Belated 5 Takeaways from 1st D&D AL of 2018

On the first Tuesday of February 2018, I participated in my first D&D 5E Adventurers League (AL) module, and first D&D session, of the year. So this second Five Take-away, but first for AL, is being blogged much, much later than planned. In my defense, I was busy...


Wait, Bards Rely on Being Heard?! - In hindsight, Bards relying on their targets hearing them makes perfect sense. Yet, I didn't realize just how much a Bard relies upon their opponents attack spells in order to hurt them until this session. I learned this for reasons I will elaborate upon later...


I Have Access to Night Vision spell, Will Use Torch Instead - My tortle monk whose level 4 follows the Way of Shadow (he is a ninja after all). As such he has access to the spell Night Vision. Once again, he used a torch instead of casting it. Difference this time is I forgot to cast it as maybe only one or two other PC needed light to see. So the ninja was carrying a torch. Made an interesting visual when he tried hiding holding it aloft...


Monks Like Short Rests - I wasn't playing the only monk at the table; and both characters had Qi points. Qi points we used. Qi points we realized we could have would have should have refreshed entering the final battle. At the point I told the new player 'Oh yeah monks regain Qi after a short rest.' Not one of my finer moments as a more experienced player...


Eagle Totem Barbarians Should Not Recklessly Attack When Moving About
As far as I can recall, this was the first AL mod I played when the totem barbarian followed Eagle and not Bear. During combat, the barbarian seemed to follow the strategy of Reckless Attack All The Time. The exception was when he moving past or away from enemies. Considering doing so would negate the ability of Eagle, it makes sense.


Way of Shadow Spellcasting Played a Decisive Role in a Battle!
Much like this was the first time playing an eagle totem barbarian, this was the first time that the Way of Shadow abilities played a pivotal role during a module! As we began our final battle against what he suspected was a spellcaster, my ninja casted Silence upon them. Thus, their spell-casting was neutralized! The DM made it well known the complexion of the battle was altered significantly due to this. Oh yeah, remember the first takeaway about bards? Yeah, this is where I learned that... All worked out in the end. The Bard got to do some cool bard stuff after all. Plus, did we die?


Should be more on time with the next installment of Five Takeaways, which I will blog next week.


Happy Gaming!


Next time.