Currently about to restart DMing Kingmaker after months of hiatus, I realize that my players are smack dab in the middle of Armag's tomb at the end of book 4. Nearly out of ressources they've beaten nearly everything except the cleric, Armag and some of the bloody skeletons.
Despite being only 3 players, they are managing things well enough with a slightly higher amount of WBL and being 25 point buy. But with the sorcerer having gotten Teleport recently, he always keeps it in hand to go back to their castle to rest for the night.
Assuming they go back to heal and rest (and eat supper, they basically go back for supper). I was thinking of Armag just up and leaving with his transformation finished. He'd probably be busy going back to unite the barbarians under his thumb again.
On the other hand I was thinking of simply making teleport impossible inside the cave. Gorum wouldn't like people running away from a good fight while they are still good to go, but I feel that this might punish the players too much.
tl:dr how did you guys deal with players teleporting/taking their sweet time with Armag and the consequences?
Having Armag out in the open could potentially just make him an easier target. In the tomb, the PCs have to pass through Zorek first, have to enter through the one door, don't have a lot of room to maneuver/fly, etc.
But I suppose that if the transformation is complete, he might be more powerful in some way.
Alternatively, IIRC Zorek is high enough level to cast forbiddance. And I think the Divine Guardian template also grants it as a SLA. So you can just declare that the area has been warded against teleportation.
I do think I'l have Armag up and leave, and Zorek will end his term and the cave will close. Loss of loot and current exp. Armag leaves for 10-15 years to re-unite the barbarians into a blossoming horde. If he beats the PC's armies later on, he snowballs into Armag 2 and goes on to conquer everything like his predecessor.
Irovetti (who had a smahh horde of barbarians on payroll if I remember book 5) loses some of his men, but sees the opportunity to assist the pc's. Make them do most of the work all the while placing his people in place to counter after the war. Something like that. And the Armag+Skeletons bossfight might evolve into Armag+Herald of Gorum bossfight in the middle of an army clash.
The 10-15 year part is to make them work up from Duke to king and have a semblance of normal life. Besides, Armag's *horde* is kinda weak and tiny now, 10-15 years of training, gathering followers (all the while keeping raids and squirmishes) and so on. He's a raging monster of a man, but even he knows that he can't take the river kingdoms and the world with only like 4 thousand weakened and soft barbarians.
Yeah those kinds of time spans are pretty standard in Kingmaker, really. My group's getting on ten years for the entire campaign for example, and they just finished off Armag a short while ago.
I dunno. I know teleport holds a special place in the hearts of many players, but forbiddance is- in my opinion alone- common sense when protecting one's sanctum santorum. I don't think it's a cheat to have teleportation be impossible for certain private dwellings.
Armag comes back to haunt the PCs whenever the plot requires it -- probably during the war with Pitax, unless the PCs try to track him down RIGHT NOW and deal with him.
Of course, he might have Quite A Lot of supporters, followers, buffing clerics and druids, that sort of thing...
True, that's interesting. I've also been checking the avatar of Gorum in the end of book 4 or 5 (I forget) and he seems like a massive pushover for CR15.
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Koth is too fun as an enemy to replace him, and Armag does not at all fit the type of someone to be in the tournement. He's the champion of Gorum, conqueror of all and slayer of everything. He's getting his steamroll going, and he aint stopping.
True, that's interesting. I've also been checking the avatar of Gorum in the end of book 4 or 5 (I forget) and he seems like a massive pushover for CR15.
The First Blade? That's not his avatar, that's his herald.
All Heralds are CR 15, so they can always be conjured up by Greater Planar Ally.
Herald I meant, but that makes a lot of sense, didn't think of greater planar ally. I just found it funny how heralds were weaker then the higher CR demonds and such. But pushover or not, he's still CR15 and still some challenge either way.
From an in-universe perspective, it makes a lot of sense too. Heralds aren't nearly as powerful as solars, but if the good-aligned deities started sending solars to fight battles on Golarion, then the evil deities could unleash their pit fiends, balors, and fiendish great wyrm dragons. Heralds represent pretty much the upper end of what the gods can send to mortals in dire need without breaking the fragile 'truce' between the planes of the Outer Sphere. Yeah, you could also request the aid of a CR 16 planetar, but the herald is a divine servant of your deity, and is going to be much easier to persuade to do what you want, especially at risk of death.
Armag has no power that could conceivably allow him to run or hide from a PC party that includes full spellcasters. Or, if I correctly remember his stats, a perfectly mundane tracker. His only hope of doing anything is to continue being a closet troll and hope PCs will come into his range. In open space he's a big EXP pinata, nothing more.
Armag can have support from his tribe's spellcasters (the two Gyrona witches in the dungeon, presumably other druids or oracles or sorcerors that aren't with him right now, someone paid for by Pitax to support him as part of Irovetti's plans...).