Excellent morning adventure

[TheVandals]

Starter area killed a party of 7 and then 2 more that came down to rescue us. We couldn't go back to get help because the gates there didn't let us through, though I assume someone just cheated and used a tell to get around that, because 30 minutes later we were "rescued," if you can call dragging 7 corpses up to the shrine a rescue.

I suggest that the game's starter area not have 2-handing crit-immune monsters that require magic weapons and have multiple types of DR, and that when your users show up in groups of 7-9 the entire party doesn't die in your newbie area.

Also, earlier I made the obligatory 30 minute hike back from Barovia Village to Vallaki and was ambushed by bandits along the way. I nearly died three times, and I got 25 gold as a reward for the encounter. I suggest we have a system where the reward scales up proportionately with risk. Many other games have adopted this approach and it seems to work well.

[Iridni Ren]

IMO the Crypts exist for those who want to level their PCs quickly. The risk is considerable, especially if you are a true newbie and haven't mastered them. But the challenge does give good XP for low levels. It's easier to get together a group to take them on, and when you die, a rez is close by. Plus the high traffic means you'll be found more quickly than most places. (A Tell rescue isn't cheating, BTW. Hardcore players frown on it, but it's not against the rules.)

For those who are patient and prefer a less risky path to developing their characters, the usual choice is fetch quests and RP.

[DM Erebus]

A revised (less deadly) version of the Upper and Lower Catacombs (the first two areas) is live on the test server now. Please do check it out and feed back to me.

[tylernwn]

Starter area killed a party of 7 and then 2 more that came down to rescue us. We couldn't go back to get help because the gates there didn't let us through, though I assume someone just cheated and used a tell to get around that, because 30 minutes later we were "rescued," if you can call dragging 7 corpses up to the shrine a rescue.

I suggest that the game's starter area not have 2-handing crit-immune monsters that require magic weapons and have multiple types of DR, and that when your users show up in groups of 7-9 the entire party doesn't die in your newbie area.

Also, earlier I made the obligatory 30 minute hike back from Barovia Village to Vallaki and was ambushed by bandits along the way. I nearly died three times, and I got 25 gold as a reward for the encounter. I suggest we have a system where the reward scales up proportionately with risk. Many other games have adopted this approach and it seems to work well.

I would not call the crypts a starter area. It happens to be near the starting area, but it is not a starter dungeon. The skeletal knights are easily CR 6-7 undead warriors, and there are plenty of other enemies in there that put up a strong fight. Its more of a level 5-10 area. The danger seems to be common knowledge among players in the area, and I often see vets warning new players about going down, and of course rescuing them when they die. I would go so far as to say that this dungeon is a bit iconic, and people come from far and wide to delve into it.

I can see the wisdom in having such a dungeon near the starter area, because it keeps a wider range of players around to help guide new players in the way of the server, and to show them the rest of the world.

However, if you are looking for weaker enemies to fight, then the same map that has the morninglords sanctuary also has 2 kobold and gremishka caves in the bottom left corner. There are also caves filled with bandits and spiders all over the place, and most of the bounties from the notice board outside vallaki are not too difficult either.

[modderpunk]

Dont forget hunting rats in the sewers.