Elite encounter : Chosen of Gruumsh, how to make a good boss

[MrStabby]

Why not give your NPC hero/villain Misty step? It's a totally appropriate ability for a melee character to have. If your PCs use the wall of force trick often, and it sounds like they do, eventually word of their signature moves would get out and big bads would have some counters.

To be honest it doesn't need any news having got out about their moves - the spell is a staple and any melee (or even ranged) fighter would do what they can to pick it up.

[Puke]

Erh, he is a barbarian.

If there is an item to get Misty step, maybe I can give one to him.

[MrStabby]

Erh, he is a barbarian.

If there is an item to get Misty step, maybe I can give one to him.

It doesn't have to be misty step specifically, just a mobility ability. Give him the earth elemental's earthglide ability or something like that.

Or if you are throwing in mooks, you could have a "Spirit of Gruumsh" that possesses the mooks and can hop from one to another, so if one gets pinned down another one becomes the big bad. You just want something to keep things fluid and to stop your main threat being backed int a corner.

[da newt]

In an earlier post you mention a random Orc shooting an arrow at the princess sacrifice to start her countdown to death - in order to up the BBEG's villainy / really ensure the boyfriend is incensed, I'd change that up so that the BBEG very deliberately stares down the boyfriend while slitting the princesses throat in order to collect all of her blood for the ritual or whatnot.

WRT Wall of Force - I'd ensure the battle area was large enough that the caster could not make the wall of force more than 30' tall so the BBEG could jump up and grab the top of the wall and climb out easily (if he's 13' tall his reach is 19.5' and his vertical w/ 26 ST is 11' with no roll needed, or athletics check w/ ADV due to rage to clear it outright). In my mind, that's how an Orc champion Barbarian deals with a silly wall of force - no need to manufacture a special magic ability, just HULK it.

I also think it would be very much in character for the Chosen to leave the spell casters to his minions so that he can go toe to toe with the melee guys, but maybe just to taunt the Barb even further he'd jump out of the wall of force to decimate the squishy finger wigglers first while the Barb is trapped by the wall of force (where he may be berserking his fighter buddy), then taunt him some more so the fight builds up to the Chosen vs Barb ...

[Puke]

Choices... there is so many options !

I wish I could do this fight in so many different ways.

They wont slit the throat of the "princess" (she is the strongest barbarian in the world). Rather, they will kill her very slowly. (yes I changed my mind).

Now : there will be a ritual to drain her strengh.

Eventually, if the orcs get defeated too easily, they will slit her throat to ensure she will never get free.

[Puke]

Everything went well.

Thank you all a LOT.