Posted on November 8, 2015November 3, 2015 by Mike Myler — Leave a comment

Mohkba Mania: PRANKSTER Operative

[When using this adversary in the second encounter of the Mohkba Mania adventure apply the special size rules from Meta Thursday: Little Characters, Big Adventures! —MM]

P.R.A.N.K.S.T.E.R. Operative CR 11
XP 12,800
Female elf arcanist 12
NE Medium humanoid (elf)
Init +4; Senses low-light vision; Perception +7

DEFENSE
AC 20, touch 16, flat-footed 15 (+1 deflection, +4 Dex, +1 dodge, +4 mage armor)
hp 80 (12d6+36)
Fort +6, Ref +9, Will +9
Immune sleep

OFFENSE
Speed 30 ft.
Melee +1 elven curve blade +6 (1d10, Crit 18-20/x2)
Ranged acid jet +10 ranged touch (6d6+4 acid, Range 30 ft., Fort DC 20 or sickened 1d4 rounds)
Special Attacks arcane reservoir (9/day, max 15), consume spells
Arcanist Spells Prepared (CL 12th; concentration +16)
6th—mass suggestion
5th—dominate person (2)
4th—bestow curse, charm monster, dimension door, improved invisibility
3rd—blink, fireball, fly, major image, suggestion
2nd—blindness/deafness, detect thoughts, invisibility, mad hallucination, touch of idiocy, twisted space
1st—charm person, disguise self, liberating command, mage armor, magic missile, shield
0th—acid splash, bleed, dancing lights, detect magic, detect poison, mage hand, mending, prestidigitation, spark

TACTICS
Before Combat A PRANKSTER Operative uses Silent Spell and Still Spell with her enchantments, attempting to keep any disruption of her cover to a minimum.
During Combat A PRANKSTER Operative casts improved invisibility and then uses bestow curse, dominate person, and blindness/deafness to incapacitate foes before she dispatches them with her elven curve blade.
Morale PRANKSTER Operatives are highly valued by the cabal but avoid capture at all costs, fighting to the death if they cannot flee when reduced to 12 hit points or less.

STATISTICS
Str 8, Dex 18, Con 12, Int 15, Wis 10, Cha 18
Base Atk +6; CMB +5; CMD 21
Feats Combat Casting, Dodge, Eschew Materials, Silent Spell, Still Spell, Toughness
Skills Bluff +12, Disguise +12, Knowledge (all) +6, Linguistics +6, Perception +7, Spellcraft +15, Stealth +14, Use Magic Device +11; Racial Modifiers +2 Perception
Languages Common, Draconic, Dwarven, Elven
SQ arcanist exploits (acid jet, arcane barrier, counterspell, dimensional slide, greater counterspell, spell resistance), cantrips, elven magic, keen senses, weapon familiarity
Combat Gear potion of cure serious wounds; Other Gear +1 elven curve blade, belt of dexterity +2, cloak of resistance +1, glove of storing, periapt of charisma +2, ring of protection +1

When the tactful force of a PRANKSTER Agent is unnecessary or an even more subtle hand is needed, the cabal dispatches a PRANKSTER Operative to infiltrate, reconnoiter, and more often than not, sabotage.

5E Rules

Use the statistics for a Mage but replace shield with disguise self and add Bluff +6, Disguise +6, and Stealth +6 to skills.

Posted on November 7, 2015November 3, 2015 by Mike Myler — Leave a comment

Mohbka Mania: Prattling PRANKSTER

[This sidequest uses the special size rules from Meta Thursday: Little Characters, Big Adventures! —MM]

After the PCs arrive in Mohkba (inside the Red Palace’s hunting dog den), a DC 16 Knowledge (geography) check confirms they are in the Carpenter’s District. Though they are unfortunately still vastly reduced in size from the partially suppressed teleport that brought them into the city, the magics of the Sanctioned Arcane Practitioners did do the adventurers a boon—this is very near the location of the last P.R.A.N.K.S.T.E.R.S. shipment from the Scorched Lands.

When the royal canines have been dealt with it seems like the party is no longer in danger, but 1d4 minutes after the encounter ends a storm of hail begins raining down on the city—at their reduced size, the weather may be a deadly hazard for the PCs! Taking cover in the nearest building brings the PCs to a large common hall for palace workers, a 40 ft. by 60 ft. hall with a large table surrounded by tree-stump stools and supplies lining the far wall.

A cursory search of the barrels and crates with a DC 14 Perception check reveals that one of the containers is a contraband cypher, a sure sign that the P.R.A.N.K.S.T.E.R.S. are nearby! Any PC that exceeds a check result of 25 also finds a piercing needle stuck in the crease between the floorboards and the wall. Though the adventurers might want to immediately track down the nearest criminal agent, a DC 12 Intelligence check deduces a few reasons not to; with their reduced mobility the adventurers won’t be able to search very quickly or effectively and moreover, at their reduced stature, the chances of being overwhelmed by the ne’er-do-wells are much greater than normal.

1d4 hours after finding this room, a servant appears with bowls, cups, and spoons in hand, setting the huge table for a meal attended by eight palace workers. A DC 20 Sense Motive check notices that one of the individuals—a woman named Vesra, a menial laborer in the Red Palace—is acting slightly out of sorts. If the PCs fail this check there’s a 50% chance she accidentally drops a PRANKSTERS coin onto the floor for a few seconds; while it is unlikely any regular-sized folks see its face, the party instantly recognizes the criminal token for what it is.

Today happens to be Vesra’s turn to clean up after the meal and after the rest of the workers file out of the room, she makes several trips with used dishes before approaching the contraband cypher. The party has ample time to try and block the doorways out of the chamber and with no means of escape, a criminal they can interrogate to learn more of the cabal’s plans in Mohkba—provided they can subdue the prattling PRANKSTER! [Tomorrow’s Statblock Sunday, folks! —MM]

5E Rules

A DC 13 Intelligence (Geography) check confirms the party’s location in Mohkba.
A DC 11 Wisdom (Perception) check notes the presence of a contraband cypher.
A DC 9 Intelligence check deduces that waiting for a moment to strike may be a better tactic.
A DC 16 Wisdom (Insight) check notices Vesra’s out-of-place demeanor.

Posted on November 6, 2015November 2, 2015 by Mike Myler — Leave a comment

Mohkba Mania: This is a Good Thing. Kind of.

“My tree is a twig! This is bad! Where did mage go?!” Tekkittir yells, hefting her spindly growth of a club—now the size of an infant sapling rather than a full-grown tree—against a nearby table leg to disappointing effect. The party’s unexpectedly disrupted teleport to Mohkba changed each of the adventurers fundamentally; while Tanhoj and Vic were used to being of a reduced stature (albeit only a few feet rather than a couple millimeters), their half-orc companion was easily the most distraught by the situation.

“Don’t panic,” Mykail says, testing his legs before easily springing several feet into the air despite being an inch tall, “things could be worse. At least we’re in Mohkba; there’s no reason to be short tempered about it.” Before he could crack another size-related joke, the half-elf’s companions shoot him a stare colder than the chillest Klavekian wind. “Look,” the bard says with a serious tone, “this isn’t as untenable as you’re all thinking it is. Yes, our blades are likely of little use, but imagine how much harder it will be for the P.R.A.N.K.S.T.E.R.S. to find us now? I’m sure that they know the biomancer has been eliminated and now we’ve got a distinct advantage over an entire guild of sneaky criminals keen to stab our backsides. This is a good thing. Kind of.”

Stephni shakes her head, slapping the plucky bard on the shoulder. “He’s right. And Jesker—thrice damn his name—seemed to realize something was going wrong as he finished the spell so it’s only a matter of time before we’re back to normal. Until then we should be taking advantage of this..anomaly, and figure out what the P.R.A.N.K.S.T.E.R.S. are up to so that when we’re able to act again, we can do so swiftly.” She looks around, delicately resting her gloved fist on her chin thoughtfully. “Where do you think we are right now? Is this the Carpenter’s Quarter or the Divine Quarter?”

Looking around carefully and making some calculations with his fingers, Justahn grumbles a bit and says, “if you like I can cast a fly spell to get a bird’s eye view, but gold to bullion says that we’re in the Carpenter’s Quarter. People in the Divine Quarter would have nicer shoes.”

“I’m in agreement and while I’d like to confirm our suspicions, avoiding casting spells might be prudent,” Mykails says. “We did just get shrunken down to the size of bread crumbs thanks to the Sanctioned Arcane Practitioners and I’m not at all keen to draw their attention in our current state. Let’s make for the Red Palace—however it is the P.R.A.N.K.S.T.E.R.S. are planning on using those abominable creatures, the castle is sure to play a part.” Looking down the dirty city street that more resembles a canyon than anything else, the half-elf grins, “besides, I’m sure getting in will only require a little bit of effort.’”