Creative Director
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The Crater Lake Morkoth is definately one of the toughest monsters the PCs fight in this adventure, if only for its spell-like abilities. Fortunately, the way this adventure's set up, each of the encounters are modular. You can choose which ones to run and which ones you wish to ignore. Some of the encounters requrie terribly difficult Diplomacy or Intimidate checks to successfully solve, for example, and if your PCs don't have anyone with these skills, you might want to minimize those encounters. Likewise, if your group consists of a bunch of non-evil melee fighters, they'll likely be devastated by the morkoth if it hits them with blasphemy.
If you want to run the encounter anyway, I suggest giving the PCs a chance to make a Knowledge (the planes) check (DC 31) to recognize that the monster's a half-fiend and likely has a blasphemy spell-like ability. Or perhaps the PCs aren't the first targets of the morkoth; maybe they come to rescue the Stormblades or some town guards after these NPCs have been hit with blasphemy; since the morkoth can only do this once per day, it can't then use the ability against the PCs. Ranged attacks and summoned monsters are also a good tactic against the monster. Another good option is to use damaging conjuration spells, since these don't allow spell resistance to resist. Finally, althoguh the morkoth has an Intelligence of 18, this doesn't mean it automaticly knows the PCs are its greatest threat. It might waste its blasphemy early agaist a large group of town guards, or it might underestimate the PCs for one or two rounds before trying to use it. Remember also that spell-like abilities provoke attacks of opportunity; the morkoth's Concentration check is pretty good, but it still has a chance to mess up any checks it might be forced to make. And even if it does manage to paralyze the whole party, it's pretty riled up about its home blowing up; it might take advantage of the paralyzation to simply flee the scene and find some less boiling water to hide in. The morkoth's primary motivation doesn't necessarilly have to be to kill all the Player Characters (althoguh you shouldn't let the PCs know that!).
The best tactic against the morkoth remains to stay spread out and use ranged attacks. And if it comes down to the dreaded deus ex machina, there are plenty of fairly high-level NPCs that could come to the PCs' rescue. Not the best way to avert a TPK, but it works if there's no other choice.
I imagine the adventure was originally written in 3.0. where Blasphemy was alot weaker. Everything was based on 12 HD as the judge for effects instead of the caster level. One of the rare cases of 3.5 reverse nerfing a spell.
My guess is when it was converted to 3.5 no one caught on to the TPK possibility of blasphemy. Everyone has made some good suggestions on how to handle it.
Good luck.
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Creative Director
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Actually, the adventure was written entirely in 3.5, although the reverse nerfing of blasphemy does make all half-fiends a lot tougher all of the sudden.
Of course, once the PCs hit high level, they should be ready for blasphemy and word of chaos and the other holy word variants, since chances are most clerics and a lot of demons & devels'll be able to cast these spells.
In related news, I very nearly had a TPK from a blasphemy in the campaign I run on Saturdays; the PCs are exploriong a pumped-up version of The Hidden Shrine of Tamoachan and fought a couple of 17 Hit-Die half-fiend ahuizotls, and when they both used their blasphemy spell-like abilities on the mostly 12th-level party in the less-than-40-ft.-wide room they were encounterd in... well, let's just say it's fortunate that one character was 13th-level and had a scroll of remove paralysis handy!
Damn you lazybones! Hodge is one of my favorite characters and Beorna is my least favorite. Now I know that she lasts the next few adventures and that Hodge bites it. In all seriousness though I love your STORY HOUR. It has truly inspired me to play my AP game with more flavor and depth. I check every day for updates. Keep up the good work.
The Smoking Eye template might also be a game saver. The Imbued with Evil ability treats the character with the template as being evil for the purposes of that spell, if I am reading things correctly, which I might not be. If I missed on this one JJ or anyone else, please let me know. I noted the Blasphemy ability of the Morkoth as well on first reading and cringed.
My guys are just arriving on Occipitus now. Hopefully someone gains the template.
Cheers!