Today, Me, Phil, Rob, Carson, Rod and Shane played D&D. We got a late start, but played a bit long.
The game focused on the winged folk island city-state of Kamaliofi, located among the Outsider islands of my own Aarde campaign. While I have detailed most of Aarde's major cities already, there are countless possibilities within the game for creating small cities and areas such as this. Shane created a monk, Clarvin, who is very different from Carson's Taito. Clarvin is a peaceful sort who has taken a vow of poverty. Yet he can manage an AC of up to 50 using absolutely no equipment (Carson's cartoon of the character depicts him naked, bot that's a bit of an exaggeration). Uniquely among the party, Clarvin is also quite peaceful by nature, focused on defense, disarming, negotiation and nonlethal combat.
After exploring the offerings of the small city of Kamaliofi and its winged folk, the group decided to pursue the local Vecna cult, which also served as the thieves' guild. After battling yeti-ettins, the party located the hideout, named the "Gjomyr Order of the Phymich Imkan," but really just hq for a bunch of thugs. Beyond the entrance concealed by illusion along the face of a rocky mountain was a frescoed hallway depicting a one-winged Vecna; just beyond that was a 60' wide pit trap, 50' deep, with water and spikes at the bottom. When the party failed to give the password, the trap was activated, but all survived. Beyond the double doors, the party fought and defeated cult members who were mostly evil assassins, rogues and sorcerers.
This was a pretty long session, focused just on D&D (no Star Wars today), so experience was 6,000 for those who role-played for the entire session (2,500 xp for half-session). Treasure was pretty good at 11,000 gp total value per character; however all of Clarvin's share of the treasure automatically goes to the poor. While much of the treasure is in artisan-cut star rose quartz, several property deeds, contracts and other documents were in the thieves' guild's possession.
Next session: Saturday, April 7 12 Noon Sharp.
Saturday, March 31, 2007
Sunday, March 18, 2007
St. Patrick's Day D&D and Magic: The Gathering
Aaron E., Jon G., Rod, Rob, Penny and I played D&D for the first half of the session. Carson was sick, and Phil didn't make it. The wizard Noctorium, Gemberlion the Flying Gnome, Joseph, Revan, Geena, Lola and all the NPCs (plus Carson's characters Black-Eyed Bill and Taito) returned to the thrice-restored Temple of Transformation. There, they once again faced the usual Jaramonian mongrelmen and assorted strange crossover mutations. Much more powerful now, the party easily approached through the strange landscape, where no flora or fauna is normal in any way, ants have monkey faces and trees have grass for bark.
Crossing the mutation wave about a mile from the pyramid, the PCs each resisted the effects, except for Noctorium. Strangely, randomly (I had Aaron make the rolls on the chart I made) it was his left hand (once again) that was effected. Even more strangely, it was again transmuted into an Eagle's Claw as it had been long ago, out of 20 items on my list. The only thing different was that it turned blue this time. I considered this and after a contest of wills (as with an intelligent magic item) and several dice rolls, Noctorium somehow absorbed the strange energy and his claw is now a +4 weapon that will also function as a spell foci, and the wizard gained two levels.
The main battle took place inside the pyramid, where the party faced Tuplegorp, a beholder-lynerian hydra aberration. Floating 85 feet up in the inner chamber, Tuplegorp had 16 eyestalk-heads each on a hydra-length snake head, each with spell effects more powerful than a beholder's. Beyond the reach of melee attacks from non-flying party members, Tuplegorp blasted the group from above, turning party members to stone, freezing, frying, splashing acid and fingers of death from above, magically charming, disintigrating, telekinesis-ing--seemingly at will. Three voices--the two singing bards and a dread pirate's battle cries -- became two, than one, and then just the sounds of battle. Worse, two heads were growing from each of the places where heads had been severed by the twin longswords of Lola, who had used her boots of teleportation to jump on top of Tuplegorp before being paralyzed. Fortunately, fireballs from Fergus and Noctorium stopped this growth. The geyser of arrows from Geena, Henderson, Mick the Gangly and the other NPCs was reduced to just Geena, the mighty dwarven archeress. Likewise, spells from Noctorium, Joseph, Fergus and the bards Telpin and Daybill had been silenced. Even the slippery goblin rogue Blip lay immobile, swarming with insects. Most of the party had been effectively removed from combat without actually being slain.
After a while it was down to just Geena, Revan and Tuplegorp. Then Geena's will was magically subverted and she was charmed into inaction by one of the beholder-hydra's head-stalks. The paladin Revan on his pegasis had been stabbing the body of the beast heroically, but to no avail; this portion of its body was immune to physical attacks. The monster was definitely wounded, and now Revan's sword burst into flame and he dispatched it.
Experience: 4,000 xp Treasure: 8,000 gp
Magic
Jon brought Coldsnap boosters, and five of us played a draft. Penny won with her green/white Aurochs/Kjeldoran Warcry deck (how fitting for St. Patrick's Day!). Aaron's red/white deck was great overall and was a very near second. My deck of fliers was mostly blue with splashes of white and black. It did okay, but just didn't have the speed or focus so I landed somewhere in the middle. Rob's deck was black and blue with good graveyard recursion and creature control, and he probably would have beaten me if he had been a bit more lucky; he did okay and won quite a few games. Jon's green/red deck was well constructed and his game play was good; his games were close and several could have gone his way if his card parity had been better. Overall we had a great time.
Crossing the mutation wave about a mile from the pyramid, the PCs each resisted the effects, except for Noctorium. Strangely, randomly (I had Aaron make the rolls on the chart I made) it was his left hand (once again) that was effected. Even more strangely, it was again transmuted into an Eagle's Claw as it had been long ago, out of 20 items on my list. The only thing different was that it turned blue this time. I considered this and after a contest of wills (as with an intelligent magic item) and several dice rolls, Noctorium somehow absorbed the strange energy and his claw is now a +4 weapon that will also function as a spell foci, and the wizard gained two levels.
The main battle took place inside the pyramid, where the party faced Tuplegorp, a beholder-lynerian hydra aberration. Floating 85 feet up in the inner chamber, Tuplegorp had 16 eyestalk-heads each on a hydra-length snake head, each with spell effects more powerful than a beholder's. Beyond the reach of melee attacks from non-flying party members, Tuplegorp blasted the group from above, turning party members to stone, freezing, frying, splashing acid and fingers of death from above, magically charming, disintigrating, telekinesis-ing--seemingly at will. Three voices--the two singing bards and a dread pirate's battle cries -- became two, than one, and then just the sounds of battle. Worse, two heads were growing from each of the places where heads had been severed by the twin longswords of Lola, who had used her boots of teleportation to jump on top of Tuplegorp before being paralyzed. Fortunately, fireballs from Fergus and Noctorium stopped this growth. The geyser of arrows from Geena, Henderson, Mick the Gangly and the other NPCs was reduced to just Geena, the mighty dwarven archeress. Likewise, spells from Noctorium, Joseph, Fergus and the bards Telpin and Daybill had been silenced. Even the slippery goblin rogue Blip lay immobile, swarming with insects. Most of the party had been effectively removed from combat without actually being slain.
After a while it was down to just Geena, Revan and Tuplegorp. Then Geena's will was magically subverted and she was charmed into inaction by one of the beholder-hydra's head-stalks. The paladin Revan on his pegasis had been stabbing the body of the beast heroically, but to no avail; this portion of its body was immune to physical attacks. The monster was definitely wounded, and now Revan's sword burst into flame and he dispatched it.
Experience: 4,000 xp Treasure: 8,000 gp
Magic
Jon brought Coldsnap boosters, and five of us played a draft. Penny won with her green/white Aurochs/Kjeldoran Warcry deck (how fitting for St. Patrick's Day!). Aaron's red/white deck was great overall and was a very near second. My deck of fliers was mostly blue with splashes of white and black. It did okay, but just didn't have the speed or focus so I landed somewhere in the middle. Rob's deck was black and blue with good graveyard recursion and creature control, and he probably would have beaten me if he had been a bit more lucky; he did okay and won quite a few games. Jon's green/red deck was well constructed and his game play was good; his games were close and several could have gone his way if his card parity had been better. Overall we had a great time.
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