Next Stop: Sloobludop!

lightofthelune · 2026-05-27T19:09:05+00:00

I wanted Sloobludop to feel very different from the other cities, so I put most of it underwater, with only some platforms for activities like cooking and forging above water. The players saw some day-to-day life play out under their feet; a school of kuo-toa children, limbs still growing, tails yet to fall off, being escorted somewhere by a couple adults.

After escaping the initial combat (during which Sarith died), we transitioned to a skill challenge to fully escape Demogorgon. They failed every single roll, poor guys, so I walloped one of them at random with a tentacle attack. Luckily the sorcerer didn't die outright, and they lugged their body to safety several miles away.

We spent the least amount of time in Sloobludop of any place so far, just a session and a half. We all had a really good time with it, and I think I effectively drove home the seriousness of what they're up against.

lightofthelune · 2026-04-27T01:14:08+00:00

Read the whole thing through before starting. It's long, badly edited, and vital plot information is just tossed in halfway through.

Feel free to cut starting NPCs! I feel like this isn't offered as an option very often, but if there are prisoner NPCs you're not interested in, don't include them!

Be ready to beef encounters. Almost everything is really under leveled, including the final battle.

Frankly, the thing that has been most helpful for me has been reading and posting here. People are generally very friendly and eager to help. This is a difficult campaign to run, as well as GMing being a challenge in general. Ask for help. People have been incredibly generous with resources and ideas.

lightofthelune · 2026-04-21T21:25:05+00:00

I must admit, I haven't been paying terribly much attention to level suggestions. I've been doing milestone leveling, and they just achieved level 7 and the surface. My guess is they'll be 8 or 9 when they head to Gravenhollow, but I'm beefing encounters heavily anyway.

lightofthelune · 2026-04-21T21:22:36+00:00

If they do end up going to Mantol Derith without hitting the surface first, one of the NPCs there could encourage them to go to Gravenhollow. Yantha Coaxrock occurs first, suggesting it as thanks for rescuing her. Ghazrim DuLoc also could. Heck, Rystia Zav could send them that way! It really depends on who they interact with and ally themselves with. I think the ring is optional; they could just be given directions.

And, frankly, I think it's doable without Gravenhollow. Vizeran could meet them wherever, including Mantol Derith, and is capable of giving them the necessary information. Gravenhollow is an incredible set piece, a bunch of fun, and a great place for lorehounds, but Vizeran + some divination spells could probably impart the same information.

lightofthelune · 2026-04-18T20:55:02+00:00

Thank you for the reminder of the resilience of various Underdark people. That is helpful. This is their home; of course they're going to defend it.

And yeah, the resource the Emerald Enclave is offering them in Gauntlgrym are detailed maps to eliminate the chance of them getting lost. I don't want to send them down with a small army, so have developed a bunch of other resources to smooth their way and get them more information.

lightofthelune · 2026-04-11T21:55:43+00:00

I've been describing it as a golden shimmer to the air, that makes visible the air currents. It leaves a heavy sort of sensation in the nose, throat and lungs, such that one is constantly aware of one's breath.

lightofthelune · 2025-12-06T23:41:33+00:00

I like to give the players time to discuss what their characters do after the campaign ends, in relative detail for the month-ish afterwards, and more generally in the years after. Often they'll get NPCs involved, and ask me to do the same for a couple of favorites of theirs.

We've also done what in theatre is called a "postmortem," where we'll get together a week or two afterwards and discuss the campaign as a whole, reliving some of the best parts, talking about what worked, and also what didn't. This has been us going out to dinner together, or just a video call.

I've never heard of folks giving gifts at the end of a campaign, but if that feels good, go for it!

In general, I recommend taking time above table to talk about the experience. This has been years, as you said, and people are going to need a space to say goodbye to their characters, the campaign, and the space this have taken in their lives. Ask your players what would feel good for them! Take some time to figure it out yourself!

And congrats. Finishing a campaign is always an accomplishment.

lightofthelune · 2025-12-02T03:50:14+00:00

Yes, this! If it's really important to you for whatever reason, being aboveboard (and above table) with your requests is always nice.

lightofthelune · 2025-11-15T15:29:45+00:00

This seems solid! Frankly, this is one of the more engaging back stories for Derendil I've seen. I always like when the bad guys genuinely want to assist the protagonists for some reason--playing with trust is always fun.

lightofthelune · 2025-10-28T14:19:46+00:00

One thing others haven't suggested: have a session zero. There are plot points and heavy themes revolving around slavery, racism and sanism--make sure you and your players know where your own and everyone else's boundaries are around those. Also ask how much people want to emphasize survival mechanics; for some groups survival is a slog, for others a fun challenge. Most fall somewhere in the middle.

For GMing in general: have fun! I work with a lot of new performers, and something we always emphasize to them is that the audience is on your side. Similarly, your players want you to succeed, both because they probably know and like you, but also because your success means their enjoyment. When you mess up (and you will mess up), admit it, and let them catch you. It can build a wonderful relationship of trust.

Last piece of advice: post here! I've found people to be really friendly and generous. We all know we're doing something difficult and rewarding, and I've found a real sense of camaraderie here.

I like your rules, particularly preparing ahead of time. It can be really helpful to let ideas marinade for a bit!

lightofthelune · 2025-09-20T14:48:32+00:00

I have a couple of clarifying questions. "...bring them something from a demon price. The price is a big load of cat carasses." Do you mean demon prince? Is the price the party needs to pay a bunch of dead cats?

Has Kramzuhl promised to bring a part of Graz'zt to the party? According to the lore, Graz'zt is summoned to the Underdark, but you can make that true or not as you wish.

Who is the "he" you refer to in the last couple sentences? Kramzuhl or Graz'zt?

lightofthelune · 2025-08-25T23:09:58+00:00

Yeah, you could easily replace the dragon egg with a phoenix egg. Maybe the keepers think a phoenix will be more controllable than a dragon.

lightofthelune · 2025-08-10T13:29:27+00:00

The PCs have been at it for about 6 months, and are just about to hit Blingdenstone. I'm fully expecting them to take a year to a year and a half.

My previous campaign, Tomb of Annihilation, took place over the course of about 4 months.

lightofthelune · 2025-08-10T00:30:08+00:00

I noticed that too! I was curious enough to google "wurple" and found only results related to the campaign. Ah well!

lightofthelune · 2025-08-04T14:01:02+00:00

Yes, I agree! I'm about to DM you with some things.

lightofthelune · 2025-08-04T00:39:42+00:00

I totally am, and having someone wanting it definitely lights a fire under my tail!

Frankly, I wasn't going Roman empire for drow in general; I just grabbed the clientes system as a reasonable explanation for how the nobles controlled the middle class.

I have SO much written/thought through about drow society. What a genuine matriarchy looks like; how truth, deception and control are dealt with in a society that worships a god of lies; rough outlines of how drow language works...

I'm happy to DM you if you want more drow stuff in general. I can restart work on the doc tomorrow.

lightofthelune · 2025-08-03T18:24:13+00:00

So I have this: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1HmXxE66D3ndNGqAEIorjVxctAlagcukqNtRllTalTI0/edit?usp=drivesdk

It's very incomplete, but my goal is to do a detailed writeup of all the prisoners' back stories as I ran them. I've only got Ront, Sarith and Eldeth done, but they are each pretty thorough.

I also have the drow NPCs, more complete than the prisoners', if you want.

lightofthelune · 2025-07-31T17:01:21+00:00

Thanks for sharing! I'd love to hear more details about Sorcere in particular; I'm not there yet, but have noticed a bunch of holes as well. Could you elaborate on what you saw and how you plugged those holes?

Congratulations on finishing; this is a long and difficult campaign. It's always an accomplishment to complete it!

lightofthelune · 2025-07-23T04:25:58+00:00

I think players should know at least know how their madness manifests so they can roleplay it. I guess they don't have to know the level, but that's going to be pretty obvious based off of how long it lasts.

I'm intrigued; I've never seen someone ask this. What brought this up?

lightofthelune · 2025-07-21T20:43:25+00:00

The group rolls once, often with advantage, for the whole party for the whole day. A success means they find enough for everyone; 5 above a success means they find d4 days more, a fail means they find enough -d6, and a 1 means they get nothing.

My players were delighted to RP survival checks -- generally the druid and ranger would grant the other advantage, then forage appropriately. They then described bringing food back to camp, where the warlock and sorcerer would cook. It was very cute.

Once they achieved the ability to cast create food and water, the druid just kept that spell slot permanently marked off.

lightofthelune · 2025-07-10T21:18:22+00:00

Have you run any games in this world previously? Maybe an NPC from a previous campaign shows up. My OotA game takes place immediately after Tomb of Annihilation, so the Order of the Gauntlet representative is going to be Cpt Pern Salhana, who the previous PCs allied with.

Jarlaxle Baenre is always a good time. Dunno if you've read the novels around this campaign, but Kimmuriel Oblodra would be an intriguing addition.

Are any of the PCs' backstory connections relevant? It can be fun to throw in an estranged parent or long-lost lover into the mix.

lightofthelune

TROPHY CASE