Wizard's hideout defenses

[Lord Il Palazzo]

I don't think any of my players read this forum, but just in case: Lacona, Uial, Aira and Ginorbol, please don't read this.

With that out of the way, I'm sending my players on a side-quest to loot a cave that used to be used as a hideout/home-away-from-home for a (relatively) powerful wizard (an illusionist, though he also dabbled in chaos magic via arcane disciple). The wizard's been gone for decades by the time the PCs arrive so he isn't going to be a threat, but I want some reasonable defenses in place to "keep intruders out" (by which I mean give my players a reasonable challenge). The party is at level 3 at the moment.

So far, I've got:
-A number of MacGuffins hidden in chests around the cave that have to be used in a specific order to access the hideout-proper (via some sort of magic door/teleport circle). The MacGuffins are hidden behind a secret door, at the bottom of a pit, etc. and have basic cave-type monsters (bat swarm, gricks, etc.) scattered around (the monsters have taken up residence in the cave since the wizard stopped using it).

-In the hideout itself (which is set up like a moderately sized cottage with several rooms) several items have been animated, including some cutlery in the kitchen/dining room, the fireplace poker, a few books in the study and the wizard's bed (or maybe a sofa).

-A quartet of (possibly small, maybe medium) elementals (one of each) who act as servants of various types are summoned when characters enter. They will attack unfamiliar "visitors" without the wizard there to make introductions.

-A few magical traps here and there. Possibly one that summons a handful of illusionary monsters (shadow conjuration style?)

I'm mostly keeping things core, but (as the arcane disciple above shows) I'm not against bringing in material from elsewhere here and there. Thanks for your help.

In case anyone's curious, the party consists of a Dwarf rogue, an Elf wizard (more fond of color spray and hideous laughter than of blasting) with a "pseudodragon familiar" (that's more or less a reskinned raven; long story), Human ranger 2/fighter 1 (went TWF as her ranger combat style) and a Gnome druid 2 with 1 level in major bloodline (djinni) 1.

[Fenryr]

It seems you've covered everything very well. I would suggest some Illusions made permanent (walls or floor, is up to you). Add a maze, maybe? Or many dead ends.

You want something in particular? Any sourcebook aviable?

[Yahzi]

Animated objects are always fun.

Although by Core they can only be made by a wizard and a priest working together. Which is really, really silly. Why can't wizards animate things?

[Lord Il Palazzo]

Gahh! Why didn't I think of something as simple as illusory walls? I like the idea of an illusion maze (maybe this is where I'll throw in the illusionary monsters). The players can spend ages in the maze getting nowhere, but if one of them interacts with a wall (and makes the will save to disbelieve) it's over.

As for source books, like I said, I'm keeping it mostly core, but I'm willing to branch out if anyone has a suggestion from a non-core book. (Just let me know what book it's from and I can probably borrow a copy in time to set up the adventure.)

Yahzi: I know! I hate that wizards can't animate objects! I'm tempted to house-rule animate objects onto the wizard spell list, but for now I'm either going to give the wizard Arcane Disciple to let him cast it off the chaos domain list, or give him a level in bard and have him cast if from a scroll. They're passable work-arounds, but a wizard really shouldn't need a work-around on this.

[Runestar]

It's familiar could still be around. Assuming an improved familiar, this could serve as an excuse to throw a pseudodragon, imp, memphit or wyrmling dragon at the party.

Small elementals sound like fun. Maybe a fire elemental bound in a stove or to the fireplace, or a water elemental used as a water source? Though at cr1, doesn't seem like it will be much of a challenge.

A summoning ooze (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/ex/20040905a&page=5) is cr4, and might serve as a decent "end-boss" for the party, representing the remnants of a summoning circle the wizard once had.

[Kol Korran]

two questions before i get to ideas:
1) what are they looking for in the place? this could affect or give ideas.
2) what level is/ was the wizard approxmiately? "powerful" means different things to different people? did he die? or go to somewhere else? or something else altogether? this might help

some ideas and comments:
- the poker (and cutlery) can't fly... they'll roll of the floor at most. i suggest small statues.

- Eberron campaign setting has various Homonuculi (and the MM has one aas well) the wizard could have created these, and left them behind to protect O (and serve)

- an Ethereal filcher (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/etherealFilcher.htm)might be attracted to the magical location, and play tricks on the party (stealing things they need). the party might need to find a way to catch it. perhaps he knows some secrets?

- the wizard could have a caged Displacer beast (which he may experimented on. or for components for Displacement spell) with a "create food and water" trap to keep it from dying. the creature attacks anyone who comesin range of the tentacles, but otherwise might be even persuaded to talk (though it might be difficult in its maddened state). it might even promiseto tell them a big secret, if they'll let it out... does the party dare? (the party could probably kill it with some ranged attacks, but it'll take time. i suggest awarding far less XP for this encounter)

-the wizard might have experiemnted with necromancy. some skeletons guarding important stuff? perhaps the wizard itself died to an experiment, and a skeleton (his body) and a shadow (fitting end to an illusionist soul) are all that remain? beware though, Shadows can be deadly to groups of such level.

- if (and only if) you want to be real nasty, a phantasmal killer trap will show the party he means business (probably over a spell book or something)

perhaps i'll think on more later, but here you go. hope it helps.
Kol.

[Aran Thule]

One of the oldest tricks in the book but dont forget the disguised target.
Players see a large dog / guard creature / monster but it is really a rust monster with an illusion on it.

[Lord Il Palazzo]

Runestar: Interesting find on the summoning ooze. I like it a lot. I'll probably use it as you said, as the remains of a summoning spell the wizard was working on before he left.

I'm kind of leaning toward medium elementals for a bit more challenge. The fire one keeps to the kitchen (tending and powering the oven, as you suggested) occasionally venturing into the sitting room to tend the fireplace. Water alternates between providing water in the kitchen and cleaning in various rooms. Wind is free-roaming, doing light cleaning work (like dusting and carrying small refuse to the fireplace to be burned) as needed, but otherwise keeping the air fresh and Earth is entirely free-roaming, doing light physical labor of whatever type is needed. Their master having been gone for several decades (see below) the elementals are restless but remain at their posts, awaiting the wizard's return.

Kor: The PCs have come to the wizard's lair on a mission from a merchant with whom they've struck a deal. The merchant wants them to look for various magical items the wizard is known to have owned. He's given the PCs a list of items he wants and they're free to keep anything else they can take. (Most of the items are still there, though the wizard took a few of the more powerful ones when he left.)

I haven't set the wizard's level in stone yet, though he can cast at least 6th level spells (so he can cast Animate Objects via Arcane Disciple) so he was at level 11 at least, though he'll probably end up a few levels above that by the time I'm done. I doubt his level will matter much as the players aren't going to meet him. He left the hideout 30-40 years ago for a duel with his arch-rival (I'm thinking a sorcerer but again, I'm still hammering out the back story) and never returned. (This is why the best of his gear and his familiar aren't around; he took them to the fight.) He can be assumed to be dead.

I know the animated objects will have to move along the ground, but I still like the idea of the PCs facing down a troop of animated kitchen knives, led by a meat cleaver, even if they can't fly. Most of the things the players will encounter in the hideout will be there to make the wizard's life easier first and as security measures second so the animated objects will mostly lean toward useful rather than lethal (his security is mostly the MacGuffin puzzle in the cave, the illusion maze Fenryr suggested (with a few good shadow-conjured monsters) and the elementals; he probably had more powerful security measures at one point but without the wizard there to recast the spells from time to time, most of their durations have run out.)

I'm trying to keep necromancy (or at least the undead) out of the game for a little while as zombies of one form or another have shown up in the last two adventures the party's been on and I don't want to look like a one-trick-DM.