Want to stick it to your players, or just provide them with a challenge that will have them pissing blood? This thread is for you.
How many times have you tossed a monster at the party, and watched them use player knowledge to kick its ass? It’s not unreasonable for them to do so...It’s a game, not an acting class. If your stock monsters just aren’t cutting it, then you need to go all terrorist on their asses.
Templates and class levels are your best friend, here, but simply adding 3 levels of fighter to an ogre just means they have to hit it a few more times. No, you have to get nasty.
One trick I use, and the one I’m going to talk about today, is “the stealth brute”. Like most of what I do, this isn’t what it sounds like. Making a monster sneaky is always fun, but making a monster in a sneaky way is even MORE fun. Today’s example is a high CR mummy.
Now, everyone knows that a mummy is just a vehicle for mummy rot, right? Wrong. What we’re going to do here is take the mummy rot away, and then use the rest of the creature’s capabilities to make something truly ugly, then put the mummy rot back.
Step one: Take the mummy, and put 5 levels of rogue on it. Base creature is a halfling, with the racial ability substitution from the advanced players guide that reduces the “snipe” stealth penalty.
Step two: Put 10 levels of shadow dancer on it.
Step three: Make all of the creature’s feats run towards archery, HEAVY skill points on stealth, skill focus stealth (total score should be a +35)
We are now at a CR 17 creature, suitable for a 14th-16th level party of four, or 13th-15th party of six. But here’s where it gets ugly: The terrain.
Take a 40X40 foot room, and put a couple of rows of columns in it. There’s a hallway entering on the East side, and exiting on the West side. The North wall has a statue holding a torch with continual flame cast on it. This will cast shadows from the pillars. The South wall has a peephole (Perception DC 30 to spot it, and don’t forget the distance penalties) leading to an alcove that has no entrances leading to it other than the peephole. The light from the torch will also cast a (very tiny) shadow into the alcove. That’s where the mummy is. His shadow companion (from the shadow dancer class) is next to one of the pillars, and is at first doing nothing but watching for intruders.
When the party enters the room, the shadow informs the mummy via empathic link. The mummy shadow steps (class ability from the shadow dancer class) out of his alcove, landing in the shadow of a pillar. He then shoots the divine spellcaster for 1d8+3d6 sneak attack per attack (he should have three), plus probably poison (if you’re me) that does wisdom damage. He then rolls a snipe check to remain stealthed, with the penalty leaving him at a glorious +25 stealth.
If the party doesn’t see him, he’ll sneak attack next round, and then attempt snipe again. If they DO see him, they have to make a will save vs despair or be paralyzed with fright (more sneak attack) and if they all save, he’ll use the class feature “hide in plain sight”, and then sneak attack the next round.
If the party charges his last location, he’ll slam one for mummy rot, and then shadow-step back into his alcove, while his shadow attacks the beefiest fighter. The following round, he’ll start all over again. When he runs out of shadow step, one of two things happens:
1. If he’s outside of his alcove when he runs out of shadow step, he’ll attack, trying to get the maximum number of players affected by mummy rot, or
2. If he’s inside of his alcove, he’ll knock the wall over and attack (or, alternately, he’ll wait until the party leaves the room, knock down the wall, and follow them, hoping for an ambush.
Try to keep the shadow alive. Hit and run, and distract with the main beastie. If the party kills the mummy, the shadow dies. Remember that the shadow isn’t worth any XP, just as a druid’s animal companion isn’t. Notice that the mummy is scary as hell, and none of his abilities are geared to his mummy rot. It's nothing but back up.
If anyone wants the write up for this, let me know.
Next up: Fun with animals and templates.
