Magic beasts in the forest...

[EldonGuyre]

I have a first level party hunting in the forest, and a higher level ranger that's a specialist in magical beasts. What magic beasts might be interesting targets for the ranger, that the party might help with? A little extra info - the area is forested foothills, right next to mountains, so terrains are somewhat flexible.

[Quixote]

Encounters that involve a mix of high and low level characters can be really tricky.

Worgs are a classic, and you could include some goblins in the mix as well.

Griffons, pegasI and hippogriffs are some non-evil options they wouldn't have to kill on sight.

Manticores, chimera and hydras are all much more serious threats, but with carefully laid traps, the lower level PC's could help in some way.

How about the cockatrice and basilisk? Maybe they need to steal some babies for a crazy rich patron or to make some kind of medicine?

[EldonGuyre]

Some good suggestions there. I'm probably going to use some ringhorns, and maybe a bristle boar. More background - there's a festival coming up, and hunting is done for it, with the greatest value coming from the most exotic. A platter of cockatrice would probably fetch some serious coin!

[EldonGuyre]

Anybody have any other ideas?

[Quentin Coldwater]

How much higher level is the Ranger? Up to level 3 can be done, then the party will get outclassed fast.

Ànkhegs are CR3. Plausible reason for seeking backup is the ranger is afraid of being grappled and not being able to escape.
Cockatrice is CR2. Always nice to have backup when you're fighting monsters that can petrify.
Darkmantles. CR1. Are able to cast Darkness. Maybe the Ranger doesn't have Darkvision?
Giant Muckdwellers are CR2 and large. Always a good thing to bring backup when fighting things larger than you are.
Hippogriff. CR2, also large.
Owlbear is CR4. On the scarier side for PCs. But yeah, Owlbears, man. Maybe decrease its HP and damage output slightly with a Young template or something.
Pard. CR3. Lightning-fast, so easier to attack in groups. DR/Magic is tough, though.
Trollhounds are CR3. Maybe he's failed his Knowledge check and can't suppress its regeneration?
Bunyips are CR3. Fun little beasts.

[Quixote]

I think your best bet is to include multiple opponents (as per usual) and multiple types of opponents; something for the ranger to tackle, and some lesser creatures that the PC's need to engage.
I'd make one of the targets an obstacle and the other an objective.
Maybe the ranger needs to engage a huge wild boar while the PC's make off with a few shoats for some fresh, magical suckling pig.
Or maybe the PC's need to deal with a pair of mountain lioness while the ranger climbs up further to take on a manticore.

[EldonGuyre]

He's 5th level. I do expect them to be outclassed, just looking for encounters where they can help. Those are some great suggestions...though the owlbear is particularly terrifying.

Incidentally, he's a dwarf.

[avr]

Most magical beasts are intelligent. Serving them up on a platter bugs me. Are your group cool with hunting down muckdwellers who are probably smarter than half the festival-goers in order to convert them into delicacies?

Doombats are just magical animals though and trying to lure one into a place where it can be cornered might take more than one person.

Gelid beetles are seriously over-CR'd, and climbing up the mountain to find their eggs - and fighting off their annoyed relatives - should be something 1st level characters can help with.

[EldonGuyre]

Well, some will be for cooking up, while others might be collected as status symbol pets. The campaign I'm running right now is extremely morally gray, where slavery is common and the giant city is run by...questionable individuals of insane wealth.

Frankly,I want them a little bit bothered by some choices. Some players want to turn to piracy, and did before the campaign started.

[Mark Hoover 330]

I'm a bit late to the party so if I've missed the window sorry, but what about combining magical beasts and other creatures. Here's the scenario:

Ranger finds the PCs and says "I've hunted (insert creature here) for many a day, and ne'er 'ave I seen 'em move like this. The trail is careful, measured; the beastie ignores the traps I've set and instead forages in a darker area o' the wood. Pray tell, are ye' game ta' 'elp me flush out the quarry and discover it's strange ways?"

PCs agree and they're off, soon picking up the trail and finding tracks of a different sort with the creature's. If you're hunting worgs, add some goblins; if it's a cockatrice give it a couple bugbears that keep it on a chain. In other words, you can mix in extra monsters that the ranger might not be an expert with that the PCs can help him deal with.

Another idea would be to have the magical beast be the mastermind. Say you used an aranea as the ranger's quarry; perhaps he intends to trap the woman to force her to spin silk for the festival as a status symbol. The aranea may be protecting herself in a nest of giant spiders that the PCs will have to help their host cut through in order to get at the creature.

Finally, consider making the ranger the bad guy. You mentioned the mundane animal, the ringhorn deer above. What if, as the PCs are hunting one of these as their own trophy to show off at the faire they encounter some sprites protecting the animal. Instead of instantly killing the PCs the sprites try to engage them in conversation, saying that a four-legged friend of theirs has gone to ground nearby and is being hunted by evil.

Next the PCs encounter the ranger who is hunting for a cooshee. The PCs are enlisted and during the stalking they have a couple scenes where they encounter the ranger's obvious disdain for even intelligent creatures; they catch a worg in one of the ranger's traps for example and he absolutely savages the thing, something like that. When they finally catch up to the cooshee, it is hiding out with some other low-level fey creatures with at least a neutral alignment, like say some grigs or a korred or something. The ranger displays total disgust for the fey and suggests the PCs show no mercy - the grigs will be nice served roasted at the faire on a stick.

So now the players have a real moral dilemma; help the ranger and risk starting a minor war with the fey for killing/eating them, or help the cooshee escape and/or defeat the ranger as the villain.