D&D 5E Has anyone fought and killed a Tarrasque?

[The Crimson Binome]

Sounds like your characters are a bit uncaring.

That's not how my players would act. The PCs in my campaigns are heroic, and won't allow a single innocent person to die if they can prevent it.

I'm talking from the perspective of a DM, who wants a powerful force of nature that can threaten civilization as we know it. I want something that can stomp unimpeded through any number of chumps, which only the PCs have any chance of stopping, and only because they are as ridiculously powerful as they are. I want Doomsday, who can shrug off nukes, and who can only be stopped by Superman.

 

[BMaC]

Interesting responses. One thing that stands out is how many people consider it weaker than it's presented because of "cheese" rules that can be used to kill it.

Ordinarily I'd agree with your sentiment. However, levitation+cantrip is hardly an abuse of rules or power-gaming.

 

[Charles Rampant]

Something that I don't know, and am curious about: has the Tarrasque ever been presented along with an 'ecology' or whatever of accompanying creatures? I'm thinking of things like the little bugs in Cloverfield, which went on the rampage and caused confusion even as the big beastie went on its merry way. That would be the obvious second part of this issue: it's pretty tough for 'normal' wizards (like the Mage statblock, say) to take down the Tarresque if they're simultaneously being swarmed by Hormagaunts or whatever.

You could definitely play off of those birds that live inside the mouths of Crocodiles.

 

[Maxperson]

(1) It can't kill tens of thousands of people in 200 turns.
(2) If it's eating thousands of people, there's probably more than just a single 5th level mage attacking it. So it won't last 200 turns.

That's nice. As the thing dashes through/over buildings, or just down streets, the flyers and their bee stings get left behind.

 

[Maxperson]

Ordinarily I'd agree with your sentiment. However, levitation+cantrip is hardly an abuse of rules or power-gaming.

It also doesn't work.

 

[discosoc]

Ordinarily I'd agree with your sentiment. However, levitation+cantrip is hardly an abuse of rules or power-gaming.

In order for it to work, you'd have to be cheesing it. Or fighting in a vacuum. Otherwise the thing will just ignore you while it rampages on until you eventually kill it. By then, everyone else in the region is dead from collapsed buildings or whatever. These aren't like dragons where you go fight it in it's lair, taking all the time in the world. These things show up and you have to kill it ASAP or else everything important dies and you may as well not try in the first place.

Framed that way, a Tarasque fight is pretty rough. Maybe my campaigns are different, but heroes don't generally defeat creatures by winning a long war of attrition while the creature does its thing.

 

[shadowoflameth]

I DM'd a game where the party fought the Terrasque and the party used Hurl Through Hell, and with a Pearl of Power did so repeatedly. In 5th banish could be used the same way. Each time it disappeared, the townfolk cheered then ran again when it came back. A party in 4th at 27th level actually made short work of it.

 

[HomegrownHydra]

In order for it to work, you'd have to be cheesing it. Or fighting in a vacuum. Otherwise the thing will just ignore you while it rampages on until you eventually kill it. By then, everyone else in the region is dead from collapsed buildings or whatever. These aren't like dragons where you go fight it in it's lair, taking all the time in the world. These things show up and you have to kill it ASAP or else everything important dies and you may as well not try in the first place.

Framed that way, a Tarasque fight is pretty rough. Maybe my campaigns are different, but heroes don't generally defeat creatures by winning a long war of attrition while the creature does its thing.

Why would it ignore a threat that is in the process of killing it?

 

[discosoc]

Why would it ignore a threat that is in the process of killing it?

Same reason a bear will stop chasing you if it can't catch up with you for some reason. It's a savage beast, not Hodor. Odds are it has all kinds of things to smash and destroy in its bestial rage, and one floating wizard (or wizard riding around on a magical horse, etc) isn't likely going to keep it occupied like it's a donkey chasing a carrot.