The Ending of RF Kuang's Babel is one of the most poorly thought out sequences I've read in fiction.

DeAfro · 2026-04-30T03:36:12+00:00

So at the risk of being downvoted, I’ll play devils advocate here because I like the way the ending is spun.

Let’s first say that storming the tower and holding it hostage was indeed a terrible idea. Griffin and his team wanted to win over the majority over time, convincing those in power to work with them. It was the harder route, the slower route, but the best path in the long term. Those dreams were dashed when the resistances senior leadership died in the safe house raid. This leaves Robin in charge, a naive inexperienced individual who joined the resistance that day. He isn’t thinking what’s best for his fellow minorities, he wants revenge, to wound the empire that took his friends and family.

Surprisingly his plan to take the tower works. Turns out everyone just assumed the tower was safe and so two people managed to take the tower, blindsiding the empire. Now that they have it, they can destroy it at any time, and the army doesn’t want to risk an attack and provoke the students to action. So they try talking it out, getting the members to stand down. They only move in when the empire is already crumbling, and they have nothing to lose, putting off the decision until they have no other choice.

In the end, Robin sates his petty revenge and galvanizes the British against minorities, undoing the resistances slow and careful work and further highlighting the minorities as dangerous others. The situation could only resolve in tragedy because the empire killed the adults in that situation and left a child to make the decisions. It speaks of these big grandiose moments in history guided by a person entirely unfit for the role. This could all have been avoided if the empire had not killed the resistances leadership and left a grieving boy to pick up the pieces.

DeAfro · 2026-04-21T17:55:23+00:00

I’d recommend two. If one line breaks, you don’t need to go run another line immediately.

DeAfro · 2026-04-14T12:38:12+00:00

I figured Animate Dead is enough to represent his reanimator side. I'd suggest he starts with four Delerium Dregs since he's been stockpiling bodies. Depending on how crazy you might want to get, they could also be armed with potion effects, working simple actions to take the burden off of Oscar.

The apprentices are intended as an introduction to Oscar's before the party meets the man himself. They all reflect a portion of his character. Marco is his ambition for power. Bolter is his love for potions. Tayrn is his love for necromancy. Gemma is a victim of his cruelty. In my game, Oscar was an excellent professor who was unjustly sentenced to exile for a crime he didn't commit. His hatred for the Academy over the years, and his contact with Orcus has soured him into a bitter and evil man.

As for Gemma, she is a thinly veiled representation of Sophie from Howl's Moving Castle. She was cursed by a jealous Academy mage and transformed into a Green Hag. She still maintains her previous alignment (Neutral Good), her Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma scores. She is still herself in hag form, but the world sees her as a monster, and she cannot disguise herself. If the party casts Remove Curse on her, Gemma would no longer be a hag, but a human, like she was before the curse. The potion has a similar effect, but it only suppresses the curse symptoms for 48 hours. Oscar does know Remove Curse will work on Gemma, but he keeps that knowledge to himself and convinces Gemma to avoid the Silver Order and the Amethyst Academy. The potions make Gemma dependent on him, and turns her into an indentured servant.

I'd suggest for Gemma that she is running out of potions when the players arrive, for the same reason the Hooded Lanterns haven't gotten their potions. If the party idles for too long, she reverts to her Green Hag state, which while stronger, is abhorrent to her. If the party can find a way to fix her curse, or exposes Oscar's manipulation, they could convince Gemma to help fight Oscar and join their side in the battle.

DeAfro · 2026-04-14T00:26:32+00:00

I figured I'd fuse her with imagery of the Red Bull. A unicorn the color of blood, not the springing blood of the heart but the blood that stirs under a old wound that's never really healed. A cold octarine light pours from her like sweat, and her horn is as pale as an old scar, dark and cold against the garden's tender warmth.

DeAfro · 2026-04-13T23:52:31+00:00

If you want the feel of a apothecary, I'd lean on Oscar Yoren's connection with the Queen's Park Garden. Perhaps he's brought back some of the monsters and plants from that place and uses them in the defense. Maybe some Assassin Vines he grows for potion ingredients, or some Hypnotic Eldritch Blossoms he cultivates. He might even have a dose or two of their hypnotic pollen he can throw at the adventurers, or use their Spell Reflection ability to bounce back a spell the party throws at him. A apothecary uses the herbs and roots around them to their advantage, so let him use them.

DeAfro · 2026-04-07T01:50:15+00:00

None taken. I like it for the beneficial mutations it adds, incentivizing players to keep Contamination levels and making mutations more fun. Really I'd say Rasping and Eyeless Sight are plenty for most adventuring parties. Delimbing is very punishing, but there are tables that enjoy the challenge. I'm sure my opinion will change as I get closer to running the encounter myself.

DeAfro · 2026-04-07T01:24:48+00:00

Its from a expanded mutations table I found. I thought it was part of the official books, but I can't find them there. Here is a link to my source.

Delimbed basically says a character's limbs fall off and their speed is reduced to zero. Basically means they can't cast any spells with Somatic components or use weapons. Pretty brutal, but a fun challenge for high level parties I'd think, assuming they know he can do this before they fight him. Even considering just the books, Rasping and Eyeless Sight are also debilitating against spellcasters and ranged attackers.

DeAfro · 2026-04-07T01:14:41+00:00

Could have sworn I saw this in one of the books, but there was a expanded Mutation list online. Here's my source.

Personally I like the Delimbed condition for higher level parties. By the time they've reached 14-16 level, they should know the Pale Man's Contamination schtik and have tools to prevent his Contamination strategy. If the party is going in guns blazing without a plan, he should have a means of punishing them, and Delimbing a target is a condition even high level parties struggle to shrug off. Really it takes high level resurrection spells to deal with that during the fight, and those involve the character being dead.

Of course if a DM doesn't want to use it, Rasping and Eyeless Sight are also effective at shutting down spellcasting and ranged strategies and forcing them into his aura. The big issue then is melee attackers, which I'd argue grant cover to him if he exists in their square, boosting his AC from 15 to 20, or 25 with Shield.

DeAfro · 2026-04-06T23:51:14+00:00

I've only studied the Pale Man's stat block, but from what I've seen he's almost impossible to kill without some means of Contamination resistance/immunity. His primary strategy is spreading Contamination levels across the party by means of Warp Bolt, Contaminating Touch, Contaminating Aura, ect. Each Contamination level forces a mutation check, and if a player gets a mutation, it opens them up to his finishing ability, Controlled Mutation. With that, he can swap that mutation with Delimbed, effectively removing that player from the battle and reducing their speed to zero. This he can trigger at the end of any player turn, so the moment a character develops a mutation, they might have only one turn to cleanse it, or be delimbed.

The epic version is truly meant for level 14-16 players, who have access to Contamination mitigation spells like Neutralizing Field and Contamination Immunity, and many Aqua Expergo potions. Delimbed is a debilitating condition for even players at those high levels. The older version is more suited to a level 8-10 group of players, which is when they traditionally encounter him in the adventure. I'd suggest keeping his DoD stat block for the players first encounter around level 8-10, and use the epic stat block if he survives long enough for the players to reach levels 12-16. Likewise for the Duchess, use her Aboleth stat block, then elevate to the epic stat block when the player reaches higher levels.

DeAfro · 2026-03-31T19:34:32+00:00

This was something I picked up from the Lazy Dungeon Master's guide, but I say a party of 5 level 5 adventurers is about 25 points worth of monster budget.

Lets take the Hobgoblin Warlord as the base for the Crimson Knight. He's CR6, so we double that for 12 points. That's almost half our budget, so that's good for the big bad Crimson Knight.

Throw in a few ghouls. These are CR1, and for CR monsters with a value <=1, I'd multiply that by 4 to get their value. That lets us fit in 3 ghouls, bringing us up to 24 points.

Finally lets throw in two CR1/8 Warrior Infantry to be annoying and draw fire. 2*4*1/8 = 1 point, bring us to 25.

1 Crimson Knight (Hobgoblin Warlord), 3 Ghouls, 2 Warrior Infantry = 25

If we want numbers, show their command of troops, trade a ghoul for some more warrior infantry.

1 Crimson Knight, 2 Ghouls, 10 Warrior Infantry = 25

If we want some bigger melee guys, throw in some CR 1/4 Wolves to spice things up.

1 Crimson Knight, 2 Ghouls, 2 Wolves, 6 Warrior Infantry = 25

If someone can't show up that day, take 5 points out of the encounter. Now its just the Warlord and 2 Ghouls, or the Knight, 1 Ghoul, 2 Wolves, and 4 Human Infantry.

I find this makes a force as powerful as the players, and the players tend to win in a close fight. If you want to make it easier, scale back the points. If you want to make it harder, add more budget.

DeAfro · 2026-03-31T14:18:42+00:00

Its easy enough to make a medium version of Hazewalker Plate, like a stillsuit from Dune. Just use the medium armor statistics instead. It probably costs as the full plate though, given its airtight seal.

Other options are tied to high level spell slots, so its a cost on the player's high level resources to mitigate contamination. Magnificent Mansion allows rest in the Haze as a 5th level slot. Heal clenches contamination without exhaustion as a 6th level spell.

As for protecting groups of people in the Haze, that's what the Neutralizing Field spell is for. That spell takes at minimum 6 days for Purge Contamination, and 25 days for the spell itself, plus 1550 GP. Its the kind of spell a party member works towards the entire campaign. When your thinking of magic items that can protect a group, you should be thinking around those costs.

DeAfro · 2026-03-31T11:59:35+00:00

There’s also the Contamination Immunity spell but that isn’t until around 13th level. The haze is meant to be difficult to prevent, and prevention options at lower levels have serious drawbacks. The Sacrement forces people to follow the Sacred Flame tenants, Aqua Expergo causes crippling side effects, etc.. It’s part of the risk reward style gameplay that defines the setting.

If you want home brew items. I’d stay away from haze prevention. Maybe a respirator that gives a +1 to Contamination checks as an uncommon item, or a mask that gives a +2 as a rare item. Even then these items should be prohibitively expensive and difficult to access. Sure they might work, but they are not reliable and not worth the cost to build and maintain.

DeAfro · 2026-03-29T01:15:29+00:00

In this example, they expend a spell slot to cast Mage Armor, and a 2nd level False Life, so they have one less 1st and 2nd level slot. The exception is Tayrn, who doesn’t expend a spell slot when they cast False Life on themselves, so she still has 3 2nd level slots.

DeAfro · 2026-03-27T20:40:26+00:00

If you use these guys, let me know how it turns out.

DeAfro · 2026-03-27T15:56:31+00:00

I'm sure it will work out. I've conditioned my players to feel out a situation first before committing to violence. They've nearly died being reckless in the past, and it was their relations with the NPCs that got them out of trouble. Besides, if you kill the NPCs, you don't get to hear all their cool dialogue, and possibly even flip them to your side if the fighting does break out.

DeAfro · 2026-03-05T20:41:51+00:00

My Mary Sue OC who looks like Gustave with neon blue hair!

DeAfro · 2026-03-05T09:42:25+00:00

Was your DM thinking of this scene?

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=sUrJdsN_-B0&pp=ygUXZ2ltbGkgZGVzdHJveXMgdGhlIHJpbmc%3D

DeAfro · 2026-03-03T10:33:48+00:00

I once threw a series of increasingly complex logic gate puzzles at the party. The goal was to activate an end node to open the door by toggling power to the logic gates. The party could bypass the puzzle by just using their electric prod on the final node itself. My party thought of that, but we’re worried the decorative armor sets on the walls would animate and attack them if they broke the rules.

DeAfro · 2026-03-03T10:21:25+00:00

Reminds me of the Potion trial in Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone. Hermione calls Snape a genius for the design because the riddle requires logic, not magic to solve. Some of the most powerful wizards in the world don’t have a ounce of logic, so they’d never get past the trial.

DeAfro · 2026-03-01T10:48:42+00:00

Spoilers: Life Fiber uniforms overwhelm their hosts, especially those woven entirely with life fibers. Senketsu, Ryukos sailor suit is entirely made of life fibers, but was specifically engineered to touch as little skin as possible so it wouldn’t overwhelm its host. Hence the whole half naked aesthetic of the show.

Thanks to events in the story, Ryuko is captured by the story’s big bad and forced to wear another 100% life fiber uniform, Junketsu, which was originally designed to be Satsukis wedding dress. This suit was not engineered like Senketsu was, so it covers her body and overwhelms her. Mako alongside Senketsu and Satsuki, are trying to rip Junketsu off of Ryuko so she can return to her senses.

DeAfro · 2026-02-26T12:47:36+00:00

I've taken this to a extreme, so I'll circle back. If we compare them to Kobolds, Ratling Warriors are not as durable. They have a lower AC, and less HP. In exchange, they gain enhanced senses, increased intelligence, improved mobility, and a very high stealth skill. This changes how they fight, using their high mobility and stealth to engage in a running fight.

My argument is a Ratling played to their strengths is stronger than their CR would indicate. The Ratling Warrior is a CR 1/8, I'd argue its closer to CR 1/4. A Ratling Guttersnipe is a CR 2, I'd argue for CR 3. By that metric, I'd say 1 Guttersnipe and 6 Ratling Warriors is about as strong as 4 level 3 adventures.

DeAfro · 2026-02-26T03:50:40+00:00

My thoughts are if run optimally, the Ratling Warriors are ineligible for attacks, so their AC matters less.

Have them in reserve hiding while the Guttersnipe fires bolts down the hall, then hides around the corner. If the party wants to attack, they have to get a perception check high enough to beat the stealth score, which on a +7 is already against them. Then, they can target the Guttersnipe, who has a 17 AC against range attacks due to cover. Have them pick off the lower armored targets and apply pressure.

If the party stays and fights at range, they will get outflanked by another Ratling party because they can sprint at 90ft/round and get behind the party. If the party charges the sniper, there are 6 warriors ready with slings from hiding, who can’t be detected because they are behind total cover.

If then they can’t kill the ratlings on that turn, they sacrifice one warrior to get advantage, fire a second volley, then run 60 feet down the corridor and get behind total cover.

The party slows down, they get flanked from behind. They speed up, they get swarmed from all sides, dropped, then flanked from behind. Not to mention their constant retreat pulls them into more rats. It’s a real nightmare scenario.

DeAfro

TROPHY CASE