One of the things I've learned from big-party gaming is that a lot of foes that keep everybody busy is generally preferable to one or two baddies - people tend to get bored more easily that way, it seems...
Wow! I just realized my thread has hit two pages! (yay me!)
not what you are looking for, but I am a fan of Alchemists as baddies, lots of versatility, and blowing all your bombs in one fight is vicious. Monks are the same with Ki points
Oh, I fully intend to use class-level villains in the future - in the other game I mentioned above, they've been used to very nice effect (some of our group couldn't wait to get their hands on that evil druid! - house rules allow any evil alignment for druids).
Other than the magus, I've mostly sticking to the core classes. However, I've been hearing a lot of favorable comments on the alchemist in these threads, so I guess I ought to check them out.
South America made me think of a Chupacabra (the flying mutant version would be best I think).
Hmmmm.... still working my way through Bestiary II - chupacabra might have potential. As an ambush predator, it could easily take out a small goblin party. It's got slightly better than animal intelligence, so avoiding their traps would be possible. If the party looks like its going to wipe out the beast too easily, i could have its mate appear to make things more challenging.
So much for the list getting shorter.... fortunately, I've still got some time to decide.
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Here is a suggestion,
Redcap.
He/she is a teritorial evil fey that that would easily have an issue with goblins. The Irreligious trait would either be very cool for the cleric or give you a returning character if needed. They are small but carry medium equipment just so that you can designed cool loot for you player characters. And their DR and fast healing give them staying power for being outnumbered.
Another sugestion would be a crazed or hermit goblin on an Axe Beak (Young Creature) ,Achaierai (Young Creature) , or cockatrice (Giant Creature).
The DR10/cold iron would be a major problem for a 1st level party, unless I clued them in to needing cold iron, which would defeat the purpose... but I appreciate the suggestion.
Ettercap CR3 maybe with advanced template CR 4. maybe a few spider pets. Hell Hound CR3. Troll CR5 (that's a strectch). I like the Ettercap idea with a few spider pets creeping through the trees picking up a few goblins for a midnight snack.
Definitely Chupacabra! If you can add in ambush and escape attacks in low light (so the player's can't see it), play up that horror feel. Discovering goblin bodies drained of blood all over the beast's lair before they encounter it would also add to that vibe.
I've been toying with the idea of leaving the rest of the goblin tribe (mostly elderly, females & young) in the cave lair - the module had them relocate/chased out of the lair by the beast. But I'm considering having the goblin pc (rogue) lead the party to the lair to meet with the elders, only to find everyone dead. It'll have to be handled with some delicacy, as my 8-yr old is playing. Main point is to give an overwhelming reason for the goblin to join the party permanently, as well as for rest of this adventure- vengeance being quite the motive, even for a goblin.
Afterwards, he wouldn't really have any reason to stick around, as the other tribes obviously wouldn't treat him well as an outcast, & he probly wouldn't last too long on his own in these dangerous woods. Plus, the party will have hopefully realized he has valuable skills they can use. Most of them are good-aligned as well, so that should help in their decision-making. The goblin pc is chaotic-neutral, btw.
Anyway, this is leading me back to my original idea of a hunter/predator type, over the gang of orcs. Not that the orcs couldn't fit the profile, but they'd be as likely to enslave the survivors as kill them.
The chupacabra might fit the bill - a CR3 version leading the pack (or even an older CR4 variant), with some young CR2's thrown in for good measure could easily do the trick. A pack would definitely be able to take out the tribe (plus they prefer shallow caves for their own lairs). Does anyone think this is being too heavy-handed to get the goblin pc into the party, or am I playing out a logical progession
of events?
Sorry I didn't update sooner, lots of work & other stuff going on. But here goes...
And the winner is..... OWLBEAR!!!
The original scenario called for a grizzly bear, so I like the idea of keeping it similar , but with a little bit more of a fantasy flair. In addition, if the group fares better than expected, I can always throw in the creature's mate to make it more interesting. Finally, I can use the possibility of selling owlbear eggs as an alternate type of treasure ($3,000 or so each!) - this is handy, as the group will not be getting much else in the way of treasure from the encounters otherwise.
I'm setting up a handful of random encounters for the woods, mostly CR2-type stuff like a wild boar or two, maybe a couple giant spiders & so on. The two other major encounters will be @ a) the homesteader's house, where the group will run across a few dire rats that were attracted by the stench of death and b) a run-in with an assassin vine in the woods. If paying attention, they can be tipped off by the remains of one of the goblin war parties (sent out to fight the owlbear) that had the misfortune of finding the vine instead.
After talking with my son (the CN goblin rogue), he's going to be sent with the pc's as they hunt for the beast in order to help them deal with the various traps the goblins set for the owlbear. Afterwards, the group returns to the goblin camp, only to find the leader has been killed & replaced by one of the lieutenants - who also happens to be the rogue's mortal enemy in the tribe, making my son's character completely persona non-grata. Then it's just a matter of getting the pc's to realize he's of use to them, so they'll hang onto him.
So what do you guys think?
Hey all, first time posting, so here goes...
Starting my first Pathfinder campaign soon with family. Seven pc's total, all 1st level: human female barbarian, elf male magus, gnome male sorcerer, human male cleric, half-orc male barbarian, half-elf female druid & goblin male rogue.
Found a nice free module online called "Goblin's Tooth" that I think will work very well - essentially, the group has to help prevent another goblin/human war by destroying the creature that is hunting/killing the local goblin tribe (forcing them to raid humans for food to survive). Campaign will start in more sub-tropical climate, similar to South America.
Having difficulty deciding on what to use as the 'main' enemy of the encounter that's been attacking the goblins. Here are my favorite options so far:
amphisbaena, CR4 (BEST II, 25) - young template (CR-1)?
owlbear, CR4 (BEST, 224) - young template?
girallon, CR6 (BEST, 154) - young template for sure
ogre, CR3 (BEST, 220) - maybe a pair?
mite, CR1/4 (BEST, 207) - pair/group? - vermin companions?I would appreciate any/all thoughts & comments, both on the suggestions above, or if you think of an option I might have overlooked. The girallon is appealing due to the environment, but may be too powerful. The mite(s) could be seeking revenge on the goblins for past mockery (read in the creature description).
Thanks very much, & I look forward to your thoughts!
Quick ogre story
My 5th level Druid had died of my own stupidity and the next gaming session the party was not in a convenient place for me to join (they were a couple levels down in the dungeon) I created a melee based Ranger, 3rd level, adn waited eight hours for the party to emerge from the dungeon and start back towards the city, I joined them the first day out. My stats were done, feats and skills chosen with care and equipment purchased, the sheet was completely and carefully filled out. The second day with the party we encountered three Ogres. I was ready. I was a front-line character and anxious for battle. The melee was joined, my breastplate was strapped tight and my Two-handed sword was ready. I rolled a 4 for initiative, the ogre went first. On the Ogre's first swing he rolled a twenty and did 43 points of damage....I ceremoniously burned the character sheet in the backyard.
Ouch!!
One of Paizo's early modules from the Gamemastery days, Conquest of Bloodsworn Vale, has a great owlbear encounter in it.
I'm planning on running this module soon but I'll be replacing them with tigers for a more asian theme to fit the rest of my campaign.
My 5th level Druid had died of my own stupidity and the next gaming session the party was not in a convenient place for me to join (they were a couple levels down in the dungeon) I created a melee based Ranger, 3rd level, adn waited eight hours for the party to emerge from the dungeon and start back towards the city, I joined them the first day out. My stats were done, feats and skills chosen with care and equipment purchased, the sheet was completely and carefully filled out. The second day with the party we encountered three Ogres. I was ready. I was a front-line character and anxious for battle. The melee was joined, my breastplate was strapped tight and my Two-handed sword was ready. I rolled a 4 for initiative, the ogre went first. On the Ogre's first swing he rolled a twenty and did 43 points of damage....I ceremoniously burned the character sheet in the backyard.
Not to second guess your DM, but just saying, in hir place I would have totally fudged that die roll and called it a 19 instead of a 20, or said he rolled 1s on his damage dice. Just to let your new ranger make it past a few combats!
Just wanted to post an update on the adventure for anyone interested.
We have finished the 1st scenario. I went with the owlbear & everything went perfectly! The group caught on right away that something was amiss at the homestead, and came in on the pc goblin as he was being cornered by a bunch of dire rats. He escaped the conflict, and the group decided to go after him to find out what was going on. They met the tribe's chief and agreed to go after the creature causing the problems (they thought it was a grizzly bear, which still had them very concerned). A couple random forest encounters later (a wild boar - just as they nearly set off one of the goblin traps intended for the owlbear, and an assassin vine) and they found the creature in it's lair. They managed to draw it out... the reactions when they found out it was an owlbear were perfect. After a nice bit of melee, the group emerged victorious - only to have the owlbear's larger mate come out of the woods ready for a go. That battle had some tension, but again the group perservered.
Everyone leveled up, they averted another goblin war, and they sold the two owlbear eggs they found for a tidy sum. Pretty soon, I'll be getting to work on the next adventure.
Thanks to everyone for all the helpful advice!