Tomb of Annihilation: Episode 3
With so many rich stories at a DMs disposal, it can be easy to overlook one of the great storytelling tools — the dice.
Dice rolls have to matter. If you make your players roll a die, there should be a reason. Nothing breaks immersion more than having a roll called for, hearing a low number, and the DM go “uhh, you pass anyway.” Your story shouldn’t stop because the players failed one dice roll. Failures should be embraced and used to enrich the story as happy accidents. For example, instead of passing that stealth check, force yourselves find a completely new way passed the guards. What they come up with will be more creative and memorable.
The Party:
(Jon) Alathar — Half-elf Bard
(Terry) Harden — Dwarf Barbarian
(Matt) Illiyum — Gnome Illusionist
(Stacy) Torven — Lizardfolk Monk
The Path:
Fort Belurian
You may not like my burglar, but please don’t damage him.
J.R.R. Tolkien — The Hobbit
The characters had arrived in Fort Belurian. The stronghold was held by the Flaming Fist. This military force based in Baldur’s Gate had come to flex its muscle and lay claim to the hidden treasures of Chult. Through might, intimidation, and corruption they were slowly succeeding.
It was one of the bigger sites found in Chult, and operated like a small town. Rokah, Flask of Wine, River Mist, and the characters arrived at the West Gate. They’d agreed to provide a distraction for Rokah to get into the Commander’s Quarters, but now they seemed nervous. Alathar wanted to look for Shago and propose his deal. Illiyum wanted to talk with locals and peruse the bazaar instead of getting into trouble. Harden said he should stop by the makeshift Temple of Helm. Only Torven seemed unaffected by the military force of brutes. They saw a couple Fist strut by while laughing, drinking and brandishing their spears. The tabaxi guides and Rokah sensed their unease, and said to meet them outside the Inner Bailey in an hour.
There was a jousting field where some soldiers were sparring before a small crowd. Alathar and Torven went along and watched. With a little sleuthing they discovered that Shago was in the crowd. Alathar found the right moment, and asked if they could speak with him about a “business proposal.”
The players had been hyping up this idea for a while. It was a bit convoluted: a man in Port Nyanzaru had 10 days to kill Shago. He asked the party to be the ones to do it. For this, the man’s life would be spared. The party would fake Shago’s death, thus saving his life. To repay his debt, Shago could serve as their jungle guide for free.
I wouldn’t want to punish a player who had a witty or intellectual character, but when the time came to let those features shine, they couldn’t come up with the right things to say. It would be fine to say “my character says this all in a very clever way” when the time is right. But it can also be fun to make a player truly speak for their character when the moment calls. And Alathar seemed about as excited at this proposal to Shago as his player Jon did. So I figured, let’s try a Charisma (Persuasion) check. If it was high enough, his rambling would come off with a sort of Hugh Grant-esque charm. If it was too low, it would come off as one of those embarrassing pitches on Dragon’s Den or Shark Tank.
The roll was incredibly low. Alathar’s face dropped. Torven, being an unsocialized lizardman, was no help at all . He figured it was going great. But Shago had to laugh, and said he had all the protection he needed with the Flaming Fist. He said he wasn’t scared of anyone. He mentioned that his mother was one of the Merchant Princes of Port Nyanzaru, but said he didn’t even need her protection. He had the backs of the Flaming Fist, and would soon be a part of their ranks.
This interaction just made Alathar want Shago more. He and Torven slunk back to meet with the group, who were by now done with their errands. They met in the courtyard outside the Inner Bailey. The Commander of the Flaming Fist, Liara Portyr, walked by with an entourage. One of the men with her stayed behind. He let the party know that Commander Portyr expected to meet with all newcomers to Fort Belurian — so be ready.
It was time to meet with Rokah and get the plan into action. The party got to manufacture their own “heist” scenario, where they each had an important part to play. Rokah still wasn’t fully trusted, so he’d be on the sidelines for the mission. They knew the Commander had her quarters up on the second floor, but some Flaming Fist veterans were stationed nearby. To get up there, they’d have to walk past the raptor pen, where a gamekeeper trained some small dinosaurs.
Harden and Alathar were first up. Alathar began talking with the gamekeeper, who turned out to be a jovial prankster, and was more than happy to answer all Alathar’s questions. This let Torven and Illiyum slip upstairs. Torven led the way with his soft touch, but Illiyum rolled well enough on his Dexterity (Stealth) checks to keep up. They carefully stayed out of sight of the soldiers upstairs, as Torven crept into Liara’s room. He found her locked iron strongbox, and began to pick the lock. Illiyum stayed a safe distance away as the lookout.
Things seemed to be taking a while to Alathar and Harden. Across from the room in the great hall of the Bailey, Harden could see Liara meeting with her squad. Harden decided it was time to kick things into phase two of their plan. As the gamekeeper demonstrated how to tame a deinonychus, Harden leapt onto one and started to wrestle with it. Alathar played up the commotion as best he could, which was easy as Harden genuinely wanted to hurt this dinosaur.
Illiyum, who was a wizard specializing in the school of Illusion magic, knew this was his chance. With his heightened illusion powers, he could portray a sound and image of his desire. He conjured the head of Liara Portyr to lean into the room of the remaining soldiers’ upstairs and bark at them. “Get down and deal with that dwarf fighting our raptors!” Illiyum’s trick worked flawlessly, and the soldiers, clearly frightened of their commander, hopped up and raced downward.
Harden put up quite the struggle, but eventually they threw him off the raptor and pinned him to the ground. Illiyum and Torven made it out of the Inner Bailey, as Alathar was scolded for being no help. Harden was dragged off to the brig inside the Flaming Fist garrison.
Everything in the jungle had a purpose, from an ant with green spots that contained a powerful venom, to a plant whose leaves would give off a bright green glow when crushed.
Adam Lee — Qawasha & Kupalué
They’d have to deal with freeing Harden later. The party met with Rokah, and Torven showed what he found — a Sending Stone that was used to discretely send messages to the pirates of Jahaka Bay. Rokah was thrilled at finding this incriminating evidence. He thanked the party for their help, and gave them the reward he’d promised — an official Charter of Exploration. Illiyum was happy to see Rokah go. Even if the Flaming Fist were in league with pirates, he didn’t like cavorting with Zhentarim agents.
They wanted to leave Fort Belurian. They slept safely, knowing after 24 hours in the brig, Harden would be released. Just before then, however, Alathar decided to pitch Shago one last time. He was going to go with a new tact this time thanks to their newly discovered information. He met with Shago, and told him that his precious Flaming Fist were working with pirates, and were ransacking innocent ships. How could he, an upstanding member of Chult, and son of a Merchant Prince, stand by and watch this disgrace take place? He made a solid case, but he’d failed so badly before. I let him roll a Charisma (Persuasion) check one more time to see how convincing he was.
He rolled a two. It wasn’t meant to be. Shago laughed once again, and dressed down Alathar as a fool. He bragged and said his mother thought he was embedded in the Fist as her spy, but he was his own man, and would not do what anyone demanded. Not Liara Portyr, not his mother, and definitely not Alathar.
Alathar swore a vile grudge that day. His crush on Shago was broken into pieces that could never be repaired. He swore he would write many bardic songs about this betrayal as he rounded up the group and told them what happened. Harden, out of jail now, wanted to get out of Fort Belurian as quickly as possible. But Illiyum pointed out that they still needed a guide. They asked around at the stables if there were any other guides remaining. It just so happened, there was one nearby, playing with the horses.
They came upon a kindly older man who introduced himself as Qawasha. He said he was a druid who knew the land better than any other. He didn’t look as strong as Shago, but the characters were desperate, and a druid actually seemed like it would be pretty handy. They didn’t have much money, but Qawasha said if they helped him eradicate the land of the undead, he’d be willing to work for less. The party agreed.
Qawasha introduced them to his companion, whose skin resembled something close to mold. His name was Kupalué, but Qawasha called him “Weed.” Weed communicated through sign language, and seemed like an adorable mascot.
This whole interaction was so much fun for me. The rolls dictated what happened, and everyone got a meaningful story out of it. Guides are an important part of the campaign, and it would have been impossible to guess the way Qawasha came into their stead. When even the DM is caught off guard by the story, something’s definitely going right.
The characters were ready to depart. They’d talk with Qawasha and determine the best course of action. But they’d discover that even safe choices could lead them to unimaginable danger.
