Encounter (3.5)

[Schylerwalker]

This week's game (Tonight's, in fact), the group will be going up a combination of ogres, evil cultists, and slaver pirates. At the moment, the town they're in is being attacked by cultist ogres. During the confusion, the elven bodyguards they were with have run off to deal with one of the attacking forces while the actual party goes in to deal with another. Before they get there, they'll be attacked by an interesting NPC who they haven't seen in many levels. Here he is.

Name: Nurk (CR 13)
Race: Half-Orc, Class: Barbarian 3/Dervish 1/Fighter 1/Rogue 7/Shadowdancer 1
HP: 91/91, AC: 25 (+4 Dex, +6 armor, +2 natural, +2 deflection, +1 Dodge)
Strength: 16 (+3), Dexterity: 19 (+4), Constitution: 14 (+2)
Intelligence: 10 (+0), Wisdom: 14 (+2), Charisma: 10 (+0)
BAB/Grapple: +10/+13
Attack: +1 glaive of speed +15 melee (1d10+5/x3)
Full Attack: +1 glaive of speed +15/+15/+10 melee (1d10+5/x3)
Fortitude: +11, Reflex: +14, Will: +9
Skills: Bluff +12, Climb +10, Hide +20, Jump +9, Knowledge (local) +6, Listen +9, Move Silently +14, Perform (dance) +8, Search +5, Spot +9, Survival +7, Tumble +13
Feats: Combat Expertise, Combat Reflexes, Dodge, Improved Feint, Mobility, Weapon Focus (glaive)
Languages: Common, Orc
Equipment: +1 glaive of speed, +1 heartseeking light crossbow, 10 bolts, +2 lesser shadows chain shirt, boots of striding and springing, gloves of Dexterity +4, cloak of resistance +2, periapt of Wisdom +2, ring of protection +2, amulet of natural armor +2, 2 potions of cure serious wounds, 2 potions of invisibility, 2 potions of lesser restoration
Class Features: Dervish dance 1/day, fast movement, fighter bonus feats, evasion, hide in plain sight, illiteracy, improved uncanny dodge, movement mastery, rage 1/day, slashing blades, sneak attack +4d6, trapfinding, trap sense +3

Basically, it's supposed to be a versatile, incredibly annoying opponent who leaps in and out of combat before making a last stand with rage. I'm a little worried that he'll be a little fragile for the level that the party is at (All about 10th) but I'm pretty sure he'll make a good accounting of himself.

The party is:
Human ranger (With gunslinger variant feats)
Human bardarian with dual swords
Human swasbuckler rogue (Also with two-weapon fighting...yeah, there's a theme here...)
Killoren healer
Changeling rogue chameleon
And a new player is coming in tonight with a stonechild...something. Probably a fighter or barbarian

Thoughts? Suggestions? Questions?

[gallagher]

give him a couple of mooks that are engaging in players that he will spring attack on. that way, he can get flanking. it will also increase the challenge, since a party that large against one person might just make it a bit too difficult for him to be effective, especially if they choose a good formation

[Danin]

I don't know about the level of optimization in your group, but my party of level 5 characters would tear through him in about a round. Then again, my party is pretty crazy, but I'd be quite worried he is too fragile.

Get some support in there and he should be fine. I really love the npc, sounds like a neat fight, but if he doesn't have support don't expect him to last long as is.

[Schylerwalker]

Wow, really, 5th level characters would eat him up? Even if he caught them off guard?

Yeah, I think I might have him attack while the group is running into a group of ogre advance troops.

[Hallavast]

He is a bit frail. I'd either give him a low level caster buddy to buff him up before hand, give him potions to a similar effect, or pop in some UMD. An improved invisibility would make his day easier. Temporary hitpoints or damage reduction would be nice. Blur is a 2nd level spell that can mess with rogues who aren't ready for it. Stuff like that is nice. His hide skill could be higher if you want him to actually sneak up on the party without blowing an invis potion.

[Evard]

Yeah I made the same mistake once thinking a CR 12 enemy could give a decent fight to 4 level 4 characters... They wiped him out in 1.5 rounds (really... 6 people got to act outside of the baddie).... I was a bit sad but next time I threw in about 4 mooks and THEN the party got started ;)

[Superglucose]

Seconding the "my 5th level party could tear through" sentiment. It'd take us three rounds, tops.

Notes: his AC is atrociously low for 13th level. My 5th level wizard cruised at 30 AC. His to-hit also seems pretty low for that level... only 15? WHy does he have a periapt of wisdom? Why 2 potions of invisibility? I'd suggest 1 of invisibility, 1 of bull's strength or some other combat buff.

Also +1 mooks. Throw in some ECL 7-9 mooks and maybe an ECL 7-9 wizard/cleric supporter.

[Schylerwalker]

What do you all suggest for raising his Armor Class that would still be in his respectable budget?

[Schylerwalker]

Okay, session just pretty much wrapped up. I did very little change to the NPC, but it was enough to get him to over a hundred HP and about 30 AC. He never initiated combat; he came in during the middle of a dangerous fight with the ogres, dashing in for a sneak attack. The looks on their faces as I described his dervish dance was pretty beautiful.

At one point, they all got rooms at the tavern, and one was stupid enough to get a room by himself. Cue a coup de grace for 48 points of damage. Needles to say, he failed the Fortitude save by...quite a lot. He got away with minimal damage, laughing all the way and leaving the party quite shaken. All in all, successful use of this minor, now recurring, villain!

[dextercorvia]

You CDG'd a PC in his sleep? I would not want to play in your game.

[Serpentine]

I think you should put it in my Encounter Sharing Thread because it's a good idea dagnabbit.

[Hallavast]

At one point, they all got rooms at the tavern, and one was stupid enough to get a room by himself. Cue a coup de grace for 48 points of damage. Needles to say, he failed the Fortitude save by...quite a lot. He got away with minimal damage, laughing all the way and leaving the party quite shaken. All in all, successful use of this minor, now recurring, villain!

Build's kinda superfluous if you just kill them in their sleep.

[Runestar]

That seemed like quite the convoluted build, when a swordsage13 would probably have sufficed.

Build's kinda superfluous if you just kill them in their sleep.

Of all the times to not wield a scythe.

However, as a general rule of thumb, if I ever need an npc to get extra hp, I try to use a base creature with some HD (if it is not skill based). In addition, improved toughness helps, as does that amulet in MIC which grants 12 temp hp as a swift action (can be used to grant 24-36 temp hp over the course of the fight). Other ways of getting temp hp include aid and maybe a spell-storing weapon with vampiric touch.

[Schylerwalker]

You CDG'd a PC in his sleep? I would not want to play in your game.

The other characters were sensible, and realizing that an incredibly sneaky, slash-happy guy was after them, decided to all sleep together in the same room and keep watches. The other guy, proud of his incredibly tough stonechild fighter, decided that he would be fine. And paid the consequences.

Otherwise, the build did what it was supposed. Maybe next time they encounter him he'll have sold the periapt and bought that nifty temporary hitpoints amulet. A belt of battle is also a highly tempting idea.

[stenver]

That was a nice moment. If i had 6 players then i would assasinate some of them aswell. 1 time an assassin did come, i had to make player succeed his listen check. You simply wont kill a PC in his sleep if you have 3 of them.