Running Rime of the Frostmaiden for a party of three: a Goliath barbarian, a human gloomstalker ranger, and a half-elf arcane trickster rogue. So a bit of magic but no full casters.
What problems do you think they'll run into? I'm thinking about giving them a bard NPC that follows them around playing songs and healing/buffing.
I haven't read RotFM, but they will probably face the same problem as most caster-lite parties. Monsters that are resistant to nonmagical damage can be very annoying for a mostly martial party, so I would give them very low powered magic weapons early in the game. For example, a sword that can glow and has no other properties. It is not very powerful at all, but counts as magical for the purpose of overcoming resistance and immunity.
Definitely healing. The bard idea is perfect... they can handle healing, buffing, and some crowd control. I don't think it's really worth putting the bard out on the map in the midst of combat, you can be more abstract... "the bard is at the edge of the room avoiding the fight" so the action can be focused on the players.
Another option, to avoid the addition of an NPC follower, is to give all the PCs special boons or blessings, such as "as a bonus action you can heal yourself 1d10+level hit points" that they can do a number of times equal to their proficiency bonus, and it recharges after a short or long rest. Expending 2 uses will cast lesser restoration.
I'd ask my players. My group would probably love the challenge, especially in a darker adventure like Rime, and I don't think they'd like me adding a party member of my own. Plus, D&D isn't an MMO, and characters are designed to be survivable regardless of "party composition." If your group is very afraid of potentially losing characters, however, they might love the bard idea. Only way to know is to ask.
That said, I would second JoeltheWalrus' idea of giving out very low-powered magic weapons fairly early for those nonmagical-resistant monsters!
Besides dropping a magic weapon/healing item or two on them early, I would say try not to screw with them excessively during short rests. A party with no access to magical healing is likely going to rely on short rests a little more than usual, so let them feel like its a reasonably safe option.
Be careful that your bard NPC doesn't turn into a DMPC. That can suck the fun out of the game for your players.
That said, what backgrounds do they have? Knights come with a riding horse and 3 commoners, though one is described as a noble squire. Have they rolled on the tables in Xanathar's? They can get a commoner that way.
You could let each of them control a sidekick in addition to their regular character. Just make sure the CR of the base creature should be 1/2 or lower, as per Crawford's recent talk on the subject, and make sure they swap out to the new levels once Tasha's is published.
EDIT: You can also just boost their level by 1 or 2 to compensate for a smaller party.
I’ve always hated my DM dropping in an NPC to “round out” the party. The best games I’ve ever been in have been lopsided like this because some things will become trivial for this party and other things will be more challenging. Throwing in an NPC that fills gaps just feels like the DM has already of the opinion that:
1) The party is too weak and can’t handle the adventure, or
2) The DM isn’t good at balancing the adventure for our party, or can’t handle novel solutions to events in the game that our characters will come up with.
I would gladly DM RotFM with any party composition. It’s more interesting seeing what they come up with.
Thanks for all the suggestions. I love the idea to give them magical items a little earlier.
I'll definitely talk to my players about it. And if they like the idea, it'll be their choice to kick this NPC out whenever they want. And I'll keep the person in the background, in both battles and RP.
From what I have read of Rime there isn't a major time crunch, so an extra long rest or whatever (outside of a dangerous area) won't matter. This gets them up to full HP. Personally I would leave everything as written, entertain novel approaches and if you really think they need a hand through a potion of healing on every second bad guy or whatever ratio you think is needed.
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Running Rime of the Frostmaiden for a party of three: a Goliath barbarian, a human gloomstalker ranger, and a half-elf arcane trickster rogue. So a bit of magic but no full casters.
What problems do you think they'll run into? I'm thinking about giving them a bard NPC that follows them around playing songs and healing/buffing.
Any suggestions or things to be aware of?
I haven't read RotFM, but they will probably face the same problem as most caster-lite parties. Monsters that are resistant to nonmagical damage can be very annoying for a mostly martial party, so I would give them very low powered magic weapons early in the game. For example, a sword that can glow and has no other properties. It is not very powerful at all, but counts as magical for the purpose of overcoming resistance and immunity.
A fool pulls the leaves. A brute chops the trunk. A sage digs the roots.
My Improved Lineage System
Definitely healing. The bard idea is perfect... they can handle healing, buffing, and some crowd control. I don't think it's really worth putting the bard out on the map in the midst of combat, you can be more abstract... "the bard is at the edge of the room avoiding the fight" so the action can be focused on the players.
Another option, to avoid the addition of an NPC follower, is to give all the PCs special boons or blessings, such as "as a bonus action you can heal yourself 1d10+level hit points" that they can do a number of times equal to their proficiency bonus, and it recharges after a short or long rest. Expending 2 uses will cast lesser restoration.
I'd ask my players. My group would probably love the challenge, especially in a darker adventure like Rime, and I don't think they'd like me adding a party member of my own. Plus, D&D isn't an MMO, and characters are designed to be survivable regardless of "party composition." If your group is very afraid of potentially losing characters, however, they might love the bard idea. Only way to know is to ask.
That said, I would second JoeltheWalrus' idea of giving out very low-powered magic weapons fairly early for those nonmagical-resistant monsters!
Wizard (Gandalf) of the Tolkien Club
Besides dropping a magic weapon/healing item or two on them early, I would say try not to screw with them excessively during short rests. A party with no access to magical healing is likely going to rely on short rests a little more than usual, so let them feel like its a reasonably safe option.
Be careful that your bard NPC doesn't turn into a DMPC. That can suck the fun out of the game for your players.
That said, what backgrounds do they have? Knights come with a riding horse and 3 commoners, though one is described as a noble squire. Have they rolled on the tables in Xanathar's? They can get a commoner that way.
You could let each of them control a sidekick in addition to their regular character. Just make sure the CR of the base creature should be 1/2 or lower, as per Crawford's recent talk on the subject, and make sure they swap out to the new levels once Tasha's is published.
EDIT:
You can also just boost their level by 1 or 2 to compensate for a smaller party.
I’ve always hated my DM dropping in an NPC to “round out” the party. The best games I’ve ever been in have been lopsided like this because some things will become trivial for this party and other things will be more challenging. Throwing in an NPC that fills gaps just feels like the DM has already of the opinion that:
1) The party is too weak and can’t handle the adventure, or
2) The DM isn’t good at balancing the adventure for our party, or can’t handle novel solutions to events in the game that our characters will come up with.
I would gladly DM RotFM with any party composition. It’s more interesting seeing what they come up with.
Thanks for all the suggestions. I love the idea to give them magical items a little earlier.
I'll definitely talk to my players about it. And if they like the idea, it'll be their choice to kick this NPC out whenever they want. And I'll keep the person in the background, in both battles and RP.
Yeah I hate the idea of DMPCs as well.
From what I have read of Rime there isn't a major time crunch, so an extra long rest or whatever (outside of a dangerous area) won't matter. This gets them up to full HP. Personally I would leave everything as written, entertain novel approaches and if you really think they need a hand through a potion of healing on every second bad guy or whatever ratio you think is needed.