OOC Discussion II: The Return

[Storm11]

The goof balls were notably all the ones charmed by that skanky witch. They were probably charmed back in her boudoir and following her dominating orders.

As a point of note, doeabt protection from evil block those telepathic type controls whilst the spell is active seemingly releasing the charmed until the spell wears off or is dispelled? Just saying

[Dram]

I will be out the net for the couple of days. Play me as needed.

[Zhym]

I think it would not be quite AS bad without the horrendous wandering monster tables. 12 wraiths! For 5-7th level PCs? Even 25 pcs of that level range would be toast.

The wandering monster tables are brutal. Slightly under half the encounters in the table are relatively harmless (or even beneficial), another third are dangerous but manageable, and the other third are, "Holy gods we're going to die."

The party has no way to know this going in, of course. But as I think you've found out, the castle is not a place where you want to hang out for long if you can avoid it.

As a point of note, doeabt protection from evil block those telepathic type controls whilst the spell is active seemingly releasing the charmed until the spell wears off or is dispelled? Just saying

Charmed characters remained charmed even in a PfE aura, but the charming monster (as it were) can no longer control the charmed PC by thought. So, yes, it blocks telepathic control, but it doesn't remove the charm.

[Cwreando]

IMHO I'd think that to be enjoyable from a PC perspective, going into this module I think the PC's should be 1-2 level higher than the max and with above average Stats. For hardcore players that want it played as is that's ok running levels where they will more than likely get killed. I don't think going in 1-2 level higher would really make much of a difference but imho it give the players the feeling that they might be able to get through it. Regardless of how the module was originally set up it's meant to be enjoyed. I'd have to say I'm not enjoying this module the way we are struggling so far. Realistically my character would have just said I'm done I'm out of here by now. I'm going to roll up my version of what I'd have fun running through here. If Robert survives or doesn't is ok and the same for my next character as long as I'm having fun. Either Way. Game on. )

[Zhym]

Ravenloft is an adventure for 6 to 8 characters of levels 5 to 7.

I wouldn't want characters to be more than 7th level. Once PCs get powerful enough to have a decent chance of turning undead (including vampires!), the module becomes a cakewalk. Of course, the right random encounters can fix that problem quickly enough.

Until there were a couple of level drains and Tib bit the dust, the party contained 9 characters of mostly level 6-7. That's already more than the module calls for. If you think this is a bloodbath, could you imagine running the module with eight 5th-level characters!?

Like I said: it's a horror module. If you don't think your characters are going to get killed, I'm running it wrong. I don't want it to be so bad that you aren't having fun, but I also hope you aren't expecting this to be a hack 'n slash module, because it very much is not.

Look at it this way: you're roughly in Act II of the module, where everything looks like it's going to hell. If some of the party survives, they can escape to town, rest up (hopefully), strategize, and come back in Act III, hopefully to kick butt.

Oh, I forgot another lesson in my previous post: (3) even "normal" vampires are the nastiest things your characters are likely to have ever met. They're cunning, powerful, charming, level-draining, and nearly impossible to kill. Don't screw around with them. You'd be in a much different spot right now if you'd attacked Helga as soon as you found her alone in the room with the Sunsword screaming "Undead!"

[Computer +1]

I would just like to say that Tumbler was certain she was a Vampire. I couldn't give it away that he was charmed but I thought the fact that he was apologetic and nice to her was a way out of character clue.

[Zhym]

Computer +1 reminded me that Tumbler had left his hammer in the castle. That means the damage against Fendt was 7, not 9. I've updated the combat post.

[Storm11]

Helga was obvious. The Other "normal village" humans in the castle so far were all restricted or chained in some way. And this one who is a prisoner can walk all over the castle cleaning and knows a secret way out of the castle. Hmmmmmm yeah O K!!

No one listens to the gnomes

[Zhym]

Well, Gertruda wasn't really restricted to her room, but didn't seem to have a reason to go anywhere else. You also encountered NPCs in an order that would make you question your questions. Accountant: must be an evil undead! Nope, just a human chained to his job. Gertruda! Must be a vampire! Nope, just a silly, gullible girl. Helga! Obviously a vampire. But the other two might have been obvious, too, and you can't detect evil as easily as you once could.

BTW, if you're in Act II, Act I was the strutting hubris stage. The old-timers in the campaign might remember Tibbius excoriating the villagers as cowards for not rising up and taking on Strahd themselves. In Act II, you find that maybe the villagers were the smart ones.

[Cwreando]

I'm just saying that the level requirements provided my the creator of the module designed it that way because that was their vision. Who's to say that it can't be run with say 5-6 characters of level 8-9. The premise being that after several centuries a group of seasoned adventurers where finally found and tasked to finally deal with Strahd and put an end to his terror. A DM may want to create their own vision for a group to deal with the module. Anything is possible. There is nothing wrong with thinking outside the box occasionally.

[OGRE MAGE]

Just get on with the battle already! I wanna see how this ends since you all just abandoned my guy.

[Zhym]

FWIW, I have moves for everyone except Iluq, Castran, and Agrippo.

[MonkeyWrench]

just posted mine to you.

[GreyWolfVT]

Fendt kept trying to help the others detect if she was a vampire but apparently our DM was not letting us do so no matter what tactic we tried. So I would say almost all of us though she was a vampire or at the very least another type of undead.

[Zhym]

There are more ways to find out if someone is a vampire than detecting evil. I really thought the glowing Sunsword was a pretty big tell, and expected you to attack almost immediately.

[GreyWolfVT]

sunsword has done that about a hundred times some not even when it is in the same room as us so how was it a "dead" tell we coulda had a zombie on another side of the wall for all we knew.

[Storm11]

To be fair though, we had mirrors, garlic, holy water, and if we had looted the paladin properly, a lawful good holy symbol, to try and figure it out along with know alignment spells. And the sunsword.

[GreyWolfVT]

well again that would have been the part of our holy warriors I'm a mere trickster and a fighter with a mace.

[Stirling]

firstly Agrippo is not taking another out on Fendt:

Fendt clearly challlenged the people exiting the carriage house 'if they were with us or with Strahd'? That is a provocative statement and was answered in character by rough gruff Sgt Agrippo,


Secondly these 'goof balls' arrived at the castle by the carriage and we have already debated in the forum what each character thinks of making a long walk back to town through the woods in the dark. Thirdly the carriage house rather than the courtyard makes a better place to rest up and defend.

hope that clears up any gaming problems.

as for Agrippo's actions: Zhym see last PM and then let me know what happens.

[GreyWolfVT]

I remember the entrance to the castle it was very strange but at that time I was Robert. Really Fendt was not trying to challenge you merely let those in the carriage house know that they had found a way to open the portcullis and gates. Really if need be we could have just left you all in there and kept going off to town.