How to prepare for a high risk "party"

[Matrota]

I play in a 3.5e campaign in which the party is seeking out 5 artifacts that can lift the seal on a creature locked away by the gods. The creature stole the souls of our allies, and we're ammassing an army to take it down. However, we're not the only ones seeking these artifacts.

Recently, we were invited to a special party by an elite enchantress named Daria. From doing some research, it seems she wishes to add these artifacts to her collection. We believe she's invited us to bargain, as we possess two of the five already. She's likely invited other groups that are seeking the artifacts, so we plan to go to gather information if possible.

The party permits no weapons and no offensive magic. Apparently Daria is powerful enough to peer into spellcasters' minds and see their prepared spell lists. Knowing our DM, she's probably level 40+ and well optimized, vs our party of 14-19th(?) level characters. This event is likely going to be full of people who are after our heads, though our safety is "guaranteed."

What would you giants advise we do in this situation? Seems a lot like a trap, but if we go in armed to the teeth, we'll be kicked out and miss one of the best chances we have to get information on the enemy.

Party is as follows:

- My frost elf Spellsword 14/Icelord 1 (Icelord is a custom variant of stormlord, just cold themed) who can cast 9th level spells. Wizard/fighter based spellsword, DM permitted me to start as an apprentice spellsword from 1st level since when we started the campaign I was still very new to dnd and he wanted to keep me interested. Has lead to me being much stronger than normal.
- Sthein Rogue 14
- Some type of sentient shapeshifting ooze healer 14(only player and DM really know what she is)
- Frost Elf animated clone of other Frost Elf, different spells and higher level for some reason, specific level unknown (NPC)
- DM Custom race and class, pretty similar to a water genasi druid, level is 19 as far as I can remember (NPC)

[Gildedragon]

Diplomancy: Help us take the beasty down and you can keep the artifacts as payment.

Mindblank on yourself. Fabricate 2 copies of the artifacts. Make them minorly magical, then randomly magic aura them and the artifacts, one to be non magical, another to be quite magical and a third to seem moderately magical.
Put artifacts inside a bag of holding (bag a), while inside a rope trick, line the inside of a second bag of holding with lead (bag b). Put the first bag of holding into the lead lined bag. Outside of the portable hole put a fake artifact into bag b's extradimentional storage. put page b into a third, lead-lined, BOH (bag c). Back into rope trick put bag c into your handy haversack; outside of the rope trick toss that haversack into a portable hole, the hole I to another haversack...
Meanwhile hide the third "artifact " inside a well guarded lead lined chest inside a local hard-core bank.

Find a way to forget everything you've done then (Alcohol?) and just keep a record of it in your party duty wheel with something to the effect of "remember to count treasure at end of day after rogue has done it".

[ATHATH]

Don't even try to deceive her- epic-level Wizards are no joke, and she can probably bypass whatever feeble anti-mind magic protections you can muster.

Instead, have your party face prepare and memorize a speech, with the goal of convincing the Enchanter to not steal the artifacts from you. You won't even have to actually deliver it- she'll probably read it from your mind anyway (you might want to acknowledge that she's reading your mind in the speech).

[Matrota]

Diplomancy: Help us take the beasty down and you can keep the artifacts as payment.

Mindblank on yourself. Fabricate 2 copies of the artifacts. Make them minorly magical, then randomly magic aura them and the artifacts, one to be non magical, another to be quite magical and a third to seem moderately magical.
Put artifacts inside a bag of holding (bag a), while inside a rope trick, line the inside of a second bag of holding with lead (bag b). Put the first bag of holding into the lead lined bag. Outside of the portable hole put a fake artifact into bag b's extradimentional storage.
Meanwhile hide the third "artifact " inside a well guarded lead lined chest inside a local hard-core bank.

Honestly the idea of giving her the artifacts afterwards might work, as their original main purpose was to help seal the creature. Lying won't work on her most likely. We've already taken steps and put the artifacts in a very secure space and don't intend to take them with us to the party.

[sleepyphoenixx]

Don't be silly. "Your safety is guaranteed" and "no weapons or offensive magic allowed" is pretty much code for "whatever you can sneak in". What are you, a paladin?
And you can bet everyone else will do their best to sneak in whatever they can.

It's also DM code for "you will be ambushed while you're away from your best gear".

And "elite enchantress"? That's also a code. In this case, code for "Mindrape", "True Domination", or at the very least "Mind Probe followed by Programmed Amnesia/Modify Memory".

Seriously, where's your healthy adventurer paranoia?
Don't go personally. Use (Mind-blanked) Astral Projections instead, from your (warded to the nines) demiplane. Have someone stay behind who can cast Revivify.
Be buffed with every semi-long term buff you can get your hands on. Have multiple ways out planned (teleport is good, but easily blocked).
Some distractions also wouldn't hurt (Smoky Confinement flasks with a bunch of bound demons pre-ordered to "kill anything that's not us"? Go wild! Though something immune to mind-affecting would probably be better).

Then you can play nice as long as the others do while you try to acquire some hairs from the other high-level people for some Ice Assassins or at least Simulacra later.
And have a plan to kill everyone you meet, just in case.

[Zanos]

I wouldn't even want to be on the same plane as an optimized level 40 wizard enchanter, especially if I had something they wanted. Smells like quickened dispel + dominate person and then "give me the artifacts."

I don't see this going well unless you have some nonmagical way to be immune to her just eating your brain. Maybe remove everyone's memories of the artifacts somehow or something. Send a telepathically bound itelligent undead proxy with undead eyes cast on it maybe.

[Vizzerdrix]

And have a plan to kill everyone you meet, just in case.

Isnt that just S.O.P?:smallconfused:

[sleepyphoenixx]

Isnt that just S.O.P?:smallconfused:
It should be, but, well...

We believe she's invited us to bargain,

So i thought it best to clarify.:smallamused:

[haplot]

Have someone stay behind who can cast Revivify.


Is there Revivify in this edition? I could be wrong of course

[ColorBlindNinja]

Don't even try to deceive her- epic-level Wizards are no joke, and she can probably bypass whatever feeble anti-mind magic protections you can muster.

Instead, have your party face prepare and memorize a speech, with the goal of convincing the Enchanter to not steal the artifacts from you. You won't even have to actually deliver it- she'll probably read it from your mind anyway (you might want to acknowledge that she's reading your mind in the speech).

RAW, nothing can bypass Mind Blank. It can still be dispelled.

@Haplot:
Revivify is indeed in 3.5.

Edit: I forgot about Metafaculty, but as far as I know it's the only exception.

[Calthropstu]

Mind Switch would get you in safely.
Memorizing escape spells (dimension door, teleport, plane shift) would allow you and your party to get out should trouble go down.
Protection from evil is a must.
Magic to read minds may not be consired offensive.
Buffs such Acid Sheath or Fire Shield will obliterate attackers and are purely defensive.
Wall of ice/stone/force are horrendously useful.
Wall of iron is a defensive spell that can be used offensively.
Polymorph is not offensive in and of itself.
Scrolls may be able to be snuck in.

[haplot]

Didn't know that the spell was in 3.5, any idea which book? As I can't seem to find it in the PHB.

[sleepyphoenixx]

Didn't know that the spell was in 3.5, any idea which book? As I can't seem to find it in the PHB.

Miniatures Handbook and Spell Compendium.

[haplot]

Ahh, don't have either of those to hand at the moment.

Thank you for getting back to me.

[ColorBlindNinja]

Mind Switch would get you in safely.
Memorizing escape spells (dimension door, teleport, plane shift) would allow you and your party to get out should trouble go down.
Protection from evil is a must.
Magic to read minds may not be consired offensive.
Buffs such Acid Sheath or Fire Shield will obliterate attackers and are purely defensive.
Wall of ice/stone/force are horrendously useful.
Wall of iron is a defensive spell that can be used offensively.
Polymorph is not offensive in and of itself.
Scrolls may be able to be snuck in.

Whether or not Polymorph would be considered offensive would depend on what you turn into. Shapechange is more flexible (if you can cast it).

What spells those scrolls contain determine if they would be considered hostile or not.

No spellcaster of 17+/18+ that can cast Mind Blank won't have it up.

I would strongly recommend against any violent action against a potentially epic spellcaster.

[Gildedragon]

Get the live my nightmare feat.
The DCs are low but that on top of a mindblank are a "tsk tsk tsk" to whoever tries to pry into your mind. "I would have warned you, but I felt it'd be rude to imply that you, our most gracious host, would do something as uncouth as nonconsensual mind reading. I truly meant no harm nor offense by not disclosing my psychic condition"

[ColorBlindNinja]

Get the live my nightmare feat.
The DCs are low but that on top of a mindblank are a "tsk tsk tsk" to whoever tries to pry into your mind. "I would have warned you, but I felt it'd be rude to imply that you, our most gracious host, would do something as uncouth as nonconsensual mind reading. I truly meant no harm nor offense by not disclosing my psychic condition"

Live My Nightmare functions as Phantasmal Killer, so Mind Blank would block it. Also, I'd bet on an epic caster making both saves.

[Gildedragon]

Live My Nightmare functions as Phantasmal Killer, so Mind Blank would block it. Also, I'd bet on an epic caster making both saves.

As I said: it becomes an "Oh dear! I should have warned you" moment as the epic spellcaster sees the illusion but isn't affected by it. It moves the confrontation from a hidden spellcasting shebang to a social word-sparring diplomatic encounter where the PCs have the advantage of not having started the rudeness.

[ColorBlindNinja]

As I said: it becomes an "Oh dear! I should have warned you" moment as the epic spellcaster sees the illusion but isn't affected by it. It moves the confrontation from a hidden spellcasting shebang to a social word-sparring diplomatic encounter where the PCs have the advantage of not having started the rudeness.

Most likely any remotely optimized caster would have spammed divinations like Contact Other Planes and Greater Legend Lore before they met with the PCs.

But I see what you're saying.

[Slipperychicken]

Consider attending remotely, perhaps through divination magic or one of those magical video-chat mirrors. Get it cleared by Daria at least a week before the party so you guys can work through any issues with it.

Or just don't attend. You found 40% of the artifacts all by yourselves. Why would you need help now?

[Calthropstu]

Consider attending remotely, perhaps through divination magic or one of those magical video-chat mirrors. Get it cleared by Daria at least a week before the party so you guys can work through any issues with it.

Or just don't attend. You found 40% of the artifacts all by yourselves. Why would you need help now?

From what I gather, it's not so much looking for the other artifacts, but a chance to size up the competition.

It is possible this Daria may fully intend to negotiate in good faith, but their other competition, particularly those who want to free whatever this evil is, will have representatives there as well. They want to go in an attempt to learn what their next move might be in order to counter it.
Hard to do that from a looking glass.

[Biffoniacus_Furiou]

Don't show up personally, and especially don't take the two artifacts with you.

Make Simulacrums of yourselves, and send those in. If they're killed, captured, or otherwise destroyed, there's no real loss to your characters.

Make Astral Projections of yourselves, have those Plane Shift to the material plane and attend the party. If they're killed or otherwise destroyed, your consciousness returns to your body which still possesses all of your items.

I'm sure there are plenty of other ways to attend without personally risking yourselves, those are just the first ones that came to mind.