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So I'm GMing a campaign, and my party comp is as follows:
Gnome Skald
Gnome Bard
Sylph Druid
Aasimar Monk of the Mountain
Kasthasa Hunter (refuses to do melee)
Half-Elf Slayer
Starting at level 1, 15 point buy, the highest "to hit" modifier in melee is +2....
I don't see how they can survive any combat at all, especially since the melee guys have AC 10-11 after raging song goes off.
The first scenario requires some combat, but even that "cinematic combat" might prove lethal. Any ideas on how i can keep them alive without making them fight tiny rats all the time or fudging my rolls?
Is this an AP? With 6 players, combats will be easier than you think. Have the enemies spread the 'love' around. You'd need to post some of their builds for us to know more.
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It's something i'm coming up with on my own, and spreading the love will only do so much, as the highest HP is currently 9. I don't have their builds, because they took their sheets to pick spells (ran out of time and i had to leave).
I guess i'm looking more for ways to generally keep terrible parties alive. I told them i won't specifically punish them for their choices, but i can't favour them too much.
While a good crit can take someone out of a fight, the same goes for either side - the baddies have to deal with six adventurers who want them just as dead as the other way around. I'd put my money on the PCs to pull through in most published encounters set for the level rather than not - they're a fair bit more durable than what you might think when looking at their sheet.
If you are not running a pre-written set of adventures or something, keeping things balanced should be easy enough considering you have an APL of 2 right there and so have plenty of enemies to pick from that are at a 'normal' CR in groups and as single enemies. You have a lot of enemies for making encounters of acceptable difficulty without having to worry about killing everyone (or even anyone) off; no need to pull punches if you're being vigilant about designing appropriate combat scenarios.
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I don't see it being as bad as you think it is. Let them play it out and see how it goes. Essentially, since this is a home brew campaign, it is only as difficult as you make it. Give them encounters that will challenge their power level without killing them outright. It can still be in theme with your vision without them being uber optimized.
The first few fights will be the barometer. Throw some creatures at them and see how they handle it. Feel free to fudge a little if things get too hairy, as it is really just a test for your own information, then tone it down for the next encounter. If they breeze through the first one, the amp it up the next fight. They are playing what makes them happy and have fun, so there is no need to kill them off or throw things you know they can't handle at them, unless of course they are meant to run as part of the plot.
Make sure they're aware of the big party-smashing monster if they're not aware already - particularly bold heroes may rush in and fight against the thing if they're not aware that it isn't meant to be fought. Eventually though it won't be too out of the question for them to delay/avoid/sneak around/outright kill the abomination or otherwise to turn 'running away' into 'running towards'.
So no one has high str, no one has high dex, no one has high con....where did they put those 15 points?
Raging song is -1 to AC...how do they all have only 11-12 ac? Is this a nudist adventuring party or something?
Frankly there is no reason those races and classes shouldn't be a perfectly good adventuring party able to deal with appropriate CR encounters.
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I should mention that a recurring mechanic will be them "running." They wanted eldritch horror, so if they take too long or mess up too often they get caught by a CR 20 abomination.
Honestly that sounds like death is inevitable for these guys if this is direction the game is going. Personally I dont think PF does eldritch horror well at all but with all said I wouldnt worry about keeping them alive. If they are expecting EH style game then death should be around every corner anyways.
Oh keep an eye out for occult adventures coming soemtime next year.
I should mention that a recurring mechanic will be them "running." ...
This is really tough to do in PF (or any of the previous incarnations). If you just look at the stats, most of the things that are dangerous enough that the PC's might want to run away are easily fast enough to chase them down. Very very often the player will say to himself, "It is as fast or faster than me, so I can't get away. No reason to bother trying. So they just keep fighting until they die.
If you are determined to do this, you need to communicate it some way to the players that they will need to flee sometimes and that you have made it possible. Which again is very tough to do in PF unless you plan to use (and they know you plan to use) the chase scene rules. I'm not a huge fan of those, but they are better than nothing.
Use a higher point buy.
Make ample CLW wands available since most of the party has access to cure spells.
Fudge away any crits you get so as not to splatter any of them outright--at least until they are level 2 and a little more robust anyway.
If you want to avoid keeping the players stuck fighting rats, and want to give them a more visceral fight against humanoids, swap out what weapons low CR humanoids are fighting with. Change that bow into a crossbow so their mobility/attack number is reduced, or even go to a sling. Swap the rapier for a regular dagger.
I'd also like to point out the obvious inherent buffs you have floating in there -
Bard's "Inspire Courage" +1 (morale bonus) to hit and to damage
Skald's "Inspiring Rage" +2 Str (stacks with morale bonus to hit and damage in melee), +2 Con (level 1, that's only +1 temp hp, but still don't forget it)
...those two buffs active on the Slayer alone should buff his "to hit" in melee to +4, his damage +2... so between him, those two Animal Companions, and a Monk (which idk if all would/could take Inspiring Rage, but would at least take the Courage buffs), you'll have a decent front-line.
And although I'm not super familiar with the Hunter's spell list, both the Druid and Bard have a decent list for debuffs/buffs/control.
Idk why you're so worried, tbh. Don't let them forget their class abilities, they shouldn't die.
...also, don't throw overpowering CRs at them. Though an established PC party can usually handle EPL +3, they'll be a lot less likely to do so right from the start.
I would try to help them with their build, but not force them to change anything. From there they have to live or die with their decisions.
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Fudge away any crits you get so as not to splatter any of them outright--at least until they are level 2 and a little more robust anyway.
Rather than 'Fudge away any crits,' I feel it is better to simply lessen their impact.
Use only x2 weapons or very low damage x3 weapons until they have a few more hit points.Also when I crit on level 1 PC's I go ahead and tell them it's a crit (a little frison of fear) but when I roll I use half the number on the dice. "Oh you are lucky he only rolled a 4 on that d12. You could have taken another 16 points of damage."
Still does pretty respectable damage, but is much less likely to one-shot them. They get another little reminder that care and maintaining defense is important.
Why is no one buying armor? Gold is an issue at level 1, but seriously they should at least be getting some chain shirts/scale mail. If not them have stumble into an 'armory' with some extra suits.
Also I have to agree with what's said. Between a bard and skald everyone should be doing ok even if it's not stellar.
Take for instance my PFS oracle, I consider him meleeish with 14 str so he started with only a +2 melee hit. He also had bless for an additional +1 but that wouldn't be any different then bard song or skald song.
Also realize there is a pretty big difference between a fresh level 1 and a 'finished' level 1. Taking my PFS fighter, there is a pretty big difference when he entered level 1 with scale mail and a normal sword then when he left level 1 with a MW weapon and Full Plate.
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These are the characters your players want to play, right? There's no reason to punish them or force them towards more optimal builds. Throw easier enemies at them, a few CR levels lower than should be expected. It's pretty much that simple.
You are the GM, there's no reason you should be hard pressed to keep them alive. Modulate the game to their levels and abilities.
So you have a Skald, Bard, Druid, Monk, and Slayer... And none of them are strong frontline combatants?
How did this even happen?
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First, I wish I could share their builds, but I don't have their sheets.
Sindakka: The slayer is a dex build. extra STR doesn't help him hit. I think he has AC 16, but that's still really low for the frontlines.
The bard and skald put all their points into CHA and CON. The druid decided that 15 INT was a good idea and could not be dissuaded. The hunter has 22 AC, but only wants to shoot and refused a melee weapon.
Arachhnofiend: The monk is OK, but wants to focus on maneuvers. He's played before and is making his character so that at LVL 10 he can grab people, fly up high and drop them. That's it.
Multiple 1/3 or 1/2 CR creatures is a good idea, i think. I still need to gauge their strength put together, but it doesn't look promising. The druid's companion is a hawk, not even a roc, I don't think it'll be terribly killy. The raptor looks more promising, but still has sub-par AC.
Worst part is, I ignored gold and let them pick and 2 non-magical weapons and a piece of non-magical gear (that they are proficient with and isn't masterwork). Part of the campaign will be surviving off "the land" once they hop to the next area via a portal. Best armor anyone picked was a chain-shirt. best melee weapon was an elven curve blade, and the druid decided that 2 spears would be useful. Monk grabbed rope, a grappling hook and manacles because he didn't need armor or weapons.
They're level 1? Put 'em through the grinder. TPK 'em. Mercilessly.
THEN, find a way to spin that into part of the campaign story.
If I recall, the Game Mastery Guide says something along the lines of maybe have the characters be revived by, and come under the employ, of some high-level spellcaster.
Or, since Mythic Adventures is now a thing, you could turn the game into a Mythic game. They're axed, and then revived by the Gods for some reason, granting them their first Mythic Tier, and just go from there.
Total Party Kills don't have to be the end of a campaign, or even the end of the Party.
Total Party Kills don't have to be the end of a campaign, or even the end of the Party.
Agreed, and it can be pulled off at low and high levels. Low level characters can get resurrected by a patron, and high level characters could be replaced by either cohorts or other adventurers in the near future where the villain's plots have advanced significantly more.