Defend the Keep on the Borderlands from Demons

[Neo]

Hallow is a nice idea..but why settle for a single casting... have it placed on ward stones every 40 feet around the exterior wall

Though in all honesty I think protecting the keep...is a non starter...best the defenders could hope for is to defend a single consecrated building and even then they're likely only prolonging the inevitable.

Sensible option...try and appease the demons by feeding them your low level troops and while they distracted chewing on the crunchy bits...get the heck out of dodge.. PDQ.

 

[John Morrow]

Presume the standard Keep (B2) ... i.e. garrison of several hundred soldiers, some supporting priests, highest level character in the Keep is level 6. Presume at most one low level Paladin in the garrison.

My version of the Keep has an on-staff Wizard and an on-staff Chaplain who, along with the Warden, are in the 7th level range and they've got some magic items on site for just such emergencies. If you assume a Cleric that can do 3rd Level spells, you've got Searing Light and Align Weapon that could help. If you have a Wizard of similar level, you are dealing the Lightning Bolts and such. The Searing Light and Align Weapon proved quite useful in a battle with a single Succubus in my version of the Keep. Not sure what would happen against larger numbers or more powerful demons.

 

[Tzarevitch]

How would you defend the Keep on the Borderlands from Demons? i.e. Defend the Keep from teleporting, shape-shifting, telepathic, magical, invisible, posessing enemies? Succubi, Vrocks, etc.

Presume the standard Keep (B2) ... i.e. garrison of several hundred soldiers, some supporting priests, highest level character in the Keep is level 6. Presume at most one low level Paladin in the garrison.

So no spells available that are higher than level 3 are available on a daily basis.

Higher level spells might be available on a once per year basis (but no 9th level spells).

Also, presume you don't know that demons are going to attack, but whatever defenses you put in place are just your general standard defenses that all of the border castles would get.

Honestly, I don't think the garrison has a prayer if the highest level character is 6th level. A single vrock will decimate the garrison. If it succeeds in gating another one, they are hosed because one Dance of Ruin will kill everyone on the keep that doesn't have evasion, even if they save.

A vrock is CR9. With a SR of 17 a 6th level character can't affect it with a spell and the guard captain can't get past its DR with merely a +2 weapon. It also has 5 attacks per round, can fly, teleport and make mirror images of itself and it as telekinesis.

The succubus is every bit as bad although it isn't as direct. The save vs. the succubus charm effects is in the low 20s. That entire garrison is going to struggle to make the saving throw. To top it off, the creature's ability to disguise itself means that it will be almost impossible to detect.

I really don't see how this can be done without a lot of high level expensive backup (defensive spells etc.). Why is the keep under attack by demons anyway?

Tzarevitch

 

[Endur]

While I agree that this is a gloomy situation for the occupants of the Keep, I'm looking at it from the perspective of the prudent commander who knows that Demons exist even if they are rare. What would he do on the off chance that a demon attacked? Would he flee? Curl up and die? Or pull out his cold iron +1 sword and charge the foe even knowing the odds are grim?

Honestly, I don't think the garrison has a prayer if the highest level character is 6th level. A single vrock will decimate the garrison.

I really don't see how this can be done without a lot of high level expensive backup (defensive spells etc.). Why is the keep under attack by demons anyway?