Digging Irovetti out of his castle?

[KingmanHighborn]

Okay so the last of Irovetti's armies has fallen and the PCs forces are basically at his door with their armies. I get the idea is the PC's are supposed to go in, dungeon crawl and take him out, but they have a battered but probably still numerous amount of kobold musket equipped gunslingers, cavaliers, and plain ol' fighters. Looking at it, the PCs could swarm his guards with little issue and backed up with the PC's wizard follower and the sorcerer/paladin/EK they can mass AoE the choke points.

Or as one PC pointed out... how many cannons do they need to just bring the whole palace down on top of Irovetti?

Edit: Forgot the main point. What if the PCs just want to send their army into the palace and take things out like a tide of ants? Also the only general that's still alive or not in the PC's prison is the weretiger.

[Sunderstone]

Not sure if your intent is to avoid the tedious small encounters and fast forward to Irovetti and a handful of lieutenants or not. The map of the castle has too many rooms the size of a closet, looking at it makes me want to use a different map or catch Irovetti elsewhere.

If avoiding it is the issue, send in the army, describe the chaos in the background, and when your fodder progress grinds to a halt with fireball explosions or kobolds tossed aside like rag dolls, the PCs following them have probably hit a lieutenant or Irovetti and can step in.

Kind of like a siege in the background.

Sorry if I misinterpreted your post.

[Canarr]

It's a bit of a tradeoff. If the PCs start taking their army into every dungeon, then the dungeon crawls aren't going to be much fun in the long run. On the other hand, depending on the Mass Combat rules you use, someone like Irovetti is going to be a formidable army of one in his own right.

This is something you should discuss OT with your players - what do they expect, what do you expect, how should this game be played between all of you.

The compromise that Sunderstone suggested seems fair if they want to keep using their armies in attacking the castle (which is something that does make sense from a narrative point of view). Let them roll their armies against the castle guards using the Mass Combat system, or just narrate it until it comes the time for the PCs to meet Irovetti's last stand.

Alternatively, the PCs' army takes the castle, but Irovetti and his closest allies manage to escape - because the mooks simply aren't up to stopping someone of their caliber from getting out. Then the PCs can track him and defeat him on a different field of battle, without any armies involved.

[KingmanHighborn]

Well my intent was PCs face off against Irovetti and company. I thought with their access to dimension door they'd try and sneak in but...

But the session basically ended with the PCs pointing a cannon at his front door and demanding a surrender. To which they get no response. Not to mention four of the group just want to shell and raze his home and call it day won. The only one that's against it is the queen herself cause... Paladin. I haven't told them the servants are not in the castle.

[Sunderstone]

Sounds like a great cinematic set piece. Pally queen sending in troops with orders to allow non combatants to leave if they are not threatening would be the command I gave in this situation. Followed by my previous take to avoid the tedious room by room search.
This is war and there are always casualties, the cannons would be a last resort. It depends on how your group defines the LG paladin limitations. If irovetti isn't dealt with, he'll continue to be a threat to her people.

[CorvusMask]

I mean, Irovetti could easily escape with dimension door no? .-.

[Sunderstone]

I think Dim Door at his level is less than a quarter-mile range. With armies at his door (surrounding his castle, possibly flying troops, etc), It's unlikely that he wouldn't be spotted or Dim Door right in the midst of it all.

:)

[Canarr]

He could still have a caster available who can cast Teleport, if him escaping and making his stand elsewhere would make for a better story.

[KingmanHighborn]

They have access to D. Door as well so if they know where he's going they could follow up. Also while Irovetti is the main target the PCs also really want Alasen dead as during the war the weretiger got to and killed Aecora.

[Spatula]

Destroying Irovetti's palace just makes the PCs' lives more difficult. His chambers are underground so they'd still have to dig him out, he has the ability to escape using teleport, and they would just be giving him the opportunity to come back with charmed allies to strike at them when they are vulnerable.