How can a party of 3 PCs at 14th level defeat a CR20 dragon?

[Herobizkit]

3 PCs of 14th level should have attracted a number of followers that should be able to help them out. Or, have them hire some.

 

[rom90125]

Please tell the two who canceled were a Ftr 14 and a Wiz 14. Or Bbn and Sor.

the two missing chars are Bbn 14 and Rog 14.

 

[shilsen]

the two missing chars are Bbn 14 and Rog 14.

Ow!

Even if they were around, unless the party's incredibly well equipped magically, I don't see how you could play the dragon to the best of its ability and not TPK them.

 

[Klaus]

I'd say use a Huge black dragon's stats, but boost it to Gargantuan size. I'd do that even for the full party.

A dragon's CR is balanced *provided* the party is prepared for said dragon (i.e., have acid resistance effects for black dragons, can plan ahead of time how to keep the dragon from flying, etc). So a CR 20 black dragon would be challenging even for a 20th-level 4-PC party. Your 3 PC group would be lucky if they defeated a CR 14 dragon.

 

[3catcircus]

Actually, I'd say that's the primary purpose of a DM.

Nope - the primary purpose of a DM is to be storyteller, the player of all of the NPCs and a neutral arbiter whose goal is not to favor either the players or himself.

 

[Templetroll]

They each drink a foul poison and one of them jumps into the dragon's mouth. Once that happens the other two drink antidotes and run away!

 

[Brother MacLaren]

Have the cleric cast Planar Ally. If the cleric is CG, a Ghaele Eladrin could do serious damage to this dragon. Use Greater Invisibility, stay out of range of the dragon's blindsense, and fire light rays. With a +3 Inspire Courage boost from the Bard (using Inspirational Boost or Song of the Heart), and a Prayer spell, those light rays will be doing about 17 points of damage each, no SR, no save. The bard can also Haste the eladrin, for 3 attacks in each round in which it doesn't need to move.

This dragon has no See Invisibility or True Seeing (but if the dragon goes invisible, the eladrin *does* have See Invisibility). With Perfect manueverability, a fly speed nearly as good as the dragon, and a 300' ranged attack, the eladrin can ensure the dragon *never* gets a melee attack on it. The dragon can't see it to target it with any spells, and even if it could, it'd have a very tough time beating the eladrin's SR. The eladrin could also fly around invisible using Charm Monster until it beats the dragon's SR (35% chance) and the dragon fails its Will save (5% chance).

I imagine the eladrin vs. the dragon is very frustrating for the dragon, ending in the eladrin killing it or driving it off. Well worth the 250 XP it costs to cast Planar Ally.

This tactic requires the bard to be able to see the eladrin to use Haste (See Invisibility), plenty of flying room for the eladrin (*above* the dragon is the best place to be), and a way for the PCs to escape (perhaps Word of Recall). And it requires the DM to handle aerial combat, which is very difficult, but if handled properly the dragon should be toast. The maneuverability advantage is just too great.

 

[Olaf the Stout]

Personally I can't even see how the 5 14th level characters will be able to defeat the CR 20 Dragon.

Dragons tend to be harder than most creatures for their CR. I would think that the PC's will get their butts handed to them if they try and take on the Dragon.

Olaf the Stout

 

[HeavenShallBurn]

Ouch, just Ouch!

Those three chars. a CR20 dragon? Extremely difficult, I won't say impossible it's not, but still harsh.

Look at it from the angle of a tactical exercise. What are the resources of the three, what can they bring to the fight? Are there any unusual means they could use to control the fight, where would the engagement happen, what is the terrain like and how can they adjust their tactics to work together better?

If they are going to go ahead first they should make sure they control the engagement. The PCs must choose where, when, and how they bring the dragon to combat. And only do so in favorable ground. Control the terrain of the battlefield.

Second the cleric needs to ready a crapload of carefully chosen buffs that will stack or layer, they'll all need it. Also the point is really shock value, the dragon will win a drawn out engagement so they have to focus everything on hitting it very hard very quickly. Knock it down then never give it the chance to get back up. Every nasty underhanded trick available should be used and right at the start, dogpile on. Dozens of tanglefoot bags, web spells, immobilize it somehow. Keep it out of the air and from moving as much as possible. Set everything on fire around it. Make sure you have the most nasty offensive magic items possible and barrage it with save or dies.

The monk, spend as much as it takes to get his AC and speed up as much as possible, and use him to slash away on the move never stick around to bash. Just like a knife fight slash and move bleed it and draw its attention.

Cleric/Paladin. This one will be the major source of hurt. See above for spell use and choice and he should also be ready once it's immobilized to hit it with as much damage as possible as quickly as possible.

Bard/Seeker of Song/Arcane Archer
This is where UMD comes in handy, he should look like a christmas tree. Figure out the most outrageously powergamed means of inflicting save or die spells or damage of any other source and use it shamelessly.

The key is speed, no matter what it will have to be over quickly or it will be a TPK

 

[starwed]

Just short of cancelling the session or throwing a one-off at the party, what can I do?

You indicate that it's a huge, climactic battle the campaign has been building towards, so why not let every player enjoy it? Postponing the encounter seems to be the optimal solution to me... just play some board games if delaying in-game doesn't make any sense.