My group needs to feel pain

[Cake Mage]

I'm having a problem w/ my group. Nothing fazes them. I try to throw encounters that are challengeing enough equal to their lvl, but it end up only 1 person really gets hurt while the others are fine.

this is usually how it goes: Samuri wins init. charges (or something like it) gets his uber Ijitsu Strike (sp?) then the archer goes and drops the thing that the samuri just hit. everyone else wades into the baddies and I into the samuri cause he was first out. I nearly kill the samuri while everyone else is fine. and bye the end of the battle the samuri is nearly dead, everyone else is fine and I pissed off again.

Now I don't want to kill the samuri cause he's the unofficial leasder of the group and with out him there would be noe party really. But at the same time, he really needs to stop almost dying. Technicly he should be dead 3 times over already, but I have kept him alive.

Here's lies the main problem. How do I throw challenges at the party that won't kill the samuri outright and still be challengeing to the rest of the party.

The party consist of (it really ftr heavy):
Samuri lvl 10
Archer (ftr) 10
nobel/ftr 1/9
theif acrobat 10 (a rogue first some lvls then acrobat)
sorcorer 10 (likes sculpted fireball and max magic missle)
cleric 10 (he is worships whor (sp?) and is battle heavy)

 

[Zogg]

Dude you are showing favoritism. Stop that.

Kill the samurai if he's being stupid. Then kill anyone else that is being stupid. Clearly the party is exploiting some fear you have about killing PCs - one that, if ignored, would probably lead to a domino effect and a TPK. So get out the machete and start whacking some heads. I'm thinking a group of illithids that are dominating a bone dragon might do the trick.

 

[Jeph]

Study piratecat's story hour. Be a rat bastard. Kill stupid characters. Kill stupid players, if you really need to.

 

[Cake Mage]

I know its a little favoritism, but its only because I know if the samuiri dies, the party will fall apart. No party means no game.

 

[Witch Doctor]

Lots of little things might be the way to go. Give them just enough AC and HP so the Samurai actually has to concentrate on a single mob while the others can attack the rest of the party. Puts lots of melee preasure on the archer and mage and you'll soon find out just how tough your group really is.

 

[Ciaran]

I know its a little favoritism, but its only because I know if the samuiri dies, the party will fall apart. No party means no game.

Why will the party fall apart? Clearly this is a problem; in a game like D&D, where much of they dynamic tension comes from the risk of character death, there's a problem with making one character so essential to the story that it can't go on if that character dies.

Looks like you may have to change your party dynamics so that the group can continue even if the samurai dies. Otherwise, the group has no incentive to change the status quo - they know that they won't get killed because they have the unkillable samurai taking point.

- Eric

 

[Derulbaskul]

If their only tactic is to charge, then use this against them. In Monte Cook's Book of Hallowed Might there is a 1st level cleric spell, Divert Charge. This spell combined with a few covered pits can really spoil the day for a party like this.

In addition, you have four PCs with relatively lousy Will saves. This group could be just about beaten by six 3rd level clerics with the Divert Charge, Silence and Hold Person spells, provided they also took the feats Spell Focus and Greater Spell Focus: Enchantment.

Anyway, my philosophy is more to scare the crap out of the players. I will cheat to keep them alive (never the other way around)... but I like them to feel like they are hanging on a by a thread at all times.

Cheers
D

 

[Mark]

How do I throw challenges at the party that won't kill the samuri outright and still be challengeing to the rest of the party.

This assumes the Samurai is always between the party and the opponent. Seems like the party is managing to keep the samurai between themselves and the enemy so far so here's some ideas to change that-

Use terrain more effectively and split NPC groups so they attack the PCs from multiple points on several fronts. Use tunnels and areas with chasms that can be used to flank (in the traditional sense of the word) or move around the rear of the party.

3E, 3D - Flying attackers are very difficult to keep all on one side of a group with a single character between the opponents and the party.

Ethereal attackers can come out of walls, the ground, objects, etc.

Dimension Door, Blink, Teleport, Passwall, Polymorph, Meld into Stone various illusions and even a simple Rope Trick are other ways an opponent can bypass a font line fighter.

 

[EricNoah]

Make mobility an issue -- break up the battlefield so it's hard to get far in a straight line. Obscure vision, think 3D (creatures on ledges, etc.). Flying opponents.

Ooh, Creative Mountain and I were on the same wavelength at the same time. Spooky!

 

[Bhaal]

Mages are great at taking out fighters with the knowledge of their weak will saves. Get a mage to dominate that samurai. The rest of the party vs. him + a few creatures should make for an interesting fight, and they'll be MUCH more careful about what they're fighting. I suppose it depends on how easy raising a party member is in your campaign, but at the least a good honest threat of them actually dying or realizing that there's no way they can overcome their opponent is usually enough to shape them up.