tracking an assassin kidnapper

[Ettina]

I'm working on a campaign (lvl 12-14), and at one point, one of the friendly NPCs is going to get kidnapped by an assassin (using death attack to paralyze and then carting him off). The NPC is a ranger with an eagle animal companion who will not be captured, and will assist the player to the best of his ability to find his master.

I'm wondering how they'd go about tracing this guy. I'm thinking an animal companion wouldn't have any special ability to track their master, right? It would just be the eagle following while his master is carted off, and then going to fetch his master's friends. (The eagle has been trained to fetch help in the past, because this ranger and his cleric friend like to hunt undead together. So the eagle would probably head for the cleric, another NPC, who will be in the company of the players.)

Am I right in thinking that if this assassin is able to cast dimension door, he'd be pretty much untraceable even with the eagle watching the kidnapping? I'm thinking of maybe having the assassin have some shadowdancer levels instead of higher assassin levels, and using the shadow jump to get away with the victim. Would that be enough to allow this eagle to follow the trail, while not allowing the PCs to readily stop the kidnapping if they insist on being there when the ranger gets kidnapped? (They'll also be fighting a couple of enemies as a distraction.)

Are there any other ideas I've overlooked - either on the side of the assassin or the friendly NPCs (in addition to the cleric, there's also a druid in their group)?

I suppose if nothing else, I have been contemplating throwing in a bad guy who switches sides. If they really can't find this ranger guy, then the defector could lead them.

[Necroticplague]

I'm wondering how they'd go about tracing this guy. I'm thinking an animal companion wouldn't have any special ability to track their master, right? It would just be the eagle following while his master is carted off, and then going to fetch his master's friends. (The eagle has been trained to fetch help in the past, because this ranger and his cleric friend like to hunt undead together. So the eagle would probably head for the cleric, another NPC, who will be in the company of the players.) Well, divinations would probably be the most reliable or easy, depending on level.


Am I right in thinking that if this assassin is able to cast dimension door, he'd be pretty much untraceable even with the eagle watching the kidnapping? Not really. All it does is give you a little bit of a headstart on a getaway. Not to mention a spell or two specifically for tracing, following, or foiling teleportation.



I'm thinking of maybe having the assassin have some shadowdancer levels instead of higher assassin levels, and using the shadow jump to get away with the victim. Would that be enough to allow this eagle to follow the trail, while not allowing the PCs to readily stop the kidnapping if they insist on being there when the ranger gets kidnapped? (They'll also be fighting a couple of enemies as a distraction.) Eagles don't really have anything about their methods of detection that's that good outside of a pretty good spot check. Anything the eagle could do, the PCs could also do.


Are there any other ideas I've overlooked - either on the side of the assassin or the friendly NPCs (in addition to the cleric, there's also a druid in their group)?

Yes.

[daemonvatis]

Dogs, and maybe wildshaped druids if they have the track feat, can track by sense of smell. If you get a tracking dog (could buy one in a pinch), they would just have to search the radius of whatever short-distance teleport you use. Tracking by smell uses different rules than normal tracking, in that the amount of time that has passed matters a lot more than the type of ground.

[Necroticplague]

Dogs, and maybe wildshaped druids if they have the track feat, can track by sense of smell. If you get a tracking dog (could buy one in a pinch), they would just have to search the radius of whatever short-distance teleport you use. Tracking by smell uses different rules than normal tracking, in that the amount of time that has passed matters a lot more than the type of ground.

Actually, wildshaped druids don't get Special Qualities, so they don't get Scent from forms they turn into.

[Ettina]

Dogs, and maybe wildshaped druids if they have the track feat, can track by sense of smell. If you get a tracking dog (could buy one in a pinch), they would just have to search the radius of whatever short-distance teleport you use. Tracking by smell uses different rules than normal tracking, in that the amount of time that has passed matters a lot more than the type of ground.

Well, that's a definite possibility. The NPC druid is an urban druid, specializing in the kinds of animals often found wild in a city, and he's got some awakened rat allies. They'd be able to track a scent too.

[Ettina]

Well, divinations would probably be the most reliable or easy, depending on level.

What kinds of divinations? I don't really have much experience with divination magic.

[daremetoidareyo]

locate object comes to mind immediately. If the NPC has any unique gear (magic item) anyone with access to this spell has a shot.

Locate creature comes next, but the assassin just has to cross a river to block it.

[Surpriser]

Also: Plan for the case that the kidnapping does not work - and no, that does not mean "plan another way to kidnap the NPC".
PCs reliably punch holes in the most bulletproof plans, so you should have some ideas of what happens if either the ranger or the assassin a) dies, b) switches sides (maybe dominated/charmed) or c) gets captured by the PCs.
What if the ranger saves against the death attack? Even if you are willing to fudge the rolls, there are abilities that can let other people reroll or even automatically succeed.
What if the PCs manage to drop a dimensional anchor on the assassin? Then any plan relying on teleporting is over instantly.
And so on...

Your PCs are level 14, so stuff like Commune and Contact other Plane are on the table too - especially since they have a Cleric buddy with an interest in finding his friend.

[Ettina]

Also: Plan for the case that the kidnapping does not work - and no, that does not mean "plan another way to kidnap the NPC".
PCs reliably punch holes in the most bulletproof plans, so you should have some ideas of what happens if either the ranger or the assassin a) dies, b) switches sides (maybe dominated/charmed) or c) gets captured by the PCs.
What if the ranger saves against the death attack? Even if you are willing to fudge the rolls, there are abilities that can let other people reroll or even automatically succeed.
What if the PCs manage to drop a dimensional anchor on the assassin? Then any plan relying on teleporting is over instantly.
And so on...

Someone kidnaps the druid NPC instead.


Your PCs are level 14, so stuff like Commune and Contact other Plane are on the table too - especially since they have a Cleric buddy with an interest in finding his friend.

So, how would that work exactly? Would a diety know where followers of a different diety are hiding kidnapping victims?

[Surpriser]

Someone kidnaps the druid NPC instead.
Still, your plans should at least allow for the possibility that no kidnapping happens, for whatever reason.
Ideally, you would not plan outcomes at all, but if you do, have a backup for when things don't happen the way you expected.


So, how would that work exactly? Would a diety know where followers of a different diety are hiding kidnapping victims?
It depends on the deities available for questioning, their portfolio and how much information you are willing to provide.
In general, dieties know about events pertaining to their portfolio, so a god of secrets/kidnapping/assassins/rangers/archers/teleporting/tracking... should have at least some knowledge about this.
Contact other Plane actually has a table with a "You get the correct answer" column.