My group just acquired a nice sized keep in the homebrew we're playing in. Now, we just finished a major war on one of our borders, and the enemy on the other side is being driven back by an "ally" of ours, so there's currently no immediate threat. My character, as paranoid as he is, doesn't fully trust this "ally" and wants to be prepared to defend. The keep in question was previously used as a foothold due to its location, so any enemies invading from that direction would have to go through its borders.
We have been given funds from the king to staff the keep, and our party is one of the most powerful in the kingdom (we're all level 15).
As far as raw magical power goes... My character is a pure cleric, and the only other pure caster is his follower (level 13 evoker).
My cleric is an artificer and engineer, so I was planning on making some rather large statues and then animating them should the need arise (will make them permanent when he can cast miracle).
Are there any other good methods for defense?
Restrictions: He is lawful good and we are limited to core, apg, um and uc.
Walls of stone are an inexpensive means to improve existing structures as well as creating bridges over moats and other hazards.
I'd ensure the structure has a decanter of endless water so poisoning a water supply isn't an issue you need to fear.
Enormous animated objects are an exceptional means of augmenting a defense (I had a nature oracle awaken an enormous tree on one defense game, with the animated object rules and 'trample' it was a lawn-mower when it came to low level enemy hoards.)
what about the classic things like a moat with a drawbridge and stuff like that? Does this keep have that already?
Then put some beasts in the moat that can't climb out.
The next thing I'd do is place symbols of revelation at key location in the keep. It's free with the fortune teller feat.
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If you have the manpower available, enlarge and redesign the keep for lots of towers with lots of siege engines on top of the towers. Deepen and enlarge the moat, create an extensive dead zone so attackers have no cover for up to a mile, use the engineering and artificing actively to move the odds in your favor.
Lots of castings of Forbiddance are in order here.
Thanks for the ideas everyone. I completely blanked on a moat and will need to work on that. I believe there are siege engines, but I'll work on making some trebs. I'll definitely keep trample in mind for gargantuan statues. Probably spend build points on stone + trample + speed boosts?
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Castles implies lots of cavalry units. Permanent halucinatory terraint to hide thousands of leg breaker holes surrounding the caste could be rather useful.
For flying foes, invest heavily in balistae and have them swivel up 45-90 degrees and horizontally 360 degrees. now groun and flying opposition is covered.
Castles implies lots of cavalry units. Permanent halucinatory terraint to hide thousands of leg breaker holes surrounding the caste could be rather useful.
For flying foes, invest heavily in balistae and have them swivel up 45-90 degrees and horizontally 360 degrees. now groun and flying opposition is covered.
Since when do castles automatically mean lots of cavalry? Castles actually have very little use for cavalry in their defense. As well, cavalry aren't particularly useful in a siege either. Castles have little room for maneuvering or charging meaning the main advantages of cavalry (speed and devastating charges) are negated. Archers and pikemen in the castle will have a field day slaughtering enemy cavalry.
Cavalry can have a role to play in defending a keep. If your castle has lots of open space around it, the cavalry becomes your first line of defense, keeping the enemy forces back while you get your castle ready. Later, when the enemy sieges you, you run sorties to disrupt the enemy siege. Or for more fun, have a long tunnel to take them out beyond enemy lines and let them charge at the enemy rear, smashing the foe between the charge of the cavalry and your walls.
