Will a pair of Owlbears wipe out a 6th-level party?

[OnlineDM]

Just a quick update: We didn't get to this encounter today after all, so I don't yet know whether it will be a good fight or not. We'll just have to wait.

 

[Stalker0]

Powerwise, I think your party will be fine.

Funwise, I've had some grind problems in the past with double elite monsters, as they can take a while to kill.

Might a recommend a mama owlbear and two young ones (1 elite, 2 regulars).

 

[GreyLord]

Can switching to Geico save you money on your car insurance? Can a pair of owlbears TPK a 6th level party?

I looked into it, but no, Geico actually costs me more...stupid Gecko....

Pair of Owlbears TPK a 6th level party? Hmm...do they have Ressurection or Raise Dead Insurance with Geico?

 

[(Psi)SeveredHead]

Why does your party's AC vary so strongly?

Anyway, with +12 to hit, the owlbear won't be reliably hitting Mr. or Ms. AC 26 with both attacks. Said character (a defender, I suspect?) should tie up at least one owlbear while getting some healing backup, preferably with anything that can boost their AC even higher. If you have a rogue, all the better -- dish out the sneak attack damage! The owlbear might want to maul the rogue, but they'll be doing so at -2 to hit since the defender will be marking them, and if the defender is a fighter, I think they get a free attack if that happens, whereas if they're a paladin, the owlbear will be taking divine challenge damage, which (as an unintelligent creature) it should avoid even if the tactical considerations mean it should keep trying to eat the rogue.

Furthermore, if you have a wizard (or maybe even a warlock) you can mess with the powerful attacker's mind. Elites no longer get a defense bonus, so target those Will saves. Hitting an elite with, say, a single-target power that restrains or dazes it is like hitting two opponents with a similar power. The rogue's Blinding Barrage (if you have that) virtually guarantees the owlbear won't be hitting anything for a round. (Note that rogues get a very high attack bonus when using throwing daggers...)

What is your party composition anyway?

 

[OnlineDM]

The party consists of a Battlemind (AC 24), a Monk (AC 25 - I was wrong about the 26), an artificer (AC 21) and a hybrid Warlock/Sorceror (that's Mr. AC 17). The Battlemind could mark both owlbears by using a power point, and she does have the most hit points.

Why such a wide spread in AC? Well, the Monk loves high AC, so he has done everything he can to pump it up (+5 Dex mod, +3 half-level, +2 Unarmored Agility, +2 Unarmored Defense class feature, +1 Mental Arsenal class feature, +1 magic cloth armor, +1 Parrying Dagger). The Sorlock... well, he just has +3 from half-level, +3 from Strength mod (Sorcerous Power Strength) and +1 from magic armor. He should probably be thinking about taking Unarmored Agility, but he tries to stay in the back and rain fire upon foes when possible (though it's not always possible).

I'm open to the idea of mama and two babies if that would be more fun. It looks like I'll have two weeks to ponder it before I get a chance to run this encounter.

 

[(Psi)SeveredHead]

I'm unfamiliar with three of those classes

Still, I know their roles (battlemind = defender, monk = melee striker, artificer = leader, warlock/sorcerer = artillery striker).

There's advantages to using two big owlbears rather than three; it'll be a lot harder for one to slip around and eat the warlock, as the battlemind can more easily tie them up. On the other hand, using three weaker ones would let the monk's and warlock's higher damage shine, as they could eliminate the younger ones fairly quickly. (I assume the monk does decent damage, but am not in a position to know.)

I know the artificer is some kind of buffer, and I suspect the battlemind can buff himself too. Can either or both boost his AC? That might be critical (no pun intended).

 

[thewok]

The Sorlock... well, he just has +3 from half-level, +3 from Strength mod (Sorcerous Power Strength) and +1 from magic armor.

What is Sorcerous Power Strength? The only Sorcerous Power I can find on the Compendium is a feat that gives a damage bonus to arcane attack powers based on Strength or Dexterity.

edit: Alright. I'm guessing you have a Dragon Sorcerer, who is using Draconic Resilience to apply his Strength mod to AC.

 

[Holy Bovine]

Just a quick update: We didn't get to this encounter today after all, so I don't yet know whether it will be a good fight or not. We'll just have to wait.

I take it this will be a wilderness encounter? Make sure to give your players an interesting piece of terrain to fight over. One of the major failings of one of my DMs to have many encounters take place on a featureless plain. It gets boring fast in such an environment especially when I compare it to my other DM who has us fighting things in frozen temples, over bottomless pits, on rope bridges suspended over murky water etc etc. I am always amazed at the difference in enjoyment.

 

[OnlineDM]

I take it this will be a wilderness encounter? Make sure to give your players an interesting piece of terrain to fight over. One of the major failings of one of my DMs to have many encounters take place on a featureless plain. It gets boring fast in such an environment especially when I compare it to my other DM who has us fighting things in frozen temples, over bottomless pits, on rope bridges suspended over murky water etc etc. I am always amazed at the difference in enjoyment.

Yeah, I'm struggling with that a little bit for this encounter. They're defending a wagon from attack. The terrain currently consists of a road with some icy patches, some trees in the area, and some cliffs about 30 feet off the road on either side. The wagon could be used as terrain in itself - it can be moving. I'm not sure how INTERESTING that would be, but it's something.

I want the battles to have that epic fantasy feel, of course, but I want them to fit with the reality of the game world. Owlbears seem to be big brutes who live in caves. I could have the wagon crossing a bridge, perhaps, but beyond that I struggle to come up with anything especially fascinating.

One possibility could be that they're crossing a frozen lake or river when the owlbears attack. The Sorcerer/Warlock has tons of fire powers that could melt the ice beneath the owlbears, and the Artificer has things like Alchemist's Fire. On the downside, walking on ice would be tricky for the players (either treat it as difficult terrain or use an Acrobatics check to move at full speed but risk falling prone on a failure) but probably easier for the owlbears with their talons/claws.

 

[OnlineDM]

What is Sorcerous Power Strength? The only Sorcerous Power I can find on the Compendium is a feat that gives a damage bonus to arcane attack powers based on Strength or Dexterity.

edit: Alright. I'm guessing you have a Dragon Sorcerer, who is using Draconic Resilience to apply his Strength mod to AC.

More or less, yes. Remember that he's a Hybrid Sorcerer/Warlock, not a full Sorcerer. The Hybrid Sorcerer gets to pick a Sorcerous Power class feature - either Strength or Dexterity. If they choose Strength, they get to add their Strength modifier to their damage rolls and can use their Strength modifier in place of Intelligence or Dexterity to determine AC.