At mid-day, in the game, I'm currently running, the villain has taken refuge in a guardhouse overseeing a mining quarry with just a few goblin guards to protect him. Meanwhile, the party, who are battered and bruised, have sought refuge in the quarry mine and are planning an assault on the guardhouse. To protect themselves against the archers on the battlements, they plan to convert some of the mine's wagons into manlets, but they decide to wait until nightfall before launching their attack.
The villain is aware that the party is up to something in the mine but is uncertain of their plans. The party has already eliminated most of his guards in and around the guardhouse, leaving him nervous about what may happen next. Given the party's location in the quarry, with goblin archers keeping watch, the villain could flee without detection. He has only a handful of goblin fighters at his disposal, and his life is in danger.
It seems logical to me that the villain would flee, but I'm concerned that the party will miss out on the final battle they are expecting. While the party will face a challenging battle crossing the quarry to reach the guardhouse, once they enter, they will find it empty, and the villain will have taken the money and run. However, since the villain is not foolish, self-preservation would be reasonable, and I could reintroduce him in a future adventure. The party has gone through a lot in this adventure, and it may be anti-climactic. As a DM, it's all right for the party to lose occasionally, and this decision does not make me a bad DM. Right?
I love the idea that taking a rest doesn't stop the world, and the enemy takes actions ... increase fortifications, gets reinforcements, or runs. So I say go for it, especially if you can do something with it not just make it an "ending". i.e. some clues / mystery to be discovered in the guardhouse they can use to track him down. He'll need to stop and rest on the road, and maybe the party can catch up... or maybe they have to track him all the way back to his home town. That could extend the fun, and by letting the world be alive it can provide tension in future sessions where they party wants a rest, but knows that can be risky. (sometimes they get to rest tho)
But you are right to worry your party might not enjoy the "twist"... if you don't think they will, then consider a diff twist. The mini-boss doesn't have to run, he just has to do something with his time. Get more goblins, add traps, ... something.
At mid-day, in the game, I'm currently running, the villain has taken refuge in a guardhouse overseeing a mining quarry with just a few goblin guards to protect him. Meanwhile, the party, who are battered and bruised, have sought refuge in the quarry mine and are planning an assault on the guardhouse. To protect themselves against the archers on the battlements, they plan to convert some of the mine's wagons into manlets, but they decide to wait until nightfall before launching their attack.
The villain is aware that the party is up to something in the mine but is uncertain of their plans. The party has already eliminated most of his guards in and around the guardhouse, leaving him nervous about what may happen next. Given the party's location in the quarry, with goblin archers keeping watch, the villain could flee without detection. He has only a handful of goblin fighters at his disposal, and his life is in danger.
It seems logical to me that the villain would flee, but I'm concerned that the party will miss out on the final battle they are expecting. While the party will face a challenging battle crossing the quarry to reach the guardhouse, once they enter, they will find it empty, and the villain will have taken the money and run. However, since the villain is not foolish, self-preservation would be reasonable, and I could reintroduce him in a future adventure. The party has gone through a lot in this adventure, and it may be anti-climactic. As a DM, it's all right for the party to lose occasionally, and this decision does not make me a bad DM. Right?
I think in the situation as presented having the BBEG escape before they get there makes perfect sense. It is not just ok for the players to lose occasionally, but important that they do. It is a good reminder that the stakes are real and defeat is a real possibility. Players that win every encounter or challenge tend to get sloppy and even lazy as time goes on, so failing reminds them to stay on their toes and that you aren't pulling punches or letting them win. It makes the times they do win that much sweeter as well.
I would say after that build up, definitely plan on having him come back down the line and if possible, have some clues or maybe even a note from the BBEG to the party, making it clear that he will be back and maybe even gunning for them. Maybe have him taunt the party for not catching him this time, that they should be watching their backs, he will get his revenge, etc. etc. Then it doesn't feel as much like a failure, more just the unsuccessful conclusion of this chapter of the mission against him, but the story isn't over yet.
I agree with the others. If the villain doesn't have a specific reason to stay put then let the villain run. If the party aren't keeping an eye on this guardhouse then it is their own fault for not noticing that the villain is leaving. They will learn to be more aware next time.
could you leave behind a trap in the room? maybe the boss had a necklace which has now been tied to the door such that it breaks and spills the beads if kicked in. the beads summon something like four wolves. one goblin stayed behind to shout "attack!," whether or not that was necessary. he's confident that the trap will have him looting bodies and returning to a hero's welcome when he shows up with the boss's dropped hat. alternatively, if the players open the door carefully they can recover the necklace, interrogate the goblin, and send the wolves to chase after their boss (using the hat's scent).
the thought is that at least there's some action at the top. maybe even a few other goblins stuck around outside to give cover fire before fleeing, only the one gobbo dumb enough to remain in the room. and if the players see that it's not a final boss fight and act with caution, then they can have a little catharsis imagining how surprised the boss will be to have this come back to bite him in the end.
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unhappy at the way in which we lost individual purchases for one-off subclasses, magic items, and monsters?
tell them you don't like features disappeared quietly in the night: providefeedback!
Thank you, everyone. After your feedback, I felt a little better about letting the villain escape. Plus, I came up with a few options that, given in-game time, I could reintroduce the villain to the party.
The villain ran a forced labor trade organization which the party discovered during this adventure. While the party can shut down the operation in the quarry, the villain gets away. If they search the guardhouse, there will be a "pirate" flag that can be used later to signify the villains' organization.
I will say that players rapidly grow to loathe villains that run away... but you can use that to your advantage, because the next time he shows up they'll be motivated.
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At mid-day, in the game, I'm currently running, the villain has taken refuge in a guardhouse overseeing a mining quarry with just a few goblin guards to protect him. Meanwhile, the party, who are battered and bruised, have sought refuge in the quarry mine and are planning an assault on the guardhouse. To protect themselves against the archers on the battlements, they plan to convert some of the mine's wagons into manlets, but they decide to wait until nightfall before launching their attack.
The villain is aware that the party is up to something in the mine but is uncertain of their plans. The party has already eliminated most of his guards in and around the guardhouse, leaving him nervous about what may happen next. Given the party's location in the quarry, with goblin archers keeping watch, the villain could flee without detection. He has only a handful of goblin fighters at his disposal, and his life is in danger.
It seems logical to me that the villain would flee, but I'm concerned that the party will miss out on the final battle they are expecting. While the party will face a challenging battle crossing the quarry to reach the guardhouse, once they enter, they will find it empty, and the villain will have taken the money and run. However, since the villain is not foolish, self-preservation would be reasonable, and I could reintroduce him in a future adventure. The party has gone through a lot in this adventure, and it may be anti-climactic. As a DM, it's all right for the party to lose occasionally, and this decision does not make me a bad DM. Right?
I love the idea that taking a rest doesn't stop the world, and the enemy takes actions ... increase fortifications, gets reinforcements, or runs. So I say go for it, especially if you can do something with it not just make it an "ending". i.e. some clues / mystery to be discovered in the guardhouse they can use to track him down. He'll need to stop and rest on the road, and maybe the party can catch up... or maybe they have to track him all the way back to his home town. That could extend the fun, and by letting the world be alive it can provide tension in future sessions where they party wants a rest, but knows that can be risky. (sometimes they get to rest tho)
But you are right to worry your party might not enjoy the "twist"... if you don't think they will, then consider a diff twist. The mini-boss doesn't have to run, he just has to do something with his time. Get more goblins, add traps, ... something.
I think in the situation as presented having the BBEG escape before they get there makes perfect sense. It is not just ok for the players to lose occasionally, but important that they do. It is a good reminder that the stakes are real and defeat is a real possibility. Players that win every encounter or challenge tend to get sloppy and even lazy as time goes on, so failing reminds them to stay on their toes and that you aren't pulling punches or letting them win. It makes the times they do win that much sweeter as well.
I would say after that build up, definitely plan on having him come back down the line and if possible, have some clues or maybe even a note from the BBEG to the party, making it clear that he will be back and maybe even gunning for them. Maybe have him taunt the party for not catching him this time, that they should be watching their backs, he will get his revenge, etc. etc. Then it doesn't feel as much like a failure, more just the unsuccessful conclusion of this chapter of the mission against him, but the story isn't over yet.
I agree with the others. If the villain doesn't have a specific reason to stay put then let the villain run. If the party aren't keeping an eye on this guardhouse then it is their own fault for not noticing that the villain is leaving. They will learn to be more aware next time.
could you leave behind a trap in the room? maybe the boss had a necklace which has now been tied to the door such that it breaks and spills the beads if kicked in. the beads summon something like four wolves. one goblin stayed behind to shout "attack!," whether or not that was necessary. he's confident that the trap will have him looting bodies and returning to a hero's welcome when he shows up with the boss's dropped hat. alternatively, if the players open the door carefully they can recover the necklace, interrogate the goblin, and send the wolves to chase after their boss (using the hat's scent).
the thought is that at least there's some action at the top. maybe even a few other goblins stuck around outside to give cover fire before fleeing, only the one gobbo dumb enough to remain in the room. and if the players see that it's not a final boss fight and act with caution, then they can have a little catharsis imagining how surprised the boss will be to have this come back to bite him in the end.
unhappy at the way in which we lost individual purchases for one-off subclasses, magic items, and monsters?
tell them you don't like features disappeared quietly in the night: provide feedback!
Thank you, everyone. After your feedback, I felt a little better about letting the villain escape. Plus, I came up with a few options that, given in-game time, I could reintroduce the villain to the party.
The villain ran a forced labor trade organization which the party discovered during this adventure. While the party can shut down the operation in the quarry, the villain gets away. If they search the guardhouse, there will be a "pirate" flag that can be used later to signify the villains' organization.
I will say that players rapidly grow to loathe villains that run away... but you can use that to your advantage, because the next time he shows up they'll be motivated.