Help fighting a Dread Wraith [Archive] - Wizards Community

Help fighting a Dread Wraith [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
xephus19
01-08-06, 11:29 AM At our last session, our party opened some doors and revealed a dread wraith. Needless to say, it came as a surprise. It nearly killed our barbarian in 2 rounds, and we hardly damaged it. Luckily, we escaped from the dungeon without it following.

We need to go back in to save the cousin of two of our party members (she was kidnapped from her wedding by her former lover who is now a wolverine or werewolf, not exactly sure).

There is a chance we will be able to do this without fighting the dread wraith, but we are not certain of this.

We have a barbarian, wizard, rogue, cleric, ranger, and monk (me). All are level 6, except me (I am playing a race with a +2LA).

Any advice to try to take this monster down if there is no way to avoid it? Our DM thinks if we prepare well, we would have a shot.

One idea I came up with was to use Afflictions and or Ravages from the BoED. More specifically, ones that lowered the wraith's dexterity. It seems to be a longshot, but I am not sure what else we could attempt.

Any suggestions?

Thanks in advance!
wonlee76
01-08-06, 04:06 PM As an aside, its poor form to plan a strategy like this. May as well just open up the MM to figure out what you can or cannot do against the wraith.

Anyone with Knowledge (Religion) should make a check to see what they know about the strengths and weaknesses of the wraith (that could either be the monk or the cleric or both).

General information about undead should be easily attainable such as they are immune to just about anything that requires a Fort Save. So your ravages/poisons/diseases and the like is pretty much out of the question.

As for general preparation, it depends on how much info the DM gives you based off the Knowledge checks. Incorporeal undead are a pain to deal with in almost every campaign I've been involved in but once you figure out how to deal with one, the lesson is useful for future encounters with incorporeal undead. My only advice (since I don't want to step on the toes of your DM) is that depending on how many hints your DM drops on you, try to figure out what can effectively harm it and use it to your full advantage if possible. Find cleric spells or wizard spells that will help you avoid being touched by the wraith. Find an effective way to consistently deal damage to the wraith. With enough buff spells and the right spell selection/scrolls or whatever, you should be able to take it down.
was_fired
01-08-06, 05:59 PM If you think your going to fight it in any given day do the following:

1. Mage armor the front line fighters. Normal armor does nothing, so +4 AC for the Barb will help him a lot.

2. Have the cleric perpare lesser restoration and deth ward (this blocks the wraiths ability damage).

3. Perpare as many force spells as you can. Magic missile is often better than fireball against an incorporal foe (3 missiles average 10.5, a 6th level fireball does 21, but it only hits half the time so 10.5 average on a failed save, and incorporeal undead often have high dex).

4. The cleric is a front line fighter against incorporeal undead thanks to the fact that cure spells have no miss chance. Cure serious wounds is 3d8 + 8 with a Will Save for half, even if it makes the save that should deal as much as the barbs average sword swing. Note: Deathward first.
robertliguori
01-08-06, 06:44 PM Climb to the top of whatever structure the wraith is guarding. Dig. Run far, far away at night. Eventually, you should have a shaft that will permit sunlight to enter the wraith's lair. Extend the shaft as necessary to keep the wraith away from you while you do your business.

Frankly, that's about it. That, or get the party cleric to cast Animate Dead, and order skeletons to carry or drag anything valuable out of the room. Even a basic knowledge check should reveal that a wraith of that age is far, far beyond your capacity to deal with.
papaboom
01-09-06, 02:21 PM You could always give the DM a cash bribe.. ;)
Bruunwald
01-09-06, 02:37 PM You have a wizard and a cleric. Use them smartly and you're halfway home. The wraith's incorporeality does not save it from force effects or magical energy, so the wizard is your best bet to hit it with something good and powerful.

But having a cleric means lots of good undead-affecting spells, as well. I recommend having the cleric memorize elation (which, among other things, will give he and the wizard a bonus to Dex) or cat's grace on himself, and bless, which will stack with those bonuses for ranged attacks, and then stock up on searing light, or some similar ranged, undead-killing spell.

Hit it from a distance, and then turn it, and let the wizard go to town on it.

--EDIT--

Wait, I just noticed you're only 6th level. And against this sort of enemy, those extra PCs don't help as much. Huh. You need to equip the non-magic-flinging characters with ghost touch weapons or some other force weapons or protections.
xephus19
01-09-06, 04:06 PM You could always give the DM a cash bribe.. ;)

I wonder how much that would cost :)

As an aside, its poor form to plan a strategy like this. May as well just open up the MM to figure out what you can or cannot do against the wraith.

I agree in general with that, wonlee76.

A little more background, this is our party's first real campaign in D&D (except for the DM, papaboom). He encouraged us to look into what we could do to increase our chances against said monster, even to the point of researching what the monster's weaknesses are. He actually did not even take into account that the wraith was incorporeal during the first meeting, but I am sure we won't be as lucky the second time (we have talked about it since then).

As for strategy, we in fact had several Restoration scrolls that we purchased beforehand for the trip, as we questioned the Sage from our village and he recommended we obtain a few for the journey. All of us had Mage Armor potions as well, which turned out to be a good thing. They seem to be quite a bargain to purchase.

I think that use of deathward scrolls (which hopefully will be available for purchase in our City), buff scrolls, and some luck should be enough to conqueor the wraith. It was not so much the actual damage that the wraith did that was bad, it was the con ability score drain portion of his attack that hurt so bad. If we can neutralize that, then I think the encounter becomes doable.

Thanks for the hints and suggestions. Hopefully, the rest of the party will be open to some of these tactics, or come up alternate methods to overcome this beast.
wonlee76
01-09-06, 04:52 PM In that case, I feel less guilty about giving you advice since your DM encouraged it. :P Seems like the DM is stacking the odds in your favor too by giving your PCs access to very useful and handy items for dealing with the wraith.

Now, I think in Complete Divine, there is a spell that allows a weapon to be treated as a ghost touch weapon for a certain period of time (I believe it is a third level spell so should be within your power range). I believe there is also a ghost touch armor spell as well but its higher level then ghost touch weapon. In the alternative, get a few scrolls of these spell for your melee guys so you now have a 100% chance of whacking the undead creature and their armor bonus will count against the incorporeal touch attack (or rely on the potions of mage armor).

Anyone going frontline should have a deathward on them or at least a decent touch AC. Preferably both.

So cleric with ghost touch weapon spell and death ward can help the group out making this tough fight into an easy to manage one.

Wizard with haste (to get more mileage out of those ghost touch weapons) and some magic missiles will increase the effectiveness on your group to drop the wraith.

Melee guys wade in after the cleric buffs them up. Cleric joins in after buffing up the group tossing out a few cure spells on the wraith to speed up its death. Wizard pops the thing with a handful of Magic Missiles. Typically, incorporeal undead have relatively low ACs so the primary melee guys shouldn't have trouble hitting it. With ghost touch weapons, that damage stacks up quickly and fast (and even quicker with a well timed haste spell). That should be good enough to drop the wraith.
tasslehoff220
01-10-06, 03:48 PM Force effects to damage it. Scroll of or memorization of Force Cage to bypass it. And Scrolls of or memorizing deathward to make it useless although it may run away for a while if the later strategy is used without a way to make sure it doesnt escape. Searing light and other such spells are also good.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
xephus19 01-08-06, 11:29 AM	At our last session, our party opened some doors and revealed a dread wraith. Needless to say, it came as a surprise. It nearly killed our barbarian in 2 rounds, and we hardly damaged it. Luckily, we escaped from the dungeon without it following. We need to go back in to save the cousin of two of our party members (she was kidnapped from her wedding by her former lover who is now a wolverine or werewolf, not exactly sure). There is a chance we will be able to do this without fighting the dread wraith, but we are not certain of this. We have a barbarian, wizard, rogue, cleric, ranger, and monk (me). All are level 6, except me (I am playing a race with a +2LA). Any advice to try to take this monster down if there is no way to avoid it? Our DM thinks if we prepare well, we would have a shot. One idea I came up with was to use Afflictions and or Ravages from the BoED. More specifically, ones that lowered the wraith's dexterity. It seems to be a longshot, but I am not sure what else we could attempt. Any suggestions? Thanks in advance!
wonlee76 01-08-06, 04:06 PM	As an aside, its poor form to plan a strategy like this. May as well just open up the MM to figure out what you can or cannot do against the wraith. Anyone with Knowledge (Religion) should make a check to see what they know about the strengths and weaknesses of the wraith (that could either be the monk or the cleric or both). General information about undead should be easily attainable such as they are immune to just about anything that requires a Fort Save. So your ravages/poisons/diseases and the like is pretty much out of the question. As for general preparation, it depends on how much info the DM gives you based off the Knowledge checks. Incorporeal undead are a pain to deal with in almost every campaign I've been involved in but once you figure out how to deal with one, the lesson is useful for future encounters with incorporeal undead. My only advice (since I don't want to step on the toes of your DM) is that depending on how many hints your DM drops on you, try to figure out what can effectively harm it and use it to your full advantage if possible. Find cleric spells or wizard spells that will help you avoid being touched by the wraith. Find an effective way to consistently deal damage to the wraith. With enough buff spells and the right spell selection/scrolls or whatever, you should be able to take it down.
was_fired 01-08-06, 05:59 PM	If you think your going to fight it in any given day do the following: 1. Mage armor the front line fighters. Normal armor does nothing, so +4 AC for the Barb will help him a lot. 2. Have the cleric perpare lesser restoration and deth ward (this blocks the wraiths ability damage). 3. Perpare as many force spells as you can. Magic missile is often better than fireball against an incorporal foe (3 missiles average 10.5, a 6th level fireball does 21, but it only hits half the time so 10.5 average on a failed save, and incorporeal undead often have high dex). 4. The cleric is a front line fighter against incorporeal undead thanks to the fact that cure spells have no miss chance. Cure serious wounds is 3d8 + 8 with a Will Save for half, even if it makes the save that should deal as much as the barbs average sword swing. Note: Deathward first.
robertliguori 01-08-06, 06:44 PM	Climb to the top of whatever structure the wraith is guarding. Dig. Run far, far away at night. Eventually, you should have a shaft that will permit sunlight to enter the wraith's lair. Extend the shaft as necessary to keep the wraith away from you while you do your business. Frankly, that's about it. That, or get the party cleric to cast Animate Dead, and order skeletons to carry or drag anything valuable out of the room. Even a basic knowledge check should reveal that a wraith of that age is far, far beyond your capacity to deal with.
papaboom 01-09-06, 02:21 PM	You could always give the DM a cash bribe.. ;)
Bruunwald 01-09-06, 02:37 PM	You have a wizard and a cleric. Use them smartly and you're halfway home. The wraith's incorporeality does not save it from force effects or magical energy, so the wizard is your best bet to hit it with something good and powerful. But having a cleric means lots of good undead-affecting spells, as well. I recommend having the cleric memorize elation (which, among other things, will give he and the wizard a bonus to Dex) or cat's grace on himself, and bless, which will stack with those bonuses for ranged attacks, and then stock up on searing light, or some similar ranged, undead-killing spell. Hit it from a distance, and then turn it, and let the wizard go to town on it. --EDIT-- Wait, I just noticed you're only 6th level. And against this sort of enemy, those extra PCs don't help as much. Huh. You need to equip the non-magic-flinging characters with ghost touch weapons or some other force weapons or protections.
xephus19 01-09-06, 04:06 PM	You could always give the DM a cash bribe.. ;) I wonder how much that would cost :) As an aside, its poor form to plan a strategy like this. May as well just open up the MM to figure out what you can or cannot do against the wraith. I agree in general with that, wonlee76. A little more background, this is our party's first real campaign in D&D (except for the DM, papaboom). He encouraged us to look into what we could do to increase our chances against said monster, even to the point of researching what the monster's weaknesses are. He actually did not even take into account that the wraith was incorporeal during the first meeting, but I am sure we won't be as lucky the second time (we have talked about it since then). As for strategy, we in fact had several Restoration scrolls that we purchased beforehand for the trip, as we questioned the Sage from our village and he recommended we obtain a few for the journey. All of us had Mage Armor potions as well, which turned out to be a good thing. They seem to be quite a bargain to purchase. I think that use of deathward scrolls (which hopefully will be available for purchase in our City), buff scrolls, and some luck should be enough to conqueor the wraith. It was not so much the actual damage that the wraith did that was bad, it was the con ability score drain portion of his attack that hurt so bad. If we can neutralize that, then I think the encounter becomes doable. Thanks for the hints and suggestions. Hopefully, the rest of the party will be open to some of these tactics, or come up alternate methods to overcome this beast.
wonlee76 01-09-06, 04:52 PM	In that case, I feel less guilty about giving you advice since your DM encouraged it. :P Seems like the DM is stacking the odds in your favor too by giving your PCs access to very useful and handy items for dealing with the wraith. Now, I think in Complete Divine, there is a spell that allows a weapon to be treated as a ghost touch weapon for a certain period of time (I believe it is a third level spell so should be within your power range). I believe there is also a ghost touch armor spell as well but its higher level then ghost touch weapon. In the alternative, get a few scrolls of these spell for your melee guys so you now have a 100% chance of whacking the undead creature and their armor bonus will count against the incorporeal touch attack (or rely on the potions of mage armor). Anyone going frontline should have a deathward on them or at least a decent touch AC. Preferably both. So cleric with ghost touch weapon spell and death ward can help the group out making this tough fight into an easy to manage one. Wizard with haste (to get more mileage out of those ghost touch weapons) and some magic missiles will increase the effectiveness on your group to drop the wraith. Melee guys wade in after the cleric buffs them up. Cleric joins in after buffing up the group tossing out a few cure spells on the wraith to speed up its death. Wizard pops the thing with a handful of Magic Missiles. Typically, incorporeal undead have relatively low ACs so the primary melee guys shouldn't have trouble hitting it. With ghost touch weapons, that damage stacks up quickly and fast (and even quicker with a well timed haste spell). That should be good enough to drop the wraith.
tasslehoff220 01-10-06, 03:48 PM	Force effects to damage it. Scroll of or memorization of Force Cage to bypass it. And Scrolls of or memorizing deathward to make it useless although it may run away for a while if the later strategy is used without a way to make sure it doesnt escape. Searing light and other such spells are also good.