A Brush With The BBEG

[Neonchameleon]

The BBEG's goal is not the PCs. It is something else - the PCs are partially in the way. For instance the BBEG's goal is to spirit off the damsel in distress. Or it's a Palace Coup - and he assassinates the prince while the PCs are either held at swordpoint or trying to take out his suborned guards. If the villain is not so much running from the heroes as not staying around because he's accomplished his objective then things get nasty.

 

[Joshua Randall]

If the villain is not so much running from the heroes as not staying around because he's accomplished his objective then things get nasty.

Excellent point -- it works especially well if the players aren't sure what the villain wants.

This reminds me of one of my favorite villain encounters I've ever run -- perhaps this can be adapted to the werewolf situation.

[sblock]In my encounter, the PCs had tracked an artifact (just a McGuffin; its powers are irrelevant) to a certain dryad in the woods. They were in the process of negotiating with the dryad for possession of the artifact when the bad guys attacked.

The players assumed that the bad guys wanted to kill the dryad and the PCs. What the bad guys actually wanted was to take the artifact and bug out.

So the fight started and the PCs were playing fairly cautiously, trying to protect the easily hit dryad, etc. The bad guys open up with a volley of Str-draining poisoned weapon attacks (this was 3e), grabbed the artifact when the dryad's Str was drained to 0, and ran off. The Str-drained PCs were practically collapsing under the weight of their own armor, so they couldn't pursue.

Boy, were they pissed.

Anyway, I think that fight worked particularly well because...
* The bad guys had an agenda unknown to the players.
* The bad guys did NOT fight fair.
* The PCs were able to kill two of the bad guys, but...
* ... the last bad guy was able to escape, legitimately, and it made sense (to the players )that he would've had this planned out.[/sblock]

 

[MortalPlague]

The BBEG's goal is not the PCs.

That's also a very good point.

My game starts in 3 hours or so. What I'm going to do is this; the werewolves are attacking a lumbermill. Working in the lumbermill is a fellow who turns out to be the bastard son of the local lord; an illegitimate heir. He doesn't know this, and neither do most of the PCs. One of my characters is playing the "Bog Witch", so I could easily let him know who the fellow really is without playing DM fiat. The delightful thing is that the PCs already suspect the lord of being a werewolf, while the leader is really the lord's fiancee.

So the werewolves attack the lumbermill while the PCs are visiting, kill the guy, then battle with the PCs to the cliff, where they jump down. As a bonus, I'm going to give the strong werewolf a 10-foot log which he's wielding, giving him threatening reach 2 until he's disarmed. That way he'll be tough to take down without taking damage, and he'll have a different set of powers when they meet him later. And, as a bonus, he'll have a blast 3 attack called "Throw The Log", which will push people and knock them prone, giving him the chance to escape!

*EDIT*

Here's the power I'll be giving him:

Throw The Log - Encounter, requires log
Close blast 3: +12 vs. Reflex; 2d10+6 damage, and the target is pushed 2 squares.
Effect: The target is knocked prone.

This way, the attack is pretty effective, and even if it doesn't hit the tank, it'll still knock him down (he dives to the deck to avoid the log). And then he'll still be able to make his attack, just at a penalty.

 

[MortalPlague]

I ran the battle. The PCs were delayed by some minions outside, while the werewolves set about their grisly task. The PCs managed to get inside, and found themselves battling a fearsome foe, wielding a massive log. The battle was vicious, but it all turned when the barbarian struck him with a silver weapon... and activated his axe's power, which forced a shapechanger struck to revert to their natural form. The fearsome werewolf quite suddenly became Bander Brickside, one of the senior grooms in Lord Gallant's stables.

He, of course, couldn't wield a massive log. And so his "throw the log" escape plan was foiled. He and the other werewolf battled, then made their escapes; they were both nearly bloodied, but they had enough hit points to survive the opportunity attacks, and so over the cliff they went.

The fact that they were there to slay the bastard son really made things work. It added a piece to the puzzle, and gave the players a sense that the villains really weren't there for them in the first place. And, since they knew his identity, they rode to Gallant Keep and started a witch hunt... They just missed the werewolves, who made violent escapes shortly before the characters could identify them. So next session will begin with my players setting out on the trail of a trio of werewolves, some of whom they've met face to face.

So to everyone who commented here, thank you. Your advice made for one hell of a session!

 

[Grabuto138]

I ran the battle. The PCs were delayed by some minions outside, while the werewolves set about their grisly task. The PCs managed to get inside, and found themselves battling a fearsome foe, wielding a massive log. The battle was vicious, but it all turned when the barbarian struck him with a silver weapon... and activated his axe's power, which forced a shapechanger struck to revert to their natural form. The fearsome werewolf quite suddenly became Bander Brickside, one of the senior grooms in Lord Gallant's stables.

He, of course, couldn't wield a massive log. And so his "throw the log" escape plan was foiled. He and the other werewolf battled, then made their escapes; they were both nearly bloodied, but they had enough hit points to survive the opportunity attacks, and so over the cliff they went.

The fact that they were there to slay the bastard son really made things work. It added a piece to the puzzle, and gave the players a sense that the villains really weren't there for them in the first place. And, since they knew his identity, they rode to Gallant Keep and started a witch hunt... They just missed the werewolves, who made violent escapes shortly before the characters could identify them. So next session will begin with my players setting out on the trail of a trio of werewolves, some of whom they've met face to face.

So to everyone who commented here, thank you. Your advice made for one hell of a session!

Very cool.

 

[Joshua Randall]

Sweet. Glad everything turned out well.