Godzilla sized lightning elemental attacking Sharn.

[chainer1216]

i have a strange question, so as the title says, there's going to be a colossal sized "rage elemental" attacking Sharn, because of what it is and how strong it will be most mundane attacks wont work on it, and anybody who gets too close might fly into a rage and/or take constant electricity damage. the way the players are to defeat it is by getting into its chest, where there will be a safe zone and the real BBEG for them to fight, the question is, how do the players get inside?

the group will be maybe level 9, this is DnD 3.5, by the way. they don't currently have a way to fly, but they'll have strong connections to House Deneith, which will be mobilizing all its local forces to fight this thing. the party consists of a warforged warblade, human shugenja/geomancer(don't ask), kalashtar shaper psion, human psychic warrior and a changeling cleric of the traveler.

so any ideas on how to get them into the chest of this thing, other than the obvious "fly an airship into it."?

[ArcturusV]

Use a large Ballista to fire NPCs at the Elemental. Once the aim is right, use PCs.

[Anecronwashere]

Otherwise known as Plan C.

Plan A is just a single word (Fire) and B is 2 words (More Fire)

But yeah, ballista with NPC-ranging should work (given some handwaving that you can keep a roll from a ballista IF the set conditions didn't change)

[W3bDragon]

Magical methods:

Dimension door or teleport.
Stuff the party into a portable hole or bag of holding and throw them in.
Calm emotions plus resist lightning and just walk through.

Mundane method:

Hide in a sewer along the path of the elemental, and pop out once the safe zone is over them. If no sewers are available, dig a hole and cover it.

[Kol Korran]

this is Sharn, right? built on the manifest zone of the Eternal Sky (forgot the plane's name) where there are air taxis? grab one of those, have the cleric cast "mass resist lightning", and fly in? or grab a flying creature (there are quite a few in Sharn) and have them fly you in? (perhaps by some succesful diplomacy or intimidate).

or... maybe a slightly more devious idea- the great lightning elemental keeps "shedding off" small lighting elementals (uncontrolled minion) who make havoc for a few rounds/ minutes, and then go back to the heart of the elemental. nothing else penetrates it's chest, but those touched by lightning do... so the party needs to grab themselves smaller elementals (might be size medium- huge) and somehow attach themselves to it (successful grapple while under mass resist lightning?) and be drawn to the bigger elemental, and into it's heart?

"ride the lightning baby! yeeeeehhaaa!"

[Doorhandle]

.

so any ideas on how to get them into the chest of this thing, other than the obvious "fly an airship into it."?

I dunno. Impaling a Godzilla-equivalent with a flying airship at terminal velocity is pretty high-up their on the awesome stakes.

You COULD just have the elemental eat them, of coruse...

[Sith_Happens]

so any ideas on how to get them into the chest of this thing, other than the obvious "fly an airship into it."?

What's wrong with "fly an airship into it?"

[Winds]

What's wrong with 'fly an airship into it'? Depends on who has to fix/replace it.

I would say that finding/recruiting some form of flight, adding resist, and flying in sounds best.

[chainer1216]

What's wrong with "fly an airship into it?"

absolutely nothing really, its just that the group doesn't currently have access to one unless they steal it, though that may very well change between now and then. also i'm just looking for options to keep open, because my group...uh...isn't very creative, and if i only have one way set up for them to get in, they're bound not to realize it unless i make it painfully obvious, and then i feel like i'm putting them on rail roads.

[The Glyphstone]

I thought House Deinith was mobilizing all its local resources. A Dragonmarked House can easily afford an airship.

[Doorhandle]

absolutely nothing really, its just that the group doesn't currently have access to one unless they steal it, though that may very well change between now and then. also i'm just looking for options to keep open, because my group...uh...isn't very creative, and if i only have one way set up for them to get in, they're bound not to realize it unless i make it painfully obvious, and then i feel like i'm putting them on rail roads.

Fair enough.

[Sith_Happens]

absolutely nothing really, its just that the group doesn't currently have access to one unless they steal it, though that may very well change between now and then. also i'm just looking for options to keep open, because my group...uh...isn't very creative, and if i only have one way set up for them to get in, they're bound not to realize it unless i make it painfully obvious, and then i feel like i'm putting them on rail roads.

I think you're underestimating your players. "Fly an airship into it" is the solution to all sorts of problems.

[Nanoblack]

Depending on the body shape, they could lure it over some lightning rails and fly a train into it.

[chainer1216]

Depending on the body shape, they could lure it over some lightning rails and fly a train into it.

hahaha, that's actually the delivery method of the elemental, it starts out trapped in the train, which is forced off the tracks and destroyed, releasing it on the city.

and glyphstone, i was under the impression that only house lyrandar or whatever and some gnomes in zilargo really owned any airships, they just rented them out to others. and that all the skycabs and such in sharn used the magic of the manifest zone to fly, though those would work just as well as a true elemental ship.

[Slipperychicken]

Ride Crash a dragon into it.