Possible DMPC?

[p_johnston]

PLAYERS OF THE WORLD OF DULGATH LEAVE NOW. you don't need to know what's coming.

So my players are reaching the end of a story arc with an appropriately climatic battle. I have an idea for how I was thinking of running the battle and I want the playgrounds opinion on whether or not it sounds like it would be fun.

So at the final battle the party will be given a choice of two targets.
1) Giant Demon Toad- This is a huge Demon that got released because the party arrived to late on an earlier quest. It's a distinctly harder target with the CR for the encounter being well beyond a Deadly encounter for the party.
2) Toad Warlock- This fight will be against the warlock and a bunch of his buddies. The fight will a hover right around a Deadly encounter for the party (I think I ended going about 100 xp over).

The party will be going in with the help of another group of NPC's who are higher level. These NPC's will be the leaders of an army of which the group is part of.
Plan A-Let the party decide which group faces which encounter. The NPC's will suggest that the PC's go after the warlock but will go with what the PC's decide.
Plan B (what I was thinking of doing)- I give the players the ability to split the party up with NPC's and PC's as they like, with the condition that four go to each encounter. The players who don't have PC's in any given encounter would then play the NPC's that accompany that group.

The reason I like Plan B
-It let's the PLAYERS see and resolve both sides of the conflict, even if their PC's aren't present at each encounter.

The reason I'm worried about Plan B
1- It lets the players see behind the screen at how powerful these characters are somewhat ruining the mystery.
2-(the DMPC issue)- It feels like I'm doing creating a bad DMPC but worse. Something inside me says that taking away a players character to make them play a NPC Is just me saying "look how awesome my characters are." Am I crazy?

[The Glyphstone]

Don't send the actual leaders with the PCs to each fight. They're the leaders of the entire army, they're busy coordinating strategy and managing logistics or doing something similarly critical - you don't send in the General of the Armies to storm a beach, for instance. Rather, have their most trusted assistants/underlings, NPCs who happen to be the same level as the PCs or within a reasonable range of such, tag along in their place as the requisite support and follow Plan B as otherwise indicated. For example, the Archmage of the Armies can't solo the Giant Toad Demon, but they can channel a spell that weakens it, bringing it down to a CR range the party (with their temporary NPC allies) have a chance of overcoming.

Plan A, as-written, means a 50% chance of unavoidable TPK. That would be a distinctly anticlimactic end to the story arc. Plan B, as-written, you are already aware of the pitfalls of.

[p_johnston]

I do like the idea of the toad being weakened so the party could kill it. That enables them to kill it while still making it seems deadly. That is something I may borrow. Thanks.

to clarify plan A
1) the party might be able to kill the Toad but the odd's aren't great. It's a CR 7 vs a Party of 4 level 4's. It is possible just unlikely.
2) The party is aware that the toad is more powerful then them. They will also be given a little bit of info on the creature's abilities, such as immunity to non-magic damage, before the finale so they can make an educated decision. I fully expect them to pick the Warlock but I kept the option open if they really want it.
3)every PC in the party is a caster of some kind, so they all have some way to effect the toad.

Also when I say the NPC's are higher level it's not actually by a huge amount. They range in level from 5-8 vs a party of level 4's. The main thing they bring to the table is magic. The Demon toad is Immune to non-magic damage and the other NPC's represent almost every other magic user in two nations.

[TheTeaMustFlow]

you don't send in the General of the Armies to storm a beach, for instance.

Yeah (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simon_Fraser,_15th_Lord_Lovat), about (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theodore_Roosevelt_Jr.) that (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_Cota)...