That escalated quickly /u/Acrobatic_Potato_195 DnD: Roll for Initiative!

Tonight my players had to talk to an NPC they’d been seeking for about six sessions, to learn information crucial to moving the plot of the adventure forward. They had been hired to find him and talk to him to find out what he knows, and they found him sitting in a tavern with some friends, chatting and sipping an ale.

Instead of talking to him, which the adventure module assumed they would most likely do, they plotted how best to approach him for over an hour. They considered kidnapping him. They considered breaking into his room at the inn and waiting for him to return. They considered trying to cast Charm Person on him. They finally opted to tail him when he left the tavern. A footnote in the adventure says that if they tail him, his friends in the tavern notice, follow them, and attack (because these NPCs are loyal, mistrustful by nature, and the players are acting suspiciously.)

So that’s what happened. They tailed him until he reached his place of employment, and while they were loitering outside, the friends caught up and attacked. Mid-fight, reinforcements arrived, and they fled, only to change their minds mid-chase and stand their ground. The situation has escalated wildly and I have no idea how they are going to move the story forward now.

I love it.

That being said, a PSA to players: sometimes maybe just try talking first. 😆

Tonight my players had to talk to an NPC they’d been seeking for about six sessions, to learn information crucial to moving the plot of the adventure forward. They had been hired to find him and talk to him to find out what he knows, and they found him sitting in a tavern with some friends, chatting and sipping an ale.

Instead of talking to him, which the adventure module assumed they would most likely do, they plotted how best to approach him for over an hour. They considered kidnapping him. They considered breaking into his room at the inn and waiting for him to return. They considered trying to cast Charm Person on him. They finally opted to tail him when he left the tavern. A footnote in the adventure says that if they tail him, his friends in the tavern notice, follow them, and attack (because these NPCs are loyal, mistrustful by nature, and the players are acting suspiciously.)

So that’s what happened. They tailed him until he reached his place of employment, and while they were loitering outside, the friends caught up and attacked. Mid-fight, reinforcements arrived, and they fled, only to change their minds mid-chase and stand their ground. The situation has escalated wildly and I have no idea how they are going to move the story forward now.

I love it.

That being said, a PSA to players: sometimes maybe just try talking first. 😆