An Introductory Adventure

[zedturtle]

Zed

Now I see that you have 8 pregens available for this adventure, is it possible to run the adventure with all 8? I ask because I am thinking of running this adventure at a Con over Easter (Conquest in Melbourne), and you need to inform the Con organisers how many players ( 2-8??).

BTW, do you have a 'blurb' for this adventure suitable to give to Con organisers??

Robin S.

The adventure is designed for 3-6 players. The reason for eight pregens is so the last guy/gal at the table still gets to make a meaningful choice of which character to play.

However, the game won't exactly break with seven or eight players... you just might need to up the difficulty of the Trials (so that you don't end up with every Trial having been won by a hero and not a competitor) and make the final fight a little tougher (make Cenric not be craven, add an Enhancement to Jarn, etc.).

As for blurbs, here's what I used:

• The One Ring: The Theft of the Moon
  
  When you visit a festival in the land of the Beornings, more is afoot than fun & games. A structured introduction to the game system for new players.
  
  3-6 Players, 4 Hours, Age 13+, No Experience Required

If you wanted/needed something more substantial, how about:

• The One Ring: The Theft of the Moon
  
  Visit the land of the Beornings and attend the Festival of the Full Moon! Held every autumn, this festival marks the end of the harvest. Come run in the Torch Race, face down the mighty bull Mean Shurack, sing a Lay of the Moon or participate in another of many other trials and contests. But not all is as it seems this year, and the festival will soon have need of heroes...
  
  A structured introduction to The One Ring game system for 3-6 players, aged 13 years or more. No prior experience needed.

{suggestions for improving the above highly welcomed }

[stumbler]

This is exactly what is needed in an intro adventure. Well done!

1) Any pros or cons in using the pre-gen characters provided in the back of the book? (I was thinking of printing an laminating them, so that they can be re-used.)

2) As far as Winning the Sickle, I'm spinning it like this - The 7 contests are designed to narrow down which families get to participate in contest to win the Sickle. There can be up to 7 families, but the more party wins, the more "slots" will go to their patron.

The "actual" contest is a "Twice-Baked" honey cakes bakeoff, and can only be done by a Beorning family. The patron will bake (and give to the party) Twice Baked Honey Cakes if they win at least one contest, and put the patron in the top seven. (Assuming the difficulty of fatigue tests reduced by 2). This will happen prior to their journey.

[zedturtle]

This is exactly what is needed in an intro adventure. Well done!

1) Any pros or cons in using the pre-gen characters provided in the back of the book? (I was thinking of printing an laminating them, so that they can be re-used.)

I was actually coming in to make an announcement when I saw this post... I've updated the adventure (again, pretty much just on page 4) in order to accommodate a couple of questions that have popped up several times. I've also added my set of pregens back into the main file. The official iconics are not bad choices, but they do have some odd choices made for them (I suspect to show off elements of the system).

2) As far as Winning the Sickle, I'm spinning it like this - The 7 contests are designed to narrow down which families get to participate in contest to win the Sickle. There can be up to 7 families, but the more party wins, the more "slots" will go to their patron.

The "actual" contest is a "Twice-Baked" honey cakes bakeoff, and can only be done by a Beorning family. The patron will bake (and give to the party) Twice Baked Honey Cakes if they win at least one contest, and put the patron in the top seven. (Assuming the difficulty of fatigue tests reduced by 2). This will happen prior to their journey.

Hmm... it's a very fun idea, and I suppose reasonable if you think of the baked contest as being held on the main stage, thus explaining why the TBHC are readily available to the PCs. I do worry a little bit about stealing away from a Beorning PC's special thing.

But it is quite fun, and that's worth quite a bit.

ETA: What does everyone think of the idea? Good idea? Bad idea? Optional idea?

[zedturtle]

Since it is potentially relevant, here's some advice for new Loremasters on using the pregenerated characters:

Biarnor: Like all Beornings, Biarnor is good at generating bonus dice for Encounters. He can intimidate folks (using Awe) but he's not diplomatic. In combat, his competency with his great spear means he can take open or defensive stances against average opponents. Going forward to awe his opponents is another good choice. On Journeys, his Twice-Baked Honey Cakes and Hardiness will carry the day. He's well suited to facing down Shurack, running the Torch Race, and he might use his Story-Telling to do well on the Stage of the Nobles.

Dhuoda: She can be even more influential in the setup of Encounters than Biarnor, although like her distant cousin, she lacks tact. In combat, she needs to be somewhat aggressive in order to land blows with her great axe. A decent Parry score and a generous margin for her Endurance will hopefully keep her out of trouble. She's especially well-suited to the Torch Race (being Swift) and would do well against Shurack. She might use her Curious nature and Awareness to try her hand at Thimblerig as well.

Egil: A courteous fellow, Egil is a good choice if the company wish to have a spokesman. In combat, he needs to stay Defensive in order to allow his abilities to protect him, only desperate need should drive him forward. For journeys, he might serve as a guide and his Hardy nature will help him. His Folk-lore might aid him in singing a Lay of the Moon, or help him on the Stage of the Nobles.

Iwald: Reclusive by nature, Iwald is not well-suited for Encounters. However, he shines as an archer in combat situations and can hold his own as a traveller. He is one of the best healers available as well. There are many contests for his Bold nature to dominate and both his healing skills and enemy lore might proof useful when considering the testimony of the suspects.

Luthwen: As one of the elves of the forest, Luthwen is not always comfortable around mortals. She will have little to say when it is time to interview the subjects (though her Patience might be rewarded) and she is almost as good an archer as Iwald. She might have trouble travelling as well, but when she is in nature her most powerful ability may reveal itself. Since she can Speak to almost anything, she will be able to find clues that other heroes have missed. See the adventure for some details on what she can find out. She might enjoy the Torch Race or Thimblerig.

Nórin: A sturdy dwarf of Erebor, Nórin is not the best diplomat either. However, he is an excellent guide and a powerful ally in combat. His excellent parry and heavy armour means that he can take the fight to the enemy in ways that some other characters will not be able to. His magical abilities also mean that the heroes are unlikely to be surprised by any foes in the night. During the festival, he might enjoy the Riddle Game or Thimblerig, or use his Determined and Steadfast nature to face down Shurack. [[ N.B. Nórin's traits seem very duplicative... I'm going to look at changing one of those. ]]

Radegund: An experienced traveller that would make an excellent scout, Radegund also posesses the abilities and equipment needed to get close to the quarry of the heroes and find out what they're up to. In conversation, she's surprisingly courteous and Cunning. In combat, her heavy armour and excellent parry allow her to up close and personal with her foes. She will do excellently at the Seeking Field and Thimblerig. Like all woodmen, she is an excellent healer as well.

Walfred: Like all hobbits, Walfred loves to talk. And he's good at it, making an excellent choice for a spokesman. In combat, he's extraordinarily hard to hit and needs to close with his foes to do damage with them. For journeys, he's of limited help. Like Radegund, he can sneak up on almost anything or anyone, an ability amplified by his Elusive nature. During the festival, you might see him at the Riddle Game, the Stage of the Nobles or the Seeking Field.

[[ I'm sure there's more that could be said, but there's some sort of guide to how the heroes are built. ]]

[Wbweather]

Very Helpful. Thanks!

[Falenthal]

Since it is potentially relevant, here's some advice for new Loremasters on using the pregenerated characters:

That's a great addition to pregens when using them in a con.
The two times I've made a presentation of TOR at a local store and at a local con I decided to use the pregens froms the book mainly because they come along with a very nice ilustration. The eye candy of TOR is strong point that we can't dismiss.
For the second time, I used your characther sheet to redo the pregens, changing some Traits and Virtues/Rewards to something that was meaningful during the adventure and mechanically easy to use. But I kept Jon's portraits in the backside of the character sheets, along with their backgrounds. But such an advise as to how to use each character during gameplay might be a nice touch to add below the story of everyone.

[zedturtle]

Yeah, it's making me think that I need to redo the characters as double-sided (or maybe single page each) and include that advice on the sheet.

Fortunately, things can always be changed in PDF.

[Majestic]

Excellently written, zed!

One thing that stood out is that - from the descriptions anyway - Radegund seems to be really good at anything/everything. Most of the others seem to be strong in a few things, but then they also appear to have an area that they're a little weaker in. Radegund, OTOH, is said to be well suited to all three phases of the game, plus other stuff besides.

[Rue]

Zed, I was just writing up Walfred's cheat sheet for the ConGame thread, and I noticed that he has a killer Stealth (4 and favoured) but also Elusive--is that overkill? Would it be better to give him a different Trait?

[zedturtle]

Yeah, might be a bit much. Any suggestions?