collapsing a level of a dungeon

[stegma]

Ok here is the situation - were on the 3rd level of this dungeon. There is a main chamber and hallways lead out of it. The chamber is 10 Feet high and it has about 16 thick columns about 5 feet wide that run down the centre of it.

The question is... how do we collapse the 3rd level totaly. (I can irect a wall of force above us to keep us from outright dying) I can also use disintegrate twice to take care of 2 of the pilllars. That will not be enough to do the job.

We have a Barbarian that can break through walls.... 12th level - but would he be able to destroy pillars? probably but time consuming i think

Warlock that can "shatter" infitinaly..... Can that work on a pillar? Time consuming?

The main question is..... Explosives... are they in the books? Are they good enough to actualy do the job?

What ideas can you give me on this???

 

[starwed]

Shatter at will is probably better than explosives.

If you have anything made of adamantine, it'll let the barbarian knock down the pillars really fast.

 

[Sejs]

If you have anything made of adamantine, it'll let the barbarian knock down the pillars really fast.

Corollary: any weapon made of adamantine.

Spoons need not apply.

 

[Sejs]

As to the actual question.

Ok here is the situation - we're on the 3rd level of this dungeon. There is a main chamber and hallways lead out of it. The chamber is 10 feet high and it has about 16 thick columns about 5 feet wide that run down the centre of it.

OKay, just for starters, the columns: a 5 foot thick stone column will have a hardness of 8, 900 hp, and a break DC somewhere in the neighborhood of 65-70.

The question is... how do we collapse the 3rd level totaly? I can erect a wall of force above us to keep us from outright dying. I can also use disintegrate twice to take care of 2 of the pilllars. That will not be enough to do the job.

This would be one of those situations in which Knowledge (Architecture and Engineering) would come into play. Identify the primary load-bearing supports and drop those, let unsupported weight take out the rest. Without knowing the particulars of construction though, I'd say your best bet would be to just start smacking likely structures and hope for the best.

Hope you have teleport or something btw, because getting out from that rubble could prove, er, tricky.

We have a Barbarian that can break through walls.... 12th level - but would he be able to destroy pillars? Probably, but time consuming I think

*nod* You pretty much nailed it. Doable but time consuming. Possibly very time consuming. Is this something you need done quickly or just plain done?

Warlock that can "shatter" infitinaly..... Can that work on a pillar? Time consuming?

Sadly, it's not really an option. Shatter can affect a target weighing up to 10 lbs per caster level regardless of its composition. Guessing that the warlock is the same level as the barbarian, that's up to 120 lbs. Assuming they're solid, a 5' thick by 10' tall stone pillar would weigh somewhere around 2000 metric tons. The weight restriction makes Shatter a nonviable option. You'd be better off with something like Stone Shape (make the columns into a shape that can't support its own weight, so it topples), Stone to Flesh (much easier to cut), Polymorphing a party member into a Umber Hulk or similar.

The main question is..... Explosives... are they in the books? Are they good enough to actualy do the job?

Not for what you're looking for, honestly. This is more of a magic or manpower job.

What ideas can you give me on this???

With the right tools it's doable, but it probably won't be quick.

Just out of curiosity, why do you need this place brought down?

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Do you know an Umber Hulk who knows you a favor?

 

[stegma]

well im tring to think of an alternative to fighitng a level 18 wizard, 6 Cleriks, 3 demons and a pile of glnolls at the same time. One of the Cleriks is about 17 level and the rest are about 12 or so.. plus there is a realy powerful demon that may just finish us off if we actualy take out this ambush. Now the wizard is hell bent on exploring the 4th level of this dungeon... and the one thing that could buy us some time is collapsing it totaly.

Yes I do have teleport also a spell storing ring with Teleport so we can get the whole party out safely.. a staff that can basicaly erect 20 force walls if i needed ....

I figure the shatter wont work but a barbarian with adamantine axe ? maybe eh?

The Wizard is pissed, halfway drained ... we managed to withstand one major attack and nearly killed him before a "contingency" DDoor took him to the 2nd level......

So.. yea i think we need this done kind of fast..... im getting the idea that it wont be possible.

OMG writing this just got me a briliant idea!!!

TRANSMUTE ROCK TO MUD..... 5th level... transform two 10foot cubes per level ... that means.... every column could be turned into mud within 6 seconds... accept i dont have the spell on me at hand. Although.... this could be an amazing AMAZING way to taking out the whole ambush... say i cast a wall of force above us and infront of us... to hold the ceiling and prevent attack ... lure them into the hallway... once in i transmute the pillars to mud and SQUASH... ALL OF THEM ARE DEAD.

well that was a healthy brainstorming session.
Thanks all!!

GENIUS!

 

[stegma]

ahhh hell.. just read the spell....

it doenst work on "worked stone"

 

[Bad Paper]

(I can irect a wall of force above us to keep us from outright dying)

And how does that work, exactly? You are aware that a wall of force is always a vertical plane, right?