[Rules Exercise/Fight Club/Goofing Off] He just won't go down!!

[Christian]

How would the creature be vs. death spells?

My personal strategy against such a creature would be:

1. Spot Beastie before he spots you. (+30 Spot enhancing item would be preferable)
2. Cast Haste
3. Quickened Enervation (Touch AC: 12)
4. Partial Action: Double Empowered Enervation
5. Wail of the Banshee

On average, the saving throws will drop by 7,5, which gives +19 on fortitude saves.

And hope that the beastie will fail it's saving throw, which is feasible with DC 36 vs. a 9th level spell.

Conclusion: The beast will have to roll 17 or better to survive, and that vs. a 18th level wizard. That's 20% chance. Of course, if it survives, it will have to kill the wizard in one round, or he'll throw another wail of the banshee in its face.

Optionally, if the PC has that continual haste on himself, he only have to win initiative, which he will.

I don't know if this strategy would work, but off the top of my head, this is what I would do.
With party members distracting the beast, I think it would be easy to pull off.

Well, it'll use up those 9 charges on the ring faster, I suppose ...

Everytime you are brought to 0 hp or less the ring casts heal on you. If you fail a saving throw to a spell (and with +28 to spell craft you'll know exactly when to use this) you can expend a charge and automatically pass the save. This ring has 9 charges in it currently.

 

[Cheiromancer]

Can you use Spellcraft while in a frenzy?

 

[Elric]

How would the creature be vs. death spells?

My personal strategy against such a creature would be:

1. Spot Beastie before he spots you. (+30 Spot enhancing item would be preferable)
2. Cast Haste
3. Quickened Enervation (Touch AC: 12)
4. Partial Action: Double Empowered Enervation
5. Wail of the Banshee

On average, the saving throws will drop by 7,5, which gives +19 on fortitude saves.

And hope that the beastie will fail it's saving throw, which is feasible with DC 36 vs. a 9th level spell.

Conclusion: The beast will have to roll 17 or better to survive, and that vs. a 18th level wizard. That's 20% chance. Of course, if it survives, it will have to kill the wizard in one round, or he'll throw another wail of the banshee in its face.

Optionally, if the PC has that continual haste on himself, he only have to win initiative, which he will.

I don't know if this strategy would work, but off the top of my head, this is what I would do.
With party members distracting the beast, I think it would be easy to pull off.

Well, it's hard to do this against an enemy that Teleports at Will and has Mirror Image/Deeper Darkness at Will. Unless your mage has a ton of hit points, Power Word Stun will take him out of the fight for enough time to kill him. I also think that the Bracers of Armor will apply on the touch attack, so you'll need to cast True Strike in order to make sure that you hit. I'm pretty sure that Heal will remove negative levels. If so, make sure that you don't damage this guy- get him to 0 and he'll be back at full strength (not that the party should know that). If he can activate the ring as a standard action, the Enervation tactic will at most drain a few charges.

 

[Hammerhead]

Heal doesn't restore levels, that's for the restoration line of spells.

 

[Doorf]

Actually if you are using ring of nine lives you get to max Hp every time your hp drops below 0 even if this damage would normaly killed you.
If you get head choped off, you are at full hp.
If pyramid drops on you, you are at full hp ofcourse you would instantly die again 9 times.
You can't be killed my mortal weapons or damaging spells..
Only exceptions are: you don't get full hp when you are killed by death effect of you lose whole body (desintegration).

 

[(Psi)SeveredHead]

Bracers of Armor don't count against touch attacks.
If you have If Thoughts Could Kill, see if you can give him a Cloak of Probability. It fools True Seeing!!!

 

[Iku Rex]

Actually if you are using ring of nine lives you get to max Hp every time your hp drops below 0 even if this damage would normaly killed you.

Actually, you are wrong. I've already explained this. (Even though I forgot the deathless frenzy.) If you drop below 0 hp it will cast heal on you. If you are dead when that happens, you will still be dead after.

BTW, I don't think the ring will trigger at all if you drop to -10 or lower, since it won't work on an object (a corpse).

 

[Orco42]

I've had a Frenzied Beserker for a while and just last month I got a Ring of Nine Lives.

Of course I still die a fair amount.

Stupid vorpal weapons, poison, energy drain ect.

Plus the stupid evil hierophant clerics that get initiative on you (so you are not in frenzy) and casts harm at you from 90' away and the a quickened inflict serious wounds. I really hate those guys.

 

[Jeremy]

That's the fun part about the ring, even if you do enervate me down to the point I blow my Wail of the Banshee save, the ring activates and I automatically make the save!

But you guys are taking this much to seriously, this isn't supposed to be a tough encounter, just a memorable one. At these levels, those are the best kind. I mean think about it..

"A glabrezu? You've got to be kidding me. Hold off guys, I've got this one." <rolls up her sleeves> "Al-Harat A'LAL!"

Sesterala the Incanatrix casts a thrice empowered, sonic substituted, otilukes freezing sphere for 45d6 sonic damage, no save, follows up with a quickened thrice empowered sonic substituted fireball for 25 more d6 sonic damage, and finishes up with her extra partial action hurling a huge 5 times empowered sonic orb spell hurling 10 orbs that all streak towards and strike their target for a combined 50d6 more sonic damage.

Sesterala dusts her hands off as the hapless glabrezu is demolished and smashed in a 14' deep newly made crater in the ground.

But heads turn and jaws drop as the presumably very dead glabrezu climbs out uninjured.

Jonothan Brightblade, who's girdle of the gods has increased his strengths beyond mortal limits, grins and bows to Sesterala. "You're slipping Ses. Allow me."

He uses his extra partial action to activate his helm of teleportation and teleports directly behind the glabrezu and due to his expert tactical skills and unmatched swordsmanship, lands 9 crushing blows in a tempest of flashing blades as the glabrezu is flayed alive. 560 points of damage later the glabrezu collapses in a twitching heap on the ground---only to flash once and heal every single wound instantly and completely.

"Um, Ses? What the hell is this thing?"

 

[Elric]

Well, look what a 6 month break from D&D can do to your knowledge of the rules

Jeremy- that was a great description. I wonder what a battle between this guy and the "teamwork smack" would look like...

Orco42- since your fortitude saves must be ridiculously high and you have the Ring of Nine Lives to let you pass saves, poison shouldn't be a problem. I would try to get Fortified Armor to avoid being beheaded by vorpal weapons. Energy drain is tough- I'd become good friends with a cleric. I'd also try to convince your DM to add some sort of save or other limit to harm.