Well... this isn't a pickup group of teenagers -- my players have been in this campaign for almost thirty years. (Well, except for Nina, who's only 19, and Tiffany, who's both a new player and in her 20s.) They trust me, and I'm worthy of their trust. They know that I'm not going to screw them over, and they won't react to the party getting knocked out as me being an asshole to them. They're also very used to reality trumping what the rules say when it makes for a better adventure. They'll know it's part of a bigger story where they will eventually get to kick epic ass, and they aren't so immature as to throw a fit because someone found a hole in their defenses.
(And it is a hole, literally -- Leomund's Secure Shelter, which they've used on overland travels for 25 years or more of playing, isn't air-tight. I've unintentionally given them a couple hints along those lines in the last few sessions, with their horses smelling a dragon, and griffons smelling them, and it's about time a clever opponent used it against them. Which is why I've decided that I will be going with the aerosolized knock-out drug.)
Plus, approaching them like that breaks immersion, as well as acts as a spoiler. They'd rather have the surprise and the drama.
(And it is a hole, literally -- Leomund's Secure Shelter, which they've used on overland travels for 25 years or more of playing, isn't air-tight. I've unintentionally given them a couple hints along those lines in the last few sessions, with their horses smelling a dragon, and griffons smelling them, and it's about time a clever opponent used it against them. Which is why I've decided that I will be going with the aerosolized knock-out drug.)
Plus, approaching them like that breaks immersion, as well as acts as a spoiler. They'd rather have the surprise and the drama.
-- Bob
I have been Roland, Beowulf, Achilles, Gilgamesh, Clark Kent, Mary Sue, DJ Croft, Skysaber. I have been
called a hundred names and will be called a thousand more before the sun grows dim and cold....
I have been Roland, Beowulf, Achilles, Gilgamesh, Clark Kent, Mary Sue, DJ Croft, Skysaber. I have been
called a hundred names and will be called a thousand more before the sun grows dim and cold....