Interesting ideas to prevent BBEG dying in first confrontation.

[Stryyke]

I'm running a campaign where the PCs are about to confront the chapter 1 BBEG at lvl 1. The BBEG doesn't have powers of flight or any real supernatural senses. He's just a really good melee fighter. They have a plan, and the resources to actually do something to capture him, since he doesn't have any special abilities. Obviously it would be easy enough to come up with a way for the BBEG to avoid the trap/ambush, but I also want the PCs to feel like they accomplished something with this plan. So I was thinking of having the enemy forces fall into the trap, and the PC's capture/kill a bunch of his croonies. The problem is, since the chapter 1 BBEG doesn't really have any special abilities, I'm having a little trouble thinking of how to get him out of the ambush without him inadvertantly killing one of the PCs.

They are doing something Braveheart-like. Prepping the field of battle before the confrontation. But since it's a small battle, only 25 or so, this BBEG would wade right in. I'm tempted to just have him wait in the rear, but that would kind of screw up some story stuff later on. Not massively, there would just be an inconsistency. So I'm asking for some thoughts on how to get an absolutely average BBEG out of fire traps/pit traps/ranged weapon traps/etc. While allowing the PCs to kill off the 25 or so minions with those traps.

I'm kind of hoping for something epic. I could of course just rule that he saw his croonies fall into the trap, so he avoided it; but that's just so bland. Besides, this BBEG would likely be in the vanguard. Leading the way. So any interesting ideas would be welcome.

[flappeercraft]

Deal with the devil kinda thing could be done, not as in a Faustian pact, I would just make it so that he was a special case where they made a special deal for him or something of that sort.

[John Longarrow]

Need more info on both the BBEG and the party to comment.

Personally, I'd either have the BBEG they first see be a minion of the real BBEG or something. Never put an NPC in front of the party you don't want them to fight. If you build the BBEG right you'll either smoke the party with them OR the BBEG should be killable.

[Stryyke]

The idea was to introduce this guy to the party at lvl 1, then they spend a while researching who and what he is, and they can confront him in a few levels. Incidentally this guy IS just a minion himself. This is just the chapter 1 BBEG. An "Introduce good guys to bad guy" type thing. Honestly, if they kill him, the campaign could go on without much issue. I'm just trying to avoid some inconsistencies later on when this BBEG becomes a regular foe.

If anyone has played Agarest Generations of War, think of the BBEG as the Gurg that Leonhardt fought at the very beginning.

[Doctor Despair]

Someone mentioned a Faustian Pact -- that actually exists, you know. Have the BBEG have a Pact Insidious or one of the other pacts and have it be a deal to extract him from a dangerous situation once per X days unless he is under a Protection from Evil spell or something like that.

Apart from that... Craft Contingent Spell is your friend. Have the BBEG use some WBL to get a teleport/true res/something effect that triggers when he dies or when he is injured or with a command word or something.

[John Longarrow]

Unlike in most computer games, table top RPGs tend to NOT have recurring villains. This is because a good group tends to drop them too quickly for them to escape. If you try to force this on the players they probably won't like it.

Only time I've had villains last more than one encounter was when I already figured the point they'd cut and run. They seldom last more than 2 fights though. If they last too long players stop wanting to kill them and just get fed up facing them.

[Mr Adventurer]

I had a spellcasting NPC first appear inside a Telekinetic Sphere. At low levels there's not anything that can be done to counter it in the open. I like the Craft Contingent Spell idea - maybe a Contingent Telekinetic Sphere that triggers when he's down to half hit points?

[Stryyke]

Unlike in most computer games, table top RPGs tend to NOT have recurring villains. This is because a good group tends to drop them too quickly for them to escape. If you try to force this on the players they probably won't like it.

Only time I've had villains last more than one encounter was when I already figured the point they'd cut and run. They seldom last more than 2 fights though. If they last too long players stop wanting to kill them and just get fed up facing them.
We've already crossed that threshold, so I can't exactly take it back. I'll consider your comment for future confrontations, but that doesn't help me now.

The Faustian pact thing could work. There is even precedent for it in the setting. I was sort of hoping for something a little more flashy, though. Of course I could just make the enactment of the pact flashy.

[ExLibrisMortis]

You could give the character a healing belt. It's a nifty and inexpensive magic item that allows any level 2-3 adversary to heal themselves significantly in combat.

There are some abilities that allow one to ignore small amounts of damage, while remaining relatively vulnerable to PC attacks (depending on type). Astral Vambraces, the soulmeld, grants DR 2/magic, or DR 4/magic with 1 essentia. Flame Cincture, another soulmeld, grants fire resistance 10. With those shaped, you could easily ignore various nonmagical caltrops, fire pits, and thorny underbrush, but a moderately strong barbarian would cut through no problem. Fast healing could also work; if the party can't lay fire on the BBEG, he'll outheal the trap damage as he traverses the field.

Alternatively, you can provide a measure of temporary hit points, indicating divine favour (a blessing cast by a cleric before the battle). You can refluff temporary hit points as you will, maybe say something like: "Although he evades each of your traps in turn, it appears to take increasingly greater effort", reflecting the dropping pool of temporary hp. If you're going this way, I'd set a number beforehand, and stick to it. There's no point in using temp hp if you're going to fudge and let the BBEG get away regardless (fudging is not wrong, but own up to it :smalltongue:). Give the players a chance to cash in that lucky crit for a dead bad guy with extra loot.

If you want super-spectacular, have them glide across the traps on a drogue wing (a fold-out paraglider worn as a backpack, used by dwarves to dive-bomb from their hippogryff mounts).

[Jack_Simth]

What about a modern method of anti-assasination: Body doubles. The Chapter one villain is actually off doing something else. He's got a buddy dressed up as him (mundane disguise, hat of disguise, whatever) commanding his troops because it'd be embarrassing if anyone knew exactly why he was absent (perhaps he caught a VD, and is getting it cured at the temple) and he'd rather nobody except perhaps a few trusted friends know what was up. The letter in the dead double's pocket explains it by way of being addressed to the dead double (the letter also serves as proof and can be used to blackmail him later for a favor or two... if the party thinks of it and takes suitable precautions).

Mechanically, nothing changes, the party gets a touch of extra loot that doesn't generally impact where people shine, and clever players get to do interesting things later.

[Stryyke]

What about a modern method of anti-assasination: Body doubles. The Chapter one villain is actually off doing something else. He's got a buddy dressed up as him (mundane disguise, even) commanding his troops because it'd be embarrassing if anyone knew exactly why he was absent (perhaps he caught a VD, and is getting it cured at the temple) and he'd rather nobody except perhaps a few trusted friends know what was up. The letter in the dead double's pocket explains it by way of being addressed to the dead double (the letter also serves as proof and can be used to blackmail him later for a favor or two... as long as the party isn't at his mercy at the time, or the party is clever enough to set up a contingency with it, and the favor won't get him killed by his superiors).

I think I'll go with this. The enemies are nicknamed "The Eyeless Ones," and one of the PCs would know that for certain. I could have them kill it, then when they turn over the body, they see it has eyes. I don't ever have to tell them it was a body double, but they will find out in the course of the ensuing conversation. And it will look like I had it planned all along. The setting has many regular people who align with the dark forces, and it wouldn't be terribly odd to for one of them to lead the minions.

Even better, I can have him be the Inn keeper. That would really throw them for a loop.

Thanks to all for the great ideas and advice.

[Flickerdart]

Does the villain not have any forward scouts? Nobody that's survived to claim the title of BBEG would be that dumb.

[Stryyke]

Does the villain not have any forward scouts? Nobody that's survived to claim the title of BBEG would be that dumb.

2 things: 1) Emphasis on "chapter 1" BBEG. This is not a leader of armies. This is a really strong fighter, nothing more. 2) I have to go into the battle assuming that the scouts will fail all of their spot checks. If some bad guys make some spot checks, I can roll with it from there. But I have to prepare for the worst/best case scenario.