Assassination of Franz Draco

Outside the Draco Mansion

There is a service road (Shore Loop Road) that is on the boarder of the Peninsula. The Peninsula is still covered with woods as is the green area on the map. The mansion is upon the raised area of the peninsula, affording them the high ground.

The Cameras

The only obstacle for the team outside is the cameras. The cameras should be placed onto the map ahead of time so that they have the majority of the mansion's and garage's perimeter covered. If they circumvent the cameras, they will be able to make it into the various buildings without being detected. However, if any of the security cameras send a System Outage Notice or sound the Alarm, the Elite Demolitionist will respond by going outside and investigating.

Camera 1

Stealth 34

Camera 2

Stealth 28

Camera 3

Stealth 35

Camera 4

Stealth 30

Camera 5

Stealth 33

Camera 6

Stealth 28

Camera 7

Stealth 16

Elite Demolitionist

Elite Demolitionistwill walk around the mansion and the garage. If he finds the party outside, he will radio to the others regarding what he has found and he will engage in combat. If the party makes no active effort to run or hide, then the Elite Demolitionist will automatically discover them. Since there isn't anyone that should be coming to the estate, he will not accept any excuse or rationale for their presence. Otherwise, he will go to which ever camera alerted him first. If the party is still in the area, but hiding he will see them only if he notices with his passive perception of 11. If he fails his check he will return inside and report to the others that he believes that the trespassers left the property.

Strategy for Combat

Turn 1 He will attack the party from range, if possible. He will always start by attacking with the flash bang. He will do his best to get as many as possible with this attack. He will follow this up with his rocket launcher. Turn 2 He will now be looking to inflict the most damage as possible. He will fire the rocket launcher and toss a frag grenade, trying to hit as many targets with both as possible. He will always center the attack on a target if possible to do so while also hitting multiple targets, but hitting multiple targets will be the higher priority for him. *Note: He is immune to the damage that his explosives cause. This means that there is no reason for him to avoid dropping these attacks where he will be in range of them. Closing the Fight He will fight the party to the death. He is more afraid of want Ebonie will do to him then he is of dying. He believes that it is likely that they will bring him back to life and that he will be forgiven if he has died for them. But if he runs, he believes that Franz will likely punish him by giving him to Ebonie.

The Trio

If any additional cameras send a System Outage Notice or sound the Alarm, the remaining team members will attempt to contact the Elite Demolitionist. When he fails to respond they will know that he is likely dead. In response to this, they will come outside as a group and search for the intruders.

Strategy for Combat

Turn 1-5 The Brawler will charge into melee combat. They will target the healer or ranged party members in an effort to pull the opponents away from the swordsman for the first few turns. They will use an action surge and double movements if they need to in order to close the distance and put pressure onto the rear party members. They will grapple one of the rear party members, if possible, to use them as a kind of hostage. Their primary goal in the first few turns is to draw the opposing melee characters away from the Swordsman. They will engage with the melee characters directly if they are unable to reach or grapple the rear party. During this time, the Gunman is going to target the leading in melee character. If there isn't one readily apparent, then they will target one of the melee characters, but the goal is to be shooting the tank. They will do their best to lay down a lot of damage and will also move in order to remain out of the reach of melee attackers if possible. The primary goal is to give them too much to focus on that they are not considering what the Swordsman is doing. While the other two team members are attacking, the Swordsman will power up. Even if she becomes the target of attacks, she will ensure that she is power rank 5 before she makes her first attack. Once she has achieved that, she will target the leading melee attacker with the goal of knocking down the tank. Additional Turns They will repeat the same as above if possible. The Swordsman will drop back and power up again while the other two do their best to draw the party's attention. They will continue with this pattern for as long as they are able. Closing the Fight They too are afraid of Ebonie and will fight to the death.

Inside the Garage

First floor

This is a large open space that has expensive and rare cars parked within it. There is a motor cycle parked here as well, but it looks out of place.

Second Floor

The upstairs is obviously set up to be a guest apartment. There is evidence that someone has recently been staying here.

The Kitchen Table

The table has smoldering embers spread out onto in to mark out a circle and in the center of the circle and the table there is a fire. However, the table is not burning and there is no sensation of heat. It gives off a comfortable, yellow light.

The Kitchen Counter

On the counter there is a cutting board along with a large butcher knife. There are bones that have been mostly stripped of there meat. They look like ribs. A DC 15 Arcana check will reveal that the bones are the ribs from a young dragon. There is dried blood on the counter and on the floor.

The Library

In the corner of the library there is a magical bubble that is a 10 foot sphere. It looks like it is made of soap, but if touched it feels like glass. Looking at the surface while touching it will reveal images of several offices within the Shadow Investigations Unit Headquarters. The party is pretty certain that one of them is Kamil's old office. If they check the books on the shelves, they find that they are all meaningless props. There are a few out on the desk that are written in Drow that are genuine books. One is Ebonie's notebook. Another is a sketch book where she has been drawing dragon anatomy. The third book is on herbalism.

The Small Bedroom

There is nothing to find here. If the party looks around, they will find no evidence that anyone has been staying in this room.

The Utility Room

There is blood smeared across the top of the table. If they do any kind of investigation of the blood, they can see that it looks like someone made a pathetic attempt to wipe the blood up with an apron that they discarded on the floor beneath the table. There is another apron that is also covered in blood. This one looks as if it was worn while someone was engaged in bloody work. It appears to have fallen from the hook on the wall and now lays on the floor.

The Large Bedroom

The bed is made, but it sloppy and haphazard. There is women's clothing in the chest at the foot of the bed. There are women's clothing in the closet, but these all appear to be new and there is even a box in the corner of clothing that is still in the packaging. In the bathroom there are toiletries and if they check the tub, there is a faint ring of blood as well as blood at the drain. It is apparent that someone washed a good amount of blood off themselves here.

Notes About the Apartment

Ebonie has been staying here since she escaped from the Gnolls. She is aware that there is now a bounty on her head within the Shadow Kind community and she doesn't trust the other Shadow Kind in the Shadow Investigation Unit not to betray her. Franz values her research, so her tolerates her paranoia (not realizing that she in fact has an accurate view of things). Regardless of how much time has passed since her escape, this is where she has been.

Combat in the Garage

There is no encounter set up for the garage. However, if the party easily handled the Elite group outside and it is felt that they need an additional challenge, another Elite group could attack them while they are searching this building. An attack can also be used if the party gets too focused or stuck on what is going on in the apartment. Lastly, it can be used to fill in time if the session has been progressing quickly. If you use another elite group, do not use an elite Elite Demolitionist inside the building. Use the other three with the Elite Demolitionist in reserve to catch them unaware when they leave the building.

Inside the Mansion

The First Floor

There is nothing of importance for them to find in way of items/treasure in the house. This is not where Franz keeps his treasures or his secrets. If the party was able to circumvent the cameras, they will fight the Elites inside the building. In which case, do not use the Elite Demolitionist inside. If it is felt that a fourth opponent is required to be of adequate challenge, use another copy of one of the other Elites. If the party does not make any effort to sneak through the house, then the Elite group will encounter them almost immediately. Other wise, have them roll stealth checks and have them discovered if the Elites perceive them. If the party is good at stealth and is careful and thoughtful while moving through the house, there is no reason that they couldn't by pass the Elite group. If they do so, consider them effectively defeated. There is also the option of having them join into the Franz attack, if needed.

In the Office

Behind the bookshelves next to the desk, there is a secret door. DC 15 Investigation to find the secret door if they search the room. If they do not find this, there is nothing lost to the plot of the story. This here leads them to the basement where there is more fun story, but none of that story or those encounters are required to continue with the quest at hand. So, don't worry about it if they don't find this door. However, if you would really like them to make it down into the basement, then you can make a smear of blood on the book case noticed to a passive perception of 15 or more. This will likely lead them to looking at the book case more.

The Second Floor

Private Sanctum

Franz's bedroom is protected by Private Sanctum.

Franz

Franz is inside the room with the blue bed and if the party isn't trying to be quiet when they come up the stairs, he will come out to see what the noise is. His security (the Elite team) have informed him that there are trespassers so he isn't going out there completely recklessly. How he responds to the party will largely depend on what they do. He will ask they what they want. He will give them money and be happy to let them leave. He doesn't like bothering himself with fighting if he can help it, that's what having money is for. However, he will fight the party if they attack him or if they are not sociable in their conversation. If they are entertaining, he might even invite them to sit on the white couches where he will attempt to poison them. DC 15 CON checks or they become poisoned. At which point it will become obvious what he has done and a combat is sure to result.

Strategy for Combat

He will ensure that he always has several Hell Hounds out to assist him in combat. But not more then 10 at one time. These mobs are essential for ensuring that he gets his death pool points. He will instruct the hell hounds to attack the rear party and support characters. Any obvious healers will be the primary target for the hell hounds. Franz will focus on the leading melee with the goal of knocking down the tank. Ensure that he is using his legendary actions every round. He will use tactical edge once and movement once he has his hell hounds out. Ending the Combat If he is defeated, he will use his Feign Death Implant, if possible. He will do his best to trick the party into leaving so that he can survive the encounter. If he wins, he does not kill the party. Rather, they will wake up in the basement under the care of Ebonie as her newest test subjects. They will then be faced with the challenge of escaping.

The Basement

Coming by the Stairs

The party is free and can explore the area.

Coming by Defeat

They will wake with none of their equipment. They will be chained to the wall and Ebonie will be no where in sight. There is a young red dragon imprisoned here as well. He is struggling to hold onto his sanity, but he is willing to help the party if they are willing to kill him. Their belongings have been stashed in the ante chamber prior to coming into the lab, so the party need only make it out of the room to get their belongings back.

Northern Room

This room is the security room where the cameras are being monitored and where the data for the dragon project is being processed. This is one of the main computers where Ebonie keeps her research data. If the party hacks into this computer, they can gain access to the computers and they can get into Ebonie's research. However, they will need to beat her computer use skill check of 38. Keep in mind that the players will need appropriate tools for hacking and storing data if they attempt to download anything. The Trap The computer is trapped. A perception check DC 25 will alert the player that there is something unusual about the computer while an investigation check DC 25 will reveal that there is a trap. Trying to remove the hard drive from the computer without disarming the trap will cause electricity to burst through the computer and to hit any creature within 5 feet of the computer causing 10d6 lightning damage DEX save DC 19 for half damage. A player can attempt to disarm the trap by making a DEX check. If they are proficient with thieves tools and have them to use, they can add their proficiency bonus to the roll. Disarming the trap is DC 20. Failing results in setting off the trap. The Nerds There are 4 nerds working in this room when the players arrive. They will offer no resistance and will follow the instructions that they are given. Other then that they will not readily give them access to the computer. In order to convince them, the players will need to either intimidate or persuade them in a manner that will supersede their fear of Ebonie, this DC is 20. If they are convinced, they will log into the computer and allow the players to access the system. The Computer Files All of Ebonie's research notes are written in a mixture of languages in order to further protect the information. Each entry is written using Common, Draconic, Drow, Elvish, English, Infernal, and Undercommon with each sentence changing to another language. Thus, a person would need to know all of these languages or would need to employ translators in order to be able to read her notes. The Research Should her research notes be translated, they lay out how she has been collecting the blood and tissues of red dragons in order to create half dragons. She outlines numerous methods that she has attempted and according to her notes she has thus far been unsuccessful in converting a normal humanoid into a half dragon. She has been able to augment the powers of half dragons by exposing them to the blood of red dragons and with an elixir made from ground dragon bones and dragon brain. She believes that the type of dragon must be the same blood line. Her notes describe how she has used wyrmlings and young dragons as her test subjects since they are more easily controlled. She has been collecting samples from them aggressively and then healing them as needed. She has even been revivifying them if they should die while she is actively working on them. These dragons are disposed of if her healing efforts fail or if they get too aggressive or become too insane.

Southern Room

In this room, Ebonie has been keeping a Enhanced Gelatinous Cubewhich she has been using to dispose of her research waste. This includes any dead specimens and any supplies that are no longer needed. This creature was itself an experiment that she found useful and thus has kept. This creature also serves as a trap. There is a chance that the players will not have a high enough perception and thus not see that it is there. This means that it is likely that they will just walk into it.

Western Room

This area is where Ebonie conducts her red dragon research. There is an antechamber that she uses for additional security by setting alarms in the room. She has Mordenkainen’s Faithful Hound cast just outside the door so that no one would be able to enter without her be alerted to their presence. Ebonie is present in the research lab when the party arrives. She will not immediately attack them. Instead, she will attempt to position herself so that she can get to an exit. In the northern wall, she has created herself an exit plan. Behind the stone wall, there is a shaft that leads up to the surface. With the use of her stone shape spell, she can melt away the wall hiding the shaft and then cast fly on herself so that she can fly up and out of the research lab. Ebonie's Fight Strategy *She starts the fight with 5 tiny servants out and her homunculus servant out. (They help her with her research work) She will use them to attack the party. If the players block her exit or attack her, she will fight with them until she is at 50% her hit points. At that point she will aggressively seek an exit. Having faced the players before, she is familiar with them and will use that to her advantage. She will cast fly to stay out of melee range while she lays intense magical attacks onto the healer. If the party retreats, she will take advantage of that to escape. Her spell priority: Fly (get out of melee range), Flaming Sphere 3 (to get an area of effect going), Cloud Kill (she is immune to poison so this gives her a second area of effect), Animate Objects (5 small) and then she will start hitting the healer with her ray of sickness 4. The party beat her before, so she considers them a significant threat and thus will unload her large spells first. The Dragons There are two dragons in the lab, but they are currently under the effect of a sleep spell. This is being projected into the room by a crystal by the door. If the players touch this crystal or the dragons, they will wake the dragons. Neither dragon will attempt to harm them immediately unless they are attacked. In the middle of the room is a young red dragon (large). The large dragon will request that the players kill them (both the dragons) so they no longer need suffer Ebonie's torture. If the players refuse, the large dragon will attack them in an effort to force their hand. However, this dragon is not intended to be a real threat, but rather a story element. He is chained to the floor and thus has disadvantage to attack anyone. The chain is long enough that he can move around the room, but it is heavy and impedes his movement magically. He does not have his fire breath and cannot recharge it due to Ebonie having removed his fire organs. He is at 1/4 his hit points (45). A persuasion DC 15 will convince the dragon to stop attacking the players. In the north west corner, in a cage, there is a red dragon wyrmling (medium). The medium dragon will request to be released and will kill the larger dragon if released. Other then that, the medium dragon will not be aggressive. The key to the lock on his cage is on the table with all of Ebonie's tools at the north end of the room. It can be picked with DC 15. The medium dragon will go with the players if they let it. If this happens, the dragon will be "collected" from the players by Arvindand he will ensure that he will take care of it. The players will not see this dragon again. The dragons protect their young ones jealously because their species is rare in the Mundane World.