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So my group just beat Xanesha last session. And surprisingly, they captured her alive.
Per the tactics in the Anniversary Edition of the AP, she jumped off the roof to Feather Fall down when she knew she was beat, but looking at the spell description, I realized it would take 3 rounds for her to hit the ground. With an archer and blasting focused sorceress on the roof, it was no problem for the PCs to knock her unconscious. The group's main healer was already flying faster than Xanesha was falling, so he got to the ground and stabilized her immediately, and they took her alive.
So the big question is... now what? The published adventure doesn't take this possibility into account. Once imprisoned in Magnimar, how much will she say? They already have proof that she was involved with Justice Ironbriar and the earlier murders, as well as plotting to kill the Lord Mayor, so there's really no way the authorities will cut her a deal that would let her avoid the death penalty. And she has no nearby accomplices that might break her out of prison.
So how much information do you think the PCs should be able to get out of her? I'm actually thinking she won't talk at all, unless offered a deal for her life, which just won't happen. I wonder if my PCs would come up with the idea of using the Detect Thoughts spell to interrogate her. I doubt it - they aren't that game savvy, and I won't bring it up. That could get them too much information too early.
I'm thinking maybe she'll make a threat just before her execution, and mention some other bad guy names to put the fear of Mokmurian and/or Karzoug into the PCs before she dies.
Is it too early to mention Karzoug? I think the group already heard his name once, in Thistletop. Malfeshnekor was talkative after charming one party member and trying to entice the others into his room so he could eat them, so I think I gave them the names Karzoug and Alasnist, but without detailed context. But hearing that someone from thousands of years ago is now Xanesha's boss would likely have the desired "oh crap" effect. But I might just give them Mokmurian's name now and save the big reveal on Karzoug for later.
That might be the single most dangerous choice I've ever seen mentioned on these boards. Maybe in any D&D campaign. Ever. I would direct your attention to her spell-like abilities and spells. The instant she is not in the direct company of multiple pc's, she should be gone. She can spam Charm Monster, has access to invisibility, suggestion, and deep slumber. She doesn't need any allies, everyone she meets will become her ally. She is captured at Large size? So they have to bind her that way. When she has a free moment she shapechanges to human size and escapes the bonds. And Heaven help Magnimar if they put her in the Hells (see the Magnimar sourcebook.)
The pc's may not know about her abilities but if they try to turn her over to the authorities, that should go horribly, horribly wrong unless they take super extraordinary measures to prevent it.
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Just a few observations:
Don't see any reason for her to mention anything about Karzoug. From a character point of view, she should fear betraying Karzoug as much as anything else. I would suggest she claim to be an agent of Korvosa - that should be more plausible than any mention of a Runelord dead for 10,000 years and plays to the fears of Magnimar's authorities. Indeed gives them an incentive to keep her alive to learn more. If the pc's found or find Lucretia's letter that can easily be spun as more Korvosan hostility. From an AP structure point of view, Book 2 doesn't make any connections to Karzoug except for Lucretia's letter (by oblique reference) so I don't see any reason to "reward" the pc's with information not "scheduled" to be provided at this point in the AP.
You can bind and gag her but both are likely to fail if she polymorphs unless you presuppose the pc's or Magnimar have access to magical bindings designed to adjust to shapeshifters. Given there are faceless stalkers known to operate in the area, it's not completely inconceivable but it's a detail that should be addressed. Also, even if you assume the existence of such restraints, they have to remove the gag to converse with and feed her. Armed guards are almost pointless - her touch and tongue are far more dangerous in this situation - she needs to be guarded by people with high Will saves. If the pc's or similarly powerful characters are not watching her 24x7, she will escape.
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I would handle that this way... (my players jumped on her and bashed her repeatedly to be sure she was dead)
All of this is by virtue of her many charm abilities and her high CHA checks. The party should be given every opportunity to see her confined as they wish. Finally the Magnimaran guard tell them that they are certain they can keep her under control.
Then they get sent to Fort Rannick.
Xanesha stays in custody, shifting back to human form and soon becomes a hot topic in Magnimar. Despite her nefarity and evil deeds the public, especially the nobility, soon becomes enamored with her. She goes from staying in a common cell to the finest accommodations of the most elite political prisoners.
Playing the entire city like a fiddle she goes from a simple cultist and murderer to a high ranking Korvosan spy. Men and some women in the nobility and common ranks fall madly in love with the dangerous but beautiful spy and she gains a legion of followers who promise to do anything to see her free.
Finally, she cuts a deal with the courts and the judiciary council with (false) information about Korvosa by virtue of her charm monster ability. One morning without fanfare she is lead to a horse and wagon and is allowed to leave the city without guard.
When the party returns they discover the wild speculation and obsession with Xanesha in the city and learn she is gone.
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So we played this out last night.
They had her tied up and blindfolded in a prison cell with weapons pointed directly at her and readied actions to fire arrows if she even hinted at trying anything. They even thought of bags of flour, since they know she can go invisible. And they had permission from the Lord Mayor to execute her without a trial, mostly because the mayor was upset that he'd been targeted for assassination.
They also made a point of interrogating her the same day (in game time) that they'd captured her, in the hopes that she'd be running low on spells for the day, despite knowing that their own spellcasters were similarly low on spells after battling her.
So the oracle made his caster level check to overcome her SR with a Cure Light Wounds to wake her up, and the interrogation began. Because of the blindfold, she couldn't target anyone with Charm Monster or any other spell-like ability, and the tied hands prevented spellcasting with somatic or material components. I'm pretty sure her shapeshifting only lets her become human, and her human upper half is the same size in snake form, so shapeshifting wouldn't get her out of her bonds. I did roll an Escape Artist check, though, but it didn't stand much chance untrained, despite her high dex.
The conversation was longer than it probably should have been, but it can be summed up like this:
"Are you going to tell us anything?"
"Are you going to let me go if I cooperate?"
*coup de grace*