Tag: War of Everlasting Darkness

Last week we completed season 11 of D&D Encounters: War of Everlasting Darkness. It was a short season running only 8 weeks (9 if you count the week 0), but it was jam packed full of stuff. In my opinion this was one of the best seasons so far, but that’s not to say it didn’t have some challenges. Today I provide the good folks at Wizards of the Coast with my report card for season 11. I share what I liked about this season and what I didn’t like. I try to be honest and provide constructive criticism.

I’ve provided report cards for many of the previous seasons and they usually follow a certain format: I start with the good, move on to the bad, and finish with the ugly. This season I decided to change things up a bit. I realized that for most of the things I wanted to talk about there was a good and bad side to it depending on your perspective. So with that in mind I’ve hit on a variety of topics and shared what I felt was the good and bad for each. After you’ve read through my assessment of War of Everlasting Darkness I encourage you to share your feedback in the comments section below.

Over the past seven sessions we got used to weekly self-contained mini-adventures with a few small pockets of combat. This week we returned to the old format with one massive battle – and what a battle it was! The heroes found themselves in the right place at the right time to stop Lolth from completing her Demon Weave and usurping the mantle of goddess of magic. If she succeeded the Darkening would likely become permanent and there would be nothing to stop the Underdark denizens from claiming the surface as their own. This was the culmination of the Rise of the Underdark.

This week we had 2 DMs and 9 players at my FLGS for the grand finale. I ended up with the smaller table. We had an Eladrin Cleric (Valenae pre-gen), Shade Warlock (Binder), Half-Orc Barbarian, and Revenant (Pixie) Vampire.

This week’s encounter was tough, intentionally so. Even though it was a lot of combat it was more than just monsters on one side of the map, heroes on the other, and the two sides pounding on each other until they ran out of hit points. There was so much more going on. It was a fantastic conclusion to a very story-heavy season of D&D Encounters.

Actual Play Podcast at Harry T North (Week 8.) Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Actual Play Podcast at Silver Snail (Week 8.) Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

After last week’s stellar encounter there was regrettably nowhere to go but down. What was even more unfortunate was that this week’s encounter had problems all on its own, and having it follow such a strong outing in week 6 made it seem all that much more troubled. But I guess every week can’t be gold as we learned in week 7.

This season has provided the PCs with plenty of freedom to make their own choices. There was very little railroading compared to previous seasons of D&D Encounters. This week the train made its ugly return and all the PCs were forced to take a ride. In a season that’s been so good on so many levels this week they really lowered the bar.

This week at my FLGS we were right in that awkward attendance zone of nine players – too many for one table but not quite enough for two. The second DM decided to leave early and take the night off so I ran a table of seven. Not ideal, but I knew I could make it work. The party rounded out like this: Revenant [Gith] Bard, Eladrin Cleric (Valenae pre-gen), Shade Warlock (Binder), Human Swordmage, Drow Assassin, Pixie Vampire, Shade Ranger (Hunter).

Actual Play Podcast at Harry T North (Week 7) Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Actual Play Podcast at Silver Snail (Week 7) Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Best. Session. Ever. Yeah, I said it. This was my favourite session of D&D Encounters that I’ve ever played. It had everything I want in a game including thrilling combat and lots of great role-playing.

After defeating the Drow spellcasters last week the PCs found battle plans outlining a Troll invasion of Nesmé. If Nesmé were to fall, it could spell disaster for nearby Silverymoon. So this week we picked things up with the heroes arriving at Nesmé. And not a moment too soon as Troll were attacking the town, two of which divert to intercept the PCs. Right off the bat the PC found themselves in a really tough combat.

This week we had ten players and two DMs. I had one brand new player at my table which is always a welcome addition. The party consisted of the following characters: Revenant [Gith] Bard, Half-Orc Barbarian, Pixie Vampire, Shade Warlock (Binder), and Eladrin Cleric (Valenae pre-gen).

Actual Play Podcast at Harry T North (Week 6) Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Actual Play Podcast at Silver Snail (Week 6) Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

The heroes have the Wand of Tir’Lien. They braved the caverns underneath Citadel Adbar, flushed the Duergar squatters from the abandoned Dwarven outpost, fought a Mimic, and then destroyed the mad Drow Matharic to ultimately acquire the wand. Now they have returned to the Citadel where they rest while the Dwarven seer Axelcrantz examines the wand and tries to determine how it can be used to battle the Drow and defeat The Darkening.

Most weeks I play D&D Encounters at two different FLGS. I decided a few seasons ago to only focus on one group in these blog posts, mainly because it kept things simpler. So for the past few seasons these posts have focused on the exploits of my first run-through each week. Today I’ve decided to change things up a bit and share the adventures of the other group. I found their approach showed a lot of creativity and a lot more willingness to think outside of the box.

At the second FLGS we had 15 people, the perfect number for three tables. I had four players at my table and they were running the following characters: Half-Orc Fighter [Brawler], Half-Orc Barbarian [Berserker], Dragonborn Fighter, and Drow Ranger [Hunter]. No leaders and no controllers – should make for an interesting session.

Actual Play Podcast at Harry T North (Week 5) Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Actual Play Podcast at Silver Snail (Week 5) Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

After fighting their way into Mithral Hall, ancestral home of the Dwarven clan Battlehammer, and meeting with King Connerad Battlehammer himself, the heroes received a strange letter from Axelcrantz. In the letter, Axelcrantz (a Dwarf that none of the PCs had ever met before) wrote of things that had happened and things to come. He claimed that the he would meet the heroes when they arrived at Citadel Adbar at some time in the future. Curious about whom this Dwarf may be and what he may have to say, the PCs headed to the Citadel to rendezvous with him.

This week we had two DMs and only four players. The second DM decided to head home and take the week off and I ran the only table at my FLGS. About 10 minutes into our session one more player arrived bringing us up to five players. As we’re in Canada and don’t have Thanksgiving this weekend there was really no reasonable explanation for the sharp decline. Hopefully next week we’ll be back up to two tables.

The party eventually rounded out as follows: Drow Assassin, Pixie Vampire, Half-Orc Barbarian, Shade Warlock (Binder) and our last minute arrival was the Revenant [Gith] Bard. Four of the five were my regular players from the previous two sessions. As we’ve been switching up the tables this season it was nice to be back to the familiar for a week.

Actual Play Podcast at Harry T North (Week 4) Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Last week’s session ended when the heroes escaped the confines of the Kingdom of Many-Arrows and headed towards Mithral Hall to inform the Dwarves that rogue Orc war-bands had defied King Obould Many-Arrows and joined forces with the treacherous Drow to bring chaos to the surface world. As the Darkening continues to spread across the realms, the heroes find themselves deep inside hostile Orc territory as they seek safe harbour in the Dwarven kingdom.

We had a good turnout this week with two DMs and 10 players. We continue to shuffle the groups so this week I had a Drow Assassin, Revenant (Pixie) Vampire, Shade Ranger (Hunter), Revenant [Gith] Bard, and Human Swordmage.

Scene 1 – Arrival at Mithral Hall

When the heroes arrived at Mithral Hall they realized that it was under siege from the Orcs. Orcs had the entrances to Mithral Hall and the entrances to many large cave mouths guarded. On the mountainside near the PCs, Orcs had set up tents and cook fires. About 500 feet away guards surround an enormous wooden horn atop a plateau. When the horn was blown, the attacking Orcs troops adjust their positions around the entrances to Mithral Hall.

Actual Play Podcast at Harry T North (Week 3) Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Actual Play Podcast at Silver Snail (Week 3) Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Last week the adventure began when the PCs arrived in the logging community of Quaervarr on the edge of the Glimmerwood. The recent appearance of a wandering phantom had the locals worried and the PCs were encouraged to investigate. The heroes discovered the ruins of Methergrist, a long-abandoned Temple to Helm that lay in ruins. The PCs battled an Imp in the dungeon beneath the rubble eventually defeating it and banishing the wandering ghost. Their victory coincided with the emergence of The Darkening, dark filaments that shot up from a hole in the earth to spin a web of blackness across the sky blocking the starlight at night and masking the sun during the day.

Over the past few seasons at my FLGS the players have divided into two parties and then stuck to those parties throughout the entire season. This season we’re trying something a little bit different. Each week we’re randomly assigning players to one of the two tables. This lets the players and DMs meet and play with new people every week. Since each week is a complete mini-adventure and the PCs get to level up and take an extended rest between sessions this approach shouldn’t have a detrimental impact on anyone.

This week we had eight players again; the same number as last week. Two of our regulars were absent but two other familiar faces joined us again. My table included a Human Fighter (Slayer), Revenant (Pixie) Vampire, Shade Ranger (Hunter), and Shade Warlock (Binder).

The biggest negative criticism that I got from players after last week’s session was the lack of meaningful combat. They liked the quick, map-less battle and the fight against the Imp, but they didn’t feel that either battle really challenged the party or posed any real danger. Looking at what this week had to offer I didn’t see anything that addressed this concern so I decided to make a big change (keep reading).

Actual Play Podcast at Harry T North (Week 2) Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Actual Play Podcast at Silver Snail (Week 2) Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This week we began season 11 of D&D Encounters. This is the third and final part of the Rise of the Underdark campaign arc. It also marks a significant change in the D&D Encounters program as it allows the PCs to level up after every week bringing them from level 1 to level 8. It’s still a 4e adventure but it does incorporate some aspects that are being play-tested in D&D Next. I for one am anticipating great things this season.

We had eight players and two DMs for this first session but we think that the weather and Halloween kept some players. We’ll see if more people show up next week. At my table I had a Half-Orc Barbarian, Drow Assassin, Pixie Vampire and Revenant (Githzerai) Bard. I know that Gith are technically not allowed but the player explained his concept and back-story which I thought was pretty cool so I’m going to allow it. After two seasons of enforcing character class and race restrictions I’ve decided to open the floodgates again.

One of the big changes this season is that each week’s session is a mini-adventure rather than just one encounter. This allows for more dynamic story-telling and gives the players more choices (and less railroading). I like to think of each encounter within a session as a scene since most of them don’t really meet the criteria for a 4e encounter. That being said each adventure has multiple scenes, but your group may not get to all of them depending on what choices they made along the way (as we saw this week).

Actual Play Podcast at Harry T North (Week 1) Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Actual Play Podcast at Dueling Grounds (Week 1) Play Now | Play in Popup | Download