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[D&D] The Lost Mines of Phandelver

Portia dismounts from her horse, readies her crossbow and silently steps into the woods on the side of the trail. Claus hesitates before following her example, dismounting from his horse just as Veit lands next to him -- good thing he's small, Belaver thinks -- and they both go into the woods on the opposite side of the trails.

*** CHECK ***
Since the goblins are hiding in the woods, their stealth is +6. They have a dexterity of 14, which means a character would need to get a 20 on their wisdom check to spot a goblin.

Portia roll: 3 + 10 = 13 - failed
Veit roll: 5 + 19 = 24 - succeed
Claus roll: 8 + 16 = 24 - succeed
*** CHECK ***

Portia peered into the woods as she edged closer to the two dead horses. She spotted Claus and Veit approaching on the other side of the trail. Claus nodded towards her, and pointed towards the horses. They immediately recognize the horses as belonging to Grundren Rockseeker and Salidar Hallwinter. Claus paused. "Do you see them," Claus said quietly. Veit nodded -- there are two goblins hiding in the woods waiting to ambush the party. Suddenly --

*** CHECK ***
Since this time the goblins are trying to surprise the adventurers. I'm rolling for all four goblins with one roll:

Goblins: 17 + 6 = 23

That means the characters need passive wisdom higher then 23. It's obvious that none of them do, so that means the goblin will go before Portia, Bartolomeus and Sylin in the ensuing fight, no matter what their initiative says.

Now it's time to roll for initiative (higher numbers go before the lower numbers):

Goblins: 1
Portia - 15 + 3 = 18
Bartholomeus - 8
Claus - 2
Syllin - 3
Veit - 4

So the turns will go in this order: Portia, Bartholomeus, Veit, Syllin, Claus and finally the goblins.

Note that Bartholomeus and Syllin are currently outside of the battle area, and will need to move first.

Since the goblins surprised the party, they will go first against Portia, no matter what their initiative says.
*** CHECK ***

-- a screeching goblin appeared in Portia's view, as if he has materialized from thin air, and leaped at Portia with a scimitar in its right hand, just as an arrow appeared out of nowhere hurling towards her --

*** CHECK ***
Portia has an armor class of 14, so the goblin would need 14 or higher to hit her:

Goblin: 13 - 1 + 4 (for using the scimitar) = 16 - success
Goblin: 11 - 1 + 4 (for using the longbow) = 14 - tie!
Since Portia cannot see this goblin, he has advantage. That means he rolls two more times, and picks the higher of the two numbers:

Goblin: roll 1: 4 - 1 + 4 = 7; roll 2: 15 - 1 + 4 = 18 - success

10 HP of damage to Portia; she has 0 hp;
*** CHECK ***

Portia staggers, and falls to the ground, rolling down the small hill onto the trail, blood gushing out of her abdomen where the goblin slashed his scimitar, and an arrow sticking out of her right shoulder.

>>> @Moyank24 is knocked out of the battle. Since she was surprised, she cannot make a saving throw this round. @Don't panic has the next highest initiative roll, but was surprised by the goblins as well. Veit, however, spotted the goblins before they attacked, so he was not surprised, and now get to act. @twietee, one goblin is very near you, wielding a scimitar. Another goblin is approximately 30 feet away, wielding an longbow. What do you do?
 
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Well, I don't really understand all of it but seems like things went mighty wrong. :D

At least ravenvii can read minds as I indeed wanted to go into the bushes next to Claus and not stay at the wagon and protect the lugage!

I take it ZebraTalent left the game? Strange, seemed super interested in this. ??

As for the format, I personally don't need all the dice rolls laid out - I totally trust you there. Just the important info like HP and order of turns etc.

edit: what? Do I understand it correctly that we haev a 5% chance of spotting a goblin? How will we ever survive the first day? I thought this was a beginners tour? :D
 
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twietee said:
As for the format, I personally don't need all the dice rolls laid out - I totally trust you there. Just the important info like HP and order of turns etc.
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I trust Ravenvii but I like the rolls laid out so I can see and learn the system :).

@ravenvii , a few quick rules questions. Do first level characters start out with maximum hit points or am I thinking of something else. If so, I would have 7 left. I was also curious about the initiative rolls. I get at +3 on dex so how did I get a 2 for initiative (not sure how it is rolled). On the surprise roll, I was wondering if you do a straight wisdom roll or if you base it on the perception skill. I'm proficient in the perception skill at +3 but I doubt that would have seen them in any case.

twietee said:
edit: what? Do I understand it correctly that we haev a 5% chance of spotting a goblin? How will we ever survive the first day? I thought this was a beginners tour? :D
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The goblins were attaching from ambush which gives them a +6 on hiding. You would have normally needed a 9 or above to spot the goblins.

Don't fret yet :D. The elf can take out most of these with a sleep spell (once she can see the goblins) and the goblins can't use their bows once we are off the road.

Shouting to the group: Everyone group together in the woods close to Portia.
Speaking to Velt: Could you please cast a cure on me. Portia does need medical attention but, we are all dead unless we quickly kill these goblins.

On his initiative, Claus moves across the road and into the woods to protect Portia. Attack the scimitar wielding goblin.
 
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Too bad you're last in order Claus - maybe wait first. :p

Who knows whether Bart leaves anybody alive at all.
And I don't fret, I'm just curious how we'll handle this since we only have a 5% chance to even spot one goblin. How will ss take them all out if we can hardly make out one, let alone the whole bunch of it :D

Also, since DP is having fun in the snow: shall we play his chararcter? I doubt he would do anything but advancing into the fight, trying to be the white knight and protect Moyank.
[doublepost=1455549722][/doublepost]And wouldn't been 'bless' the better course of action? I can still see all of you guys, except moyank.

Speaking of which: is she dead already? :eek:

And yep, you should have 7HP left instead of 2, no?
 
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twietee said:
edit: what? Do I understand it correctly that we haev a 5% chance of spotting a goblin? How will we ever survive the first day? I thought this was a beginners tour? :D
Click to expand...

What Plutonius said below :)

Plutonius said:
I trust Ravenvii but I like the rolls laid out so I can see and learn the system :).

@ravenvii , a few quick rules questions. Do first level characters start out with maximum hit points or am I thinking of something else. If so, I would have 7 left. I was also curious about the initiative rolls. I get at +3 on dex so how did I get a 2 for initiative (not sure how it is rolled). On the surprise roll, I was wondering if you do a straight wisdom roll or if you base it on the perception skill. I'm proficient in the perception skill at +3 but I doubt that would have seen them in any case.



The goblins were attaching from ambush which gives them a +6 on hiding. You would have normally needed a 9 or above to spot the goblins.
Click to expand...

>>> Both correct -- bad math on my part AND you got it re: why the goblins are so hard to spot. Fixed the post -- you indeed have 7 hp left.
 
Sorry, just trying to get a grip at this:

Goblins have Dexterity +14? Sounds crazy since our posse has somthing along the lines of -1 to +3. What do I miss?

And them being hidden in the bushes means 14+6=20 after ravenvii. Why do you, Pluto, say we'd normally need a 9+ to spot them? That'd be 9+6=15 and contradicts ravenvii's posting. What do I miss?

Just curious. Would be dang humiliating being beaten and send home by some bunch of frigging goblins right at the beginning. :D
 
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twietee said:
Sorry, just trying to get a grip at this:

Goblins have Dexterity +14? Sounds crazy since our posse has somthing along the lines of -1 to +3. What do I miss?

And them being hid in the bushes means 14+6=20 after ravenvii. Why do you, Pluto, say we'd normally need a 9+ to spot them? That'd be 9+6=15 and contradicts ravenvii's posting. What do I miss?

Just curious. Would be dang humiliating being beaten and send home by some bunch of frigging goblins right at the beginning. :D
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@ravenvii , I'm confused too :D. In the case of Velt, he has a +5 wisdom saving throw but only a +3 perception. Would he use the +5 or the +3 (Perception is used to spot the opponent attempting to hide but can Velt make a wisdom saving throw instead) ?

@twietee , to spot them, you get a either a +5 or +3 due to your wisdom :). That means that they only get a +1 or +3 bonus against you. You then roll a D20 and subtract either one or three. That result has to be greater than or equal to 14 (their dex). If they were not hiding, you would roll a D20 and add 5 or 3 (to beat or equal 14). After you calculate the bonus or penalty, you almost always roll a D20 and add it to skill checks. Note - I said either +3 or +5 since I wasn't sure which bonus you used.

For dex, you are looking at the modifier on the character sheet (look at the small numbers below the dex modifier). Your dex is 8 and mine is 16.
 
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A thought, feel free to ignore-
The neat thing about a game like this is that there is a narrative put forth by the DM, party choices, actions and results. The accumulation of posts make a story. This can be a clean or a messy read. :)

It seems that technical questions and some OOC comments about the execution of the game, bog down the narrative, but to people trying to learn D&D this is important info. Besides leaving well enough alone, (one thread with all replies), another option would be 1) to enroll party members and other interested forum members in the process behind the game into a MacRumors Conversation (private) or 2) a parallel support thread in the Community forum. The intent would be to keep the main game thread narrative focused on the story, events, choices, and results.

I realize there would be some coordination as in you might have to reference a reply number in the game thread when posting a question in the support thread. But the support thread could also be the place to post roll stats and questions about how it works. For example I have questions about the rolls in post #127, but will not ask them here. Btw, the intent would not be to forbid OOC comments in the main thread, but reduce the extraneous verbiage there.
 
Alright, smashing that goblin ahead of me with my mighty warhammer "Tibor's Wrath".


"WHAM!"
 
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Skills @twietee, @Scepticalscribe, @Huntn, @ZebraTalent, @Moyank24 : (Since twietee had questions).

Skill checks are a D20 + Bonus or - Penalty. The number that indicates success is determined by Ravenvii.
Ravenvii will have us roll a skill check every time an event needs to be resolved.
You can check your character sheet to see what you are good at.

Different Skills:
Acrobatics: Any out of the ordinary physical activity that is dex based (preventing damage from a fall, walking along a wall, etc.)
Animal Handling: Calming animals, controlling your horse, etc.
Arcana: Knowledge about anything magical.
Athletics: Any out of the ordinary physical activity that is strength based. Climbing, swimming, etc.
Deception: Lying etc.
History: Basic knowledge of lore and legend.
Insite: Detecting lies and motives.
Intimidation: Influencing people through threats (i.e. bullying).
Investigation: Information gathering.
Medicine: Stabilize a character that has reached 0 hit points and is unconscious. Diagnose an illness.
Nature: Lore on anything nature related.
Perception: Spotting / finding.
Performance: Entertaining.
Religion: Knowledge and lore of religions.
Slight of hand: Pick pocketing, concealing object, etc
Stealth: Not being seen.
Survival: Tracking, outdoor lore.
 
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A goblin jumped in front of Veit, facing Claus with its scimitar raised. Just before the scimitar connected with Claus' back, Veit swung hard with his warhammer, and --

*** CHECK ***
Since the goblin is right in front of Veit, there is no disadvantage. However, its back is turned to Veit, so Veit has advantage. Its armor class (AC) is 15, so Veit will need to roll higher than a 15 to hit it. Since Veit has a +2 modifier to strength, and a +2 modifier for proficiency (he's proficient with weapons):

Veit: 2 + 2 + 13 = 17 - succeed

The warhammer has a damage output of 1d8, which means one roll of a 8-sided die. Veit also has a +2 modifier for strength (proficiency does not apply to damage rolls, unfortunately). Thus, Veit will hit the goblin for:

Veit: 2 + 2 = 4 damage

The goblin had 7 hp, so it now has 3 hp.
*** CHECK ***

-- hit the goblin squarely on its side, sending it sprawling and screeching obscenities.

>>> Since Claus is the next one who is not surprised, he goes now. @Plutonius, there is a goblin sprawled on the ground directly behind you, and a goblin wielding an longbow approximately 30 feet ahead of you. What do you do?

Something to consider: This is a rare opportunity where the longbow-wielding goblin is unhidden to you -- the goblin has a 'hide' bonus action -- in essence, they could hide every turn without using up any actions (!).
 
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Thanks for the heads up! Appreciate it. Quick question: once injured, can those goblins go into hiding mode just as well as before? They're cursing and squeeching after all!
 
twietee said:
Thanks for the heads up! Appreciate it. Quick question: once injured, can those goblins go into hiding mode just as well as before? They're cursing and squeeching after all!
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>>> Yes, its disengage and hide abilities are unhindered. However, as you said, if the goblin is actively being seen, it cannot hide. For the goblin in front of you, it'll require him to basically run away into the woods before hiding, making it harder for him to attack you later. For the one with the longbow, however, it merely needs to move a bit (he's deeper in the woods after all), and can easily hide unless someone goes right up in its face immediately.
 
If I understand you right, I guess it's probably wise to attack the long bow dude, Pluto. Your call. I'm off now anyway.
 
ravenvii said:
>>> Hence my 'something to consider' note. I won't be doing this often, but since this is your first battle, I decided to give you a hint. :)
Click to expand...

Claus screams out an elvish warcry and attacks the goblin that is armed with a bow. Velt should need no help dispatching the goblin that is prone.
 
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Plutonius said:
Sorry :(. I had my sword out so I'll attack with my sword. Besides, I don't want the goblin to get away if I miss with the bow.
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>>> good choice.

"Get that one, I'll --" Veit cut off as Claus leaped deeper into the woods rushing towards the second goblin as it is raising its longbow. Even in the middle of battle, Veit found himself cringing at Claus' attempt at Elvish.

Screaming the Elvish warcry, or something resembling it, Claus quickly closed the distance and, with both hands, swung his greatsword towards the goblin as it readied its longbow --

*** CHECK ***
Since the goblin is using both hands to wield the longbow, it does not have its shield, thus it has a -2 penality to its AC. Thus, Claus only needs to roll a 12 to hit the goblin. Claus also has a +2 modifier to strength, and a +2 modifier for proficiency in simple weapons, thus:

Claus: 2 + 2 + 19 = 23 - succeed

Claus more than succeeds in hitting the goblin. Now for damage -- the greatsword has a damage output of 2d6, and Claus also has a +2 strength modifier, so:

Claus: 2 + 1 + 5 = 8 damage

The goblin also has 7 hp, so it now has 0 hp.
*** CHECK ***

-- and the aim was perfect; the blade made a clean cut straight through the goblin's neck. The goblin's head disappeared into the woods as blood gushed straight up out of its neck. The goblin's lifeless body took one step backwards before crumpling to the ground.

Screeches and obscenities in the goblin language can be heard coming from the woods as three things happened simultaneously:

The goblin near Veit scrambled to its ground, screamed something in goblin, and rushed at Veit with its scimitar raised --

*** CHECK ***
Since Veit has an AC of 18, the goblin needs to exceed that to hit Veit. It has a -1 modifier for strength, but a +4 by using the scimitar, so:

Goblin: 4 - 1 + 10 = 13 - fail

The goblin failed to hit Veit at all, so no damage is dealt.
*** CHECK ***

-- and the scimitar bounced harmlessly off Veit's armor, sending the goblin stumbling;

The remaining longbow-wielding goblin, still unseen by the party, fires off an arrow and it flew towards Syllin --

*** CHECK ***
Syllin has an AC of 12, so:

Goblin: 4 - 1 + 8 = 11 - fail

The attack didn't hit, so no damage was done. The goblin also immediately hides, so it remains out of sight even though it attacked.
*** CHECK ***

-- and arrow flew slightly too low, hitting Syllin's horse in the side of its head, killing it instantly. Syllin was sent sprawling onto the ground;

-- and the scimitar-wielding goblin that dispatched Portia rushed out of the woods screaming the goblin battle cry, and reached Syllin as she struggled to pull herself out under the horse --

*** CHECK ***
Goblin: 4 - 1 + 17 = 20

The goblin obviously hits Syllin, dealing 5 damage. Syllin now has 3 hp. The goblin cannot hide since it is out in the open and in sight of Syllin and Bartolomeo.
*** CHECK ***

-- and buried its scimitar in Syllin's side. It growled as Syllin struggled to her feet despite this.

>>> The first round is over; it is now @Moyank24's turn. She rolls a save:

*** CHECK ***
Portia is clinging to life; a roll over 10 means she's inching closer to the living; under 10 means she's creeping towards death. 3 rolls of over 10's means she will live; three rolls under 10 means she will die permanently. This need not be consecutive.

Portia: 6 - fail

Portia now has 1 failed death save roll.
*** CHECK ***

>> It is now @Don't panic's turn. You are mounted on the horse on the other side of the wagon. There is a goblin in the woods near Veit that you cannot see; a goblin far away in the woods shooting arrows that you cannot see either; and a goblin out in the open near Syllin that you can readily see. What do you do?
 
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