So there was a whale. An undead whale being ridden by a horde of other undead.
That was the whole concept I had rolling around in my head preparing for the session. I may have mentioned this before, but some sessions I just focus on a conflict and let the ideas develop around it, like ripples spreading out from a stone striking the surface of a pond... or like a branching thought diagram. This is why I love RPGs. Always go with your fun ideas. Just let them be awesome!
There was going to be a fight with an undead whale. Things I learned last session: elemental monk powers are pretty good at creating icebergs. Fire spells blow up ships. Little enemies are easily mowed down at a distance despite what CR calculations say. So I wanted a big challenge, something that would be interesting, and something cool to build.
I love whales. I'm not particularly knowledgeable about them, but I think they are wonderful. I wanted to have a whale. Plus, the Big Bad of this arc is an undead, so Undead Whale! I crafted this really quick and dirty. If I had it to go over again, I would make sure the top of the whale was more flat, for play purposes.
Going into this session, we knew that Kat, who plays Aurora, wasn't going to make it next session. Kat's super communicative, so I've known for months. She also contacted me before the session to make sure we (she and I) had a way for Aurora to disappear for a week. She doesn't want anyone playing Aurora and I totally agree with that call.
So going into the session, I knew that I had to help Aurora disappear. I mentioned it to the players as well, but then called it out in the final moments of the battle just to make sure no one was unaware of Kat's plans. We wanted Aurora to have her chance to slip away. Otherwise, and I'm proud of our party for this, they would have gone after her.
In the end, we had the lesser undead knocked off the whale's back, a cask of gunpowder stuck inside the whale, then the whale was turned using Turn Undead. I really like 5e Turn Undead, but I often expect it to work like older versions. This is the second really big undead I've had turned! It's pretty fun.
Also, there was a 30' long iceberg being ridden by a sorceress that almost collided with the boat, but was immediately taken out by our sorceress casting Darkness on it. It just sailed right by!
Another big moment from this session was when the Elemental Monk and the Sorceress decided they wanted to work together in order to break a magical effect. This was a really cool improv situation and I loved it. I'd really like to do more Player + Player superpowers like this! I think that's one of the best parts of an RPG; when players can work together and get a greater effect.
There's that moment the day after a game where I hope the players had as much fun as I did. This story arc, which I think of as our 'pirates' arc, changes a lot of the rules for our game so far. There are no towns, the PCs can't access the Infinity Tower, they really can't move around and do things the way they're used to. I hope that the experiences and different set pieces make up for that difference. I worry the game reduces down to a single element and that the only players that really have fun are those that engage with it fully. Our more chaotic characters jump on top of the whale and run around blasting stuff. Our deliberate characters stay back, being just as effective but engaging from a distance. I hope it's fun for everyone.
That was the whole concept I had rolling around in my head preparing for the session. I may have mentioned this before, but some sessions I just focus on a conflict and let the ideas develop around it, like ripples spreading out from a stone striking the surface of a pond... or like a branching thought diagram. This is why I love RPGs. Always go with your fun ideas. Just let them be awesome!
There was going to be a fight with an undead whale. Things I learned last session: elemental monk powers are pretty good at creating icebergs. Fire spells blow up ships. Little enemies are easily mowed down at a distance despite what CR calculations say. So I wanted a big challenge, something that would be interesting, and something cool to build.
I love whales. I'm not particularly knowledgeable about them, but I think they are wonderful. I wanted to have a whale. Plus, the Big Bad of this arc is an undead, so Undead Whale! I crafted this really quick and dirty. If I had it to go over again, I would make sure the top of the whale was more flat, for play purposes.
Going into this session, we knew that Kat, who plays Aurora, wasn't going to make it next session. Kat's super communicative, so I've known for months. She also contacted me before the session to make sure we (she and I) had a way for Aurora to disappear for a week. She doesn't want anyone playing Aurora and I totally agree with that call.
So going into the session, I knew that I had to help Aurora disappear. I mentioned it to the players as well, but then called it out in the final moments of the battle just to make sure no one was unaware of Kat's plans. We wanted Aurora to have her chance to slip away. Otherwise, and I'm proud of our party for this, they would have gone after her.
In the end, we had the lesser undead knocked off the whale's back, a cask of gunpowder stuck inside the whale, then the whale was turned using Turn Undead. I really like 5e Turn Undead, but I often expect it to work like older versions. This is the second really big undead I've had turned! It's pretty fun.
Also, there was a 30' long iceberg being ridden by a sorceress that almost collided with the boat, but was immediately taken out by our sorceress casting Darkness on it. It just sailed right by!
Another big moment from this session was when the Elemental Monk and the Sorceress decided they wanted to work together in order to break a magical effect. This was a really cool improv situation and I loved it. I'd really like to do more Player + Player superpowers like this! I think that's one of the best parts of an RPG; when players can work together and get a greater effect.
There's that moment the day after a game where I hope the players had as much fun as I did. This story arc, which I think of as our 'pirates' arc, changes a lot of the rules for our game so far. There are no towns, the PCs can't access the Infinity Tower, they really can't move around and do things the way they're used to. I hope that the experiences and different set pieces make up for that difference. I worry the game reduces down to a single element and that the only players that really have fun are those that engage with it fully. Our more chaotic characters jump on top of the whale and run around blasting stuff. Our deliberate characters stay back, being just as effective but engaging from a distance. I hope it's fun for everyone.
Finally got to watch this encounter. Great set pieces and allowance for the players to problem solve. Good fantasy's often about building memorable set pieces, and good D&D can often be about building memorable story moments or memorable encounters. I'd say that your undead whale battle at sea with sorceresses and icebergs definitely constitutes a memorable encounter, the sort that sticks with players for years to come.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing your thoughts on it!
Happy to do so! Always appreciate hearing your thoughts and comments! THanks for taking the time!
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