Winds of Chaos

I plan to have my party's elf getting attacked by something like a carrion, next time she does her levitation spell.

How would I go about this?

Generally, levitation is not flying. You just rise above the ground, but cannot swoop or move otherwise. This would give the much more mobile carrion an advantage in combat. But it depends on whether the elf levitated before, and what you allowed then. Does the elf have a bow? That would give him long range weapons which the carrion doesn't have. Is the elf able to turn around when levitating? If not, the carrion can attack from behind, where the elf cannot shoot at him.

You could give the carrion some sort of ranged weaponry; it could take some rocks in its claws, and release them when it is flying above the elf. Since levitation only allows for upward and downward movement, they would be difficult to avoid.

Another kind of attack: do the carrion wings displace much air? The creature could use that to create a gust of wind that blows the elf away.

Further, I don't know the exact rules - does the elf need to concentrate to keep levitating? Repeated attacks from the carrion might make him lose that concentration ...


But another question: why is the carrion attacking the elf? Pure evilness? Is it hungry? Is it controlled by a necromancer? Its motive will determine how eager it is to fight something that can hurt him with arrows or a sword.

give the limited rules regarding movement, why bother with a flying enemy when you could give a couple enemies slings which inflict stun. since stun precludes the ability to take actions and you are required to take a flght action on your turn not to fall out of the sky. if you're worried you'll kill the elf you can just have some upset birds try to drive him off for flying in their territory.......

More detail:
The party is on board a River Liner and investigating two gruesome murders committed during the voyage (I'm going for a Orient Express- feel).
The High Elf wizard of the party wants to cast a fly spell to scout out the exterior of the great ship.
Whilst in the air I want him to be attacked be the winged Tzeentch puppet of the real culprit (a mutated puppeteer) who is hiding in the crowsnest.

I want to put the Elf in a dangerous situation, where she will have to grabble with this carrion-like puppet mid-air, rush down to the deck and land, or plummet to the deck or river.

Oh, okay. that's easy enough, there's not really Rules specifically for flying so if the puppet can fly then it just needs to be faster than the elf's spell or start in a position it can intercept. Depending on how you want to read it, the Entangled condition caused by grappling may make the elf fall out of the sky itself.

Yes! Thanks! An all or nothing grabble in the sky, high above deck, will be dramatic. I will try it tonight.

It went splendidly! I ended up making a normal opposed brawling test, as the flying puppet assailed the flying elf. Then I followed with an opposed strength test.
The elf escaped the clutches of the puppet and made for the deck, only to be accidentally hit in the head by a slinged stone from the party's hunter. She crash-landed on the deck in a very non-graceful and distinctly un-elvish fashion. But survived.
The players loved it