NPC that only supports but doesnt fight?

[.::Pr0 n00b::.]

Im thinking of an Encounter when my players get to lvl they must find a creature that has been kidnaping people from a local town. The creature is an Oni. One of the people he kidnaped is a little girl who knows magic.
Its like somewhat a stockholm syndrome situation where the Oni thinks of this little girl as his daughter and she doesnt mind him.
So i was thinking of the battle where they fight the Oni but the girl is only a support for him with almost no hp.
This is my first campaign so what do you recommend for her, is there already a low lvl CR monster that could work or should i just put some buffing spells and small healing spells for her

[KorvinStarmast]

What level are the characters and what classes are they?

(Sounds like an innovative scenario, I tip my cap to you. Oni are, thanks to their change shape ability, really fun monsters to run as a DM).

[poopyloop]

The pixie stay block might be something to look at, it has 1hp and no attacks, but a lot of spell options. I believe non combat NPC humanoids have 10 in every state across the board, including hp, so maybe just make that change. Otherwise giving her bard abilities or inspiration type effects would be useful. Perhaps a proximity based buff to the oni from her? I definitely like this idea, assuming you have a good or moral PC or 2 they will probably think twice about attacking her

[.::Pr0 n00b::.]

What level are the characters and what classes are they?

(Sounds like an innovative scenario, I tip my cap to you. Oni are, thanks to their change shape ability, really fun monsters to run as a DM).

Thanks my friend 🙂

I was thinking when they are lvl 4 because they have a Barbarian and a Paladin so burst will be a problem for the Oni but maybe lvl 5 because at lvl 4 they dont have double attack so they are kinda weaker. So il just buff the Onis hp a little bit.

Story wise i was thinking he and the girl are "Mercenaries" and they have "survived" a battle with the monster and lived to tell the tale. He offers them a deal, he will help them for free if they help him with some monsters in the woods. So they do a couple of Encounters together and he promises that he will lead them to the monster. They split up in the forrest and after a while they hear the girl scream they go investigate and if they fail their dex saves the door of the cave they enter will block their exit leaving them to fight the mercenary who changes to his true form.

[.::Pr0 n00b::.]

The pixie stay block might be something to look at, it has 1hp and no attacks, but a lot of spell options. I believe non combat NPC humanoids have 10 in every state across the board, including hp, so maybe just make that change. Otherwise giving her bard abilities or inspiration type effects would be useful. Perhaps a proximity based buff to the oni from her? I definitely like this idea, assuming you have a good or moral PC or 2 they will probably think twice about attacking her

Thank you very much for the suggestion. I found the stat block and its pretty much what i look for.

Im thinking because they traveled together (read the comment above if you can) they will have some connection. Also im thinking of writing down some missing posters for the townsfolk one being a little girl (giving them a little hint)

If they kill the girl im going all in with the Oni. He will be holding back a little because the girl doesnt want them dead.

[KorvinStarmast]

I was thinking when they are lvl 4 because they have a Barbarian and a Paladin so burst will be a problem for the Oni but maybe lvl 5 because at lvl 4 they dont have double attack so they are kinda weaker. So il just buff the Onis hp a little bit.
Good call. The encounters can get a little swingy depending on how many people save versus the cone of cold. Your scenario set up, and the Mercenary deal looks like a fun encounter.

Best wishes! :smallsmile:

[.::Pr0 n00b::.]

Good call. The encounters can get a little swingy depending on how many people save versus the cone of cold. Your scenario set up, and the Mercenary deal looks like a fun encounter.

Best wishes! :smallsmile:

Thank you very much for your input really do appreciate it!


I was thinking for some reason unknown to her the lil girl radiates an Aura of Vitality. She's sort of like a healing charm. It's a 3rd level spell though so dunno if it would be too powerful to use.

You gave me an idea, maybe the oni kidnaped her from a cleric orphanage (not cleric but a holy sanctuary and the girl was always blessed with healing powers) maybe she heals one of the players in an earlier encounter to gain their trust.

The Aura Of Vitality is a great idea, maybe il reduce it to 1d6 or 2d4 just because the oni regenerates 10 hp per turn. Your feedback was very helpful, thank you!

[Samayu]

I don't know, but I'm getting a Sulley and Boo vibe, for some reason.

OK, so the Oni kidnaps the girl, but for whatever reason, decides to take care of her, instead of eating her. Cool. Not sure why he'd do that, but if he did, she might be grateful to be taken out of an abusive home? But what is his general plan? What's he doing, and why?

Oni are evil, so what are the players expected to stop him from doing? Does he have a goal beyond eating babies? Is the party being specifically sent to rescue her? Do they just stumble on him? This has great potential for moral dilemma. How do you rescue someone who doesn't want to be rescued? If the Oni needs to be stopped, do they risk hurting her? As an ally of the Oni, is she their enemy?

Oni travel in disguise to check out their food sources (people). So this one could easily be in disguise when they meet him. If someone recognizes her as one of the children who were taken... "no, this is my daughter, Elisa? Right Elisa?" "Yes papa." Then he tricks them into fighting some nearby monsters who were "threatening their safety," (maybe a monster he's working for?) and attacks the party after they've been weakened by said monsters.

[Keravath]

Just a couple of comments ...

To follow on Samayu's remarks ...

I would recommend that when a DM is creating an encounter they always try to answer the question "WHY?" first. If you know what is motivating the NPCs, you know how they will likely respond when the characters do something unexpected (or even when your NPCs react in an unexpected way to the characters).

In this case the OP has an encounter in mind - an evil oni with a kidnapped local girl as a sidekick who is willingly helping them. Without backstory and explanation, this encounter makes no sense. It sounds cool, gives an interesting feeling but will be harder to run because the motivations are unclear.

Does the oni travel with the girl because they want to? Is something forcing them to be civil? Oni's eat people and prefer children. Is the girl a snack they are saving for later? Similarly, what is motivating the girl? Why is she not catatonic with fear? Does she know the true nature of the creature? Would she act against it if the Oni's true nature is revealed?

The entire encounter appears to be the Oni luring the party into an ambush with the girl to help him. Why does the Oni want to attack this party? If they are looking for food, wouldn't someone from the village up the road be a safer and easier choice? The creature has an int of 14, it is lawful evil, it needs a reason to attack the party - otherwise the scenario again makes no sense.

It is up to the DM to come up with the missing pieces so that their story makes sense. The players may or may not ever find the information but if the story hangs together it can be tied into the rest of the world and plot line.

Examples:
- the girl controls the Oni. She wants the party to suffer or die either consciously or subconsciously for something else they did in the story. Or the girl really wants something the party has. She pretends to be innocent but is willing to sacrifice the Oni for whatever reason. Maybe she was taken from an evil temple after her parents were unable to deal with the direction in which she was growing and she left home. (Lots of possible options). In this case the Oni is just a victim but his motivations are derived from the girl's.
OR
- the party has something the Oni wants. Magic item, treasure etc. The girl doesn't know what he is but the Oni is keeping her around because she has been a good luck charm and she has some healing abilities that help him. He may have been watching the party for a while. If he can split the party he will deal with them one at a time though would prefer to get the one with whatever he wants alone so he can safely deal with that one by themselves.
OR
- the Oni is a mercenary and has been hired to attack the party - reason for this required


The Oni is rated as deadly for 5 level 4 characters and Medium for 5 level 5 so scale appropriately. As mentioned, this can be very swingy. A typical level 5 d8 class character with 14 con has 36 hit points at level 5. An average 8d8 cone of cold will do 36 hit points of damage. The Oni is smart enough to get as many folks as possible into the cone before starting a fight and they will likely lead off with cone of cold.

Higher than average damage or multiple failed saves could leave 1/2 the party down as the combat starts while the rest will be down to 1/2 hit points. With an encounter like this which will swing with just a few die rolls it is good if the DM has a plan B. For example, if the Oni, is just looking for something they may not press ahead with finishing off the characters. Alternatively, if the Oni prefers fresh food they may take all the characters prisoner in the short term. The DM should have a reasonable idea of the NPC motivations in advance so that it becomes much easier to figure out what the NPC would likely do as the situation evolves.

Finally, keep in mind that if things look bad for the Oni, they are likely to try to flee. They can fly with a speed of 30'. They can dash, they have a gaseous form. Unless there is a reason for them to stay and finish the fight, the creature will likely run if they realize that the fight is not working out for them.

[.::Pr0 n00b::.]

Just a couple of comments ...

To follow on Samayu's remarks ...

I would recommend that when a DM is creating an encounter they always try to answer the question "WHY?" first. If you know what is motivating the NPCs, you know how they will likely respond when the characters do something unexpected (or even when your NPCs react in an unexpected way to the characters).

In this case the OP has an encounter in mind - an evil oni with a kidnapped local girl as a sidekick who is willingly helping them. Without backstory and explanation, this encounter makes no sense. It sounds cool, gives an interesting feeling but will be harder to run because the motivations are unclear.

Does the oni travel with the girl because they want to? Is something forcing them to be civil? Oni's eat people and prefer children. Is the girl a snack they are saving for later? Similarly, what is motivating the girl? Why is she not catatonic with fear? Does she know the true nature of the creature? Would she act against it if the Oni's true nature is revealed?

The entire encounter appears to be the Oni luring the party into an ambush with the girl to help him. Why does the Oni want to attack this party? If they are looking for food, wouldn't someone from the village up the road be a safer and easier choice? The creature has an int of 14, it is lawful evil, it needs a reason to attack the party - otherwise the scenario again makes no sense.

It is up to the DM to come up with the missing pieces so that their story makes sense. The players may or may not ever find the information but if the story hangs together it can be tied into the rest of the world and plot line.

Examples:
- the girl controls the Oni. She wants the party to suffer or die either consciously or subconsciously for something else they did in the story. Or the girl really wants something the party has. She pretends to be innocent but is willing to sacrifice the Oni for whatever reason. Maybe she was taken from an evil temple after her parents were unable to deal with the direction in which she was growing and she left home. (Lots of possible options). In this case the Oni is just a victim but his motivations are derived from the girl's.
OR
- the party has something the Oni wants. Magic item, treasure etc. The girl doesn't know what he is but the Oni is keeping her around because she has been a good luck charm and she has some healing abilities that help him. He may have been watching the party for a while. If he can split the party he will deal with them one at a time though would prefer to get the one with whatever he wants alone so he can safely deal with that one by themselves.
OR
- the Oni is a mercenary and has been hired to attack the party - reason for this required


The Oni is rated as deadly for 5 level 4 characters and Medium for 5 level 5 so scale appropriately. As mentioned, this can be very swingy. A typical level 5 d8 class character with 14 con has 36 hit points at level 5. An average 8d8 cone of cold will do 36 hit points of damage. The Oni is smart enough to get as many folks as possible into the cone before starting a fight and they will likely lead off with cone of cold.

Higher than average damage or multiple failed saves could leave 1/2 the party down as the combat starts while the rest will be down to 1/2 hit points. With an encounter like this which will swing with just a few die rolls it is good if the DM has a plan B. For example, if the Oni, is just looking for something they may not press ahead with finishing off the characters. Alternatively, if the Oni prefers fresh food they may take all the characters prisoner in the short term. The DM should have a reasonable idea of the NPC motivations in advance so that it becomes much easier to figure out what the NPC would likely do as the situation evolves.

Finally, keep in mind that if things look bad for the Oni, they are likely to try to flee. They can fly with a speed of 30'. They can dash, they have a gaseous form. Unless there is a reason for them to stay and finish the fight, the creature will likely run if they realize that the fight is not working out for them.

This is the full story. Sorry for the newer replies, my internet was down for a day.

The Oni is a low lvl member of a wider organisation who all will be boss battles for the players. The organisation is killing and harvesting the souls of humanoid creatures so they can bring back their true master back to life.

The party gets a contract to kill a monster that has been kidnaping people for a couple of months now, nobody was able to kill it yet. Everybody who tried died but one man who lived to tell the tale. If they ask around they will hear about a mercenary who brags about fighting the monster but couldnt finish him. If they ask where can they find the monster he gives them a preposition, he will lead them to the monster if they help him with some low lvl monsters (still thinking which monster can i put here) The Oni is using them so they can clear the Area near his cave of these bothersome creatures and to check what his enemies can do.

The girl will follow them and heal the players when she can so i can get a little bit of an emotional connection between them and the girl.

After they clear the area they part ways until tomorrow when they will go to hunt the monster together. Now i do need a reason to why the Oni would let them rest. Im doing this mainly so they have a full rest so its a fair fight but story wise i need a reason. After they meet up again they go in the forrest to hunt it. The oni proposes they should split up to cover more ground. After some time they will hear the girl scream. When they come to the cave there will be some skill check for the traps, STR or DEX. The Oni will reveal himself and attack. If he is close to killing a player the girl will ask the Oni if he can spare him, thats the reason for not taking down a downed player, ofc he will kill them if he wipes them all. After the fight if they win they will find a letter from a higher lvl member of this cult asking why he has slowed down with the bodies, and that they will send a member to investigate (he will be a recurring enemy later on)

The connection between the Oni and the girl is more of a stolckhom syndrom than one controling the other. He kidnapped her from an orphanage, she has some healing presence. He slowed down killing people because she asked him. Now why he didnt kill her? There is no real answer, she doesnt know, she is very young 9 or 10 and he is dead so the players dont know the whole situation. I was thinking this is a better way then giving them a full story like reading a book.

Do you think i should add a villager to come with them and help them, he lost a brother to the monster or something similar to that?

Thanks for all the suggestion i might make some changes if i can find a way to get the lore in without telling them myself