A 4e Vacation - Tybee Island & Hilton Head Terrain Powers

Greetings, Everyone!

As you may have noticed from random Tweets and various other activity, I've been away the last week or so on a lovely vacation trip to Savannah, Georgia.  My wife (@FELTit) and I had a great time with friends that met us down there, and we really enjoyed the weather and activities the region had to offer.

While our friends flew down to Savannah to join us there, the wife and I drove our little Kia Rio across the region so that we could see the South (I'd never been).  On the way back, we saw some fantastic scenery including the beach (Hilton Head & Tybee Island), the mountains (Smoky Mountains), and the Underdark (Mammoth Cave).  We took plenty of great pictures, and I've been itching to show some of those off.

However, since this blog tries to be about 4e Dungeons and Dragons, I wanted to link some of the places we've been, to some 4e mechanics I thought would be fun.  The Dungeon Master's Guide II discusses a new encounter feature known as a Terrain Power.  Terrain Powers are usable by any of the combatants in a given encounter area and can be either persistent features or one-shot effects that can be used for heroic action.

For today's post, I want to share with you some Terrain Powers inspired by the sandy beaches of Tybee Island and Hilton Head.  

Sand Blind

At-Will Terrain

You pick up a large handful of beach sand and hurl it at the enemy, temporarily obscuring its vision.

At-Will
Standard Action                     Ranged 3
Requirement: You must have a free hand in which to grab the sand.
Target: One enemy
Attack: Level +3 vs. Reflex

Hit: 1 point of damage and the target's vision is obscured.

Miss: No Effect

Effect: The target's vision is obscured, which grants you partial cover until the end of the target's next turn.

Jellyfish Lob

Single-Use Terrain

Carefully picking up a stranded jellyfish from the beach, you hurl it at your opponent, hoping it will sting them mercilessly.

At-Will , Poison
Standard Action                     Ranged 3
Requirement: Your main hand must be free to grab the jellyfish.
Target: One enemy
Attack: Level +3 vs. Reflex
Special: This is a single use terrain power. Only one jellyfish per square can be lobbed. It is possible that multiple squares within the encounter area have a usable jellyfish.

Hit: 1d4 points of poison damage + ongoing 1 poison damage (save ends).

Miss: No Effect

Deceptive Sea

At-Will Terrain

Maneuvering into the shallows near the beach, you lure your opponent into getting swept off his feet by a random wave.

At-Will Terrain
Standard Action                     Close wall 1

Requirement: The beach must be experiencing some level of surf in order for this power to be effective.

Check: Bluff check (hard DC) to position yourself to avoid an oncoming wave that will knock over your opponent.

Effect: Your distracted opponent falls prone into the shallow water.

Miss: You misstep, falling prone in the shallow water.

When I re-visit Terrain Powers, I'll look at some powers inspired by the great Smoky Mountains.

Until next time...

Game excellently with one another.