Need help with a Tarrasque 1-shot

[poopyloop]

What's up guys
My group is about to finish our current campaign and i suggested between campaigns we mix things up a little and do a 1 shot where all the PCs are level 20 and have to fight the Tarrasque

Just looking for a bit of advice. Has anyone ever done this before? What rules should i make them follow other than no cheese kills? Should i include minions or other enemies in there as well? I thought a good introduction might be a doom cult is known to be attempting to summon it to set it to destroy everything in its path, so i could include cultists and whatnot. I'd be open to hear any story beats as well that you might have.

I'm thinking of having the players not share with each other their character or anything. Just all legendary adventures that are called to this task by a king or similar, and having to deal with this huge threat with little to no prep time.
So what do you guys think?

[Xihirli]

I had a one-shot where they were clearing out some Mind Flayers and having an easy time of it, too until they found the chamber where the Eldest Brain (oldest Elder Brain) was having the slaves prep a Neothelid with magical teeth in the hopes that it would work as a tadpole on the Tarrasque’s brain.
Oh, and the Tarrasque was also in the chamber. In the fight, it woke up and turned the dungeon delve into a chase sequence.

For level 20, I would certainly alter the Tarrasque in the MM. This creature, at least in my games, was built by the Primordials to kill the gods (which is one of its multiple choice backstories in FR lore). Give it a few more teeth I say. Plus a burrow speed. It’s basically not a Tarrasque without a burrow speed.
Frankly I’d give it back its Regeneration and the impossibility of killing it with the current laws of reality.

I.e.; Regeneration.*The tarrasque regains 1 hit point at the start of each of its turns (10 hit points each minute). The Tarrasque’s severed body members are restored after 2 hours. The Tarrasque cannot die unless a Wish spell is used to kill it while the Tarrasque has 0 hit points.

I’d also give it something with more range, like a roar ability that works like a breath weapon with thunder damage. Not too much damage, maybe 10d10, but a lot of range, probably a 120 foot cone, so that staying away and sniping it with arrows won’t auto-win. Flying above it will prompt it to burrow if enough damage is dealt to it that it even notices.

[JNAProductions]

I made a Revised Tarrasque (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?542991-Big-T-Revised) a while back. Feel free to crib from it! (If you want to post in that thread, let me know BEFORE YOU DO-it's WAY past the necromancy deadline.)

[Chronos]

One point of regeneration a round is an insult to the Tarrasque. I'd go whole-hog and make it 50, like it used to be.

Certainly, though, some change is needed, because as it is in the book right now, it can be soloed by a commoner with a horse and a magic bow (and a boatload of arrows and a full day's work).

[Xihirli]

One point of regeneration a round is an insult to the Tarrasque. I'd go whole-hog and make it 50, like it used to be.

The barrier I was looking for with that regeneration wasn’t so much the number of hit points as the issue that after you down it, it gets back up on its turn no matter what damage type you use. That’s a big deal in 5e.

[Chronos]

Oh, sure, that's significant, but it should be difficult to even get it down in the first place.

Plus, if it were just a matter of popping up every turn, then you could just have folks readying an action to attack it as soon as it awakens each turn, and prevent it from taking any actions that way.

[jdolch]

Hm, i thought you wanted to know how to one-shot a Terrasque :)
I was looking forward to that discussion.

[Foxydono]

I would make a plot twist. The person that let the Tarrasque free is actually a lich! He has two archmages assisting him. When they battle the Tarrasque, the archmages will try to stop them. If they both die, the lich will appear.

If they focus fire in the Tarrasque and manage to kill it, the archmages will retreat. This will make for aan interesting fight, and pretty hard as well, depending on the number of players, their stats and the magic items they get.

The Tarrasque will attack the nearest target, regardless of who'm it is.

[NNescio]

The Tarrasque's main weakness (across multiple editions) is that it can be trivially kited to death/unconsciousness by any flying creature with ranged attacks. Or even just grounded creatures that are highly manuverable like mounted archers/casters, provided there's enough flat space to maneuver around.

One way of getting around this is to make the Tarrasque attack a town or some other major population center that the party has an interest in defending. This gives them an incentive to engage Big T on its terms (mostly), not theirs. The party can still use kiting tactics to win, but it'll be a Pyrrhic victory as it leaves Big T free to wreck the town (which it will prioritize, because of easier, squishier targets).

Pathfinder gets around this by giving the Tarrasque ranged attacks and the ability to make large leaps (massive speed bonus and boost to Acrobatics, for 1 round every minute). Both of these allow Big T to reach flying opponents.

The 4E incarnation is rather... mean-spirited (metagaming against past player tactics, IMHO), with a massive aura (greater radius than any ranged attack/effect the players have access to in 4E, IIRC) that basically grounds everyone within (very limited flight speed and height, to be technical), where they can be in easy reach of its attacks. It also gains a Burrow speed, letting it take shelter or approach a party from beneath the ground.

Most past editions of the Tarrasque are also effectively immortal (either can't die or regenerates from death) and require some special effect to kill permanently or sent away (e.g. Wish or Miracle in 3.5).

You may consider adding some of the above abilities to the 5e Tarrasque (burrow, leap, ranged spine attacks, stronger regeneration) to prevent the party from easily trivializing it. In which case you should probably tone down the damage of its other attacks a bit, since it will likely deal way too much damage once it can reach the party easily, with all the maneuverability and ranged buffs.

(Even then, Big T can be cheesed by a creative-enough Illusionist, or by a Necro with enough prep time and resources. Or chained Simulacrums from any Wizard. Or a personal Demiplane filled with Planar Bound minions made with True Polymorph, also from any Wizard. Or... well, you get the point, high level Wizards are OP.)