|
Ok so I'm kinda hitting a wall with regards to an upcoming ruin/dungeon that I'll be running this coming Friday. Specifically in level appropriate encounters.
Things to know/keep in mind:
-Party is level 4. Magus, LE Cleric, fighter, Sorcerer/Rogue and Fighter/Ranger with a wolf and zombie pet.
-Player have shown to be able to take on level-inapproriate encounters (up to a least CR6).
-I'd like to avoid any undead if I could, lest the Cleric try to dominate them all.
-Players are a little undergeared (my fault as DM really. This ruin will hopefully solve that).
-Players are (almost) all VERY experienced players and have been making things hellish for me as a pretty green DM (Would like to give them a run for their money)
-The idea is that the ruin was, ~1000 years ago, a research facility for coming up with a way to lock the world on a planar level (No intrusion from outsiders or gods). Place has been sealed up tight since the planar lock had been put up. Experiments may have gotten out and bred in the confines of the research facility. Also, since the planar lock is in place, Outsiders wouldn't be very appropriate unless they were brought in and trapped some how before the lock was in place, 1000 or so years ago.
-As the place was a research facility, I can't think of any traps to use aside from "the place is falling apart" based traps.
Please help, I don't want to screw this up and I'm strapped for ideas as it is D= Default enemies would be a Deathweb as the boss and just varying degrees of spiders and large vermin.
|
|
Ok, this is what I have so far:
Monsters to use and locations:
Attic Whisperer x1: Nursery/living quarters (Dead child of researchers)
Slime Mold x2: Kitchens (Should have washed them dishes better)
Giant Crab Spider x8: Holding Pens (Snuck in and bred like mad)
Graven Guardian x1: Boss (A "You are not authorized to be here. Leave now" kinda boss. Thinking Artifice and Law. Will not attack if the PCs are wearing keycard necklaces that the dead researchers are wearing)
Traps can also be alchemical explosion...gas trapped in a room that they have to find a vent for...mutated cockroach that didn't get out when it was small enough? And ya, maybe some ghosts/haunt type things
Mana waste mutant template from inner sea bestiary used liberally. Tha'ts a convenient way to get you're freaky stuff. Also Alchemical oozes are thematic.
|
|
Traps can also be alchemical explosion...gas trapped in a room that they have to find a vent for...mutated cockroach that didn't get out when it was small enough? And ya, maybe some ghosts/haunt type things
Hehehehe, haunts <3
I've been toying with the idea of making the whole ruins a sort of horror dungeon. Have the Attic Whisperer stalking the party or something and just playing with the "Ya'll ain't alone here" kinda feeling.
Then you can also throw in some beings from other planes as well as part of the "process" for seperation, the researchers had to figure out how to get other being from another plane in order to figure out how to lock them out.
|
|
Then you can also throw in some beings from other planes as well as part of the "process" for seperation, the researchers had to figure out how to get other being from another plane in order to figure out how to lock them out.
I was tinkering with the idea of a Contract Devil being in the holding cells (the one most likely to talk as opposed to straight up kill), but seeing as the Fighter and the Cleric are both Lawful Evil and likely to use/abuse the three wishes/assigned devil, I opted to not do that.
The trick is to come up with an encounter with an Outsider that both fits the situation and won't curbstomp the party.
Maybe a neutral evil outsider (don't know many) That is really bored from being binded to that location for the 1000+ years. Can send them to get something in the cloudkill room :)...if they don't return...laughs for a little bit...if they do maybe they will kill him so he can return to his plane. I they get the item, then maybe a reward and the item is his release.
Why not a team of Arbiter Inevitable working as agents of a Lhaksharut Inevitable? The center could also have been covertly sponsored by the Lhaksharut.
You could also replace the Lhaksharut by an axiomite (Creators of the Inevitable).
Some constructs or animated object would be perfect to sustain a power source maintaining a small planar lockdown.
|
|
Maybe a neutral evil outsider (don't know many) That is really bored from being binded to that location for the 1000+ years. Can send them to get something in the cloudkill room :)...if they don't return...laughs for a little bit...if they do maybe they will kill him so he can return to his plane. I they get the item, then maybe a reward and the item is his release.
I could probably find a Daemon or something that could work. Probably something that could play to the whole "room of poison" thing.
Not 100% sure if I should hand the players some anti-Daemon weapons though. Don't wanna give'em the impression that they SHOULD/HAVE TO fight the thing and that if would be better/easier to deal with it.