Mages Magnificent Manision

[AKShadow22]

So I'm running a campaign and one of my players is an artificer that likes to hide in his Mages Magnificent Mansion. It's no too much a problem when he is the only one hiding but I don't like that the other players are hiding in there as well. Not to mention it makes it hard for me to make encounters when all they're doing is hiding in there. Any good ideas for creatures/abilities/spells that would help me bypass this scapegoat of theirs.?

[Slithery D]

So I'm running a campaign and one of my players is an artificer that likes to hide in his Mages Magnificent Mansion. It's no too much a problem when he is the only one hiding but I don't like that the other players are hiding in there as well. Not to mention it makes it hard for me to make encounters when all they're doing is hiding in there. Any good ideas for creatures/abilities/spells that would help me bypass this scapegoat of theirs.?

See Invisibility (for the door) plus Dispel Magic.

[Segev]

What kinds of encounters are they avoiding with this method? I ask because there are some which you just should probably let disappear (this is a valid solution), and others which we can help you come up with ways to realistically make problematic.

[Tiktakkat]

Hiding inside with your friends to avoid wandering monsters is the whole point of the spell, with added improvements of comfort and food over secure shelter, hidden lodge, tiny hut, and even the simple rope trick.

If the spells are that much of an issue, just ban them, and avoid setting up a dynamic of the players working within the rules to make things easier for them and you going out of your way to deliberately subvert their efforts.

[Inevitability]

MMM is literally meant to prevent random encounters, and it comes relatively late for a spell that does just that. There's nothing wrong with letting players use it: you'll just have to make encounters happen when they aren't inside: for example when they're on actual quests.

Alternatively, explain to the player you don't like MMM and politely ask him to pick another spell. Be permissive in this case: you're already taking away part of their game options.

That said, subverting the players' expectations of safety can be effective, if done sparingly. A 10th-level Silver Key (minimal CR: 11) can enter Magnificent Mansions even if no one allows him to.

[Big Fau]

That said, subverting the players' expectations of safety can be effective, if done sparingly. A 10th-level Silver Key (minimal CR: 11) can enter Magnificent Mansions even if no one allows him to.

Abilities like that are few and far between, and that one in particular is both campaign specific and very underpowered for a CR 11.

[Evolved Shrimp]

I think the best solution would be the carrot: Give them encounters that can provide crucial information or something else the players would like to have - on which they miss out if they avoid the encounter. And make sure that they learn what they have missed.

After all, that is the main principle of the game - take risks, gain rewards. If they take fewer risks, it is only logical that they reap fewer rewards.

[Inevitability]

Abilities like that are few and far between, and that one in particular is both campaign specific and very underpowered for a CR 11.

Then there's two things one can do. The first is to give this character (which shouldn't have trouble getting +30 UMD) a few neat magic items that allow him to pick off party members without anyone noticing he's actually there (and with a supposedly inpenetrable demiplane, who'd think so?). If the key manages to take out the artificer (who is unlikely to have all defenses up during downtime), he can make it very difficult for the party to leave the demiplane for the next day or so.

Secondly, one could accept that the 10 silver key levels don't actually increase the spy's CR by 10, and add some more levels to make him an appropriate threat.

[SethoMarkus]

I'm interested in what sort of encounters the party is bypassing with this spell? I mean, sure, avoiding wandering monsters and random encounters is one thing, but that is the entire point of the spell. (I would also find it very strange for the entire party not to join the caster. Wouldn't that be the same as conjuring a Hero's Feast and everyone going "no thanks, not hungry right now"?)

Any threat that is coming after the PCs will likely still be around when the spell ends and they can't stay in there forever... Are they simply avoiding adventuring all-together? Perhaps they are interested in a different sort of campaign?