Welcome to Four Short of a Strategy, a video series where the Battle Systems team takes on the Dungeons of Enveron campaign from their game Maladum. If you missed the first article and video in this series you, can read and find a link to the video here.
[First Dungeon Spoiler in this section]
The first dungeon saw the party starting off with glee in their hearts, hope in their eyes and their pockets with plenty of space to fill with coin. Or in Brahm’s (John’s) case, a pack free of weapons and equipment too – a decision which saw him leaving with a weapon that any good adventurer would aspire to obtaining. The dungeon seemed to throw all that it could at the intruders, but thanks to the lower value of the party, Novice Event cards kept them out of trouble and stopped the dread from rising too high, too quickly.
We saw a Great Bear arrive, traps, fireballs explode, a small flood that left a few rooms difficult to traverse.
Most of the party managed to make their way back to safety, but as Grogmar was forced to remain behind for one last turn, an event card swapped the staging area location which left him fighting all of the adversaries. When we say all the adversaries, we mean literally all of the adversaries available in the starter set, minus a troll but including the Malagaunt!
Whilst Grogmar was defeated, he did manage to make it back to town, but not before his seemingly lifeless body was liberated of his armour and halberd, that he was so proud of going into the first dungeon.
[Spoiler over]
Below we’re going to spend a little bit of time talking to the players about how they felt the last dungeon went and what they are planning ahead of the next one. Including what stats/skills they’ve chosen to upgrade with their XP from the previous dungeon.
Character Builds
Tom – Grogmar
Leaving the first dungeon, Tom admits that he should have stayed closer to the party and then maybe he would have been closer to the exit before it moved with the final event card.
Not making it out of the dungeon means that he has not been able to add any XP, and so cannot level anything up between dungeons. However, he does take some solace in the fact that Grogmar’s final moments felt like a cinematic fight scene, as the double doors swung open and all of the adversaries flooded in to fight him.
Rather than waste party resources he has taken a leaf out of Brahm’s book and is heading into the next dungeon with the intention of punching his way through.
Having spent sometime in the dungeon with the character and seeing what the rest of the party chose to level up, Tom does admit that he perhaps should have spent more time looking at the character and class choice. But time will tell whether he really regrets it, and if he becomes more of hinderance to the party than a boon.
James – Nerinda
Nerinda, chosen for her more sneaky assassin style has shown that she is also out for herself in every circumstance. Or at least if it’s not her, James is certainly playing that way. In the pre-game interviews when asked about how the previous dungeon went he simply said “I guess it was a shame what happened to Grogmar… but I got out, and that was the plan.”
With that in mind, Nerinda getting out of the dungeon safely and making back to town means that she gets a mark in her XP tracker. James has chosen to take a level in “Hard to Hit”, now giving Nerinda the ability to avoid being affected by ranged attacks whilst in cover. Chosen more as it felt like the next logical choice, thematically, for James’ build of Assassin Nerinda.
Will James and Nerindas one for us and none for the all attitude continue into the next dungeon? And if it does… will it continue to serve them. Only time will tell.
John – Brahm
John was very happy with Brahm’s first dungeon. Taking the bold move of heading into the dungeon with no gear.
*Insert smug face* as he turns and looks at the party who told him not take this approach, and he emerged with possibly the best loot we pulled from the dungeon.
He does note that having seen what happened to Grogmar, he has made a mental note that things can ramp up and get bad quickly, so that will factor into his approach in the next dungeon.
Along with his magnificent weapon, John also escaped with an experience point. Leading to him putting a skill point into “Ready For Anything”. This granting Brahm the ability to spend a skill peg at any time and then take an action.
Dan – Moranna
Dan, like John, felt that the dungeon went really well for his character. He survived, blew adversaries up with a fireball… blew James’ character up with a fireball.
Moranna, among the lucky few who got out of the first dungeon, gained herself an experience point and took one level in “Power Manipulation”. This gives her access to any rank one spell when spending a skill point; although the odds of her moving away from casting fireball as her go to is slim to none.
Not too dissimilar to James, Dan does approach the idea of ‘co-operation’ and ‘team work’ skeptically, which can leave other party members to question where he’s going with his next move. Has he recommended this course of action to save his own skin? Or because it is for the betterment of the quest?
We shall see as we head into the next dungeon.
Quest A – Secrets in the Dark
The Antiquities Guild has a long-standing reputation for the preservation of things almost lost and has established a sizable presence in this village. As you enter its lofty halls, the air is thick with a sense of purpose and mystery. The flickering torches cast dancing shadows upon ancient manuscripts, fragile artifacts, and maps that trace forgotten paths.
The Guild’s master, a wise scholar, calls you forth. The local caves, long rumoured to harbour hidden treasures and enigmatic relics of a bygone era, have piqued the Guild’s interest. With cautious anticipation, the master imparts upon you the task of retrieving these precious antiquities, and reveals the hefty rewards on offer! Ready to make their fortune, your party prepares to face whatever perils await in the dark unknown…
You can view the full dungeon play through here.
Until next time,
Happy Gaming!
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