High Rollers: Aerois #3 | The Midnight Raid

[@cheeseyfox3486]

Lucus is the popular friend Nova is the smart friend Qillek is the anxious friend Alia is the Jock friend Sentry is the mom friend

[@biggestoof]

LUCUS!?

[@adventurer3288]

Idk fam I bet lucius would fit well inside a school locker

[@jordiebundu7687]

"is it replaceable?" "Yes i have 6!"

[@Born2b4everMe]

Is my heart the only one that melted when Nova said, in an adorable, pleading voice, "Mr. Bird"?

[@bluejay5063]

Time stamp pls

[@badshroud8767]

@@bluejay5063 51:52

[@Im-Not-a-Dog]

JUUUIIITOOOOUUUU!!!!!!!

[@thomasmelcher753]

Yes, you are the only one.

[@bill-1835]

Intro video - 6:45 Recap of last week - 7:58 Gameplay starts - 11:17 'Brilliant' question - 1:07:20 Gameplay resumes - 1:10:10 'Brilliant' solution - 2:12:19 and onwards

[@CatCheshire]

Thanks. I'm terrified by your picture, but love it

[@ElvenPrince]

Thank you

[@matthiasstaber9216]

Bump

[@slothhippohippo8978]

Thanks

[@dadefrost2059]

Bless you, bill

[@TheDanlovejoy]

Ok Lucius, your not allowed to die now, we can't lose both our Technicolor boys.

[@Blasted2Oblivion]

Oh god...the memories...

[@saphter3649]

So many people complaining about how "harsh" Mark is being currently. They are two players down, the players are just after fighting a pack of wolves, they failed on constitution rolls and failed at hiding. They rolled terribly and Mark made decisions according to the dice results. It wouldn't make much sense if they all failed their rolls and then all of a sudden its just a "yeah you escape, what next". If the players fail running and hiding, I want to see the fair outcome of that, bad, good, whatever. You can't start hating and blaming Mark for dming the outcome of the dice. It was a series of unlucky rolls and mark dmed it appropriately. I personally, loved how it went out, although I don't want any of the characters to die or suffer great misfortunes, I think it adds for intense realistic moments. They just crash landed in a territory controlled by a tribe of wild elves, I want to feel the struggle to survive in this new harsh territory and I feel like its been done well.

[@jamesbennett6744]

Saphter I think they are just used to the Lightfall campaign. They were mostly new players than, so mark gave them a lot more hand holding. Mark rarely gave them battles they could not easily handle. Now that most of them have experience, he has upped the difficulty. He has not made it unfair, he just made it more realistic. The challenge ratings are still balanced, he just is encouraging clever use of tactics, either in combat (Silently killing threats: Wild Elf’s), or avoiding combat entirely (Fire Bear, Bribing the Wild Elves). Sometimes they work, sometimes they don’t, but that’s the luck of the dice, not Mark being harsh. The injury table is scary but fair and realistic. You would get actual injuries in a real battle, some severe. The DC is that of a Concentration Check, which means it is typically not hard to pass, meaning injuries should not be abundant.

[@DoctorGrim456]

I agree trial by fire for this campaign

[@einwillfiteyou]

It's also really good character development :>

[@Septemberl4d]

I personally think the problem is that Mark is funneling them giving them little choice while also putting them in a stupidly crazy survival scenario right away. One thing after the other without any time to breath doesn't create a fun scenario and is amateur story telling on the level of a new GM. They are level 2 and already they are fighting foes way above their level, with no modifications to the enemies they face and are right out of the book in difficulty when it comes to damage (he fucking one shot a damn paladin ffs with just one NPCs attack). You can also tell he knows this because he created a healer NPC to follow them around like a henchman due to him knowing he was going to slaughter them every engagement. It is one thing to create some tension and put your players into a daring scenario where they have to use their wits to survive, there is another where you force them into that scenario giving them little to no options on how to deal with it and throwing things one after the other at them, its just bad GMing really. I would love to point by point explain how it is bad from episode one to 4 but you probably wouldn't of read past my first paragraph. I think the setting is cool, the characters are also amazingly thought out, new race is pretty nifty and really interesting, the world seems awesome if done right. But this whole scenario this early just seems so crazy fucked up, they are suprised attacked, with no method to fix the situation (Mark puts a massive road block to have them help stop the crash), they are forced into a fight with something that could of easily of destroyed half the party (wtf was that damage the two thugs at start could do it was insane, same with thier stupidly nuts mobility), then into another fight which could of killed them.. then they have a skill check which could of easily killed characters or at least left them stuck on the crashing ship... Then when they finally land they have to tend to a wounded NPC ally which to be honest seemed like he was saying "you should just leave him to die" but knew they wouldn't. AND THEN HE MAKES IT SO THEY ARE SMACK BANG SOME HOW MAGICALLY STUCK IN THE TERRITORY OF WILD ELVES! Like ffs give them a chance to breath, the wild elves could of easily of been added as a threat later on as they still have a lot more survival to do. All in all it feels like a funnel, Mark is putting them down a linear path for some reason and that is always a bad thing in a open world campaign.

[@thefracturedbutwhole5475]

fighting while exhausted isn't harsh but stripping the players of their gear especially the Hexblade Warlocks sword (the basis of her class) while they are already drained was harsh . . . . . there is nothing wrong with that, sometimes being harsh and having a party beaten, drained and with nothing can make for a good story and RP-ing but it is still harsh none the less

[@ironcladguildhand9321]

The bag of sand is for drying the ink when writing something. Use it as Pocket Sand, it's more fun

[@marcuscain]

Ironclad Guildhand I was looking for this comment 😂

[@ironcladguildhand9321]

That was how I played my warlock in the early days. Now he's level 19 and packing heat

[@marcuscain]

Upgraded to dust off dryness?

[@ironcladguildhand9321]

YAS

[@samtrue3]

upgrading to dust of sneezing and coughing

[@tocon23]

as my nanny always said you take a big problem and break it down into little chunkys and then you figure out the first chunky which is we have to rest

[@davidcarrasco2709]

Laughed out loud at that part XD

[@mackenzieormsby1811]

You know the players are truly immersed when Kim looked like she was genuinely upset and about to cry when they took the sword away.

[@chaoticjexak]

'lets do stealth!' 30 seconds lateur 'lets kill everything!' well theres your problem

[@sabliath9148]

I mean, that sounds like an average D&D party.

[@grothus00]

That's how most of my players are

[@evaahh9584]

ChaoticTCGandgames 30 seconds after bad rolls*

[@Shark_Puppy]

My party when my rouge dealt one damage on a stealth attack.

[@toreyjones5715]

@@Shark_Puppy actually impossible. Your minimum would be 3. XD

[@leeisaliveinmyheart8790]

I honestly felt bad for Nova when she lost her hex-blade

[@vineethvanga8811]

These 3 are so entertaining, but man without Aila and Sentry they’re so freaking squishy that’s it’s genuinely worrisome.

[@fdragon77fk]

bag of sand is to dry ink, you would toss a bit of the sand over the wet ink to help it dry so it doesnt smudge and whatnot

[@Blasted2Oblivion]

That is a fun fact I didn't know. In later episodes she referred to using the sand to erase the ink which made sense since its abrasive but drying the ink makes sense as well.

[@kragos6580]

I think Qillek is a really good leader

[@Despair32]

Kragos hi I agree. It's Haroon.

[@SharpAsASpoon]

Little shot at all the Critters in the audience at the start, there. I like it.

[@giovanniarena8415]

SaigeCounsul when?

[@giovanniarena8415]

SaigeCounsul oh nevermind

[@Shoefae]

It still hurts but I loved the nod.

[@lucasansah3979]

GONE BUT NEVER FORGOTTEN WE LOVE YOU MOLLY (they shouldn't bring him back for realsises)

[@jessicaorr130]

RIP Molly he will be missed, and avenged.

[@OrangeyChocolate]

Mark before campaign 1: "I think it's dumb that you can only cast a cantrip after casting a spell with your bonus action." Mark after campaign 1: "Yeah, fuck that noise, let's use the standard rules..."

[@MilleniumChewbacca]

I don't know how I feel about possibly giving Sentry an Injury. I know dice rolls can sometimes fuck things up but IMO when a player is away it should be a taboo for the DM to cause that PC permanent harm or let them die unless it's a TPK situation and everyone else dies so it would be pointless to have that one PC remain alive. Now of course I don't know the details of Marks injury system but AFAIK they need a special spell or several days or even weeks of recuperation to get rid of an injury, none of which they currently have access to due to a) being low-level and b) being far away from civilization or any kind of "safe" location where they could spend the necessary time to heal.

[@malaynaberhalter965]

Aila: I'm never getting on an airship again! The future: are you sure about that?

[@Douglaa846]

Bro spoilers

[@matthewelliott2365]

Thumbnail : everyone has really cool haircuts Video: ha that’s funny

[@criticalkeaton7601]

Im getting some mad Westeros vibes from this so far. The lowlands is the equivalent of beyond the wall, and the team is stuck there fighting of the wild elfs. Like the nights watch vs the wildlings? Anyone else? Love it so far Mark!!!!

[@jaredbartels1602]

Tom: ok I’m not going to use my bonus action Mark: one of your party members is hurt Tom: oh, ok I’ll heal them People in the Comments: Mark is so mean to the players in this campaign! Me: /shakes head

[@karlcross9112]

Agree, Mark is very easy on his players.... so easy they don't learn their own abilities and he has to remind them all the time. Kim is the worst. These players would be shocked if they played like we did in the early days of D&D. Hard to believe these guys are getting paid and still do not learn their characters.

[@evaahh9584]

Karl Cross they probably all enjoy it.

[@megashark1013]

@@karlcross9112 Because it's extremely enjoyable to watch.

[@greatestoldone7658]

He didn't rage as Aila at the beginning of the fight when he really should have.

[@NickTBrick]

@@karlcross9112 It's almost like they're all friends and want to play the best game they can.

[@jorgewyles3025]

There's only meant to be 7 sky cities right? But there's 8 in the intro, SECRET 8TH SKYCITY

[@magicrainbowkitties1023]

Oooooh Hunger Gaaaaaaaames

[@antemoniac7502]

It's probably the city, where Sentry is from

[@chaddixon9764]

Ah yes, people's schedules, the true final boss.

[@mallerman7515]

Well... Rihannon is going to be pissed. Good luck dealing with that Mark.

[@larouxn]

"Little chunkies" 😂

[@FeranNyan]

"For podcast listeners, Kim is currently in a pose of despair with both hands over her face" Okay, 1.) This was perfect and I laughed 2.) Am I the only one who thought of Danganronpa??? 3.) I mean, in all honesty, at this point any time the word "despair" is mentioned I think of Danganronpa

[@empathicpine3625]

Keal Dreemurr you are not wrong. Went through the same motions as you. Lmao

[@Evelyn40137]

Facts

[@anamosamapper7521]

I dont understand but I like it

[@DCGuava]

@@anamosamapper7521huh??

[@liamfitzsimons2806]

I have a little bit of an issue with the arcane focus and the sword, as those are LITERALLY THEIR CLASSES but I mean, I think with the dice rolls they get what they get ya know?

[@RileyPearson]

How about ignoring the druid that is concentrating on holding the barbarian. They almost deserve a tpk I hope they don't though but still

[@Forestsman1]

I really like that Mark had so many encounters in a row. I love seeing the players stretch their thinking and creativity over just combat. I am really loving the series so far, and all the players/characters are doing great! :)

[@ONTOE0]

Is it just me or does Kim usually just have a hard time at the beginning of their campaigns. It’s only episode 3 and she just been mugged of her source of power.

[@alphaprawns]

I think it can be tough getting to grips with a new character when you're so used to a familiar one you've had for years

[@BlueSun_]

Well, if she goes Pact of the Blade at level 3 (which Hexblade Warlocks generally do), she'll be able to summon it at will so...

[@CanadianSpectator]

Yeah, mark mentioned that she'll be able to summon her weapon pretty soon. Also, it's not like she's completely powerless without it. She still has some spells she can use.

[@thefracturedbutwhole5475]

Only if you spend an hour bonding to said weapon which is difficult when you do not have it in your possession

[@CanadianSpectator]

The main point is that she'll be able to avoid situations like this in the future.

[@humanperson2375]

"How does someone get an arm removed temperaliy?" they say, after cam had his arm removed temporarily.

[@torkoal_fire7640]

I wasnt sure about tom XD but ive come to really love him, hes a great player and hes got a nice personality. I hadnt caught up woth first season so this is the first time im seeing him in sessions, and i gotta say i really like him ^w^

[@ZoufyCZ]

Ok, so - the thing is, the beginning was harsh, there's no way around it. BUT, it was in accordance with the Lowlands (as far as I understand what little has been revealed about them), they didn't die *and* it was actually nice (RP-wise) to see Nova part with her blade. Kim is playing her really good.

[@orionjaeger2822]

There's a difference between playing to the environment and railroading your players from first session through an environment and facing encounters way above their level again and again and again. That sucks the fun out of it all and leaves players wondering why they bother continuing.

[@bencegergohocz5988]

@@orionjaeger2822 i guess you are the type that plays videogames on casual difficulty

[@gnadlaftehgary4257]

@@orionjaeger2822 "way above their level" wolves and wild elves... lmao. You're a moron.

[@kyleweir689]

Elves do, in fact, gain the benefits of a long rest after a 4 hour trance.

[@matthewward1346]

That bothered me for a moment, too. But DM is the supreme being at any table.

[@kyleweir689]

@@jornohh does a human sleeping for 8 hours give them the benefits of a long rest?

[@kyleweir689]

@@jornohh Jeremy Crawford also disagrees with you :)

[@kyleweir689]

@@jornohh I'll just never understand how it could have been inteded any other way than written. Human gets long rest sleeping for 8 hours ---> elf gets same benefit as human sleeping 8 hours from 4 hour trance ---> elf gets long rest from 4 hour trance. Nomsayin?

[@MikelSyn]

@@kyleweir689 Races that sleep get their long rest from 6 hours of sleep and 2 hours of light activity, including keeping watch. Warforged get their rest from 6 hours of being frozen, reborn get it from 4, and elves get it from 4 hours of trance. RAW, it can be interrupted for no longer than an hour without having to restart the rest.

[@MarkD5678]

For future reference if they ever get into a similar situation again, as a barbarian Aila should probably have gotten advantage against the Ice Knife due to being a barbarian. Danger Sense - At 2nd level, you have advantage on Dexterity saving throws against effects that you can see, such as traps or spells. You do not gain this benefit if you are blinded, deafened, or incapacitated.

[@SherlockHulmes]

Good shout. Forgot about Danger Sense!

[@ondank]

The start to this campaign has been brutal!

[@TaradaPryoNINJA]

I really really need a compilation of all the times Trott has put dice up his nose.

[@FrumpybutSuperSmart]

All of the Valla moments are so cute so far.

[@wreckstate7778]

Also, Mark's eagle cry "...CAW!" Love it...I'm done now

[@marcdunlap8218]

Bag of Sand= blotting / drying your writing (quill and ink), if scattered over a freshly written page and left to dry the sand will absorb the extra ink drying it faster and limiting bleeding... it can be reused a few times ...

[@stitchbeard3825]

1:25:55. Man what is it with Trott and setting things on fire. It’s almost a gut reaction.

[@iGuttsi]

Love the nod to critical role, sad stream that day (and almost a 5 hour stream at that) glad to have this one to take my mind of it a bit and just enjoy some awesome low level madness!

[@iridescentbanana839]

What's up with Kim and inanimate objects having personalities XD

[@anthonyhall6780]

IridescentBanana my thoughts too lol

[@generalgamer50]

Omg I cant wait till Lucius has a sanctum spell! Like the mansion or something, its going to be so poofy lol

[@heidifrost3943]

Hearing luscious talk about daddy saving him really hits different on the second watch

[@aetherolyx6832]

The second Mark put on a Scottish (ish) accent for the Wild Elf I knew stuff was about to go down (Currently at said part)

[@edgarmedranob]

I love how Different this campaign started compared to the first one! love it the reward at the end of this forest and somewhere to be safe will be rewarding i hope lol

[@swampgoat6343]

Honestly this 3 person session is running so smoothly I think more dnd podcasts could benefit from smaller numbers.

[@saintspice213]

qillek has one hand how would he reload a gun

[@Despair32]

Trenton 22699 with his hand? I assume it has a mag that can be ejected with one hand

[@sleepyseaserpent3956]

@@Despair32 no as mark said it is reloaded flintlock style but a flintlock can be reloaded one hand without the gunpowder

[@tommageddon2012]

Carefully?

[@ruki4929]

with style.

[@caelenjenks]

His beak maybe lol

[@Capt.Thunder]

Lucius is immune to sleep bruh, as are all wild elves. Meditation, boy, meditation. An elf should only pass out from 5 levels of exhaustion.

[@lucasansah3979]

Did Mark really just ... Woah I wasn't emotional ready but that was hella slick 😂😂😂

[@mikabarker6084]

"Look at my br-shirt." I was not ready for that fookin el.

[@matthewward1346]

That made me laugh.

[@violetopal6264]

Jack Sparrow mem: Does anybody have this or this? Nova: I have a bag of sand Know I'm 3 years late but whatever. ^.^

[@whorror7406]

Jack: I've got a jar of diiirt.

[@tiffanylamb1187]

I'm really enjoying this. I'm so glad I stumbled upon your channel!

[@bjorntor]

Qill does have the required vulture-type bird-neck. Just an observation :D Love em

[@maxinearmata7698]

This is a great series to listen to while I'm playing the Mass effect legendary edition

[@sillybean32]

Thats a fucking badass headband Kim's rocking!

[@guinnesslv]

Love you Kim! Stay healthy for all other episodes. :).

[@wreckstate7778]

Got like 2 or 3 left on Lightfall still to go but I can't help double teaming these guys...thanks for all you do;)

[@AngryShellback]

Mark creates and plays the best bad guys...

[@lecram86]

I have just finished watching the last episode of Critical Roll so I hope this one treats me more gently, I am still shaken.

[@magicrainbowkitties1023]

Don't feel bad we're all in mourning

[@lecram86]

Lol well, that was just the perfect ending. So the main lesson I have learned is, when players are missing characters go down.

[@RSVSREV3RSE]

is there anywhere we can go to see a backstory for each character?

[@Raptor8415]

This was a fun episode. I'm loving this whole campaign series. I don't mind that it's tough. It's just bad luck on the rolls.

[@Assametry]

Ive seen many comments and I will state this. While "forcing" the pcs to run isnt exactly something to make players feel cool, sometimes you need to be kicked in the nuts to stand stronger then before. This being said a fight against a moon druid at level 3 (from my guesses) Is slightly unfair for the current party as they are up against a creature that has a hitpoint pool of 3 creatures and the damage to easily one shot characters at this point. A fight against a moon druid was a bit brutal and unfair of marks part. (If like i read before he wanted to have a druid as boss it would have been a much more fair battle against any druid that isnt the moon druid) But then again I do like the more brutalness of this campaign, personally I think it would be "awesome" if players died more often, ina more brutal world death should be a more common occurance. And possibly their characters wont be revived very easily. But that was my little rant against and for mark. ~ From Another Mark

[@genxmonk70]

The bag of sand is used to blot the ink when inscribing using quill and ink.

[@MrHyper-kh6zb]

Didn't notice the buzzing until they mentioned it !!!

[@jjlightsky15]

I love that lil bit of shade thrown at Critical Role there Mark...

[@SherlockHulmes]

Not shade, rather a cheeky wink and finger pistol to a show I love. ;)

[@jjlightsky15]

Ah, yes... I suppose "shade" does entail some level of contempt, oops.

[@megashark1013]

Don't say the word "Shade". I get PTSD from that word.

[@tedgalacci8428]

The bag of sand is for absorbing excess ink off a document. Quill pens where not very controlled in their dispersal of ink.

[@anthonyhall6780]

ROLL HIGH GUYS!!!

[@comyuse9103]

mark RP'd Aila like a wild elf barbarian should be tbh.

[@TheGreatOldOneJay]

Q

[@Wizard_Pikachu]

Love how we have DnD version of Liara T'Soni. Very good character archetype to put into DnD

[@JacksonOwex]

1:06:08 PHB pg 23 Trance section at the top of the right column. "[bunch of irrelevant stuff for this specific thing]... After resting in this way, you gain the same benefits that a human, or other race, does from 8 hours of sleep." So unless Mark changed it Lucius gets FULL REST after 4 hours of sleep! 1:57:00 It's your own fault for doing a regular game with 2 players missing! lol

[@gentlegiant4663]

rewatching this cause I caught up love how they are all reacting to 18 damage also noticed that at some point Lucus must have changed his spells cause he no longer has Ice Knife

[@TortillaBill]

Jesus Christ I love the new Cam !! great rp Trott!!

[@melamber9823]

bag of sand is for sprinkling on the ink to absorb excess so it drys faster

[@Liecham]

Is the elf trance thing a homebrew? Because they trance for 4 hours and gain benefits for the same as a human would for 8 hours. It doesn't say that you need to fuck off for another 4 hours. That would make the benefit of half rest totally useless. Might as well not have that benefit at all.

[@gyrrakavian]

The puzzle sort of does involve gerrymandering.

[@emerald3616]

New video! Can't wait to watch more High Rollers!

[@thedeadbunny5515]

All the players and Mark are such a good Dungeons and Dragons team!

[@mikkianderson7903]

I'm so happy you have so much to catch up on. X

[@normalostrich6250]

Exhaustion doesn’t give you disadvantage on ability checks til the second level of it. It only gives disadvantages to saving throws and attacks.

[@charlieelding5909]

Nope, wrong. 1 point gives disadv. on all checks, 2 points halves movement, 3 points gives disadv. on saves and attacks

[@Kicksticks]

I get the feeling that Mark really enjoys playing Aila

[@tonysmith3189]

The little bag of sand, is used to dry wet ink

[@CypherWaffles]

I wish I wasn't like 3 years late to this, that pride yogs shirt is so good! I want one.

[@benjaminrivers4121]

The real issue this episode wasn't that Mark was too "harsh" but that the episode aired in the first place. If a player cant be there they should really cancel the show, especially since Mark complained about having to play PCs. Perhaps they're forced to have the show by the higher ups? Idk but if not then missing a week is no big deal and is more fair for the players.

[@saintariser8507]

When they air via a different company like Yogscast yes they almost always have a schedule to keep to, so if a few players are missing but they can still technically run the show they're basically forced to air it

[@adelynnjack5392]

"Oh goody gumdrops"

[@Dargoni]

A pedigree chart is more specifically tracing your lineage rather than an ID card

[@joejoeington6899]

Batman Wayne it is a way to prove nobility right?

[@Dargoni]

joe joeington yes, but they don't accurately describe it really in the game

[@matthewlarsen9376]

He didn’t have a pedigree chart he had a scroll of pedigree

[@AlbbeDrengen]

Can we get a music sheet of the intro??? i love the melody and would like to try and play some of it

[@carolynmeszko7481]

This session is so stressful 🤣

[@anthonymartino9748]

If someone tried to take Fjords sword there'd be a good laugh

[@NianJKL]

Caught the stream for this one loved it and HYPE FOR NEXT WEEK

[@Sirfinchyyy]

1:18:25 I have a Med called Triactin...TRY ACTIN LIKE A MAN!!!😂😂😂😂 Love the RP btw, cant wait to see Chris's character come to be.

[@lilCrusader]

a cheeky shot at crit role to start us off how nice

[@charlieharryimp]

I solved that puzzle in a wildly different way lol

[@overlordqt]

Story starts at 6:44

[@frantisekvrana3902]

2:06:00 So I have an idea. Not applicable now as none of the characters has Polymorph. What would happen if a Held Person was Polymorphed into a non-humanoid? Would it break the Hold Person spell, or would it convert it into a Hold Creature?

[@grothus00]

When my players do it, as long as the beast is large or bigger I have it break the hold otherwise I usually (with certain exceptions) keep them held.

[@grothus00]

And if you want to be 100% by the book they couldn't even cast a spell as hold person paralyzes the target which means they can't move, speak, take actions, or take reactions. But I give them some leeway sometimes. Somebody else would have to cast polymorph on them.

[@frantisekvrana3902]

My idea was a non-paralysed teammate casting it. Something like: The Barbarian gets Held and the Druid Polymorphs them into a Bear.

[@grothus00]

@@frantisekvrana3902 that would probably work, I guess it pretty much comes down to how the dungeon master interprets the rules.

[@ProfessorFanatic]

Well... my feelings are, um... mixed, I guess, this episode. I mean, to start off with the good, the NPC's acted believably to their current situation (though I have a problem with one thing that happened). The players also did a great job roleplaying their characters, showing us how they felt about getting robbed. Plus, we got some nice background on some of them (Nova in particular with her sword). On top of that, they actually made a good choice in wanting a long rest before going to confront the elves. The plan to raid the camp to get their stuff back was well thought out, it just had some bad rolls. Even with the misstep, the party is managing to come through, and can hopefully win next session. As for my problems, well... it mainly has to do with how we got to that fight in the first place. I mean, the players did the smart thing and ran away from the airship to escape the elves, and they still get punished? Seriously, the level of exhaustion from running away is punishment enough- it puts the players on edge until they can get a long rest- but then they get caught anyway and lose their stuff, which can be frustrating (not unrealistic story wise, but there is a point where it's clear the players have had enough and you give pity). Also, a moon-druid elf to fight... right. A moon-druid is overpowered as a player by itself, and making one an enemy doesn't change that power-level. Even if said enemy is low level (I'm guessing level 3, based on the Hold Person), that wild-shape makes them a bit much for a level 2 party, with or without tanks. Don't get me wrong, I'm still enjoying the stream, and Mark, I still like you as a DM. It just seems as though you were a bit overly harsh on the players for making certain choices (sometimes ones that you yourself encouraged). We get it, the lowlands are suppose to be dangerous- you don't need to constantly prove this. Keep doing what you guys are doing, and lets hope for a bit of a break from combat for awhile after this (and that Sentry manages to get a Natural 20 on a death save and divine strikes that moon-druid). P.S. Mark, you may want to consider giving them a big reward if they make it through this. They've earned it at this point. Also, Kim, it sounds like you didn't take the Agonizing Blast Invocation. That's fine (there are LOTS of good Invocations to choose from), but maybe consider taking it at some point to help your damage with Eldritch Blast. Note: Once more to Mark. Just as a general thing, do NOT encourage players to run away from encounters, especially if they're WINNING (sure, the moon-druid is a problem, but the casters still have cantrips, and Aila is... mostly fine). If they decide to run on their own, that's one thing, but if you tell them to do that enough, then they might become overly paranoid and never want to fight, even when lives are at stake, from my experience. It's also a bit pointless, since their last attempt at running is why they are in this situation to begin with. Admittedly, I'm not that experienced a DM, but this I can say with confidence is never a good thing to do (unless the NPC is explicitly a coward).

[@jamesbassett5498]

ProfessorFanatic fully agree with you, love mark but this session was very harsh for the players

[@ukcubes4647]

"Overconfidence is a slow and insidious killer" if you recognise the quote, well done you know a good game.

[@ProfessorFanatic]

Not a bad quote (I would love to know the origin), although I'm a little confused what you are trying to say here. Can you elaborate a little bit? I don't want to take it out of context.

[@BlueSun_]

And to think he says he hopes their group "fairs a little better than some other ones this week".

[@jamesbassett5498]

i fail to understand how the darkest dungeon reference fits in this context

[@Gravira_]

Lucius is the best omg

[@CanadianSpectator]

I feel like Mark is being quite brutal with the beginning of this campaign. Though, I suppose it is better than having them roam through a forest for weeks fighting wolves.

[@EitherProductions]

To me it feels less like Mark being brutal, and more like some of the players avoiding attacking and taking attacks of opportunity more than necessary.

[@CanadianSpectator]

I was referring more to the events than the actual combat. Right away he throws them out of an airship, and then they get attacked by elves, wolves, more elves, and they've already had several knock downs. They've lost most of their supplies, including an arcane focus and hex blade, and now they're fighting a druid boss. I'm not saying it's a bad thing, but this is definitely quite a difficult start to a campaign.

[@EitherProductions]

Ah, yeah. That makes a lot more sense now. Critical Role is doing a bit of the same, too, with their second campaign, though it seems that some of it may be just Matt creating situations that the group is clearly under-leveled for w/o giving sly nudges that their most recent encounter was meant for later in the campaign when they've leveled up a bit. Here's to crossing my fingers that they don't TPK themselves early in the campaign (Both here and on Critical Role).

[@SherlockHulmes]

I didn't have them attacked by anyone so far. Arval was attacked and the party went to find him, they negotiated with the elves. The Wolves were already at the airship and the players chose to try and scare them off. The party negotiated with the second set of elves but had some of their things taken, and chose to sneak in and try and steal them back, the got caught and a fight started. So far all of these things happened because of A) A bad dice roll. B) a player choice or C) were already in-place when the PCs arrived. The *only* thing I have "done" is have the airship crash as a way to start the campaign. Would you prefer them to have a jolly walk through the woods without any danger after an airship crash?

[@CanadianSpectator]

Like I said, it's a rough/difficult start to a campaign, but it is better than fighting random wildlife as they wander through the woods for weeks. I'm not trying to criticize or complain about your DMing. I think it's a great start to a campaign, just more difficult than the last. Of course, this makes sense since most of the players have played for 2 years already, so they should be able to handle more difficult situations even at lower levels. Though perhaps they're not used to being a low level again, and feel stronger than they are. And yes, I do realize they weren't actively hunted/attacked. I meant more so that ended up in these back to back combat situations. It was bad wording on my part.

[@Liecham]

1:53:10 no modifier as well? Agonizing Blast is a great evocation to take. What 😭

[@zwadadebow]

Sand is how they fast dried the ink...