Re: Quitting 3.5

Malachias Invictus wrote:
"Kyle Wilson" <UsenetMessage@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message news:3jjlv3plog7qmnp6oip0ufsrq3i3r4238h@xxxxxxxxxx

tussock <scrub@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:


Oh, please. If the NPCs acted like the PCs, the PCs wouldn't stand
even the slightest chance. There's endless higher level folk out there
that have absolutely no reason to let the fights be anything like fair.
Save *and* die.

Sure...and I pretty much assume that we're really retroactively
creating the story of a party that had the good luck to avoid
seriously uneven encounters...the ones who tried to take on encounters
that turned out to be much too hard never made it into the
storybooks...


That is pretty much my default assumption. Of course, we don't know the main characters from the red shirts until a few adventures have gone by.


I find this a terrible default assumption. MY default assumption is that the Big Boys don't pay ATTENTION to low-level characters because they're dealing with people at or very near THEIR level, so they delegate. And the immediate lieutenant is not paying attention to people at the low level, but the one just below the level of his boss. And so on. The fact, is, they can't AFFORD to pay attention to the five hundred Novice Adventuring Parties in the world; if they do, their Lifelong Rival will take advantage of the distraction.

I mean, really, you're Sauron. Leaving aside the possibility that ANYONE could have the Ring, which makes you kinda crazy, who are you going to focus your attention on:

1) A group of hobbits just starting to wander out from the Shire
2) Gandalf the Grey, Maiar and wizard
3) Some moderately-skilled dwarves heading for Moria
4) Rangers, known (if degenerate) descendants of the nobility of Numenor, possibly with the blood of Elendil in some of them
5) Small groups of human beings trying to clean out the local infestations of orcs and trolls in ruins near their homes
6) Denethor, Steward of Gondor, and his armies
7) Sauruman the White, Maiar and wizard
8) Rohan and its Riders

I'm betting that focusing on 1 and 5 would get a laugh from our Dark Lord, and 3 would be way down towards the bottom too; note also that there are probably dozens, if not HUNDREDS, of things like 1 and 5 -- more than even you can FIND in the time you have with your Palantir.

No, you'll focus YOUR efforts on watching (and if possible subverting or crushing) the two wizards, delegating the rest to your lieutenants. Who will focus on Denethor and Rohan, and maybe keep an eye on the Rangers, but also delegate a lot to THEIR subordinates, and so on and so forth. Note that this is very simplified compared to a more normal adventuring world, where not only do you have the above, but you have the GODS that may or may not interfere directly or indirectly, probably four or five other Dark Lord candidates, and so on and so forth.

Unless one of the apparently-obscure groups does something to draw direct attention to it (like, for instance, be visited/ advised/ led by one of the Wizards, rumored to have this Ring that makes them invisible, etc.), they won't BE the focus of the Much Higher Level's attention until they're no longer THAT much lower level than he is.


--
Sea Wasp
/^\
;;;
Live Journal: http://seawasp.livejournal.com

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