A Dozen Crossbows Aimed at You ..

[Hammerhead]

A high level character should survey his opposition contemptuously, and then feel disappointed. After all, the last bunch of guys he defeated had fifty men, and that was barely a warm up. Look at all the creatures a 15th level character can defeat...would they feel threatened by twelve guys with inferior weaponry? Of course not. The demon or dragon or demon dragon would just annihilate them.

 

[Drawmack]

In what way is that 'within the rules as written'? Not only is there no mechanism within the rules (even at Epic level, and with very good reason) to enchant weapons to always hit and/or do max damage, but you've also felt the need to introduce a house rule (percentile roll at less than 50% hit points).

I don't have my books handy to look it up. But I'm pretty sure that it is a standard rule that if you loose 50% of HP in a single round you have to make a percentile roll or die.

As for the other part, okay maybe that was a bit much. But there are enchantments, in the rules, that will make a cross bow bolt harm even a high level character. Let's say +5 to start and the arrows are lightning arrows.

 

[Nail]

My players might be thinking......these are really arrow demons in disguise......

 

[GreatLemur]

If you really want to have this happen in a game of D&D without changing the rules dramatically, offer a story award of 100/1000/whatever Experience Points, and treat the guards as having access to an automatic Coup de Grace attempt on the PCs if they move to resist. In other words, it's like the Hero Point mechanic from Mutants and Masterminds, where in exchange for a contrived plot situation, the PCs get a reward. If they think they can beat the Coup de Grace, let them; if they don't want to chance it, just as in real life, then they do what the guards say.

That works for me. Even in heroic fiction, you'll occasionally see the heroes caught dead to rights by a bunch of mooks, and forced to come quietly to the evil mastermind's dungeon. The laws of physics and common sense are thrown out regularly, sure, but it's fine to bring them back into play when it's dramatically appropriate.

Just tell the players "They've totally got the drop on you, and they basically can't miss. If you go along with them, you will get chances to escape or talk your way out." If there's a reasonable amount of player-GM trust in the group, it should be cool.

Reminds me of any old joke, story...heck, not sure where I heard it.

I'm the High Level Character and the guards are staring at me over the tops of their crossbows, I have to stop and look around then say, "Now...ask yourself boys, am I trapped in here with you? Or are you trapped in here with me?"

I think what that is is a paraphrased scene from Watchmen, when Rorschach is in prison with his enemies. It is one of the awesomest scenes in the comics medium. The actual line is something more like "You don't get it. I'm not locked in here with you; you're locked in here with me."

 

[Seeker95]

I think incresing the crit range of the arrows is a reasonable method, as are a number of suggestions offered here. In any case, I think the risk of death should be increased in such a situation, assuming the crossbows *could* hit them in the first place.

 

[gnfnrf]

I don't have my books handy to look it up. But I'm pretty sure that it is a standard rule that if you loose 50% of HP in a single round you have to make a percentile roll or die.

As for the other part, okay maybe that was a bit much. But there are enchantments, in the rules, that will make a cross bow bolt harm even a high level character. Let's say +5 to start and the arrows are lightning arrows.

I will second the opinion that there is no 50% rule. There is a house rule about being staggered if you lose a percentage of your CURRENT HP, but nothing about dying. Death from massive damage triggers at 50 hp, not 50%, and calls for a Fort save.

As for the other, giving low level soldiers expensive equipment will only make the problem worse. Assuming that they were at +4 to hit before (from another poster), +5 magic bolts get them to +9. A 15th level fighter AC at this level is, IME around 35, with perhaps 4 points lost when flat-footed. The quards STILL need a natural 20 to hit. Then, the PCs loot the bodies of the guardsmen, sell the valuable equipment, and are even more powerful next time.

I don't have a problem with the fact that a dozen 2nd level guardsmen cannot stop a 15th level PC from doing what he wants. That's what DnD is. The very fact that every N/PC is rated by level is intended to tell us this. 15 >> 2. For games in which this effect doesn't happen, look for games in which N/PCs are not rated by level (or keep levels close to each other).

--
gnfnrf

 

[delericho]

I don't have my books handy to look it up. But I'm pretty sure that it is a standard rule that if you loose 50% of HP in a single round you have to make a percentile roll or die.

Ah, death by massive damage. If you take more than 50 hit points of damage in a single attack, you must make a Fortitude save (DC 15) or die. This rule doesn't apply here, since the guards can't cause that much damage even on a max-damage critical. Even if they could, virtually anything that can survive 50 hit points of damage in a single attack will pass that save on anything but a 1. (That's less true now that we have the Knight, but previously it was a near-certainty.)

 

[Sejs]

Reminds me of any old joke, story...heck, not sure where I heard it.

I'm the High Level Character and the guards are staring at me over the tops of their crossbows, I have to stop and look around then say, "Now...ask yourself boys, am I trapped in here with you? Or are you trapped in here with me?"

It wasn't phrased as a question, but as a statement.

Rorschach, from the Watchmen. When he's put in prison.

 

[VirgilCaine]

Personally, I find the scenario to be flawed. 15th level PCs would not be surrounded by average guards. That's sadism on the part of the city's rulers. You don't get to 15th level without getting a reputation...be as a champion of good, a dependable mercenary and troubleshooter or as a scourge of evil (or a scourge of virgins).

The city "SWAT team" (local high level clerics and wizards, and their bodyguards ) would be surrounding the area, along with a representative to be sent in to ask the PCs nicely to please explain why they are suddenly triggering the city-wide always-on detect evil spells or the rumors they are actually mind-controlled demon servants or whatever the case of mistaken identity is.

 

[Ferret]

I think with having just so many people attacking, the PCs shouldn't come out with a scratch. They should suffer somewhat, but it depends on the situation how bad it is.