Challenging my high-lvl group (NPCs and monsters; my players shouldn't read this!)

[Piratecat]

With respect to your last couple of updates:

Very cool encounter in the Defenders' supposedly safe castle.

So, what is it? A cross between a Gibbering Mouther and a Chaos Beast?

I am particularly interested in what magical protections you had it use. Creative uses of spells and powers is something I have been working on lately to challenge my moderately powerful group (now 9-11 level).

wow! Are your PCs already that high? I loved the one time we got to sit in on the game.

A couple of thoughts:

- hitting them in the supposedly safe CCC was really violating. They were generally worried and disturbed, and Kellharin goaded them into taking the next step (you'll see in a few updates.)

- I love chaos beasts. I'll have to advance one and see how they do. I threw normal ones at them back during the trillith encounter 2 years ago, and it didn't really affect them.

- I love gibbering mouthers, too, but Sagiro used a giant one of those in his game, and I hate to duplicate efforts.

- The layered spells were designed so that if a few of the high level spells were dispelled, the lower level spells would still be active. Also, I wanted to emphasize that Kellharin and company meant serious business.

Of course, that maximized dispel magic wand (introduced during the al quith adventure as a rules error on my part) stripped everything away. Only a few more charges left in it, though!

 

[Ashy]

Hurmph... And the man tells *me* that he doesn't like using layered templates.... I guess not - layered spells are far more EEEVVVVVILLLLLLL.....

Awesome, Pkitty! Oh yea, look for an email full o' idears soon!

 

[DoctorB]

I have been giving out full experience to my players so they have risen quickly to be the world-shakers I wanted them to be. Now I am not sure if I should throttle back on the exp or see what happens when they catch up to the Defenders in another year or so. Then I would have need of all the wacky-powerful enemies you throw at your guys.

If you agree with Galfridus, then the DoD casting nondetection on everyone should make scrying considerably more difficult. Combine that with Screen and they should be pretty safe (at the cost of a dozen spells or so a day...).
Alternatively, I guess Valendo could cast a Miracle and pay the exp to try and make the castle immune to Scrying, or at least have a permanent non-detection on the whole place.

 

[Piratecat]

If you agree with Galfridus, then the DoD casting nondetection on everyone should make scrying considerably more difficult. Combine that with Screen and they should be pretty safe (at the cost of a dozen spells or so a day...).
Alternatively, I guess Valendo could cast a Miracle and pay the exp to try and make the castle immune to Scrying, or at least have a permanent non-detection on the whole place.

Thirty dwarves = a whole passle of nondetections. And the Castle is new every time the spell gets cast, so they'd have to research an entirely new spell to make it scrying-proof. Miracle won't cut it.

 

[Caliber]

I believe there is a Psionic power called Remote View Trap, but since Tomtom is currently incapacitated I guess he can't use it. If I remember right, it allows opposed checks if anyone tries to scry into the spells area (which lasts 24 hours) and if the caster (of the Remote View Trap) wins, the scry not only fails, but the scry's caster takes damage.

Pretty useful really.

And very cool monster. I love it!

 

[Greybar]

So Kellharin is at least 20th level, hmm... (5 spell immunities = 1 per 4 caster levels)

The Defenders are going to really enjoy when they finally get a shot at him. But I love that the confrontation will likely signal the end of the arc...

John

 

[Jeremy]

Black Puddings are so nasty. With the right templates the become immune to everything and regenerate.

Toss one in a blade barrier and watch it divide and take over the country.

Very evocative description for the nasty nasty. Very cool way to look at him.

 

[Samnell]

Sluuth is the awesomest monster I've seen in months. I wish I had a high level party to use it on. Maybe if the poor bastards I'm about to start RttToEE for live through it...

 

[JacktheRabbit]

Sounds like the DoD will be forced to use the ultimate in perfect home defense.

Every night Velendo casts a Comfortable Castle INSIDE a spherical Sovereign Wall.

That should block all scry and gate tricks.

Of course it expends Velendo's most powerful Wall spell every day but I think it would be worth it.

 

[Piratecat]

Doc, you're a clever monkey. He's planning on the reverse, though; casting a spherical sovereign wall inside of a Calphas' Comfy Castle. Until further notice, the CCC has only one huge room, in the hopes that Agar's detect scrying will pick up any scrying attemnts while they're in there. Pretty clever, really.