Therefore i do not understand the need for blindfolds, because then the party members also have total concealment.
The phrase "Rule of Cool" springs to mind. I'd also be tempted to use it in terms of foreshadowing. It's all "what a strange cult. They must worship a blind god. Oh, well, no worry, they all wear blindfolds all the time, so this is pretty - ahg! Medusa! grab one of their blindfolds! Grab one of their blindfolds!"
Lots of cool ideas. I'm thinking of using plants on the medusa's level (as it's also something our group hasn't fought much of), and thus giving her a level or two of druid, as Pendagast suggests -- can't give her too much as I've only got the two PCs, even if they are 10th level.
I'm also still liking the idea of animated statues. I was thinking of giving my medusa some sort of magical paint, since she won't have the class levels she'd need to handle it herself (she might, however, have a captive wizard to make said paint for herself, or perhaps a wizard ally on another level of the dungeon) and InfoStorm's rod seems like a little TOO tailored. I'm thinking that it's not overpowered at 10th level if the PCs get some as part of their treasure, as well. Give them enough to animate two large objects (statue size) and it gives them some neat abilities to play with down the road without unbalancing the game, I don't think...
Lots of cool ideas. I'm thinking of using plants on the medusa's level (as it's also something our group hasn't fought much of), and thus giving her a level or two of druid, as Pendagast suggests -- can't give her too much as I've only got the two PCs, even if they are 10th level.
I'm also still liking the idea of animated statues. I was thinking of giving my medusa some sort of magical paint, since she won't have the class levels she'd need to handle it herself (she might, however, have a captive wizard to make said paint for herself, or perhaps a wizard ally on another level of the dungeon) and InfoStorm's rod seems like a little TOO tailored. I'm thinking that it's not overpowered at 10th level if the PCs get some as part of their treasure, as well. Give them enough to animate two large objects (statue size) and it gives them some neat abilities to play with down the road without unbalancing the game, I don't think...
What level would they be by the time they reached the boss tho?
Nothing is stopping you adding to the Medusa a unique ability to animate 5 cubic feet of stone per Racial HD as the Animate Objects 1/day, limited to Magically Created Stone, such as by Petrification or Wall of Stone or maybe even Mud to Rock, meaning that she has the ability to 'shape' her 'Garden' as she chooses. This means your average Medusa, with 8HD, can animate 8 Small-sized 'Statues', 4 Small-sized 'Statues' or 1 Large-sized 'Statue', makes her a memorable challenge and throws the PCs for a loop with her unusual ability that isn't outright damage-based like so many Monster abilities.
What level would they be by the time they reached the boss tho?
Barring something really unexpected, they'll still be 10th. We don't really use XP in our game, preferring to just level up at appropriate story points, and this adventure won't be that pivotal to the larger story.
An army of permanent animated objects made out of all your petrified victims. Cheaper than stone golems and just as terrifying.Accomplished by a minor artifact/magic rod.
Artificer's Rod
Aura: Strong (Transmutation), Caster Level: 11
Any inanimate object touched by this rod gained the effect of a permanent "Animate Objects" spell, but with multiple conditions.
1. Can only be used on objects created by the wielder of the rod.
2. Maximun number of HD that can be animated at any 1 point in time is limited to 4HD per level (or HD) of the rod's wielder.
3. Must stay within 1-mile of the Artificer's Rod or lose the enchantment.
4. If the rod's bearer dies, all animated objects lose their enchantment.A medusa can use it on the statues she creates, and evil wizards often use it on victims of Flesh to Stone spells. The original creator was a lazy fat priest who dabbled in woodwork, animating his tables to bring things to him and his chairs to carry him around town.
Maybe a Caster level from the rod of 16?
EDIT: added conditions. (is #3 a good condition?)
You don't need all that, just give her the Craft Construct feat. You can make permanent, non-dispellable animated objects with it.
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Pathfinder Gorgons are really variant Khalkotauroi with their fire-breath replaced with a paralysing breath.
I would love to see PFRPGv.2 rename Medusa with the more accurate Gorgon (Medusa simply being the name of the most famous Gorgon).
Then we could have fire-breathing Khalkotauroi and some nostalgists could create alternative breath weapons for them.
Here we go again.
The D&D gorgon is named as such because Topsell, drawing on Pliny's Natural History and other Greek bestiaries, named the mythical African death-breathing ungulate (what the Greeks called catoblepas) in honor of Medusa and her gorgon sisters. The D&D gorgon even has those scales. It's no more inaccurate than D&D hydras being mortal and non-venomous, and decidedly more accurate than, say, rakshasas (which owe more to an episode of Kolchak: the Night Stalker than they do to actual Hindu lore).
Wow, thanks for educating me, Topsell is an interesting fabulist.
I'm still not a fan of Medusa as a name for a species, because she was an individual figure.
It also seems more elegant to simply have
Gorgon, Catobelpas, Khalkotauroi
It's entertaining that a writer in the 17th century was confused about various mythic beasties and tried to make his own writing seem accurate and scientific by dismissing 'the poets' for having 'a fiction' about gorgons.
However, that entertaining historical footnote is much more obscure than the Greek myths and serves only to muddy the waters.
The dnd/PFRPG Gorgon isn't even Topsell's: it's taken from the illustration and the first paragraph, ignoring the rest of the passage (in which Topsell informs us that it does not have a poison breath, but instead petrifies with his sight, like a cockatrice).
Basically, the current situation is confusing because it is based upon an obscure source and clarification around a more popular set of sources which do not conflict or overlap would be greatly appreciated by me. Although I may be the only one.
I'm intrigued by the 'Here we go again' part of your post. Have you often had to travel up this little byway of dnd?
I'm intrigued by the 'Here we go again' part of your post. Have you often had to travel up this little byway of dnd?
Yeah. I think this is my third time posting this link on the Paizo forums, and I've done so a few times on ENWorld back in the day. At some point, I bookmarked it.
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I'm intrigued by the 'Here we go again' part of your post. Have you often had to travel up this little byway of dnd?Yeah. I think this is my third time posting this link on the Paizo forums, and I've done so a few times on ENWorld back in the day. At some point, I bookmarked it.
Chwarae teg, it's a cool link to have in your backpocket.