Looking NPC counters to PC Divination Rituals

[Saeviomagy]

Is catching the guy who did it enough? Do they just murder him in revenge, or do they have some questions to ask (like: who employed you?). Is the killer someone important, and therefore murdering him in cold blood is not likely to be a valid course of action?

Do the players have to work within the law? Are the results of scrying rituals admissable in court? What is admissable in court?

How do they know it's the hair of the killer? There's undoubtably hair from others there: just because someone's hair is at the scene doesn't mean that they are the killer.

And then finally you get to magical defenses. Unfortunately these are usually pretty boring "your ritual doesn't work"-style things. Frankly they suck.

Perhaps invent some custom items that muddy, but don't destroy the effects of the ritual. Perhaps something that muddies the "locate person X" spell only gives you a city-block wide area? Or that blurs out his face in the crime-investigation ritual?

 

[Stalker0]

As I mentioned I had no problems with my party finding the current guy. He wasn't meant to be super assassin or anything.

However, I do have some guys planned later on that I will want to be less detectable.

While there are some items that block scrying sensors, there don't seem to be equivalents that would block "magic map" type rituals and the like.

 

[On Puget Sound]

Have the perpetrators be, or employ, changelings, druids or lycanthropes. They do their evil deeds in alternate forms to avoid recognition. (Is a werewolf's hair still the hair of the man the werewolf becomes?)

 

[fba827]

What does 4e offer in the counter intelligence department?

I know this is not -quite- what you're looking for (and from some of your other posts, I'm somewhat certain that you've already considered this), but having said that, I'll say it just in case it isn't obvious.

If it's for NPCs and it helps the campaign/story/plot to keep it entertaining/interesting for the players, then just slap on a power "All attempts at divination must beat an Arcana check DC X" (and then roll the check in secret) -- or divinations fail plain and simple, etc.

And then you can attribute this NPC power to
a) an item that they had at the time (either a published one or a unique item you just make up),
b) a special room/circle they have at their 'hideout' that keeps them protected when at base,or perhaps
c) they had some strange/rare ritual cast on them that lasts for 24hours/a month/whatever.

(The least "gotcha" method might be to attribute it an effect at the assassins hideout - that would also explain why it isn't a portable thing that the PCs can have for themselves)

 

[SkidAce]

My party is 14th level, and I'm starting to see the power of divination rituals. For example, last game they went to the room of a crime scene, cast a ritual on the room that showed them the crime that took place.

If they use the Last Sight Vision ritual, it doesn't work on a headless corpse.

So that's once thing assasins and hit men would learn to do if possible. Chop off the head.

Which to seems to be an all around good practice...vampires etc.