text: Discount Fares to Shattered Isles | The Id DM
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  Posted on April 9, 2012	by The Id DM
  High-Concept Idea? Low-Cost Terrain!
  My goal for the encounter was the build off the chase scene; the party was pursuing their prey and when they finally cornered the enemies, the building would collapse into the necrotic sludge and initiative would take place. I wanted to use liquid in the encounter, and although our gaming group has access to many Dwarven Forge pieces, it did not seem a good idea to place them in water. In considering how to create another form of terrain that could be used as a substitute for the isles, I wandered the aisles of a local crafts store. In this case, I browsed through Michael's, and found a bin of cheap wooden plaques of various shapes and sizes.
  I then searched for paint that could turn the wooden plaques into something that would more resemble blocks of rubble and wasted city streets. Thankfully, the craft store carried Krylon's Make It Stone line of spray paint. Now that I had multiple pieces of terrain and the means to paint them for well under $20, I had to figure out a way to include liquid in the encounter without damaging the gaming table and the rest of the room!
  Yes, this battle is taking place in a baking pan.
  I first searched for a Tupperware lid that could be turned upside-down and used to set the pieces of wood and a small amount of water in for the encounter. However, I did not have anything in my home to suited the purpose. The best alternative was a baking pan. The final touch was dying the water so it held a necrotic quality; clear water would have been too boring! I bought an inexpensive four-pack of food coloring and mixed red and blue to create the purple necrotic slime.
  The result was a lively encounter setting for the players and the monsters. Combined with the horrible and tragic chase through Gloomwrought's rooftops, it was an excellent night of gaming. Although, I never sprayed a clear-coat or sealer on the wooden plaques after they were painted. As a result, the paint on the edges and bottom started to flake off, which actually added to the effect – but made a bit of a mess in the pan. My advice would be to use a sealant so the plaques are reuseable; I ditched the plaques in the trash after the evening's game. Lesson learned!
  To begin, I rolled a d6 for each of the surviving monsters from the Rooftop Chase Skill Challenge. I also informed each player to roll a d6. Each monster and player could land on any of the four pieces of rubble or in the necrotic sludge.
  1-2 – Necrotic Sludge
  3 – Upper Left Rubble
  4 – Upper Right Rubble
  5 – Lower Right Rubble
  6 – Lower Left Rubble
  The monsters or players starting in the necrotic sludge suffered level-appropriate damage from the hazard. I did not make the hazard terribly nasty, but each DM can flavor the hazard to taste. Monster and players that did land on rubble were required to make an Acrobatics or Athletics check to determine if they started their turn Prone or were able to keep their balance during the collapse. I did not have monsters and players suffer falling damage unless they landed in the necrotic sludge.
  From this point, the monsters and players rolled Initiative and the combat played out as normal. The necrotic sludge was a constant hazard and monster and players were forced to move around the pieces of rubble as the battle shifted. The monsters were shadar-kai and since they have a teleport ability, it made for an interesting set of circumstance since they could quickly gang up on an isolated player!
  Bottle caps are quite useful for status effects and other combat needs.
  I did not score the wooden blocks or otherwise create a grid for the miniatures on the pieces of rubble. I was content to "eyeball" the squares on each piece of rubble to allow the players and monsters move their speed and jump between rubble pieces. My advice is to get creative with terrain and do not feel beholden to "the grid."
  If you are looking for ways to add interesting terrain to your game, then look no further than your local craft store. Other options include styrofoam and other materials to build terrain. For the encounter above, you just need to following:
  Four wooden plaques
  One can Krylon Make It Stone spray paint
  One set of food coloring
  Instead of a hand-drawn map to depict the action, you now have practical effects to convey the grimy and sinking setting for the players battling enemies while bobbing around in the Shattered Isles.
  This entry was posted in DM Advice, Encounters and tagged D&D, Dungeon Master, Dungeons & Dragons, Gloomwrought, RPG, Shadowfell, Terrain. Bookmark the permalink.
  9 Responses to Discount Fares to Shattered Isles
  Very cool! I'm always trying to figure out ways to draw in my players, and this looks like a great way. I'm not sure it would work for every group (I have some members who hate visualization at all), but it is an interesting start.
  Thank you for stopping by and commenting. It's certainly just another option to elicit reactions from players. Some may prefer hand drawn maps or battlemaps; others like Dungeon Tiles or other terrain. I try to use a combination of all the above. Have fun!
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  And to anyone out there that doesn't want the confines of a grid, but also doesn't want to eyeball it, might I suggest just using a ruler?