Prior fight before BBEG

[xyamius]

The party should be around level 7-8 by the time they hit this point if everything goes right.

Still building the module I am planning on running my players through. I was thinking of prior to the BBEG fight they enter into a large room with a 30 or 40' ceiling that had 10' tall pillars in it spaced 10' apart room is about 40'x120'. Then put a balcony along two opposite sides higher up. Run 2 arcane casters using wands of Benign Transposition to be used on a rogue that will be dual wielding MW kusari-gama's. The casters will be up in the balcony's one on each side and had cast invisibility making the casters invisible as the players entered and the rogue is hiding behind a pilar.

Tactic to use will be a familiar fly's in and the rogue transpositions with it for a favorable reach weapon spot and then transpositions out with the other familiar and that familiar uses full retreat.

Would putting them at level 3 be to weak and should the rogue get their sneak attack vs the party if the party didn't know where the rogue was prior to the transposition?

My party's pc's tend to build non casters, play melee heavy charges with point blank weapons and i think it's been years since any of them has ever really added and used a ranged weapon beyond a dagger to their pc.

[ngilop]

It would be a nigh impossible fight for the players for sure, regardless of their melee proclivities. The rouge is guranteed to one shot the first PC attacked, but then his insivibility wears of and POW he dead from the PC pile on.

Then you got the 2 wizard in an advantageous positions (high ground) so, at least 1 more party member is dead the 2nd round.

and unless the party gets super lucky by the time they get to the 2nd wizard another party member is dead.


If your goal is to set up a nigh TPK against your party at level 3 by sedning them into a CR 6 or 7 fight, then you doing it right.


If you just want a 'hey gotcha' and maybe down 1 party member with an invisible rouge with some ranged on a ledge and hand them a CR4 fight.. instead.. your above is not something you should be doing.

[Inevitability]

So I'm assuming the rogue and casters are level 3, while the party is level 7?

That's three NPCs using their actions to deal, what, 3d6+1+1d4+2d6 (a little over 20 on average) damage? If the rogue hits twice? Even a fragile melee PC could easily have around 50 HP by that point - you need quite a few hits before someone is seriously threatened.

Even if the party has truly no ranged options, surely someone has climb skills, or a source of flight, or something more complex than running and hitting? Or is this a party of two fighters and two barbarians?

Also, the rogue doesn't get sneak attack simply by teleporting in from elsewhere - D&D is turn-based, and if you're completely exposed at the start of your turn then you're not hidden, even if you were hidden right before then.

So yeah: unless your party truly doesn't know how to deal with guys on a balcony, I don't think you're especially at risk of killing anyone here.

More importantly: do you think your players will find this encounter fun? "I did not put ranks in climb so I guess I'll stand around and take total defense" is not something you want your players to be saying. I'd put more monsters on the ground, which also helps to give the rogue actual flanking buddies, and create some sort of way for the PCs to get to the casters, even if it's as simple as toppling a pillar to create a makeshift bridge, or knocking supports out from under the balconies.