[Let's Play] D&D Solo Module XS2: Thunderdelve Mountain

[Beroli]

The bear moves toward you. It flexes its huge claws. You take the initiative and strike.

Bear: AC 6; HD 4; hp 22; MV 120'(40'); #AT 2 claws/1 bite; D 1-3/1-3/1-6; ML 7; Alignment Neutral

Here I pause to translate that stat block. The bear has an armor class of 6, four hit dice should that matter for any effect (it should not here), 22 hit points, movement rate irrelevant here as the bear will not pursue you out of the room, and 3 attacks per round. When you first hit the bear, or potentially under other circumstances that do not apply when fighting a single opponent without the use of spells, the bear will roll 2d6; if the roll is 8 or higher, the bear will disengage from combat if you let it.

If the bear strikes you with both claw attacks in the same round, something will happen. This being the case, I will pause to highlight the "retreat" rules. You can rush past the bear and out the south door if you wish. If you do, the bear will make one claw attack at +4 to hit, but will not otherwise pursue you, however they will still be here to block your way if you return this way.

Run past the bear now?
Run past the bear under (circumstances to be defined in vote)?
Fight without retreating?

And separately:
Permit the bear to disengage if it attempts to? (The bear will remain in this room and attack you again if you return this way without some means of dissuading them from attacking.)
Engage the bear to the death?

Character Sheet:
Nanli Fullbrow
Level 8 Dwarf
Gender: Male
Strength 12
Intelligence 11
Wisdom 9
Dexterity 12
Constitution 10
Charisma 9
Armor Class: 4 (chain and shield)
Main weapon: Sword +3. Will hit a -8 AC on a 20, will hit a 10 AC on a 2
Damage: 1d8+3
Hit Points: 40/40
Alignment: Lawful
Sword +3, Dagger +1, Backpack, Tinderbox, Iron Spikes, Large Sack, phial of red liquid labeled "Poison for sword."
Coinage: 150 gold
Languages: Common, Dwarf, Gnome, Goblin, Kobold
Infravision
Detection of Traps and Stone Construction
Saving Throws:
Poison or Death Ray 4 (must roll a 4 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Magic Wands 5 (must roll a 5 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Paralysis or Petrification 6 (must roll a 6 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Dragon Breath 7 (must roll a 7 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Rod, Staff, or Spell 8 (must roll an 8 or better on 1d20 to succeed)

[JourneymanN00b]

I vote to fight without retreating and to engage the bear to the death.

[Thaluikhain]

Kill it to death!

[Beroli]

One thing I neglected to mention, which does actually contradict something I said: as a four-hit-die monster, the bear will hit you on a 12 or better.

Accordingly:
Round One: You automatically have initiative. You roll a 9 and hit, doing (5+3) 8 damage.
The bear rolls a 9 for morale and would disengage, but you won't let them. They claw/claw/bite you, rolling a 13, 11, and 3 to hit with one claw and miss with the bite. You take 1 damage.

Round Two: You roll a 2 and have initiative again. You roll an 11 and hit for 4 damage. The bear rolls 1, 3, and 14, hitting with their bite only. You take 1 damage.

Round Three: You roll a 1 and the bear has initiative. They roll an 18, 19, and 20 and hit with all three attacks. You take 8 damage and:

You feel both bear claws rake into your back, and lock in place. The beast hugs you to their chest, picking you up off the floor, causing an additional 2d8 (3) damage. You kick and they drop you. You roll a 1 for your attack and miss.

Round Four: You roll a 1 and the bear has initiative. They roll a 10, 18, and 16, hitting with one claw and their bite. You take 9 damage. You roll a 17 to attack and hit for 8 damage.

Round Five: You roll a 1 and the bear has initiative. They roll a 10, 12, and 10, hitting with one claw. You take 3 damage. You roll a 19 to attack and hit for 4 damage, dropping the bear.

Rubbing your bruised ribs, you move to examine the room. The southern half is a tangled mass of bear hides, skulls, teeth, and hair shirts. You find a bag of 50 electrum pieces (worth half as much as gold pieces, for those not familiar with this edition of D&D). The beautiful half of the room contains many fine furnishings. There is a set of three golden figurines worth about 50 gold pieces each.

You may exit to the east (going back to the front entrance) or to the south; I presume you will not retreat now.

Map Segment 148.PNG (2.74 KiB) Viewed 613 times

This corridor is well-used and fairly clean. You hear a shout of joy from behind the western door. There are also several voices behind the middle door
on the east. The northernmost door on the east seems to be polished. You can open any door; the northern door (back to the front entrance), the western door, the southern door, the northeast door, or the southeast door.

Character Sheet:
Nanli Fullbrow
Level 8 Dwarf
Gender: Male
Strength 12
Intelligence 11
Wisdom 9
Dexterity 12
Constitution 10
Charisma 9
Armor Class: 4 (chain and shield)
Main weapon: Sword +3. Will hit a -8 AC on a 20, will hit a 10 AC on a 2
Damage: 1d8+3
Hit Points: 15/40
Alignment: Lawful
Sword +3, Dagger +1, Backpack, Tinderbox, Iron Spikes, Large Sack, phial of red liquid labeled "Poison for sword," three ~50-gold-piece figurines
Coinage: 150 gold, 50 electrum
Languages: Common, Dwarf, Gnome, Goblin, Kobold
Infravision
Detection of Traps and Stone Construction
Saving Throws:
Poison or Death Ray 4 (must roll a 4 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Magic Wands 5 (must roll a 5 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Paralysis or Petrification 6 (must roll a 6 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Dragon Breath 7 (must roll a 7 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Rod, Staff, or Spell 8 (must roll an 8 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Victory Boxes: 1

[JourneymanN00b]

I vote to open the western door.

[Darth Rabbitt]

Sure, west works for me.

[Beroli]

Map Segment 147.PNG (2.5 KiB) Viewed 600 times

You pause to listen and hear the sounds of many voices within. You also smell pipe smoke and beer. Peeking in very carefully, you see a room full of tables and benches. Ten sweaty bandits are seated about, smoking and drinking. A large, dirty man clad in bearskin looks on. All are absorbed in the progress of a dice game and do not notice you. It would be suicidal to enter. Return the way you came.

Back in the corridor, will you open the northern door (back to the front entrance), the western door, the southern door, the northeast door, or the southeast door?

Character Sheet:
Nanli Fullbrow
Level 8 Dwarf
Gender: Male
Strength 12
Intelligence 11
Wisdom 9
Dexterity 12
Constitution 10
Charisma 9
Armor Class: 4 (chain and shield)
Main weapon: Sword +3. Will hit a -8 AC on a 20, will hit a 10 AC on a 2
Damage: 1d8+3
Hit Points: 15/40
Alignment: Lawful
Sword +3, Dagger +1, Backpack, Tinderbox, Iron Spikes, Large Sack, phial of red liquid labeled "Poison for sword," three ~50-gold-piece figurines
Coinage: 150 gold, 50 electrum
Languages: Common, Dwarf, Gnome, Goblin, Kobold
Infravision
Detection of Traps and Stone Construction
Saving Throws:
Poison or Death Ray 4 (must roll a 4 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Magic Wands 5 (must roll a 5 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Paralysis or Petrification 6 (must roll a 6 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Dragon Breath 7 (must roll a 7 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Rod, Staff, or Spell 8 (must roll an 8 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Victory Boxes: 1

[Darth Rabbitt]

Northeast door, for no reason in particular.

[Thaluikhain]

May as well.

[JourneymanN00b]

Sure, I vote to go to the northeast door.

[Beroli]

Map Segment 166.PNG (1.68 KiB) Viewed 585 times

You open the polished door. Inside is a dimly lit room of tapestries, elegant couches, thick rugs, and rare furs. Suddenly out of the dark northern corner, a spear flies at your chest. Roll to see if it hits, using the 1st level Fighter column. (That will hit you on a 15; the roll is a 1, miss.)

You see a bandit guard charge at you from the dark. He opens his mouth to sound an alarm. You must attack instantly to silence him.

Guard (2nd level thief): AC 6; hp 8; MV 90'(30'); D 1-8; ML 8; AL C

Since the 2nd-level thief attack column is the same as the 1st-level fighting attack column, I am taking him as having already attacked you this round.

You hit with a 17 and do 6 damage. You have not killed him in one round.

The guard blocks nearly your every move. "Alarm! Foe!" he cries. You must work quickly before reinforcements arrive.

You roll a 2 and win initiative. You hit with a 17 and do 7 damage, dropping him.

You give the guard one final blow and he falls. You hear feet in the hall and drag the guard's body back into the dark northern corner, then duck behind a tapestry. The door opens, and you hear several men enter. "You see? I told you Magry, there ain't no alarm. You're hearing things." You hear the door slam and you peek out. They're gone. Roll once for treasure.

This:

Treasure Table.PNG (115.67 KiB) Viewed 585 times

is the table the module refers to. Your roll is 91 followed by 1: a single silver piece.

You can exit to the west (back to the corridor, so vote for another door to try if you choose this one) or north.

Character Sheet:
Nanli Fullbrow
Level 8 Dwarf
Gender: Male
Strength 12
Intelligence 11
Wisdom 9
Dexterity 12
Constitution 10
Charisma 9
Armor Class: 4 (chain and shield)
Main weapon: Sword +3. Will hit a -8 AC on a 20, will hit a 10 AC on a 2
Damage: 1d8+3
Hit Points: 15/40
Alignment: Lawful
Sword +3, Dagger +1, Backpack, Tinderbox, Iron Spikes, Large Sack, phial of red liquid labeled "Poison for sword," three ~50-gold-piece figurines
Coinage: 150 gold, 50 electrum, 1 silver
Languages: Common, Dwarf, Gnome, Goblin, Kobold
Infravision
Detection of Traps and Stone Construction
Saving Throws:
Poison or Death Ray 4 (must roll a 4 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Magic Wands 5 (must roll a 5 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Paralysis or Petrification 6 (must roll a 6 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Dragon Breath 7 (must roll a 7 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Rod, Staff, or Spell 8 (must roll an 8 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Victory Boxes: 2

[JourneymanN00b]

I vote to go north.

EDIT: Here are the translations for the map given on the first page of this thread, from left to right and top to bottom:

Gate
Secret-door, Servant? Quarter?, Eaores, Front-hall, Barraps
Falls
Hoppi?e, Great-hall, Kindred
Paradise, Crystal-pools

Question marks are runes that I cannot make out from the picture.

[Thaluikhain]

North, I guess.

(I like that the encounter here is related to the western room, not just monsters placed randomly)

[Beroli]

Map Segment 174.PNG (1.15 KiB) Viewed 567 times

Inside is a lavish bedchamber full of rich goods. You scan the room, and your eyes lock on a large chest.

You hear sudden movement and see a young pageboy cowering behind the bed. "Stay where you are," you mutter, "and I'll not hurt you." He nods mutely, and you turn back to the chest.

You go to the large chest and examine it. It appears to be unlocked and untrapped.

Check for traps and then open it?
Go back to the hall (choose another door to go in if you vote for this one)?

Character Sheet:
Nanli Fullbrow
Level 8 Dwarf
Gender: Male
Strength 12
Intelligence 11
Wisdom 9
Dexterity 12
Constitution 10
Charisma 9
Armor Class: 4 (chain and shield)
Main weapon: Sword +3. Will hit a -8 AC on a 20, will hit a 10 AC on a 2
Damage: 1d8+3
Hit Points: 15/40
Alignment: Lawful
Sword +3, Dagger +1, Backpack, Tinderbox, Iron Spikes, Large Sack, phial of red liquid labeled "Poison for sword," three ~50-gold-piece figurines
Coinage: 150 gold, 50 electrum, 1 silver
Languages: Common, Dwarf, Gnome, Goblin, Kobold
Infravision
Detection of Traps and Stone Construction
Saving Throws:
Poison or Death Ray 4 (must roll a 4 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Magic Wands 5 (must roll a 5 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Paralysis or Petrification 6 (must roll a 6 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Dragon Breath 7 (must roll a 7 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Rod, Staff, or Spell 8 (must roll an 8 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Victory Boxes: 2

[Thaluikhain]

Check for traps.

Odd we can't talk to the page.

[JourneymanN00b]

I vote to check for traps and open the chest.

[Beroli]

You probe for traps. Make a Wisdom check on 1d20; a 17 fails.

You find none. As you throw open the lid, you feel the floor beneath you give way. You fall 20 feet, taking (2d4) 4 points of damage. The pit is full of spikes. You must roll 4 spear attacks against yourself using the 4th level Fighter column (will hit you on a 13). Each spear hit causes 1d6 points of damage. Attacks: 6, 6, 14, 13; two hits for a total of 6 damage.

Moaning, you look up the steep walls of the pit. You are trapped until the resident of this room returns returns.

A heavy blanket is thrown down into the pit. You see the page at the other end. "Climb up," he whispers, "and I'll secure this end around the bedpost." You clamber up out of the pit. If you wish, you can reward him with some of your treasure. Then you turn eagerly to the open chest against the wall.

Inside the chest is an earl's ransom. The chest contains three bags of assorted gems (worth 2,000 gp total), an emerald necklace (worth 2,500 gp), two gold armbands (worth 250 gp each), 500 sp, and 450 gp. A small satin bag also holds a ring sculpted in the shape of a wolfs head. As you take it out, the page cries: "Redface will be angry if you take that! It's the mate to his own ring that he uses to train his wolves."

Vote on:
Whether to give the pageboy, Davey, any of your treasure, and what to give him if you vote for this.
Whether to wear the armbands.
Whether to wear the ring.
Whether to leave anything behind entirely.
Which door to go in back in the main hall. (Southern and southeast are unexplored, north leads back to the front entrance to Thunderdelve.)

Character Sheet:
Nanli Fullbrow
Level 8 Dwarf
Gender: Male
Strength 12
Intelligence 11
Wisdom 9
Dexterity 12
Constitution 10
Charisma 9
Armor Class: 4 (chain and shield)
Main weapon: Sword +3. Will hit a -8 AC on a 20, will hit a 10 AC on a 2
Damage: 1d8+3
Hit Points: 5/40
Alignment: Lawful
Sword +3, Dagger +1, Backpack, Tinderbox, Iron Spikes, Large Sack, phial of red liquid labeled "Poison for sword," three ~50-gold-piece figurines
Coinage: 150 gold, 50 electrum, 1 silver
Languages: Common, Dwarf, Gnome, Goblin, Kobold
Infravision
Detection of Traps and Stone Construction
Saving Throws:
Poison or Death Ray 4 (must roll a 4 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Magic Wands 5 (must roll a 5 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Paralysis or Petrification 6 (must roll a 6 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Dragon Breath 7 (must roll a 7 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Rod, Staff, or Spell 8 (must roll an 8 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Victory Boxes: 2

[JourneymanN00b]

I vote to give Davey the armbands, to not wear the ring (but keep it), and to go south.

[Beroli]

Map Segment 105.PNG (1.19 KiB) Viewed 539 times

This short, very dusty passage vibrates with the sound of thunder.

Investigate it (this is necessary if you wish to continue down it)?
Turn back and go in either the southeast door or the northern door from the main hall?

Character Sheet:
Nanli Fullbrow
Level 8 Dwarf
Gender: Male
Strength 12
Intelligence 11
Wisdom 9
Dexterity 12
Constitution 10
Charisma 9
Armor Class: 4 (chain and shield)
Main weapon: Sword +3. Will hit a -8 AC on a 20, will hit a 10 AC on a 2
Damage: 1d8+3
Hit Points: 5/40
Alignment: Lawful
Sword +3, Dagger +1, Backpack, Tinderbox, Iron Spikes, Large Sack, phial of red liquid labeled "Poison for sword," three ~50-gold-piece figurines, three bags of assorted gems worth 2,000 gp total, 2500-gold-piece emerald necklace, wolf's head ring
Coinage: 600 gold, 50 electrum, 501 silver
Languages: Common, Dwarf, Gnome, Goblin, Kobold
Infravision
Detection of Traps and Stone Construction
Saving Throws:
Poison or Death Ray 4 (must roll a 4 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Magic Wands 5 (must roll a 5 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Paralysis or Petrification 6 (must roll a 6 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Dragon Breath 7 (must roll a 7 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Rod, Staff, or Spell 8 (must roll an 8 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Victory Boxes: 2

[Thaluikhain]

Investigate thingy.

[Darth Rabbitt]

Investigate.

[Beroli]

You walk through the hall, dust billowing up from your feet. Something is wrong. You bend to inspect the stone. Test your Wisdom; a 6 succeeds.

As you begin to kneel, you notice the deep cracks between the stones. You immediately jump to one side. The center of the hall may be a floor trap of unknown danger. Skirting the center section of the hall, you proceed south.

Map Segment 74.PNG (8.67 KiB) Viewed 534 times

The roaring sound is quite loud here and is caused by twin waterfalls cascading down the eastern wall, falling into a clear pool that runs the length of the room. Spanning the center of the pool and leading to a set of great doors standing between the two falls, is a bridge of crystal. The bridge hums as it vibrates from the pounding of the two falls. Even the floor, made of red quartz, vibrates with a low rumbling sound. This great hall looks as though at one time it might have been quite festive. The water in the pools looks wholesome and, judging from the scattered buckets, must serve as the bandits' principle water source. The doors to the north, south, and west can be barred shut, so this hall can serve as an interior line of defense in case of attack.
The southern door is barred shut and has remained so for some time.

Go back through the north corridor?
Go through the western doors?
Try to open the closed eastern doors?
Try to unbar the southern door?
Drink from the pool?

Character Sheet:
Nanli Fullbrow
Level 8 Dwarf
Gender: Male
Strength 12
Intelligence 11
Wisdom 9
Dexterity 12
Constitution 10
Charisma 9
Armor Class: 4 (chain and shield)
Main weapon: Sword +3. Will hit a -8 AC on a 20, will hit a 10 AC on a 2
Damage: 1d8+3
Hit Points: 5/40
Alignment: Lawful
Sword +3, Dagger +1, Backpack, Tinderbox, Iron Spikes, Large Sack, phial of red liquid labeled "Poison for sword," three ~50-gold-piece figurines, three bags of assorted gems worth 2,000 gp total, 2500-gold-piece emerald necklace, wolf's head ring
Coinage: 600 gold, 50 electrum, 501 silver
Languages: Common, Dwarf, Gnome, Goblin, Kobold
Infravision
Detection of Traps and Stone Construction
Saving Throws:
Poison or Death Ray 4 (must roll a 4 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Magic Wands 5 (must roll a 5 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Paralysis or Petrification 6 (must roll a 6 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Dragon Breath 7 (must roll a 7 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Rod, Staff, or Spell 8 (must roll an 8 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Victory Boxes: 2

[JourneymanN00b]

I vote to drink from the pool, as water from a place marked Paradise has to be good right? And our hero is low on HP.

[Darth Rabbitt]

Agreed.

[Beroli]

You kneel and drink cautiously from the noisy waters, then more deeply, for the water is cool and refreshing, full of tasty minerals. As you begin to rise, you note a twinkle of gold under the bridge in a spot only a dwarvish eye could see.

Reach under the bridge?
Straighten up and choose an exit from the room?

Character Sheet:
Nanli Fullbrow
Level 8 Dwarf
Gender: Male
Strength 12
Intelligence 11
Wisdom 9
Dexterity 12
Constitution 10
Charisma 9
Armor Class: 4 (chain and shield)
Main weapon: Sword +3. Will hit a -8 AC on a 20, will hit a 10 AC on a 2
Damage: 1d8+3
Hit Points: 5/40
Alignment: Lawful
Sword +3, Dagger +1, Backpack, Tinderbox, Iron Spikes, Large Sack, phial of red liquid labeled "Poison for sword," three ~50-gold-piece figurines, three bags of assorted gems worth 2,000 gp total, 2500-gold-piece emerald necklace, wolf's head ring
Coinage: 600 gold, 50 electrum, 501 silver
Languages: Common, Dwarf, Gnome, Goblin, Kobold
Infravision
Detection of Traps and Stone Construction
Saving Throws:
Poison or Death Ray 4 (must roll a 4 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Magic Wands 5 (must roll a 5 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Paralysis or Petrification 6 (must roll a 6 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Dragon Breath 7 (must roll a 7 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Rod, Staff, or Spell 8 (must roll an 8 or better on 1d20 to succeed)
Victory Boxes: 2