Shadow and Illusion (ooc and questions ll)

[Inferno]

Just relocating this to the OOC thread:

Apologies all, I didn't notice it ended in a door...thought the passageway continued.
Would Loche like to give this a look-see for traps, before Zahra opens it?

[Inferno]

Hi everyone,

Rredmond hasn't posted to Unseen Servant in over 6 weeks. His departure was without warning. I hope he's okay and returns to us soon.

Please join me in welcoming sirravd to the game. Sirravd will play Amethu, Grand Magus of Uthoth, reimagined by sirravd but honoring all that was revealed about him so far.

When Rredmond returns, he's welcome to play his original character as written, just with a different name. Or he can play a brand new character. Up to you, Ron!

Welcome aboard, sirravd! Please post your character sheet here. Thanks!

[OGRE MAGE]

Welcome to the game, sir!

I mean sirravd.

[Zhym]

What is the door into the room made of?

[Inferno]

Stout timbers, it would appear.

[Zhym]

Thanks.

We may need to work the phrase "I check for traps" into our posts more often.

[wordoftheoracle]

Thanks so much for all your thoughts and wishes. I'm back! I'm going to be reading and catching up on things today.

[Inferno]

Welcome back.

[Spartakos]

Wow. That was...unexpected. Both the rapidity with which it happened, and my blowing a roll I normally wouldn't.

Is there a chance Kiri can pull Gronda out when I failed and fled?

[Inferno]

Is there a chance Kiri can pull Gronda out when I failed and fled?

Yes!
Good luck, Pixie.

[ChubbyPixie]

Is there a chance Kiri can pull Gronda out when I failed and fled?

Yes!
Good luck, Pixie.

Um... it's been fun, guys? Of all the times to crit...

Dang.

[Inferno]

Wow. That was...unexpected. Both the rapidity with which it happened, and my blowing a roll I normally wouldn't.

Hi,
re: rapidity:

The sand falls at a rate of 3 feet of sand for every DM post.
Here are the dates of my DM posts:

7/25: Trap is sprung. No sand level yet.

7/28: Sand is 3 feet high.

8/1: Sand is 6 feet high.

My next post (tomorrow or Friday): Sand will be 9 feet high.
Because the ceilings are 9 feet high and the door is 7 feet tall, PCs should get out before my next post.

[Inferno]

Um... it's been fun, guys? Of all the times to crit...

Dang.

Yow.

Zahra has a rope around her. Kiri does not.
If Zahra wants to save Kiri, it will require a (wait for it) Save vs Strength on 1d20.

Failure means she saves only herself (as per her latest IC post).
Success doesn't mean she can carry/drag the "man mountain" through the sand avalanche alone. It means she can hang onto him while Garrin and the others in the hall reel in Zahra's rope. But Garrin can't reel them both in by himself.
(No strength save is required by the rope pullers. There is a secret threshold of PC Strength points that needs to be applied to the task to meet with success.)

So: Strength save from Zahra to save Kiri, if she so wishes.
And: Who is helping Garrin pull the rope to rescue the rescuers?

Thanks. Good luck!!

[ChubbyPixie]

Zahra, I know we don't know each other that we'll, but...

[Zhym]

The mechanics of the trap—or, more accurately, the rolls needed to survive it—are interesting. It's entirely strength checks instead of saving throws or dexterity checks. If I interpret the mechanics correctly, a PC needed to roll higher than his or her strength once in the first two rounds of the sand falling or die unless someone else can pull them out (which requires that PC to make successful strength checks). For a PC of average strength, that's a chance of 1 in 4 of fatal death. Not quite Gygaxian (Gygax wouldn't have even allowed a saving throw, at least in Tomb of Horrors), but pretty unforgiving for a low-level module.

Also interesting that high dexterity doesn't help avoid the trap. I get it, it's a rush of sand, and you can't dodge sand. But maybe quick reactions would let someone get out before the sand got too deep.

And one of these days I'm going to make a longer post, complete with charts and probability calculations, about the tendency of DMs to rely on attribute checks when AD&D has a perfectly useful saving throw mechanic. But not right now.

[Inferno]

Zahra, I know we don't know each other that we'll, but...

Zhym, I'm thinking Strength Save is easier to make than the Saving Throws of low level PCs, but I always learn something from your probability charts.

[Zhym]

You're probably right about that (strength checks—which aren't really "saves," he said pedantically—not the part about you learning something). The harsh part here is that you can't take any action if you fail the check. Fail two checks in a row, something that's all too likely, and you end up buried under sand at negative hp. Harsh.

[DadsAngry]

You're probably right about that (strength checks—which aren't really "saves," he said pedantically—not the part about you learning something). The harsh part here is that you can't take any action if you fail the check. Fail two checks in a row, something that's all too likely, and you end up buried under sand at negative hp. Harsh.

AD&D is harsh. Alway has been, alway will be says the second level mage with 4 out of 6 hp. Each step could be your last.

[hedgeknight]

Apologies fellers > I kinda spaced out there for a few days and got busy with other things and didn't get back to the game until it was too late. Perhaps Roan could have rushed in and helped save Gronda and Attila.

[Spartakos]

Is anyone going to try to help Garrin pull us free? Because if not, my staying to try and help Kiri will just mean we both die.
Yes, I know something's coming to kill us...so how 'bout dragging 2 of your strongest fighters out to help fight it?

Success doesn't mean she can carry/drag the "man mountain" through the sand avalanche alone. It means she can hang onto him while Garrin and the others in the hall reel in Zahra's rope. But Garrin can't reel them both in by himself.
(No strength save is required by the rope pullers. There is a secret threshold of PC Strength points that needs to be applied to the task to meet with success.)