Last month, I talked about immersing your characters in a skill challenge. This month, I'm presenting a skill challenge I ran in my Temple of Elemental Evil campaign. If you played the original adventure, you'll probably notice a few changes I've made to the story and NPCs.
After battling the minions of the wizard Falrinth, the characters cornered him in his laboratory. Falrinth works for Obmi, a sinister dwarf assassin and devoted lieutenant of the demigod Iuz. Obmi has long been a thorn in the characters' sides, and Falrinth recognizes the characters from the dwarf's description of them. When they burst into his lab, he has one goal in mind: escape with his life and make sure that the orb of golden death does not fall into their hands. The skill challenge is a test to see whether the characters can break Falrinth's loyalty to Obmi and persuade him to hand over the orb.
This format is a little different from other skill challenges I've presented. It shows off my notes, but it focuses more on the procedures I used to run the challenge.
Want to view the complete article? Subscribe to D&D Insider. 
Your D&DI subscription includes...
| D&D Character Builder |
Dungeon Magazine |
| D&D Compendium |
Dragon Magazine |
| D&D Adventure Tools |
|
About the Author
Mike Mearls is the Lead Designer for the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game. His recent credits include Player's Handbook 3, Hammerfast, and Primal Power.