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View Full Version : Player Help I need strategic advice for a specific scenario - help!



Neli42
2014-05-01, 05:41 PM
The Setting
Albion: A fictionalized England. We're currently in the south, on the Welsh border. Playing D&D 3.5

The characters:
A female Barbarian Sorceress (1/1, CG) and her twin brother Barbarian Fighter (1/1, CN), their male Druid (2, NG) companion - and his riding dog. In their company is the recently recovered AWOL nephew (NPC) of councilman a few towns to the east. In the course of this adventure, three other companions have been arrested, and are in custody of the Watch, presumably awaiting execution: a female Cleric (2, NG) who sometimes unexpectedly shapeshifts into a monstrous red killing machine, a male Pugilist (2, CN), and a male Fighter Ranger (1/1, CN).

The goals:
Free the imprisoned companions. Get out of the walled city past the guards. Return the uncooperative nephew to his uncle's town.

The request
Do you have any good ideas for freeing our companions? Keep in mind that we have to keep the uncooperative NPC under control while we make the attempt. Would it be better to break them out of prison or try to free them during the execution? So far the only (bad) idea we have involves leaving the NPC nephew with the druid back an inn while the barbarian twins go all rage-y at the prison.

JeminiZero
2014-05-01, 06:20 PM
What spells does the Sorcereress have?

What equipment/funds do you have available at your disposal?

What can you NOT do to the nephew to keep him out of trouble? Why not, say, just tie him up? Or knock him out?

How long do you have? Could the Druid say, swap his animal companion for an eagle or something (requires 24 hours of prayer)?

How high/thick are the city walls?

Possible Prison Break suggestion:
1) Blow up the back wall of the prison
2) Have the Druid charge in and then cast Entangle (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/entangle.htm) at a suitable chokepoint, so that Guards in the front will have trouble getting to the back.
3) Run for your lives

City Escape Note: Druids have a useful spell for this called Winged Watcher [Complete Scoundrel]. Transforms him into a raven/owl for 2 rounds. Combined with 40 ft flight speed, that means he should be able to fly a total of 160 ft over 2 rounds, which might be enough to get him over the city walls.

Neli42
2014-05-02, 06:19 PM
The sorceress has: 0 level- Light, Detect Magic, Message, Dancing Lights; 1st level- Magic Missile, Mage Armor

The barbarian twins both have battle axes and daggers. One also has a light crossbow, and the other a sling. The druid has a quarter staff. If he has any other weapon, he has not yet revealed it. The sorceress has also come across a ring that has cast web (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/web.htm) once since in her possession. It is likely a Minor Spell Storing ring.

Among the three free companions there is a pool of about 350 GP.

The nephew has been tied up and knocked out for much of the time he has been in our custody. Not ideal, since we ultimately wished to persuade rather than coerce him to travel with us back to his uncle, but we may be beyond that point already. :smallfrown: He is currently unconscious with us in our room at the inn.

We don't know how much time until our companions are executed, assuming that is their fate. This city and its legal customs are rather unfamiliar to us (being Barbarians from the north and all - heh heh). So the druid's ability to pray long enough to swap the dog for an avian is unknown. Great idea.

The GM hasn't given exact dimension of the city walls, but from general description I imagine they are about 15' high or so and reasonably thick - enough for a city watch to patrol on top, so 6'-8' maybe?

I like your prison break plan better than ours. But if the druid is present to cast Entangle, that means one of the barbarians is out of the potential fighting babysitting the nephew. Also, I don't know how we'd get our hands on something with which to blow up the prison wall. We are, unfortunately, highly recognizable, and now known to the Watch. And none of us prepared explosive runes this morning. :smallwink:

RFTD-blog
2014-05-03, 12:56 AM
I assume the people you need to rescue are not player characters. So what would happen if you fail the mission?

If an NPC gave you this mission, perhaps you can discuss how risky and/or impossible it seems.

Or maybe you pretend to be lawful and support the executioners/guards to get on their good side.

jaydubs
2014-05-03, 01:53 AM
Set up some disguises so you can move about the city. Cut your hair, trim your beards, use prestidigitation to change the color of your clothes/hair. Get dirty if you were clean, clean if you were dirty.

Bribe a guard or a local information broker for the date of the execution, and the usual security in these types of situations. You need information on when and where the convoy will be so you can hit it.

Then, set up a plan for the day of the execution. Create a significant distraction elsewhere in town. A fire, a riot, collapse a building, anything that will draw away people and guards. Maybe all of the above. When guards are called away to respond, attack and free the prisoners. It should be easier with them on the streets than in the prison.

Set up an escape route beforehand. A gate you can overcome, a way to break the wall or go over it, whatever. Grappling hooks seems an obvious answer, but if the gates aren't well guarded that is probably simpler. You will also need horses, maps, and supplies set up beforehand. Have them left either a short distance outside the city, or right before one of the gates so that you can flee in earnest. The nephew should be left bound and unconscious at this location.

I would save the web spell for an emergency in the city. If the guards are on you, throw the web over a street to stop them. Use entangle once you are outside to stop mounted pursuit on the roads.

Alternative plan:
-Take hostage someone important to the mayor, and force him to free your friends in secret. His entire family, for instance, to be freed once you all make your escape.

Neli42
2014-05-03, 05:00 PM
So, Jaydubs, When you suggest leaving the nephew bound and unconscious with the escape mode (horses or whatever), you would recommend leaving him there unguarded? There are only three of us, after all, and if one is off creating a significant distraction, and one is guarding the NPC, that leaves only one to do the actual freeing of prisoners.

RFTD - yes, this is a quest given to us by an NPC, and we almost abandoned it once already, but the company determined to complete it.

Thanks everyone for some great suggestions. We play Tuesday. I'll let you know if we survive. :smallbiggrin:

Neli42
2014-05-14, 11:07 PM
Well, we survived. In the end we did wind up bartering the NPC nephew for the freedom of our companions. They were dumped off outside a city gate after being branded on the cheek as criminals. We negotiated a one-day head start from any pursuers (The nobles laughed in our proverbial faces when we first tried to to get pardons for those in captivity and immunity for those still free). So, we are now all fugitives, three branded, and three not. But, we got away with our lives. And two of us even managed to level up at mission's end. :smallbiggrin: