Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 Akrean Apr 02, 2015 19:01:06	Hi everyone!   I have to pick everyone’s brain again.  I am a brand new DM/player and would love some advice.  As always, some story stuff if people are interested or you can just jump down to the bottom for my question.   My PC’s are currently in the midst of trying to prepare a city from an impending invasion of the undead.  One of the main needs is that the pretty pathetic city guard needs to be resupplied with better equipment (and better soldiers for that matter-they have partly done this).  The current marquee in the city does not have the available funds as the coffers have been used to fund a never ending world war the nation is embroiled in.  The city is far far from the main battle lines, so there is no need for a highly trained and equipped defending force.    One option is I will actually allow the PC’s to use the gold they obtain in their adventuring and side quests to front the cost of supplying the guards.  I would essentially tell them they need to resupply about 100 men, they can pick anything they want from guide to equip the men as they see fit. ( I have decided that they have a force of about 250 overall in the city.  150 will be readily equipped as is.)  The costs would be dependent on what they equip them with and this would determine partly how effective they are in battle against the undead.  So costs might vary dramatically on what they wish to do, if anything.   There is only one major blacksmithing operation in town, which does have excess equipment, but the operation is run by a greedy noble type that will not let go of the equipment unless it is paid for at full cost.  Clearly short sighted, but he is greedy and doesn’t believe in the rumors of the undead anyway.    Another option I want to give the pc’s is that the head blacksmith might recommend they assassinate the noble in his house to make it look like a robbery.  With him dead, he would be able to seize control and in return would either give/ or greatly offer a discount on the equipment.  Win win for everyone.   My question as I am still pretty brand new to this:  Does anyone have any recommendations on setting up a successful assassination encounter.  I will hint they it would be best to attack late at night after a local party/ball the noble always attends and drinks heavily at.  He will of course be holed up in a pretty well-built mansion with a personal body guard.   I have some ideas on what I can set up but would love advice to make this a fun/stealthy/combat/rp encounter.     As always, thanks for the advice!
#2 iserith Apr 02, 2015 19:14:59	It's not on you to figure out the PCs' approach - that's on the players. It's on you to come up with what obstacles are in between the PCs' blades and the noble's greedy heart. Present those obstacles and then ask the players what they do to get around them or go through them. Adjudicate fairly, roll some dice if you need to, and see where it goes.   You've already mentioned the noble's guards, so stat them up and give them a rotation that can be observed and potentially exploited by clever players. You also mentioned a well-built mansion - maybe it's got magical alarms to be bypassed, traps to be diffused and avoided, wandering staff and guards, a confounding layout rife with secret doors and hidden passageways, guard dogs, and saferooms. Set all this up and the players should have at it.
#3 BRJN Apr 03, 2015 17:00:12	Do the PCs have a good 'in' with the City Guard?  A little corruption goes a long way: a sympathetic official arranges for the Noble to be arrested on some petty charge (drunk-and-disorderly at the Ball?) and brought downtown to have the proper scope of the situation explained to him.  He's a noble and they can only keep him in the Drunk Tank until morning (when he's clearly sober).  The official will give him the speech twice - once while drunk and again in the morning.  If he still charges full price, then the PCs might be asked to give him an 'accident' along his way back home. Let THEM do all the thinking, just mention that they will have to not look like themselves, nor use signature equipment / tactics, during this escapade.