Quote from: FASERIP;488001Now that's interesting.

I'm not a big Lovecraft fan but did like Chapter 4 a good bit. Somewhat tempted to get CH and spin that and Watcher off into its own little mini-campaign...

Well not sure I'm going to do THAT. I did get inspired because Watcher DOES offer a little tidbit on how to link both modules together. So I figured "What the hell?!"

So I never got around to posting the adventure summary for Chapter 2.

Nor did I tell you how Group B (the experienced players) handled Splatter Man. (It went VERY well in my book!)

Overall the PCs were happy and like "So...now what?" I reminded them they had to stay for an additional week in town since it hadn't been a month yet.

So now, all spent their down time trying to get weapons and stuff, along with a few doing research. Otherwise...we move on!

So both groups had the same (almost random) encounter before coming to Leipstadt. They all met up with the Border Guards who are quite paranoid about orcs invading their land. (You would be too if you've been over run by orc hordes AND undead in the same century.) The experienced party of mostly non humans (but no orcs!) got through without too much trouble. The same couldn't be said for our group of newbies. They did kill the raiding band, but only because the dwarf decided to use lethal force.

         However the best part before all that happened (for Group A, our newbies) was the DM deciding to be a dick! Yes folks I can do that! Anyway I sent them on an errand to the holy town/city of Kavapesta. Along the way, they stopped in the rural trading town of Chastel. There, after a good check, they found, Grund, the magically magnificent Half orc magic shop owner! It was a run down building that didn't have much to it. Except for the quick thinking of the DM mentioning the 6 guys, well hidden from most, with heavy crossbows at the ready.  

        I should also mention that Grund is kind an idiot. He's smart enough to know he needs protection and how to run a business. But he's not what you'd call...personable. He loves to dress gaudily, and has both his tusks capped with gold. (Sort of mix of Italian mobster and Hip Hop gangasta wannabe.) Anyway he first tries to pawn off this rather unusual looking belt. He wants a good chunk of money for it, but the half orc doesn't bite. The dwarf comes in and Thorius is like "This is a nice looking belt. Can I have it?" He likes "Hm dwarf. Me no like much. Belt not for sale for you."

         This is when the PCs all decide to steal from him. Before that, Evelyn, our party Oracle of Flame, buys a hat of disguise from him. She then tries to get the belt from him. He tells her he will be happy to not pay for it, in exchange for certain favors. (She using the hat to be a female half orc.) She declines. He then offers his own sister. (He wants to watch.) Anyway, while that is going on, the ranger, Hollin, manages to stealth his way back in, grab a few item (including the belt!) and then runs back out. (Hollwin also finds out Grund substitutes/does a side business of supplying bodies and body parts from dead adventurers along with supplementing his stock with their stuff.)

       The dwarf then puts on the belt...which he finds out is cursed! Not overall cursed, just racially cursed. (Though it is kind of overall cursed too in a sense.) This causes him to change genders (this only affect males) and suffer 10 points of Strength drain, plus make a fort save ever day or suffer a point of Con drain. Naturally he can't take it off. The PCs are rolling off their chairs. (I nearly did too!) Finally he gets a priest in town to cast remove curse AFTER he pays 5,000 gp for incense needed to help with the casting. (It's a cursed minor artifact!) The half orc's sword (since he's a black blade magus) tells him to put on the belt. It basically turns him into a powerful near barbaric character. He feels awesome.

It is right then the PCs find out just how badly they got screwed. because once the Half orc takes damage, he doesn't stop until he's unconscious or dead via raging, and killing everyone he perceives as an enemy. (This meant first the humans on horse back, followed by the dwarf.) So now the PCs are like "We need to get this belt off him." Fortunately it can be removed by the half orc. But no one else can touch because of how evil it is.

Anyway they all manage to Lepidistat and there they encounter Judge Daramid and Doctor Crowl. We stopped there.

For group B, the encounter that did them in was encountering the phase spider. It managed to kill our beloved PC, Mickey, the damphir bard with the archeologist archetype. So then they spent the following day using Katarina's knowledge of Vieland. (She's apparently a descendent (or in this case ancestor) of the former counts and countesses of Vieland.) They found a local tribe of remote Kellids called "The Thousand Eye Star Tribe."

          It was obvious to most they hadn't left the swamp lands in around there for some time. It was also obvious something was wrong with their shaman, as he kept his hands covered in skins of various creatures (including human.) As they offered their payment, he removed his gloves. Instead of fingers, he had something akin to tentacles. He then shoved those into parts of Mickey's face and called on "Opener of the Way, the Key and the Gate, The Thousand Eyed Stars." Mickey felt this as his soul was RIPPED back from the Boneyard (the Underworld place) and there saw something no mortal was meant to know... He came back no long a dhampir, but mostly human.

       They then proceeded to meet with Montagnie Crowl, who showed them around the place. It had obviously been ransack, and was quite the mess. He informed the PCs of what occurred with the Beast of Lepidstat being caught. They did a thorough job looking at stuff. They reasonable concluded that the Beast had taken something but no clear idea why or who else was involved in the robbery.

       Judge Daramid's house was their next stop. She informed them of her belief in the possible innocence of the Beast's crimes. She told them to meet with his defense attorney, Barrister Gustav Kaple. She also promised them double what they just earned if they did their jobs adequate. (Finding evidence and helping with Beast's defense.) (They had gotten from Professor Lorrimor's will, a stipend of 100 platinum pieces.) She informed them they had one full day before the trial started.

So the PCs decided to first do a meet and greet with both the attorney and the accused. Gustav informed them of the crimes the Beast was being charged with (all murder in some form.) The Beast was kind but not necessarily helpful. So the PCs decided since the first day of the trial was the swamp town of Morast (which they had passed by on their way to reincarnate Mickey), that is where they would go. Then the three PCs with the highest/best Diplomacy scores would help with the defense, while the other three would spend most of the day trying to find out more about Herstag, the second town involved in the Beast's trial.

Morast wasn't too helpful in determining much, if any, of the Beast's innocence. Other than he had no gator bite. So at least that proved he hadn't been there.

Naturally the PCs did very well and the ones in court got nearly as much XP as the ones that fought wraiths and wraith spawn in Herstag. They also recovered all the bodies of the dead children from the lair of Brother Swarm, (their wraith master.)

We ended there.

So...anything?

Bueller?! Come on guys! input!!!

So...how about now?

Thanks for sharing.

I didn't really like the cursed item that much. The NPC merchant seems interesting though.

Other than that, it sounds like your having fun. Ultimately, that's the bottom line for me.

Quote from: PaladinCA;492900Thanks for sharing.

I try. I do appreciate it when I get feed back about stuff like this.

Quote from: PaladinCA;492900I didn't really like the cursed item that much.

That was kind of the point. I mean artifact items should be wielded with care. Plus I was getting tired of the endless whines about 'We don't have enough stuff!!"

Quote from: PaladinCA;492900The NPC merchant seems interesting though.

To be fair I made up Grund on the fly based on a friend's character with the same name but obviously not a merchant. Grund the magic half orc. I just basically did the rest on the fly.

Quote from: PaladinCA;492900Other than that, it sounds like your having fun. Ultimately, that's the bottom line for me.

Tons. I'm enjoying group B now because they're splitting up more AND this means I can focus my energies more on what goes on there. Group A is still the best RP group however.

I'd probably go batshit if I tried running a game for two separate groups. I find one group to be challenging enough as it is. While fun to see the contrast and comparisons I'm not sure I could pull it off simultaneously.

I did get to see how two separate groups handled a Spirit of the Century adventure I came up with. But it was at two different planned events. One group decided to work with a tribal mystic to recover a dangerous relic stolen from her people. The first group decided the tribal mystic was up to no good and treated her with distrust, which made their task of stopping the holder of the relic much more difficult. Both PC groups won out in the end, but each game flowed differently - both were good games.

Quote from: PaladinCA;492909I'd probably go batshit if I tried running a game for two separate groups.

Well it's not always easy to remember which group got to which point sometimes. But I at least remember major plot points. At least, most of the time I do.

Quote from: PaladinCA;492909I find one group to be challenging enough as it is. While fun to see the contrast and comparisons I'm not sure I could pull it off simultaneously.

Well it's not necessarily simultaneously. It's more like concurrently. I get Group A one week. Group B the following week. The breaks we have for holidays DO help with me keeping track. However, it helps to have a great assistant DM/GM who is also playing in the campaign.

Quote from: PaladinCA;492909I did get to see how two separate groups handled a Spirit of the Century adventure I came up with. But it was at two different planned events. One group decided to work with a tribal mystic to recover a dangerous relic stolen from her people. The first group decided the tribal mystic was up to no good and treated her with distrust, which made their task of stopping the holder of the relic much more difficult. Both PC groups won out in the end, but each game flowed differently - both were good games.

Yeah I'll see how this goes before I declare an ultimate success. That being said, I'm at least considering this a moderate success. At least with Group A. Group B is trudging but at least it's getting there.

Let it be known I want input!! Well more than Paladin at least.

How about now?

What about now?

What is the sound of one hand clapping?