Upper level limit solo encounter for this party...?

[Quickleaf]

Consider what rituals the dragon may have used to customize its lair too.

I could use some help in the ritual department. The Minor Globe of Invulnerability is meant to reflect the kind of paranoid ritual preparations a red dragon Mage who has been scrying on the PCs would take. I'm also working on incorporating a version of the Teleportation Circle/Quick Portal/Teleport Catcher idea (see http://community.wizards.com/go/thr...ponizing_a_Ritual_and_a_Harmless_Utility?pg=1). Maybe I'll have Infyrana cast Protection from Energy on herself against a type inflicted by one of the PC mages too....

 

[Manbearcat]

Hey @Quickleaf,

[sblock]Out of the of-level at-will damage expressions

2d8+7 (16) - Low at-will damage expression

3d6+12 (22.5) - Medium at-will damage expression

3d6+17 (27.5) - High at-will damage expression

I would opt for the last (or at least split the difference and go 25 as the budget), especially given the comparison of the bread and butter, SOP at-will moves for Standard, level 14 creatures in Monster Vault. This is Infyrana's equivalent analog. She has no other at-wills in this stage so its her "go-to". As a frame of reference, AoEs "cost" 25 % off the damage expression. Major control effects at "until the end of the next turn" duration are - 25 %. Small control effects would be about 40 - 50 % of that cost or roughly 10 - 12 %. Again, consider the closest Monster Vault analog for Infyrana's only at-will. This is merely a Water Archon and it is better than Beguiling Strands (Slide has much greater utility than Push). A Slide 3 is somewhere between a minor control effect and a major. Lets call it 18 - 20 %. That would put the budget at around ~ 25 damage; right between medium and high. This is a mere Water Archon.

Whirlpool

At-Will
Attack: Close burst 3 (enemies in the burst); +17 vs. Fortitude
Hit: 4d6 + 7 damage, and the archon slides the target up to 3 squares.
Miss: The archon can slide the target 1 square.

This At-Will Scimitar attack for a Standard Soldier is 22.5 + a minor control effect. Roughly ~ 25 budget.

Scimitar (weapon)

At-Will

Attack: Melee 2 (one creature); +19 vs. AC
Hit: 3d8 + 9 damage.
Effect: The drider marks the target until the end of the drider’s next turn.

This At-Will Freezing Claw attack carries not only a major control effect, but one at (save ends) duration with a minor control effect at (save ends) duration on a miss to boot. This is 19 damage with all of that control power. This is probably roughly ~ 28 budget as an At-Will. Probably 28 * .75 = 21 and then another 10 % budget for (saved ends) and the powerful miss effect; ~ 19.

Freezing Claw (cold, necrotic)

At-Will Attack: Ranged 5 (one or two creatures); +17 vs. Reflex

Hit: 2d8 + 10 cold and necrotic damage, and the target is immobilized (save ends).
Miss: The target is slowed (save ends).


Anyway, that is where I come out on it. I'd go medium/high to high At Will damage expressions and I'd use Calastryx's breath weapon. Feel free to go with medium or low as you deem necessary!

Also, you asked a question about the immediate action wing buffet effect. Consider the following level 14 solo brute, immediate action at-will, with reach 3 that attacks not just 1, but 2 creatures, and has a major control effect (push 6 is major). I'd use that as a guidelines for what level 14 solos should be capable of.

Thrash

At-Will
Trigger: An attack hits the purple worm.
Attack (Immediate Reaction): Melee 3 (one or two creatures); +17 vs. Reflex
Hit: 3d12 + 5 damage, and the purple worm pushes the target up to 6 squares.[/sblock]

 

[Quickleaf]

Thanks [MENTION=6696971]Manbearcat[/MENTION]!

[SBLOCK]Yeah, looking at it it I can see you're right. I low-balled the damage of Beguiling Strands because there are some seriously nasty hazards in the lair which forced movement can exploit: (1) an 80' chasm, (2) cursed treasure that can do things like petrify, shrink, or inflict vulnerability 10 fire, and (3) a portal to a deadly trapped chamber which Infyrana can move at the start of ech stage.

For the Breath Weapon I just looked at the deathbringer dracolich (a 12 solo from MV) and it deals an average 27 damage plus weakened (save ends) with a similarly sized breath weapon. So I'm thinking my target average damage should be 29-31? 3d12+10 or maybe 3d12+12 since there's no control attached to the breath weapon during the first stage.
[/SBLOCK]

 

[pemerton]

[MENTION=20323]Quickleaf[/MENTION], I haven't looked at Stage 2 yet, but on Stage 1:

[sblock]* I strongly agree with what [MENTION=6696971]Manbearcat[/MENTION] had to say about the damage output of those powers, and if you are following Sly Flouish than Sly Flourish is giving you bad advice on that particular issue - your beguiling in particular is very underpowered;

* If anything, your worry about the wings is going in the wrong direction - have a look at the MV purple worm for some ideas about what a solo needs in the oppy/imm action department;

* Your sulphrous wrath looks potentially a bit OP with its auto-blind (if the encounter turns into one huge blinding fest it may not play out how you wanted), and also a bit fiddly with its interaction with the standard action - I'd look for a way to wrap the triggered action and the standard action together and so make the blinding, poison etc a single moment of resolution - I've got no firm view on whether attacks or opposed skills are the way to go with it, though.[/sblock]

 

[(Psi)SeveredHead]

[sblock]
Roiling Flames • Aura 1 : Any creature beginning its turn in the aura takes 10 fire damage. Creatures with fire resistance take no damage but lose their resistance while in the aura.[/quote]

I like this one

Tail Sweep • At-Will
Attack: Close blast 2; +19 vs. AC
Hit: 1d8 + 8 damage and knocked prone.

I would tweak this a little, just because all the melee attacks seem to be targeting AC. I'd have this target something else, maybe Reflex or Fort.

Triggered Actions
Wing Snap • At-Will
Trigger: An enemy moves adjacent to Infyrana.
Attack (Immediate Reaction): +17 vs. Fortitude
Hit: 2d8 + 8 damage, pushed 2 squares and knocked prone.

I'd make this an opportunity action, and have Infyrana shift (perhaps instead of pushing the opponent). She's a skirmisher in this mode, and again doesn't want to be cornered.

In this stage, Infyrana activates the Planeshift Ritual Focus, then engages the PCs in a fierce melee skirmish. She focuses on dealing the maximum amount of ongoing fire damage as possible. Her "Worldbreaker" in this stage is a Planar Firestorm which allows her to summon fire elemental minions and conjure a devastating pillar of black flame.

Using the Planeshift Focus Skill Challenge is a complexity I skill challenge (4 successes before 3 failures) with the special caveat that a failure accrues each round no attempt is made to control it by the PCs. Successes are accrued by approaching the ritual focus and taking minor action Arcana/Religion/Thievery DC 24 checks. Victory inflicts vulnerable 10 [keyword according to planar attunement] on Infyrana for one round, and each PC may recharge an encounter power, re-roll initiative, or spend a healing surge as a free action. Defeat, however, activates Infyrana’s Planar Firestorm and all PCs gain vulnerable 10 fire for one round. At the DM’s discretion, Dragon Mountain may planeshift!

Yikes! The PCs cannot ignore that.

I've used Sly Flourish's environmental effects with skill challenges twice now. The first time, the PCs went out of their way to shut it down, because there was lots of space, and they just faced one solo. The second time, the PCs were facing an elite and several allies, and the battlefield was split into several rooms. The PCs decided not to ignore all the regeneration and damage reduction the boss was getting, and killed him with two of the three magic orbs intact.

I resolved then to have the orbs instead give "counterattacks", for instance, hitting the boss inflicts damage back on a PC until the orbs are dealt with.

But I think your method here is cooler. It's a really high-risk gamble for both sides.

Crystal Ball: As a purely story effect, Infyrana’s crystal ball projects images of the PCs as they explored Dragon Mountain, only from the kobolds’ perspective (e.g. kobolds getting ready for an ambush or laughing at PC suffering).

This is also really cool.

[/SBLOCK]

 

[AbdulAlhazred]

I think one big solo CAN work like two, sure. The AngryDM type staging looks like it will work, and if you make it around maybe a level 15 or so solo it will be reasonably tough and far enough over XP (use say a level 18 budget I guess?) that it should be decent.

And yes, I do also ad-lib on things like terrain, etc, but not usually in set-pieces. Sometimes I MAY toss in some added things if it seems like a good idea when the encounter comes up, but what I find is that the real inventive twists and turns are hard to do without some planning. So I'll sketch out my ideas, and then maybe change them a bit depending on how I feel at the moment.

 

[Upper_Krust]

Interested in how this turns out. I would have envisioned the Level range for the solo to be somewhere between 16th (relatively easy win for the PCs) to 20th (50/50 chance of TPK).

 

[AbdulAlhazred]

I could use some help in the ritual department. The Minor Globe of Invulnerability is meant to reflect the kind of paranoid ritual preparations a red dragon Mage who has been scrying on the PCs would take. I'm also working on incorporating a version of the Teleportation Circle/Quick Portal/Teleport Catcher idea (see http://community.wizards.com/go/thr...ponizing_a_Ritual_and_a_Harmless_Utility?pg=1). Maybe I'll have Infyrana cast Protection from Energy on herself against a type inflicted by one of the PC mages too....

Yeah, she could have created some sort of zone of resistance with ritual magic, possibly she might be doing that as the party arrives, and maybe they can thwart it, that could be a nice touch. Draconomicon: Chromatic Dragons has some interesting rituals in it as well.

Disorienting Portal is one that will last for several days and turns a door into a teleporter, while showing the contents of an illusionary room on the other side. It is possible to reveal the deception with a high enough Arcana check, but otherwise the potential uses are readily apparent.

Easy Passage warps space in a passage so that a creature one size-category larger than normal can fit through. This can be used to allow the dragon to make surprising moves that seem impossible normally without squeezing. With a focus this one will be permanent.

Chamber of Vulnerability allows a creature with a breath weapon to make a warded area within which anyone hit by its breath weapon is vulnerable. This can be made permanent with a focus as well, and the dragon can designate specific creatures which are exempt. Uses are of course pretty obvious.

 

[Quickleaf]

Keeping up with the sblock tags just because it seemed like a good idea...

[sblock= Stage 1 comments]

Interested in how this turns out. I would have envisioned the Level range for the solo to be somewhere between 16th (relatively easy win for the PCs) to 20th (50/50 chance of TPK).

I think one big solo CAN work like two, sure. The AngryDM type staging looks like it will work, and if you make it around maybe a level 15 or so solo it will be reasonably tough and far enough over XP (use say a level 18 budget I guess?) that it should be decent.

Right now I've got the dragon as three level 14 solos, each with 400 HP (about -30% normal) but with greatly increased damage (still working that out) and "Worldbreaker" powers that auto-hit. The full encounter budget is 19,600 XP, which is a Level 20 encounter for a party of seven PCs... It includes the following elements:

Stage 1
Infyrana, Red Dragon Mage, stage 1 5,000 XP
2 Burning Vapors 1,200 XP
10 kobold dragonshields 1,250 XP

Stage 2
Infyrana, Red Dragon Mage, stage 2 5,000 XP
10 fire elemental sparks 1,250 XP

Stage 3
Infyrana, Red Dragon mage, stage 3 5,000 XP
3 Red Dragon Wyrmlings 1,200 XP
Puzzle: Faces of the Dragon 700 XP (still figuring this one out)

[MENTION=20323]Quickleaf[/MENTION], I haven't looked at Stage 2 yet, but on Stage 1:

I strongly agree with what [MENTION=6696971]Manbearcat[/MENTION] had to say about the damage output of those powers, and if you are following Sly Flouish than Sly Flourish is giving you bad advice on that particular issue - your beguiling in particular is very underpowered;

Is there some resource you use with hard-and-fast 4e damage values defined? The ones I know of (DMG errata & Sly Flourish) you guys are saying is too low.

Your sulphrous wrath looks potentially a bit OP with its auto-blind (if the encounter turns into one huge blinding fest it may not play out how you wanted), and also a bit fiddly with its interaction with the standard action - I'd look for a way to wrap the triggered action and the standard action together and so make the blinding, poison etc a single moment of resolution - I've got no firm view on whether attacks or opposed skills are the way to go with it, though.

The auto-blind is actually from Solo Acts: The Worldbreaker blog http://at-will.omnivangelist.net/2010/04/1511/. Let me clarify that it only comes into play 2 rounds in what will likely be a 8 or 9-round fight. Still, maybe I can reduce it to "blinded until start of your next turn"? That would evoke the scene without being overly punitive, right?
[/sblock]

[sblock=Stage 2 comments]

I would tweak this a little, just because all the melee attacks seem to be targeting AC. I'd have this target something else, maybe Reflex or Fort.

Good catch, revising it.

I'd make this an opportunity action, and have Infyrana shift (perhaps instead of pushing the opponent). She's a skirmisher in this mode, and again doesn't want to be cornered.

Yep, should be an opp attack.

Yikes! The PCs cannot ignore that.

I've used Sly Flourish's environmental effects with skill challenges twice now. The first time, the PCs went out of their way to shut it down, because there was lots of space, and they just faced one solo. The second time, the PCs were facing an elite and several allies, and the battlefield was split into several rooms. The PCs decided not to ignore all the regeneration and damage reduction the boss was getting, and killed him with two of the three magic orbs intact.

I resolved then to have the orbs instead give "counterattacks", for instance, hitting the boss inflicts damage back on a PC until the orbs are dealt with.

But I think your method here is cooler. It's a really high-risk gamble for both sides.

Yeah, that's the idea. Not sure how it will turn out in play. I can imagine the questions already: "Can I spend 2 minor actions to make two Arcana checks in one round to control the planeshift focus?"

This is also really cool.

Thanks!
[/sblock]

 

[Manbearcat]

@Quickleaf

[sblock]

* Your sulphrous wrath looks potentially a bit OP with its auto-blind (if the encounter turns into one huge blinding fest it may not play out how you wanted), and also a bit fiddly with its interaction with the standard action - I'd look for a way to wrap the triggered action and the standard action together and so make the blinding, poison etc a single moment of resolution - I've got no firm view on whether attacks or opposed skills are the way to go with it, though.

I missed this one. I agree with pemerton. Might want to consider Att vs Fort for Blinded (save ends) with a miss of Dazed until the end of your next turn.

For the Breath Weapon I just looked at the deathbringer dracolich (a 12 solo from MV) and it deals an average 27 damage plus weakened (save ends) with a similarly sized breath weapon. So I'm thinking my target average damage should be 29-31? 3d12+10 or maybe 3d12+12 since there's no control attached to the breath weapon during the first stage.

The dracolich's budget is about ~ 34 (27 * 1.25). Infyrana has 27.5 * between 1.25 & 1.5 for a limited-use recharge power and - 25 % cost for AoE. So it really just depends on where you want to be between 1.25 and 1.5. With a recharge rate of bloodied, its twice per encounter (generally same as the 5, 6 of the dracolich), so 3d12 + 10 would be on the low end with 34ish (maybe 3d12 + 14) on the high end. Personally, I'd go with the low end of damage and then give her second use as a free action, triggered on Bloodied! The action economy advantage would more than makeup for the lower damage expression...and it would provide a fun surprise!

And I agree with @(Psi)SeveredHead that the Planeshift Focus Skill Challenge is particularly awesome with great tactical and thematic depth. I know you guys try to minimize overt metagame use. I'm curious as to how you plan to convey all of that depth without referencing the metagame. I'm sure you have a good plan so I'm curious to know it.[/sblock]