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   mcv (mcv@nerdica.net)'s status on Monday, 17-Apr-2023 21:39:05 JST mcv

   • Dʏsᴏɴ Lᴏɢᴏs
   My son turns 14 next week, and although he seemed to want to completely ignore his birthday, he suddenly decided he wants me to run a level 12 D&D session for him and his friends. His D&D friends who've been starting half a dozen D&D campaigns over the past few months since they discovered D&D.
   
   I'm not that big of a D&D fan though, so I first proposed Call of Cthulhu, WFRP, or maybe something in space, but he says he doesn't want to learn a new system (well, what about me?) and he wants something with spells. Spells in space might be okay.
   
   So I guess it's going to be D&D. So I need to familiarise myself with it enough to blow them all our of the water, because I don't want to do something average for a birthday one-shot. But what?
   
   My idea so far: A dragon is terrorising the land. The land is in panic and sends its biggest and most legendary heroes to kill it, but they don't return, and the dragon continues. So they send the B Team: the PCs. Approaching the lair, they have to go through a bunch of tunnels or caves, where they find the remains of the previous expedition. Some dead, some trapped, some enslaved perhaps? And they should give some clues about what they can expect. Clues that they absolutely need to take on the dragon.
   
   So I need ideas for that! What makes this dragon too hard for a 12th level party, and what weaknesses does it have that might help them overcome it? I also feel inspired by The Hobbit with the arrow shot at Smaug's one vulnerable spot; how do they find out? I'm also inspired by the 16HP dragon idea from OSR: once they've figured out how to hurt it, it shouldn't take too long to kill it. Of course I have no idea how to balance an encounter in D&D5...
   
   Of course it still has to fit in a single session. It has to be short but awesome.
   
   And I suppose I need a map. Does anyone know if @dysonlogos has a suitable map for a dragon lair that's accessed through some tunnels? (His map style would contribute a lot more to the awesomeness than if I made it myself, I'm afraid.)
   
   If anyone has helpful advice for me, I could really use some.
   
   #rpg #ttrpg #oneshot #dnd
   • Embed this notice
     silverwizard (silverwizard@convenient.email)'s status on Monday, 17-Apr-2023 21:39:04 JST silverwizard

     in reply to
     @mcv
     
     1) single enemies work badly in D&D and often lead to anticlimaxes
     2) use your legendary and lair actions to spice up the fight more than hurt
     3) let them be 14 and do some Hit Thing With Axe, it's fun!
     4) Listen to them make characters and see which subsystems they like, be familiar and make them have cool things hidden inside (someone likes hiding and sneakattacking, clump of stalagmites that they can hide in, someone likes fireball, group of like 10 kobolds doing a ritual that will become a big problem if not for a fireball)
     
     And ya know, D&D's best adjective is *rollicking* not challenge.
   • Embed this notice
     mcv (mcv@nerdica.net)'s status on Tuesday, 18-Apr-2023 00:29:36 JST mcv

     in reply to

     • silverwizard
     @silverwizard
     single enemies work badly in D&D and often lead to anticlimaxes
     In what way? Too easy to defeat, even if by the book their threat rating is too high?
     
     My idea for this fight (as it's in my head right now at least) is that it won't be simply be a matter of hitting each other and grinding down the hit points. At first, the dragon should be way too powerful for them, and they need to figure out how to even fight it. Once they figure that out, it shouldn't be too hard to kill it.
     
     I think the dragon will have a ton of protective magic that will make it hard to hurt, so they will have to figure out a way around that. Or to dispel it. And for that, I'm thinking about an anti-magic orb, perhaps with a slightly larger radius than normal, that covers some of the tunnels into his lair that the dragon has trouble entering, so anyone entering through there will have all their magic deactivated. This will initially be a problem to the PCs, but one they find the orb, they can use it against the dragon.
     
     use your legendary and lair actions to spice up the fight more than hurt
     Yes! Look at the stats for 5e dragons, I was mostly disappointed because they're kinda boring compared to the Shadowrun dragons I'm used to, but those legendary and lair actions are cool, and I will definitely use them.
     
     let them be 14 and do some Hit Thing With Axe, it's fun!
     Considering the CR of the dragon, I'm definitely considering letting them be a bit higher level. But why level 14 specifically?
     
     Also, once they've employed the anti-magic orb, I guess hitting it with their axe will be the only way to hurt it.
     
     Of course they also still need a way to tie it to the ground, or it will just fly off. I've been thinking of making the lair a crater and dropping a big ship in there. To show off how big and strong the dragon is, but also to give them access to plenty of ropes and chains.
     
     Listen to them make characters and see which subsystems they like, be familiar and make them have cool things hidden inside (someone likes hiding and sneakattacking, clump of stalagmites that they can hide in, someone likes fireball, group of like 10 kobolds doing a ritual that will become a big problem if not for a fireball)
     I'm not entirely sure yet how they're going to make characters, but I think they'll make them in advance. Otherwise it will cut into play time. I do know they love abusing sneak attacks; one player plays a bugbear with ridiculous amounts of sneak attack damage in one of their campaigns.