Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Neijin 02-14-07, 04:09 AM	For those of you unfamiliar with the Protean Scourge, it can split into multiple copies of itself, similar to some oozes. It is The ultimate BBEG recurring villian! I'll refrain from posting the full mechanic b/c of copyright issues. My DM has pitted us against a Protean Scourge with a 18th+ Sorceror casting. The PCs are 24th level. (My character got a 63 Knowledge (Nature) check, which is enough to cover all the qualities about the Scourge). We have 9th level Druid, Wizard, & Cleric spellcasting in the party. The first thing is, my DM has ruled that the Scourge can split over and over again. The last time the party fought the Scourge we had 12 of them lobbing spells at us, which made it pretty tough. Is this the default rule, or was this a Rule 0 special? Also, if the ability above works this way, then what is to stop the "original" Scourge from inflicting one pt of damage on itself about 63 times and ending up with 64 Scourges running around? Of course the damage could be mitigated by temporary hitpoints from False Life, thus preserving the full hit point total. I was thinking that since the Split ability is supernatural, I could cast Antimagic Field, walk to within 10 feet, and then have the tank grapple it down. Then we knock it unconscious and haul it to one of our strongholds and imprison it, either in a Binding or something more exotic. My other idea was to Dominate Monster the captured Scourge and have it use up all the common pool spell slots everyday. As long as it cast spells as soon as the others tried to replenish the pool and during the 8 hour recent casting limit, it could effectively eliminate the Scourge spells per day and largely neuter the Scourge. Is there some special way or another way to take this creature down? It must have Mind Blank up because our divinations have proven useless. Negotiation is useless; the Scourge really hates us. Please help eliminate the Scourge!
AlanBruce 02-14-07, 09:00 AM	I'm a big fan of this monster and i'm aware of what it can do. Your DM either misread the entry on the Split ability or is abusing this way out of proportion. The Protean Scourge can split, yes. But only ONCE. That is a blatant abuse of the rules. Although, each copy could be casting Mirror Image, thus making it seem as there are more (then again, you posted that each copy was blasting away for real damage, so that idea goes out the window). You did mention the party was epic, right? I can't see how you have trouble dealing with this guy. I'm guessing the Split thing is what got your party, right? Tell your DM to read that split entry out loud in front of your group. You may all be surprised.
AlanBruce 02-14-07, 09:07 AM	I'm a big fan of this monster and i'm aware of what it can do. Your DM either misread the entry on the Split ability or is abusing this way out of proportion. The Protean Scourge can split, yes. But only ONCE. That is a blatant abuse of the rules. Although, each copy could be casting Mirror Image, thus making it seem as there are more (then again, you posted that each copy was blasting away for real damage, so that idea goes out the window). You did mention the party was epic, right? I can't see how you have trouble dealing with this guy. I'm guessing the Split thing is what got your party, right? Tell your DM to read that split entry out loud in front of your group. You may all be surprised.
runestar 02-14-07, 09:29 AM	It is supposed to spit only once - thereafter, each copy is killed permanently. Also note that all spells come from the same spell pool. It won't be soon before all those copies run out of spell slots, assuming you somehow survived that initial barrage. Lets see...a protean with sorc18 spellcasting...do you mean that it has the spellcasting capabilities of a 18th lv sorc(meaning a protean scourge with 10 sorc lvs - cr22) or one with 18 additional lvs of sorc(spellcasting lv26, cr30)? The former should be a walkover, the latter might be a tad tougher, especially if it has epic spellcasting feats like auto quicken, multispell and epic spellcasting.:)
Neijin 02-14-07, 06:27 PM	I certainly agree that the RAI is to have only one split. I just reread the entry and you can parse the language to read that it can split more than once, although this stretches the language to the limit. I mean it doesn't technically forbid spliting more than once, it is just that both versions have to be killed, which only implies that it can split once without definatively stating it. The Scourge is at least an 18th level sorceror since it can cast 9th level spells. I don't know how much casting it has. Regardless of whether it should be able to split more than once, how would y'all take this bad boy down? Consider it a challenge. Even if it could split once, it could still split while under the effect of temporary hit points, thus never having the base pool be affected. The double could then go out on a suicide run, although of course this would use the communal spells. Oh, it has project image and time stop, to make things even juicier.
Ogre4Hire 02-15-07, 12:04 AM	Try to nail it with effects that don't deal HP damage. Wail of the Banshee, Imprisonment, and Energy Drain all come to mind immediately. If you can beat its init, slap as many de-buffs on it as you can before it can split...