Caster bad guys in Pathfinder

[sparkletwist]

I've somehow gotten talked into DMing a Pathfinder game. Wish me luck.  :grin:

The quest will be fairly simple, involving an evil witch in a spooky manor that must be hunted down and dealt with. The party is a Paladin, Druid, and Investigator, so they should be pretty capable. I plan on throwing a lot of undead at them, and the Paladin will be especially capable there. My concern is with the witch herself, and any spellcasting underlings she may have-- crippling debuffs and save-or-loses seem to be the main effective tactics for Pathfinder spellcasters, but I can see how these might ruin the fun of players very quickly. The Paladin's high saves will probably protect her, and the Druid has a good Will save, but they'd otherwise be pretty vulnerable.

The game is pretty low-level, by design, to keep things from going crazy, so spells of 5th level and below are most relevant to me. What are some good spells to use that are dangerous but not TPK-dangerous? What kind of tactics will the players use to protect themselves?

[Steerpike]

Ear-Piercing Scream, if described creepily, can be really unnerving and is a decent damage-dealing spell. Ear protection could protect against it.

Pox Pustules is a good but not devastating debuff that I think will make players hate the witch a lot, especially if the spell is described with sufficient gruesomeness. As debuffs go a Dexterity debuff is interesting because it makes the player vulnerable to other attacks, but their own melee attacks won't be crippled - this could make other players shift their tactics to protect the pustule-ridden player.

Vomit Swarm is great because it's totally gross and cool and swarms are awesome. They're annoying as hell in many situations but they're slow and so can be avoided, and players tend to get creative when fighting them with things like oil, torches, acid, and wind. If you set the scenario in a wind-storm and then hint at the high windows with the dead tree scratching at them, or have the PCs discover plentiful lanterns & lamp oil, or barrels of flammable spirits, things could get interesting.

Howling Agony is just super fun, funny, and interesting insofar as it allows the player suffering from the spell to make a choice about how that spell effects them, which is unusual. It complicates and enriches tactical choices rather than simplifying them.

Nauseating Trail is similarly an interesting battlefield control spell that I think most players would hate in an enjoyable way rather than a frustrating way.

Mirror Transport is great for a villain since it relies on dungeon dressing - mirrors that can be placed throughout the mansion. It makes for a very handy escape route. Naturally players can start breaking mirrors to trap the witch.

[sparkletwist]

Thanks! Those spells are all good ideas. :)

[Hibou]

To add to Steerpike's suggestions, a summoning spell used tastefully could add complexity to how the characters move around the manor, without necessarily requiring that they interact with or do battle with whatever creature is brought in. It might be enough to have them see it, learn where it's at, and if that's a place they need to go, then they might want to find a way to lure it away. Alternatively, it could be used to add tension as a "risk" added to a shortcut or secret passage or whatever. This'll depend largely on how large the manor is of course. Do you have any rough maps?

[Rose-of-Vellum]

Cool spells, Steerpike. I'll also second Hoers' suggestion of summoning spells, as they can produce interesting battlefield control options, meat-shields for a squishy BBEG, distracting mooks to wade through or being flanked by, and seem thematically appropriate (dark evil witch summoning alien horrors from the netherworld). I'll also extend Steerpike's suggestion to select spells that can make the environment more interactive/dynamic. So besides windows, lanterns, and mirrors, you might consider adding things like:

A termite-rotted section of flooring (that she or they can target with spells, causing that part of the floor to collapse, which could be used to separate PCs, damage them, or provide an escape route)

A nasty rust-spiked or horned chandelier that could be targeted to fall on PCs and create rubble (or she could use air geyser to blast them up into it, breaking it, so that it falls on them as they crash to the ground.

Mildewy tapestries that can be set ablaze with burning hand to create barriers and thematic fireworks.

[sparkletwist]

Ooh, I like summoned creatures. There are lots of things to be done with those.

As for the size of the manor, I don't have any rough maps right now, but it's... big, probably! I have been looking at old British manors and castles and stuff (like the one from Downton Abbey!) for some ideas. I also think that the inside of may not directly correspond with the outside; there will be some rooms with a TARDIS-like quality, that have been twisted by magic and the like, because that's also fun.

[Steerpike]

sparkletwist, I might have some old maps laying around that I used for a Ravenloft game set in a big mansion (inhabited by a Night Hag, as it happens). You probably want to make up your own stuff but would you like me to send them to you if I can dig them up?

[sparkletwist]

I probably will end up making up my own stuff but some inspiration would always be nice. If you can find them, I would appreciate it!

[Steerpike]

Found the maps, they're OK I guess, but you could probably find better stuff online.

I'm going to borrow from the other thread and suggest looking at the maps from Thief II, which sometimes have room-by-room detail.

[spoiler=Large House]



[/spoiler][spoiler=Larger House]



[/spoiler]

[sparkletwist]

Thank you, Steerpike. The only thing is that unless I'm doing something wrong the images are very small and I don't see any bigger ones. Did you post thumbnails and not link to full images or something?

[Steerpike]

Might be a browser thing. Here's a link to all the maps.

They don't get huge but they should be big enough to make out the different rooms etc. easily.

[sparkletwist]

The game kind of imploded. Thanks for the help anyway, though.

[Rose-of-Vellum]

:(