TAMorrison's page

Here are a few tips to make your four towers a little more formidable:

THE TOWERS ARE BASES OF OPERATIONS, NOT MERELY DEFENSES. The evildoers use these towers to send strike teams, raids, and main force operations throughout the width and breadth of the target kingdom. Commanders and key personnel are likely in the field with their troops, leaving competent but relatively small garrisons within the towers to guard supplies, craft necessary items, repair equipment, rejuvenate troops (healing, resurrecting, etc.), conduct pre-mission rehearsals, and conduct strategic functions not feasible in a field environment.

MUTUALLY SUPPORTING STRONGHOLDS. The powers owning the towers have the means of moving forces quickly and secretly from one strongpoint to another in order to reinforce threatened areas and to counterattack invaders. This would also permit a fast escape from any stronghold in danger of being overrun.

MOBILITY. The towers can fly and teleport, making it more difficult for their opponents to mass forces and move against them.

MISDIRECTION. Fake towers appear and disappear in various locations. The real lead-lined, trapped, defended-to-the-teeth towers are a front, or, at best, one of dozens alternate headquarters for mid-level management. The top leadership holds court at these formidable places - arriving and departing suddenly, unannounced, for their security - but has other, less obtrusive places for hanging out. (Of course, the powers owning the towers conducted years of reconnaissance and spying before making their military move and thus have many safehouses, both in remote locations and unobtrusively under peoples' noses. Plus, the evildoers marshaled their troops and constructed their towers somewhere, so possibly that somewhere is where the real supreme headquarters is.)

ESCAPE PLAN. Essential personnel have at least two good, well-rehearsed plans for leaving with all vital items (valuables, records, etc.). At least one plan will be via magical means; at least one will be via mundane means. (NOTE: I once visited the castle of a petty nobleman in southern France. The place had SEVEN escape tunnels. 'Nuff said.)

EVILDOERS DO EVIL. Any persons or organizations who the pre-invasion spying identified were likely to oppose the evildoers were bought off, assassinated, blackmailed, or coerced into submitting. If a primary opponent could not be neutralized in such a fashion, the evildoers would subvert the opponent's organization by seeking key subordinates who could be bribed, blackmailed, impersonated, or coerced. Such tactics are aimed at throwing the existing hierarchy in the kingdom into disarray, which only makes the PC heroes even more important to the kingdom's survival. Once the PCs make themselves known as a force to be reckoned with, the evildoers will strike back when the PCs are least expecting it. PCs will spied on, threatened, slandered, impersonated, discredited, assassinated, kidnapped, or coerced; their friends and families will be kidnapped or threatened. Many innocents will suffer at the evildoers' hands. That is what makes them evil.

LEAD LINING. Historically, Roman warships had lead-lined hulls to protect them from fire. Lead lining is a simple, effective means to prevent scrying, as well.

IRON REBAR. This reinforces the walls, arches, and ceilings - both historically accurate and good general practice for the game.

WALLS OF FORCE. This can also be used to reinforce walls, arches, ceilings. It protects structurally vital areas from spells that would attack stone (passwall, transmute stone to mud, etc.).

INCORPOREAL UNDEAD GUARDIANS. High-level evil priestesses will summon them and keep them to guard against anything that can pass through their walls. Not only do evil priestesses need to fight off crusading do-gooders, they also need to be on guard against rival evil groups who might send undead of their own!

ANTI-MAGIC ZONES. To protect the towers from hostile spellcasters, an anti-magic zone can be emplaced around it in a ring. Add this to a moat lined with 3' iron spikes and it will ruin the day of anyone using a spell to fly.

GRAVEL/RUBBLE VAULTS. Historically used to defeat tunnelers and sappers, the loose gravel will instantly fill holes in the wall.

WISH. "I wish that the next person or group who attempts to enter this tower by means of magic or supernatural power without first uttering the secret phrase, 'The DM is King,' will be instantly teleported to my boiling-acid-filled, glassteel- and wall of force-lined, clay-golem-inside-it, Evil Death Trap (tm)."

ACTIVE DEFENSE. Snipers shoot at spellcasters. Lesser spellcasters attempt to counterspell with dispel magic. If the evildoers have crystal balls they can cast spells through, so much the better.