I'm looking to give the characters some support in the final fight where they are preventing the coming of a Fiend through a ritual.
I'd like the 4 characters and their 4 allies, whom the characters will control, to be 10th level and to face a Marilith as the fiend.
If my calculations are right, that should be a good fight:
Marilith CR 16 (15,000 XP) : 15,000 XP divided by 8 PC's = 1,875 which should be a hard level encounter?
Hello RawnNiven o/
Mathemstically speaking, the encounter would be juuuust shy of being a 100% hard one (it's 200 total xp short to be exact), but considering that I think the 4 allies could probably not be as "optimized" or performing as the players PCs, it will probably veer a bit more thowards deadly encounter territory.
If we consider the whole party to be more in the ballpark of 6-7 full PCs worth of power, we are pretty much in the middle between hard and deadly for 10th level.
I've been writing and think I'll use a different approach that has an "end of act I" feel, so the characters can complete it without NPC help.
They are working with Dem, from the first adventure in the Yawning Portal - The Sunless Citadel, to prevent the coming of a demon as foretold in ancient texts. Thie is all they know, so far. They don't know who is coming or when and so they are scouring the land to find five ancient texts to work towards the prevention of this "Coming of Death" and piecing the puzzle together. They have three so far and are currently in White Plume mountain, looking for the fourth ancient text that the resident wizard, Keraptis is said to have. Keraptis will aim to spread uncertainty and doubt in the PC's minds about Dem to his own ends, trying to get the PC"s to work for him instead.
The ultimate demon to come through will be Yeenoghu and as such 95% of their encounters have been with Gnoll warbands as described in Volo's Guide. I'm waiting for them to make this connection, based on their own knowledge, but as yet, no lightbulbs.
So in this first act close, the demon to come through will be a Rakshasa who has made a pact with Yeenoghu to help destroy Dem. Why? Because Dem prevented the Rakshasa's first attempt to come through years previously and he is seeking "retribution against the one who slew it". Dem is also helping the PC's prevent Yeenoghu's coming, so both fiends win.
The PC's will learn of plans to open a 'test' portal by the cult that worships Yeenoghu. Incidentally, the cultists are also after the ancient texts. The PC's will easily thwart this ritual, and kill all present cultists, but the portal will remain open and out comes the Rakshasa.
When the Rakshasa appears, he'll be in the form of an old man, frail and weak and will confuse/deceive the PC's and they should feel like this is a bit of an anti-climax. He will ask for their help and ask to see Dem The backstory here is to be written, but some lie about being trapped in the Nine Hells by a mage rival to Dem and he feels as if he's "transforming", beginning to feel a "taint", as if he himself is being turned into a fiend, a story which will satisfy the Paladins divine sense. , Keraptis would be a good 'rival mage' for the Rakshasa's story.
Confusion in their minds, the PC's should take him to Dem, who will tend to him. When the PC"s leave, he kills her (or drops her to 0 HP if I need her in act II) then takes refuge in a nearby cave. A ring, given to the PC's by Dem, will pulse alerting them to a situation. They will then track and hunt the Rakshasa to the cave for the close of chapter 1.
I'll need to create the cave very carefully, for crowd control, and am thinking that a minor illusion will show an open door with light at the back of the cave which they'll walk towards and into the ambush/trap.
Not sure why I wrote and shared so much here ... thanks if you read it all, and happy to hear any feedback :-)
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I'm looking to give the characters some support in the final fight where they are preventing the coming of a Fiend through a ritual.
I'd like the 4 characters and their 4 allies, whom the characters will control, to be 10th level and to face a Marilith as the fiend.
If my calculations are right, that should be a good fight:
Marilith CR 16 (15,000 XP) : 15,000 XP divided by 8 PC's = 1,875 which should be a hard level encounter?
Born in Italy, moved a bunch, living in Spain, my heart always belonged to Roleplaying Games
I've been writing and think I'll use a different approach that has an "end of act I" feel, so the characters can complete it without NPC help.
They are working with Dem, from the first adventure in the Yawning Portal - The Sunless Citadel, to prevent the coming of a demon as foretold in ancient texts. Thie is all they know, so far. They don't know who is coming or when and so they are scouring the land to find five ancient texts to work towards the prevention of this "Coming of Death" and piecing the puzzle together. They have three so far and are currently in White Plume mountain, looking for the fourth ancient text that the resident wizard, Keraptis is said to have. Keraptis will aim to spread uncertainty and doubt in the PC's minds about Dem to his own ends, trying to get the PC"s to work for him instead.
The ultimate demon to come through will be Yeenoghu and as such 95% of their encounters have been with Gnoll warbands as described in Volo's Guide. I'm waiting for them to make this connection, based on their own knowledge, but as yet, no lightbulbs.
So in this first act close, the demon to come through will be a Rakshasa who has made a pact with Yeenoghu to help destroy Dem. Why? Because Dem prevented the Rakshasa's first attempt to come through years previously and he is seeking "retribution against the one who slew it". Dem is also helping the PC's prevent Yeenoghu's coming, so both fiends win.
The PC's will learn of plans to open a 'test' portal by the cult that worships Yeenoghu. Incidentally, the cultists are also after the ancient texts. The PC's will easily thwart this ritual, and kill all present cultists, but the portal will remain open and out comes the Rakshasa.
When the Rakshasa appears, he'll be in the form of an old man, frail and weak and will confuse/deceive the PC's and they should feel like this is a bit of an anti-climax. He will ask for their help and ask to see Dem The backstory here is to be written, but some lie about being trapped in the Nine Hells by a mage rival to Dem and he feels as if he's "transforming", beginning to feel a "taint", as if he himself is being turned into a fiend, a story which will satisfy the Paladins divine sense. , Keraptis would be a good 'rival mage' for the Rakshasa's story.
Confusion in their minds, the PC's should take him to Dem, who will tend to him. When the PC"s leave, he kills her (or drops her to 0 HP if I need her in act II) then takes refuge in a nearby cave. A ring, given to the PC's by Dem, will pulse alerting them to a situation. They will then track and hunt the Rakshasa to the cave for the close of chapter 1.
I'll need to create the cave very carefully, for crowd control, and am thinking that a minor illusion will show an open door with light at the back of the cave which they'll walk towards and into the ambush/trap.
Not sure why I wrote and shared so much here ... thanks if you read it all, and happy to hear any feedback :-)