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“Aces High”- Out of the Box D&D Encounters

Introduction

Aerial encounters are a rare and special circumstance that require a bit more imagination than a standard land-based encounter. Whether by traveling on an airship of some kind, or wandering the lands of a Cloud Giant, creating encounters in the sky generally come with the assumption of a higher level foe. Dragons, griffons, wyverns, and the like always seem to come to mind. This doesn’t have to be the case. Further, attacks from above can also be applied to any environment where space is available. Consider urban rooftops, open plains, mountainous regions, and on open seas as other viable locations for an aerial attack. Massive caves and canyons could also be an unusual but perfectly allowable location for such encounters. Additionally, combining lower level foes in an interesting way can create memorable encounters.

For this encounter’s description, I will be mentioning an airship, but feel free to change the location as you need it.

For your consideration, please enjoy “Out of The Box #8 – Aces High”

Environment: Aerial/Anywhere under an open sky/where space is available
Level: 2+

A cool wind blows across the deck of the airship as it glides through broken cloud cover. The sun sets a glow upon the ship though the passing mists. Moisture glistens on the surfaces, and mists dance through the rigging.
You look up past the envelope (balloon) of the ship to examine the clouds, and strange irregular shadows appear from above. Before you can shout a warning, riders on monstrous winged creatures pass by in a flash. Crossbow bolts pepper the deck like rain, and two ceramic balls crash upon the deck, exploding into flames.

You have been attacked by”Skeeve’s Banshees“…and they are circling around for another pass…

Skeeve is a Goblin with ambitions beyond his kin. Using his natural affinity with Rats and Wolves to great advantage, he and his fellow Goblins have trained Giant Bats to be flying mounts. They have been raiding airships for months now to great success, and have improved their tactics over time.

The Banshees will attack in waves by what are classically called “slashes”. They will pass by their target at speed and will focus more on creating mayhem for as long as possible before focusing on attacking the ships occupants.
The Banshees ride Giant Bats. These bats are equipped with goblin-sized saddles, and have both wings painted with the Banshee logo – a white skull with bat wings. The Bats have a ceramic pot loaded with Alchemist’s Fire in each claw, and are trained to drop them when given the right signal by the goblin riders.
The Banshees are strapped into their saddles so they won’t fall out (Skeeve is nobody’s fool), and are equipped with Light Crossbows. They wear leather pilot helmets with white bat wings painted on each side, goggles, and red scarves. Should they need to dismount and melee, they have short swords and will always have their Light Crossbows.. Note that they will NOT dismount until they think it’s safe to do so. They would rather escape a strong opponent than dismount and face anyone in melee. The swords are for a last-ditch weapon when they have boarded and are looking for treasure and other loot. The Banshees also carry a new weapon: grenados. (see below). the Banshees also have parachutes in case their Bats are killed, so it’s possible that the party may meet  “Skeeves” Banshees” again at a later date.

The Banshees will attack in slashing passes. Giant Bats have a normal flight speed of 60′, but if they are in a dive, then the mounts will be using the Dash action to move 120′ past the ship, with the Goblins attacking midway as they pass the ship. Because of their speed, it will make it difficult for the players to get an attack off, but it will also be hard for the Banshees to land a direct hit on the players. Players will have a difficult time determining the target between the bat and the goblin during a pass. Make the AC for both in a bat/goblin pair 15 during a slash, with the bat being hit 75% of the time if struck.
It’s all about Advantage/Disadvantage and Held Actions. Making any sort of Ranged attack on a Banshee while the Giant Bats are on a Dash action will be at Disadvantage. the same applies to the Banshees on them
However, The Alchemist’s Fire grenades will also be unable to accurate target the players at that speed. Therefore, when a grenade is thrown, determine the target randomly. That target will be allowed a Dexterity Save (DC 14) to avoid the blast. Alchemist’s Fire only does 1d4, with an ongoing 1d4/turn after that unless they pass a further DC 10 Dexterity check to put the flames out. However, if a grenade misses, then the ship will begin to burn at whatever location it hits. That will create it’s own series of problems.
The Banshees, meanwhile will be targeting the deck and firing at anything that moves. They are experienced at attacking in this manner, so they are not at Disadvantage on a slash while shooting Light Crossbows. If they direct the Giant Bats to fly by the target airship at normal speed (60′), they can also throw a grenado.

Grenados are a new weapon. They are a black powder weapon with a new concept – weapon initiative. Grenados can be thrown and have a range of 30′, so they’ll have to fly close. When a grenado is thrown, it enters the initiative with it’s own roll. It will explode on it’s number in that initiative. That means that it may explode next, or last, or not even until the next turn. If it’s initiative roll is more then the Goblin who threw it, it blows up on the next turn on that number in the initiative order. When a grenado detonates, it has a blast radius of 10′, inflicting 1d6 piercing and 1d6 Fire damage. A successful Dexterity DC 12 save will reduce that to half. It will also ignite flammable materials in the blast radius.

Monsters:

“The Banshees” : Goblins (4+) as per Monster Manual p 166. – Add Light Crossbow (1d8 Pierce), 3 Grenados (see above), and some pretty cool steampunk goggles.

Giant Bats (4+…1/goblin).  As per Monster Manual p. 323. Add Alchemist’s Fire (2), as per Players Handbook p. 148.

Set the CR as per the level. I would use 4 at level 2, adding 2 or more Banshee/Bat pairs per level after that, depending on circumstances.

Treasure:

Not much. But the Grenados might be an interesting thing for inexperienced party members to try and use. Skeeve’s Banshees are looking for treasure. That’s why they attack.

Complications:

Loads. There are two different ways for the ship to start to burn. Consult the DMG, page 119,, with regard to how airships and other vehicles can be damaged. However, DMs can have separate areas of the ship burn with different effects. If the Envelope (balloon) of an airship starts to burn…well, there’s a real issue. This same thing applies if the ship is held aloft by magical sails, as occurs in the game Earth Dawn. What happens or how fast the fire spreads is up to the DM, but it’s a great way to build tension in the fight between slashes by the Banshees.

Players or NPCs who are next to the rails can be knocked or thrown overboard with a successful contested Strength check (at +4) versus the targets opposed Strength (Athletics) or Dexterity (Acrobatics) roll. If the Banshee/Bat combo wins, the target will be pushed 5′ back and likely over the rails. Falling damage is 1d6/10’….

The direction or intent that a DM may want to take this is up to them. Skeeve is more than an average Goblin, with more than average goals and skills. Feel free to give him player levels if you want to ramp up the encounter or to make him a re-occurring villain.
This encounter could also begin a whole tradition of humanoid/mount combos, depending on the CR required. Orcs on Griffons, Hobgoblins on Wyverns, or Sprites on Giant Wasps. The sky is the limit – pun intended.

It’s my hope that Skeeves Banshees will create an exciting and colourful encounter for your airship campaign. Enjoy!