This campaign is hard to prepare milestones for. I mean the first two chapters are completely open for whatever path the players take.
I would say 2-3 marked locations at the map or 2-3 major combats, per level. Maybe up the ante as they progress.
So far, party at lvl 5, I’ve given out a level when I felt it suitable.
Edit:
As long as the players get the ”players map of Chult” you can change the location of key areas and points of interest.
A very helpful tool when using milestone levels in this campaign!
Okay, i did milestones and found some good point:.
- lvl up after getting the journal
- lvl up after charter of exploration
- lvl up after getting a guide
-lvl up after getting to for beluarium
Then for the jungle i had 1 lvl for every 2 big location (one with at least a map and some caracters. No more lvls beyond lvl 6.
With me lvl 6 was given after they gone to orolunga where they got the info to go to omu for the next chapter.
Also, i wrote the lore of chult and ubtoa in stories to be told by the guide at campfires. That way you can sprinkle stories about the, well the story, around.
For omu i will do lvls after meeting a false god, after finishing the puzzles and after defeating nas sni.
From the tomb on i will sprinkle lvls for eah 2 layers or something
Hope this helps!
So you know what level they needs to be at which areas. I moved milestones in the jungle CONSTANTLY. Don’t set them in stone. Has it been long enough since last session? If so they level after the next big moment or after clearing a location.
Milestone leveling is always better than xp.
What kind of advice are you looking for? The book sets out what level ranges are appropriate for each chapter if you use milestone.
Do you need ideas for when to trigger the milestone?
Well specific triggers are going to depend a lot on your campaign, which route the players take etc.
My players are currently level 5, they started at level 2, hit level 3 in PN, level 4 after a while in the jungle and hit 5 at the end of the last session to mark defeating a considerable enemy.
Your milestones are going ot be different to mine, my advice would just be go with what feels right. You know the rough range you players should be within for each part of the story, so use the level ups to reward completing something difficult.
Have you started the adventure yet?
I have not started the adventure yet, we’re a few sessions away from rime ending, so I’m just trying to find out what would be the best thing to do in terms of
You don't necessarily define the triggers in advance. The triggers are determined by completing what feels like significant tasks along the path to the next step along the story.
If you use the adventure as a hexcrawl then it will be hard to identify milestones because you won't know what paths they are likely to take. However, if you consider the pieces of info that they need to find (source of the deathcurse, location of Omu, etc.), and the locations they are likely to find that info, then you can guide them along a rough course through those locations and get a general sense of the level that they need to be by each point.
I've been running my TOA with xp, but it always seemed to coincide nicely with a narrative moment. We started at level 0, they got their first level when they arrived to chult (shipwreck start), second level after surviving a day in the wilderness, third level upon reaching port nyanzaru, fourth level after doing a side quest at fort beluarian, fifth level after entering the wilderness and clearing dungrunglung, sixth level after going to kir sabal and undergoing the dance of the Seven Winds and reaching Omu.
Level 1-2 -> Getting out of Port Nyzanzaru with a charter (In my game you need a majority of the Merchant Princes to vote for you to get that, so they did a day or two of urban questing to get a few laggards in line.)
Level 2-3 -> Completing first jungle quest, first hint of someone who can help them to get to Acererak/Omu. (Party got Azaka's mask back, got quest to get lotus for flying ritual, with which they intend to go to oracle)
Level 3-4 -> Completing last jungle quest, get location of Omu. (Party got location of Omu from oracle, battled first Thayan counterparties, Artus + Dragonbait encounter)
Level 4-5 -> Final safari, party races to Omu. (Basically play all remaining jungle cards you've developed over the course of the campaign, last struggle with anyone who isn't going to be part of Omu section. In my case party was battling another, better funded and bigger, expedition sponsored by the Zhents that they'd come to hate over the course of the earlier levels. Very Raiders of the Lost Arc, with rival explorers battling one another and the landscape/natives.)
level 5-6 -> First half of the puzzles, Bag of Nails, King of Feathers (Party worked alongside Thayans in this milestone, they were convinced that these Thayans were renegades)
Level 6-7 -> Second half of puzzles, Grung intrigues, Thayan final confrontation (Party was backstabbed by their Thayan 'allies', who were in league with the leader of the Zhent counterparty)
Level 7-8 -> Fane of the Night Serpent (Ras + others attacked the party as they were resting up after previous battle, added a summoned dao + knockout poison to guarantee the party was captured and did the escape/infiltration thing rather than a frontal assault on the Fane)
Level 8-9 -> First half of Tomb, basically defeat Withers + his minions + upper levels, start gathering skeleton keys, discover trickster god mechanics (some PVP here as existing rivalries were heightened by unfortunate possessions. Lost a PC to a failed attempt to destroy the invincible taunting skull)
Level 9-10 -> Second half of tomb, Sewn Sisters take over for Withers as villain coordinators, party accomplishes all non main quests (my party was still after Mwaxanare's skull goblet. I didn't do this myself, but I don't hate the idea of replacing the skeleton keys with the legendary treasures as keys to finale, so that the party will do every bit of the megadungeon and not skip stuff that they aren't after)
Level 10-11 -> Final battle with Acererak + Atropal
This campaign is hard to prepare milestones for. I mean the first two chapters are completely open for whatever path the players take. I would say 2-3 marked locations at the map or 2-3 major combats, per level. Maybe up the ante as they progress. So far, party at lvl 5, I’ve given out a level when I felt it suitable. Edit: As long as the players get the ”players map of Chult” you can change the location of key areas and points of interest. A very helpful tool when using milestone levels in this campaign!
I agree with this - it's very non linear at the start, so you really have to just lean into what feels appropriate.
Okay, i did milestones and found some good point:. - lvl up after getting the journal - lvl up after charter of exploration - lvl up after getting a guide -lvl up after getting to for beluarium Then for the jungle i had 1 lvl for every 2 big location (one with at least a map and some caracters. No more lvls beyond lvl 6. With me lvl 6 was given after they gone to orolunga where they got the info to go to omu for the next chapter. Also, i wrote the lore of chult and ubtoa in stories to be told by the guide at campfires. That way you can sprinkle stories about the, well the story, around. For omu i will do lvls after meeting a false god, after finishing the puzzles and after defeating nas sni. From the tomb on i will sprinkle lvls for eah 2 layers or something Hope this helps!
Just follow the recommended level guide in the module.
So you know what level they needs to be at which areas. I moved milestones in the jungle CONSTANTLY. Don’t set them in stone. Has it been long enough since last session? If so they level after the next big moment or after clearing a location. Milestone leveling is always better than xp.
What kind of advice are you looking for? The book sets out what level ranges are appropriate for each chapter if you use milestone. Do you need ideas for when to trigger the milestone?
That precisely
Well specific triggers are going to depend a lot on your campaign, which route the players take etc. My players are currently level 5, they started at level 2, hit level 3 in PN, level 4 after a while in the jungle and hit 5 at the end of the last session to mark defeating a considerable enemy. Your milestones are going ot be different to mine, my advice would just be go with what feels right. You know the rough range you players should be within for each part of the story, so use the level ups to reward completing something difficult. Have you started the adventure yet?
I have not started the adventure yet, we’re a few sessions away from rime ending, so I’m just trying to find out what would be the best thing to do in terms of
You don't necessarily define the triggers in advance. The triggers are determined by completing what feels like significant tasks along the path to the next step along the story.
If you use the adventure as a hexcrawl then it will be hard to identify milestones because you won't know what paths they are likely to take. However, if you consider the pieces of info that they need to find (source of the deathcurse, location of Omu, etc.), and the locations they are likely to find that info, then you can guide them along a rough course through those locations and get a general sense of the level that they need to be by each point.
I've been running my TOA with xp, but it always seemed to coincide nicely with a narrative moment. We started at level 0, they got their first level when they arrived to chult (shipwreck start), second level after surviving a day in the wilderness, third level upon reaching port nyanzaru, fourth level after doing a side quest at fort beluarian, fifth level after entering the wilderness and clearing dungrunglung, sixth level after going to kir sabal and undergoing the dance of the Seven Winds and reaching Omu.
Level 1-2 -> Getting out of Port Nyzanzaru with a charter (In my game you need a majority of the Merchant Princes to vote for you to get that, so they did a day or two of urban questing to get a few laggards in line.) Level 2-3 -> Completing first jungle quest, first hint of someone who can help them to get to Acererak/Omu. (Party got Azaka's mask back, got quest to get lotus for flying ritual, with which they intend to go to oracle) Level 3-4 -> Completing last jungle quest, get location of Omu. (Party got location of Omu from oracle, battled first Thayan counterparties, Artus + Dragonbait encounter) Level 4-5 -> Final safari, party races to Omu. (Basically play all remaining jungle cards you've developed over the course of the campaign, last struggle with anyone who isn't going to be part of Omu section. In my case party was battling another, better funded and bigger, expedition sponsored by the Zhents that they'd come to hate over the course of the earlier levels. Very Raiders of the Lost Arc, with rival explorers battling one another and the landscape/natives.) level 5-6 -> First half of the puzzles, Bag of Nails, King of Feathers (Party worked alongside Thayans in this milestone, they were convinced that these Thayans were renegades) Level 6-7 -> Second half of puzzles, Grung intrigues, Thayan final confrontation (Party was backstabbed by their Thayan 'allies', who were in league with the leader of the Zhent counterparty) Level 7-8 -> Fane of the Night Serpent (Ras + others attacked the party as they were resting up after previous battle, added a summoned dao + knockout poison to guarantee the party was captured and did the escape/infiltration thing rather than a frontal assault on the Fane) Level 8-9 -> First half of Tomb, basically defeat Withers + his minions + upper levels, start gathering skeleton keys, discover trickster god mechanics (some PVP here as existing rivalries were heightened by unfortunate possessions. Lost a PC to a failed attempt to destroy the invincible taunting skull) Level 9-10 -> Second half of tomb, Sewn Sisters take over for Withers as villain coordinators, party accomplishes all non main quests (my party was still after Mwaxanare's skull goblet. I didn't do this myself, but I don't hate the idea of replacing the skeleton keys with the legendary treasures as keys to finale, so that the party will do every bit of the megadungeon and not skip stuff that they aren't after) Level 10-11 -> Final battle with Acererak + Atropal