An Anniversary Game

[Dead Greyhawk]

The city of Helix has regained some of its former glory. The shifting of the Great River a decade ago has slowly unveiled a wide field of barrows with a vast maze beneath it. Adventurers, Northern priests worshipping Orbital Gods, and easy money restored much of the city's life, but at the cost of warring mercenaries both in the fields and in Helix itself. The Barrowmaze still yields its treasures, but it is now even more dangerous than before. It's easy tombs have been looted, and now bandits and rivals pose their own particular threats. The Haberdashers, the Motley Fools, the Butchers of Friendship, the Greek Brotherhood, the Oddfellows, and others have their competing bases, partisans, and allies.

Helix's renewal has provided more opportunities for the adventurers streaming to it than simply lurking through the tombs. The list below highlights some of those other opportunities.

The Greek Brotherhood is looking for brave adventurers to explore beyond the mountain pass to the Northeast. Rumors have it that they have come into possession of a map of the area, and that their opponents, the Butchers of Friendship, plan to explore the area next week. The Greeks hope to discommmode their enemies by funding groups to despoil the area earlier.

Odo and her leman have fled Helix leaving large debts behind. Supposedly the witch has headed into the Korm Basin to the southeast in order to uncover sufficient riches to make good her debts. A bounty is on her head, plus whatever treasure she was seeking would be yours.

An acting troup searches for guards and guardians to escort them to the west to the Earl's court. The Prince will be in residence and the Earl has promised a performance. Unfortunately the Earl's man was waylaid and now the troupe must arrive within 72 hours.

Two adventurers of note, Curor the Curate and the Sorceror Mitchell, call for partners to face a dragon in its lair. A small one. Really. Curor and Mitchell will take half the hoard while the other half is split evenly. A life of leisure awaits the survivors.

[Wolfgar]

Cool plot threads.

I'll play a cleric and take this line from the email
STR: 11
INT: 14
WIS: 14
DEX: 14
CON: 10
CHA: 16

Are we starting at first level? Do clerics get bonus spells for WIS? Does it matter which god you worship? How much gold do we start with? You can roll that for me and give me a standard equipment load. I'll take a mace as that seems like the best one-handed blunt weapon. If I have extra gold I want to try to hire a shield bearer and as many extra shields as I can.

[Bolo]

I intend to be either a halfling or a dwarf. I'll pull those out of the stack of pregens and select one at random.

I believe Gareth wants to be an elf (unless that has changed since the last time I asked).

[venger]

I'm leaning toward fighter. Either pre-gen or rolled up if I get there early.

Labyrinth Lord characters are supposed to receive 3d8 x10gp as starting money.

[Ginger]

If we roll our own characters, will it be straight 3d6, assigning as desired?

I'm thinking thief, but the only high DEX pregen is rough.

[Dead Greyhawk]

A couple of side notes.

1. I've rejiggered the damage tables on LL weapons a little bit. Thrown weapons do 1d4. Small and blunt 1h weapons do d6. Blunt 2h weapons and regular 1h weapons do 1d8. Most 2h weapons do 1d10, except for 2h sword and pole arm which do d12. The rationale is to provide weapon unrestricted classes an advantage over restricted weapon classes. The difference within types is weight and cost. These are the same rules I used for the Barrowmaze game.

2. 1st level. Greek, Norse, or Orbital gods. But it doesn't really matter. 3d8 GP regardless of class. I believe I have a quick equipment sheet somewhere that I can bring or email. You are welcome to try to hire hirelings, but you'll need to do that at the table. Yes on cleric bonus spells but not on MU or elves.

3. Yes 3d6 arrange as you want.

[Dead Greyhawk]

4. Note that thieves can't wield shields but are not weapon limited. Backstab with a pole arm if you like. Or stab with a pike from the second rank.

5. Bows only shoot one arrow a round. You can throw one dagger. If you throw two daggers it is like dual wielding with the appropriate penalties.

6. I you fire into melee and miss, we'll roll to see who you actually impacted.

[Dead Greyhawk]

Thanks everyone for playing. I hope you had a good time.

To wrap up, the Megatollah of Mayhem wore a creepy snake-man mouth filter, chrome bracers (75 GP) and a gold toe ring (25 GP). In addition to his robes, he wore chain mail and still had 2 shields when he died. His lover wore 8 jade bracelets on ankles and arms worth 40 gp each and a gold belly chain worth 45gp. In the Megatollah's room was a chest containing 1,135 gp and 924 sp and 23 purple crystals worth 30gp each. A little pot contains goop that looks like honey and smells like turds. A silver coffer worth 75 gp holds snake-men potency roots. 4 torches that burn for 12 hours each and can’t be blown out, only splashed out with water are against the wall. Among the bodies are some shields, a few silver arrows and a silver dagger. Annan, Ferrari, and Ragnar's bodies yield their spare change from the 25 GP deposit. No one ever spots the 4th orange guy.

When everyone heads to Lomberg, dead lady in tow, they catch up with Cleon and Nicky. Lomberg turns out to be an antiseptic little town with a general market in it and a suitable inn, the Long Sleep. About ten percent of the population have a black stone embedded in their forehead which marks them as a Servitor of Lom. Cleon and Nicky dole out their pamphlets while a Servitor of Lom and several of the town guard, who dress in white uniforms that look very orderly, collects the deceased woman from the party. The Servitor extracts the stone from her head (with a squelching sound) before heading off.

XP
Treasure: 2457.4 GP (not including silver weaponry)
Ankylosaurus: 2400 XP (x .5 for fleeing) = 1200
Bodyguards: 29 x 3 = 87
Megatollah: 80
Pyromaniac: 20
Spawn ooze: 65

Total XP: 3909.4

Individual XP
Original Demihuman PC: 25 + 558 = 583
Original Human PC: 1.1 * 583 = 641
Original Thief PC: 1.1 * 910 = 1001

Replacement Demihuman PC: 558 - 100 = 458
Replacement Human PC: 1.1 * 458 = 504

I think Simon is level 2. Hurrah!

The adventure was a lightly modified joeskythedungeonbrawler.wordpress.com/2012/02/17/a-carcosa-avdenture-for-you/. Note this is a NSFW URL and probably R. I have a cleaned up version as a PDF if anyone wants it.

[Ginger]

I had a lot of fun.

Thanks for posting the original module. That guy is hysterical.

[venger]

Excellent time, much fun was had, thank you!

Setting was great, very Dying Earth/Jack Vance.

And that module is awesomeness, I wouldn't change a thing. That's the best way I've ever seen to present Carcosa material.