"fighting iuz" my current campaign - Downloaded from the Wizards Community, all coding removed by Solauren

"fighting iuz" my current campaign

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
zombiegleemax
Jan 24, 2004 16:39:32 your thoughts and ideas... please,

i have just started playing a new campaign in GH as a dwarven fighter1/cleric1 of moradin, from laws forge

jag arin... quit reading this post now!... BTW he is the DM

my pc is part of an elite strike team assembled by the forces of "good"... (whoever they are... we have been geased!), presumably from Furyondy. our missions are to strike at Iuz and his forces and cause as much disruption to his evil plans as possible. it is after the GH Wars so we all know there is not supposed to be any organized military action. none of the characters remembers who we are working for... in case of capture etc.

the team consists of myself, a monk2(he is a LG monk... see jag arins other posts about good monks in GH), a ranger2, and a fighter1/wizard1.

so far iuz's clerics are raising dead across the shieldlands(go figure), we ventured from willip to critwall and to a small town called Garith Dunn to stop the clerics there from creating more abominations.

can anyone give me some good ideas on how to create as much chaos and disturbance for iuz and his minions as possible. we have a basic knowledge of GH and would appreciate some insiders opinions on how to go about really messin with him and doing some damage. ideas for later on in the campaign would be great... ie. what are some good spells to use, artifacts or magic items that we could quest for to use against iuz, tatics that will work against his orcs, ogrillons, etc.

undoubtedly we will end up facin some real tough badies! the question is how to defeat them!
#2
Mortepierre
Jan 25, 2004 6:34:06 Amusing. I ran a similar campaign a few years ago. The only difference was that it was high level and my players were heroes hailing from the barbarian lands (Frost/Ice/Snow). They had been instructed to avenge the barbarian's honor in any way possible (given how Iuz misled them with his Vatun impersonation).

Of course, if your team is low level, you should start in locations which give you reasonable chances of survival.

Low level party
Good locations: Vesve Forest, (ruins of) Tenth, Bandit Kingdoms (or what's left of them)
Good adversaries: all low-level minions of Iuz. Bandits, humanoids, spies, traitors.
Mission-type: guerilla
At this level, you should aim at disturbing supply lines (a weak point in Iuz's army), turning over his spies to the authority of neighboring countries and hitting him where it will hurt him in the long term. For instance, you could destroy a goblin warren. Doesn't seem like much but when Iuz's current humanoids get killed he won't have an easy time securing replacement. Do not attempt to infiltrate Iuz's central lands at this time as you'll run into either elite forces or fiends out for blood. Basically, avoid the lands of Iuz and of the (ex-)Horned Society.

Mid level party
Good locations: as above + Horned Society land
Good adversaries: all low to mid-level minions + minor fiends (Babau and the like)
Mission-type: surgical strikes
Your party is now stronger and better equipped. At this point, you should try to develop your diplomatic skills and understand how Iuz's empire is run. Find out where are his weak points, namely underlings who chafe under his authority and/or rebels trying to get rid of the demi-god's army.
Depending on whether you are just out for Iuz's blood or really "Good", some deals might be struck with other evil beings who hold little sympathy for Iuz. Prime candidates are the Bandit lords, ambitious fiends, zealot orcs (in the Vesve) and Stonefist troops in Tenh. Helping the last Rovers survive and arming them with quality weapons is another prime goal as their cavalry is second to none.

High level party
Good locations: anywhere
Good adversaries: anyone (but Iuz!)
Mission-type: search & destroy
Now, you're among the top best. You have the means of really hurting Iuz. Several ways of doing this:
- freeing Tenh (Iuz depends on it for food, money and promising young clerics/wizards)
- driving his forces out of the Bandit Kingdoms (that would cut his empire by half)
- turning the forces of the Horned Society against him (perhaps by returning the surviving Hierarch to power?)
- destroying the Soul Husks in the Howling Hills (direct strike at Iuz's raw power, perhaps enough to reduce him beneath demi-god status)
- driving his forces from the Vesve
- closing the abyssal Gate in Dorakaa
- finding & using an artefact that can generate enough destructive force to blast Dorakaa clean off the face of Oerth (a kind of suicide mission but a highly effective one)
- convince some abyssal lord to attack Iuz's allies in the Abyss (which would force them to withdraw the demons they "lent" to Iuz)

One last note: Vecna and Iuz hate each other ;)

Good luck! :D
#3
zombiegleemax
Jan 25, 2004 10:28:07 Yeah, interesting that drewrick did not mention they managed to get themselves captured on their first outing! Maybe a little help on how to avoid being sacrificed to the Old One. :D

Also, here is a free piece of advice...DON'T SPLIT THE PARTY!
#4
zombiegleemax
Jan 25, 2004 14:03:10 already learned that the hard way... and it wasn't free!

besides... just a simple jail break! if we can't get outa that on our own we should all just turn in our charcater sheets!;)

i am just looking for good suggestions and approaches to the realm of GH from those that are in the know!

and as far as being sacrificed... "if" we don't make it out?... i hope the old one chokes on me bones and me beard chafes on the way out!:fight!:
#5
zombiegleemax
Jan 26, 2004 9:21:00 ...Mortepierre, for your suggestions. we will definitely need to stick to the guerilla warfare at this level. i like the approach of going after the supply lines... and the more dead clerics of iuz the better. raids on the humanoid tribes are good too. me drawf will like killn' off some orcies!

i will keep the higher level approaches in the back of my mind for later in the campaign... assuming we make it to higher levels!

appreciate your thoughts

drewrick

btw... how'd the barbarians fair?

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 zombiegleemax Jan 24, 2004 16:39:32	your thoughts and ideas... please, i have just started playing a new campaign in GH as a dwarven fighter1/cleric1 of moradin, from laws forge jag arin... quit reading this post now!... BTW he is the DM my pc is part of an elite strike team assembled by the forces of "good"... (whoever they are... we have been geased!), presumably from Furyondy. our missions are to strike at Iuz and his forces and cause as much disruption to his evil plans as possible. it is after the GH Wars so we all know there is not supposed to be any organized military action. none of the characters remembers who we are working for... in case of capture etc. the team consists of myself, a monk2(he is a LG monk... see jag arins other posts about good monks in GH), a ranger2, and a fighter1/wizard1. so far iuz's clerics are raising dead across the shieldlands(go figure), we ventured from willip to critwall and to a small town called Garith Dunn to stop the clerics there from creating more abominations. can anyone give me some good ideas on how to create as much chaos and disturbance for iuz and his minions as possible. we have a basic knowledge of GH and would appreciate some insiders opinions on how to go about really messin with him and doing some damage. ideas for later on in the campaign would be great... ie. what are some good spells to use, artifacts or magic items that we could quest for to use against iuz, tatics that will work against his orcs, ogrillons, etc. undoubtedly we will end up facin some real tough badies! the question is how to defeat them!
#2 Mortepierre Jan 25, 2004 6:34:06	Amusing. I ran a similar campaign a few years ago. The only difference was that it was high level and my players were heroes hailing from the barbarian lands (Frost/Ice/Snow). They had been instructed to avenge the barbarian's honor in any way possible (given how Iuz misled them with his Vatun impersonation). Of course, if your team is low level, you should start in locations which give you reasonable chances of survival. Low level party Good locations: Vesve Forest, (ruins of) Tenth, Bandit Kingdoms (or what's left of them) Good adversaries: all low-level minions of Iuz. Bandits, humanoids, spies, traitors. Mission-type: guerilla At this level, you should aim at disturbing supply lines (a weak point in Iuz's army), turning over his spies to the authority of neighboring countries and hitting him where it will hurt him in the long term. For instance, you could destroy a goblin warren. Doesn't seem like much but when Iuz's current humanoids get killed he won't have an easy time securing replacement. Do not attempt to infiltrate Iuz's central lands at this time as you'll run into either elite forces or fiends out for blood. Basically, avoid the lands of Iuz and of the (ex-)Horned Society. Mid level party Good locations: as above + Horned Society land Good adversaries: all low to mid-level minions + minor fiends (Babau and the like) Mission-type: surgical strikes Your party is now stronger and better equipped. At this point, you should try to develop your diplomatic skills and understand how Iuz's empire is run. Find out where are his weak points, namely underlings who chafe under his authority and/or rebels trying to get rid of the demi-god's army. Depending on whether you are just out for Iuz's blood or really "Good", some deals might be struck with other evil beings who hold little sympathy for Iuz. Prime candidates are the Bandit lords, ambitious fiends, zealot orcs (in the Vesve) and Stonefist troops in Tenh. Helping the last Rovers survive and arming them with quality weapons is another prime goal as their cavalry is second to none. High level party Good locations: anywhere Good adversaries: anyone (but Iuz!) Mission-type: search & destroy Now, you're among the top best. You have the means of really hurting Iuz. Several ways of doing this: - freeing Tenh (Iuz depends on it for food, money and promising young clerics/wizards) - driving his forces out of the Bandit Kingdoms (that would cut his empire by half) - turning the forces of the Horned Society against him (perhaps by returning the surviving Hierarch to power?) - destroying the Soul Husks in the Howling Hills (direct strike at Iuz's raw power, perhaps enough to reduce him beneath demi-god status) - driving his forces from the Vesve - closing the abyssal Gate in Dorakaa - finding & using an artefact that can generate enough destructive force to blast Dorakaa clean off the face of Oerth (a kind of suicide mission but a highly effective one) - convince some abyssal lord to attack Iuz's allies in the Abyss (which would force them to withdraw the demons they "lent" to Iuz) One last note: Vecna and Iuz hate each other ;) Good luck! :D
#3 zombiegleemax Jan 25, 2004 10:28:07	Yeah, interesting that drewrick did not mention they managed to get themselves captured on their first outing! Maybe a little help on how to avoid being sacrificed to the Old One. :D Also, here is a free piece of advice...DON'T SPLIT THE PARTY!
#4 zombiegleemax Jan 25, 2004 14:03:10	already learned that the hard way... and it wasn't free! besides... just a simple jail break! if we can't get outa that on our own we should all just turn in our charcater sheets!;) i am just looking for good suggestions and approaches to the realm of GH from those that are in the know! and as far as being sacrificed... "if" we don't make it out?... i hope the old one chokes on me bones and me beard chafes on the way out!:fight!:
#5 zombiegleemax Jan 26, 2004 9:21:00	...Mortepierre, for your suggestions. we will definitely need to stick to the guerilla warfare at this level. i like the approach of going after the supply lines... and the more dead clerics of iuz the better. raids on the humanoid tribes are good too. me drawf will like killn' off some orcies! i will keep the higher level approaches in the back of my mind for later in the campaign... assuming we make it to higher levels! appreciate your thoughts drewrick btw... how'd the barbarians fair?