That's a really annoying part about Dnd. That type of stealth kill doesn't really work unless you are a rogue. Maybe you could make it more of a skill challenge than a combat one. If they can roll high enough on their stealth checks and maybe roll another sleight of hand or attack roll, they can dispatch a guard in one hit.
Yeah - I am fine with allowing those kinds of kills, as long as it fits the "theme" of what's going on, for sure.
Just seeing how others have done it (if at all) and how. I like the idea of Stealth (which is what I used for last night's session I ran). I ended up lowering the HP of the archers, and removing their multiattack, to favor the players in this assault. But definitely, after the session, wish I would have allowed an opportunity to "one shot" kill these archers in the tower, to get a more cinematic feeling. I was caught between trying to provide a challenge and wanting to reward the players. I should have sided with rewarding the players more.
I recently got together with a bunch of friends and had a bunch of really fun battles. A friend of a friend has been collecting fiberglass weapons for years and has quite the impressive arsenal. I don't know if it technically counts as larping since there wasn't a story or real roleplaying, but it was incredibly fun.
Nope but I really really really wanted to join the local chapter of the SCA.
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"Sooner or later, your Players are going to smash your railroad into a sandbox."
-Vedexent
"real life is a super high CR."
-OboeLauren
"............anybody got any potatoes? We could drop a potato in each hole an' see which ones get viciously mauled by horrible monsters?"
You have a group of Level 3 adventurers (six of them)... and the current mission is to liberate the town from the evil clutches of a cult that is holding this small village hostage... convert or burn at the stake...
The party wants to stealth in and take out some of the guard towers, each with one archer positioned in the tower to keep watch...
Often times, in moves, you see cool stealth missions where they're able to get in, and quickly slit the throat of the enemy (or whatever, essentially take them down in a single move)... And having cool, theatric moves like that would be nice (and enhance the game as players succeed, ideally, and pull off this rescue/liberation)...
How would you play this out (being that the party is level 3, naturally these archers have more than 1 hit point)...
Or would you let the party do a one hit kill like this?
Thoughts?
There is nothing wrong with making the guards 1 HD creatures. They're guards, they're not supposed to pose a threat on their own. They are the alarm system or obstacle which needs to be avoided or taken out. This situation is ideal for Assassin Rogues which many cinematic heroes have a couple levels of.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"Sooner or later, your Players are going to smash your railroad into a sandbox."
-Vedexent
"real life is a super high CR."
-OboeLauren
"............anybody got any potatoes? We could drop a potato in each hole an' see which ones get viciously mauled by horrible monsters?"
Question... Whether DM or player... but mostly DM... You have a group of Level 3 adventurers (six of them)... and the current mission is to liberate the town from the evil clutches of a cult that is holding this small village hostage... convert or burn at the stake... The party wants to stealth in and take out some of the guard towers, each with one archer positioned in the tower to keep watch... Often times, in moves, you see cool stealth missions where they're able to get in, and quickly slit the throat of the enemy (or whatever, essentially take them down in a single move)... And having cool, theatric moves like that would be nice (and enhance the game as players succeed, ideally, and pull off this rescue/liberation)... How would you play this out (being that the party is level 3, naturally these archers have more than 1 hit point)... Or would you let the party do a one hit kill like this? Thoughts?
There is nothing wrong with making the guards 1 HD creatures. They're guards, they're not supposed to pose a threat on their own. They are the alarm system or obstacle which needs to be avoided or taken out. This situation is ideal for Assassin Rogues which many cinematic heroes have a couple levels of.
Yeah - I should have adjusted in the moment. As written, I had them as the Archers (which are CR3) from D&D - because I assumed, they might focus on a tower to take it out. However, they went for - send the rogue to one tower, send the ranger to the other, and the kender druid to go to the back of the windmill, while the minotaur fighter, human cleric, and half-elf artificer approached the windmill (which was also guarded).
So the two tanks (artificer armorer and minotaur fighter) who could take the most hits, were with the cleric.
While the rogue and ranger were doing 1:1 against archers who have that nasty's "Archer's Eye" (add 1d10 to either their hit roll or their damage roll - and I always called it was going for damage, because it might miss and give the heroes a chance... my dice, which I roll in the open for all to see, were not kind to the players).
Question: If one of your campaigns had an animated intro with all the PCs, how would it go.
For my current one, it would start in a battle, with Lug being stabbed in the back. The music will start playing and flashes of different versions of him as other species appear, before shifting to a door, where Billy the Elf will walk through it before going behind a podium and assuming the shape of a gnome. Once again, flashes of different versions. Next, Ejud the Tiefling battles another Tiefling wearing bone armor while dodging spells from a wizard elf. She goes in for a deadly strike, and freezes, the multiple versions of herself appear like the others. It will end with a frame of Boblin the ascended sitting at a desk, staring at the watcher.
Question: If one of your campaigns had an animated intro with all the PCs, how would it go.
Hah - probably like Legend of Vox Machina.
Let's see...
It'd focus on a single figure standing in a field, wearing plate armor - bows his head - and bursts of light beam through every crevice of his armor (the human paladin), a half-elf leaps up and grabs the light and balls it in his first - then channels it into his energy bow (the half-elf ranger with the radiant bow that mimics the bow from the D&D cartoon), the air genasi comes running down one of the beams of light and misty steps (her dagger) and stabs (air genasi rogue) a creature about to stab a female elf cleric - who holds up her holy symbol and channels all the light from the paladin and a huge ball of light bursts when she holds her holy symbol over her head destroying all of the shadow - the four heroes, standing side by side.
You have a group of Level 3 adventurers (six of them)... and the current mission is to liberate the town from the evil clutches of a cult that is holding this small village hostage... convert or burn at the stake...
The party wants to stealth in and take out some of the guard towers, each with one archer positioned in the tower to keep watch...
Often times, in moves, you see cool stealth missions where they're able to get in, and quickly slit the throat of the enemy (or whatever, essentially take them down in a single move)... And having cool, theatric moves like that would be nice (and enhance the game as players succeed, ideally, and pull off this rescue/liberation)...
How would you play this out (being that the party is level 3, naturally these archers have more than 1 hit point)...
Or would you let the party do a one hit kill like this?
Thoughts?
This is why 4e minions rocked. They all had 1 hp. Do the same with these guards. It turns them from annoying combatants into an environmental hazard. It'll also make your PCs feel awesome when they can take down five of them in a round.
Question: If one of your campaigns had an animated intro with all the PCs, how would it go.
A kind of mix of the end of Buckaroo Banzai, but with slow motion half way through to catch all the tomfoolery as they march along.
I know this because I am currently attempting to finagle free generators to do exactly that.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Only a DM since 1980 (3000+ Sessions) / PhD, MS, MA / Mixed, Bi, Trans, Woman / No longer welcome in the US, apparently
Wyrlde: Adventures in the Seven Cities .-=] Lore Book | Patreon | Wyrlde YT [=-. An original Setting for 5e, a whole solar system of adventure. Ongoing updates, exclusies, more. Not Talking About It / Dubbed The Oracle in the Cult of Mythology Nerds
I'd like to see a tiny giant, more evil celestials, good fiends, etc. I'd also like to see hybrid types, like a half-construct fiend or something like that.
I'd like to see a tiny giant, more evil celestials, good fiends, etc. I'd also like to see hybrid types, like a half-construct fiend or something like that.
We have a familiar from the nine hells, the imp. What about familiars from other planes.
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Hi, I’m DrakenBrine, here’s my Sig and characters
I'd like to see a tiny giant, more evil celestials, good fiends, etc. I'd also like to see hybrid types, like a half-construct fiend or something like that.
We have a familiar from the nine hells, the imp. What about familiars from other planes.
I heard there are going to be a bunch of new familiars in the new PHB, including at least one Celestial familiar.
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I really like D&D, especially Ravenloft, Exandria and the Upside Down from Stranger Things. My pronouns are she/they (genderfae).
I'd like to see a tiny giant, more evil celestials, good fiends, etc. I'd also like to see hybrid types, like a half-construct fiend or something like that.
More angel types. Also maybe more creatures from Limbo would be cool
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— δ cyno • he/him • number one paladin fanδ — making a smoothie for meta ——————| EXTENDED SIG |—————— Φ • redpelt’s biggest fan :) DM, minmaxer, microbiology student, and lover of anything colored red • Φ
I'd like to see a tiny giant, more evil celestials, good fiends, etc. I'd also like to see hybrid types, like a half-construct fiend or something like that.
We have a familiar from the nine hells, the imp. What about familiars from other planes.
I heard there are going to be a bunch of new familiars in the new PHB, including at least one Celestial familiar.
Oh, the celestial one is theSphinx of Wonder. I saw a video on it.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Hi, I’m DrakenBrine, here’s my Sig and characters
I'd like to see a tiny giant, more evil celestials, good fiends, etc. I'd also like to see hybrid types, like a half-construct fiend or something like that.
We have a familiar from the nine hells, the imp. What about familiars from other planes.
I heard there are going to be a bunch of new familiars in the new PHB, including at least one Celestial familiar.
Oh, the celestial one is theSphinx of Wonder. I saw a video on it.
Me too! I think we saw the same video.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
I really like D&D, especially Ravenloft, Exandria and the Upside Down from Stranger Things. My pronouns are she/they (genderfae).
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Yeah - I am fine with allowing those kinds of kills, as long as it fits the "theme" of what's going on, for sure.
Just seeing how others have done it (if at all) and how. I like the idea of Stealth (which is what I used for last night's session I ran). I ended up lowering the HP of the archers, and removing their multiattack, to favor the players in this assault. But definitely, after the session, wish I would have allowed an opportunity to "one shot" kill these archers in the tower, to get a more cinematic feeling. I was caught between trying to provide a challenge and wanting to reward the players. I should have sided with rewarding the players more.
Check out my publication on DMs Guild: https://www.dmsguild.com/browse.php?author=Tawmis%20Logue
Check out my comedy web series - Neverending Nights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Wr4-u9-zw0&list=PLbRG7dzFI-u3EJd0usasgDrrFO3mZ1lOZ
Need a character story/background written up? I do it for free (but also take donations!) - https://forums.giantitp.com/showthread.php?591882-Need-a-character-background-written-up
Nope but I really really really wanted to join the local chapter of the SCA.
"Sooner or later, your Players are going to smash your railroad into a sandbox."
-Vedexent
"real life is a super high CR."
-OboeLauren
"............anybody got any potatoes? We could drop a potato in each hole an' see which ones get viciously mauled by horrible monsters?"
-Ilyara Thundertale
There is nothing wrong with making the guards 1 HD creatures. They're guards, they're not supposed to pose a threat on their own. They are the alarm system or obstacle which needs to be avoided or taken out. This situation is ideal for Assassin Rogues which many cinematic heroes have a couple levels of.
"Sooner or later, your Players are going to smash your railroad into a sandbox."
-Vedexent
"real life is a super high CR."
-OboeLauren
"............anybody got any potatoes? We could drop a potato in each hole an' see which ones get viciously mauled by horrible monsters?"
-Ilyara Thundertale
Yeah - I should have adjusted in the moment. As written, I had them as the Archers (which are CR3) from D&D - because I assumed, they might focus on a tower to take it out. However, they went for - send the rogue to one tower, send the ranger to the other, and the kender druid to go to the back of the windmill, while the minotaur fighter, human cleric, and half-elf artificer approached the windmill (which was also guarded).
So the two tanks (artificer armorer and minotaur fighter) who could take the most hits, were with the cleric.
While the rogue and ranger were doing 1:1 against archers who have that nasty's "Archer's Eye" (add 1d10 to either their hit roll or their damage roll - and I always called it was going for damage, because it might miss and give the heroes a chance... my dice, which I roll in the open for all to see, were not kind to the players).
Check out my publication on DMs Guild: https://www.dmsguild.com/browse.php?author=Tawmis%20Logue
Check out my comedy web series - Neverending Nights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Wr4-u9-zw0&list=PLbRG7dzFI-u3EJd0usasgDrrFO3mZ1lOZ
Need a character story/background written up? I do it for free (but also take donations!) - https://forums.giantitp.com/showthread.php?591882-Need-a-character-background-written-up
Question: If one of your campaigns had an animated intro with all the PCs, how would it go.
For my current one, it would start in a battle, with Lug being stabbed in the back. The music will start playing and flashes of different versions of him as other species appear, before shifting to a door, where Billy the Elf will walk through it before going behind a podium and assuming the shape of a gnome. Once again, flashes of different versions. Next, Ejud the Tiefling battles another Tiefling wearing bone armor while dodging spells from a wizard elf. She goes in for a deadly strike, and freezes, the multiple versions of herself appear like the others. It will end with a frame of Boblin the ascended sitting at a desk, staring at the watcher.
Hi, I’m DrakenBrine, here’s my Sig and characters
I am The Grand Envisioner!
Hah - probably like Legend of Vox Machina.
Let's see...
It'd focus on a single figure standing in a field, wearing plate armor - bows his head - and bursts of light beam through every crevice of his armor (the human paladin), a half-elf leaps up and grabs the light and balls it in his first - then channels it into his energy bow (the half-elf ranger with the radiant bow that mimics the bow from the D&D cartoon), the air genasi comes running down one of the beams of light and misty steps (her dagger) and stabs (air genasi rogue) a creature about to stab a female elf cleric - who holds up her holy symbol and channels all the light from the paladin and a huge ball of light bursts when she holds her holy symbol over her head destroying all of the shadow - the four heroes, standing side by side.
Check out my publication on DMs Guild: https://www.dmsguild.com/browse.php?author=Tawmis%20Logue
Check out my comedy web series - Neverending Nights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Wr4-u9-zw0&list=PLbRG7dzFI-u3EJd0usasgDrrFO3mZ1lOZ
Need a character story/background written up? I do it for free (but also take donations!) - https://forums.giantitp.com/showthread.php?591882-Need-a-character-background-written-up
This is why 4e minions rocked. They all had 1 hp. Do the same with these guards. It turns them from annoying combatants into an environmental hazard. It'll also make your PCs feel awesome when they can take down five of them in a round.
Something like this, I imagine.
Anyone watch the live stream?
https://youtu.be/WPBnLlqV0Z0
Thoughts?
Check out my publication on DMs Guild: https://www.dmsguild.com/browse.php?author=Tawmis%20Logue
Check out my comedy web series - Neverending Nights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Wr4-u9-zw0&list=PLbRG7dzFI-u3EJd0usasgDrrFO3mZ1lOZ
Need a character story/background written up? I do it for free (but also take donations!) - https://forums.giantitp.com/showthread.php?591882-Need-a-character-background-written-up
Forgot about that one. Thanks for the ink!
"Sooner or later, your Players are going to smash your railroad into a sandbox."
-Vedexent
"real life is a super high CR."
-OboeLauren
"............anybody got any potatoes? We could drop a potato in each hole an' see which ones get viciously mauled by horrible monsters?"
-Ilyara Thundertale
What was for breakfast? I most often have a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Bonus today the summer school kids made pancakes =)
"Sooner or later, your Players are going to smash your railroad into a sandbox."
-Vedexent
"real life is a super high CR."
-OboeLauren
"............anybody got any potatoes? We could drop a potato in each hole an' see which ones get viciously mauled by horrible monsters?"
-Ilyara Thundertale
I just had cereal. Nothing special.
Hi, I’m DrakenBrine, here’s my Sig and characters
I am The Grand Envisioner!
Chocolate chip pancakes with powdered sugar on top
I really like D&D, especially Ravenloft, Exandria and the Upside Down from Stranger Things. My pronouns are she/they (genderfae).
I had an early dentist appointment so I only had a banana. I was able to get free green tea afterwards which was nice.
I usually eat cereal or toast with a large variety of fruit.
A kind of mix of the end of Buckaroo Banzai, but with slow motion half way through to catch all the tomfoolery as they march along.
I know this because I am currently attempting to finagle free generators to do exactly that.
Only a DM since 1980 (3000+ Sessions) / PhD, MS, MA / Mixed, Bi, Trans, Woman / No longer welcome in the US, apparently
Wyrlde: Adventures in the Seven Cities
.-=] Lore Book | Patreon | Wyrlde YT [=-.
An original Setting for 5e, a whole solar system of adventure. Ongoing updates, exclusies, more.
Not Talking About It / Dubbed The Oracle in the Cult of Mythology Nerds
*Casts revivify on thread.*
QotD: What types of monsters does 5e lack?
I'd like to see a tiny giant, more evil celestials, good fiends, etc. I'd also like to see hybrid types, like a half-construct fiend or something like that.
We have a familiar from the nine hells, the imp. What about familiars from other planes.
Hi, I’m DrakenBrine, here’s my Sig and characters
I am The Grand Envisioner!
I heard there are going to be a bunch of new familiars in the new PHB, including at least one Celestial familiar.
I really like D&D, especially Ravenloft, Exandria and the Upside Down from Stranger Things. My pronouns are she/they (genderfae).
More angel types. Also maybe more creatures from Limbo would be cool
— δ cyno • he/him • number one paladin fan δ —
making a smoothie for meta
——————| EXTENDED SIG |——————
Φ • redpelt’s biggest fan :) DM, minmaxer, microbiology student, and lover of anything colored red • Φ
Oh, the celestial one is theSphinx of Wonder. I saw a video on it.
Hi, I’m DrakenBrine, here’s my Sig and characters
I am The Grand Envisioner!
Me too! I think we saw the same video.
I really like D&D, especially Ravenloft, Exandria and the Upside Down from Stranger Things. My pronouns are she/they (genderfae).