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Challenging my high-lvl group (NPCs and monsters; my players shouldn't read this!)

Jeremy

Explorer
A platoon of kobold's with very vision-inhibitive helmets on armed with staves with porcupines lashed to the end of the stick! :)

They thump the porcupine on the ground once to get it nice and worked up, then they thwack people with the porcupine when they get out of line.

No one retaliates because of who backs the kobolds. And because attacking kobolds should seem to be beneath them or else their reputation would suffer! :D
 
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Kaodi

Hero
Quick Idea

The idea of a White Market was really good, and as for slaves, that is what this idea pertains too:

Have some monster/creature is slavery that has the Legendary Template attached to it, and then make some kind of reason that the PCs need to free it. Not sure if this is what you want, and I don't have time to write on it more at the moment as I have to disconnect.
 


rackabello

First Post
At least one of the stalls should have statuettes of Vendelo for sale....It'd be a particularly unexpected time and place for the poor old saint to be confronted with his unwanted celebrity.
 
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Mathew_Freeman

First Post
...and amongst all these mad, weird, crazy, possibly evil loonies - have a man selling Sausage-inna-bun.

Why?

Because there is always someone trying to sell a sausage-inna-bun, wherever you go.

Pull out some real old corny D&D cliches. A man that runs a magic shop with a load of nearly useless items, but forbids magic use within his shop (so no casting detect magic on the sly to see what really is magical). An inn with a crusty old wizard sat in the corner that tries to get the PC's involved in something.

And I also think a very lost elf with some kind of disguise magic would be a nice bit of light relief. Imagine a 1st level elf in the Underdark by mistake...:D
 

Spatzimaus

First Post
Not that you should try it here, but something I've always wanted to pull on my players... a kid.

Just a normal, no-ability, teenager with a really high CHA (Expert 3 or so, with most of the skill points going to Bluff and Knowledge (local)). Lousy equipment, physically weak, that sort of thing. Nothing that'd cause a powerful creature to see any sort of threat.
How many people put ranks into Sense Motive, anyway? Besides Palladio, that is.

They're in this place in the Underdark, full of horrendous creatures that gives these divinely-empowered paragons of light the willies, and in the middle of it all is someone who's managed to convince everyone that he's really powerful simply by the obvious fact that if he wasn't, he wouldn't be there. (see also: Somebody Else's Problem field, Invisible Pink Unicorns)
After all, anyone that obviously weak has either massive innate abilities or very powerful friends. So, everyone has simply assumed that this kid is not someone to be trifled with.
Give him an item that prevents scrying and mindreading, and he bluffs his way through it all (maybe an item that gives +10 or +20 to Bluff). He's smart enough to stay around intelligent races (since you can't bluff an animal to not eat you as easily), and is mostly just seeing the sights.

Originally this basic concept came from an old campaign, except there, he also had a curse that gave him immortality in the Wile E. Coyote fashion; that is, no damage was ever fatal. Add this to the "When Wishes Go Bad" file under "eternal life".
Set off a trap, he'd be fine in a few minutes; he wouldn't gain XP from any encounter in which he died, so he pretty much always stayed a low-level NPC. But, he had all the accumulated memories of a lifetime of reckless adventuring, so he could easily come up with plausible lies.
I don't think this ability is absolutely necessary to the concept, but YMMV.
 
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Greybar

No Trouble at All
Sounds like John Constantine, who I was introduced to in "The Books of Magic" in Neil Gaiman's world. There is a scene where the Constantine is standing with a boy (the subject of mighty prophesy and talent) is in a room with a horde of powerful demons, devils, wizards, etc etc etc.

He is edging the boy towards to door, and quite confidently says something to the effect of:

"You are all, no doubt, quite aware of my reputation. The boy and I will now depart and no one will be hurt."

Those who know his rep pause, and all those who don't assume the worse when they see the other big baddies taking pause.

The boy is in wonder, until Constantine explains that he has practically no magical power whatsoever. But he once managed to imprision/destroy a demon of great power (thru luck and circumstance) and since then everything rumour wise has just kept piling up...

John
 

Piratecat

Sesquipedalian
These are great. I'm prepping the trading post for next game, this Thursday. I have a name in mind, I think, but anyone want to suggest one?

When they are teleported in, I'm going to have them split up to 6 different spots across the area. That way they won't arrive in one tough clump; instead, they'll come in two people here, three people there. Much more... interesting. :D It will especially be fun for those folks who bamf in to the middle of the small gladitorial arena used for fun and solving arguments.
 
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incognito

First Post
HI PC,

I just though of a neat one!

How about an exact clone of an old humanoid enemy of the PCs - but without that naaaasty evil alignment or hidden agenda?

If the enemy was:

selfish, the clone will be altruistic
sneaky, the clone will be forthright
violent, the clone will be a pacifist, or at least cowardly.
a spell caster, the clone will bear martial weapons or wear at least medium armor (non mithiril).

Be evasive with providing the clone's backstory

They won't know what to make of him/her/it.

Neat, right?

EDIT: Oh good golly, what about the PCs bumping into a clone of: THEMSLEVES!
 
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Ashy

First Post
*this* Thursday??? Awwwww, PC, I'm never gonna be able to get these ideas to ya by then.... :( Blasted work - don't they know I game for a livin'???
 

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