Keeping Mid-High Level characters in a dungeon

[EPRock]

As a DM, and a Player, I was wondering the best way to keep a party inside a dungeon if they do not want to stay there. Our party is an average of 13th level.

For example, my friend who is DM'ing a module which the introduction railroads the characters into a dungeon. (Failed assassination plot, and uber mage wins combat automatically).

First questions asked after we regained control of our characters.
Me: How deep am I (as I am a dwarf)
DM: (thinks in his head as it is not outlined in the module) 20 ft.
Player: I cast Dimension Door to go to the surface.
DM: You fail
Player: I make a spellcraft check to determine what prevented my Dimension Door. I rolled a 18, and I get +24 in that skill so that is 42, so what stopped me?
DM: Seems that you were unable to pass through a Dimensional Lock.

We did not want to ruin the adventure so I was considering disintegrating my way to the surface and once passing the dimensional lock teleporting back to town.

We basically came to the conclusion that the only way to keep a party in a dungeon (as part of a campaign) would be to give them a reason to stay there. I am a 13th level Wizard, with a scroll of plane shift, teleports, disintegrates, silent dim door. If needed I could polymorph into an umber hulk and start digging through the walls.

Any suggestions (falling in within the rules) for keeping the party within a dungeon.

Any suggestions for making some doors not able to get through eventually with disintegrates. (Like making a door reinforced with a wall of force, could get through with 2 disintegrates).

 

[BiggusGeekus]

Well, you could always roll up into a fetal position and cry defeat.

That's not such a bad option! If the players have these high end abilities, shouldn't they be rewarded somehow? They aren't first level anymore. Let them strut their stuff.

Should you not desire that....


1) Time limit. The players have to solve the dungon within a set time. Zipping in and out is fine, but they can't exactly rest in the luxury of their homes and expect things to be fine when they return.

2) Demi-Planes. The dugeon is is a different dimension. You can't dimension door 20' up if there is nothing there. (I'd wait until higher levels before using this)

3) That thingamawatchit spell that prevents teleporting. This is probably your ideal solution, hampered only by the tragic fact that I did too much soy sauce in college and I can't remember the name of the spell. Rats.

 

[Tzarevitch]

You are correct. There are actually other ways to do it but the most practical is make them want to stay in or make it too cost ineffective to leave any other way. (The easiest way to keep PCs in a dungeon is use some sort of pocket dimension where the only ingress/egress is through the door.)

This problem is related to the often-posted one about dealing with high-level PCs teleporting to destinations and using divinations. At that level, the DM has to be aware that the PCs have the capability to do such things and he needs to plan accordingly.

Tzarevitch

 

[Saeviomagy]

How about:
Don't.

Let the players use their high level abilities. If you really can't cope, restart the campaign at low level, possibly in one of the low-magic variant worlds.

The story hours are full of high level parties that are still challenged by their DMs.

 

[Buttercup]

This is exactly why I hardly ever use modules.

My idea of a good time, as a player, is to be able to do whatever I, and the rest of the party decide to do. We might not be as interested in the dungeon as we were in laying the smack-down on the bozo that put us there.

As a DM, it makes me shudder to think of forcing the players to go in a particular direction. It's a heck of a lot more work to be ready with supporting material for whatever they decide to do (unless you can pull it out of your tookus, which I cannot) but if the goal is to make the world seem real, then they must have free will.

A railroad is only good in monopoly, not D&D.

 

[kirinke]

heh

This is exactly why I hardly ever use modules.

My idea of a good time, as a player, is to be able to do whatever I, and the rest of the party decide to do. We might not be as interested in the dungeon as we were in laying the smack-down on the bozo that put us there.

As a DM, it makes me shudder to think of forcing the players to go in a particular direction. It's a heck of a lot more work to be ready with supporting material for whatever they decide to do (unless you can pull it out of your tookus, which I cannot) but if the goal is to make the world seem real, then they must have free will.

A railroad is only good in monopoly, not D&D.

***
it depends on whether or not that railroad is situated on a mobius strip. ^_^

 

[XCorvis]

Go see if you can dig up some of the rules from Undermountain (2e). That was a dungeon designed to keep high level characters in. Every inch of stone and rock was reinforced to be spell resistant and dimention blocking. You couldn't teleport in or out, plane shift, travel astrally. You could go ethereal and walk out, I think, but something nasty would probably notice you in the process. Passwalls and disintegrates worked for a short period of time, and then the rock regenerates, so a long tunnel could close up behind you.

 

[Umbran]

As a DM, and a Player, I was wondering the best way to keep a party inside a dungeon if they do not want to stay there.

For me, the answer is simple - you don't.

The story you're telling is about the PCs and their decisions. If they choose to leave, they leave. That's their choice to make.

Choices have repercussions, though. If you leave, you lose the element of surprise should you choose to go back. You may get called a coward. You may lose the respect heroes of that level are suposed to have earned.

The DM may do a few things to make the choice harder, and that can add to the story. However, making the stone magic seems more a way for the DM to make sure he doesn't have to prep anything besides the dungeon crawl than a way to make the story more interesting.

 

[EPRock]

Making the Stone Magic

What spells/effects would be used to make the stone magical?

- Some effects would need to be epic/diety level to accomplish
- If there are these effects, then how do the characters enter the dungeon (when they are teleported in).
- Trying to use actual DND rules instead of simple module answers of "anything short of a wish" blah blah blah.

So far it seems that there is nothing that a DM can do to keep the party in the dungeon. Seems the best thing to do would be to give the characters a good story reason to stay in the dungeon, and that should keep them there.

 

[PJ Mason]

A railroad is only good in monopoly, not D&D.

Heh, i like that one. I can use it.