Game(s) Played:
No, really, the following post has MAJOR spoilers for the Gloomhaven campaign. This has been your spoiler warning.
Gloomhaven #15 – (20) Necromancer's Sanctum
Game: Gloomhaven
Designer: Isaac Childres
Players: 1 – 4 Players (This Play: 5 Players)
Playing Time: 30 – 120 minutes (This Play: 180 minutes)
Main Mechanisms: Role Playing, Legacy, Hand Management
Player(s):
Today we experimented with something different by going over the game's stated player count to run our scenario at 5 Players. For those who are thinking of doing this let me quickly summarize my thoughts here before I bring you the play-by-play of our latest session:
Derived from the Latin phrase "Pro et contra"
Pros:
- Well obviously you can now play with 5 Players
- There are now many resources to help you to achieve this Player count, we used Gloomy Companion to handle all the monster related actions and gave the monster's attack modifier deck to the 5th Player
- It is a very nice thing if you have a 5 Player group and you don't need to run an extra campaign for that extra 1 Player and nobody gets left out
Cons:
- There is a huge difficulty spike (we only went one level difficulty higher instead of the designer's recommended two levels) especially if one or more of your Players are not regulars and under-levelled
- The game takes longer, not just because you have an extra Player but because the map doesn't get any bigger and jockeying for space becomes a very real problem (which is why we didn't add any extra monsters to the scenario)
- We definitely needed more space, my phone could not load Gloomy Companion correctly so I had to add my laptop to another side table. Sure, it made me feel like a real Dungeon Master but boy did it require a lot of neck twisting between the laptop and gaming table each round
I decided to give the 5 Player setup a try mainly because of the existence of Gloomy Companion and also because we don't play at the 5 Player count very often so the occasional extra effort to setup is a small matter.
All Might "the Symbol of Peace" is recounting his heroic feats and acts of self sacrifice for what must be the seventeenth time around the fire place when Argeise bursts through the doors of the Sleeping Lion and marches right up to the wildly gesturing Inox. The Quatryl City Guard jumps up and grabs the Inox by one of his horns, cutting All Might off in mid-gesticulating and eyeballing him at a preferred height, hers.
"Why haven't you taken care of her yet?!?!" screams Argeise with the lung capacity of an Inox
"Wha... Who?" blinks All Might at this unusual intrusion of his personal space
"JEKSERAH, THAT'S WHO!!!" yells Argeise, wielding volume like a sledgehammer
"Sorry, who?" responds the Inox who is also wondering where he has met this Quatryl before
"We've had to beat back her undead attacks for SIX nights now! Have you found her base yet???" yells Argeise, her bloodshot eyes revealing that the wrong answer would have dire consequences
A hand lands on the shoulder of the wrathful City Guard and quickly retracts itself as Argeise whips around with the visage of a demon to lock on the face of Thalia "the Heir of Saint Traft" who has her hands held up as a shield in front of her.
"Argeise, we've known for some time now but we didn't want to take her down with nothing less than our full forces. It's kinda hard to get the gang together" explains Thalia as she points at her various party members
Rincewind "Family"
Xanna "Research"
Lyramof "Momma"
All Might "Uh... Drunk" earning All Might a glare of reproof from Argeise
"And I'm technically not from this plane of existence" concludes Thalia pointing at herself
Argeise grudgingly seems to accept her explanation but her fury returns in full as she realizes that the whole gang is, in fact, in existence right before her eyes. "SO??? You're all here now, WHY HAVEN'T YOU GONE YET!?!?!"
Thalia looks at Rincewind "the magical equivalent of the number zero" who returns a dark look before sighing "We'd love to but this came in the mail this morning" holding up what looks to be a wedding invitation. Xanna "Master Artificer to the Etherium Crafters" chips in "You know who they are and it would be rude not to attend the ceremony tonight".
Of course Argeise knew who was getting married tonight, or rather WHOSE children were getting married. It's a miracle that the patrons of two great competing merchant houses could put aside their differences to celebrate the marriage of their children. Then again, the threat of double suicide that would make both houses heirless at one stroke would certainly be enough to make both masters of their houses change their bursts of outrage to quiet assent at the marriage. Huffing and knowing she would get no satisfaction tonight, Argeise settles for the next compromise "You are setting off tomorrow! NO EXCUSES! And NO DRINKING for him tonight!" orders the City Guard whilst pointing her finger up All Might's nose. The uniform military salutes that greet her seem to appease Argeise somewhat as she marches her way out of the premises without another word.
Thalia glares at All Might "No drinking tonight"
"Awww" rumbles the Inox Brute whilst Lyramof "the Polite" chuckles in the background
"And none for you either" says Thalia while refocusing her glare on Lyramof
"Awww" mumbles the Cragheart in harmony with his sorrowful friend
"If we're not going to drink, we should have brought a cheaper gift instead" grumbles All Might sullenly.
"Not everything in life is about drinking" yawns Xanna as the night wears on.
"But according to this, we would only have lost 5 Gold collectively instead of 20 based on our current reputation!" bursts out Thalia as she stares intently at a little card in her hand.
"What's that?" asks Lyramof as he takes a sip of water and makes a face.
"Uh nothing" mutters Thalia quickly as she hastily tucks away the City Event card back into her pocket.
The next day... ...
What a coincidence, another event that has to do with our party's reputation
"All right! We're back to having our 1 Gold Coin discount with the merchants!" goes Thalia jubilantly.
Xanna looks quizzically at Thalia, "You know I've been meaning to ask, how do you know these things?"
Lyramof blows a very gravelly raspberry, "That's easy. The more good you do, the more people like you and give you discounts and free stuff."
All Might chimes in, "Like beer?" to which Lyramof nods enthusiastically.
Rincewind comments to the wind, "If only everything could be solved with beer" and is met with the synchronized nods of All Might and Lyramof.
Close to sun down… …
The party stands at the edge of the Dagger Forest, looking into the darkness of the dense trees with apprehension, it is said that many an adventurer / vigilante / mercenary have entered Dagger Forest and never returned, only their dagger marks on the trees a remaining testament of how hopelessly lost they had become, hence the name of the forest.
"It's okay, I have the directions here. Let's hope that Seer's word is as good as gold" mutters Thalia as she holds up the parchment before her like a compass. "Let's go"
A few hours later… …
Where's a priest when you're dealing with the undead?
As the LIVING BONES step into the illumination of the torchlight, All Might drops the torch in his hand and unlimbers his half and a half sword then taps Lyramof on the shoulder with his buckler, "Some light, if you don't mind". To which Lyramof closes his eyes and after a few seconds of focus, a bright light shines outwards from the Cragheart's core in the centre of his body, brightly illuminating the room. The light reveals the three CULTISTS hiding behind the LIVING BONES, chanting their unholy words and just as battle is about to be met, a question cuts through the intensity of the encounter. "We should have a catch phrase for the group"… …
There's a time and place for everything and deciding on a group catch phrase before a fight is not one of them
As the lead LIVING BONES steps forward to engage All Might, Xanna sneaks forward and from behind the cover of a column fires her NET SHOOTER at the group of LIVING BONES and CULTISTS, throwing them into confusion as they attempt to cut their way out of the entangling netting. Mission accomplished, Xanna rolls back behind the cover of All Might and Thalia after they had completed their "You hold, I punch" routine on the lead LIVING BONES, picking up the fallen LIVING BONES purse along the way.
The CULTISTS in the back start to panic as their undead minion shield wall appear to be crumbling before their eyes, slashing the palms of their hand and incanting the words that would summon more LIVING BONES to their aid at the price of their blood. Bones begin to join together and two more three-armed LIVING BONES are summoned to protect their masters.
"We've got to take out these CULTISTS" shouts Thalia as she parries three sword blows with a single dirk. "Rain hellfire on them!" All Might calls out to Rincewind and Lyramof as he crashes his sword against the LIVING BONES' shield. Lyramof responds immediately by placing both palms on the floor and chanting in a gravelly sing song voice. Recognizing the stance of the DIRT TORNADO, Rincewind hurriedly digs through the scrolls in his pouch and pulls out COLD FIRE. Firing off the incantation as fast as his eyes can devour the runes, three orbs of intense heat and cold zip off towards the first ranks of the enemy even as Lyramof's DIRT TORNADO begins to whirl around the enemy, limiting the enemy's vision and clogging the joints of the undead. The first two orbs hit their targets but the third is intercepted by a whirling wind of dirt and fizzles out.
Seizing the opportunity whilst the enemy is disoriented, All Might pulls back his sword and drills it through the LIVING BONES to SKEWER the CULTIST in the back like a shishkebab. As All Might tears through the LIVING BONES and CULTIST, Lyramof side steps into the space vacated by the now dead CULTIST and smashes his fist into the face of the next CULTIST in line, interrupting his chanting and sending him crashing to the dirt.
A flying dagger catches the last CULTIST in the throat, a second too late as another LIVING BONES is resurrected with the CULTIST dying breath. "Drat!" curses Thalia as she unsheathes another dirk from her back holster. With the summoners killed, the party adjusts their focus towards the remaining LIVING BONES returning them to the dust from which they came from.
I call this piece, "Synchronized Dueling" in the key of A
As the party takes a breather, Thalia assesses everyone's condition and notes the first fight took a lot more out of the group than it should because of the endless undead being summoned. With a signal to be ready, she approaches the door into the next room and jerks it open only to be confronted with a trio of NIGHT DEMONS!
Here comes the hero to save the day
"Okay All Might, so just stand there and we can shoot the enemy through the door way, just stoop down a little so we can see better" says Xanna as she loads up her crossbow and calls out the play for this encounter. Looking up, Xanna realizes that All Might has completely disappeared from sight, the monsters' distraction by some entity behind them a clear sign of the direction All Might had gone. Looking at Rincewind, Xanna says "Did he just jump into the monster horde by himself?" to which Rincewind nods and shrugs as if to say 'Ask someone else, I'm not his mother you know'. "Well, whilst their backs are turned" mutters Xanna as she takes aim with her crossbow.
This seems to be All Might's signature move, jump into the heart of the enemy and somehow NOT die
One of the LIVING BONES facing All Might crumbles as its skull is shattered by a blow from behind, revealing Thalia holding her dirk in reverse having used the pommel of her dirk to cave in the LIVING BONES' skull. As Lyramof bears down on one of the NIGHT DEMONS, Xanna pulls out a cube from her knapsack and drops it on the ground where her DANGEROUS CONTRAPTION begins to assemble itself into her Battle Bot – Dreadeka! At Rincewind's astonished look, Xanna explains "I've installed a self-assembly module, very useful for the single person adventurers".
As Xanna, Lyramof and Dreadeka take on the last NIGHT DEMON and Rincewind and All Might dispatch the last LIVING BONES, Thalia is sprinting down the next corridor to keep the party's momentum going. She skips past the first door, sparing it only a moment's notice, her attention focused on the door at the end of the V-shaped corridor. She is about to step forward to push open the door when she stops in mid-step, warning bells ringing in her head as she knows something is deathly wrong with the floor before the portal. Stepping back, she places her face level with the floor, looking intently for the clues that triggered her trap sense. She finds it in the obscure pin prick holes on the floor, pulling out a small dagger, she finds the trap's key and jams her dagger in it, triggering the trap and a dozen darts strike the ceiling, most likely laced with poison.
Having finished off the NIGHT DEMON and LIVING BONES, the rest of the party stands before the first door strategizing. Xanna starts with "Should we go after Thalia?" "No, if she gets into trouble she'll come back to us, she works better alone plus we don't want to have bad guys in front and at the back of us" reasons Lyramof and continues "We do the same thing, All Might up front, then me so I can sub him if he takes too much damage, you two can shoot your projectiles over us" says Lyramof as he points at both Rincewind and Xanna. With everyone in position, All Might finalizes the strategy by asking "Knock knock?" to which everyone responds "Knock Knock" and All Might sends the door sailing into the room with his kick.
This is what happens when you do so many sidequests you forget the name of the main antagonist
Everyone, particularly bad guys, are egoists and don't get that nobody cares about what they were thinking
Also don't expect the team to stick together, it never happens in any online multiplayer game and it never happens in any offline multiplayer game either
And so whilst Thalia is busy looting the treasures in the room below. The rest of the party are busy chipping away at HP bar of Jekserah who has a whopping 75 HP. "It's a good thing she jumped right to the front of the room eh? Saves us the trouble of cutting down that horde of undead behind her to get to her" comments Lyramof as he heaves a boulder at Jekserah, the splinters damaging everyone around her including All Might "Ooops, sorry about that mate" grins Lyramof unapologetically. Rincewind mutters self-consciously as he lets loose a MANA BOLT at Jekserah "There's got to be something in the rulebook that prevents this, it can't be this easy" his mind furiously flipping through the Gloomhaven rulebook stored in his mind. "Sorry, what's that again?" asks Xanna as she tosses a STAMINA BOOSTER at All Might. "Oh nothing, everything's fine" responds Rincewind a bit too quickly.
So it turns out that fortune favoured us and no rules were broken with this strategy
A short eternity later… …
And our adventurers are victorious! Revenge is a dish served very cold in this situation
"You know, it's polite to let people finish their sentences even if they are lying she-devils by nature" prompts Rincewind accusingly at All Might.
"I opened a x2 damage modifier on DEVASTATING HACK! You try and stop yourself mid-swing of that kind of attack" retorts All Might defensively.
"All right, all right. Jeez, I just wanted to know what's coming. You know I hate those stories with cliff hangers and a 'To Be Continued' at the end" responds Rincewind.
Lyramof lays a hand on Rincewind's shoulder, "Well when it comes we'll be ready for it".
"I'm just saying that if it's a 50 foot man eating giant that can't be killed except by a killing blow to the back of the neck, it would be good to know beforehand" whines Rincewind.
Our party of adventurers carry on their animated discussion in high spirits as they return to the Sleeping Lion for some drinks and well deserved rest.
Now let's cut to the action in real time!
Results Of Game(s)
Winners:
Justin aka Rincewind "So long and thanks for all the fish" – 16 Exp & 15 Gold & 2 Ticks (RETIREMENT!)
Gideon aka Thalia "Here's one coin, oh and here's another one, why here lies another one" – 26 Exp (LVL UP!) & 43 Gold & 1 Tick
Sean aka Xanna "Rolling around for $$$" –22 Exp (LVL UP!) & 35 Gold
Moses aka All Might "Tanking, tanking all day long" – 28 Exp & 27 Gold & 1 Tick
Edward aka Lyramof "Ooops 1 damage to you" – 26 Exp & 4 Gold
+2 Prosperity
And so retirement has finally occurred, Rincewind has finally achieved enough funds to put his kids through Orchid magic school and can go back to his day job as an inept librarian at his town library. The drinking goes on long into the night as the party bid Rincewind farewell, the laughter and tears at all they have endured together keeps the drinks flowing until dawn.
"You know, we should have a record book of all the mercenaries who have left Gloomhaven" quips Xanna to the party as Rincewind's caravan leaves the city gates.
"How ever did such a notion ever come into your head?" rumbles All Might.
"I don't know. It just seems right. Let's go drop by the Town Records building" suggests Xanna with finality.
As the party sits back down at their usual table after returned from the Town Records building Thalia quips, "Well I guess we need to put out an ad 'Mercenary wanted, lunatics not wanted but will probably fit right in'". As if in response, a squeaky singsong voice from somewhere below the table says "I understand you're looking for a sellsword?"
We will be back with more Gloomhaven in two weeks' time.
Until next time, keep calm and play better.
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