Hey guys,
I'm organizing an encounter in which the PCs, who've just rescued a little orphan girl from the streets, are ambushed by some thugs who (mysteriously) want to kidnap the girl. One of thugs' first action will be to try to run through the orphan girl's square, scoop her up, and keep running in the direction he's going. The little girl is only about five years old, and won't be able to put up much meaningful resistance. How would you all handle this attempted kidnapping? As some sort of charge/grapple combination?
Thanks,
m
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It's a case of NPCs interacting with NPCs, so just handwave it all.
It's a case of NPCs interacting with NPCs, so just handwave it all.
This.
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It's a case of NPCs interacting with NPCs, so just handwave it all.
I wouldn't go this route if the party has a chance to stop it.
I think this is a good scenario to use the "chase" mechanic - running through crowds, dodging down alleys and around corners. Say the chase starts as the party is heading towards the crowded market.
"A few big thugs step out from the alleyway to your right and hurl an insult in your direction while wielding crude knifes. They begin to march towards you,'We'll make you sorry you ever mettled in our affairs!' Just then, you hear a shout behind you and see a slim, long faced man making off with the girl you were meant to protect - "HEEELLLLPPPP!!!!" It's Saturday at noon - if he makes it to the market, he'll be lost in the crowd for sure! - GO!"
The bad guy gets a head start (3 cards) for snatching up the girl while his mooks distract the party and then bolts for the crowded market. I would probably use a 12 to 15 card chase and have the bad guy be about the same level as the party, but with a good dex score, skill focus (acrobatics) and some other things that would help him to outrun the party in the streets. It should be a relatively fair chase since the party has more people for more actions (spells and the like to slow him) and more chances to catch him.
Perhaps a perception for them to notice they're being followed, they may detect the thugs trailing them, in which case they get a chance to circle the wagons. If they fail the check, the distraction thugs come out but maybe without giving a clue as to their intention (a generic mugging perhaps?) but then as the party turns to focus on the distraction (or maybe they ignore them and turn the other cheek) you roll a CMB v. CMD for the thug and girl factoring in circumstantial stuff like if the PCs are in a protective formation.
If he wins, implement the chase, if he loses, the thugs call in their re-enforcements around the block and fight the PCs. If the PCs take longer than 5 rounds to win, the other thugs arrive and some fight the PCs while others try to grab the girl.
Or, instead of thugs use ninjas. A choking smoke bomb is tossed into the street along with a casting of darkness. Allow them to try making saves, if they do, they see a figure grabbing the girl and darting towards the market. Allow a DC 5 knowledge local check to know that if the kidnapper gets to the market, the girl is pretty much lost.
If they make the knowledge check, implement the chase. If they don't, ask them what they're going to do, and if they decide to take some time to recover from the smoke and bombs, give the kidnapper more of a head start.
I can imagine a smart kidnapper would try to debuff his pursuers rather than just try to run up then outrun a group of professional adventures who have conditioning, training, and magic on their side.
Does she need to be kidnapped for the sake of the story? In other words, is she a plot device?
Seconding the "chase" idea. I think chase scenes are really fun - they are a nice change of pace from having every encounter being a combat.
Chases are great because each stage is like a mini-encounter that gives players different skill challenges. They allow more story-based encounters than combat typically does. So yeah, that's what I'd recommend.
+1 for chases.
They're a great vehicle for having PCs use less-often used skills and reward ingenuity more effectively than most combat bonuses would.
As far as mechanics of snagging the girl, I’d probably give whichever one has the girl a movement penalty and give the PCs a perception bonus of some sort to not lose them in a crowd.
If you (or the NPCs) are feeling a bit more diabolical or paranoid, have the NPCs split or have minor allied casters with Ghost Sound to try to lead the PCs astray or draw potentially hostile NPCs into the path of the PCs.
-TimD
1. Are your players aware of what the kidnapper is about it do? Is this attempt going to be "out of the blue"?
2. Mechanics wise, would the kidnapper not provoke an AoO by passing through a square that your PC's might be adjacent to? I would say a REF roll would grant them an AoO on the kidnapper, at least with unarmed attacks unless they are openly brandishing weapons.
2. Mechanics wise, would the kidnapper not provoke an AoO by passing through a square that your PC's might be adjacent to? I would say a REF roll would grant them an AoO on the kidnapper, at least with unarmed attacks unless they are openly brandishing weapons.
Flat-footed PCs cannot take attacks of opportunity, and you can't take an AoO with unarmed strike unless you have Improved Unarmed Strike. They should get a perception check, and then an initiative roll if they see the kidnapper.