Since there isn't one in the book, I'm looking to fill in the blanks for myself. What I want is a generalized system that I can use every time my players venture into the desert. That could be anything from some random encounter tables to roll from to some sort of big, flexible desert survival skill challenge. Wandering the deserts of Athas should be hard and dangerous, and I want something that simulates that (without being too annoying or time-consuming).
Can anyone point me to something like this? Or if there isn't one that fits well, maybe people have some ideas for a Athas-specific suvival skill challenge.
Since there isn't one in the book, I'm looking to fill in the blanks for myself. What I want is a generalized system that I can use every time my players venture into the desert. That could be anything from some random encounter tables to roll from to some sort of big, flexible desert survival skill challenge. Wandering the deserts of Athas should be hard and dangerous, and I want something that simulates that (without being too annoying or time-consuming).
The only table of random events table Ive seen for Dark Sun was for the Mines of Tyr. Part of the "City State of Tyr 2nd edition" book. Varies from "Cave Ins" to "Getting Kicked Out by Guards" to "running into Cave Dwellers" to a "Riot breaking out".
See page 207 of the Dark Sun Campaign Setting. There is a skill challenge there called "Surviving the Desert." In combination with the rules on sun sickness, it is exactly what you are looking for.
No, not exactly what I'm looking for. It's a bit too limited. I do like the setbacks system, though.
I'm not a big one for random encounter, or encounters that don't tie into a plot, but maybe Dark Sun needs encounters that set the themes for the world. To that end, I suggest that you do use skill challenges and combat encounters, and the use of the plurals is significant there.
Using two (or more) focused skill challenges helps get more PCs involved and helps keep them from ganging up on one skill challenge together. For instance, you can have one challenge that's just about the travelling, probably involving Athletics, Perception, Nature, etc. and one skill challenge that's about enduring the environment that involves Endurance (obviously), Nature, maybe History. Failing or succeeding on one influences the other.
Then, you should probably have a couple "zoomed-in" encounters on each excursion. Make them quick and make the point of any fights not for the PCs to be killed outright, but for their skill challenges to be made harder. Have the monsters use hit-and-fade tactics, or give them powers to run up and steal or destroy survival days. Have monsters who are sent to scout the PCs, test their abilities, and report back. Whatever you choose, if the monsters are successful in their goals, the PCs should have suffered set backs. Resource loss is an obvious problem, but maybe the monsters also turned the PCs around, or led them away, or are clearly setting up for further attacks. The PCs could suffer lost successes, extra failures, higher DCs, locked-out skills, or anything like that for failure in combat. Of course, on the off chance they succeed you can give them extra successes, fewer failures, lower DCs, unlocked skills, etc. in addition to survival days and other treasure.
Good luck.
My players and I have discussed it and everyone is quite excited to try it. Not for every trek through the desert but should they be without water, etc...
I am planning on using a version of http://at-will.omnivangelist.net/2010/07/seven-days-in-the-desert/
That's a pretty good link. It's a little long... and the players tend to lose interest by the end of 7 skill challenges. You might think about throwing a non-skill-challenge or two, like a combat or downtime, in-between the skill challenges just to spice it up a bit
...maybe something story related? Maybe a reward depending on their progress?
That's a pretty good link. It's a little long... and the players tend to lose interest by the end of 7 skill challenges. You might think about throwing a non-skill-challenge or two, like a combat or downtime, in-between the skill challenges just to spice it up a bit
...maybe something story related? Maybe a reward depending on their progress?
I would definately include other encounters otherwise the penalties don't really have an effect. And at 1 roll per person per day, (and nobody said it had to be all 7 days) it's shouldn't seem like an endless skill challenge.