Jan/Feb '23 Lite Challenge: Mistruun's Gondola > (Non- Entry)

[Greason Wolfe]

You have a few options here....

1) If the characters were already planning on a life of adventure, they would likely have their own equipment though some of the more fragile equipment (glass vials, clay jars and the like) might not have survived the fall.

2) It's probably unlikely that the gondola would have its own equipment. The reasoning would be what prevents people from stealing it.

3) You could go with the approach that the characters will have to manufacture crude equipment from the wreckage of the gondola. This, however, might not be the best option for beginning characters. In this case, what the characters could manufacture would be dependent on their skills (i.e. weaponsmith, bowyer/Fletcher, and so on), and what materials are available from the wreckage.

By the same token, highly venomous critters might not be the best opponents for beginning characters. A few goblins or skeletons would probably be okay alo g with a few natural critters (the wolves for instance) but the key is not making the encounters to deadly to handle.

Hope that helps some.

[XCali]

You have a few options here....

1) If the characters were already planning on a life of adventure, they would likely have their own equipment though some of the more fragile equipment (glass vials, clay jars and the like) might not have survived the fall.

2) It's probably unlikely that the gondola would have its own equipment. The reasoning would be what prevents people from stealing it.

3) You could go with the approach that the characters will have to manufacture crude equipment from the wreckage of the gondola. This, however, might not be the best option for beginning characters. In this case, what the characters could manufacture would be dependent on their skills (i.e. weaponsmith, bowyer/Fletcher, and so on), and what materials are available from the wreckage.

By the same token, highly venomous critters might not be the best opponents for beginning characters. A few goblins or skeletons would probably be okay alo g with a few natural critters (the wolves for instance) but the key is not making the encounters to deadly to handle.

Hope that helps some.

It does. (Just on your 2nd point. The gondola has a strong room. But after the crash, well, desperate situation calls for desperate measures.)

But I have a more complex question to ask. Let's say you want to go with less common starter monsters, that might be a bit more dangerous. How would you then set up the area? There would be other Npcs that are on the gondola before the fall. Would you then set up a scene where someone takes charge and let the group alongside the players know they are in real danger now. I imagine that with a group, they can receive quests: Like to put up a barricade to get things ready for the fight that is coming. Or other things. They do have most of the day to get ready until night fall, when the monsters would come.

I'm imagining this as quite a bit removed from your average start to a campaign, yet still a start.

So, my question is, still taking into account at least some of the monsters I mentioned; is there then a way to set this up as a more difficult starting area, but with the added NPCs and stuff looted from the gondola, to make it not as insurmountable?

[Greason Wolfe]

Sometimes, designing that "1st level" adventure is the toughest. You want to challenge the characters (players) without killing them quickly or by accident. I've always found that using fewer "monsters" and/or combat encounters and a few more intellectual challenge (i.e. "How are we going to get across that river?") tend to work better. Unusual or uncommon "monsters" can also work well, particularly if they "attack" in unexpected ways or for unusual reasons. For instance, you could replace a few wolves with a warg. Make the goblins aquatic (bullywugs, basically). Another alternative is to have the characters caught between "monsters" that are about to fight with each other, or have one "monster" join in the fight with another monster. When using NPCs, be careful that they don't outshine the main characters or become tragic tales just for the sake of tragedy. Even when they aren't really in control of the situation, the characters should always feel that they have some level of control over their fates.

Again, hope that helps some. When/if I think of other helpful tid bits, I will try to post them.

[Bogie]

Lots of good advice from GW! For the map itself, you want to keep it basic. You don't need to show all that equipment on the map, just put a few chests & crates in the store room of the gondola and then you will tell the players what their characters find when they search. To make it more interesting some of the better stuff would be in a hidden / secret room or in a locked room so the characters have find them, negotiate locks and possible traps etc.
Same story with the monsters, they are not usually drawn on a battlemap because in the game you want to be able to move them around. You could draw in some random jungle creatures just to give the map a little more life.
Normal jungle creatures can be deadly enough, don't start with to many weird monsters, just a couple to let the players know that this is going to be different.
The map looks great with the gondola crashed on it.

[Bogie]

Another idea, crates with crucial equipment may have fallen out a window during the crash and are stuck up in really tall tree, or floating away on a stream, or slowly sinking in quicksand, or broken open and a bunch of monkeys are taking stuff to carry it away.

[Greason Wolfe]

Hah! I was thinking about something with monkeys as well, but got ninjad by Mr. B.

As a final thought, if you can get your hands on a copy of the Dungeons of the Slave Lords module (AD&D first edition), it opens with the characters having been subdued, stripped of their equipment and tossed in a dungeon. They have to be resourceful about their escape by finding or crafting crude weapons out of what little they have or can find (i.e. using a loincloth as a crude sling). There is probably a pdf version floating around on the internet somewhere. It isn't a "1st level" adventure, but it might give you a few more ideas about how to limit the character's resources and still give them a chance to "win."

[XCali]

Sometimes, designing that "1st level" adventure is the toughest. You want to challenge the characters (players) without killing them quickly or by accident. I've always found that using fewer "monsters" and/or combat encounters and a few more intellectual challenge (i.e. "How are we going to get across that river?") tend to work better. Unusual or uncommon "monsters" can also work well, particularly if they "attack" in unexpected ways or for unusual reasons. For instance, you could replace a few wolves with a warg. Make the goblins aquatic (bullywugs, basically). Another alternative is to have the characters caught between "monsters" that are about to fight with each other, or have one "monster" join in the fight with another monster. When using NPCs, be careful that they don't outshine the main characters or become tragic tales just for the sake of tragedy. Even when they aren't really in control of the situation, the characters should always feel that they have some level of control over their fates.

Again, hope that helps some. When/if I think of other helpful tid bits, I will try to post them.

Lots of good advice from GW! For the map itself, you want to keep it basic. You don't need to show all that equipment on the map, just put a few chests & crates in the store room of the gondola and then you will tell the players what their characters find when they search. To make it more interesting some of the better stuff would be in a hidden / secret room or in a locked room so the characters have find them, negotiate locks and possible traps etc.
Same story with the monsters, they are not usually drawn on a battlemap because in the game you want to be able to move them around. You could draw in some random jungle creatures just to give the map a little more life.
Normal jungle creatures can be deadly enough, don't start with to many weird monsters, just a couple to let the players know that this is going to be different.
The map looks great with the gondola crashed on it.

Another idea, crates with crucial equipment may have fallen out a window during the crash and are stuck up in really tall tree, or floating away on a stream, or slowly sinking in quicksand, or broken open and a bunch of monkeys are taking stuff to carry it away.

Hah! I was thinking about something with monkeys as well, but got ninjad by Mr. B.

As a final thought, if you can get your hands on a copy of the Dungeons of the Slave Lords module (AD&D first edition), it opens with the characters having been subdued, stripped of their equipment and tossed in a dungeon. They have to be resourceful about their escape by finding or crafting crude weapons out of what little they have or can find (i.e. using a loincloth as a crude sling). There is probably a pdf version floating around on the internet somewhere. It isn't a "1st level" adventure, but it might give you a few more ideas about how to limit the character's resources and still give them a chance to "win."

All great ideas! A lot to take in to account.

Reason why I want to set up this one differently. I imagine it is too the same always running into the same kinds of 1st level monsters. And for this start for a campaign, the players need to be caught off guard with the uncommon nature of it all. So, I'd like to set it up that way, while keeping it achievable for a low level group of players.

That's my first consideration.

Also something I think about.

3 Giant Spiders (From the Monster Manual, p. 333)
1 Shadow (Monster Manual p.269)

Though, the shadow would cause some problems for the players, I feel maybe add a dying NPC that warns them about Shadows in the jungle and having to use light to weaken the monster.

Again, I'm think about keeping this as a start that will catch even more experience players by surprise on what they come up against. Any thoughts on this line of thinking?

[Bogie]

Hah! I was thinking about something with monkeys as well, but got ninjad by Mr. B.

As a final thought, if you can get your hands on a copy of the Dungeons of the Slave Lords module (AD&D first edition), it opens with the characters having been subdued, stripped of their equipment and tossed in a dungeon. They have to be resourceful about their escape by finding or crafting crude weapons out of what little they have or can find (i.e. using a loincloth as a crude sling). There is probably a pdf version floating around on the internet somewhere. It isn't a "1st level" adventure, but it might give you a few more ideas about how to limit the character's resources and still give them a chance to "win."

It is available at DMs Guild. If you follow this link it will take you to it. If you click on "FULL-SIZE PREVIEW" under the picture of the module cover you can read the first 6 pages and get an idea of what GW is talking about:
https://www.dmsguild.com/product/170...?term=Slave+lo