Hey everyone I am running jade regent and about to finish book 3. They just finished the tower encounter and the party is burnt out. Was planning to fast track and do the spider encounter followed by the followed boss fight. This being said the final dungeon is a grind and dull. Look for any ideas to create a great mini version of that dungeon or coouple of encounters before tian xi. The bosses are fine just yeti are a weak aand boring repetition.
If anyone is willing to help I have figured out the order and condensing of the dungeon I am going to do, there will be 3 Encounters and the boss fight I am wondering if this is possible without rest, the party consists of:
All Level 9's: Ninja, Barbarian, Summoner (with a DPS beast), Cleric, Witch
The Encounters:
1. 2 Headless Wardens (CR 7) Advanced Mummy Variants
2. 2 Spectres (CR 7)
3. Greater Shadow (CR 8) + Revenant (CR 6)
4. Final Fight from Book ( Aprx. CR 9 followed by a CR 12)
Basically going to use the Yeti as a intimidating factor having them harass the party throughout the tunnels and then have them watching from up top as the final fight happens with 2 or 3 Yeti savages helping the boss.
Possible? Want to get the dungeon done in a night and dont think the party should have the opportunity to rest while in it.
The Encounters:
1. 2 Headless Wardens (CR 7) Advanced Mummy Variants
2. 2 Spectres (CR 7)
3. Greater Shadow (CR 8) + Revenant (CR 6)
4. Final Fight from Book ( Aprx. CR 9 followed by a CR 12)
One of my groups talked with the Yeti, the other one ignored them entirely, not wishing to get caught in a protracted combat. My other group managed to have a peaceful encounter with some of them through the use of social skills and respecting the Yeti's boundaries.
Generally speaking, the Yeti aren't looking to cause much problems until the end when 'Bormug' starts to rally them to pounce on the caravan during the final combat, so what you are proposing should work just fine. Those are basically the only encounters either of my groups took part in.
I think you won't miss anything by going your proposed route, but one thing I think you should add is a role play encounter vs the Yeti, possibly with them guarding their lair and telling the group to 'leave' and 'go-away' making general menacing gestures.
Three possible outcomes for such an encounter:
'Begrudging friendship' where the PC's manage to get one of the Yeti to talk about their chief and his visit with 'beautiful spirit woman' and some of his strange behavior since the encounter. This serves to possibly clue in the party about Katiyana to come as well as give them a chance to possibly weaken Bormug's power by showing the Yeti that the 'intruders' aren't all bad people who have come to wreck there homes and take their stuff. In the case the PC's manage to either free Bormug or kill him and slay Katiyana, the Yeti present may view the PC's as saviors and offer them rewards for their help, they may also be hesitant to attack when Bormug calls out for them.
'Respecting boundaries' where the PC's don't manage to befriend the Yeti's but the encounter dosn't devolve to open hostilities. This is kinda the 'default' assumption, where nothing good or bad happens, just the Yeti tell the group to 'stay back' and they do just that. In this case the Yeti could flee when they see Katiyana appear out of the defeated Bormug similar to the default 'route' proposed by the AP. I would consider having a chance for a (diplomacy/intimidate) check after to explain things to the now fearful Yeti, and possibly still be viewed in a positive light/scared witless by the scary strangers who killed their chief and receive some of Bormug's treasure.
'My new Yeti coat is divine!', this is where the PC's bristle at the Yeti tribe and possibly attack/kill/run off some of the Yeti Wardens who are guarding their lairs. In this case, I would consider escalating the final combat with Bormug to have a few more Yeti join the battle with the PC's and have the Yeti fight through their fear of Katiyana while attacking the PC's and Caravan as they are desperately attempting to drive off the 'invaders'. In this case, I would probably have the Yeti tribe be wiped out in the final encounter or at least hastily flee from their homes with their children and the like.
The Yeti don't play a major role in the overarching story, but they do serve as a sort of 'grey' element that I feel like my groups enjoyed. You know your group, so you are likely to know which choice they are likely to take. Consequences for choices and actions tend to be fun, and this is a pretty easy little branch to have, that the ultimate outcome doesn't change the adventure, but it does possibly give you a memorable encounter for your players.
but do you feel the encounter (entire trip through the tunnels) is do-able in one run without rest? I dont feel the party would have a chance to rest while down there
I think as far as time in the tunnels, the party actually spends a few days traveling along the underground path through the mountains.
Mechanically, I think it is do-able without a rest. Both of my groups did at least. I actually think it would be a challenge to rest in the necropolis as Katiyana would most likely be aware of the party and most likely seek to deal with them.
Katiyana can be tough for some groups if you play up her movement abilities while in ghost form as she is basically immune to non-spell based ranged attacks and 5 foot steps + full attacks due to her wind abilities, so she is more than capable of draining out the rest of their resources. Some groups have managed to pull off hitting her with the 9 ring broadsword found earlier and knock her out in one anti-climatic blow, neither of mine did though.