The current story arc involve an Adult Black Dragon who's the BBEG. I've been playing him up to be a mastermind, a schemer and an all around smart foe, who has yet to use most of his draconic might, dealing via proxy and minions when he needs to get his hands (Claws? Talons?) dirty. He's also a bit craven, prompt to flee when things go badly.
The players are closing on the final battle and one of them expressed a concern - if the battles goes south for the Dragon... than wont he just fly away?
And quite frankly, they're right. That's exactly what he'll do. His lair is open to the sky as well, so it's not like he can't just fly off, weather a few round of range attack and eventually get away. It doesn't help that most dragon given has example in the lairs of the Draconomicon also try to flee once they feel the battle is a lost one - it seems to be a common thing for smart monsters to do.
I'm not quite satisfied with this. I kind of want the dragon to die, beside, he'll be mostly useless as a BBEG once the player reach the paragon tier (Since he'd need a few hundred years to become an Elder and challenge them).
But neither do I want the dragons to 'break character' and suddenly 'fight to the death' when over a few months of gaming, he's never shown anything resembling honor or arrogance...
Now that all the backstory has been exposed... how do you stop a flyer from getting away when you're level 8? What if he's a solo (thus capable of shaking off most status effect in a round or 2)?
Winged Boots
Orb of Indisputible Gravity
Rings of Flight
Flying Carpets
Phantom Steed
Skyrender Weapons (AV)
Elixir of Flying (AV)
Airship (AV)
Zephyr Boots (AV)
Earthbind Lodestone (AV)
And of course anything that will stun/immobilize it.
I'm not sure of anything the players can do.
However:
Can you alter the situation so that the dragon is physically unable to flee (alter the lair, etc)?
Put in a ritual scroll or magic item which will ground fliers?
Alter the dragon's backstory so that he will not want to flee?
Give the PCs an opportunity to enrage/offend the dragon, so that he will choose not to flee?
I think that the problem is that depending on a specific course of actions from the PCs is risky. If possible, I would put in multiple 'decision paths' that lead to the dragon not fleeing.
For instance:
If you establish that this is the dragon's 'final lair', and if he flees, he'll basically have to start from scratch, rebuilding his hoard, and his empire.
If you can insert some alchemical items which immobiliize an assailant (like an improved Tanglefoot bag), which the PCs can find and use against the dragon.
If you can put in some item, person, or whatever which is very precious to the dragon, so that if the PCs possess it, he will refuse to "give it up".
I'm not a rules guru, so I don't know of many powers which will "ground" the dragon, but even if they are there, who knows if your PCs have actually trained in those powers?
Perhaps he would take a long time to become an elder, but you could still level him up a few and have him cause the party some problems later on.
Two words net gun
Ironically, that's the big idea my players have.
Essentially, build some kind of siege engine bola thrower or 'spear gun' or what not. And hope to hit him with it.
Even if we get pass the difficulty of hitting a moving target with siege weaponry... odds are whatever effect the net/rope would incure would be a 'save end' effect, which will only work for a short time on a solo.
Several classes have powers that allow them to fly.
Winged Boots
Orb of Indisputible Gravity
Rings of Flight
Flying Carpets
Phantom Steed
Skyrender Weapons (AV)
Elixir of Flying (AV)
Airship (AV)
Zephyr Boots (AV)
Earthbind Lodestone (AV)
And of course anything that will stun/immobilize it.
Read 'save ends' issue with immobilize and stun. I also figured knockdown would work, forcing the dragon to fall back down. I thought there was somekind of alchemy item that created a knockdown, but I can't find it now.
The Flying Carpet idea tho, I like. I could have them get a 'giant size' flying carpet, allowing for a bit of aeriel fighting... and have it get destroyed in the fight. Would make for an 'epic' ending. Heh.
Well, really, if the dragon decides it's time to leave ... it's time to leave. There's really no great difference between the dragon getting killed and simply being defeated and flying away. Either way, it lost and the PCs will recieve full XP and all the goodies in his hoard.
You're perfectly right from a metagaming point of view... making him flee is full xp and well, he's not going to carry his hoard with him.
The two issues are:
- Satisfaction. The players and the PCs will feel cheated.
- Nothing prevent this dragon from flying to the otherside of the continent and starting shop again, going back to his nefarious schemes. The party is a pretty 'typical' hero bunch - they want to kill him to free the land from his evil just as much, if not more so, then because he has a lot of shiny items.
What I think you should really do is a add a bit or reality into the fight. I mean if you have ever hunted a duck or other birds then you know sometimes you don't kill the bird and it keeps trying to fly away but has to stop after a bit because or the damage. As the party does damage to the dragon and he deals it right back set a limit to when the dragon would head for the hills. When the dragon's damage limit reach have him try to leave but due to damage suffered in battle he no longer can fly as well. I mean as the dragon escapes his flight is limited so high, so fast and for a determine distance. Basically allow the party to make range attack while chasing him down, keep the at at least one range penitaly. Maybe have them chase the dragon back to his lair for the end of the fight.
A think a mix of this and a 'giant size' flying carpet is what I'm going to use. The dragon being injured will explain why they're capable of keeping up to him (Carpet has slower speed and limited 'height' compared to a dragon) and the minus to AC/Reflex will make thing interesting.
I guess I'll make sure the next 'mastermind' villain I use can't fly tho.
The two issues are:
- Satisfaction. The players and the PCs will feel cheated.
I can't imagine this line of thought, but if you say so.
- Nothing prevent this dragon from flying to the otherside of the continent and starting shop again, going back to his nefarious schemes. The party is a pretty 'typical' hero bunch - they want to kill him to free the land from his evil just as much, if not more so, then because he has a lot of shiny items.
So, your PCs get to continue adventuring, chasing it down and stopping it again ... and this time, it may well be hacked off enough to fight to the death. Seems like it would be a help more than a hindrance.
They either need to:
• Negate his ability to escape by:
-- Becoming flyers themselves (airship/carpets/potions/rings)
-- Ending his ability to fly (nets/magic weapons/wonderous items)
-- Restraining him somehow prior to the fight
• Negate his route of escape by:
-- Blocking the exits (not sure what kind of environment... HOW open is it?)
-- Luring him into a trap
You could set it up like a giant skill challenge. What resources are available? Which can they perform the necessary tasks to make use of, in preparation for the fight? Do they get enough options together, to make the fight viable?
• Get the whole village to construct a giant net, that can be dropped on him from above.
• Get a farmer to donate his herd. Coat them in poison/sleeping powder (wearing bags of it on the backs or something?) and having them roam near the lair. The dragon is then made ill, and weakened, less able to fly.
•*Find the local wizard, who can provide a more powerful version of the Lodestone above, that grounds him... so long as the holder is still alive, and in range. The wizard might have a high price in mind...
• Learn of a sinkhole in the woods, hire the villagers to construct a camouflaged covering, and lure the dragon onto it somehow.
Setting up one or more options in advance can increase their chance of success.
So they lure him to the woods, he falls in, but manages to get out, slightly wounded. He eats a snack on the way to his lair, then feels ill once inside. The airship drops a net, and the party rushes in to fight him. He breaks the net, but the lodestone keeps him grounded, and he is weakened from the poison. If he kills/disables the holder of the stone, he flies... but weakly, and the party can finish him off from their flying carpets!
it would be a reasonable assumption that after taking a large amount of damage that a wing would be damaged. You could also make it after a critical hit if you are so lucky. maybe even try to have him flee, but because he is hemorrhaging blood he is taking ongoing damage 10. now not only does he have a finite distance he could flee, he would be quite easy to track and keep up with. Make the battle a week long hunt if you have to, it could probably be pretty fun
Also, an invisible wall of force so that he doesn't know he is trapped could solve it as well.
So the dragon lays awake at night knowing that if anyone ever came into his lair to defeat him, they would surely cover the huge hole in the roof. He certainly would- wear the enemy down until it is ready to flee then close the trap when it takes the obvious escape route.
Your players don't have to come up with crazy dragon stopping schemes to cover the exit, the dragon's scheming mind already has, and of course they're powerful enough in his imagination (his worst fear maybe) that his lair includes another escape- one unexpected and unknown, through the ground.
So the dragon breaks for the sky but turns and dives into a secret cave that is actually a twisted tunnel system through the mountain. The players get to harrow the dragon on his escape route, which naturally won't be the most conducive to fast and direct dragon travel- such that he had to turn and fight throughout the tunnel as he tries to escape.
The players cannot rest of course, or he'll get away, and you get the added bonus of multiple backdrops and scenarios throughout the final battle.
And if they don't come up with an answer, well, then the dragon gets to live to fight another day.
And if such a thing is magical, then surely AMF.... would prevent him from getting away.
As a player i think it be kwel you fighting the dragon and start to best him when he attempts to run. Then the dragon notices that you outsmarted him and he need to stay and fight or try and break out. Maybe the dragon break the portal and the killing blow is landed as the dragons is gaining air and distance over the players.
Basiclly the last ditch shot from a ranger bow just does enough damage to send the dragon crashing to the ground dead
We are 3ed level and the parties key players in keeping it on the ground were a battlerage fighter a bravada warlord, and a wizard.
The fighter charged the dragon on the first round (blowing an AP to get into range) to get it marked. The warlord came in behind with Flattening Charge knocking the thing prone(and as it hit, was not expended). It then needed to get up (move action), and try to fly away (standard converted to move), which activated combat superiority preventing it from moving. It blew an AP to get away, then it was promptly dazed (wizard color spray), and knocked prone again (action point Icy Terrain). The fighter again got it marked and it was again stuck for a round of being beat on.
After 3 or so rounds it was on sitting on 50ish HP, out of AP and we still had dailies to blow, not to mention the rogue, laser cleric with command (prone and daze) ready, and cha pally.
Basically the party can cycle all the soft control it has and the thing wont go anywhere.
OP, you're quite right that dragons are smart and clever enemies. And any of them, especially black dragons as the most sly and cowardly of the lot, would much rather flee and survive to destroy their enemies another day. So, it will have some way out - a falling rock that delays the group for a round and lets it get out into the open air, for example. And it will take off, leaving behind its horde including an obviously placed flying carpet.
Your players, presumably not stupid, get on the carpet and chase the dragon through the air. Play out the chase scene as long as you think is reasonable. The carpet probably isn't as fast as a healthy dragon, but this one is badly wounded and exhausted, and will be brought to ground in short order. At which point you finish the battle on the ground.
First thing the dragon does on the ground is unleash its breath weapon (arrange its recharge if necessary, it's worth it for the effect) and destroy the carpet, thus preventing it from becoming an abusable item so early in the game. Then, party vs. exhausted dragon. Party wins. They've just tracked a dragon to its lair, forced the monster to flee, grabbed the expedient means to follow it and chase it down, and finally triumphed.
They'd talk about that for months.
The trick, of course, is to avoid forcing this outcome. If the party completely dominates the dragon and prevents it from attempting to flee at all, they should reap the rewards of their luck and skill. Don't deny the players' creativity for cinematics. But if you set it up so that the dragon tries to flee when it's bloodied, that should give you enough time to try this route. If your group truly has covered all the bases, they deserve the win for their intelligence and effort. And if they haven't, make the fight amazing and memorable.
WE have a set of javelins that are grasping. Mechanically they are javelins connected to chains that pull flying mobs to the ground. They have short reach but it works.
Then once on the ground, a pinning weapon used by a melee class will keep the dragon in place. Remeber pinning weapons have no save associated with its use. In our group mechanically we use a flail where one of the spikes of a flail is driven through the foot of the mob and immobilizes the foe.
The first is to follow the dragon. If they have the ability to fly then they can simply fly after the dragon, this will make it harder for the dragon to escape. Though chances are the dragon is faster, it is dangerous to turn your back on an opponent and the PCs will have the advantage of maneuverability until it is out of it's lair.
The Second option is to immobolize the Dragon. Stuns/imobolize might end with a save, but might keep it put for long enough to do serious damage. Harpoons with chains, nets, Tangleroot bags, web spell in 3.5, Grappling hooks, arrows with weighted ropes, ranged spells and attacks to hit it while it is flying away. Enven if this doesn't stop the dragon it might slow it's escape.
If the characters have a way of pursuing the Dragon, the ability to fly themselves, then combined with methods of slowing or stopping the dragon can be a very effective deterent so that is will stay rather then risk flight.
Consider that if it takes 5 rounds for the dragon to get out of range of the PC's range attacks, then that is 5 rounds in which the dragon will get attacked without defending itself or attacking back. Worse if it is stunned or imobolized for a round or 2 in which the PCs catch up, it could risk many rounds of range attacks before it manages to get clear, and might not last long enough, so fleeing could be more dangerous then staying.
If he DOES flee from them, make sure it be a challenging fight. Throw in plenty of minions to help the Dragon and when he hits 1/4 HP FLY AWAY!!!
They will be anxious to terminate the Dragon... With him still around, you can tie him into Paragon level as a minor boss. As per the Anakin vs. Dooku fight, and thus tie in your Paragon BBEG... if you've thought it out that much.