Asrabey - which version? (spoilers of course)

[Ulrik]

What are the pro and cons of running Asrabey as lvl 20 vs lvl 2? I had originally planned to run him as level 2 for a longer, hopefully more interesting fight, but I see that quite a few have run him as lvl 20. It might be fun to really give the PCs the impression that they took down somebody far, far more powerful than they were, but only because he was so beaten up. The lvl 2 version risks being "just another solo".

The benefit of the lvl2 version is of course a longer fight, and with my last session ending with the warlord yelling "attack!" and charging him, it might be a very short session with lvl 20. I'm hoping to draw the session out with that fight and then cleanup and wrapping up the story so we start adventure 2 the session after.

 

[Colmarr]

I'm going with the level 2 version, primarily because I'm hoping Asrabey will make a comeback later in the AP and I think it'll be more memorable if the PC's have had to all it out with him the first time round.

I'm actually not expecting it to be too much of a grind. My party's thief dishes out approximately 20 damage per hit, and the knight does an average of 10. Once the other PCs pull out dailies and encounter powers, I expect Asrabey's 180 up to last just the right amount of time.

My only real concern is that the monk's player might be bored during the solo fight. I'm considering giving Asrabey some sort of item or power that allows him to summon minions.

 

[Ajar]

I ran Asrabey with the level 20 stats. I kept the duchess and the golem at level 15, and the golem actually ended up making an attack roll. So I wanted to be consistent; there are powerful forces at work in Zeitgeist and if you run afoul of them then you face the brunt of their might.

I also have a reputation for not "pulling my punches" as a DM, and when I talked with my players about it afterward they said they would have been disappointed if I'd done it the other way. So it was the right decision for my group.

 

[gideonpepys]

I keep meaning to post a full report on how my group handled Island..., in case it helps anyone to run the adventure.

Asrabey's level is one of the key decisions, I think. I went with the level 20 version of Asbrabey. But, then, I know my party, and one of them is an eschatologist...

Funnily enough, our assassin rolled a crit at the start of the combat. After all the build-up I was seriously concerned that this would take Asrabey out in one blow (until another player reluctantly reminded me that a crit doesn't count as a crit unless it was enough to hit the target ordinarily; otherwise it counts as a regular hit).

Still, Asrabey lost 3/4 of his hit points in one go, and then dropped one character after another until our dwarven nihilist used Icy End of the Earth on him.

I enjoyed the squaring of a level 1 party against a level 20 foe, and I think most players will too. A TPK can easily be avoided, even if Asrabey wins. (His mission is to kill the Duchess and any of her force that stands in his way. Danorans don't matter to him either. But loyal servants of the King of Risur? That's a different matter! More fool your players if they don't declare their identity before engaging...)

 

[DonTadow]

I ran him at level 20 and agree with the previous caller. The PCs need to know their place. The promotion to alpha team gave my people big heads, but they needed to know their the alpha team for their region for just lack of people and being in the right place at the right time.

Asbury barely lifted a finger though at level 20. The PCs opted to negotiate and were tricked by him, they went to get him the boat, as they were walking to the docks he dropped the duchess 100 ft in front of hte party as he headed to the teleporter. One pc managed to catch him (an elf barbarian with ex retreat) and Asb pretty much beat the crap out of him until the others arrived. A few good diplomacy rolls and the pcs did manage to get Nathan away from Asbury to keep peace.

 

[Ulrik]

Seems like most of you went with level 20 and are happy. That only makes it harder for me

I'm leaning towards the lvl 2 version for three reasons:
- In my mind level and 'leetness' (minion/standard/elite/solo) is a pure game concept related to the PCs level. By that I mean that a given monster can be a high level minion, or a lower level standard, or even lower level elite, or a very low-level solo. It helps if I want to use a monster at non-standard levels, like throwing a mind flayer (level 16 or so) at a level 12 party - he's a level 12 elite or solo instead. Using Asrabey at 20 breaks this
- Time. This is going to be the only combat encounter for the night, so I think it's more fun if it lasts a bit.
- I'm more unsure of this, but I worry that my players will find the situation hopeless when they roll an 18 and miss. I might be underestimating them, but it could be a concern.


And versus all this are all the positive reports of using the level 20 version. Damn you all!

 

[gideonpepys]

The internal logic of my game matters little to my players. The sheer bravado of going up against a level 20 monster at level 1 very much appealed to them, though.

And only the 'hopeless' roll of an 18 - or in our case (see account above), the fact that a 20 wouldn't ordinarily have hit - confirms Asrabey as truly out of their league. There was a frisson of excitment at that point!

Okay, so he blows up a Risuri ship and carves his way through two armies, but players are an arrogant breed and they naturally assume he will be a level 2 solo, or whatever.

If you are worried it will be the only combat, my advice would be to mitigate against that and develop something else.

 

[LightPhoenix]

What are the pro and cons of running Asrabey as lvl 20 vs lvl 2?

Basically, there are two things to consider:

1) What is the style of fight you want? If you want it to be a full encounter, then run Level 2 Asrabey. If you're looking for a short skirmish, or want the PCs to be outclassed, run Level 20 Asrabey. The high-level Asrabey is still fairly beatable. A few lucky rolls and/or plenty of re-rolls will still allow the players to hit occasionally. What they should really be doing is blowing everything that does damage or has an effect on a miss.

2) What is your party's makeup? Asrabey is pretty much guaranteed to hit any character he wants. The question is if your group is capable of damage mitigation and the aforementioned total carnage (damage on miss) technique. If they're poor at both of these, Level 2 Asrabey might be a better encounter in case they decide to provoke combat. On the other hand, if they can do both well, then go ahead with Level 20 Asrabey; it shouldn't be that difficult for them.