D&D 5E Ways to tackle etherealness

[robus]

One trope it might be useful for your players to learn is that magic shouldn't be used for trivial purposes.

So the sandstorm should pose minimal threat if the PCs take conventional precautions. But if they go ethereal they encounter all sorts of ghosts and monsters.

It's a bit late for that And I'm not sure that they will use Etherealness, just trying to avoid having my plans go up in smoke right from the get-go and turn the session into a bit of a let down. We don't have too many to go and they just used Etherealness to great effect a couple of sessions ago but overuse would become tiresome. (Can't believe it doesn't have some kind of material cost...)

 

[Lakesidefantasy]

Could you bait them into coming out of etherealness? Maybe there is a damsel in distress within the sandstorm just outside of the temple. This would also encourage them to take shelter in the temple, which sounds like the actual problem here: Getting them into that darn temple!

 

[Blackrat]

Ether Dragon. They don’t like it when corporeals invade their home. This one has sensed a lot of invasions lately and has begun to investigate...

 

[robus]

Could you bait them into coming out of etherealness? Maybe there is a damsel in distress within the sandstorm just outside of the temple. This would also encourage them to take shelter in the temple, which sounds like the actual problem here: Getting them into that darn temple!

Yeah - the trouble with Etherealness is how limited the sight is (60ft if memory serves) - so unless they're right by they won't notice. But, yeah, there is danger and reward in the temple naturally.

 

[robus]

Ether Dragon. They don’t like it when corporeals invade their home. This one has sensed a lot of invasions lately and has begun to investigate...

That's cool. A gargantuan Ethereal Dragon cruising by is causing turbulence that is churning up the storm in the real world. And of course it's hungry...

 

[uzirath]

That's cool. A gargantuan Ethereal Dragon cruising by is causing turbulence that is churning up the storm in the real world. And of course it's hungry...

Millenia from now the imperial meteorologists will make a shocking discovery: all inclement weather on the prime is caused by events in the border ethereal...

 

[Nebulous]

I think your problem encapsulates my issues with high level play; the DM has to be several steps ahead to make sure the PCs don't thwart the whole adventure by breaking the laws of physics and reality. I guess it makes my head hurt

 

[robus]

Actually @dave2008's Primal Air Elemental looks like it'll be a worthy foe, especially if its reach extends into the Ethereal Plane...

 

[NotAYakk]

The sandstorm isn:t the point. The temple is.

Reframe it as a way to get them into the temple.

Again, these are demigods. "You need to get out of the weather" is ridiculous as a problem. "There is a meteor storm pummeling the planet" is closer.

 

[Stoutstien]

Thanks for the ideas folks, the party is already on an adventure to retrieve a mcguffin so I’m not interested in starting a whole new threat, just trying to throw some obstacles in their path so that the journey is memorable and challenging. The storm is not intended to be the entire adventuring day but a reason to seek shelter in an ancient temple that provides its own set of challenges.

I like the multi-planar storm and perhaps that’s a hook for some follow on adventure? But the players are at level 20, so I’m looking to wrap things up with this final adventure

Its hard to have both a memorable scene and a single path progression at the same time.

The storm herding the players into your plot could use some bait. Local rumors speak of lost temple of X speak of unimaginable treasurer...... random swarms of undead seem to originate from the lost city of.....

A locked door(storm) in a single option hallway (must go to Temple) has not choice therefore it's probably better of as a few lines of set dressing.