Clerical scry & die

[J-H]

Scenario:
You're a high ranking Aaracokra cleric serving some evil gods. A band of strangers, including several who wear heavy metal armor unusual for the area, and another who's unusually short and doesn't show up on scrying, have attacked several patrols regionally, but with survivors who can bring back descriptions. During an encounter a week and a half ago, one of your wizards survived, almost bringing back a captive using Bigby's Hand, and has given excellent descriptions of several foes via illusion (or whatever).

One of your weaker patrols encountered these enemies again and shadowed them, taking 50% casualties; they signaled for and received some reinforcements, but these odd outlanders went to ground in a jungle area known to be dangerous and waited for nightfall.

Your spells come back with sunrise, and you don't have darkvision, so you wait until morning to Scry & strike.

All of your troops are Aaracokra & can fly. Available forces include the following:
Multiple clerics capable of casting 8th-level spells. Available domains and spells are generally light/sun/fire themed.
Wizards capable of casting up to 5th level spells.
Warriors with about a +7-+9 to hit against enemies with ACs in the 22-25 range.

You could fly out to find this group, but Scrying shows only a very small range around the target, so it's hard to scry a target and then find them after a half-day's travel.

Assuming you successfully scry one of the enemies, how can a mostly-cleric based group successfully teleport to their location?

All I've come up with so far is blowing 2 7th-level spots on Plane Shift, or hoping for a Divine Intervention teleport. 5th-level wizard spells only give you Teleport Circle.

I may be overlooking some clerical divinations that are good enough to enable a daytime strike the next day - but I'm not sure what they are or how to optimize them. The party has Brooms of Flying so they are reasonably mobile, and can likely elude pursuit under the jungle canopy.

I'm aiming for a strike force of 6-10, mostly high level casters, teleporting in. If it's a mid-day "fly out there" strike, I have a lot fewer excuses for not just showing up with a force of like 80 troops and raining javelins down on them in a long, boring slog that ends with one or two party members running away while the rest die.

[Eldariel]

Well, you have Scrying available so some info should be available. Wizard 5 gives you Contact Other Plane and Cleric 5 gives you Commune, which are pretty top tier far as information gathering goes but of course fail to give you visual for Teleportation. They're useful for triangulating location and such though ("Split this map like this [draw a line on it], are they [define target] on the left/west side of this line [make sure the map is in the correct ordination WRT physical reality to avoid ambiguity]?" and repeat - with lots of casters you can get really detailed with this since the limitations are personal).

There's hmm, one spell exactly I can think of that can do this on the Cleric list: Conjure Celestial IX can summon Hollyphant (https://media.wizards.com/2019/dnd/dragon/27/DRA27_hollyphant5.pdf) [DiA], which can Teleport without Error (a huge improvement over plain Teleport, which other CR5 Celestials in Felidar from Planeshift: Zendikar and Unicorn from MM can use). Of course, that's in the Divine Intervention territory, but if you're spamming Divine Intervention, it's at least something you can keep around with Planar Binding (especially if you aren't shy about it) to use as needed. Planar Ally can of course potentially do the same, depending on if these creatures or others that can Teleport count among the aides of the deity in question (Blue Abishai can teleport at least as can the three mentioned Celestials and Molydeus - Deva can also Change Shape into Githzerai Enlightened that can Teleport so if Devas and Githzerai exist, those work too).

Dybbyk from Summon Greater Demon or Planar Ally can Dimension Door at will. Summoning a bunch of those as carriers is nowhere near Teleport but it still lets you move at 500' per round. Mind, they have to be Bound to be useful; otherwise maintaining control long enough to get there is very unlikely. Portable Hole can of course be combined with Dybbyk to carry a larger group of creatures, though of course you have to mind the air in the Hole. Planar Ally seems nice since the Aaracokra seem pretty rich given the environment.


You can of course combine these with the double Plane Shift, which can get you close given sufficient Scrying data; close enough for a Dybbyk lift to be difficult to escape from for example.

EDIT: Of course, you can use magic items like Helm of Teleportation too.

EDIT: Duh, DD is only 500' per round. If you have access to Portable Hole or similar, you could have the strike team there in the possession of one of the Dybbyks and just have two Bound Dybbyks Dimension Door each other to reach movement speeds of ~1060' per round which is actually 1 mile/5 rounds more or less or 2 miles per minute which could cover distance pretty quickly.

[Pyrophilios]

How good are your clerics at math? And how large is the area where the outlanders have gone to ground?
Lightning strikes are a great way to triangulate where the scryers upon are if you have good maps of an area.
You might not be able to see the flash, but you can hear the thunder. Compare how long it takes in the scrying to hear it vs. Where you are and draw some circles on your map. Repeat three times at different locations and you can pretty precisely (within 300m radius) determine where they are.

[Corran]

Rope trick (wizard) and plane shift could solve the teleportation issue without overspending (assuming you rule that rope trick enables plane shifting into the prime material of course).

As for you options. Sending large flying groups to purue them in thick jungle does not sound great for obvious reasons. There's a great chance you'll suffer casualties without inflicting any.

Scry and die tactics also seem a bit desperate, since you have number superiority. Is there a need to stop them before they do X that you didn't mention?

So, since you have the numbers, and since you can scry, why not just set up a trap scenario during which not only do you plan to overwhelm the pc's with all your numbers, but also you plan on trying to enter combat on favorable terms (prepare the battlefield to favor your large numbers). Just set up a trap and wait for them to come to you. Use scrying to avoid being caught unprepared. The only problem now is the undetectable little bugger. Use your stealthiest minions (theu dont have to be tough, and ideally they are not tough) for shadowing the party (under strict orders to avoid engaging) just so you can keep an eye on what their wild card is doing, to avoid any nasty surprises. Yes, you might lose some minions to that effect, but I'd want to know what the undetectable enemy is up to, cause that's my weak spot if I can win in a direct confrontation where most/all of my forces participate (which sounds like what you are implying).

[solidork]

Have you tried talking to them with Sending? It seems weird as heck to me to not at least ask them who they are and what they're doing.

[Battlebooze]

Reading the title of this thread, I thought this was about a cleric scrying on a medusa and ending up turned to stone.

Okay, I read your situation.

Sure, you could wipe out your players, but that would suck for them and for you and the story. It would fit the universe but remember, you can change that universe to make the story better.

I would give the players a warning about being scryed on, "You feel like you are being watched." Then hit them with a nasty ambush, but one they can deal with.

It all depends on if you want to deal with a party wipe or not. I mean, the players could be captured instead of killed, though players sometimes think that is worse.

[Hairfish]

Why do your NPCs have to obey PC rules?

[ATHATH]

If I may ask, what did our scouts tell us about this party? What's its composition? That might determine who we need to bring and how many people we need to bring.

[ATHATH]

There's hmm, one spell exactly I can think of that can do this on the Cleric list: Conjure Celestial IX can summon Hollyphant (https://media.wizards.com/2019/dnd/dragon/27/DRA27_hollyphant5.pdf) [DiA], which can Teleport without Error (a huge improvement over plain Teleport, which other CR5 Celestials in Felidar from Planeshift: Zendikar and Unicorn from MM can use). Of course, that's in the Divine Intervention territory, but if you're spamming Divine Intervention, it's at least something you can keep around with Planar Binding (especially if you aren't shy about it) to use as needed. Planar Ally can of course potentially do the same, depending on if these creatures or others that can Teleport count among the aides of the deity in question (Blue Abishai can teleport at least as can the three mentioned Celestials and Molydeus - Deva can also Change Shape into Githzerai Enlightened that can Teleport so if Devas and Githzerai exist, those work too).
Note that Conjure Celestial has the clause "It obeys any verbal commands that you issue to it (no action required by you), as long as they don’t violate its alignment.", so you'll probably need to cast Planar Binding on any celestials you summon against their will (unless you have some trickery up your sleeves).

[ATHATH]

Do any of your Clerics have a marked sanctuary near the party's location that can be used with Word of Recall?

On a side note, is there a limit to how many Word of Recall sanctuaries you can have?

Using Planar Ally to summon a nightmare to move all of your forces onto the ethereal plane could save you half of your Plane Shift castings.

You could use something like Control Weather to try to harass them from miles away, which might be appropriate for an air or sun-themed cult. You can combine this with the aforementioned nightmare/plane shift strategy, of course.

Sending a couple of waves of Tasha's summons (namely, reflavored ""celestials"" from Summon Celestial) at the party could also be an option if the cult doesn't want to risk its casters/if you don't want to just obliterate the party.

[J-H]

There's hmm, one spell exactly I can think of that can do this on the Cleric list: Conjure Celestial IX can summon Hollyphant (https://media.wizards.com/2019/dnd/dragon/27/DRA27_hollyphant5.pdf) [DiA], which can Teleport without Error (a huge improvement over plain Teleport, which other CR5 Celestials in Felidar from Planeshift: Zendikar and Unicorn from MM can use). Of course, that's in the Divine Intervention territory, but if you're spamming Divine Intervention, it's at least something you can keep around with Planar Binding (especially if you aren't shy about it) to use as needed. Planar Ally can of course potentially do the same, depending on if these creatures or others that can Teleport count among the aides of the deity in question (Blue Abishai can teleport at least as can the three mentioned Celestials and Molydeus - Deva can also Change Shape into Githzerai Enlightened that can Teleport so if Devas and Githzerai exist, those work too).

Dybbyk from Summon Greater Demon or Planar Ally can Dimension Door at will. Summoning a bunch of those as carriers is nowhere near Teleport but it still lets you move at 500' per round. Mind, they have to be Bound to be useful; otherwise maintaining control long enough to get there is very unlikely. Portable Hole can of course be combined with Dybbyk to carry a larger group of creatures, though of course you have to mind the air in the Hole. Planar Ally seems nice since the Aaracokra seem pretty rich given the environment.

I hadn't thought of summoning at all! It looks like Abishai are from MTF and have high-level wizardry, so that may be a way around the issue.
For that matter, I'm sure I can come up with a thematic (pseudo-Aztec) Fiend and just say "it's a high level fiend, it can teleport". That's a great clerical solution - and allows for rarity (why aren't they just teleporting 50 in?).


EDIT: Of course, you can use magic items like Helm of Teleportation too.

I'm not sure I want the party to have one yet. If I don't kill a PC in the next two levels (so that they make an arcane caster replacement) I may add one in somewhere.


How good are your clerics at math? And how large is the area where the outlanders have gone to ground?
Lightning strikes are a great way to triangulate where the scryers upon are if you have good maps of an area.
You might not be able to see the flash, but you can hear the thunder. Compare how long it takes in the scrying to hear it vs. Where you are and draw some circles on your map. Repeat three times at different locations and you can pretty precisely (within 300m radius) determine where they are.
If they were close to the storm god's territory, I'd do this. They are near Earthquake deity.



Scry and die tactics also seem a bit desperate, since you have number superiority. Is there a need to stop them before they do X that you didn't mention?
No particular rush other than the party has been spotted and their location is currently known. High-level captives or notable warriors are favored sacrifices for their religion.


So, since you have the numbers, and since you can scry, why not just set up a trap scenario during which not only do you plan to overwhelm the pc's with all your numbers, but also you plan on trying to enter combat on favorable terms (prepare the battlefield to favor your large numbers). Just set up a trap and wait for them to come to you. Use scrying to avoid being caught unprepared. The only problem now is the undetectable little bugger.
That actually takes more resources than just teleporting some folks over to bash heads in.
The undetectable guy is carrying an artifact that makes him so. It's plot relevant and the bad guys don't know about it yet. If they really figure out what it is, the party will become Enemy Number One for a civilization with an army about 25,000 strong and at least 5 clerics capable of using 9th level magic. I'm going to wait until the party publicly uses it to permanently shut down an altar or kill a high priest (with witnesses) or something similar...


Have you tried talking to them with Sending? It seems weird as heck to me to not at least ask them who they are and what they're doing.
The bad guys are more "conquer and rip hearts first, chat later." There are some more talkative types, but they're in a different region.


Why do your NPCs have to obey PC rules?
They don't, but I don't want to change the general parameters. The bad guys have more clerical magic than wizardry, so their wizards aren't as numerous or as high level as their priests. I could make a one-off "this wizard is better" but I'd rather not.


If I may ask, what did our scouts tell us about this party? What's its composition? That might determine who we need to bring and how many people we need to bring.
A flying guy with heavy armor who can go really fast (haste + boots of speed) - armorer artificer
A really fast moving guy who's good with a bow and in melee - monk, kensei
A short guy who hits hard (a dwarf, away from several sessions) and is hard to kill - barbarian
A short priest who heals things
A guy in full armor who hits pretty hard with a magic axe and uses divine smite - paladin. He's been seen with a strange flying creature (griffin or hippogriff) recently.

The short ones are dwarves, of course. They haven't seen the party unarmored - well, except for the time some of the death god's assassin zombies found them resting and unarmored - but I haven't decided how much of that info filtered out.
The last encounter included them all mounted on Brooms of Flying. The Aaracokra really like to maintain their monopoly on flight.


Note that Conjure Celestial has the clause "It obeys any verbal commands that you issue to it (no action required by you), as long as they don’t violate its alignment.", so you'll probably need to cast Planar Binding on any celestials you summon against their will (unless you have some trickery up your sleeves).
Yeah, they'd just summon fiends. They're evil.


Do any of your Clerics have a marked sanctuary near the party's location that can be used with Word of Recall?
That's a great escape button for the enemy if they start losing. Thanks!



Using Planar Ally to summon a nightmare to move all of your forces onto the ethereal plane could save you half of your Plane Shift castings.
Again, summons are more useful than I thought. Plane shift isn't very accurate.

[Keravath]

You could always just have one or two higher level NPC wizards capable of casting teleport and leave it at that. If they have some that can cast level 5 spells, it isn't much of a stretch to have 1 or 2 capable of level 7 spells.

Another option could be to add a couple of Arcana cleric NPCs to the church - ones which study arcane magic as well as divine. A class feature is a wizard spell from level 6, 7, 8, 9. The subclass archetype is found in SCAG. They could have picked up teleport since, as you noted, transportation is an ability clerics generally lack.

[J-H]

The Arcana clerics would be in another area.
The closest enemy city is earth/nature themed...which makes me think nature clerics, which makes me think Transport Via Plants (druid 6) is plausible for them to have. I think that's a good method.