Hi,
(Please note if you are a player in expeditions, this thread is not for you)
This thread is for discussion of the first Expeditions adventure/s, Defiance in Phlan. I see it as a forum topic for us to talk what has gone right and wrong within the adventure, the combat tactics we use, the embelishments we made, the props we use and so on.
If you find links to maps, diagrams etc that you found useful when preparing to run this, please share them.
You will also find 2 other topics. One is for Sokol Keep the other Shadows over the Moonsea. Please keep in mind these arnt for players tales (unless one of your players broke open the scenario for you). They are purely for dm inspiration and discussion.
The reason they are in here, and not in the Dungeon Masters area of the forum is that, we really just want discussion here from AL DM's as we have a certain toolkit to work with which other Dungeon Masters do not.
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Does anyone have a map of Phlan? I was tempted to use the one from the 2e Moonsea product but have noticed that Phlan is now listed as being Prosperous which I think means that most of the slums/abandoned areas would not be anymore.
Hello, I just want to confirm that a player can run a single character through all of the missions for this adventure getting xp and downtime for EACH mission played.
Thanks!
Yes
I have used the maps from the 4e adventure "Monument of the Ancients" in Dungeon Magazin 170. This shows the situation in the town in 1480 DR. You can also use the descriptions about the town, the Black Fist etc. The only changes I have seen right now, is the death of the Lord Protector and the destroyed temple of Bane (I don't know the reasons actually, but it seems to be a result of the Sundering). But I think this fits much better than the maps and informations in the Pool of Radiance/Ruins of Adventure times, albeit the titles of the Expeditions Tyranny storyline sound like PoR/RoA revisited.
Here is a really nice map of Phlan that I am using: http://img2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20110917070326/forgottenrealms/images/c/cb/Phlan(city).jpg
Tscharod: Is Dungeon 170 for sale in pdf online?
Tyranthraxus wrote:
You can also take a look here:
http://my-realms.blogspot.de/2012/05/fimbulwinter-brainstorming.html
(the resolution is better)
The map HeresyDM has proposed first looks to me like Phlan in the Pool of Radiance/Ruins of Adventure times. Of course, in the 2e adventure Ruins of Adventure you will also find a lot of informations, because it runs in Phlan and it's vicinity, but it shows the situation more than a century ago. Unfortunately the adventure I could not find in dndclassics yet. The maps in this adventure I don't like so much, because they are more or less copies of the maps in the 1990's (or 1-2 years earlier or later) computer game Pool of Radiance.
Is there assumed to still be a Temple to Bane in Phlan?
Carl
CarlT wrote:
Carlt: I dont know if Skerrit's reply precludes the possiblity of a Hidden Shrine to Bane though. One of the Black fists might be a very religous man who in a long lost room in the barracks or elsewhere has a Shrine to Bane. He might have a personal agenda to make sure the Lathander heathen gets whats coming to him for daring to use his Lord's house for such activities. Of course hed do this via Lawful methods 
Zoning permits etc
RE the popularity of Bane. You have Zhentil Keep and Mulmaster (okay not as close) nearby, so Bane is going to be a factor.
Who knows what items the priests left behind in the abandoned Lyceum?
Ok so I'm preparing to run this for the first time tomorrow, hoping to run 3-4 of the missions in the time we have.
In the fifth mission it mentions that one of the prisoners you rescue is a mad cultists which attacks but no stats are given for him - I plan on using the bandit stats without armour and an improvised weapon.
With running these mini-adventures "back to back" how would you suggest dealing with resting - is it assumed that players are "fresh" at the start of each one?
You could have each mission happen the next day (aka it takes 5 days to play the adventure).
Vobeskhan wrote:
I had a PC die in Encounters last night. He was a Zhentarim member. Thinking of having his body transported from Greenest to Zhentil Keep for revivication and then running a few Exped missions so he can catch up XP-wise. Then I just have to figure out how to get him back to Greenest to jump in when the rest of the party gets to chapter 3. The player is rolling up a new character which he will use throughout the rest of chapter 2.
Does that sound like a good plan? What other cool lore stuff would you add to minimize the handwaving of salvaging that character?
Lumenbeing wrote:
Vobeskhan wrote:
Tscharod wrote:
I ran this last weekend. It was my second time running the module, and the first time the group hit all five mini-missions (we had plenty of time, it was a FLGS Game Day).
This one was relatively straightforward. Complications can arise if the PCs decide to do a lot of reconnaisance of the barn prior to entering -- logically it should be possible to detect the broken-out section in the back where the Cultists have set their exit point, but I assume they have hidden it very well, having set up the barn days prior to the meeting. Another complication can occur if the players set a guard outside the door, as they should be able to spot the Welcomers approaching. I'd make sure to ratchet up the tension in the meeting -- nobody likes to split the party in AL.
All told, this is the easiest mission to run.
Great review ...
Other than Mission 2 being a tough combat, this adventure is awesome as an introduction to both 5th Edition, Adventurer's League Factions, and Tyranny of Dragons Story Arc. Merwin did an, as expected, amazing job.
My advice for anyone running this with the same group is ...
Do missions 1, 3, and 4. Let PCs level up. Then do missions 5 and 2. This makes the more combat-heavy missions more survivable for new players.
My only complaint is that this adventure was not written as an evergreen adventure!
Want to fix my complaint? ... Please, for every future story area, start with something like this adventure. Something short and sweet to onboard newbies and introduce the new story lines.
From my point of view, DDEX1-1 as a set of launch-missions is the greatest success of Adventurer's League so far.