Would this be fair to the party? (My guys stay out, please)

[Presto2112]

Sounds fair,
but I also think its perfectly fair but I also think its fair to send PCs against an equal number of opponents of equal CR in a lethal encounter. Champion to champion, like heroes.

What might not be fair is this encounter being necessary to future plans, in what way do you mean that? Does a PC have to be captured in order for you plot to work? If so then you might run into some difficulty if the PCs are lucky or tactically superior or all run away first thing.

It's definitely not necessary for the party (even one member) to be captured, but it would certainly help me. Perhaps necessary is the wrong word, but without this encounter, it definitely delays the overall story arc as I currently envision it.

I am trying something rather bold, IMO, for a novice DM, and although I am trying hard to avoid railroading in the strictest sense, it's difficult for the purposes of a story arc to avoid it entirely. One thing I have had success with thus far is guiding the story through choices, but this is the one area so far where I really want this one thing to happen.

 

[sniffles]

It's definitely not necessary for the party (even one member) to be captured, but it would certainly help me. Perhaps necessary is the wrong word, but without this encounter, it definitely delays the overall story arc as I currently envision it.

I am trying something rather bold, IMO, for a novice DM, and although I am trying hard to avoid railroading in the strictest sense, it's difficult for the purposes of a story arc to avoid it entirely. One thing I have had success with thus far is guiding the story through choices, but this is the one area so far where I really want this one thing to happen.

Aust Diamondew stated my concern better than I did. It's never a good idea to be set on one particular event happening. It will frustrate you and can take options away from your players.

I'd also comment that if the Formians are just out to capture people for gladiatorial combats, it doesn't really make sense for them to keep coming back after your party, should the party escape the ambush. Slavers wouldn't keep chasing one particular group of people, unless they've been paid to do so for some other reason. Not to tell you how to run your game, but you might want to consider some other reason for the party to get interested in these slavers and/or what's going on in the neighboring country, other than by having them get captured and sent to the arena themselves.

 

[Thornir Alekeg]

Well, here's the deal.

The group of 6 will be a Formian Taskmaster, two Formian Warriors with a level of Monk, and three non-evil flying creatures with a degree of non-lethal attacks under the Taskmaster's domination ability. The three flyers will be the ones doing most of the attacking, while the two warrior monks will have the job of defending the taskmaster. This group have been crossing the border from a neighboring nation (an expansionist Roman Empire-esque nation which runs gladiator style games) to collect slaves to run in their coliseum games, and are under strict orders to not kill anyone. They may flee to regroup and attack again at a later time, however, or set off with what people they were able to subdue.

So if the party does not attack the Taskmaster, will the monks stay out of it? If that is the case, provided the party doesn't ignore the flyers and draw the Taskmaster and monks directly into the fray, then I would say go for it. It isn't really an EL9 encounter, it is more like two lower EL encounters back to back.

Though I do agree with Sniffles and Aust that without a better reason than it makes your life easier, I would be careful about pushing this encounter to a predetermined conclusion.

 

[blargney the second]

There are three main ways this encounter could go:
1) The attackers succeed at capturing the PCs.
2) The PCs defend themselves and kill all their assailants.
3) The PCs run away and find shelter.

All you have to do to make sure this encounter leads somewhere is find links from each of the possibilities. Something like this:
1) The PCs are captured. Done!
2) The PCs find information on the bodies that bears investigation. If they don't bite, the attackers' associates later come a-callin'.
3) Wherever they go, there are rumours of people disappearing in the woods at night. Anyone who knows anything is to speak with the local authorities to get to the bottom of the mystery.

 

[Presto2112]

There are three main ways this encounter could go:
1) The attackers succeed at capturing the PCs.
2) The PCs defend themselves and kill all their assailants.
3) The PCs run away and find shelter.

All you have to do to make sure this encounter leads somewhere is find links from each of the possibilities. Something like this:
1) The PCs are captured. Done!
2) The PCs find information on the bodies that bears investigation. If they don't bite, the attackers' associates later come a-callin'.
3) Wherever they go, there are rumours of people disappearing in the woods at night. Anyone who knows anything is to speak with the local authorities to get to the bottom of the mystery.

As I've been reading through the helpful advice that has come through this thread, #3 did occur to me.

"It sure is strange. Old Jeb went out to see what was spooking his goats, and his wife says he didn't come back in. The same thing happened to Hink's daughter three nights ago, and those Spigger Twins five nights ago. Me, I don't go outside my door after dark anymore."

 

[00Machado]

It's not unfair if you give them a chance to understand the danger, and are willing to let good ideas and/or good die rolls result in PC victory.

It's of course also fair for the overpowering force to strategize agains the PCs if they know of them beforehand, and stack the odds in their favor through their own preparation.

If the PCs have no option but to lose, that's unfair, though if they've brought the overwhelming odds on themselves through their own previous actions, then chalk it up to "consequences"

 

[Shadowslayer]

Just another view: I personally despise scenarios where the PCs are to be captured. After they're taken hostage, any bad guy that's going to be believable is going to put as much distance as possible between the PCs and their equipment...and that's a bummer for a player.

Maybe some see playing a prisoner in a loincloth as a challenge, but most guys I've played with really really hate that.

 

[Nate Jones]

If plan on capturing the PCs, set the scene up so that it directly arises from PC action. It takes some of the railroad sting out of it. So, instead of having a group of the baddies show up on the road and, no matter how hard the PCs try to fight their way out, are captured, have the group send the PCs a polite invitation to a formal dinner party, then drug the food or take hostages or send the whole building to another plane. Even the end result is the same (And the PCs didn't really have much choice in that matter), they did get to pick their poison, so to speak.

 

[Jesus_marley]

You could always set it up as a "random" encounter. Have the slavers encounter the PCs and move in for the capture. If the PCs are captured, great for you. If the PCs win, let them find some kind of "letter of marque" on the corpses. If the PCs escape, simply have the slavers move on to easier prey and allow the PCs to decide their next move once word of the slavers reaches the authorities.

 

[Nightfall]

If they are truly that annoying to you, kill em all and let Nerull sort it all out.