[3.5]Breaking into a Drow city

[rmg22893]

So some people of interest to our party were captured and put in prison in a Drow city in the Underdark. Our DM has told us that a full-on frontal assault is all but suicide. So I'm considering tunneling in; the prison is apparently underground. What's the best way to go about this? I was thinking multiple greater stone shapes to create a narrow passageway underground outside the city, and tunneling my way in that way? The foundation of the city is solid rock, so burrowing is out of the question, unfortunately.

I'm a level 11 druid.

[MesiDoomstalker]

If your going with the tunnel with Greater Stone Shape, I suggest making it semi-maze like or at the vary least have random turns to avoid the persuing Drow easy line of sight.

[HunterOfJello]

Mass Burrow Spell

Spell Compendium pg 41

[rmg22893]

Mass Burrow Spell

Spell Compendium pg 41

It's solid rock; burrow is ineffective.

[Jeraa]

Of course its underground. Its the Underdark. Everything is underground.

Use Summon Natures Ally 4 to summon 1d3 thoqqua (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/thoqqua.htm). Burrow doesn't work in solid stone unless a creatures description says it does, and the Monster Manual says thoqqua can burrow through solid stone. 1 of them creates a 1' diameter tunnel, 3 should be able to create a useable tunnel to crawl through (After you let it cool down). At 11th level, the spell lasts 11 rounds, so the thoqqua can burrow through up to 220 feet of solid stone in that time. As a bonus, you now also have something to attack/distract any guards in the area once they burst through as well.

Or Summon Natures Ally 5 to get 1d4+1.


Burrow
A creature with a burrow speed can tunnel through dirt, but not through rock unless the descriptive text says otherwise. Creatures cannot charge or run while burrowing. Most burrowing creatures do not leave behind tunnels other creatures can use (either because the material they tunnel through fills in behind them or because they do not actually dislocate any material when burrowing); see the individual creature descriptions for details.

Transmute Rock to Mud (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/transmuteRockToMud.htm)to transform a 10'x10'x200' tunnel to mud, then Mass Burrow to move through it? (Burrow works through clay, so why not thick mud?). You wouldn't leave a tunnel (the mud would collapse), so breathing might be a problem it the tunnel is too long.

[Coidzor]

You might see if you might procure the services of a Delver (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/delver.htm) from some means within the party.

What are your party members other than your druid?

[Yuukale]

slightly indirect approach suggestion:

figure out which house is keeping your friends captive, then arrange with the next inferior-ranked house (or the second next) to destroy the house.

Means to convince them (there's no need to convince them to destroy a higher-ranked house, the convincing here is on whether you're able to guarantee 100% success):

- find some slaver caravan containing orcs or goblinoids. Ambush and kill the slavers. get the slaves to work under you (by whatever means you may fancy).

now you have a disposable army. and the feat of ambushing the slavers also speaks volumes of your prowess. this should be enough to convince the chosen house to attack the one in possession of your friends.

In the midst of war-generated chaos, gtfo with your companions.

[rmg22893]

We're pretty much hated by every house in the city; one house sent us to our deaths, which we survived; we killed a high ranking drow in another house...so yeah...subterfuge is unlikely to work. If we returned to the city, we'd likely be killed on the spot.

Our party is comprised of a level 9 sorcerer, a level 10 wizard, a fighter, a rogue, a monk, and myself.

What I'm thinking now is to stone shape until we get fairly close to the prison, and then get the wizard to dimension door himself and the rogue into the prison while being invisible, and dimension door the 12 prisoners piecemeal back into the tunnel undetected. Thoughts?

[Jeraa]

If you do find/summon a burrowing creature capable of burrowing through stone (like the delver or thoqqua mentioned above), make sure to cast Rapid Burrow on it (Spell Compendium. Increases burrow speed by 20 feet).

[Yuukale]

I'd suggest detect magic first, cuz drow are paranoid, thus likely to have some kind of ward or alarm in the prison made to trigger on spellcasting.

The first step should be detect then dispel magic. Even so, from what I've read of drow, silence is one of their favorite spells. For a greater measure of safety, I'd suggest releasing the other prisoners as means of buying you some time.

[rmg22893]

On a side note, does anyone know of any spells that would create a pocket of air underwater?

[Coidzor]

What do you need that for? You've got water breathing (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/waterBreathing.htm) which has a 22 hours/people touched duration for a 3rd level spell.

[rmg22893]

What do you need that for? You've got water breathing (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/waterBreathing.htm) which has a 22 hours/people touched duration for a 3rd level spell.

It was so we could start our tunnel inconspicuously underwater, but I suppose that accomplishes the same goal.

[Rejusu]

Use Summon Natures Ally 4 to summon 1d3 thoqqua (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/thoqqua.htm). Burrow doesn't work in solid stone unless a creatures description says it does, and the Monster Manual says thoqqua can burrow through solid stone. 1 of them creates a 1' diameter tunnel, 3 should be able to create a useable tunnel to crawl through (After you let it cool down). At 11th level, the spell lasts 11 rounds, so the thoqqua can burrow through up to 220 feet of solid stone in that time. As a bonus, you now also have something to attack/distract any guards in the area once they burst through as well.



A creature with a burrow speed can tunnel through dirt, but not through rock unless the descriptive text says otherwise. Creatures cannot charge or run while burrowing. Most burrowing creatures do not leave behind tunnels other creatures can use (either because the material they tunnel through fills in behind them or because they do not actually dislocate any material when burrowing); see the individual creature descriptions for details.

I can't see anything about it on the SRD version but unless Thoqqua explicitly leave tunnels behind I don't think that's going to work.

[Darrin]

I can't see anything about it on the SRD version but unless Thoqqua explicitly leave tunnels behind I don't think that's going to work.

From the MM:

"It's burrowing leaves behind a usable tunnel, albeit a small one with blistering hot walls."

You can use rapid burrowing (Spell Compendium, Dru 1) to make it dig faster.

You may be able to use dire badgers with soften earth and stone or transmute rock to mud, depending on how your DM interprets "depth" when tunneling horizontally through rock.

[Rejusu]

From the MM:

"It's burrowing leaves behind a usable tunnel, albeit a small one with blistering hot walls."

You can use rapid burrowing (Spell Compendium, Dru 1) to make it dig faster.

You may be able to use dire badgers with soften earth and stone or transmute rock to mud, depending on how your DM interprets "depth" when tunneling horizontally through rock.

Fair enough, I didn't have the MM entry available so I thought it was worth mentioning as not all burrowers leave usable tunnels.

[SilverLeaf167]

Unless the prison is magically protected, you can hire an NPC to first cast Scrying on one of the imprisoned party members, Teleport in, grab the party and Teleport out.

Of course, there probably are some wards or Dimensional Locks in the prison, but this method should be included for completeness.

[unundindur]

Even if you are hated by the drow you should be able to bribe someone of some rank. are these prisoners really important to the drow, or only to you? I am sure you could pay of a matrons younger sister or something to just go and fetch you the prisoners if you can find her something she wants.

Drow allegiance is about as long lives as a breath of air :)

Another approach is to find a Stone flying or two (From the Underdark book in the Faerun series, page 99), and let it do shuttletraffic in and out of the prison.

[_Jarlaxle_]

Are you guys drow yourself?
If not I don't see a way for you to convince/bribe any other house to help or even talk to you instead of killing you on sight. Exspecially if you are hated by everyone.

[Cwymbran-San]

Advance as close to the city as possible by standard means. Charm 2-3 Umber Hulks to accompany you. Have at least one of them attack the front gate while the other(s) help break the walls of the prison.
Why? Every house will exspect an attack by another house (thats why drow were never surprised in 2nd Ed.), so their sentries will jump you if you come from just one direction. Also, make sure to have enough illusion magic at your disposal to cover your approach, drow wizards are fond of crystal balls and scrying.
Finally, prepare for your DM to have you captured as well. If he intends to capture the rest of the party as well, he might have a reason. And drow do not always kill on sight, because they like to play with their prisoners, so just playing along if the odds turn against you should be considered an option.
Well, at least if you are not surface elves, then you're pretty much fried.

[rmg22893]

Are you guys drow yourself?
If not I don't see a way for you to convince/bribe any other house to help or even talk to you instead of killing you on sight. Exspecially if you are hated by everyone.

No, none of us are drow. But the wizard does have alter self. My current plan of action goes as follows: cast Water Breathing on my party; use control winds to create a diversion aboveground; summon as many thoqqua as possible; once we get fairly close to the prison, use stone shape to create a room with enough space for us to hang out in while waiting; the wizard casts invisibility on himself and the rogue; they dimension door into the prison; get the prisoners back into the saferoom, then cast waterbreathing on them all once we're ready to leave and get as far away from the city as possible while waterbreathing is up.

[_Jarlaxle_]

Since burrowing new holes magically is a favorite drow method for suprise attacks you should take extra care in checking for wards before you start doing this and continue to do so to avoid unexpected suprises.

[Talya]

Perhaps brute force is not the ideal method in.

Not sure what your resources are (if only we had a wheelbarrow!) but that wizard/sorcerer/bard with Alter Self and Language (Elven), and a bunch of slave collars stands a much better shot of getting you in to the city than burrowing, I'd say.

[rmg22893]

Perhaps brute force is not the ideal method in.

Not sure what your resources are (if only we had a wheelbarrow!) but that wizard/sorcerer/bard with Alter Self and Language (Elven), and a bunch of slave collars stands a much better shot of getting you in to the city than burrowing, I'd say.

We are already well-known in the city; we defeated a leader and a second-in-command of one of the noble houses. Showing up claiming that this one random drow nobody's ever seen before has captured five of us all by himself would be a skeptical bluff at best.

[Kuulvheysoon]

Your wizard is tenth level? Excellent.

See if you can snag yourselves a copy of a Xorn Movement spell (Manual of the Planes). It's a 5th level sorc/wiz spell that lasts rounds/level with one important exception; if you don't exit solid rock by the time the spell duration ends, you AREN'T shoved out, receiving damage. It stays active until you reach an open space (like the drow cavern).

It also explicitly allows you to breathe normally, too. I've never ventured into the Underdark without a least a scroll or two of it.

EDIT: You can't move through worked stone, brick or metal with the spell, but if it's anything like a typical drow city, the cavern walls should be mostly unworked, at least in the slums/slave quarters.

[rmg22893]

Your wizard is tenth level? Excellent.

See if you can snag yourselves a copy of a Xorn Movement spell (Manual of the Planes). It's a 5th level sorc/wiz spell that lasts rounds/level with one important exception; if you don't exit solid rock by the time the spell duration ends, you AREN'T shoved out, receiving damage. It stays active until you reach an open space (like the drow cavern).

It also explicitly allows you to breathe normally, too. I've never ventured into the Underdark without a least a scroll or two of it.

EDIT: You can't move through worked stone, brick or metal with the spell, but if it's anything like a typical drow city, the cavern walls should be mostly unworked, at least in the slums/slave quarters.

Unfortunately, I don't think that's possible. The DM has told me that we will likely be attacked by guards and elites on sight if we enter/approach the city, which makes buying/selling anything out of the question, I'm assuming.

[Talya]

We are already well-known in the city; we defeated a leader and a second-in-command of one of the noble houses. Showing up claiming that this one random drow nobody's ever seen before has captured five of us all by himself would be a skeptical bluff at best.

This is part of why bards are awesome.

Your slaves don't have faces. They stare at the ground and drow don't give them a second glance. Likewise, your drow standin is a particularly haughty female that cause even other drow to look away just in case they catch her interest.

It's all in how you present yourself. Charisma, with ranks in disguise, bluff, and/or some Glibness thrown in, and not a drow would even question who you are until it's too late.

[Gavinfoxx]

There are a few creatures that can burrow through stone. Sometimes those leave useful tunnels.

One is the Thoqqua. Another is the Bluespawn Ambusher. A Druid can change into the first, a Planar Shepherd might be able to change into the second.

Also, there are several ways a party can get Earthglide. Earthglide works REALLY REALLY well.

Also, scry the character and teleport in, grab them, and teleport out.

[MesiDoomstalker]

Also, scry the character and teleport in, grab them, and teleport out.

I'd strongly advise against teleportation spells of any kind. Underdark is very wonky and one the wonky things is teleport spells are one, severly reduced range, and two not neccesarily accurate. I wouldn't trust them in the slightest.

[Gavinfoxx]

That's why you prepare *multiple* teleport spells, to reduce the inaccuracy issues via repeated castings, as you zero in and get closer and closer to your target destination.

[Yuukale]

1st underdark rule: never forget to account for faezress

[MesiDoomstalker]

That's why you prepare *multiple* teleport spells, to reduce the inaccuracy issues via repeated castings, as you zero in and get closer and closer to your target destination.

Except he has 2 options. Regular teleport (which should have issues already since they are teleporting to a location they've never been before) and Dimension Door. Teleport have a good chance of going way off course into hostile territory and Dimension Door has a good chance of sending them into a random cell, random street near by, random house near by, or straight into the floor and getting shunted into one of the other options.

[Coidzor]

I imagine planar binding should be of some use, even the lesser version if you can't manage to grind the wizard so he has 6th level spells.

[unundindur]

I still hold by my Stone Flier from the underdark book.

Also, ilsuionspells should work untill someone actually casts dispel on you. Kill some drow outside the city, take their guise and let the person with highest bluff do the talking. Even if they hate you they hardly hate you enough to cast dispel magic on each other all the time.

More severe measures would be to stir up another major power in the region, and have them attack the city.

More realistically, have a 3rd party (mindflayers, a bugbear caravan etc.) offer something to have slaves that happen to meet the exact criterion of the prisoners in question. Arrange for a transfer outside the city, and pay the 3rd party if needed.

Get someone in (by means such as the beforementioned Stone Flier with a scroll of teleportation circle.