General OoC discussion

So far it seems like there are two choices that people are suggesting: hide (letting the noise of the river/mill help), or run (with Myrtha delaying pursuit). For the sake of making a group decision, I'm posting it as a poll. Neither Arya's or Theran's players will vote, naturally. So it's up to the six other players to choose.

I voted to hide under the idea that Myrtha will cause a distraction if it looks like the party has been detected. If the whole party moves out, she’ll bring up the rear

Nebula has announced that she's dropped out, and it's been over a month since MaJunior has posted. Unless there are serious objections, I'm going to invite others to generate new characters to take their places.

I'm particularly sad about Theran - losing one of the old timers both eliminates some of the continuity for the Dungeon Busters but also means one fewer L3 PC in the party. But there's no sign MaJunior's coming back, as far as I know. The loss of Arya will be keenly felt, too: maybe the new players will choose to make PCs with some healing capabilities.

There have been a major slowdown and drop off the last few months, I hope this trend ends now we are facing darker winter times

Sad news, for both players. I don’t have objections to you beginning recruitment, attrition is inevitable in PbP. A 6-year old game I’ve been in since the beginning of has ground to a stop because one of the original players has had to stop gaming. We’re all kinda hoping things work out for him and that he can come back at some point…

Referencing my post, on a meta level I totally understand that being level 1 and entering what seems to be the boss lair is daunting and extremely risky. I know that hit points are earned immediately, but skills and class features must be learned through a trainer, and I completely get why the lack of those features makes characters feel insufficiently-prepared for a dungeon.

If I think through the eyes of my character, however, I can't justify another departure from Orlane. The first group got their asses kicked and had to retreat to Hochoch, and we DID take that opportunity to train and level up. Unfortunately, we've also seen the consequences of our absence: more patrols, more people killed, and Aanbo still wants to find Jonah Joseph (or at least confirm his fate). That's why I personally feel that I must continue to the temple and investigate, and if it means that I go by myself, it's what Aanbo would do at this point.

By no means am I deciding for others whether to stay or go, which is why I chose Aanbo's words to try and convey the fact that you can all decide what you want to do.

I agree with you and am right there with you. We need to know what happen to Joseph one way or the other he is a Buster and I would do the same for all.

One of the great things about this classic adventure is that there are no obviously flawless choices. Every thing the party can do has advantages and potential drawbacks.

The adventure is designed for L1 PCs in AD&D, and the XP thresholds in AD&D are much, much higher than in 5e, so the expectation is that most characters who survive to the end would be L1 all the way through. At most a really fortunate character (who maybe had played in another adventure before this one) might reach L2 over the course of the whole module. But advancing in a class requires traveling back to Hochoch to train (and in AD&D training takes a lot longer than what I've set out in this module), and the cult explicitly continues to advance its goals over time, whether the PCs are there or not. So the adventure might get easier with L2 PCs, but the situation might get more difficult, too (though there is a finite number of cultists/monsters, and you all have been whittling them down).

"Do you hurry and risk getting overwhelmed, or do you play it safe and risk the cult advancing its nefarious plans?" is a key tension all through this module. So either choice could be the right one, and neither is incorrect.

All that said, I'm able and willing to run two threads for different groups; I've done it before now in this game and can do it again. So don't feel that you're choosing to leave the game or abandon the others if you choose one path over another.

We'll also be introducing two new PCs into the mix very soon; if the party does split, I'll have to decide which group each one meets initially.

Note that Ember has every intent to reunite with the group, if/after she loses her pursuers.

@WhtKnt - will you post the action and roll by the end of the day?

In the meantime, I'll continue with the rest of the group.

Oh, for cryin' out loud...the Dungeon Busters' random encounter luck continues!

So encounters are on a 6… I always considered that the lower results were worse…

Wow... Arya is dying. That was unexpected.

This is tense; it's always alarming when it comes down to a single roll for a character that is isolated and without anyone nearby to help them like this.

Edit: whew, that's a relief!
I got a tarantula on my leg as a child, and did exactly this: I ran away from it. In retrospect, this wasn't that smart - it was on my body, so how did I think I was going to get away from it? But it worked for me just like it did for Ember here: I ran so fast it was thrown off. When I calmed down at last, I stopped, looked down, and saw that it was gone!

Edit 2: Aw, crap.

Tense is good. I was worried for Ember, but I like the tension.

I just wanted to say how much I'm enjoying this little touch that Chase can't tell the difference between a halfling and a gnome in the dark. I love little subtle character bits like this.

It's all about the voice