So I will be running the shadow clock tower later this week. So far my group has blown through everything I've thrown at them without breaking a sweat, but I now have a question regarding Xanesha. I've read that she's a TPK machine, and while I don't want to make it harder on the group I feel like they've set her up to be extra ready for them.
After killing everyone at the saw mill they found the ravens and are were ready to follow it back to Xanesha, but last minute they decided that they needed to go back to Sandpoint to sell some gear and rest up before continuing (keeping the raven to follow back later). So, my question becomes, how would you handle Xanesha's reaction to this?
I'm thinking that she'd try her best to track down the PC's or even try to manipulate Magnimar's authorities against the PC's since they've killed her pawns. On the other hand the encounter is going to be tough regardless of if she switches plans on them. Still I feel that treating the encounter the exact same wouldn't make sense as a week will have gone by with everyone in the Skinsaw cult dead.
What would you do?
Regarding the TPK issue: are you running the 3.5 version, or the Anniversary Edition? Most of the TPK stories are from the former, and she was toned down in the AE (a little).
Now, I haven't had the chance to run this AP yet, so I'm speaking more from the standpoint of 'natural consequences' and what story I'd see emerging from the events that unfolded. That said, Xanesha is a very canny villain.
- Just how much do the PCs know about her operation, and how personally did she take their meddling? It's entirely possible that she may be miffed enough to enlist some more cannon-fodder (as Zahariel notes, classed sinspawn would be thematically appropriate), follow them back to Sandpoint, and try to lure them into an ambush in the town or its outlying areas. The Misgivings might be appropriate ground for the battle, especially if she can add her own traps and other hazards to the existing haunts.
They butchered ironbriar and left everyone for dead. I thought xanesha framing the PC's seemed appropriate but didn't want to make it to difficult for them.
I'm running the 3.5 books with pathfinder rules making adjustments as necessary.
Yes bump the hp of the scarecrow he went down hard and fast with my group
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If you want to have some fun. Did the PC's inform the townguard that Justice Ironbriar was a member of a cult or did they just kill him and leave him for the rats?
ie.
Commoner 105: Guards! Guards! I found some bodies.
Guard: Holy Abadar someone butchered the Justice!
Commoner 106: I saw some adventurer's leaving here!
Anyways, so in my game Ironbriar set the pc's up for murder of a few guards. Basically he told the PC's that there was a killer on the loose and needed them to investigate a warehouse, when they showed up Ironbriar let a dire tiger loose in the building.
Back to the Shadow Tower, the Bells do alot of damage as I remember. The Shadow Tower should be a mess of skill checks climbing the stairs, especially if a bunch are missing and the rest are weak and could give way as I remember. I say soften them up a bit before the fight so they don't alpha strike, or have Xanesha have some buddies or a charmed paladin or something just to throw a monkey wrench in their plans.
So far I'm hearing that setting them up for the murder of the justice would be a great way to take it. It would make sense considering they did straight up murder a bunch of people, not inform anyone, and leave them all for the rats. Xanesha could totally play off this since she seems like she likes manipulating people anyway.
No one thinks that Xanesha is too hard of a fight if she's prepared for the PC's? I'm using the original 3.5 adventure path, and it is true that the group has murdered everything/anything I've thrown at them so far.
So far I like the idea of using some Sinspawn with class levels.
Just to play off of your idea.
Say Xanesha caught wind that her pawn had been killed and went to the city guard as a commoner to report the murder. She's pretty diplomatic and convinces the Sheriff to have a patrol on her neighborhood. She would probably have a few unlucky fools charmed and guarding her personally, it'd be a simple diplomacy check to have them guard her tower rather than the area.
The players would have to wade knee deep through innocent townguards to get to her. A savy player might Knowledge Arcana and see they are all under a spell and work it from that angle. Fighters and such would have to be careful to avoid killing the fools. Or they might just slaughter them all, either ways it gives you some buffer. I'd add some guard dogs with the townguards just for fun, even if the players butcher everyone.
In 3.5 my players had a rough time with the fight.
Sense motive can detect charms as well. :)
I used her illusions- my players knew they were approaching the big bad, as I and another GM are switching off chapter by chapter with another AP, but they didn't know what it was going to be. X cast spells from (nearly) out of sight and while the party engaged with her illusion. As different players made the save to know it wasn't there I passed notes, and they played it out really well.
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My group of six players, even running the AE, had a tricky time with her (well ok, five; the infiltrating wizard had been charmed into flying away...) so she shouldn't be a cakewalk.
How many players do you have?
Did you use Point Buy or roll for ability scores? If Roll, how well did they do?
What's the party makeup (roles)
?
If you don't have six or more PCs, I'd be tempted to do her vanilla.
I don't recall exactly how the original 3.5 version of her tower worked, but use the bell tower trap and minions (with some bumped DCs) to soften them up first. Maybe she had a few more minions somewhere else she calls back in prep for an assault.
Giving her max hp should be enough, unless your PCs are hopelessly unbalanced. Have her focus on using the tower and her climb speed against the PCs, moving and striking so they can't flank and/or full attack her very well. Then have her start grappling and bull rushing off the tower.
And as others have said, her true danger is her manipulation- remember that this is a very old, very crafty person who until recently had an entire cabal of cultists and a Justice under her thumb. She will absolutely use her previous influence and position with the late Justice to turn the City Guard against the PCs, if the Guard/she can figure out who the PCs are. Maybe roll percentage and see how well they were able to slip in and out of town.
I was running the 3.5 version, and I found it a pretty good challenge. I put her on top of the tower, but had her put an illusory demon flying outside, that let her hit them with spells while they climbed the outside stairs. It also split the party as some were braver about going out to confront the "demon". Once they got on the roof her skills allowed her to put some serious hurt into the party with her weapon. I probably could have TPK had i chosen to fly and just hammer them with spells. I chose to have her gate out so that she'll be around to fight another day.
My party cut a deal with Ironbriar, and so that worked pretty well. Again he's an interesting figure that could come back to haunt them. My party wound up going in through the rookery, and so he was the only member of the cult they encountered.
Well if you want to TPK the party you could always trick them into climbing and then knock the tower over. The thing is a death trap.