This week, we’ll learn how to run DnD aerial encounters. Up amongst the clouds, chaos reigns as a group of griffon-riding invaders try to conquer the mighty flying city of the cloud giants.
Background
In these DnD aerial encounters, a large floating city of the cloud giants (name suggestion: Skydomain) is a magical marvel. It can fly through the air, generates its own water supply, and is bristling with powerful weapons. The cloud giants don’t much care for the squabbles of the folk on the ground, but an empire has realized that the city would make an incredible tool to conquer their enemies.
The players, however they end up in aerial combat, are in the midst of the chaos trying to take care of a critical issue far, far in the air.
Situation
The players are battling in the skies above the flying city—2,000 feet above the city and 3 miles above the ground, to be specific. Determine how they’re in the air. If they have a wizard in the group that can cast fly, the wizard can simply cast that on the party. If the group doesn’t have access to such abilities, perhaps whichever side they’re on grants them animals they can ride upon (giant eagles work thematically for either side).
The battle is in the air, where the intense magical winds interfere with characters falling. At the start of a character’s turn, they fall 400 feet, unless they try to descend as quickly as possible by diving, in which case they descend at 500 feet on their turn.
Goals
Goals
There are 2 main parties interested in the flying city:
- The cloud giants want to defend their flying city.
- The empire wants to conquer the city for their own ends.
Using These Encounters
What do your player characters want? What are their best and worst qualities? What goals are they pursuing? Read through a few of the examples below, then choose the encounter that best suits your situation.
- If you have player characters who are in need of a powerful weapon, run Encounter A. If, on the other hand, they need to stop an enemy from seizing power, run Encounter B.
- If you have player characters who want to gain political or social favor with a powerful government faction, run Encounter A. If you have player characters who want to uphold vows made to allies, run Encounter B.
- If you have player characters who are trapped between two enemy factions, run Encounter C.
If the player characters are working to remove a major asset from the playing field, run Encounter C.
NOTE
Because these encounters take place high in the sky, no map is provided—we tend to run these types of encounters theater of the mind style. The challenge of navigation comes from plummeting hundreds of feet at a time. If you want something more challenging, or your players have particularly successful means of flight, feel free to add in flying chunks of masonry, whirlwinds, or giant magical fans that support the city to make the terrain more exciting.
Encounter A
In this encounter, the players side with the empire and try to conquer the city.
How to Set Up This Aerial Encounter
This encounter involves an attempt to conquer the city. There is a magical wind repelling most invaders, but the players can slip through and try to deactivate it if possible.
If you have player characters who are in need of a powerful weapon, then the city is bristling with powerful weaponry. Huge cannons shoot bursts of compressed air, designed to blast flying enemies from the sky and disorient them. On Initiative Count 20, losing ties, a character is targeted by the magic defense system. That character must succeed on a DC 18 Dexterity saving throw or take 3d6 bludgeoning damage and lose all flying speeds until the end of their next turn.
2,000 feet below, a magical crystal orb 5 feet in diameter is creating gusts of wind that keep most of the empire’s forces at bay. If the party can reach it, they can deactivate it as an action, and the defensive barrier will fall.If you have player characters looking to gain political or social favor with a powerful government faction, then they are likely supplied with griffons in combat to help them fly. The griffons don’t attack, but on a player’s turn, they may urge the griffon to move up to its speed without expending an action.
Flying Rules Reference
- The party needs some form of flight to stay aloft. Either they’ve captured some flying creatures or the wizard can sling a few fly spells.
- If you start your turn without flight, you plummet 400 feet. If you want to dive, that speeds up to 500 feet.
- If you aren’t diving, you can move up to 50 feet for every 400 you fall.
Action!
The party is faced with one cloud giant and three air elementals. The cloud giant has a flying speed of 60 feet from the fly spell his cloak grants him (which also lets him avoid the need to concentrate on the spell). The giant is trying to keep the player characters from attacking the city. He’s also keeping a few large rocks in a satchel in case he needs them.
How to Resolve This Aerial Encounter
When this encounter finishes, your players who are in need of a powerful weapon now control the city itself. It’s a flying fortress armed with powerful magical weapons, letting the players use it for whatever they need. How does the government faction feel about If your players wanted to gain political or social favor with a powerful government faction, the faction in question is likely grateful for the party’s assistance in conquering the city. They can provide aid, the power the city provides, or valuable resources and information.
Encounter B
In this encounter, the players side with the cloud giants to defend the city.
How to Set Up This Aerial Encounter
This encounter involves preventing invading forces from accessing a powerful arcane ward. 2,000 feet below, a magical crystal orb 5 feet in diameter is creating gusts of wind that keep most of the empire’s forces at bay. If the enemies can reach it, they can deactivate it as an action, and the defensive barrier will fall.
If the party wants to stop an enemy from seizing power, then the attackers are agents of an enemy. Consider changing the griffon riders to a more appropriate CR 3 enemy based on their ruler. A necromancer could send wights, a lycanthrope could send werewolves, or a devil-cultists could send bearded devils.If the party wants to uphold vows made to allies, then the giants are calling upon promises made. The party gains a flying speed equal to their walking speed from the magic the giants provide them, blown about by gusts of wind.
Action!
Flying Rules Reference
- The party needs some form of flight to stay aloft. Either they’ve captured some flying creatures or the wizard can sling a few fly spells.
- If you start your turn without flight, you plummet 400 feet. If you want to dive, that speeds up to 500 feet.
- If you aren’t diving, you can move up to 50 feet for every 400 you fall.
The party faces 5 griffons, and astride each one is a veteran. The enemies are attempting to reach the arcane ward on ground level, which mostly entails a wild plunge down towards the city below, no flying required. If any of the veterans uses an action while adjacent to the orb, the wards fall and waves of veterans, soldiers, griffons, and perhaps even a few iron golems are dropped into the city.
How to Resolve This Aerial Encounter
If the party wants to stop an enemy from seizing power, then they’ve hopefully repelled the threat and kept the city in the hands of the giants. That said, this goal could very easily fail. What happens if the enemy controls a flying city? What do they plan to do with it?If the party wants to uphold vows made to allies, then the giants likely consider they’ve fulfilled their oath. Depending on the specifics, they may provide gifts to the party out of thanks or they may simply call the promise kept and stop there.
Encounter C
In this encounter, the players try to deactivate the city and plunge it out of the sky.
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