Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 shidara1 May 06, 2010 15:17:59	I'm planning on swapping out the Gnolls in Den of the Destroyer and replacing them with Drow, as one of my characters has a background with Drow that I'd like to delve into.   The problem is that there aren't a lot of existing Drow in the 6th-9th level range that I can easily swap in.  I was considering simply swapping the monsters in name only - i.e., using gnoll stats but calling them drow and using drow figures - but I'm afraid that they won't have the proper "drow" feel.   So my next thought was to use the gnolls as they are and swap Gnollish abilities, like Pack Attack, for something more Drowish, like the Darkfire ability so many Drow seem to have. Does this sound reasonable?  The other option I'm considering is to use Drow where applicable, and use allied monsters for roles that Drow don't usually fill, like brute. For example, the Stairs encounter is now with two Drow Adventurers and two L7 Blade Spiders, instead of the Gnolls. Any suggestions on non-drow that might be working with or enslaved by drow?  shidara
#2 gargs454 May 06, 2010 16:42:21	If you have the Monster Builder its pretty easy to level down a monster to the right level.  As such you could just find the closest drow to the level and role you want and adjust the level accordingly, maybe dropping a power if need be. As for other "allies" of the drow, certainly any spiders would work.  And pretty much any race could serve as slaves of the drow.  Orcs perhaps make the most sense as they kind of mesh with SoBW and (to an extent) the Temple Between, plus they can fill the Brute roll where needed.  Heck, even gnolls might be allied with or enslaved by the Drow.
#3 nyteskie May 07, 2010 9:00:13	As a brief disclaimer, I'm viewing the drow primarily from a Salvatore-ian perspective. So, if you have a different take on the drow, some or all of what I say may not apply. Depending on how involved you want to make the drow in the plot, it may be more or less likely that they'd have a full strike force holding the temple at the behest of a single arms dealer. I would think he could have a few renegade drow in his employ. However, if a large community of drow were involved, I'd think it unlikely that they would willingly play second fiddle to the githyanki. I'd be inclined to think you'll have a handful of drow, maybe 0-2 per encounter at most, with plenty of slave race soldiers & brutes. If you have the Underdark source book, that would probably be a great place to start looking. Anything spider or spider-like could work; you could use of-level ettercaps, or there are the bloodweb spider swarms from Lost Mines. I could also see orcs, goblins, troglodytes, ogres, maybe trolls, undead or some other tamed underdark beasties like giant lizards. Basically, if it's easily to control through fear or magic and could survive in a hole in the ground, it would probably work. If I were doing this, I would probably start in the monster builder by filtering out brutes & soldiers in levels 6-10 and see what fits. For the drow themselves, depending on how many you ultimately decide on, you could create them using the companion character rules, or scale one of the prefab drow down. Either way, I would want them to be the highlights of the encounters I put them in - make them the highest level monster or even an elite, and think through their tactics and how they'd respond to intruders so they can behave and react with malign cunning. Good luck!
#4 dslatimore May 07, 2010 9:40:47	Trolls are good!  Throw a couple of Cave Trolls in there!