Ynas Midgard wrote:

I've been calculating probabilities here and there and realised I don't like the curve of the 3d6 roll; too many results have way too little chance of ever showing up. That combined with the fact that no table has an earth elemental on it made me decide that I'll create my own encounter tables - based on your piece, obviously.

Still huge thanks for putting this together, but now I gotta put my own spin on it

You're welcome!
Obviously it is hundreds-to-one (thousands-to-one in some cases) against certain of the entries appearing. Of course, these are mostly near-guaranteed party-killers. I'm not a complete monster.
I think I'll refrain from addressing the earth elemental issue until I find out if you're kidding or not.

It's time for daily encounters! Today your players are aboard ship in the middle of the Hyperborean Sea. What will they meet there?

15 ghouls – lacedons!
4 giant crabs
2 giant crabs
1 giant crocodile
1 sea serpent
Merchants on carrack – 8 merchants (1st level thieves), 14 heavy crossbowmen, 18 halberdiers, Hebbalvalith (2nd level fighter in command of guards), and 50 sailors equipped as marines. 40,000 g.p. worth of trade goods.
1 killer whale
6 giant ferrets – coastal only, so no encounter!
1 giant crocodile
1 giant crab
1 killer whale
4 killer whales
8 great white sharks

Quite a random haul if the PCs are evil, and strong enough to sack that merchant ship.

Blackadder23 wrote:

Merchants on carrack

Which is why no one believes their story about 6 giant ferrets...

Yuck, yuck, yuck.
 

Blackadder23 wrote:

Caveman wrote:

Blackadder23 wrote:

It's time for daily encounters! Today your players are aboard ship in the middle of the Hyperborean Sea.

Merchants on carrack – 8 merchants (1st level thieves), 14 heavy crossbowmen, 18 halberdiers, Hebbalvalith (2nd level fighter in command of guards), and 50 sailors equipped as marines. 40,000 g.p. worth of trade goods.

Quite a random haul if the PCs are evil, and strong enough to sack that merchant ship.

Not think that would stop Conan and I sure he was not Evil; but then!?!
 

Alignment is always a contentious subject. Certainly Conan is depicted as a violent sociopath in Howard's stories (much like Achilles, for example, and very unlike King Arthur). I personally would classify him as Chaotic Neutral (in AD&D terms) at best, at least prior to becoming King of Aquilonia. If someone wanted to make an argument for Chaotic Evil, I would be willing to listen; only the trace of a moral code Conan shows (not mistreating women, for example, and generally keeping his word) would cause me to hesitate to classify him as Evil. The issue of his piracy is somewhat mitigated by the fact that many or most of his victims are themselves Evil - other pirates, Stygians, Zamorans, and so forth. If you were to hold a gun to my head and force me to give Conan an AS&SH alignment, I guess it would be Chaotic Good (because he does have a moral code, and doesn't rape and murder - or even cheat - everybody he meets).

In any event, NPC pirates are Chaotic Evil in the AS&SH rules (and for that matter, in the AD&D rules), so I personally would assess an alignment violation for non-Evil PCs who engaged in random piracy (though privateering against Evil targets such as Ixians would be okay). But I strongly encourage you and every other DM to handle the specifics of alignment however you please.

I would agree with Chaotic Good.  I generally don't like alignments and never use them at cons.  People are complex and so determining alignment is sometimes problematic.....But on the daily encounters, I love seeing these and creating a story around them.  It really makes the encounter day come to life vs "fight this today" type encounter.  You have really worked hard on this and I for one appreciate it!  Home run!

mabon5127 wrote:

Blackadder23 wrote:

Caveman wrote:

Not think that would stop Conan and I sure he was not Evil; but then!?!
 

Alignment is always a contentious subject. Certainly Conan is depicted as a violent sociopath in Howard's stories (much like Achilles, for example, and very unlike King Arthur). I personally would classify him as Chaotic Neutral (in AD&D terms) at best, at least prior to becoming King of Aquilonia. If someone wanted to make an argument for Chaotic Evil, I would be willing to listen; only the trace of a moral code Conan shows (not mistreating women, for example, and generally keeping his word) would cause me to hesitate to classify him as Evil. The issue of his piracy is somewhat mitigated by the fact that many or most of his victims are themselves Evil - other pirates, Stygians, Zamorans, and so forth. If you were to hold a gun to my head and force me to give Conan an AS&SH alignment, I guess it would be Chaotic Good (because he does have a moral code, and doesn't rape and murder - or even cheat - everybody he meets).

In any event, NPC pirates are Chaotic Evil in the AS&SH rules (and for that matter, in the AD&D rules), so I personally would assess an alignment violation for non-Evil PCs who engaged in random piracy (though privateering against Evil targets such as Ixians would be okay). But I strongly encourage you and every other DM to handle the specifics of alignment however you please.

I would agree with Chaotic Good.  I generally don't like alignments and never use them at cons.  People are complex and so determining alignment is sometimes problematic.....But on the daily encounters, I love seeing these and creating a story around them.  It really makes the encounter day come to life vs "fight this today" type encounter.  You have really worked hard on this and I for one appreciate it!  Home run!

Yes, using Alignment rules, I felt Conan at the time he met Belit was losing his moral code and struggled to get it back once he left her, Chaotic Good at beginning, changing to Chaotic Neutral touching on Evil. His moral code is still like an animal who does not feel guilty about killing to eat, so he does the same. Still he can sway between alignments quite a bit in his careers; though remaining Chaotic.

I also not a great alignment fan, but keep it as part of AS&SH and AD&D for fun as it makes the games what they are. I play D20 Conan from Mongoose and it does not use Alignments, so suits Conan if he behaves questionably!
 

I like alignment because it's more thing players have to worry about. The more different things players have to worry about, the better I like it. Speaking of which...

It's time for your daily encounters! In this installment, your players have made landfall on the forested shores of the Islands of the Ape-Men. Whatever will they meet there?

24 ape-men!
12 giant rats
Quicksand
21 giant bees! (one sting each is all they need)
1 ape-man
5 giant tuataras (night only)
3 rats
4 ape-men
14 giant bombardier beetles!
Fever (monkey fever, no doubt)
1 giant komodo dragon
Fog bank
1 mountain ape (big brother!)

It's pre-hysterical!

Welcome back to daily encounters! Today your players have made landfall on the dreaded Isle of Ghul, which nine out of ten dentists recommend avoiding under any circumstances. Just how badly will this go?

Lost (and so it begins…)
Fog bank
14 skeletons
Rockslide
6 ghouls
18 zombies
4 ghouls
3 ghouls
Box canyon
Sleet storm
14 zombies
Fog bank
3 ghouls
 
Ghul didn’t put in an appearance himself (probably still working on the hardback). Maybe next time…

Daily encounter time! In this episode, your players have arrived at the volcanic slopes of the Isles of Thur, where some oddball Vikings still worship Thor. They can't be as bad as the Ymir-worshipers, right?

6 mountain lions
Hermundr (9th level shaman!)
Vermin (PC lost food)
4 trolls!
8 wolves
Snowstorm (wrath of Ymir on the heretics?)
30 bandits
Sippy, prospector (and 9th level Chaotic Evil cleric of Xathoqqua). She doesn’t have a map to a mine, just a hunch.
Flash flood!
Vermin (another PC loses food)
1 brown bear
Patrol of 16 medium infantrymen led by Sigrun (5th level fighter). They are alert for foul worshippers of Ymir and Ullr (and also trolls).
5 giant wolf spiders!

A nice varied assortment of encounters.

^
Your explanation is as good as any. When my players raise issues like that, my response is generally, "I'm not explaining anything unless your characters learn the answer." Usually they don't.
Welcome back to daily encounters! Today your players have made the highly dubious decision to land on IX, Isle of the Necromancers! I hope their wills are made out...

11 skeletons
4 skeletons
Patrol of 20 light infantry led by Storane (12th level fighter!) and accompanied by Insazagos (9th level magician!) Yikes, it really doesn’t pay to visit IX… unless you want to be enslaved…
Mada (10th level witch!)
3 zombies
Rockslide
1 zombie
100 slaves building a necromancer’s fortress, guarded by 14 light infantry led by Tamura (5th level fighter). Will the PCs soon be joining the slave gang?
23 skeletons
5 skeletons
6 ghouls
13 zombies
18 skeletons

I really hope they brought a cleric!

Last edited by Blackadder23 (5/26/2017 10:07 am)

Blackadder23 wrote:

Time for your daily encounter! This is another very special one, as your players have entered the city of Khromarium, erstwhile capital of the Hyperboreans, largest city in Hyperborea, center of the civilized world, and also a wretched hive of scum and - sorry, I thought about the prequels and threw up in my mouth a little. Anyhoo, what will your players meet in this grandest of Hyperborean cities?

Patrol of 15 light infantry led by Rhulrhana (2nd level fighter). Looking for trouble or causing it?
Patrol of 18 light infantry led by Zennquann (8th level fighter). Maybe Khromarium isn’t as lawless as rumors would have it…
Patrol of 16 light infantry led by Rhul (12th level fighter!) …unless the city watch are also the criminals?
Patrol of 16 medium infantry led by Zullesta (1st level fighter). Holy cow, there must be a great disturbance in the city to warrant this many patrols. I wonder what’s happening.
4 beggars
17 zombies (well, there’s your problem…)
Aroon (7th level Neutral fighter) accompanied by 11 2nd level medium infantry mercenaries/zombie hunters
Vermin (Luckless PC lost his food, probably to rats or jaundice-centipedes)
1 viper
Poison gas! Sewer broke and released a stinking cloud!
Patrol of 16 light infantry led by Qarrdunnia (5th level fighter). Probably still zombie hunting.
Zullesta the Quick (6th level Chaotic Good thief). Will she propose some daring heist to the PCs while the city watch is distracted with the zombie outbreak?
10 giant black centipedes

Khromarium really needs some full-time zombie hunters. And a plumber.

Best one yet!  Another great day in K-ciy!