Re: Comments on Steve's Thoughts Was: RE: [HoE] My players derailing thecampaign yet again

["Steve Crow" <crow_steve@hotmail.com>]

>Steve wrote (with regards to the Rock Springs portion of my game's fiasco):
>
> >Well, the opposition is supposed to go up as more and more robots get the
> >idea that the party is in town.  While I don't believe the module states
> >exact numbers, I would have thrown some pretty substantial numbers at 
>them.
> >
> >Since you said "Finally" I assume they had several battles?  I hope that
> >last one was pretty tough...
> >
>
>They had four battles with the combots before they found the sword, with
>anywhere from three to six combots attacking them each time.  Luck was with
>my players, and a vast number of Aces were rolled, allowing them to cut
>down the combots at an obscene rate.
>

Send more.  Send lots more.  The factory is supposed to be ready to unleash 
_thousands_ of robots across the landscape in the next month.

But yeah, open-ended damage rolls can suck sometimes, can't they?  ;)

> >Since the point of the adventure is more to defeat the evil types than 
>find
> >Ritter's sword (which is more of a player reward + McGuffin than 
>anything),
> >I would have "guided" them towards the warehouse before letting them find
> >him.
> >
>
>I agree.  However, my posse has no Doomsayer, and I really didn't want them
>going up against the Cult O' Doom's undead flunky with no way of
>dispatching him permanently.  Therefore I guided them to the sword,
>figuring they'd proceed to investigate the rest of town and eventually end
>up at the warehouse.  Silly me...
>

Probably time for some creative scenario-writing  Introduce a second 
Doomsayer and another group of mutants who attack them on the street.  Or 
have Mathias (sic) drop a Nuke or two on them from a distance, and have him 
scurry off to the factory.  They don't sound like the kind of group that 
would leave that kind of thing unavenged (or is that unrevenged?)...

> >
> >Well, since Ritter _died_ as a templar fighting them, and (I think) his
> >journal entry pretty much clarifies what the robots are up to (assuming 
>they
> >found his journal at the water tower),
>
>They never found the hidey-hole at the water tower.
>
>

I can see that.  It's not very well-referenced in the written adventure even 
if the party obligingly follows the storyline, and I think Burke is the one 
who mentions it.  Since you said earlier they didn't talk much to Burke, I 
can see why.  You could move the journal onto Ritter's body, but it doesn't 
sound like they'd have noticed it, or paid it much mind if they did read it.

><<with all these fights they've been picking for the
> >blue chip, haven't they _already_ "bugged them" enough to come out of 
>town
> >after the posse?
> >
> >
>
>An excellent point which I never thought of.  I'll be sure to bring this up
>with my players the next time we play.  Thanks!
>

Just remember that the bad guy is supposed to be producing an "army" of 
robots.  A good rule of thumb is if the party didn't have much trouble with 
the last group of combots (or anything), increase the bad guys' numbers by 
150% and repeat as necessary.  ;)  You might feel a bit shy about doing 
this, but obviously they're not having trouble with 3-6 combots.  It's your 
job as Marshal to make the adventure challenging for them.  Go to town on 
'em.  :)

>-Ralph


---

Steve Crow

"Worm Can Opener Extraordinare"

Check out my website at:  http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Stargate/4991/

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