Upgrading an encounter

[Godskook]

So, I had this evil necromancer cleric that the party's been going back and forth with for a while, and I thought I had dialed the combat up fairly well, except the party just pwned him hard. Didn't even stand a chance, and I'm not sure how much better I could've done without meta-gaming the cleric's positioning somehow. Now, the party is fairly well distracted by the wight-pocalypse the cleric set off in the nearby town, so he's got the time to break free of his bonds, level, and prepare for round 3. My question is how? I can definitely give him two additional levels(for 4th level spells), but I'm not sure I want to give him 5th level spell access for several reasons(some of which are plot related, since high level NPCs outside a certain city he's not from are supposed to be incredibly rare)

The cleric:
Cleric 4(deathbound and necromancy domains)/Bone Knight 3 Gnoll
Str 22(18+4)/Dex 10/Con 16(7 con damage currently)/Int 10/Wis 20/Cha 12
feats:
1-Improved Turning(needed to command wights)
3-Power Attack
6-ImpBR
9-Shocktrooper
B1-Corpse Crafter
B2-Deadly chill
B3-Hardened Flesh
B4-Nimble Bones
(The bonus feats are due to him following the same character creation rules as PCs, which allows up to an extra feat per 2 HD)

Equipment(yes he still has it all, cause the party simply knocked him out):
+1 human bane battleaxe(bought for slaying 3 of the party, due to grudge)
+4 Str gloves
+1 blinding tower shield
+1 Blur bonecraft Fullplate

Last minions:
Modified Karnathi Skeleton(gave 1d6 claw attacks, modified feats and equipment)
Troll Skeleton
Wights(Still has one under his control)

New equipment:
1 wagon filled with random supplies and projects of a semi-insane Artificer(a PC who tried retiring, but then wanted to 'visit' over the summer). I can pretty much put almost anything a level 6 artificer could afford in there(1/4 WBL, but total value of wagon's content is probably closer to 3x WBL, since he hit some good patches while he was NPCed and not risking his life for dragon bait).

Spell selection as of last battle:
1st level:
-Faith Healing
-Bane
-Divine Favor
-Entropic Shield
-Shield of Faith
-Ray of Enfeeblement
2nd level:
-Spiritual Weapon x2
-Owl's Wisdom
-Bull's Endurance(the con one)
-Blade of Pain and Fear
3rd level:
-Divine Retaliation x2(could've been horrible for the PCs, but the party's druid decided to never let this devolve into melee)
-Girallon's Blessing
-Fangs of the Vampire King

Note that my houserules neuter DMM cheese at this level, so please don't suggest it.

[Rejakor]

If you don't have the skill to play a character to his sneaky maximum effect(spying, splitting up the party, laying traps), you're going to have to rely on brute power.

If there's some reason he can't be higher level... have him find the phylactery of an ancient dead necromancer and fuse it into his chest. Have him be a puppet of a powerful caster from said city. Have him just be THAT MAD that he GOES SO FAR that his brain is blasted by HORRORS FROM BEYOND SPACE but in that experience he gains TRUE POWER. And is also insane.

Dude, you're the DM. I really shouldn't need to tell you this.

Also, he's a level 7 necromancer cleric and he has like 3 minions? Pffsh. Have him raid a giant's boneyard. Get some corpse and bone creatures up in. Have him steal a coven of lesser clerics or witches. Have him find the Horn of Urviamaru, that which calls from beyond death and resurrect some Frost Worms.

I get that you've boxed yourself in with your own expectations, here. But i'm saying that after the Fighter spends six rounds battling a frost worm that's wrapped itself around the staircase he's standing on that he beats by sundering the support pillar and tossing it into the murky depths, after the sorcerer gets to stand there grimly hurling fire spell after fire spell into ranks of screaming bone creatures seemingly without end, after the archer and the cleric go back to back and fight off cultists hopped up on some kind of crazy brew and the rogue swings on his grapple and kicks the macguffin out of the necromancer's hands just before he completes the ritual, your party won't care.

And that's the fight they'll tell stories about for years.

[Godskook]

If you don't have the skill to play a character to his sneaky maximum effect(spying, splitting up the party, laying traps), you're going to have to rely on brute power.

I played him ok, but I also learned some stuff too. The party is also starting to come into their own mechanically, so combos are evolving that I haven't had to deal with in the past(Also, my first campaign as DM, so each level is a new set of challenges).


If there's some reason he can't be higher level... have him find the phylactery of an ancient dead necromancer and fuse it into his chest. Have him be a puppet of a powerful caster from said city. Have him just be THAT MAD that he GOES SO FAR that his brain is blasted by HORRORS FROM BEYOND SPACE but in that experience he gains TRUE POWER. And is also insane.

Another reason is that he's not a major plot point, and I'd rather not put too much effort into what amounts to a growing side plot that I won't let the players 'slide' on.


Also, he's a level 7 necromancer cleric and he has like 3 minions? Pffsh. Have him raid a giant's boneyard. Get some corpse and bone creatures up in. Have him steal a coven of lesser clerics or witches. Have him find the Horn of Urviamaru, that which calls from beyond death and resurrect some Frost Worms.

1.Actually, he had 4 troll skeletons, 4 Karnathi, and 2 wights

2.He's going to have more and better minions next time. I might even let him find a dragon corpse, have non-undead allies, and possibly work towards the lich template. I'm just here on my favorite forum doing research on that part, which is where you come in.


I get that you've boxed yourself in with your own expectations, here. But i'm saying that after the Fighter spends six rounds battling a frost worm that's wrapped itself around the staircase he's standing on that he beats by sundering the support pillar and tossing it into the murky depths, after the sorcerer gets to stand there grimly hurling fire spell after fire spell into ranks of screaming bone creatures seemingly without end, after the archer and the cleric go back to back and fight off cultists hopped up on some kind of crazy brew and the rogue swings on his grapple and kicks the macguffin out of the necromancer's hands just before he completes the ritual, your party won't care.

And that's the fight they'll tell stories about for years.

See, you're misunderstanding things. My players are enjoying the challenges and stories I'm feeding them, but they left this guy alive with new toys. He's going to come back, and I gotta prepare for that occasion. And part of preparing a 7th+ level caster for a first-campaign DM is going to a forum and asking for help with what 7th+ lvl casters are capable of mechanically.

[opticalshadow]

firstly, you shoudlnt have to meta game to postion him at that level, he should be adept at scrying, by the time the pc's make it to him, they should just be realizing it was a trap.

secondly, and evil cleric necro, should have some quite powerful allies to deal with his light work.

also, never hold back, jsut because hes a side plot doesnt mean hes not importent. he could escape, he coudl return later, or he can just give a real nice story for your party.

the best part about these types of enemies, is if they are memerable, you can use that later.

the best way to upgrade this encounter, is to give him options that your party is particuarly weak to. he has the capabilities of watching them, so make him do so. if they have a hard time battleing a certian enemy, then have him get those, if they cant work well in certian terrian, set the fights there. import lairs that help him and hinder. black sand (i belive its called) will hurt the pcs, while healing your undead, as will protection from good auras, have him make the fight up hill, literally if it helps.

[Godskook]

the best way to upgrade this encounter, is to give him options that your party is particuarly weak to. he has the capabilities of watching them, so make him do so. if they have a hard time battleing a certian enemy, then have him get those, if they cant work well in certian terrian, set the fights there. import lairs that help him and hinder. black sand (i belive its called) will hurt the pcs, while healing your undead, as will protection from good auras, have him make the fight up hill, literally if it helps.

I've already got plans for him to import brown mold for the next fight. I've just got to figure out a way to make it viable against fireball, since the party has access to that.

Where do you find black sand?

[opticalshadow]

I've already got plans for him to import brown mold for the next fight. I've just got to figure out a way to make it viable against fireball, since the party has access to that.

Where do you find black sand?

for the fireball, rty drawing it out of the party earlier, or pin the caster.

as for black sand its in a campaign setting sandstorm heres apassge explaining what it is and what it does taken from k's necromancy handbook (my dread necro always lines his major areas in the lair with the stuff for pcs to get though ((he doesnt trust his party ever)))

"Black Sand:
Ok, Black Sand is a substance out of Sandstorm that’s both a magical location and an actual substance. Normally, you wander the desert for forty years until you find it, then you cry because it sucks for you and your party. In effect, it is an area of sand on the surface of normal sand and it produces magical darkness and a d4 in negative energy damage every round.

Not impressed? While it is nice to have a location that provides small amounts of healing over time to your undead, the really neat fact is that anyone killed by black sand joins the black sand. Since black sand can be temporarily created by a clerical spell, your job will be to find a way to get the spell cast on some normal sand, and then you drag your enemies onto it, thus allowing you the ability to create more black sand. This neatly avoids the problem of finding an initial area of black sand.

From this point on, you can carry around a large amount of black sand in a Portable Hole or something, or you can keep it in a Shrink Item form. Toss it at your enemies in Shrink Item form for its magical darkness properties, or keep it around as perfect healing for your undead after battles (or you, if you are undead or Tomb-tainted)."

having your pcs fight the clerics undead in this, will make their lives harder for sure.