What's the EASIEST way to beat a Terrasque?

[Oramac]

This is just for fun!!

I'm not talking about the lowest level to solo one, or anything like that.

Easy, in this case, meaning the least risk of the party dying.

Assumptions:
- Party of five 20th level PCs
- AL Rules
- The Terrasque has surfaced some 100 miles outside of [major city] and there is only farmland and a few scattered buildings between it and the city.

My Solution:

Group: 5 Halfling Divination Wizards

Plan: All 5 cast Polymorph on themselves, 4 of the group taking the form of Adult Black or Blue dragons. The 5th member takes the form of an Adult Brass dragon.

The 4 Black/Blue dragons fly around the terrasque and use their breath weapons, either to cause damage or force Legendary saves.

The Brass dragon uses its Sleep breath every time it's available.

Upon a successful application of the sleep breath, one of the party members reverts to normal form and uses a low-rolled Divination die to force a failed save against True Polymorph, turning the Terrasque into a bunny, or some similarly harmless creature.

Maintain concentration for an hour to make True Polymorph permanent, and then head back to the city for a beer.

=========================

Anyone have anything else?

[Potato_Priest]

The situation you describe would require either shapechange or true polymorph to turn into dragons, since using regular polymorph would only allow the party to turn into beasts, not dragons. Also, why not just keep flying around it and breathe on it until it's actually dead? It's not as though the wizards are going to be able to tell if the tarrasque has spent its legendary resistances yet.

[Galactkaktus]

A level 14 draconic sorcerer with a range option that outrange the tarrasque fly and shoot.

[Lombra]

A properly played tarrasque will be menacing that city where you are having a beer. Nobody puts a tarrasque to fight in the astral plane or the like: its lack of mobility and ranged attacks make it easy to kite around.
The only realistic encounter would be the faster way to kill or exile it from what you are trying to protect without huge collateral damage, which is complicated.

[Jaelommiss]

Bribe the DM.

[Galactkaktus]

Hmm targeting the dex save for damage seems to be a good option so maybe 5 level 20 divination wizards with a spell save DC of 19 and 5 simulacrums of them just spamming dissintegrate on it. Should go through the legendary resistances really quickly and murder it shortly after dex save of 0 means 81% hit rate with dissintegrate.

[Vaz]

None of them need to do that, they just need one of them to Plane Shift and then cast Gate.

Alternatively, just be Elves, cast Phantom Steed, Magic Weapon, and run around shooting arrows from their bows staying out of range. Doable from Level 7.

[Easy_Lee]

Everytime someone makes one of these threads, someone posts X simple method of killing T. Then someone else comes and says any DM that allowed X to happen is using T wrong, which is just another way of them saying "you'd never get away with X at MY table!" Which is a pointless argument because the specifics of the T encounter are never given, you just have to kill it somehow. So naturally people trying to kill T will come up with their optimal battlefield, and proponents of T will rig a battlefield that prevents players from abusing any of T's many weaknesses.

Meanwhile, a few people post creative solutions, such as a moon druid getting into its throat and wildshaping into an earth elemental, thus suffocating it. Then someone else says that's not RAW, and we end up with a big argument about unyielding game mechanics versus realism and verisimilitude. Then someone else says there aren't rules for that so you have to ask your DM, and we end up right back where we started.

By this point, most of the people still posting haven't read half the posts. They just read the OP then post a method eerily similar to something someone else already posted. By this point, either the whole process repeats or the thread runs out of steam and dies.

And it all started because someone came up with an idea of how to kill T and wanted to share it.

[EvilAnagram]

Post about it on a D&D forum.

[Sir cryosin]

A party of 5 a Sorcerer, Valor bard, arcane archer fighter, hunter Ranger, assassin rogue. All have magic bows but Sorcerer. Sorcerer cast haste the twin it on rogue and Ranger. Then the Ranger and bard cast swift quiver on then selfs. Then just pepper it tell it dead. All have sharpshooter.. Oh and they are on a flying carpet the Sorcerer is driving.

[Potato_Priest]

My favorite method is:

1. Coat a clay golem in meat, to try to get the Tarrasque to eat it. The clay golem should have standing orders to attack the stomach and other internal organs of the tarrasque after it gets swallowed.

If the tarrasque eats the golem, the golem will be able to easily demolish the tarrasque from the inside, since it is in fact healed by acid damage, has magical fists, and could only in very exceptional circumstances do enough damage to make the tarrasque throw up.

[Galactkaktus]

Oh and grease should be quite hillarious if you have 5 casters with 5 simulacrums it should pretty much make it close to incapable of moving with that +0 dex save.

[MaxWilson]

This is just for fun!!

I'm not talking about the lowest level to solo one, or anything like that.

Easy, in this case, meaning the least risk of the party dying.

Assumptions:
- Party of five 20th level PCs
- AL Rules
- The Terrasque has surfaced some 100 miles outside of [major city] and there is only farmland and a few scattered buildings between it and the city.

*snip*

Anyone have anything else?

You've got 100 miles to play with. Just whistle up a few Phantom Steeds, cast Magic Weapon on a longbow, and kill it to death with arrows while it roars in futile frustration. Even a bunch of nonproficient Dex 8 Illusionists making one attack roll each per round at +0 will kill it within a half hour (2.25 damage per round on average), long before Phantom Steed's duration runs out, expending 15gp worth of ammunition apiece. Obviously a group of Sharpshooter Eldritch Knights using Magic Weapon would kill it much quicker, on the order of about 9 seconds.

The Tarrasque only moves a maximum of 8 miles in those 30 minutes so the city is safe.

[greenstone]

Assumptions:
- The Terrasque has surfaced some 100 miles outside of [major city] and there is only farmland and a few scattered buildings between it and the city.

What's the best way? Invent a scenario where none of the Tarrasque's dangers come in to play.

I would be more interested if the scenario was something like this:

The PCs are in their rooms in the center of the city, 8 miles from the city walls. The Tarrasque emerges half a mile outside the walls, intent on renacting every classic Godzilla movie. What's the best way for the party to make it go away? Here, "best" is measured by least damage to the city and least civilian casualties.

[Arkhios]

Give a good ol' fillip to the Tarrasque figurine on the table. That should do the trick.

Or, wrap your character sheet around the figurine!

/not-so-serious :smallbiggrin:

(What? You said this is just for fun!)

[SaurOps]

Get it to feel regret over its consumption of livestock and return to the village as a pacified, well-meaning dragon.

[EvilAnagram]

You've got 100 miles to play with. Just whistle up a few Phantom Steeds, cast Magic Weapon on a longbow, and kill it to death with arrows while it roars in futile frustration. Even a bunch of nonproficient Dex 8 Illusionists making one attack roll each per round at +0 will kill it within a half hour (2.25 damage per round on average), long before Phantom Steed's duration runs out, expending 15gp worth of ammunition apiece. Obviously a group of Sharpshooter Eldritch Knights using Magic Weapon would kill it much quicker, on the order of about 9 seconds.

The Tarrasque only moves a maximum of 8 miles in those 30 minutes so the city is safe.

Okay, let's examine this, assuming Crossbow Expert and Sharpshooter, 5 level 20 Eldritch Knights who cast Magic Weapon to give their bows +3.

For the first two rounds that's eight attacks at +9 to hit for 1d10+18 damage, average 23.5 damage and 25% chance to hit. Tarrasque has 676 HP.

First round, each does 47 damage, for 235.

Second round, same, totaling 470 (9 seconds have passed, it's still up)

After this, each does 23.5 per round, for 117.5, totaling 587.5 damage.

T falls in round 4, after another 117.5 volley.

Starting the Tarrasque 100 miles from the nearest city pretty much guarantees it won't matter much. It's whole point is to go Godzilla on fantasy cities, so having PCs face it in the city makes it pointless.

[Sigreid]

Hallucinary terrain over a gate to the 9th plane?

[MaxWilson]

Okay, let's examine this, assuming Crossbow Expert and Sharpshooter, 5 level 20 Eldritch Knights who cast Magic Weapon to give their bows +3.

For the first two rounds that's eight attacks at +9 to hit for 1d10+18 damage, average 23.5 damage and 25% chance to hit. Tarrasque has 676 HP.

First round, each does 47 damage, for 235.

Second round, same, totaling 470 (9 seconds have passed, it's still up)

After this, each does 23.5 per round, for 117.5, totaling 587.5 damage.

T falls in round 4, after another 117.5 volley.

Starting the Tarrasque 100 miles from the nearest city pretty much guarantees it won't matter much. It's whole point is to go Godzilla on fantasy cities, so having PCs face it in the city makes it pointless.

Double-checking:

They can cast Magic Weapon IV, so that's +15 to hit for 1d10+7, or +10 for 1d10+17. It turns out to be more advantageous to NOT use -5/+10, so that's just +15 for 1d10+7, which is 28.60 points of damage ((5.5+7) * 0.55 + 0.05 * 5.5 for crits, times four for four attacks) per action. It will take just under 24 actions on average to kill a Tarrasque. There are five EKs, each with two action surges, so it will take them three rounds, or 18 seconds, to take 25 actions and kill a Tarrasque.

My guesstimate of nine seconds was a little low, but since I hedged "much quicker, on the order of about 9 seconds," and 18 seconds is pretty close to 9 seconds, I'm still pretty happy with that guesstimate. The point stands that a bunch of nonproficient wizards can kill it in minutes before it can threaten the city, but a bunch of magical fighters can kill it in seconds.

Edit: if they do somehow acquire actual +3 heavy crossbows, as you supposed in your analysis, then the optimal attack is +11 for 1d10+18 damage, which is 34 expected damage per action. The Tarrasque will usually die in just under 20 actions, or 12 seconds.

P.S. It's not exactly uncommon for Godzilla to be spotted long before he hits a city. When he does attack by surprise, it's usually because attacking a port city from underwater--an option which the Tarrasque doesn't have. If they wanted the Tarrasque to play Godzilla they should have given it the ability to breath underwater and/or a burrowing speed or equivalent movement capabilities. They also should have given it regeneration and made it much bigger. As written, the 5E Tarrasque makes an exceptionally poor Godzilla substitute. You're better off just rolling your own actual Godzilla with 10,000 HP, 100 HP/round regeneration, and a 100d20 breath weapon with a range of "Sight" and an AoE measured in acres.

[EvilAnagram]

Double-checking:

They can cast Magic Weapon IV, so that's +15 to hit for 1d10+7, or +10 for 1d10+17. It turns out to be more advantageous to NOT use -5/+10, so that's just +15 for 1d10+7, which is 28.60 points of damage ((5.5+7) * 0.55 + 0.05 * 5.5 for crits, times four for four attacks) per action. It will take just under 24 actions on average to kill a Tarrasque. There are five EKs, each with two action surges, so it will take them three rounds, or 18 seconds, to take 25 actions and kill a Tarrasque.

My guesstimate of nine seconds was a little low, but since I hedged "on the order of 9 seconds," and 18 seconds is pretty close to 9 seconds, I'm still pretty happy with that guesstimate. The point stands that a bunch of nonproficient wizards can kill it in minutes before it can threaten the city, but a bunch of magical fighters can kill it in seconds.

Edit: if they do somehow acquire actual +3 heavy crossbows, as you supposed in your analysis, then the optimal attack is +11 for 1d10+18 damage, which is 34 expected damage per action. The Tarrasque will usually die in just under 20 actions, or 12 seconds.

I was assuming they'd cast Magic Weapon for the +3.

[MaxWilson]

I was assuming they'd cast Magic Weapon for the +3.

They can't. They've only got 4th level spell slots, and a +3 weapon requires 6th level slots.

[CursedRhubarb]

Set up a Portable Hole in the path of the beast, use one of many methods to fly and have a Bag of Holding with a rope and rock tied around it. When the beast gets within range lob the bag towards the PH and book it out of there.

[asuev]

Easiest way to beat a Tarrasque?

Convince it to start dating an NFL player. Preferably a Dallas Cowboy.

[EvilAnagram]

The easiest thing to do would be to puncture a bag of holding next to it, then cast Banish on yourself.

Sure, down the line the adventure hook will be, "The gods are pissed off at you now," but that's a problem for future you.

[ZorroGames]

Run away? Far, far away?

[Saeviomage]

Hop on a phantom steed and then chain cast polymorph until it fails, before drowning the resultant creature (I would suggest a sloth to avoid any "it's hard to catch" or "it wouldn't drown in time" arguments).

[Sariel Vailo]

Run away? Far, far away?

Under every circumstance

[Spojack]

5 Nomad mystics casting Nomads Gate between them and the tarrasque setting the other side of the gate about a mile in the air? I don't know if RAW the tarrasque has immunity to the damage from falling since it says that its damage from "attacks". Even if it does between 5 lvl 20 mystics you can get 50 casts of nomads gate and each one lasts for an hour. So it might just become confused and enraged enough that it strokes out or has an aneurysm.

[ChampionWiggles]

As others have suggested before, using Gate in some sort of way to make it someone else's problem. Preferably the destination be the Elemental Plane of Air so it is falling in perpetual sky for eternity or in Elemental Plane of Water so it eventually drowns or something. Someone already mentioned being on a different plane and casting Gate and then plane shifting away. Another method would be to polymorph into a Giant Ape or True Polymorph into a Storm Giant and just try and grapple and shove the Tarrasque through the gate.

On the more creative side?
Polymorph another Gargantuan size creature (a Brontosaurus is lowest CR Gargantuan monster at CR 5) into a bunny or something small, have the Tarrasque eat it and then stop concentrating on Polymorph. There's not really any rules about what this would do, but it's safe to assume the sudden expansion and having a same size creature inside it would rupture its stomach and almost assuredly kill them both. Alternatively, polymorph yourself into a Bronto and do the same thing and just have your party revive you once you and the Tarrasque both horribly die.

Another that involves intentionally being swallowed is to activate Daern's Instant Fortress while inside the Tarrasque's stomach, but that means your DM would have to allow it, since the wording of the Fortress says you place the cube on the "Ground".

Grab Armor of Invulnerability and try to dive bomb into its face from the Stratosphere. DM probably wouldn't let it kill it, but it'd be fun.

[Basement Cat]

Have a 2nd Warlock get the Spell Sniper feat, Eldritch Spear and Agonizing Blast invocations. This combination permits the Warlock to attack from 600 feet away with force attacks which effect the Tarrasque.

That's all you need. Stay on a horse and keep kiting all day long from a safe distance and you'll become the most legendary low leveled Monster Slayer in history.

[imanidiot]

Have a 2nd Warlock get the Spell Sniper feat, Eldritch Spear and Agonizing Blast invocations. This combination permits the Warlock to attack from 600 feet away with force attacks which effect the Tarrasque.

That's all you need. Stay on a horse and keep kiting all day long from a safe distance and you'll become the most legendary low leveled Monster Slayer in history.

Might want to read that again.

"Reflective Carapace: Any time the tarrasque is targeted by a Magic Missile spell, a line spell, or a spell that requires a ranged Attack roll, roll a d6. On a 1 to 5, the tarrasque is unaffected. On a 6, the tarrasque is unaffected, and the effect is reflected back at the caster as though it originated from the tarrasque, turning the caster into the target."

Eldritch Blast can NOT harm the Tarrasque. You'll only kill yourself.

[Basement Cat]

Might want to read that again.

"Reflective Carapace: Any time the tarrasque is targeted by a Magic Missile spell, a line spell, or a spell that requires a ranged Attack roll, roll a d6. On a 1 to 5, the tarrasque is unaffected. On a 6, the tarrasque is unaffected, and the effect is reflected back at the caster as though it originated from the tarrasque, turning the caster into the target."

Eldritch Blast can NOT harm the Tarrasque. You'll only kill yourself. Hmm, missed that. Well, back to the tactical board. :smallsmile:

[Nifft]

- Challenge the Terrasque to a game of checkers.
- OPTIONAL: Teleport a letter of challenge right onto the creature's nose.
- OPTIONAL: Publish your challenge as an open letter in many newspapers.
- Wait until the Terrasque fails to show up.
- Declare victory by default.

ez pz

gg thx bye

[Basement Cat]

Get a flying mount by some means---True Polymorph someone into one or a Ranger or Druid who's tamed one--and systematically bomb the Tarrasque from beyond it's threat range. Big rocks would be nice, especially if you can manage to magic boulders into pebbles that grow as they fall (someone I knew managed to do that in 3.5 ed and it was awesome).

Death from above in the D&D realm!:smalltongue:

[Vingelot]

Get some Intellect Devourers to, well, Devour Intellect on it. BAM it's stunned indefinitely. Now hope they don't Body Thief it...

[MaxWilson]

Hmm, missed that. Well, back to the tactical board. :smallsmile:

Upthread, you see essentially the same suggestion, but involving Magic Weapon (which the Tarrasque is not immune to) instead of Eldritch Blast.

I agree with you that kiting it to death is clearly the easiest, least-demanding solution to the optimization problem. All of these versions involving Gate/etc. are just Rube Goldberg solutions using big spells for the sake of using big spells.

[MaxWilson]

Get some Intellect Devourers to, well, Devour Intellect on it. BAM it's stunned indefinitely. Now hope they don't Body Thief it...

I believe Body Thief is restricted to humanoids, but there is a way to Magic Jar it:

(1) Use up all the Tarrasque's legendary resistances somehow.
(2) True Polymorph it into a humanoid.
(3) Magic Jar into that humanoid.
(4) Stop concentrating on True Polymorph.

Bam! You now possess the body of a Tarrasque.

Now if you're also a sorcerer with Subtle Spell (doing Magic Jar via Wish), you just might make an entertaining BBEG for a campaign.