Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 Chameleon-X Aug 25, 2015 23:39:19	So, after trying and failing to raid the Sacred Stone Monastary twice, my players decided to stealth into the kitchen through the Chimney in the middle of the nigh. After disguising themselves as cultists, I decided to make things more interesting by having Hellenrae (one of the boss characters) walk in for a midnight snack. She failed her insight check, they jumped her, and dropped her to 0 before she even got a turn.   However, the party Paladin decided to keep her alive to try and convert her to the side of good (which I'd allowed him to do with a couple of other random low-level NPCs). Despite his good rolls, I ruled that she was too deeply indoctrinated by the cult to switch sides just like that.   The Paladin, not to be detered, used Lesser Restoration to heal her blindness (Not sure if this is technically R.A.W. since she was blind since childhood, but I allowed it), and sent her back to Red Larch to face justice. However, since Red Larch doesn't have a jail, and she's obviously powerful enough to escape from whatever makeshift cell they put her in, I decided to have her come back later on to challenge the party.   So, since she's basically an evil version of Daredevil, I figured that having her sight returned to her would make her even more deadly (as it is, the party has become slightly overleveled for the Monastary). So, here's the stat block I came up with... does this seem an appropriate challenge for a 6th level party (Paladin, two Fighters, a Monk, and Warlock/Bard.)   Awakened Hellenrae Medium Humanoid (Human), Lawful Evil -------------------------------------------------------- Armor Class: 17 Hit Points: 104 (16d8 + 32) Speed: 55ft. ------------------------------------------------------- STR          DEX          CON          INT          WIS          CHA 13 (+1)     18 (+4)    14 (+2)     10 (+0)   17 (+3)     13 (+1) ------------------------------------------------------- Skills: Acrobatics +8, Athletics +5, Insight +7, Percepion +7 Damage Immunities: Poison Condition Immunities: Charm, Fear, Poisoned Senses: Passive Perception 17 Languages: Common, Terran Challenge: 7 (29,000 XP) ------------------------------------------------------ Evasion: As the Monk feature.   Stunning Strike: As the Monk feature (see Ki)   Ki: Hellenrae has 16 Ki Points, which she recovers on a short rest.   Flurry of Blows: When Hellenrae hits with an Unarmed Strike or a Monk Weapon, she can spend one Ki point to make two Unarmed Strikes as a bonus action.   Elemental Disciplines: Hellenrae can spend Ki points to manifest elemental disciplines, allowing her to duplicate the effect of certain spells. Her Spellcasting ability is Wisdom (spell save DC 16; spell attack +8). She can duplicate the following spells with her disciplines:   Cantrips (1 Ki): Acid Splash, Mold Earth 1st Level (2 Ki): Earth Tremor 2nd Level (3 Ki): Spike Growth 3rd Level (4 Ki): Erupting Earth 4th Level (5 Ki): Stoneskin 5th Level (6 Ki): Wall of Stone Actions ------------------------------------------------------ Multiattack: Hellenrae makes two melee attacks.   Unarmed Strike: Melee Weapon Attack; +8 to hit, 5ft. reach, one target. Hit: 10 (1d10 + 4) bludgeoning damage. Reactions ----------------------------------------------------- Parry and Counter: Hellenrae can add 3 to her AC against an attack that would hit her. If the attack misses, she can make one melee attack against the target if it is within reach.   Deflect Missiles: Hellenrae can reduce the damage she takes from a ranged weapon attack by 1d10 + 20. If this reduces the damage to 0, she can catch the projectile and throw it back (if applicable).
#2 Ralif_Redhammer Aug 26, 2015 8:00:19	Nice. I’ll agree, Hellenrae can go down pretty quickly under a concerted assault. Especially if the players get lucky. I'd recommend increasing her HP even more, though.
#3 Jimterry94 Sep 05, 2015 9:19:51	I didn't have to power up Hellenrae at all for the encounters my players had with her.  But with players at higher levels, I could see the need!  She really is a memorable NPC and a bigger fight with her added a lot to my game.  My players went to the monestary early in the campaign and talked their way in.  They eventually found Hellenrae in her chamber and she messed them up bad.  They were level 5.  It was a huge beat down.  But they subdued her, and took her back to Red Larch to be eventually taken to Waterdeep.  Well like you said, Red Larch couldn't  keep her secured and she escaped after getting loose and killing her guards.  Meanwhile the players had returned to the monestary and cleared the complex.  They moved to the other fortresses, but eventually learned of her escape.  They got back to the Monestary in a few tendays.  They were 2 levels higher by this point.   I felt another showdown was in order and figured Hellenrae would have gone down into the temple at this point, to warn the earth cultists about the party. I added more health to her figuring she would have trained and leveled herself.   Well the party had already taken on and defeated Gar Shatterkeel by now, so when they entered the Temple of Black Earth, the progression of the story meant the prophet Marlos Urnrayle had to move to the Fane of the Eye. I had Hellenrae and Marlos' shadow demon remain at B21 in the Earth Temple.  The party evetually arrived and had split their ranger and thief away to walk the narrow ledge and climb up to the statue room.  The thief was a newer player who missed the first Hellenrae encounter.  So when they climbed up into the room and I described Hellenrae, the ranger was like "Oh, Fu&%$!" and the party was like "OH FU***!" and the new thief said "What's the big deal?" and then Hellenrae proceeded to collapse the ranger's lungs.   After a real epic fight with her (the Ranger went down and the Cleric got some great hits on the shadow demon), she finally was subdued again.  She was re-awakened near the edge of the cliff and asked who she served.  She hissed at them "I serve the Mountain that Walks!!" referring to the Prince of Evil Earth, Ogremoch.  Being tired of her veiled informaton, the ranger shoots her with and arrow and she falls dead over the ledge and into the darkness.  It was one of the most memorable encounters my players have had in the campaign and was one of the the highlights of the game so far!
#4 distal Sep 06, 2015 8:38:27	So your players are interacting with NPCs in some way other than trying to kill them -- even though those NPCs have stat blocks?  Great!   Your paladin player is playing an actual paladin instead of a barely disguised murder hobo? Terrific!   And now you're rewarding their efforts by negating their intentions? Why?  You should think about what you stand to gain from this, because you have a lot to lose.   Example:   One of the first big mistakes I made as a DM was to spring the old ''bandits pretending to be a broken down caravan but actually just lying in wait to ambush any helpful passersby'' routine VERY early in a new campaign.  For the players, the takeaway was "let's never help anyone ever again."  It was a lot harder to hook those PCs into random quests after that.   :/   So, if I were playing the paladin in your group, as soon as Hellenrae reappeared to fight the party, I would think: "Huh, I should have let my buddies kill her when they had the chance.  I will never make the mistake of showing mercy ever again."   Granted, I don't have all the information. I have not read POTA.  I don't know your players or your DMing style.  Maybe you have fantastic reasons.  Was sending Hellenrae back to Red Larch very clearly a Bad Idea?  If so, did the PCs know this?  Did the players know this?   I think it's important to recogonize the good roleplaying your players have done.  If you're intent on bringing Hellenrae back as a monster to be fought, then at least have something happen in that combat that alludes to her previous interactions with the PCs.  For instance, maybe she can't bring herself to directly harm the paladin even though she sees the perfect opportunity to do so.   What do other DMs think of this advice?
#5 THEMNGMNT Sep 07, 2015 10:11:05	I'm in agreement with distal. When a player attempts to redeem a villain, that effort should almost always succeed--becuase it's so rare for players to even try. It's unusual behavior that should be rewarded. Hellenrae can become a great vehicle for explaining the adventure background, the relative strengths and weaknesses of all the cults, and the personalities and characteristics of the villains in the other temples. Use her perspective to enrich the adventure and create more immersion for your players. From a plot perspective, I would consider having the people of Red Larch put her on trial. The paladin and players could act as her defense. Assuming that goes well, her loyalty to the playes is cemented. Eventually, the cults would attempt to kill her, which you might tie to the devastation orb terror attacks. If she survives, keep her handy so she can rescue or aid the players, should they face defeat.
#6 NamelessHero Sep 10, 2015 23:19:08	while I like the Idea that you rehash NPCs to consantly keep the players on their toes, I dislike the idea of punishing your paladin for roleplaying his character well. I agree that it only further disincentivizes him to continue roleplaying in that way. I  recommend giving inspiration to your paladin for showing mercy. Or better yet, as someone else already suggested, have Hellenrae become unable to strike the paladin (if only him) for showing kindness during their next battle. This will incentivize the paladin to keep up the good work, while enabling the players to murder-hobo Hellenrae.