Any tips on running JN1 The Chaotic Caves?

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Kane
Posts: 51
Joined: Wed Nov 16, 2022 4:08 pm

Re: Any tips on running JN1 The Chaotic Caves?

Post by Kane »

As a fan of B2: Keep on the Borderlands, I found JN1 quite enjoyable to run, and less lethal than the other keep/cave BFRPG scenario, Morgansfort (which it can be easily smuggled into, if you want to continue from there).

My main suggestion as a DM is to have some monsters, treasures and plots which can be used to repopulate or create new explorable areas after the players progress. Between character deaths and the depletion of treasure it can be rough for new players to manage to get much out of the adventure, even if they complete it. This is not any special issue with JN1, just the experience of having had low-level characters divide all the loot/XP up between one death after another and end up with basically nothing for their final character who actually survives it. But this is partly my DMing style, which is to run everything RAW/BTB and let the dice fall where they may.

If your players have the wherewithal to manage them (personally, I feel the DM already has too many responsibilities to also manage NPC hired grunts) I definitely encourage hirelings and the possibility of acquiring henchmen from several groups (maybe a bandit with a conscience wants to follow the thief, or a militiaman from the town seeks to take up the ways of the Fighter).

That, plus the usual/generic/contradictory DMing advice, is about the only thing I'd say. It's a good module, very classic, and can easily fit into an D&D-style fantasy world. I had a lot of fun with player exploration of the region, and added in some mini-modules from elsewhere.
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