Need help spending 500k on defending a keep.

[Silva Stormrage]

Exactly what the title says. Currently I have a keep that is defended by my party and I assume it will be attacked relatively soon by an army. The Keep is already pretty well defended (Protected from Teleportation, Scrying) and is on an acropolis so it should be decently hard to get a conventional army up to the keep.

However, I now have 500k from having around 6 characters with the landlord feat and I don't know what to spend it on. The DM likes creativity so thats fine. Originally I was going to have a Turret that spewed blackfire but I can't actually craft that so I can't get that.

My Party if it is relevant
Homebrewed Initiator, Standard Two Handed weapon fighter.
Dread Necromancer
Wizard (Cohort to DN)
Spell to Power Erudite
Artificier
All 14th level except for the wizard (13th) and the Artificer (10th)

Most of the men inside the keep are from leadership so they really should't be that useful since I mostly have level 1s.
My DM is letting me animate Ghost Lilitus (Fiendish Codex I) and I have about 30 of them. They are my main fighting force.

Essentially I need to spend my 500k on something to boost my keep's defenses. The army that it is expected to fight is one composed of massive amounts of infantry and a strong mage presence. Though most of these are blasters so I shouldn't have to worry that strongly about them. I can't spend it on items for my party though.

[Jack_Simth]

Automatic Reset (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/traps.htm#automatic) Magic Device Traps (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/traps.htm#magicDeviceTrapCost) of beneficial spells, for your minions. They're much more useful when all of your minions have True Seeing, Energy Immunity (Spell Compendium) for all five elements, Ironguard (Spell Compendium), Aid, Greater Resistance (Spell Compendium), Greater Heroism, Recitation (Spell Compendium - they all worship the same deity as you, right?), Fly, and Righteous Wrath of the Faithful (also Spell Compendium) on them at all times from the 'trapped' track you've got them patrolling through on the walls?

[Agent 451]

How about hiring/crafting ballista constructs? There's an old thread talking about them below.

Link (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=118809)

Or you could craft magic, self-loading ballistae with ego scores.

[Coidzor]

Do you have a convenient kill zone that spell turrets would come in handy in?

[Gavinfoxx]

I would focus on constructs. Spell Turrets, too. Things from here:

http://brilliantgameologists.com/boards/index.php?topic=177

And maybe template-stacked effigies, like this:

http://community.wizards.com/go/thread/view/75882/19861634/Domo_Arigato_Mr._Roboto.

[Tvtyrant]

I suggest a bunch of self-repeating summon monster traps, with them set up so that when one is set off they all are, and are set off again each time the enemy steps on the wrong tiles. Even better is the monsters set off the traps automatically whenever there is something to attack, so the enemy is forced to flee or be forced to kill infinite numbers of enemies. They cost anywhere from a lot of money with the upper level summon monsters (Infinite amounts of Invisible Stalkers!) to a marginal amount at the lower levels (small fiendish scorpions and just let them stab away aimlessly at the air).

[Gavinfoxx]

I'd use one of the summons that lasts a long time. Like Summon Dire Hawk, or any other summon that lasts at least a minute... and isn't there a way to get Summon Swarm to summon an obscure type of swarm that *can't be damaged with normal melee weapons*? Using some stuff from Tome of Magic, maybe?

[Linkscoolfriend]

If you know where the opposing army will approach from, a simple solution (pun not intended) would be a sort of Greek fire blanket idea. Oil (or something like it) spread across the area where the bulk of the enemy force will be when they arrive, a couple of lit arrows and you're suddenly fighting only the magic user who managed to survive. The footsoldiers (while I have a great deal of respect for men in the service) are probably dead before any of your men have to engage them at all.

From there, outfit your army with bows and keep them inside your... well, keep. If you have the means to create your own magical items and such, I would also recommend tanglefoot bags and alchemist fire, acid flasks, thunderstones, smokesticks, what have you. By any logical means, the enemy army should be crispy critters by the time you have to engage them.

Don't forget about the classic, burning hot oil from your ramparts.

[Gotterdammerung]

Draconomicon page 84 "Lair Wards"


Some of them affect a cavern (does not have to be a cavern, but can instead be an area of 400 square feet.)

And some of them effect the entire lair.


Anyway they are cheap and can add some interesting defensive qualities to your stronghold.

[Coidzor]

I'd use one of the summons that lasts a long time. Like Summon Dire Hawk, or any other summon that lasts at least a minute... and isn't there a way to get Summon Swarm to summon an obscure type of swarm that *can't be damaged with normal melee weapons*? Using some stuff from Tome of Magic, maybe?

I believe one of the normal options of the base spell is spiders which are too small to effect with weapons.

[Telonius]

One scroll of Summon Perfect Warlord (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/erf0005.html)? :smallbiggrin:

[Person_Man]

Money Bombs (alternate name: Super PACs).

Buy a ton of caltrops (1,000 gp) and a few gallons of slow acting contact poison. Cover the remaining 45,000ish gp and caltrops with the poison, and have someone who is immune to poison pack them into large bags/pacs with green money signs on them, along with equal portions of caltrops, also coated in the poison. When enemies attack, catapult the bags at them. Each hit will kill one or two enemies, and then burst the money onto the battlefield. Seeing tons of money, most undisciplined enemies will scatter to collect it, causing chaos on the battlefield and giving your archers/casters/etc more time to kill them. Enemies that ignore the money will still be slowed by the caltrops, poisoned, and freaked out that your Keep is so rich and confident in its defenses that they can catapult money at their enemies.

The best part is that when combat is over, someone can just walk around the battlefield and collect all of the money and caltrops to be used again and again. The only thing you lose are the bags and the poison, which you can easily buy with the treasure gained from killing so many enemies.

[Silva Stormrage]

Thank you guys for your suggestions. I really like the Money Bomb idea since it's so hilarious :smallbiggrin: I don't think I am actually going to use it though since I figured out a good way of killing any fodder troops. The frostburn spell Blizzard has a ludicrous area and I managed to have the Spell To Power Erudite get it. So now he has the ability to burying 3800ft radius (caster level buffs + widen) in 39 ft of snow (extend + caster level buffs). Now I really just need to focus on the elite mage troops.

Thanks for the suggestion of the lair wards. Some of those are really good and I am definitely going to use the Cavern of the Earthbound a couple times.

Also Telonius that is hilarious and you win a cookie for suggesting that. Both the DM and I read Erfworld and I have no idea how I missed that :smalltongue:

[Gavinfoxx]

Send the casters on some stealth bombing runs against the army. Have them load up on extreme range area damage spells and stealth spells and flight spells and high dex forms and spells which will cause mass confusion, and, when the enemy is camped, do an overflight of the camp, using the darkness to hide each round, as if they are stealth bombers....

Here's an example character to do just that.

http://www.thetangledweb.net/forums/profiler/view_char.php?cid=54924

[Coidzor]

Word of Warning about Blizzard, its area exceeds the spell's range. So unless the DM either A. doesn't catch it or B. rules that it's OK, then the blizzard is going to be dumping down on you and only as far out as your range to cast it.

[Silva Stormrage]

Word of Warning about Blizzard, its area exceeds the spell's range. So unless the DM either A. doesn't catch it or B. rules that it's OK, then the blizzard is going to be dumping down on you and only as far out as your range to cast it.

Ya I noticed that. I am using my spell to power erudite to teleport out. Use temporal acceleration for two rounds. Cast Blizzard first round, teleport back second round. I need to make sure the enemy is far enough from my base though or else that could be problematic :smalleek:

[Downysole]

Automatic Reset (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/traps.htm#automatic) Magic Device Traps (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/traps.htm#magicDeviceTrapCost) of beneficial spells, for your minions. They're much more useful when all of your minions have True Seeing, Energy Immunity (Spell Compendium) for all five elements, Ironguard (Spell Compendium), Aid, Greater Resistance (Spell Compendium), Greater Heroism, Recitation (Spell Compendium - they all worship the same deity as you, right?), Fly, and Righteous Wrath of the Faithful (also Spell Compendium) on them at all times from the 'trapped' track you've got them patrolling through on the walls?

Don't forget Blessed Aim (SC) and Greater Magic Weapon for arrows. Haste can double the attacks of your several level 1s, and if you put them on the walls, they get a +1 from shooting downwards. Any mage will eventually get put down from 50-100 arrows coming at him per round.

[Randomguy]

Weather or not you use them in a money bag, poisoned caltrops would be very useful, especially with traps of dispel magic and wingbind above them, to drop flyers onto the caltrops.
In fact, walls of dispel magic would be a good idea to put in several places in the castle.
You could buy buckets of oil to pour on enemies and alchemists fire to light it, illusory walls to make one wall look like a gate and the gate look like the wall, a few scrolls of guards and wards, a few constructs to guard the place, a tunnel that leads nowhere, a permanent solid fog, traps of raise dead to animate your enemies, a magic trap of summon monster/nature's ally X (Whatever you can afford) to attack your enemies and a magic trap of summon monster/nature's ally 4 for celestial giant owl and unicorn mounts.

A permanent wall of fire that the enemies need to pass through would be nice, and so would something to neutralise catapults, like a trap of disintegrate, a trap of control winds or a trap of repel stone.

Get some scrolls of move earth to make trenches which you fill with create water and then polymorph into acid using polymorph any object (and disguise with illusory walls so it looks like land).

An area full of beneficial traps would be useful, but make it so they only affect people with a particular arcane mark inscribed on them so the enemy can't use them. Make sure to include healing, as well as buffing. Among these beneficial traps, include invisibility (Or possibly superior invisibility if you can afford it) and see invisibility.

[Deathslayer7]

What you need is this:

1) A quick fast way to deal with cannon fodder. It seems you have this with your blizzard idea. Just make sure the DM doesn't have the mage dispel it or anything.

2) A way to deal with the survivors. Unless you know exactly who/what you'll be fighting, this is hard. A good way to deal with this is to have traps in the major area where the battle will be fought. Recurring traps are even better. Or 10 or so flame strikes will do if they aren't immune to fire.

3) A way to deal with siege engines. The easiest way is to have a wizard/druid/ranger work with this. I don't remember the right spells but the druid/ranger cast two spells that increases the weapons range increment by double while the other negates range penalties. Shooting 1,000-2,000 feet away? Rock on. Have the wizard cast flame arrows and say goodbye to siege engines if they have any.

[Myth]

Honestly a properly played party with so many Tier 1s and a freaking spell-to-power Erudite at level 14ish can massacre any standard mook, warrior 1, ctapult hauling army.

Seriously.

Just make sure you kill their casters. Use that 500,000 gold with your Artificer. He can turn it into near infinite gold if he knows his stuff.

[Coidzor]

Honestly a properly played party with so many Tier 1s and a freaking spell-to-power Erudite at level 14ish can massacre any standard mook, warrior 1, ctapult hauling army.

Seriously.

Just make sure you kill their casters. Use that 500,000 gold with your Artificer. He can turn it into near infinite gold if he knows his stuff.

Sure, but it's still going to be tied up in improvements to the place due to the requirements of the landlord feat's granted gold.

One could definitely get up to some Tippyfun with traps though.

[Myth]

Yes. Being besieged means next to nothing (if we assume the mooks survive more than 10 minutes versus 14th level Tier1s) when you have auto-resetting traps of Create Water and Create Food, Cure Light Wounds, pay someone for permanent Teleportation Fields etc.

[Silva Stormrage]

Yes. Being besieged means next to nothing (if we assume the mooks survive more than 10 minutes versus 14th level Tier1s) when you have auto-resetting traps of Create Water and Create Food, Cure Light Wounds, pay someone for permanent Teleportation Fields etc.

Also due to my DM's setting the troops are sure to be higher than first level. More than likely they are about level 6-7. Mages are probably 8-12 but much fewer level 12's.

I actually have a platform of jaunting greater which allows teleportation anywhere at will (Though I have to be able to get back through my own power).

[Godskook]

Ya I noticed that. I am using my spell to power erudite to teleport out. Use temporal acceleration for two rounds. Cast Blizzard first round, teleport back second round. I need to make sure the enemy is far enough from my base though or else that could be problematic :smalleek:

No, you just need to make sure your StP Erudite is far enough away from the base, by exactly max range + 1'.

[Silva Stormrage]

No, you just need to make sure your StP Erudite is far enough away from the base, by exactly max range + 1'.

Slightly farther actually. The snow isn't temporary. Its an instantaneous conjuration. So I need to worry about when that 39 ft of snow melts and creates a flash flood.

[Godskook]

Slightly farther actually. The snow isn't temporary. Its an instantaneous conjuration. So I need to worry about when that 39 ft of snow melts and creates a flash flood.

What's wrong with the keep's moat?

[Silva Stormrage]

What's wrong with the keep's moat?

The current moat is sadly unable to protect from the 563160000*pi cubic feet of water that would be created. Sure its not all at once but I would prefer most of that just damages the local area and not my keep and the nearby village.

[gomipile]

Also, if your artificer has (or can get) the Invisible Spell metamagic feat (CityScape, p. 61,) then he can apply it to most, if not all, offensive magical traps. ( I almost typed "tarps" there instead of "traps," heh.)

A horde of summoned monsters is bad. A horde of invisible monsters attacking you is much worse, especially if they can fly and have ranged attacks. The lowest level such would be lantern archons from Summon Monster IV, I think. Since Invisible Spell is a +0 metamagic, it doesn't make the trap cost more.

Also, if you have some time, Glyph of Warding and similar methods can be used to stockpile days worth of spell slots to use during the attack.

[Gavinfoxx]

Invisible spell is AWESOME in this case.

Did I link to this yet?

http://www.thetangledweb.net/forums/profiler/view_char.php?cid=54924

I was talking about having all those characters stat out for a stealth bomber run, and do that, right? You should have them do that. And Invisible Spell helps IMMENSELY with that!

[Than]

It appears from what you have said that you have already read into the Stronghold Builder's Guidebook. Might I draw your attention to page 68?

The Deathstone (2,260 gp market price)
Outright kills 1-3 HD, 4-6 HD must DC 17 Fort save or die, 7+ HD take 1d10/round. It says 30' wide so that's 15' radius from impact and floats on the breeze like fog cloud.

The Explodestone (760 gp market price)
5d6 fireball on impact. The save is DC 14. Mooks are not likely to have Evasion en masse.

The Flaming Catapult Stone (30 gp market price)
Basically a long range alchemist's fire. 'Pult some oil first. Before that (and probably the Deathstone too) you should cast Control Weather so that winds won't make your aim quite so wonky.


And right after that section is the wondrous architecture which you may notice also carries most of the lair wards from draconomicon.

[Gavinfoxx]

If you want to spend money on trapped items... Attune Gems. Make them attuned gems of blowey-up-spells.

[Hyde]

Reading the landlord feat, it seems to imply that it could be used to cover the cost of hirelings, and then it implies that no, it can only be used on physical materials.

Assuming it allows for hirelings, you go out and find a really big Ancient Red Wyrm, and in your most soothing tones you ask him politely if he'll consider defending your keep for the sum of 300k (leaving 200k of negotiating room).

if he doesn't deep fry you, defenses are done :)

Assuming it doesn't allow hirelings, the lair wards are all pretty wonderful, especially the ones with the hurricane force winds. If you're also responsible for the town though, not so much a good idea.

if you can place death traps, something that animates dead (or creates advanced undead) set to delay after anything that leaves a lot of corpses could really turn things in your favor, especially if you have a way to animate dead that create more undead in turn. So then you get xp for defeating the army, AND clearing out your keep of an undead horde! it can't fail!

In all seriousness, without knowing the nature of the army you're fighting beforehand, It's good to go with spells and things that emulate spells.