AoW.TFoE: I think my PCs are screwed (spoilers)

[Mercule]

So, last week they took down the Faceless One and his minions. Then we broke for the night. The five, fifth level PCs are seriously weakened. They are both short of health and effectively out of spells (offensive or defensive).

And, they still have the Ebon Aspect to face. Looking at his stats, I'm pretty sure it's gonna be a slaughter. 75 hps, DR 10/magic, resistance or immunity to all elements, and spell resistance. The PCs don't have a magic weapon and the warmage is tapped out.

Plus, the module says the first thing the Aspect does is smash the elevator. With a forced fight, I don't see how the PCs can survive.

I'm a bit torn on what to do. The group agreed at the outset that we'd play the dice as rolled and the modules as written -- one PC has already died and been replaced -- but this seems extreme. On the other hand, part of the reason I wanted to "play as they lay" is because I feel that my group tends to be a bit weak on tactics and some of the players have the expectation that the GM will ultimately save their bacon, so I don't want to fold.

About the only option I can think of is to have the Aspect leave the elevator alone, which would allow three or four PCs to escape while one played rear guard. It would also make them make the choice between the long shot of them all staying alive together or having one or two characters willingly sacrifice themselves for the good of the party.

Any advice? I've got four hours.

 

[freyar]

I don't really know the adventure, but I'd leave the elevator alone and make them think a bit. That just sounds like it would be more fun, for you and them.

 

[borc killer]

He will kill them. Let it happen. If by some crazy happenstance they live then all the better, but if not then someone will have to go investigate what happened. The PCs should have people in town that would at least look for them or think something was up. So you have a new party go in and see what happened. Maybe even pick a few of the NPCs in town to go. They find the Aspect and kill it and then fine the PCs journals and contuse the story…

You are going to kill lots of PCs during the AoW if you run it hardcore. Accept it and try to make it a fun part of the adventure path : )

 

[Mallus]

On the other hand, part of the reason I wanted to "play as they lay" is because I feel that my group tends to be a bit weak on tactics and some of the players have the expectation that the GM will ultimately save their bacon, so I don't want to fold.

Ask yourself this question: "Will sticking to my guns make gaming with this group more fun, or less?"

If you decide to save the current group, make sure you do it in an interesting way. Don't make their opponent stupid, which in turn allows them the honor of running away. That's not fun on a multiple levels.

Instead, give them a mysterious ally that helps them overcome their foe. Helps, not automatically saves. An NPC that arrives in the nick of time with assets that even the odds.

At this point, all you need to do is stat the NPC. Figure the rest out later. Give the players ample reasons to both distrust and need him/her. I'm fond of allies who are always on the verge of being enemies. Players like mysteries and meaningful decisions to make.

That's better than just wiping the dungeon floor with them, isn't it?

 

[werk]

I don't know, seems easy enough to throw in some weapons or scrolls to better prepare them.

"Oh look, this dead villan has a tube full of scrolls of magic weapon and a wand of lesser orbs of force...I wonder why..."

 

[Doctor DM]

Not a single +1 weapon at 5th level? Ouch. But like Werk said, If you decide to throw them a bone perhaps a scroll or oil or two of magic weapon will help, but it still sounds rough.

Let us know what happens.

 

[rowport]

When I played through that module several months ago, I remember that being a very tough fight. Because of the layout of the main room entering into the elevator shaft area, it is possible to hunker down in one of the hallways to the cults, using your tanks up front with ranged weapons and spells from behind.

That said, without either spells or magic weapons, your party would be dead, dead, dead. At least giving them some recovery time before proceeding as written would help a lot-- maybe they see signs of the distrubance in the goop pool, so one of the fighters will keep an eye out on it while the casters rest? I also do not understand how the party has no magic weapons if you are playing as-written; by that point several of the NPCs they fought carried magic gear. Heck, the cleric they had to fight in that area had magic mace (?) at least. I get the thinking behind playing it as written, but without any magic at all I do not think survival is possible. TPKs are OK when the dice roll that way, but this will not be fun IMO, since the party has no realistic chance.

 

[Derren]

Just be aware that the adventures don't get any easier. At some point some of your PCs will probably die. And the longer you cuddle them, the more spectacular will their downfall.

 

[Schmoe]

It's been a while since I read that, but are there seriously no magic weapons anywhere in Three Faces of Evil? If not, they are really and truly screwed. The best they can hope for is for a couple of them to climb up the ropes of the elevator to safety while the rest of the party is slaughtered down below.

If you're not willing to alter the module, you may want to consider some of the options the party could think of. Will they attempt to barricade themselves in one wing? Will they attempt to climb up the ropes? Will they flee frantically to all corners of the complex? Will they try to use improvised weaponry from furniture lying around? Are there any pits or chasms they might try to lure the aspect to?

In circumstances like this, the party will need to get creative to survive, so it helps to survey the layout ahead of time and see what they might be able to do. This also allows you to provide subtle hints, if need be.

 

[Lord Foul]

I ran this about a year ago, and IIRC, the maze is too tight dor the Ebon aspect to go through. So there should be no reason the group couldn't hold up in the Faceless One's area and rest before going out to face the aspect. My group had atough time fully rested, there is no way they would have had a chance without resting, none. As it was they were hard pressed and the only way they were able to make it out alive was for the druid and wizard to summon as much as they could.

Foul out.