How Would You Defend A Mountain Fortress?

[DarkDragon]

Someone mentioned the Shadow solution earlier, and I assume it would work well, but is it any better than the Vampire solution?

Much better, as it only takes rounds to make new shadows and not days to make vampires.
If the legions are camped in tents, say ten men per tent. You send fifty shadows into each tent, coming from the underground completely silent. You now have sixty shadows in each tent. There should be nothing that the legions can do, if this is timed right, Wipe them all out at the same time. This will only take minutes.
Now you have a couple of hundred thousand shadows to deploy against anything still living.
Also keep our high level clerics producing undead for cannon fodder, more vampires are a good thing, create greater undead is nice.

 

[The Iron Mark]

I'm thinking of an idea for the commander but I need to know how I should get my base ability scores. Roll dice? If so, how many? Or is it point buy? If so, how many points and is it weighted? Or do he just get all eighteens because he's the boss and he just that good?

 

[Nail]

As previously pointed out, this task can be divided into 2 things. Defending against a commando raid and defending against an army

Gaaaah! What a monster thread! 20 posts/page, average ~700 words per post! Aaaack! I'm readin' ferkin' novels here!

....anyway: I'm not sure why yer even talking about troop deployment. On either side. T' me, whoever fields troops first => looses. Mooks may hold ground (maybe), but in a SHARK-esque world, they can't capture it. An' remember, in SHARK's world, anything under 10th level is a mook. (.....Hell, 20th level.)

The war (such as it is) would be decided by the epic level types. (60th level! Yipes!!) The troops (even the 10th level ones) are jus' window dressing.

An' as 3e D&D is unquestionably offense dominated, the only way you'll win is if you attack. ......Defend, an' be slaughtered.

To th' offense goes th' spoils.

Ideas: Hmmmfff. Jus' kill 'em quicker than they kill you.

 

[The Iron Mark]

Is anything from Dragon allowed?

 

[SHARK]

Greetings!

Dice rolling conventions are the standard, though higher stat-assignments/point buys for elite leaders and special troops is fine.

Dragon stuff is ok too!

Books indeed Nail!

Well, considering that characters that are 20th level and above recieve no experience whate so ever for opponents under 12th level, I don't believe in wasting time with any encounters with creatures under 6th level. Once in awhile is ok, but after a short time, it merely becomes an exercise in dice-rolling. Thus, I make some assumptions about the world, and the various opponents. They tend to grow in experience, and field hard-charging formations just like the "good-guys." The stakes are high, and there is no particular mandate that says that the "good-guys" should automatically win, nor should they automatically have it easy!

Semper Fidelis,

SHARK

 

[Crowe9107]

Well, it certainly is a challenge. Given the circumstances, conventional measures will not work for the forces of evil. The average level of experience for a Valorean Squad is 10th level (not factoring in ECLs for templates and races). The Average Galleran Squad is 2nd level. It is quite conceivable to me that an average Valorean Squad could confront an entire Galleran Century of 80 men and expect to survive with no casualties. The Valoreans have a minimum of 35 major artifacts at their disposal. The numbers are staggering, I have read that in the time of Nero, the combined legions of Rome numbered 28 Legions of between 4800 and 6000 men. This encounter is twice that, and is not even the main event!. The situation in some ways reminds me of the closing of WWII, the Allies at their peak, combining numbers and resources with newly gained battlefield experience, while Germany relies on a handful of crack troops and raw recruits gained from the very young and the very old.

A challenge indeed. And if it was not, SHARK would not need our input.

Conventional tactics will not work. Therefore unconventional measures must be used. Try not to think of this so much as Army X versus Army Y, think of this as Kobolds versus an Adventure party, except that we don't have numerical superiority either, therefore our tactics must be even better. A second level fighter has about 14hps, and at best an AC of 19, therefore, melee combat should be avoided. Ranged attacks and reach attacks from behind cover will do us best. A 12th level fireball centered in a Gammorean Phalanx will kill 40 of 80 men (assuming a 10x8 formation) from a range of 880ft., so cover and dipersement should be extensively used.

We must think very carefully on this, we aren't supposed to win, but I think their victory should come with a terrible price.

If I still breathed mortal air, my last breath would be to defy thee!
---Azurukin

Re,

Carl Rowe

 

[mmadsen]

Given the circumstances, conventional measures will not work for the forces of evil.

The good news is that we have some very unconventional forces, namely Vampires.

The average level of experience for a Valorean Squad is 10th level (not factoring in ECLs for templates and races). The Average Galleran Squad is 2nd level. It is quite conceivable to me that an average Valorean Squad could confront an entire Galleran Century of 80 men and expect to survive with no casualties.

If it comes down to a square fight, "It's game over, man."

The situation in some ways reminds me of the closing of WWII, the Allies at their peak, combining numbers and resources with newly gained battlefield experience, while Germany relies on a handful of crack troops and raw recruits gained from the very young and the very old.

I like your analogy! Only it doesn't fill me with courage...

 

[Crowe9107]

I like your analogy! Only it doesn't fill me with courage...

Fear not, Mr. Madsen, sometimes desperation breeds inspiration. Going with my WWII analogy, the Galleran equivalent of the Bazooka.

Heavy Crossbow [You might want to make it +1 Distance or +1 Far Distance for more experienced troops]. 50gp. The Range Increment is the key, 120ft, equivalent to a Ballista and outranging Long and Composite Bows, also, easy to use.

Payload: +1 Arrows of Spell Storing Cost 8,000 per 50 (160gp ea)
Suggested Spell Loads: Entangle, Web, Obscuring Mist, Fireball.

Tactics: Shoot and Scoot. Fire a delaying spell, then follow up with a damage spell and run like hell before they figure out where you are. This is best done from a concealed location from extreme range (a direct hit is not essential). Best accomplished by a Sorceror with True Strike and Expeditious Retreat, though ANY class can use a crossbow. Fired at the front of columns, these could cause significant delays. Ambush sites should be monitored to TP in strike teams that deal with any forward scouts (as well as having conventional assests in place to ambush scouts).

As the Spell Storing isn't limited by caster level, these could have been pre-charged by high-level casters and added to warstocks (20min Entangles? 10d6 Fireballs?). Volley fired, by a group of 10 (5 bolts apiece), could produce significant casualties.

Re,

Carl Rowe

 

[mmadsen]

Gaaaah! What a monster thread! 20 posts/page, average ~700 words per post! Aaaack! I'm readin' ferkin' novels here!

Nail makes a good point. This thread is getting a bit unwieldly. Perhaps we can summarize the few key points we've come up with so far? Or we could divide the topic up into mini-threads dealing with separate subjects: high-level magic vs. high-level magic, etc.

 

[optimizer]

Howdy!

Nail makes a good point. This thread is getting a bit unwieldly. Perhaps we can summarize the few key points we've come up with so far? Or we could divide the topic up into mini-threads dealing with separate subjects: high-level magic vs. high-level magic, etc.

I have been off-line since Friday. Has anyone doen more with summarizing or dividing up this topic?

Thanks.

Mike