Puckle Up, or One Way for a GM to Keep Bonefist Challenging (Minor Spoiler)

[KarlBob]

If your party has a gunslinger, if they've built, bought or captured their own cannon, or if you're running the Shackles as a Commonplace Guns setting, then you might need to toughen up the Filthy Lucre to keep things challenging.

One way to do that is to give Kerdak's crew a Puckle gun. Eleven chambers of 1.25 inch (32 mm) bullets should encourage PCs with low-to-moderate hit points to keep their heads down. If need be, give the gun crew a spellslinger, and bring on the Magic Bullets. For even more fun, the Filthy Lucre could have two Puckle guns, mounted fore and aft, to generate a nice crossfire.

I'm thinking that 2d10 damage (like a double hackbut) should be about right. Cranking the weapon from one chamber to the next could be a move action, allowing it to fire once per turn (maybe faster, in the right hands).

Does anyone else have ideas for keeping the Hurricane King and his ship challenging against a well-equipped, gunpowder-savvy party?

[Adam B. 135]

Replace his terrible Shackle's Pirate levels with something good. Like Slayer. Even rogue is better. Replace his fighter levels with trench fighter levels. Making him full BAB, along with having levels in effective classes will help a lot.

[KarlBob]

That works, too. If the players have optimized their characters for combat, then optimizing the NPCs is one way for the GM to keep things challenging.

[Adam B. 135]

I can also advise that just adding a few dudes, even if they are like level 12-14 to the encounter with npc gear could help a lot. I doubt a level 12 barbarian will wipe the party, but they can certainly threaten most PCs even at that level.

Also a Wyrm Sniper:
http://www.d20pfsrd.com/classes/base-classes/gunslinger/archetypes/paizo--- gunslinger-archetypes/wyrm-sniper-gunslinger-archetype

and a siege mage:
http://www.d20pfsrd.com/classes/core-classes/wizard/archetypes/paizo---wiza rd-archetypes/siege-mage

with a few random smucks helping them could be awesome gunner's for the Filthy Lucre

[KarlBob]

Those are both great archetypes for the Hurricane King to have on board. If any captain in the Shackles can find those kinds of specialists, it should be him.

[TritonOne]

Did you create the Puckle Gun, create Bonefist's companions, or re-stated Bonefist, KarlBob?

[KarlBob]

My group is near the beginning of Raiders of the Fever Sea, so it hasn't come up yet in our game.

I discovered the Puckle Gun (a real prototype that never went into production) while researching flintlocks, and I thought it would be a great weapon for Bonefist.

When the players do reach him, there's a chance that all of his cannons may be more set decoration than threat, so I wanted him to have a big, intimidating gunpowder weapon to use on board his flagship.

[KarlBob]

I'm thinking about splicing some of the combat abilities from the Stormwrack (D&D 3.5) pirate prestige class into the Shackles Pirate prestige class. That should help, anyway. As it stands, I kind of agree with Adam B. 135, Shackles Pirate isn't very impressive.

[TritonOne]

KarlBob wrote:

I'm thinking about splicing some of the combat abilities from the Stormwrack (D&D 3.5) pirate prestige class into the Shackles Pirate prestige class. That should help, anyway. As it stands, I kind of agree with Adam B. 135, Shackles Pirate isn't very impressive.

I would be interested in seeing what you come up with, KarlBob.

[Adam B. 135]

I am gonna re-make Bonefist with Slayer levels in my group. I'll let you know how it goes. They should fight him next Sunday.

[TritonOne]

Adam B. 135 wrote:

I am gonna re-make Bonefist with Slayer levels in my group. I'll let you know how it goes. They should fight him next Sunday.

Thank you.