So Adam and Ian don’t feel like they play enough D&D. To rectify this, they started playing a text-based adventure with a couple of friends, still using the 5th edition framework. We thought it would be fun to clean up the transcripts of this adventure and start publishing it in weekly chapters here on the site. Let us know what you think, and please share around! If you missed Chapter 1, check it out here!
Disclaimer: This is the transcript of a text-based D&D game played over a period of 6 months. Bad language included. Picture based dice rolls/media omitted. Names changed to preserve anonymity. Goblin based violence frequent. You have been warned. If you missed Chapter 18, find it here!
Faustus: Faustus is drinking quietly at the bar and scoping out the place.
DM: Grand. Perception faustus? Performance/charisma bronan?
Bronan: 19!
DM: The ladies are all very impressed with bronan, and buy constance and bronan a mug of mead each
DM: And invite bronan to join them in a five way game of knuckle dice
Bronan: Woop woop 5way
DM: …is that in character?
Faustus: 19
DM: That shady guy in the corner is some sort of mannequin or stick man, presumably a prank on new customers
DM: Also, behind one of the mead barrels tucked away and dusty is a bottle of firewhisky.
DM: And the door to the basement is unusually heavily padlocked, and shows signs of something trying to wrench out the locks from below
Faustus: Huh.
Bronan: I play
Bronan: Got a 9 on int roll
DM: You lose, but the game seems more about socialising than winning anyway
DM: So what are you guys up to?
DM: It’s pretty late evening now
DM: Faustus, Burliman asks if you are any good with that sword of yours
Faustus: Yes I am.
Bronan: Bronan is drinking ale and trying to be good wingman for constance and Faustus
DM: Burliman offers you a week’s free stay and stew in return for solving an issue he has been having with giant rats trying to get in his cellar. There is a nest below the bridge
Bronan: (everyone loves a good whackarat, Bronan is down but I’m guessing he is somewhere wingmanning)
DM: Bronan and Constance are nearby at the table with the ladies, though the ladies are considering calling it a night
DM: What say ye? Rat slaying for free rent, or happy to pass on grinding mobs?
Faustus: How big is this nest?
DM: He shrugs. Maybe 10 giant rats?
Faustus: Hmm. What do you think guys?
Bronan: Bronan happy to smash
DM: They are down through the basement, out the bottom hatch, about fifty foot toward the waterfall along the side of the river. There is a little ledge. Don’t fall in though!
Constance: I do like punching things.
DM: They are surely big ones, last fella I sent down didn’t come back. If you find him, let me know!
DM: He removes a big brass key from around his neck and gestures towards the latch behind the bar. Ready now, or want to get some rest first?
Bronan: Bronan good to go
Constance: Yeah. Some punching before bed always helps me sleep!!
Bronan: I ensure the ale keg is locked safely in my room and return to the common room
Faustus: Yeah I’m in.
Bronan: Time for the beers to get into the rats for once!
DM: Okay, burliman opens the locks and leads you to a basement, then opens a trapdoor in the basement with a ladder leading down to the river
DM: Just to the side is a platform running the edge of the river down to the waterfall
Bronan: Is there hoops on the wall to tie stuff too?
DM: After the ladder, no. Smooth stone and a two foot ledge
DM: Which is six inches above the water
Bronan: If it’s dark I light my 2nd torch
DM: It is dark, until you light your torch, which reflects off the black waters of the cormyra river on this moonlit night
DM: Even though you are only 10ft below street level, you can hear nothing of the city above- only rushing water
DM: What’s your marching order?
Bronan: Bronan strong, Bronan beefy, Bronan March first with his quick feety?
DM: Grand. Who is middle, who is rear?
Constance: I’ll go middle
Faustus: I’ll go rear?
Bronan: Hmm Faustus take torch? Bronan need 2 hand to hit with beers
DM: As you settle onto the landing burliman shouts down, a silver piece for each tail you return!
DM: Then he shuts the trapdoor and you are alone with your torch
DM: You can see 30 ft ahead of you- nothing but ledge, granite and slick with river water
DM: To your right, the river, to your left the wall up 10ft. You stand precarious on this 2ft wide ledge and can hear the rushing falls some 60 ft south of you
Bronan: This look ground look slippy, watch step
Bronan: Bronan is going to take his Sandals off, using that wet foot grip and is going to be looking for sharp things on the ground
Bronan: And slippy bits 🙂 so he can warn his friends
DM: Ha
DM: Okay
DM: Are you moving forward?
Constance: Perhaps we should tie a rope off to each other, that way if one slips the others can pull him back
Bronan: Bronan will, “you know, once I hear bard tale of Man who like rats but hate children, he sing down pipe and lead rats to promise land, but then steal children, Bronan not know why, but wish we had rat pipe”
Bronan: Bronan no rope, but we wedge portable ram in ladder and tie to that?
DM: Any of you got rope?
DM: If so you can easy do as bronan suggests
Constance: Nope
Faustus: I don’t think I do
Bronan: (that portable ram is paying for itself! I swear I just picked something hillarious for the once in an adventure joke where you get to do the here’s Johnny thing!)
Bronan: Hmm no rope, maybe ask Burliman?
DM: The trapdoor is currently closed
Bronan: Probably rude to smash it to bits?
Bronan: Ok, let’s go grippy feet, Bronan watch for badthings
DM: Moving south towards the falls?
DM: You are 60ft from the end and can see 30ft
Bronan: Bronan do, keen to stop friends from slipping or hurting their feet
DM: How far are you moving? Others following?
Bronan: (Constance may have told you about our party’s penchant for grease and fire, so if this goes badly it’s kind of karma)
Bronan: Bronan will carefully (he is checking for his friends) move 20ft then gesture to his friends it’s clear if it is
DM: Moving 20t, you can still only see another 19ft ahead of you then blackness
DM: Perception check?
DM: And everyone’s passive perception?
Bronan: Shit
Bronan: I got natty 1
Bronan: I’m guessing the last time I asked if it was too late to use inspiration, it went,
DM: Rippling water, that’s it
DM: Yup
Bronan: It fine, only wet, don’t slip!
Constance: Passive is 12
Faustus: Passive is 12 I think and I got a 9
Bronan: My passive is 13, but crit fail, Bronan ain’t seeing shit
DM: From the darkness ahead of you, a rat the size of a dog enters the edge of the light
DM: You hear something behind you as well- another from behind!
DM: One charges at bronan and one at Faustus, but neither successfully clamp down with their yellowed teeth. You guys are up, as usual first come first served then we stick to that initiative
Faustus: Faustus lashes out with his sword with a 22 to hit.
Faustus: 11 slashing damage (I’m assuming a 22 hits a rat)
DM: Uh, yeah
DM: Rat one is down. A swarm of small rats fire out of the darkness behind it and head for you
Faustus: Lemme know if any adjacent rats to me are attacking either Constance or Bronan because I can impose disadvantage on the attack as a reaction with my fighting style. Need to double check if that is every time.
Faustus: Also my ac is 18 with shield out not 16.
DM: You get 1 reaction per round of combat
DM: So can do it once per round
Faustus: Ok cool.
Faustus: Can you give me the option if it comes up?
DM: Yeah will do
Constance: I throw one of my poisoned darts at the one in front of Bronan
Constance: (Ps busy at work)
DM: Shit, poisoned dart. Roll attack and damage
Constance: 14 to hit
Constance: 6 piercing damage. Don’t know what the poison is
DM: Poison is 2d6
Constance: Poison is a total of 2 😐
DM: Your dart flies past bronans shoulder and into the rat, which slumps down dead and slides into the fast water
DM: From behind it a swarm of small rats and a giant rat move forward toward bronan. They are about fifteen feet away
Bronan: (sorry, messages only just came through) Bronans eyes glaze over, he enters a rage, he moves to the rats ahead and swings at the rat swarm(or giant rat if they’re ahead of it)
Bronan: For 15+5, 20 to hit
Bronan: 17 slashing
DM: You cleave through the rat swarm, the beers scattering and smashing at least half of them
DM: What’s left attacks you (faustus you can do that protection thing here)
DM: The giant rat attacks bronan as well
DM: And the swarm from behind attacks faustus
Faustus: I use protection on the giant rat attack. Disadvantage.
DM: How does that protection work exactly? it misses, just want to visualise it
DM: Bronan, does a 15 from the rat swarm hit you?
DM: Faustus, does a 13 from the other rat swarm hit you?
Bronan: Yup, my ac is 14
Bronan: I have resistance to slashing, piercing and bludgeoning while I’m raging though
DM: Then 1 damage
Bronan: Cool (my current hp is 22/23)
Faustus: Nope.
DM: Okay then
DM: Faustus, you are up
Faustus: Womp womp. 7 to hit.
DM: You swing but the swarm dodges and streams around
DM: Constance?
Constance: Oh shit I’m a halfling.
Constance: I’m going to pull my shortsword out and slide through Faustus legs stabbing wildly at whatever is nearest, then spend a ki point to use flurry of blows and stamp the fuck out of the rat swarm.
DM: Right, so attack giant rat, and two unarmed attacks on rat swarm
Constance: 15, 21 and 7 to hit (shortsword, stamp, stamp)
DM: Shortsword bites into the giant rat
DM: And your first kick sends a half dozen ratlings into the river
Constance: 9 piercing and 6 kicking damage
DM: The giant rat rears back, shrieking, blood gushing from a rent in its chest, and collapses
DM: Your stamps crush the bulk of the remaining rat swarm, the few survivors scurrying away
DM: Bronan? One rat swarm left, behind Faustus
Bronan: I turn, push Faustus towards the wall so I’m on the side nearest the water, push past him and Bronan smash!
Bronan: (the rat swarm)
Bronan: Oh beans, 8
DM: Oh dear
DM: Slick rock is not your friend! You miss
Bronan: (at least I’m now I’m the firing line:))
DM: The rats swarm at you
DM: 18 to hit?
Bronan: That’ll do it!
Faustus: Disadvantage
Faustus: New turn, new protection
Constance: (Coming this fall to NBC)
DM: Ugh
DM: 11
DM: Miss presumably
Faustus: (Haha)
Bronan: Yup, miss
Bronan: (gotta love that paladin stuff!)
DM: Ugh
DM: Okay, it’s faustus then Constance then bronan
DM: What’s the move? One rat swarm left
Faustus: I’ll take a slash at em
Faustus: 16 to hit
Faustus: 11 damage
DM: You cleave through the mire of teeth and fur, and the rats die, or scatter
DM: You are left alone by the river
DM: Continuing further on?
Bronan: Tails! Get their tails
DM: You can collect a twenty regular tails, and two giant tails
Bronan: Nice,
Bronan: Hmm you think this all of them?
Come back next Monday for Chapter 20 of The Cursed Tomb!
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Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide
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