How to (Nonlethally) capture a party?

[Togath]

So as part of my current main campaign, I'm planning to have my 4th level party caught by a crime boss who wants to "offer" them a "deal" in exchange for information... but I'm sort of drawing a blank on how.
The party does have ways to protect again an ambush while they're asleep... so maybe poison? A band of somewhat above average thugs with saps? Something with really good grapple mods? There's only four, and they'll either be spending the night at an inn or on a small ship when they reach the town.

[Thealtruistorc]

How much money and power are we talking here?

If sufficiently strong, I suggest simply teleporting the inn to a demiplane with no way out. That way, the players will be forced to cooperate to earn their freedom. Not strong enough for that? Simply place an armed force outside every single one of their rooms.

If you want cheaper or more subtle tactics, I suggest some combination of poison, sleeper agents, and innworkers who are actually rogues in disguise. Of course, just an overwhelming encounter where they are hitting for nonlethal could work.

Alternatively, has the villain tried just asking nicely?

[SaintNick]

Could have a few of the local guards be on the take and then use the rest of the guards as a deterrent since guards protect their own and all. Just have the corrupt guards escort them to the crime boss once they arrive. The party should think they are being led to a government official or something of the sort so getting them to where you want shouldn't be too difficult.

[Kyberwulf]

Could always just have them wake up in cuffs. That always goes over well.

[Sian]

Beguiler throwing around Whelm or something of that kind?

[icefractal]

Hopefully you do intend them to focus on the crime boss as their ultimate foe that they must seek to destroy at all costs ... because it's likely they'll do that. Few things rile PCs up more than getting captured (or stolen from), IME.

Of course all groups are different so YMMV, just a trend I've noticed.

[Psyren]

Why have them wake up at all? Have the dude offer them a job IN their dreams. That's also (a) an easy way of showcasing how powerful your bad guy is and (b) an automatic safeguard against any murderhobos that try to kill the guy mid-monologue.

When they wake up and realize they all had the exact same dream, they'll realize it's the real deal.

[~Mozza]

Why have them wake up at all? Have the dude offer them a job IN their dreams. That's also (a) an easy way of showcasing how powerful your bad guy is and (b) an automatic safeguard against any murderhobos that try to kill the guy mid-monologue.

When they wake up and realize they all had the exact same dream, they'll realize it's the real deal.


That's actually a good idea, but the problem is: what if the party doesn't want to cooperate with the criminal boss? If this is crucial for your campaign, I suggest doing the dream thing, but if someone refuses to partecipate you could make them wake up and be surrounded by corrupted guards or the boss' minions.

Oh, and I'll make the dreams be individual, so they can decide separately and could bring some nice roleplay at the table in case of different opinion.

Or, you know, you make the boss kidnap someone important to the PCs, so they are obliged to go talk to him. But after this, they will try to kill him.

[ksbsnowowl]

Drow poison?

[Albertus Magus]

Alright, you've given the following pieces of information:

1) Pathfinder system

2) Your party is 4th-lvl

3) You want to (nonlethally) capture them

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Before I offer concrete recommendations and options, a word of warning/advice: Many players don't like being captured; hence the "wake up in a prison cell" approach is a perfectly valid way to start a session; you can explain it with partial memories about an ambush, poisoned tea, magic, whatever.

The good part about this that it allows for alot of handwaving actual "capture" mechanics, jumps directly into the action with the players on the path to recovery/freedom, and is presented as fait accompli, which may minimize hard feelings.

Please consider this approach before you decide to use any of the following suggestions; you know your players best.
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Some useful parameters for this thread would be "how much resources are you willing to expend to capture the party", because a CR 20 wizard has obviously many more tools and options to nonlethally capture an ECL 4 party than a CR 1/4 kobold.

Since your party is "4th-lvl", I'll create an ~ CR 6 encounter that mimics a "challenging fight(CR = ECL +2)" for the party in order to show how nonlethal capture can work.

First, a few resources:
Challenging encounter design (http://paizo.com/threads/rzs2u9if?Help-making-challenging-encounters#8)
Detaining & transporting a spellcaster (http://paizo.com/threads/rzs2uakf?Detaining-and-transporting-a-spellcaster#21)
============
From the "9 ways to make PF combat difficult", we know that limiting MAGIC, VISION & ACTIONS are vital.

As such, an enemy party that can create 1-sided vision fields is very potent; this can be achieved via Obscuring Mist + the Oracle revelation Wave sight, this can be achieved via Eclipsed (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/feats/metamagic-feats/eclipsed-spell-metamagic/) Dancing Lights and Darkvision, if your party lacks Darkvision...





1/2-orc Flame Dancer (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/classes/core-classes/bard/archetypes/paizo-bard-archetypes/flame-dancer/) Bard 3

-> Provides vision through fog/smoke/fire for the entire party; has darkvision

1/2-orc Fighter 5(Eldritch Guardian, Mutagen Warrior, Martial Master; IUS, Improved Grapple, Bushwhack, Improved Familiar(Small Aether Elemental) as feats)

-> has an invisible, flying ally who can initiate grapple & pin at 700ft range as standard action at will. Can grapple himself too; he can also use martial flexibility to gain Throat slicer and CdG pinned opponents as standard action.

1/2-orc Oracle 4(Dual-Cursed; Wolfscarred & Deaf; Lunar Mystery) Has a Wolf Animal companion which trips, casts spells silently; has Silence as 2nd-lvl spell available to limit spellcasting; spams Obscuring Mist to limit vision; if your party has no Darkvision, he can use Eclipsed Dancing Lights to create Darkness penetrated by Darkvision to limit vision without wasting spell slots/rounds of bardic music.

This group of 3 persons (1x CR 2(600xp), 1x CR 3(800xp), 1x CR 4(1200xp) -> (2600xp, ~CR 6) should be able to capture your party with ease.

[Florian]

Learn to avoid that kind of scenarios. Most of the time, players will have their pride and want to have a fighting chance and that can only go wrong.

So, before you force that scenario, how about maybe a simple courier delivering an invitation to a meeting?

The second best option would be the "corrupted guard/city watch". Have some officers show up in force and deliver them to the crime lord. That in itself is a message.

Psyren is right with the Dream contact, could also be a bit more aggressive with a Mindscape and a Duel, if necessary.

You want to do it the hard way, then use incorporeal undead like shadows to herd them in a certain direction and have that trapped with symbols of sleep.

[Togath]

Okay... hmm.
An invitation, dreams(I love the separate dreams idea, but it might be harder to get the whole party moving.), or... maybe guards accusing them as a crime, and convincing them they need to go to Big-Bad-Cat-Man's manor to resolve it? "You wake up" could be fun as well, and something like that will happen soon too(A supernatural event that ends with the party suddenly waking up outside of the now vanished dungeon.).
As for the guy himself... not totally sure of his class, but it is intended as a primary villain for the campaign. A mafia crime lord sort with a lot of money, a lot of political influence, and a lot of minions and mercenaries. He'll mostly rely on allies/minions to be a threat, but he won't be a pushover himself(Thinking an unarmed avenger vigilante, unchained monk, or a brawler. The first seems like it fits the social manipulation best. Race is catfolk.).
There is a side semi-main villain planned as well, though I'm not quite sure if I want the two working together, or as two separate antagonistic forces. Having them be separate might give a tasty chance to have villains using two different forms of manipulation to bother the party.(the second one being a psychic hermit crab[snagged from Beasts of the Boundless Blue, a third party book from Alluria] skilled with probably enchantment, illusion, and divination magic.)

[Karl Aegis]

Why don't you just ask them to come work out a deal? I mean, you could have a Kugutsu Butterfly Dream all of them to showcase the boss has enough money to afford a Kugutsu and enough power to keep people from taking it from him, but that's an entirely different TTRPG. One that's more anime.