[3.5] Tactics Question: Solo Sneaking/Scouting

[Unusual Muse]

I have a character who has maxed Hide/MS and is the party's default scout, often operating well in advance of the party. Of course the "plan" is always to scout things out then return to the party, but inevitably you run into the issue of getting stuck by yourself when you encounter/trigger something... and you also encounter the sighs and rolling eyes of the rest of the players saying, "Why didn't you wait for us?" :smallsmile:

Short of having a familiar/animal companion do your scouting for you (which would make maxing Hide/MS pointless, or at least much less worth it), what's a scout to do? What tactics have you found useful in your games to let a stealth character really shine?

[ShneekeyTheLost]

As a GM, here's what I do. This is a houserule, but it works for my table.

I tell the scout type to make himself a Hide, Move Silently, Spot, Search, and Listen check.

If there are any opponents in the area, I make Spot and Listen checks opposing his Hide and Move Silently checks. If there are no opponents in the area, then I don't worry about his Hide or Move Silently checks. I still make him roll them, of course, because it always keeps him guessing. If there are any opponents which are not immediately observable, I make checks against his Spot/Listen

If he beats my checks by a good margin, I give him a general outlay of the area he scouted, revealing certain map portions based on the success of his Spot and Search checks. If he runs into opponents he sees before they see him, then I tell him "you get this far, then you see..." and give him the decision to retreat before being detected, or risking it.

If my critters detect him, then I let him know he got spotted and couldn't get past (area delineated). I also make him roll a Reflex save, plus his Trap Sense. If he does well there, he is able to evade whatever spotted him, otherwise, he got jumped, we resolve a quick encounter, and game goes on.

However, I also play my monsters appropriately. If he runs into an animal, for example, it's probably going to want him to be lunch. If he runs into a guard, however, his first and foremost concern is raising an alarm. That means making a lot of noise for other guards to hear, possibly triggering alarms... in general, making it a hell of a lot more difficult for the party. That's the risk you take when you scout ahead.

[Person_Man]

Optimize your Hide and Move Silently checks so that you're rarely discovered. And when you are discovered, Run away. You never "have" to fight. If you Run away every turn (full round action), your enemies must Run to catch you. So at best, they're getting one or two rounds of ranged attacks against you, often with a significant penalty to-hit. You can also just buy a wand of Swift Invisibility, a scroll of teleport, or other workarounds. I also find that using Mind Link or Telepathy of some sort helps, so that your party always knows what you're seeing.

[Malachei]

It would be ideal if you could get the party to you, not get back at the party, but that requires some investment.

To shine, find a way to get Hide in Plain Sight, ideally, the Dark Creature template. Also, if your hide check is good enough, you can snipe.

Finally, being mobile is important, and it would be perfect if you could acquire a way to have Fly as an emergency.

[Unusual Muse]

It would be ideal if you could get the party to you, not get back at the party, but that requires some investment.

I like this idea, but I can't think of any way to accomplish it that doesn't require a high-level party.

[Person_Man]

I like this idea, but I can't think of any way to accomplish it that doesn't require a high-level party.

Mindlink (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/psionic/powers/mindlink.htm) is a first level Telepath power, which any psionic character can access with Expanded Knowledge. I'm sure you could also put it into a psionic item for a reasonable cost.

[Gavinfoxx]

Have you seen this?

http://brilliantgameologists.com/boards/index.php?topic=11034.0

[Kuulvheysoon]

It would be ideal if you could get the party to you, not get back at the party, but that requires some investment.

My last Swift Hunter always carried around a (partially charged) wand of regroup. It was only good if the party stayed a maximum of 50ft away, but it saved his life more than once.

[nedz]

I run a game where most of the PCs are scouts. Whilst there have been times where they do the recon properly, most often one of them gets a bit gung ho and executes a recon in force (its usually always the same guy). This means that the rest of the party end up coming to their rescue. Hilarious for me, but rarely a good tactic.

The proper way to do it is to have two scouts: with one leading, and the second watching out for the first. The second doesn't have to be quite as stealthy since they are at least 60' behind the first scout, but obviously plate armour is out.

Also it helps to utilise evasion tactics, rather than getting carried away and grabbing the first sneak attack opportunity that comes along; because the chances are that you will at first encounter the other sides scouts/pickets which is unlikely to be their whole force.

The other common error they make is to send three scouts, this is never good. Communication is harder and thats three chances to fluff a roll.

[Unusual Muse]

Have you seen this?

http://brilliantgameologists.com/boards/index.php?topic=11034.0

Nope... thanks! :smallsmile:

[Unusual Muse]

My last Swift Hunter always carried around a (partially charged) wand of regroup. It was only good if the party stayed a maximum of 50ft away, but it saved his life more than once.

Hmmm... cool spell! I guess you could also give that wand to a raven for some creative applications. :smallsmile: