Witch's Wake Gameplay Tips
By Rob Bartel
Please note: Spoiler Warning
Interesting Items
With the Witch's Wake series, I'm being very deliberate about how I manipulate the mood of the player and am very careful about maintaining suspension of disbelief. For that reason, I've generally avoided including the traditional 'out-of-game' Easter Eggs while developing the module. That said, there are a lot of interesting items that some players will stumble across in the module that will likely play an important role in future episodes. I haven't fully decided what I'll do with your severed finger, for instance, but I'm sure I'll come up with something. =o)
Off the Beaten Class Path
All character classes are fully supported in Witch's Wake, but I always encourage players to explore some of the non-traditional character types that may not have fared so well in the official campaigns. The conversation system I developed for the module rewards those characters who develop their non-combat skills, for instance, as well as spellcasters who keep a Charm Person or two memorized just in case.
The Story is the Thing
My goal with the Witch's Wake series was to get away from some of the traditional RPG conventions, such as puzzles, dungeons, and quests. Instead, everything is driven by the story and your central goal, bestowed upon you by your dying Prince, to 'tell the King that she is dead.' That becomes your primary quest and all other quests ultimately feed into it. Your long journey home becomes your epic dungeon. Your identity, the identity of your King, and the identity of the 'she' the Prince referred to become the keys that the fundamental puzzle presented in the series--a puzzle that is complicated by your lingering doubts about the motivations of all involved.
Combat Tips
The initial reaction of most players is to face their enemies head on. For certain classes and character types, that will continue to be a viable option in Witch's Wake. On the whole, however, the series is designed with the survival horror genre in mind. It's possible to complete the module without killing a single creature, though it may take some stealth or judicious use of the tactic I call 'running away screaming.' As for specific battles, use the advantage of speed against the zombies in the Meerwood (and not that they seem to fear the Ethereal Leak found nearby). Also remember that, in the areas immediately surrounding the Meerwood, the kobolds don't like the zombies any more than you do. Also, the Night Hag has some defenses in place to protect her cemetery from monsters, provided you know how to use them.
Get Yourself Killed Once in a While
Don't be afraid to die every now and again, especially if and when you've gained the assistance of the Night Hag. The dead occasionally come to her Plane of Sorrows to petition the living and there is much that can be learned from them. You can reach the Plane of Sorrows by choosing to respawn when you die rather than reloading a previous save game.
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