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Kaelaroth
2007-08-02, 06:20 AM
OK. I am about to run a campaign with a very clever serial killer :sabine: . The PCs are a Shadowbane Inquisitor + a Shadowbane Stalker.

What I want to do is to have the psycho villain murder several people AT ONCE, in different places, to throw them off the trail. So... what methods can I use (other than henchmen) to have my villain be in two places at the same time?

Overlard
2007-08-02, 06:48 AM
Time-Stop. But you've got to be fast and accurate.

Kurald Galain
2007-08-02, 06:48 AM
Short of time travel?

I believe there's a high-level wizard spell that essentially clones yourself.

Use a series of teleport spells to be in several places very quickly after one another, which to the onlooker will seem to be simultaneous.

Programmed illusion.

Mindwipe people into believing they've seen you there.

Time bomb mechanisms.

hewhosaysfish
2007-08-02, 06:49 AM
Simulacrum (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/simulacrum.htm) (expensive)
Project Image (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/projectImage.htm)(limited area)
greatly Extended Fission? (=http://www.d20srd.org/srd/psionic/powers/fission.htm)
Teleporting round really fast?
You've ruled out minions so no chichaery with Disguise/Alter Self...
Storing spells in (Greater) Glyphs of Warding or using that metamahic feat from CM (I think) that lets you turn spells into magical landmines.; "I couldn't have cast that spell, I was nowhere near at the time!"

lukelightning
2007-08-02, 06:55 AM
Simpler: A slow-acting poison.

Guinea Anubis
2007-08-02, 07:12 AM
this could be a fun way to do it


Clone
Necromancy
Level: Sor/Wiz 8
Components: V, S, M, F
Casting Time: 10 minutes
Range: 0 ft.
Effect: One clone
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistance: No

This spell makes an inert duplicate of a creature. If the original individual has been slain, its soul immediately transfers to the clone, creating a replacement (provided that the soul is free and willing to return). The original’s physical remains, should they still exist, become inert and cannot thereafter be restored to life. If the original creature has reached the end of its natural life span (that is, it has died of natural causes), any cloning attempt fails.

To create the duplicate, you must have a piece of flesh (not hair, nails, scales, or the like) with a volume of at least 1 cubic inch that was taken from the original creature’s living body. The piece of flesh need not be fresh, but it must be kept from rotting. Once the spell is cast, the duplicate must be grown in a laboratory for 2d4 months.

When the clone is completed, the original’s soul enters it immediately, if that creature is already dead. The clone is physically identical with the original and possesses the same personality and memories as the original. In other respects, treat the clone as if it were the original character raised from the dead, including the loss of one level or 2 points of Constitution (if the original was a 1st-level character). If this Constitution adjustment would give the clone a Constitution score of 0, the spell fails. If the original creature has lost levels since the flesh sample was taken and died at a lower level than the clone would otherwise be, the clone is one level below the level at which the original died.

The spell duplicates only the original’s body and mind, not its equipment.

A duplicate can be grown while the original still lives, or when the original soul is unavailable, but the resulting body is merely a soulless bit of inert flesh, which rots if not preserved.

Material Component
The piece of flesh and various laboratory supplies (cost 1,000 gp).

Focus
Special laboratory equipment (cost 500 gp).



This way you guy can kill him self for one of the murders. then inhabit his clone on the other side of town and kill someone there. Since the PC will think he is dead that should get them off his trail.

Kaelaroth
2007-08-02, 07:57 AM
I think dominating people might be the way forward. Any tips?

Xuincherguixe
2007-08-02, 08:50 AM
Dominate, shape change them to look like you?

This is probably detectable though.

hewhosaysfish
2007-08-02, 10:55 AM
Dominate, shape change them to look like you?

This is probably detectable though.

Do dominated creatures break the "no henchmen" rule?

And why would he want to make them look like him? Surely that only increases the chances that he will be identified. The pawns should look like themselves and the mastermind should be having tea and biscuits with a number of respectable witnesses several miles away. The dominated pawns should then eradicate eachother (to reduce the chances that they give away any clues about who dominated them). Because a dominated creature can't be given any obviously self-destuctive orders, you will still have one left standing. Give it a subtly self-destructive order, like opening a specially trapped door or something. The high body count should make it hard for the authorities to work out who was a pawn-victim and who was a victim-victim. By the time they've aggregated enough information to figure out it was domination magic,tyou could be well out of the city.

Remember that Raise Dead and Speak With Dead exist (by default at least). The murderer should make sure that his pawns never see his face and they are dominated in an area with no/few witness and no special connection to him. In case his voice is recognised, he should communicate his commands only in notes which he subsequently destroys - or if it contains a lengthy list of victims and places, the pawn should destoy it as the last thing he does. For extra paranoia, have the instructions transcribed by a dominated pawn to make the handwriting untraceable to you.

As an alternative to wiping out all the pawns (you could still wipe out some of them...) choose pawns who are already known/rumoured to be violent/criminal/mad. Convicted felons, local hoodlums, half-orcs, that new guy from out of town who looks shifty. Thow in a few people who just had a blaxing row with their other half, people who stand to inherit a lot of money when old Auntie Betty shuffles off, people who could rise to great office but only by deas-men's-shoes.
Make the cops think they already know the answer and they are less likely to asks dangerous questions. If the pawns gains something by the death or thinks they will be in serious trouble for their part in it, then they may do a large part of your work for you by hiding evidence themselves.

Person_Man
2007-08-02, 12:52 PM
There's a wide variety of methods that any build could use to teleport from Position A to Position B instantaneously. No one is going to be carrying around watches, so really all the murderer has to do is kill at one site, teleport, and then kill at the second site, and teleport away. When law enforcement/PCs show up and question witnesses and look at physical evidence, it will seem as if the murderer is in both places at the same time. If the murderer has a distinctive, non-hooded appearance, crazy rumors will quickly spread about how this could happen (clones, bizarre magic powers, etc) and it will be up to the PCs to figure out that its really just one hard to catch criminal.

Nahal
2007-08-02, 02:55 PM
Another kind of handwavium-heavy method would be for the murderer to sacrifice a number of goats/babies/half-celestial gnomes to the dark deity/fiend prince of your choice in exchange for the deaths of the designated targets. But yeah, a far more efficient method would be to dominate several cut-throats and have them drink specially-prepared alter self potions before killing their assigned targets, using teleportation effects to move between targets in the necessary time frame.

psychoticbarber
2007-08-02, 03:45 PM
I saw a movie where the badguy was a spirit who jumped from body to body. He went on a killing spree where he would kill someone, find another body, then kill the person who committed the first murder, and keep doing that.

So.

Dominate person. Murderer A kills Victim. Murderer B kills Murderer A. Murderer C kills Murderer B...

Kaelaroth
2007-08-03, 09:14 AM
Thanks for all the suggestions mateys! :smallbiggrin: