapons and armor, resting, and learning about the local culture. Celox and Bjorn ask Alric about the magical collars the Dokkalfar placed on them, while Hadhood and Jax are inquisitive about the Draugr and the Northernmost clan. Alric determines that the collar was made probably in the central, mountainous region of the continent, and that whoever made it was quite powerful, and most likely has a great amount of influence. Alric also says that that the Northernmost clan was never interested into cooperating with the other 5 clans, even on a basic level. The majority of their economy and way of life was sustained by heavy raiding, which they were exceptionally good at. They prided themselves on self-sufficiency and military domination, regarding the other clans as “farming clans.” Their pride was at least somewhat justified, as they were among the finest warriors Midgard has ever seen.

 

The PCs, after quite some deliberation, agree on their next course of action. It is agreed that they should start looking for Felnor, their companion who mysteriously disappeared after their capture by Gileas, the Duergar bounty hunter. Initially, Celox wanted to start the search by finding the wealthy trader who employed Gileas, and going from there. This would also satisfy Celox’s desire for revenge against the trader, and Bjorn’s interest in investigating the collars (and perhaps his own vendetta against dark elves.) Jax then astutely observes that perhaps the Seer could be of some use. After a moment’s pause, the other PCs agree to this, and approach Alric to determine what the best course would be to find the Seer. Alric says that in years past, the seer has moved about between various villages and fortresses, going where he so chose. They could wait around Carrock, and he would probably eventually make his way there. Or, they could ask his son. Vagn. *cue dramatic music*

 

The PCs make ready to journey to Ravenhold, to see Vagn. Alric gives them a sealed leather scroll, something to present to Vagn to convince him that the PCs are worth his time, and possibly could be to his advantage. The thanes set out, venturing into the cool Spring breeze. About halfway between Carrock and Ravenhold, they approach a large river that empties into the sea. The two elves detect the sights and sounds of battle coming from the sea, not very far from the delta. Two draugr ships appear to be fighting each other. The ships move a little closer to the river, so that Celox discovers that one of the ships is a bit different from the other. One ship is the standard draugr ship that Jax and Hadhood have seen before: inctricate figures and patterns carved into the ship, and torn human torsos chained to the prow, and is manned by the draugr; pale, undead warriors with gruesome old battle wounds and eerie glowing white eyes. The other ship shares the same style as the draugr ship, minus the torsos. This ship has a human crew. Javelins, stones, and arrows fly between the ships before the human ship swings grappling hooks to the draugr ship, and pulls them together. The humans proceed to board the draugr ship, eventually destroying the draugr, but not without casualties. The victorious crew starts to sail the two ships upriver, when the PCs flag them down. The ships drift over to the bank, and a tall, muscular dark-haired man (who appears to be the leader) jumps down with 4 men, and approaches the PCs. Jax drops his sword (supposedly to show non-hostility) which immediately prompts Celox to urge him to pick it back up. The raiders approach, and after he gets the names and purpose of the PCs, the leader introduces himself as Skari. Skari has striking eyes; a vivid green in a ring around the pupil, giving way to flecks of blue as it extends outward into the rest of the iris. His gear is standard of a man of high position, but of particular note are his ornate helmet and sturdy shield made of linden wood, covered with stingray leather. He explains that he and his crew hunt draugr, to try to bring honorable deaths (second deaths?) to their fallen comrades, and to attempt to retake their homeland. After Jax and Hadhood explain that they have fought them before, and after Skari takes a moment to evaluate them, he reluctantly invites the PCs to make their camp outside their encampment on an island in the middle of the river. The session ends with the PCs hopping on these exotic ships, and sailing upriver as dusk starts to creep over the world.

 

Reactions:

 

I enjoyed this session very much, with the exception of a few irritating moments. The PCs are now in possession of their finished arms and armor, and they learned a great deal about the local culture, and the sort of social taboos to avoid that might end up getting them killed. The session also had a couple major twists, such as Vagn being the son of the Seer, and the discovery that human remnants of the Northern clan still exist. I am glad that they are making a determined effort to find Felnor. I would have been disappointed if they simply shrugged him off, with the knowledge that he will eventually return because the player is returning in the Spring. This way, the rejoining of Felnor will not only be more interesting to the rest of the PCs, but it will also allow Felnor's player to showcase his character history and background into the plot. I am also glad the party is working together in coming up with a decisive action to pursue. Hopefully, this is a sign that they will actively seek out things to pursue and investigate rather than relying on me to drop plot hooks right in front of them. Things that happened during the beginning of the campaign are now coming to fruition (for example, Bjorn learned that the seedlings he has been tending to in Carrock are developing into trees used by druids to rapidly transport from tree to tree.) The desired effect is that the players will start to realize the depth and consequences of earlier actions, and how that will affect events to come.

 

 

• Good Stuff:
  
  • Celox's player has been dropping in little comments now and again that reveal the coastal Alfar's patronizing attitude toward other races, specifically towards forest Alfar. I was afraid that they would go unnoticed, but during this last session there was real tension between Celox and Bjorn. This is good roleplaying, and it seems very promising, though hopefully it won't get out of hand in a way that would jeopardize basic group harmony. I don't think it will.
    
  • Jax's player approached me and asked if I would provide Jax with a "bit of business", as we call it in the theatrical world. Something specific to his character he can develop, a sort of a "side quest" that isn't necessarily a major plot development. It's good that he is thinking of these things, rather than just riding on the wave of the overall plot. Actually, I kind of wish all the PCs came up to me and asked for this sort of thing, if they gave me the general guidelines of what they want to achieve/reveal. Gives me more to work with. Jax's player asked me for something magical Jax could get involved in...something where he inadvertently gets himself in trouble with power/an entity that far surpasses him. I have just the thing...
    

  [*]Bad Stuff

  • Bjorn’s player, when I was describing the regional culture, thought it appropriate to lie down on the couch and close his eyes, like he was trying to fall asleep. I regard this as a sign of disrespect. I put in a lot of thought and detail to try to make each culture as vivid as possible, and it never feels good to have that work even just appear to fall on deaf ears. Normally, I might dismiss it and give him the benefit of the doubt, if it wasn’t for the fact that he has exhibited this behavior before. He also showed up over 10 minutes late for the session, with no explanation until the very end of the session. If this continues, then I’ll probably have to talk to him.
    
  • Jax decided to lay down his sword when the draugr hunters were approaching the group. This was shortly after my cultural description, in which I made it clear that in Norse society, everybody had their weapons on them, and were prepared to use them at all times. They even brought weapons in legislative assemblies, and when they went to the outhouse. His intention was to show that he was not hostile, and I understand this. However, the raiders could have easily thought this a sign of weakness, or worse, disrespect. Like they were not perceived as the slightest threat. Thankfully, Celox corrected that action in time. I think this case was probably more of force of habit rather than disregarding what I had told them. Still something to be worked on.
    
  • Celox’s player had trouble when I was talking about Asgard and Eredar magic. I had sent out an email detailing in full the definition and intricacies of both these supernatural forces to all who would be involved, encouraging each of them to read it over carefully. This email was sent well before the start of the campaign. Again, normally I would give someone the benefit of the doubt if this were the first instance of such problems. However, a similar situation had come up previously, and I directed him to read the email at that time as well. Considering that email was regarding one of the building blocks of the setting, this was disappointing.
    
  • I was not as prepared with details as I should have been, in retrospect. I had not expected them to journey forth so soon, so while I had the encounter with Skari in mind, I didn't have the details I needed for the inevitable questions. I tried to play it that Skari didn't want to divulge all this information to complete strangers so soon, and that it would be revealed at the river camp. This was clearly my bad, and something to remember for the future.