# H3 Pyramid of Shadows - I Have It!



## Shroomy (Aug 15, 2008)

I managed to finagle a copy of WoTC's newest adventure, James Wyatt and Mike Mearl's _Pyramid of Shadows_ today (I couldn't get my hands on a copy of the FRCS).  I haven't had a chance to read it yet, but I can tell you that it is in the same format as _Thunderspire Labyrinth_.  It consists of two booklets; the shorter booklet contains the adventure overview/background information, new monsters, and supplemental artwork, while the second contains the adventure proper.  It also comes with a single, eight-panel, full-color, double-sided battlemap depicting three encounter areas in the adventure.

While I haven't had a chance to really read the adventure, I'll try to answer questions as best I can.  For starters, here are the new monsters:

New Monsters
[sblock]
Arboreans - evil humanoid plants that come in four varieties (Arborean Reaper [Level 7 Soldier], Arborean Watcher [Level 7 Lurker], Arborean Speaker [Level 10 Controller (Leader)], and Arborean Plant Terror [Level 11 Elite Brute]).
Charnel Lord (Level 10 Elite Soldier) - a unique, variant otyugh.
Charnel Rats (Level 7 Minions) - corrupted servitors of the Charnel Lord
Eater of Knowledge - Vecna's hunger for knowledge taken humanoid form.  Three varieties:  Voidblade (Level 6 Soldier), Thoughtbow (Level 7 Artiller), and Mindstrike (Level 8 elite controller)
[/sblock]


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## Rechan (Aug 15, 2008)

I love these threads.  And oh wow, you cut to the chase with telling us the monsters up front. I hope you are prepared to deal with the onslaught of questions.

I'd really like more details about these guys: 

[sblock]







> Arboreans - evil humanoid plants that come in four varieties (Arborean Reaper [Level 7 Soldier], Arborean Watcher [Level 7 Lurker], Arborean Speaker [Level 10 Controller (Leader)], and Arborean Plant Terror [Level 11 Elite Brute]).



Like, what kinda plants are they? Trees? Do they walk about, or are they rooted in the spot? What abilities do they have in general?

I ask because my campaign is in jungles and swamps; I want as much plant monsters as I can get my grubby hands on.[/sblock]


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## Shroomy (Aug 15, 2008)

Rechan said:


> I love these threads.  And oh wow, you cut to the chase with telling us the monsters up front. I hope you are prepared to deal with the onslaught of questions.
> 
> I'd really like more details about these guys:
> 
> ...




Arborean SPOILERS: [sblock] Arboreans, and their Underdark cousins known as valloreans, are a race of mobile plant humanoids who are religiously devoted to a sacred grove of plants, which they believe contain the souls of their deceased ancestors.  Arboreans are cruel and violent creatures that hunt down intruders, string them up over their sacred groves, and bleed them to death to nourish their plants.  Most Arboreans are scythe wielding reapers who can fling volleys of poisonous needles.  Watchers lurk at the edge of Arborean territory with the ability to become invisible and strike with animated vines.  Arboreans are led by religious leaders known as Speakers who expel a variety of poisonous spores.  Groves are protected by Plant Terrors, giant-sized amalgams of blood-drenched soil, roots, and plants. [/sblock]


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## Rechan (Aug 15, 2008)

Sweet! Thanks Shroomy.


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## evilref (Aug 15, 2008)

Shroomy said:


> While I haven't had a chance to really read the adventure, I'll try to answer questions as best I can.  For starters, here are the new monsters:




Can you say what the premise is and how it ties into the rest of the Vale?

I want to weave all of the 1-10 into a tighter linked campaign than just the three separate adventures with loose links.


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## TarionzCousin (Aug 15, 2008)

evilref said:


> Can you say what the premise is and how it ties into the rest of the Vale?
> 
> I want to weave all of the 1-10 into a tighter linked campaign than just the three separate adventures with loose links.



Yeah, 'cause loose links slink slips.

Um, what?


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## Rechan (Aug 15, 2008)

evilref said:


> Can you say what the premise is and how it ties into the rest of the Vale?
> 
> I want to weave all of the 1-10 into a tighter linked campaign than just the three separate adventures with loose links.



See the first link.

Also, dang dude. I want this adventure purely based on the art previews!.


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## winndwalker (Aug 15, 2008)

Arboreans sound awesome.  'Wonder what I'm going to be able to use to represent them.

Hey Shroomy, can you post a list of all the monsters please? 

Looks like it's mini hunting time again.


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## frankthedm (Aug 15, 2008)

winndwalker said:


> Arboreans sound awesome.  'Wonder what I'm going to be able to use to represent them.
> 
> Hey Shroomy, can you post a list of all the monsters please?
> 
> Looks like it's mini hunting time again.



Yes, please, a full list would be useful.


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## pukunui (Aug 15, 2008)

I'll third the request for a full list of minis.

I would also like to know if there are any hooks for _P1: King of the Trollhaunt Warrens_ in it.


p.s. Thanks, Shroomy, for the fluff about the arboreans, although I note that it still doesn't really tell us what they look like. Is there a picture of them at least? Do their statblocks and/or the encounters in which they appear have descriptive text? I think that's my biggest disappointment with the 4e MM: no descriptive text.


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## Shroomy (Aug 15, 2008)

pukunui said:


> I'll third the request for a full list of minis.
> 
> I would also like to know if there are any hooks for _P1: King of the Trollhaunt Warrens_ in it.
> 
> ...




There is a hook to P1 in the adventure, but since I'm at work, I don't have the details in front of me right now (I do remember its similar to the loose linkage between H1-H2-H3); the same for the monster list, though I can list some from memory such as:

[sblock]
Dwarf Bolter
Human Bandit
Rage Drake
Ettin Headtaker
Carrion Crawler
Zombie Rotters
Howling Hag
Arboreans
Dire Boar
Satyr Piper
Foulspawn (various types)
Wailing Ghost (Banshee)
Quickling Runner
Harpies
Sahuagin
Succubus
Hellguard Legion Devil
Dragonborn Fighter
Adult White Dragon
[/sblock]

I'll try to post a more complete list when I get home, though there is a lot of variety in the adventure.  Again, at least for me, H3 invokes a nostalgic tone, given the prevalence of deadly traps and such a wide variety of monsters living in such close quarters (its coupled with a more modern ecological explanation and lots of possible NPC interaction).

BTW, the Arboreans do come with a picture (its kind of creepy IMO) and descriptive text.


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## Shroomy (Aug 15, 2008)

Yep, I think that the artwork in the adventure is even more impressive then what they provided in H2; there is a lot more things to show your players.

BTW, since I'm at work right now, I'll check in periodically and try to answer your questions as best I can, though some answers may have to wait until later tonight.  So far, I've read the entire first booklet, as well as the first 5-6 encounters in booklet 2.


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## SPECTRE666 (Aug 15, 2008)

-Thanks. I am looking forward to getting this module.


*SPECTRE*


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## pukunui (Aug 15, 2008)

Shroomy said:


> There is a hook to P1 in the adventure, but since I'm at work, I don't have the details in front of me right now (I do remember its similar to the loose linkage between H1-H2-H3)



. Cool. I wasn't sure if there was going to be one judging from the description of P1 (that it's one in a series of adventures designed for the Paragon Tier)

I suppose you could also add one tiefling to the list of minis, eh? Isn't the "BBEG" at the end a tiefling? Or is he only pretending to be one?



> BTW, the Arboreans do come with a picture (its kind of creepy IMO) and descriptive text.



That's good. Even though they don't include descriptive text in the MM, at least they've been pretty good about including it in all the adventures.


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## Shroomy (Aug 16, 2008)

Here is the monster list:

[sblock]
Human Mage
Dwarf Hammerers
Human Ambushers
Rage Drake
Carrion Crawlers
Ettin Headtaker
Zombie Rotters
Charnel Rats
Harpies
Sahuagin Raiders
Sahuagin Priest
Charnel Lord
Blackscale Bruisers
Greenscale Hunters
Greenscale Marsh Mystic
Arborean Watcher
Arborean Reaper
Howling Hag
Dire Boar
Shambling Mounds
Satyr Piper
Ettercap Fang Guard
Ettercap Webspinner
Arborean Plant Terror
Arborean Speaker
Cave Bear
Quickling Runner
Human Outlaws
Human Archers
Human Lackeys
Gharash Vren (dragonborn fighter)
Frenzied Werewolf
Succubus
Legion Devil Hellguard
Eater of Knowledge Voidblade
Eater of Knowledge Thoughbow
Eater of Knowledge Mindstrike
Arat Karavakos (tiefling wizard)
Chillborn Zombie
Mezzodemon
Darkcreepers
Flameskull
Cambion Hellswords
Headless Corpse
Gargoyle
Bloodfire Harpy
Foulspawn Mangler
Foulspawn Berzerker
Foulspawn Grue
Medusa Archer
Ogre Warhulk
Destrachan
Grick Alpha
Foulspawn Seer
Human Rabble
Far Realm Abomination
Eladrin Blizzard Speaker
Eladrin Winter Knights
Eladrin Blades of Winter
Adult White Dragon
Battle Wights
Frightful Wraith
Vampire Spawn Bloodhunters
Skull Lord
Skeletal Tomb Guardians
Bonecrusher Skeletons
Kravak the Damned (tiefling wizard)
Wailing Ghost (Banshee)
Dark Stalker
Karavako's Shadow
Karavakos (tiefling wizard)
False Shard
[/sblock]


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## Shroomy (Aug 16, 2008)

pukunui said:


> I suppose you could also add one tiefling to the list of minis, eh? Isn't the "BBEG" at the end a tiefling? Or is he only pretending to be one?




[sblock]Yep, the main villain of the adventure is a tiefling wizard named Karavakos.  Karavakos was a petty tyrant who made a diabolical pact to gain the services of a devilish legion.  With their aid, he conquered a large swath of territory before foolishly trying to invade the Feywild.  After his defeat, he was imprisoned in an extradimensional space called the Pyramid of Shadows; his essence splintered into three separate parts (and his shadow took on a life of its own).  To defeat Karavakos and escape the Pyramid, the PCs must defeat each of the splintered essences and then the recombined Karavakos (he's a level 15 creature).
[/sblock]


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## pukunui (Aug 16, 2008)

Whew! That's a lot of monsters! Fortunately, there are minis for most, if not all, of them, and I already have quite a few. 



Shroomy said:


> [sblock]Yep, the main villain of the adventure is a tiefling wizard named Karavakos.  Karavakos was a petty tyrant who made a diabolical pact to gain the services of a devilish legion.  With their aid, he conquered a large swath of territory before foolishly trying to invade the Feywild.  After his defeat, he was imprisoned in an extradimensional space called the Pyramid of Shadows; his essence splintered into three separate parts (and his shadow took on a life of its own).  To defeat Karavakos and escape the Pyramid, the PCs must defeat each of the splintered essences and then the recombined Karavakos (he's a level 15 creature).
> [/sblock]



Thanks for that.

[sblock]Is there are way to "win" without killing Karavakos, or is that the only way to escape the pyramid? The preview kind of suggested it might be possible to bargain with the tiefling or something. It says he wants to the PCs to collect all his shards so _he_ can escape. What's the story there?[/sblock]


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## frankthedm (Aug 16, 2008)

sweet!  Thanks.

Though if I may ask, any chance of getting the amount of each mini or counter needed?


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## Rowe (Aug 16, 2008)

Quick Scan it and throw it up on Bit Torrent!! gogogogog

lol.

good job mate. can't wait to get my hands on that and the FR guide


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## doctorhook (Aug 16, 2008)

Rowe said:


> Quick Scan it and throw it up on Bit Torrent!! gogogogog
> 
> lol.
> 
> good job mate. can't wait to get my hands on that and the FR guide



...Not cool. If you're joking, it's not funny. Piracy hurts the hobby.

*Shroomy*: Thanks for the info!  Have you got numbers for each creature? Can you tell us which (if any) encounters are optional?


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## Plane Sailing (Aug 16, 2008)

Rowe said:


> Quick Scan it and throw it up on Bit Torrent!! gogogogog
> 
> lol.




Not cool, and we don't allow anything condoning piracy here on ENworld (not even in jest, please)

Thanks


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## Kzach (Aug 17, 2008)

doctorhook said:


> ...Not cool. If you're joking, it's not funny. Piracy hurts the hobby.
> 
> *Shroomy*: Thanks for the info!  Have you got numbers for each creature? Can you tell us which (if any) encounters are optional?




Although I agree, ultimately, asking for material from the book to be posted here is exactly the same thing, only a matter of degrees.

So if you're going to take a stance, you should probably consider not asking questions about the book itself which would require someone to copy the information here


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## Shroomy (Aug 17, 2008)

doctorhook said:


> *Shroomy*: Thanks for the info!  Have you got numbers for each creature? Can you tell us which (if any) encounters are optional?




I don't know if I'll have the time to list out every monster in the adventure, but I can tell you that the adventure features one optional encounter (its dependent on the hook the DM uses) and gives some suggestions about creating additional encounters within the pyramid to keep the PCs on their toes.


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## Shroomy (Aug 17, 2008)

evilref said:


> Can you say what the premise is and how it ties into the rest of the Vale?
> 
> I want to weave all of the 1-10 into a tighter linked campaign than just the three separate adventures with loose links.




Strictly speaking, the adventure does not have any strong links to the Nentir Vale.  It mainly utilizes the implied setting for background material, but given the nature of the pyramid, the adventure could be set pretty much anywhere.


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## Shroomy (Aug 17, 2008)

pukunui said:


> I would also like to know if there are any hooks for _P1: King of the Trollhaunt Warrens_ in it.




The link to P1 is given in the final section of the adventure:

[sblock]
Basically, if the DM wants to link H3 to P1, the necklace in the white dragon's hoard has an inscription that can guide the PCs towards a key NPC in P1.
[/sblock]


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## Shroomy (Aug 17, 2008)

pukunui said:


> [sblock]Is there are way to "win" without killing Karavakos, or is that the only way to escape the pyramid? The preview kind of suggested it might be possible to bargain with the tiefling or something. It says he wants to the PCs to collect all his shards so _he_ can escape. What's the story there?[/sblock]




[sblock]
Karavakos needs the three shards to be destroyed for him to attempt his escape from his prison, however, other than a kind of magical projection in which he either lies to or goads the PCs, there is no way for them to directly interact with him until the three shards are destroyed (each shard possesses one of the three keys necessary to get to the actual Karavakos).

There is no way for the PCs to escape from the pyramid without destroying Karavakos, so to answer your question, they can't do that without defeating the tiefling.
[/sblock]


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## Shroomy (Aug 17, 2008)

I just finished reading the entire adventure, and WoTC has again turned in another really good effort (though I liked H2 a bit more).  There's a really good mix of combat encounters, many of which have a lot of potential for roleplaying (several pages of the first booklet are devoted to how the various mini-BBEGs react to any attempts at parlay) and they make really good use out of the terrain, either as actual stat-blocked hazards or weird magical effects.


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## ventu (Aug 17, 2008)

doctorhook said:


> ...Not cool. If you're joking, it's not funny. Piracy hurts the hobby.




at least in Europe, Piracy feeds the gaming hobby, strengthen the fanbase and ultimately is a good thing for the busyness 

ventu


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## Jack99 (Aug 17, 2008)

Shroomy said:


> I just finished reading the entire adventure, and WoTC has again turned in another really good effort (though I liked H2 a bit more).  There's a really good mix of combat encounters, many of which have a lot of potential for roleplaying (several pages of the first booklet are devoted to how the various mini-BBEGs react to any attempts at parlay) and they make really good use out of the terrain, either as actual stat-blocked hazards or weird magical effects.




I agree. I would rate it just below H2 as well. If they can keep it up, I will be satisfied. I change so much anyway, when I use published adventures, so "50" pages of roleplaying opportunities is a bit too much for me.


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## frankthedm (Aug 17, 2008)

Shroomy said:


> I don't know if I'll have the time to list out every monster in the adventure



still, thanks though for all the info and the lists.


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## doctorhook (Aug 17, 2008)

Shroomy said:


> I don't know if I'll have the time to list out every monster in the adventure, but I can tell you that the adventure features one optional encounter (its dependent on the hook the DM uses) and gives some suggestions about creating additional encounters within the pyramid to keep the PCs on their toes.



I thank you for your effort, regardless, sir.


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## pukunui (Aug 17, 2008)

Shroomy said:


> The link to P1 is given in the final section of the adventure:
> 
> [sblock]
> Basically, if the DM wants to link H3 to P1, the necklace in the white dragon's hoard has an inscription that can guide the PCs towards a key NPC in P1.
> [/sblock]



Thanks for that and the response to my other spoiler-blocked question. That's a big help (finding out the links between adventures early means I can start planning that much sooner).

Man, I'm loving these adventures! Good job, WotC! Thanks for making D&D fun again!

I wonder if the Paragon and Epic tier adventures will be based in Nentir Vale as well. I imagine that they'll mostly take place on other planes of existence, but if/when they involve being in the "world", will it be in Nentir Vale or some other part of the "generic" Points of Light setting? Just a rhetorical question - I don't expect anyone to have the answer to that yet.


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## Jack99 (Aug 17, 2008)

I think this is the complete list of monsters, with numbers needed..
[sblock]1 Human Mage
3 dwarf hammers
2 human ambushers
rage drake
2 carrion crawlers
1 ettin
3 zombie rotters
16 charnal rats
2 harpies
3 sahuagin raiders
1 sahuagin priest
6 charnal rats
1 charnal lord
2 blackscale bruisers
2 greenscale hunters
1 greenscale marsh mystic
1 arborean watcher
2 arborean reapers
1 howling hag
1 dire boar
1 arborean reaper
3 shambling mounds
1 satyr piper
2 arborean watchers
1 ettercap fang guard
1 ettercap webspinner
1 arborean plant terror
1 arborean speaker
1 cave bear
1 arborean watcher
2 arborean reapers
2 quickling runners
3 human outlaws
2 human archers
2 human archers
1 Garash Vren, level 10 dragonborn soldier
8 human lackeys
1 frenzied werewolf
1 succubus
? legion devil hellguard
2 eater of knowledge voidblades
2 eater of knowledge thoughtbows
1 eater of knowledge mindstrike
3 eater of knowledge voidblades
1 Arat Karavakos (lvl 10 elite artillery)
4 chillborn zombies
1 mezzodemon
2 dark creepers
1 flameskull
3 cambion hellswords
1 headless corpse
2 gargoyles
1 bloodfire harpy
2 foulspawn manglers
2 foulspawn beserkers
1 foulspawn grue
1 medusa archers
1 ogre warhulk
2 foulspawn beserkers
1 destrachan
1 grick alpha
3 foulspawn manglers
1 foulspawn seer
12 human rabble
1 far realm abomination
1 eladrin blizzard speaker
2 eladrin winter knights
6 eladrin blades of winter
1 adult white dragon
8 charnal rats
3 battle wights
1 frightful wraith
4 vampire spawn bloodhunters
1 skull lord
3 skeletal tomb guardians
3 bonecrusher skeletons
1 Kravak the damned (lvl 10 elite controller)
2 flameskulls
2 skeletal tomb guardians
1 wailing ghost (banshee)
1 dark stalker
1 Karavakos' shadow (lvl 11 controller)
1 Karavakos (lvl 15 artillery)
12 false shards
[/sblock]


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## Shroomy (Aug 17, 2008)

pukunui said:


> Man, I'm loving these adventures! Good job, WotC! Thanks for making D&D fun again!
> 
> I wonder if the Paragon and Epic tier adventures will be based in Nentir Vale as well. I imagine that they'll mostly take place on other planes of existence, but if/when they involve being in the "world", will it be in Nentir Vale or some other part of the "generic" Points of Light setting? Just a rhetorical question - I don't expect anyone to have the answer to that yet.




I remember a question from the Q&A section of the WoTC D&D website where they stated that the Paragon and Epic adventures will use the implied setting and cosmology, so I would guess you are correct when it comes to the Nentir Vale.


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## Shroomy (Aug 17, 2008)

Jack99 said:


> I think this is the complete list of monsters, with numbers needed..
> [sblock]1 Human Mage
> 3 dwarf hammers
> 2 human ambushers
> ...





[sblock]Karavakos' shadow is served by 4 dark stalkers[/sblock].


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## frankthedm (Aug 18, 2008)

Jack99 said:


> I think this is the complete list of monsters, with numbers needed..
> [sblock]1 Human Mage
> 3 dwarf hammers
> 2 human ambushers
> ...



Thank you. This helps a lot.


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## frankthedm (Aug 18, 2008)

odd..


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## frankthedm (Aug 18, 2008)

A bit of curiosity, what do the 



Spoiler



false shards


 looks like?


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## Rechan (Aug 18, 2008)

Hey SHroomy!

H2 is easy to chop up and use various bits for your own adventures (Using the Well of Demons, etc). 

How easy would it be to chop up the various areas of the Pyramid and dropping them in other adventure sites (how easy to do they stand alone)? And are they _interesting_ enough to do so? 

Also, does this adventure take players up three levels?


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## Connorsrpg (Aug 18, 2008)

Thanks for info. I am looking forward to adopting this adv into my current campaign.

@Rechan - speaking of current campaign. Mine is very African influenced. Rechan - you might find some of the creatures I have converted useful for your jungle campaign:

http://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?p=4413346#post4413346

Other requests welcome 

@Shroomy: can you list the adv sites. This might give us an idea of how easy it would be to adapt or chop up.

Oh and thanks.

C


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## frankthedm (Aug 18, 2008)

Thanks again for the monster lists. Here are the first two counter sheets made with video game critters and such for the PoS module.

[sblock=First two video game counter sheets]
img135.image shack.us/img135/5452/shawdowedpyre1wl1.png
img135.imageshack.us/img135/3017/shawdowedpyre2oo0.png



 



[/sblock]


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## Nebulous (Aug 18, 2008)

Shroomy said:


> [sblock]Karavakos' shadow is served by 4 dark stalkers[/sblock].




Wow.  That's a lot of monsters.


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## Shroomy (Aug 18, 2008)

frankthedm said:


> A bit of curiosity, what do the
> 
> 
> 
> ...




[sblock]They are duplicates of Karavakos[/sblock].


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## Shroomy (Aug 18, 2008)

Rechan said:


> Hey SHroomy!
> 
> H2 is easy to chop up and use various bits for your own adventures (Using the Well of Demons, etc).
> 
> ...




Althought almost all of the encounter areas are within the same structure, they are very distinct from each other and I think it would be fairly easy to chop the adventure up and use bits and pieces.  I do think that many of the encounter areas are very interesting, some more than others:

[sblock]My favorite has to be a room adorned with demonic faces that you can teleport through by jumping into their open maws.  Unfortunately, if someone does that (and the foulspawn guarding the room certainly do so), the demonic faces come alive and bite anyone adjacent to them.  They also talk (pleading to be fed) and you can negotiate with them if you want (do it right, and they'll disgorge a nice magical weapon).  Makes for a very interesting encounter.[/sblock]

The adventure takes PCs from 7th to 10th level.


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## Rechan (Aug 18, 2008)

Cool, thanks Shroomy.


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## Nebulous (Aug 18, 2008)

Is there a clear tie-in to H1 and H2? Or maybe a few vague suggestions?


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## Shroomy (Aug 18, 2008)

Nebulous said:


> Is there a clear tie-in to H1 and H2? Or maybe a few vague suggestions?




There's a connection between H2 and H3, but they are not tied intimately together.  Its pretty much like the connections between H1 and H2.


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## Ashrem Bayle (Aug 18, 2008)

A few monster questions:



Spoiler



About the dragon:
Is the fact that it is white important? Could it be green, red or blue?

About the arboreans:
Are they all humanoid? What sizes are they? Small? Medium? Large?

About the Otyugh:
Is it size large like a normal otyugh?


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## Mustrum_Ridcully (Aug 18, 2008)

Ashrem Bayle said:


> A few monster questions:
> 
> 
> 
> ...




Answers: 
[sblock]
Dragon: The dungeon theme fits the dragons color, as do some encounters. Otherwise, his presence in the Pyramid in the first place is not related to his color.
[/sblock]

[sblock]
Arboreans: The arboreans itself are all humanoid. They have non-arborean allies, which are not all humanoid. They also have a Abrorean Plant Terror, which is apparently not humanoid, but an animated plant creature. Unfortunately, there is no illustration or descriptive text as far as I can see.
[/sblock]

[sblock]
Otyugh: The Otyugh is large, but has a different theme, more decay/death, less filth/dirt.
[/sblock]


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## Ashrem Bayle (Aug 18, 2008)

Thanks!


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## Hawke (Aug 18, 2008)

Hmmm... I wonder based on the images if you have any suggestions on what to use for Arborean miniatures.


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## frankthedm (Aug 19, 2008)

Hawke said:


> Hmmm... I wonder based on the images if you have any suggestions on what to use for Arborean miniatures.



I too am curious about them. 



Spoiler



Plant Humanoid


 does have a LOT of ground to cover. For the sprite sheet i went with a 



Spoiler



Rose Dryad for the speaker, four eyed green biped for the Watcher and a spikey girl faced clawed thing shaded green for the reaper


 . 

BTW, any more detail available for the 



Spoiler



"Far Realm Abomination"


 available? Size, shape,  amount of goopyness or if it has tentacles? The name covers just a little too much ground. Yeah, it is synonymous with _Indescribable Horror_, but that name sounds very 'placeholder'.

Counter sheet 3!
img212.imageshack.us/img212/5789/shawdowedpyre3wx1.png
[sblock=Video game counter sheet 3]




suggested revisions welcome.[/sblock]


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## Ktulu (Aug 19, 2008)

What are the maps of?  Are they reprints or some new ones?  This is important to whether or not I can beg the wife for more gaming money!!


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## frankthedm (Aug 20, 2008)

Shroomy said:


> [sblock]They are duplicates of Karavakos[/sblock].



Thanks again. [sblock=question & boss Counters]Can the players tell them apart at all, or is it _Mirror Image_ with a vengeance? Same Gear, outfits, etc? Multi-K has notable differences in his early forms, though with a dozen duplicates it sounds like it might be a 13 Card Monty / shell game.

http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/excerpt_H3_2.jpg

img384.imageshack.us/img384/6291/teifwizrq5.png

copypasta as needed, though new Karavakos counters may be on the way.







edit; Well here are a few other abominations in case the DM wants something other than the one on counter sheet 3. 
img210.imageshack.us/img210/2608/abominationtn7.png



[/sblock]


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## legiondevil (Aug 20, 2008)

frankthedm said:


> Thanks again. [sblock=question & boss Counters]Can the players tell them apart at all, or is it _Mirror Image_ with a vengeance? Same Gear, outfits, etc? Multi-K has notable differences in his early forms, though with a dozen duplicates it sounds like it might be a 13 Card Monty / shell game.[/sblock]




Well..
[sblock]All of the shards are minions, and vanish when successfully struck.  It shouldn't take too long for the PC's to whittle them down.  Though Kari can teleport between them as a minor action.  Teleporting to take the place of one, attacking, and then teleporting to the location of another.[/sblock]


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## frankthedm (Aug 20, 2008)

legiondevil said:


> Well..
> [sblock]All of the shards are minions, and vanish when successfully struck.  It shouldn't take too long for the PC's to whittle them down.  Though Kari can teleport between them as a minor action.  Teleporting to take the place of one, attacking, and then teleporting to the location of another.[/sblock]



Thanks [sblock]so what is Karivakos armed with at the end? The staff with the axe like head in the Excerpt? Some thing else? [/sblock]


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## frankthedm (Aug 21, 2008)

[sblock=Revised BBEG Counter sheet]I think it is an improvement.

img521.imageshack.us/img521/1710/shawdowedpyrebbegxk4.png




[/sblock]


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## legiondevil (Aug 22, 2008)

frankthedm said:


> Thanks [sblock]so what is Karivakos armed with at the end? The staff with the axe like head in the Excerpt? Some thing else? [/sblock]




[sblock]He comes equipped with dagger, staff, robes, and ritual book.  None magical save the ritual book, with location specific rituals and one each of levels 10, 12, and 15.[/sblock]


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## Bolongo (Aug 22, 2008)

For the most part, my first impression is that I love this module. More than H2, in fact. Why? Because it's such a blast from the past, but at the same time also perfectly modern.

Allow me to expand on that. Have you ever played 1st ed modules like _White Plume Mountain, Ghost Tower of Inverness_, or the like? Are you nostalgic for that sort of thing? Well, your dream just came true. The Pyramid of Shadows is a series of rooms that each have a certain theme, trap or trick to them, designed to test the player's puzzle-solving skills and not just the way they flick their dice-hand wrists. Every single encounter has some funky feature that sets it apart - there is not a bare dungeon room with 5 orcs in it as far as the eye can see. (OK, the bandit's lair comes close, but even that has the you-know-what locked in the you-know-where) Heck, getting to the final level involves solving a bunch of silly riddles! Man, that takes me back...

What's modern about it there's an explanation for why all these wildly different beings and environments rub shoulders with each other. Granted, it's an explanation that only makes sense in a D&D universe, but that should be good enough. More to the point, every area is an object lesson in 4th ed encounter design. All the creatures interact with the environment and use it to their advantage. And there's none of this H1 "room with 3 traps that can all be destroyed safely from range, with no monsters to back them up" crap either. In fact, there's quite a few nasty surprises in store for the players, mwahahaha!

(Digression: if you hadn't guessed, I am the kind of DM who feels that a good, fun encounter is one where I manage to knock at least one PC into the Dying condition.)

So, overall a great job from the designers. I have a few niggling points of criticism, though.

There's an encounter that feels recycled from the DMG adventure. I guess I can justify it as "revisiting the same basic idea to show the players what difference a few levels make."

The art you're supposed to show the players is in many cases very dark and muddy. It's hard to make out what it depicts unless the light in the room is very bright and you show it at exactly the right angle. Also, the "folding the page in half" thing would have been easier if the pics were actually in a separate little booklet of their own (like in the old classics).

The number of magic items handed out is way below par. I only count 9, as opposed to the 16 there should be. Now, it's possible this is balanced by a higher gold allotment, I haven't been bothered to count all the cash, but if the designers pull a switch like that I expect to be told about it up front. Anyhoo, it's not a huge deal, as the exact items given out always have to be modified in any published adventure anyway, and I can easily add a few more while I'm at it.


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## jensun (Aug 22, 2008)

Bolongo said:


> For the most part, my first impression is that I love this module. More than H2, in fact. Why? Because it's such a blast from the past, but at the same time also perfectly modern.



There is a review of the module here which makes very similar points.  

This may be the first D&D module I have bought in over 10 years.


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## Jhaelen (Aug 22, 2008)

Bolongo said:


> Have you ever played 1st ed modules like _White Plume Mountain, Ghost Tower of Inverness_, or the like?



Yes.







Bolongo said:


> Are you nostalgic for that sort of thing?



No. Or rather: I may get nostalgic about them but I know, I wouldn't be able to repeat the experience today. I've been spoilt by too many adventures written to have a good storyline and 'realistic' settings.

I'll pass that one. I got H2 and liked the first half of it. I didn't like the Demon Well and Boss Tower. Both may have some great encounter areas but they make too little sense for my taste.


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## frankthedm (Aug 23, 2008)

Jhaelen said:


> Yes.No. Or rather: I may get nostalgic about them but I know, I wouldn't be able to repeat the experience today. I've been spoilt by too many adventures written to have a good storyline and 'realistic' settings.
> 
> I'll pass that one. I got H2 and liked the first half of it. I didn't like the Demon Well and Boss Tower. Both may have some great encounter areas but they make too little sense for my taste.



Yeah H3 does not sound up your alley.

http://www.rpg.net/reviews/archive/13/13942.phtml


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## Subzero01 (Oct 7, 2009)

what are the stats for the arborean speaker


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