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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Elder-Basilisk" data-source="post: 2507254" data-attributes="member: 3146">There are a few other tricks available too. One of the things about teleporting away is that, even if you have the capacity to take everyone with you, you aren't always able to do it. If the party is separated, it may not be possible to grab everyone and teleport away. Simple physical distance or intervening foes can accomplish this. An ankheg, for instance, burrowing up between the wizard and the fighter will force a few contortions before the whole party is able to teleport away. Battlefield control magic can also have a similar effect. Cut the rogue off behind a wall of force and the party has to either stick it out, disintegrate the wall of force, or abandon the rogue. Otiluke's resilient sphere, and wall of ice work just as well. For non-magic using foes, a bead of force will have the same effect on anyone who fails the save. Once the PCs have used teleport to bail once, dimensional anchor is also a good trick. You don't need to dimensional anchor the whole party--getting one of them will suffice. The party will either be forced to abandon that member or to stick it out and win the fight. If you dimensionally anchor the wizard, you've almost assured that there will be no teleporting escapes, but dimensional anchor the cleric and, if the party ditches him, the bad guys can probably wipe the floor with him and the party won't be doing any healing on their own. (To be really nasty against a party with a rep for teleportation retreats, you could ready a dimensional anchor or two so that the party will try to teleport away but will end up leaving some of their members behind to be chewed up. (And, since they will already be teleporting away when they find out about the dimensional anchor, it will be too late to do anything to help the comrades they leave behind).After a teleportation retreat, the party will typically try to teleport back on the next day and pick up where they left off. There are several tactics that can make this tactic less effective. The anticipate teleportation spells as well as forbiddance and Monte Cook's teleport redirect spells could all be used by bad guys who might logically anticipate that PCs who retreated through magic would try to return through magic. It is also possible for even non-magical foes to trap or watch expected entry points. That, and the inherent risk in teleporting to not-really familiar locations may induce the PCs to teleport to the entrance of the dungeon or some other safe zone rather than to the area they left.So, what can you do about PCs teleporting to the start and walking back to where they ran into trouble. One thing you can do is restock the dungeon. Enemies could regenerate as they did in Heart of Nightfang Spire. Vampires and ghosts are very good at this. Alternately, enemy reinforcements could arrive. (At a minimum, an evil priest or wizard could turn all of his fallen minions into undead). Planar bindings and allies are also good ways for villains to get reinforcements. Another thing you could do is change the area. A few illusionary wall spells and disintegrate spells will create new pit traps very quickly. Alarm spells and mordenkeinen's faithful hound can also go a ways toward changing the area.And, of course, having observed the PCs tactics in action and possibly gained more information about them through Speak with Dead, etc, the villains can be prepared for the PCs. Does the PC sorcerer like ray of enfeeblement, magic missile, scorching ray, fireball, and enervation? The BBEG uses resist energy fire and spell immunity for ray of enfeeblement, magic missile, and enervation. Etc.Or maybe the bad guys just leave. If they figure they've lost 3/4 of their force and just managed to beat the heroes off but the heroes will be back at full strength tomorrow and there's no way that 25% of what managed to just barely hold them off will beat 100% of what nearly won yesterday, the villains can leave a nasty trap behind them and run away to do villainy somewhere else. That won't always be an option but it often will be.If you keep these things in mind, teleportation retreats will still be an option in the PCs' arsenel but they won't be one that is used constantly.</blockquote>

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