Chatty Studios

See Part 1 here.

The encounter, budget and design

The encounter will be a combat encounter with a Skill Challenge embedded into it. As the challenge’s successes are achieved, the Kobold and Goblin onlookers may get to interfere on behalf of the PCs (See next section).

I want the combat to be hard- very hard- so that Players wishing to dish it out will need luck and near flawless strategy to succeed.

According to the Dungeon Master Guide, a hard encounter’s level should be up to 4 levels above the party’s average level.  Given the ‘helping elements’ I’ll describe below, I’ll go and make the whole encounter a Level 9 encounter.

Since we assume 5 players, this gives us a budget of 2000 XP to spend.

I’d also like to have 4 factions, so that roughly translates to 500 XP per representative/group.

So my pass through the Monster Manual (with one template added) gave me:

• Orc Faction: Eye of Gruumsh (Leader Controller, 200 XP) and 6 Orc Warriors (Minions, 600 XP)
• Undead Faction: Battle Wight (Soldier, 400 XP)
• Gnoll Faction: 1 Gnoll Huntmaster Ranger (Level 6 Templated Elite Brute, 500 XP)
• Ogre Faction: Ogre Skirmisher (Skirmisher, 350 XP)

Total budget: 2050

Perfect!

Now here’s the templated Gnoll lord:

I tried giving him 2 magic items (+2 Leather armour and a +2 Vicious Longbow) that would be useful for PCs but with the Magic Threshold rule of the DMG and the Twin Strike power, I might have gotten a bit confused with my numbers.

I’d appreciate it if someone checks my numbers. The monster is made up of: Gnoll Huntmaster + Ranger template + Items.

The faction champions all arrive at the same time, unified in purpose and deferring to the Gnoll lord.  Grak Mankiller addresses the whole room (feel free to paraphrase) until interrupted by attacking or arguing PCs:

Puny insects of the weak and cowardly tribes! How DARE you get behind this preposterous so-called prophecy. Why should WE, the denizens of this kingdom of darkness, leave our safe underground abode to go kick at the hornet’s nest that is the surface?  This is madness!

For decades, you have been the first line of defense of our homes against the sporadic forays of these accursed adventurers.  Granted, their recent raids have been more successful than before. That’s just because YOU have grown soft!  You have become lazy from lack of leadership and guidance from US, the mightier and smarter forces of the lower levels! Guidance we are now here to provide!

(While it’s unlikely that at this point the PCs haven’t attacked, here’s the last part)

We do not leave the dungeons!  That’s just not done!  Our elders and gods have placed us here for a reason.  Disturbing that pre-ordained order is asking for death, or worse, slavery from the vile surface dwellers!

Mark our words and ignore this farce that your Oracle calls a “prophecy”!

So far you have been wise in your sniveling ways to not directly defy us.  You all realize that our forces could wipe you out of these caves with ease!

Let us show you once and for all that such ugly, weakling Kobolds are not fit to be called champions!  We shall kill them so that you shall all live!

Tactics: All champions will try to take all the PCs at the same time.  While united in their mission (each faction group counts all others as ‘allies’ for the purposes of powers), they are not particularly adept at fighting together and will not systematically try to eliminate one PC before going for another.  They fight to the death.

Enterprising PCs may decide to meet this initial verbal assault with arguments, trying to win the crowd.  If they do, start the skill challenge described below before the fight starts.  Whatever happens, as soon as the Goblins/Kobold onlookers make a move against the factions’ champions, the enraged antagonists attack the PCs.

Dungeon Diplomacy, or fight and talk at the same time!

As things stand, the Goblin and Kobold populations surrounding the caves are both angry and scared.  While they are far more numerous than the faction the hostile champions represent, they don’t currently dare do more than give timid support to the prophecy’s cause.

But they can be swayed by silver tongued PCs!

Whenever PCs, be it before or during the fight, try to sway the numerous kobold and Goblin onlookers, start the following skill challenge:

• Standard: Roll against one primary skill (modified by roleplaying and situation modifiers). Success = one skill challenge success.
• Minor: Roll against a primary or related skill (DM’s call).  Success = Target player gets a +2 to his Skill Challenge roll until the end of his next turn.

Alternatively, if a player makes an impressive combat maneuver or scores a critical hit, you may grant his PCs a primary skill challenge roll as a minor action instead of a standard one.

For each primary skill successes, the crowd cheers the PCs tremendously, giving each a +2 bonus on their next attack roll.

Additionally:

• 2 successes: The Kobolds trigger one of the traps in the room.  Roll 1d6: 1-2: Damage, Single target; 3-4: Damage, Multiple targets. 5-6 Restraining,  Single target.  The trap is played as a free action, like a trap power, by the player who succeeded the last skill roll. (Part 1 contains details of all the trap powers.)
• 4 successes: Ogre Skirmisher gets snared by a group of kobold allies, and is hanging from the dungeon roof. He is immobilized, grants combat advantage to all attackers, and can only make melee basic attacks (save ends all three). After the first save, he becomes slowed (save ends).
• 6 Successes: A gang of Goblins lunges in and takes down (i.e. remove from combat) one remaining faction, starting with the Orcs. If the Orcs are already gone, then the Battle Wight, and otherwise the Ogre.

Each time a success is achieved, the DM needs to stress how enthusiastic and hopeful the amassed audience is.

Chatty’s Design notes: The idea of a combat-embedded Skill Challenge is to make spending a Standard Action worth at least the equivalent of using an At-Will power.  Otherwise, players will just hack at the monsters and hope to get lucky.  I’ll playtest this one next Saturday and will re-visit it if it does not work as I think it should.

Once defeated, the PCs are cheered as heroes while rumors explode that all hostile factions are siding with the new Prophecy champions. They can rest for one full day and are urged to leave the dungeon immediately afterward.  They are given a potion of healing each and any mundane equipment they require.

End of Scene

Comments, suggestions?

Credits: Graham Poole (Skill Challenge), Dave Chalker (Editing), Wizards of the Coast (Image)