Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Matthew77 12-05-06, 06:04 PM	Hi. I'm looking for some ideas and advice on how my PCs might aquire a 500,000 GP value gem. Here is the situation: The party is level 20. They need to defeat a great wyrm Red Dragon. The party mage has suggested finding a 500,000 gp gem and using it for "trap the soul". They asked me out of game if this would even be remotely possible. I have told them that I won't make the task impossible, but that aquiring the gem might end up being even harder than just facing the dragon directly. I don't think such a large gem would even exist on the prime material plane, so here are the ideas I've come up with so far: 1) The gem is in the possession of an elemental lord on the plane of earth. 2) The gem is in the possession of a demon lord or devil lord, who might be willing to make a trade. 3) The gem is acting as the seal on the prison of an ancient evil outsider. The prison is guarded by good celestials, and they would have to be negiotiated with, as removing the seal would free the prisoner. 4) The gem is the power source for a floating citadel in Limbo or the Astral Plane. I'm assuming they're going to use divination to find the locations of the gems, and I'd like to have a couple available so they can decide which they think will be easiest to get. Any other suggestions on where or how a level 20 party might reasonably have a shot at aquiring a 500,000 gp value gem ?
Necrosis 12-05-06, 06:17 PM	The inner sanctum of a temple with the trapped soul of the nemisis of that said temple. Such gems are so useful for trapping great foes, it makes sense someone would have done it already! And guarded it very well-note it will also have decoys to boot, so the 1st gem they see surrouned by deathtraps and guradains won't be the real one-thats has a perment anti scrying spell on it (hide object?-can't remember) and is located in an extradimensional space somewhere...
Feeb 12-05-06, 06:19 PM	How about the Quasielemental Plane of Mineral? I kid you not, from wikipedia: The Quasielemental Plane of Mineral is one of the Quasielemental Planes, formed where the Elemental Plane of Earth meshes with the Positive Energy Plane. The Quasielemental Plane of Mineral is a treasure trove of rare and valuable minerals, but is jealously guarded by its native inhabitants. Here's the planeswalker.com link: http://www.planewalker.com/encyclopedia/encyclopedia.php?intEntryID=1822
Gregthavious 12-05-06, 08:12 PM	I'm impressed, those are all excellent ideas. Some others: A gem of that value is a large, refined piece of voidstone possessed by a vampire on the Plane of Shadow... or is the Phylactery of a lich. Powerful djinn oligarchs on the Plane of Fire conduct their most important business with such stones. The legendary Ocean Periapt remains lost in the ruins of a Lizardfolk monastery, now sunk to the center of a vortex to the Plane of Water. It's said the gods themselves play a variant of 1-2-3 Roll, and anyone able to defeat The God of Rogues may keep the god's dice. I've always wondered what's in the middle of a Sphere of Annihilation.
Tevish Szat 12-05-06, 08:55 PM	I'd suggest the Quasielemental plane of mineral, or perhaps in the underdark, in the possession of an illithid elder brain
WhiteRaven810 12-05-06, 08:57 PM	Have the gem be a key piece in Tiamat's treasure horde.
Necrosis 12-05-06, 08:58 PM	I've always wondered what's in the middle of a Sphere of Annihilation. V' Nicely done:P
Tevish Szat 12-05-06, 09:24 PM	thinking more... the gem cwoudl be in possession of a notorious, wealthy planar character like Shemeska the Marauder or Zarda the Titan. you COULD try to stal the crown jewel as large as your head, or trade it for somethin the 'loth or titan values more.
stargate525 12-05-06, 09:25 PM	You could go 'ala Eragon and make it some sort of finely cut gem thats a national landmark. Good luck attempting to steal it. if they have some way to get into space and strip a gas giant's atmosphere, one of the Space odessey books has a moon-sized diamond in the center of jupiter. the gem doesn't have to be really big, just valuable. you could have the fist sized gem with 5,642,799.34 facets (yes, .34, it's quasi-dimensional ;))
Vaelan 12-05-06, 11:26 PM	Get some extraplanar creature to grant a wish to create a magic gem worth 500,000gp. Magic items get around the normal 25,000gp limit. I'd probably go ahead and call a Glabrezu, since they're easier to contact than most wish-granting creatures and don't hold grudges like others. Wish for the gem and offer the dragon's soul as payment, along with a plan to turn it into a weapon to use against the devils. Of course, you would also inform the devils of this weapon ahead of time, preferably explaining to them exactly how to destroy the soul (big emphasis on destroy), since a large shift in the balance of power could easily come back to bite you in the ass. This plan could, naturally, have catastrophic consequences, but what fun would a safe plan be?
SokenzanMarauder 12-05-06, 11:37 PM	It's worn by the Lady of Pain, a pretty little ring with a huge diamond on it. -Gene
Tevish Szat 12-05-06, 11:46 PM	It's worn by the Lady of Pain, a pretty little ring with a huge diamond on it. -Gene do you WANT to cause a TPK? edit: seriosuly though... Her SErenity is death if you take the canon regardign her. if you let it be possible to get a ring from HER, it might be interesting
jagraham 12-06-06, 12:10 AM	How about this: The party starts asking everyone where they can find a ridiculous 500,000 gp gem. The dragons agents get wind of it. Having a godlike Int of 26, the Great Wyrm figures out their plan. Figuring anyone who comes up with such a plan is a sucker, he has his agents spead a fake story of such a gem. The party goes to find the gem and falls into a trap, maybe even getting duped into fighting one of the Wyrms enemies. The party survives and is a little humiliated. Now they *really* want to get even.
runestar 12-06-06, 12:22 AM	Why the heck is the gem so expensive? A great wyrm red dragon only has 40 HD, thus the gem only needs an intrinsic value of 40,000gp.:confused: You know - I have always wondered how trap the soul would interact with the ignore material components epic feat...:D Is it possible to use wish to duplicate trap the soul and thus get around the costly material component part? Might not work here though, seeing as to how supplying said gem is integral to the working of said spell. Hmm...wish lets you create a non-magical item of 25000gp. Maybe houserule that you can wish twice in succession for a 50,000gp gem?:P
Kaligrad 12-06-06, 12:49 AM	Let's see, since 50 coins of any type weigh one pound, that means that, at the current exchange rate, 50gp=10.3 thousand dollars. 500,000/50=10,000 pounds of gold. 10,000 squared is 103 million dollars. You would need to find a single gem worth roughly one hundred million dollars. On the bright side, a diamond of some brilliance has called the price of nearly 1 million dollars per karat, and there exists at the Topkapi Palace in Turkey a single, brilliant diamond of 84 karats. If any gem could get the price of 100 million dollars, it would be the Spoonmaker's Diamond.
Vicerious 12-06-06, 12:51 AM	Hmmm... A fabulous gem, eh? Putting it in the dragon's own hoard might work, or it might come off as a bit cheesey. Depends on your tastes, I suppose. How about making the party have to carve an appropriate gem from a gem dragon?
Rocketboy13 12-06-06, 01:13 AM	I saw this on an episode of Carmen Sandiego, get a gigantic piece of coal and dip it in lave, which through preasure and heat will create a diamond. Is there anyway you could glue together 500,000 1gp gems together? Or could you combine a few spells and shatter the soul of the dragon into 500 1,000gp gems? Though that would probly just turn the thing into a Dracolich.:blink:
Roivas 12-06-06, 01:30 AM	The gem is actually a ridiculously tiny gem made of a mineral that no longer exists, placed on the back of the neck of a Solar. The solar refers to it as his 'seal', and does not elaborate to anyone what this means. If the gem is removed his form becomes corrupted and he transforms back into his true form as one of the creatures of the far realm. Place the gem inside a demiplane that was created by the greatest thief of all time, the rouge/sorcerer/arcane trickster Ziggmonty. He has made an elaborate system of traps throughout his massive home with the keys to his vault scattered throughout the complex. The entire place is heavily warded against scrying, some areas have powerful dispelling effects, and the entire place is kept under watch by Zuggmonty himself through an elaborate system of tubes that he listens through in the control room. Inside the control room he can manipulate any trap within the complex. So he uses his ears and intuition for when to spring traps. On Stygia there are more people than just the lair's devil lord imprisoned. Trapped inside a massive gem guarded by hundreds of powerful devils is a female paladin of a dead god. Her power remains to this day, and her body has bypassed aging, but if she were to be freed she would take up her crusade to destroy Asmodeus for good. The lord of all devils defeated her only through luck last time and has done his best to make sure her name was erased from history. If the players wish to use this gem they would have to defeat the guards, and then free this mystery woman. She would then attempt to continue her quest to end the life of the king of lies. If her quest succeeds this would change the face of hell forever, as some new figure arises to place the up the throne. Another idea is to have a mindflayer complex that uses the power of the gem to power their lair. Place this lair in space, it is the mindflayer's last semi-working starship. The elder brain that resides there is responsible for the mindflayer invasion, and is the forgotten ruler of the illithid race. Other elder brains have his relative power, but none match his age as he was the creature that brought these monsters to the material plane. Just some random ideas.
Vaelan 12-06-06, 01:42 AM	How about this: The party starts asking everyone where they can find a ridiculous 500,000 gp gem. The dragons agents get wind of it. Having a godlike Int of 26, the Great Wyrm figures out their plan. 26 isn't god-like. 26 isn't even as high as a Human Wizard is capable of. Figuring anyone who comes up with such a plan is a sucker, he has his agents spead a fake story of such a gem. The party goes to find the gem and falls into a trap, maybe even getting duped into fighting one of the Wyrms enemies. The party survives and is a little humiliated. Now they *really* want to get even. If the dragon gets to instantly figure out their plan because of his meager 26 Intelligence, the party's 34 Intelligence Wizard instantly figures this one out along with 4 ways to subvert it to their goals (one for each point-difference between their modifiers). Also, this thread wasn't created to come up with ways to screw the players over through metagaming. Just looking for a horribly expensive gem isn't nearly enough information, regardless of Intelligence, to instantly realize what they are planning. If it is, you must give Wizards a lot of information that they wouldn't normally have. The real issue would be getting the dragon to pick up or accept a ridiculously expensive gem that has the dragon's name (which the party will also have to figure out) and a magical word that he can easily identify on it. This is when the Dragon's Intelligence and Wisdom come into play through Spot, Spellcraft, and Knowledge: Arcana.
ornitholestes 12-06-06, 01:59 AM	A vain and evil sorceress from a far away land has such a perfect gem, an emerald of immense size and quality, placed within her golden diadem. When the players defeat her and remove it, her body shrivels into centuries old dust and dried bones. The crown, it turns out, grants its wearer eternal youth, unsurpassed beauty, and great magical power to the wearer. Can the players resist the item's call, and those who would stop at nothing to get it. The massive sapphire is buried at the bottom the of a deep ocean in a sunken tomb hallowed to the god Poseidon, or his equivalent in your world. Legends speak of huge piece of obsidian as black as night and naturally formed in the shape of a skull. Millennium ago, a great red dragon mighty in divination (a distant ancestor of the very wyrm the players are facing) foretold that this gem would be the scourge of her blood-line, but destroying it would bring about her own demise. Using her magic, she flew beyond the circles of the world and built a labyrinth filled with traps and monsters, deep within the core of the moon.
Roivas 12-06-06, 01:59 AM	And a bit of Sense Motive to boot. Dragons aren't mind readers, they certainly aren't perfect, and they definately can't account for everything. The dragon has to spend all day with it's treasure, leaving very little time to spy on the players [who might not be on the same plane] it's minions barely compinant can't be everywhere either. So having a dragon knowing exactly what the players are doing at all times simply because you know what they are doing is stupid. The dragon should prepare against the general tactics that adventurers use against dragons, ward it's lair against teleporting, and keep beefy guards patrolling at all times. The dragon should be aware of the players once they enter his lair, but that doesn't mean he knows their classes unless they are very obvious. It also doesn't mean he knows how powerful they are, or which spell they plan to use. If it sees the gem it could guess their plan, but I'm guessing a bag of holding will be employed for transport.
runestar 12-06-06, 04:22 AM	Can anyone please answer my question as to why the gem required has such an inflated value, when a gem 1/10 of the original value would more than suffice?:confused:
Roivas 12-06-06, 05:50 AM	Maybe the dragon has more HD than normal? If it has been advanced enough age categories this gem would not only be necessary, but it would be far preferable to fighting the beast. I just like the idea of thinking of places to get a truly massive or extremely valuable gem.
Witch 12-06-06, 05:59 AM	So you're suggesting the dragon has 500 HD. I'm sorry - but that would be rather... weird. Mainly since that'd be a level 100+ challenge, likely 200+.
runestar 12-06-06, 06:01 AM	A gem of that worth implies a monstrosity of 500HD...:eek: That's a dragon with 165 age categories, or a cr of 332....:eek: You sure a lv20 party is ready to take it down? Or was the value of the gem inflated simply for "roleplaying" purposes?:confused:
Papa_duval 12-06-06, 09:14 AM	Would the instrinsic value be increased through the cutting process For instance, a gem worth 25,000 gp could be 'cut' into a piece of exquisite beauty, maybe a ruby carved into the shape of a rose, a diamond cut into the shape of a sun icon, or an emerald carved into the shape of a heart. Does the intrinsic value HAVE to only be due to the material of the item, or can the value the item could be sold for also be included. If you are willing to do that, then you can create all sorts of quests to find the right gem, to find the person capable of carving it and to find the tools capable of such precision. You've got a whole series of quests to create this gem capable of holding the soul of the dragon. Alternatively, they could go kill the dragon.
runestar 12-06-06, 09:27 AM	For instance, a gem worth 25,000 gp could be 'cut' into a piece of exquisite beauty, maybe a ruby carved into the shape of a rose, a diamond cut into the shape of a sun icon, or an emerald carved into the shape of a heart. I doubt it - this sort of worth has no intrinsic guideline, and is entirely dependent on how much people are smitten with said design and how much they are willing to shell out for it. I believe the gp cost refers to the base value - this will be something that has a standard guideline, like global gold prices. Workmanship costs should not be factored in, IMO. For example, a gem carved into the shape of a falcon might be worth more in the eyes of an avid fan of birds, but of lesser value to another lacking said interest.
Vicerious 12-06-06, 09:36 AM	The real issue would be getting the dragon to pick up or accept a ridiculously expensive gem that has the dragon's name (which the party will also have to figure out) and a magical word that he can easily identify on it. This is when the Dragon's Intelligence and Wisdom come into play through Spot, Spellcraft, and Knowledge: Arcana. The "trigger item" that's inscribed with the name of the creature and the spell word doesn't have to be the gem. It could be anything, and the inscriptions don't have to be visible. So the party, once obtaining the legendary stone, could come up with any number of devious things to engrave. Anyway, another idea could be that such a gem doesn't exist at all. Instead, the players have to carry out a ritual to create such an item through magical means. This might involve lots of conjuration, or maybe transmutation, but would also require the party to go traipsing around gathering exotic reagents. It would be a fun excuse to got plane-hopping, and allows for some variety in the individual tasks that must be completed for the reagents.
AJ_Impy 12-06-06, 10:30 AM	One of them must Retrain as an Expert Gemcutter, putting every feat into skill focus- Craft:Gemcutting or similar. The ultimate sacrifice for a hero.
Orbb_was_railed_by_God 12-06-06, 10:53 AM	I would go for the phylactery of a particularly exotic lich...possibly a spellweaver (MM2).
Matthew77 12-06-06, 11:09 AM	Can anyone please answer my question as to why the gem required has such an inflated value, when a gem 1/10 of the original value would more than suffice?:confused: Because when the player brought the plan to my attention they said they needed a gem that was 10,000 gp per HD, and I didn't doublecheck the spell description until now :) Nice catch, and I feel better about allowing this with a 50,000 gp gem, since thats in the possible treasure range for a non-epic encounter. Great suggestions everyone! I think I'll pick three options that sound challenging but not impossible and leave some clues to all three for my players to find. The point about them having to be careful in their inquiries so that the Dragon doesn't get wind of the plan is also important to consider.
DracoPhoenix 12-06-06, 11:41 AM	Here's one that's not likely to have been thought of (probably for good reason :)) Next time the party heads to town, roll a D20 3 times, if they get 20s every time tell them they find a small fist sized gem going for 5gp from a jewlery market stall. which, when they value it, is worth the 500,000gp. For added lameness, have the stall disappear when after they pick up the gem. If you want to make it slightly interesting, have it turn out that a devil set it up and will later come to collect. This is why you never start a miracle spell with the line "To whom it may concern...."
HerbalTea 12-06-06, 01:04 PM	A gem of that worth implies a monstrosity of 500HD...:eek: That's a dragon with 165 age categories, or a cr of 332....:eek: You sure a lv20 party is ready to take it down? I've always thought confidence is overated :rolleyes:
CryoSilver 12-06-06, 01:18 PM	26 isn't god-like. 26 isn't even as high as a Human Wizard is capable of. I figure that a 26 Int is equal to about a 195 IQ
Tevish Szat 12-06-06, 01:22 PM	I figure that a 26 Int is equal to about a 195 IQ actually, its about ewual to an IQ of 260. 10 is average INT, 15 lets a wizard keep up with their spell progression without using stat boosting items (VERY smart) 100 is average iq, and 145 is Highly Gifted.. intx10 about equals IQ.
Orbb_was_railed_by_God 12-06-06, 01:23 PM	I figure that a 26 Int is equal to about a 195 IQ Considering the average IQ is 100 and the average human Int is 10...I don't see how you've come to that figure.
Matthew77 12-06-06, 02:45 PM	actually, its about ewual to an IQ of 260. 10 is average INT, 15 lets a wizard keep up with their spell progression without using stat boosting items (VERY smart) 100 is average iq, and 145 is Highly Gifted.. intx10 about equals IQ. Not to get sidetracked, but I don't think linear progressions map very well to ability stats, especially once you get outside the normal human range of 3-18.
Orbb_was_railed_by_God 12-06-06, 02:52 PM	Not to get sidetracked, but I don't think linear progressions map very well to ability stats, especially once you get outside the normal human range of 3-18. Elaborate, please.
CryoSilver 12-06-06, 03:17 PM	I find that the equation 19*(Int^[1/1.4]) is a more realistic scaling of intelligence to IQ. If you want to have a discussion of it, please create a new thread and provide a link, so we don't derail this thread, and I'll be happy to elaborate.
Matthew77 12-06-06, 03:31 PM	Elaborate, please. Two quick examples, then as Cryosilver suggests, make a new thread :) Strength should be greater than a linear progression. I don't have the carrying capacity charts in front of me, but check them. I believe the increase in poundage from STR 10 to STR 11 is less than the increase from STR 20 to STR 21. i.e, it's not just STR score * 10 pounds. EDIT: just checked. STR 10 to STR 11 increases 15 pounds, STR 20 to STR 21 increases 60 pounds. Intelligence is the opposite. The higher you get, the less difference each point makes, so if it takes 5 int points to go from 80 IQ to 130 IQ, it might take 10 int points to go from 130 IQ to 180 IQ, and 20 int points to go from 180 IQ to 230 IQ. (This would mean 13 int = 130, 23 int = 180, 43 int = 230) Just an example, I'm not saying this model is accurate, just that any linear model (ability score multiplied by any constant) is going to break down at scores above 18.
Pippa 12-06-06, 04:04 PM	As art objects have a value, I was of a mind that cutting the gemstone would increase its worth. But magic is magic, so I wouldn't know... I just thought it would be nice to have the gemstone be a ruby golem or something.
BlueBlazer 12-06-06, 05:16 PM	If you're going with a few options and letting the players choose which one to pursue, here are a few to throw in: 1. They find out about a gem (a diamond worth ~55,000) belonging to some King or Prince. And this monarch is extremely paranoid about having it stolen. So of course the vault is almost impregnable, with mobs of guards and warded against spells (anti-magic fields, etc.). (end player knowledge) Assuming your players can get in, they're confronted with a HUGE vault, 100' x 100', at least 100' deep (think Scrooge McDuck's monstrosity but obviously less implausibly huge) filled with these identical tiny crystal beads. In addition to the enormous Needle In A Haystack problem, there's the addtional problem that the diamond (once found) turns out to be about the size of a ball-point pen tip _ it's perfection and cleverness of cut add value, and its value is also increased by the fact that it contains the soul of an evil god. So when they bring it out of the anti-magic field the evil god is released and carnage is unleashed upon the kingdom. Not to mention the difficulties of carving a name on a diamond that small... 2. Another option would be to make the gem ugly, gaudy and crass. A garbage-can-lid-sized topaz, one side carved with a historic battle scene, the other side carved with a love poem from Prince Imaprat to Princess Mushimush, all on a thick gold chain so it can be worn as a necklace. Give it a spell to increase value (a permanent illusion so it constantly sings Chicago's "Glory of Love" (from Karate Kid). Loud.). Who cares how they manage to get it, but make sure to make them walk around in public with it (and try to play the actual song à la Mood Music). 3. Make a fist-sized, non-magical emerald worth ~50,000 (value based entirely on purity of stone and the cut). And make it part of the horde of the dragon they're planning to use it on... specifically, the part of the horde he swallowed.
jagraham 12-06-06, 09:06 PM	26 isn't god-like. 26 isn't even as high as a Human Wizard is capable of. If the dragon gets to instantly figure out their plan because of his meager 26 Intelligence, the party's 34 Intelligence Wizard instantly figures this one out along with 4 ways to subvert it to their goals (one for each point-difference between their modifiers). Also, this thread wasn't created to come up with ways to screw the players over through metagaming. Just looking for a horribly expensive gem isn't nearly enough information, regardless of Intelligence, to instantly realize what they are planning. If it is, you must give Wizards a lot of information that they wouldn't normally have. The real issue would be getting the dragon to pick up or accept a ridiculously expensive gem that has the dragon's name (which the party will also have to figure out) and a magical word that he can easily identify on it. This is when the Dragon's Intelligence and Wisdom come into play through Spot, Spellcraft, and Knowledge: Arcana. Not metagaming; role playing. As 19th or greater level spell caster who is over a thousand years old, he will have a clue what spells a gem is a component for. Being that old, he knows who has the power to threaten him: other ancient dragons and epic level adventurers. He would be alive by keeping aware of what is going on in his domain. The dragon does not have even have to figure out the whole plan. Once he knows what the party is after the gem, he has the bait he needs to lure the party into a trap. Now if the party is smart, they'll realize that it was way too easy finding out where to get a 500,000 gp gem, and they are being lured into a trap. Now that's a fun story of move and counter-move. I'm not saying nerf anything the players do, but if they come up with something far-fetched that underestimates their opponent, they should have a tough time.
Matthew77 12-06-06, 10:01 PM	Also, this dragon has just launched the beginning of a carefully researched assault upon the kingdom, which he has been planning and laying the groundwork for over the last several hundred years. He has plenty of spies, minions and assassins in many sections of society. His first surprise attack eliminated nearly all the major (read epic) powers of the realm. The Dragon himself destroyed the capital city, including the entire royal court, most of the major temples and the motherhouse of the Mage's Guild, and at the same time his cultists made targetted assassination attempts on nearly all other high-level inhabitants. The cultists took heavy losses, but achieved a high success rate on their missions. (100 years of preperation means a lot of consumable magic items) In fact, the PCs are the highest level survivors of the kingdom's power structure, and have been personally targeted for assassination already. They are still reeling from the massive blow dealt to society, not to mention the personal loss of their mentors and colleagues. That's one reason why they are so desperate for a quick solution, because even if the Dragon is gone, they still have to deal with the shambles which is all that remains of their once peaceful and prosperous kingdom. That's the set-up for the campaign, anyway. If anyone's got ideas for the Great Wyrm Red's lair, that's my next project. I know that it's located inside an active volcano, but I haven't designed the defenses yet.
jagraham 12-06-06, 10:29 PM	And a bit of Sense Motive to boot. Dragons aren't mind readers, they certainly aren't perfect, and they definately can't account for everything. The dragon has to spend all day with it's treasure, leaving very little time to spy on the players [who might not be on the same plane] it's minions barely compinant can't be everywhere either. So having a dragon knowing exactly what the players are doing at all times simply because you know what they are doing is stupid. The dragon should prepare against the general tactics that adventurers use against dragons, ward it's lair against teleporting, and keep beefy guards patrolling at all times. The dragon should be aware of the players once they enter his lair, but that doesn't mean he knows their classes unless they are very obvious. It also doesn't mean he knows how powerful they are, or which spell they plan to use. If it sees the gem it could guess their plan, but I'm guessing a bag of holding will be employed for transport. I'm not saying dragons know everything, but the players will have to be discreet. If they go around town asking about 500,000 gp gems, they will draw attention to themselves. As Epic characters, they might not exactly blend in with the townsfolk. They probably have reputations of being powerful, such as having killed any number of other dragons, which a dragon may take note of. I don't agree that dragons are required to have predictable defenses and always be in their (only) lair sitting on a pile of gold pieces. A dragon that has 9th level spells is going to have some very elaborate defenses, including all manner of Contingency spells cast. No less elaborate than a PC of the same level may establish for themselves. They will also have false lairs to draw out enemies, even guarded by minions who think it is their real lair.
jagraham 12-06-06, 11:17 PM	Also, this dragon has just launched the beginning of a carefully researched assault upon the kingdom, which he has been planning and laying the groundwork for over the last several hundred years. He has plenty of spies, minions and assassins in many sections of society. His first surprise attack eliminated nearly all the major (read epic) powers of the realm. The Dragon himself destroyed the capital city, including the entire royal court, most of the major temples and the motherhouse of the Mage's Guild, and at the same time his cultists made targetted assassination attempts on nearly all other high-level inhabitants. The cultists took heavy losses, but achieved a high success rate on their missions. (100 years of preperation means a lot of consumable magic items) In fact, the PCs are the highest level survivors of the kingdom's power structure, and have been personally targeted for assassination already. They are still reeling from the massive blow dealt to society, not to mention the personal loss of their mentors and colleagues. That's one reason why they are so desperate for a quick solution, because even if the Dragon is gone, they still have to deal with the shambles which is all that remains of their once peaceful and prosperous kingdom. That's the set-up for the campaign, anyway. If anyone's got ideas for the Great Wyrm Red's lair, that's my next project. I know that it's located inside an active volcano, but I haven't designed the defenses yet. Now that's a Great Wyrm. I like it. The PCs are quaking in their boots. All the sweeter when they ultimately win. A straight-forward move on the Wyrm's lair would be suicide for the party (it was for every previous one). They are going to have to beat him at his own game of deception. The party needs to leak false information to his agents to draw him out, possibly faking some of their own deaths to appear weak. Short on cultists to do his dirty work, the Wyrm goes to get them, while the party breaks into his lair and defeat the guardians and traps, which should be hard enough. Then they set up illusions that the guardians are still there. When the Wrym returns, the party ambushes him and have a fair chance of winning, maybe even set a few traps of their own. I have no idea how to railroad all that.
BeefotronX 12-07-06, 12:03 AM	Is there anyway you could glue together 500,000 1gp gems together? Or could you combine a few spells and shatter the soul of the dragon into 500 1,000gp gems? Though that would probly just turn the thing into a Dracolich.:blink: I think fabricate might be able to 'glue together' a bunch of gems. Although RL gem values tend to follow a roughly geometric progression, (Value is a function of the square of the weight), so if you had thirty-two gems (of the same type) worth 500 gp each and stuck them together, you would have one worth about 500,000 gp.
Vaelan 12-07-06, 12:47 AM	The "trigger item" that's inscribed with the name of the creature and the spell word doesn't have to be the gem. It could be anything, and the inscriptions don't have to be visible. Alright, that didn't occur to me when I read Trap the Soul. However, the dragon is still likely to be highly suspicious. I figure that a 26 Int is equal to about a 195 IQ I was going by a slightly more relevant standard when I made that statement: the Intelligence scores of statted gods.
KendallDM 12-07-06, 05:21 AM	The only known gem of that size, quality, and value, can be found in only one place. That's right, in the very hoard of the dragon that they have to face in the first place. But then, I'd be evil like that, hehe.