Other ways to knock someone out.

[Mistah J]

Hey all,

So in the campaign I am leading, the party is about to encounter regular townsfolk (read: 1st lvl commoners, 3rd lvl experts, etc.) who are all suffering from a terrible affliction that makes them all raving psychotics (read: under the effects of a barbarian rage, or maybe the rage spell - just permanently)

The party is, on average, good aligned. They are happy to take their cue from the Paladin/Monk.

Obviously, in such a situation, non-lethal damage seems the obvious choice and for a Paladin/Monk (monkadin?) it's no trouble. Add to this that they are 1st lvl commoners and 3rd lvl experts and it is going to be a walk in the park.

So I want to up the difficulty, not just of combat but of the morality too - I am making the afflicted immune to non-lethal damage.

What are some other ways the party can subdue their opponents without killing them? I want to be prepared for when the players start coming up with solutions.

Thanks

EDIT: Ok, obviously there are the grappling rules that include binding people with ropes or chains.. but what else can they do?

[blackbloodtroll]

Snag Nets covered with Drow Poison. Entangle and possibly knock them unconscious.
Sleep spells work too.

[HaraldKlak]

Mistah J wrote:

So I want to up the difficulty, not just of combat but of the morality too - I am making the afflicted immune to non-lethal damage.

What are some other ways the party can subdue their opponents without killing them? I want to be prepared for when the players start coming up with solutions?

Thanks

EDIT: Ok, obviously there are the grappling rules that include binding people with ropes or chains.. but what else can they do?

Well grappling was my only real suggestion. Other suggestions (though some very temporary: Stunning fist / Sleep / Pit spells / Tanglefoot bags / Web or Entanglement / Fascination. All in all these suggestions are problematic since they are based on limited ressources. On top of that, it has the risk that some of the characters can't benefit at all.

I think you should consider whether the non-lethal immunity is the best solution. You risk that they get to the conclusion that non-lethal force is impossible, thus making lethal force necessary. Of course this depends on the players. Alternatively you could give the DR against non-lethal damage. 5 or 10 (or highger depending on PC level) should make the non-lethal route a lot more difficult, but not impossible.

[Phasics]

The party could prepare pit traps or other non-lethal binding traps and set them up to catch the afflict possible using live bait ;) i.e. themselves as the draw

[Bigger Club]

Well Imprisoning them, I would think the affliction would make them act not so smart so some sort of plan to get them to a building and barricade the door and windows.

Then there are more than few spells that are good for this. Something like sleep for example. Then if these people still have some sort of slef preservation something like wall of fire(should kill most if they try to go trough) could be a temporary solution to prepare something more useful.

Just a note, I would make it sure they get it that these people are under the influence of something. Otherwise I would say apart from very few characters I have played would just slaughter each and every last one of them.

[Phasics]

If you got a witch in the group with some of the longer term hexes she might be perfect for taking these things down long term.

[Umbranus]

- sleep, color spray, hold person and lots of other spells.
- Poison that deals stat damage to a stat that doesn't kill when it is reduced to 0. Like dex.
- if the townfolk are not fighting each others they could redirect/bull rush them together into a room 'till they find a better solution.
- if nothing else works beat them carefully to below 0 and stabilize them.

[blackbloodtroll]

Do not forget the Nets. Touch attacks are easy to make.

I cannot count the times I have been glad that I was carrying a net.
With the new Snag Net, you do 1 point of piercing damage, which means you can coat them with poison, like Drow Poison, and knock them out.

[Owly]

Carl Cartwright and his sons are local ranchers, and the Cartwright boys know how to ride, and how to handle a lasso. In-fact, they're so good they host the local rodeo at their ranch. If any troublemakers come to town, they're quite adept at throwing a lasso and dragging them through the dust. (Think of cowboy movies).

Big Earl is good with his hands, and sometimes hangs around the tavern while adventurers are in town, in case there's trouble. He and his friends have had to grab troublemakers and give them a good drubbing. (Anyone assisting a grapple gives a +2 to the grappler. If there are three adjacent people, that's +6 to grapple. A helpless person can be hit automatically. Think of gangster movies where they "work someone over").

Rosie Riveteur used to be a pikeman for the Eagle Knights. She retired (took an arrow to the knee) but now works as a roofer in the town. She's well-trained in the use of a ranseur and a longspear, and if a situation called for it, she could wield her ladder quite well, disarming, tripping and even binding an opponent. (No -4 penalty for using her ladder as a weapon, due to her past training. Think of kung-fu movies like Jackie Chan). She can even bull-rush more than one opponent by holding it horizontally.

And don't forget whips were commonly used in the 19th century to unseat horsemen. A whip would be a common implement in a cattle/horse town.

[Brambleman]

Ability damage and Drain. For anything save CON, taking a stat to zero results in immobility.