Lairs/monster groups, when reinforce?

[garhkal]

Ok, so in my group, they've made several dents into a large Orc war party (3 of 4 patrols) but it's been almost 7 months SINCE they last encountered them. So would it be reasonable to see their #s swelled back UP cause of the time delay? OR would the remaining orcs have 'done a runner"?
What of a large Orog camp, that's been left be for going on 6 months? 2 of their 5 patrols were taken out, but the last one had survivors who went back to camp to tell on what the adventurers did.. By the time the pcs get back up there, is it logical that those losses would have been replaced?

How long do YOU wait before you 'restock' losses caused by hit and run attacks, when the group doing the H&RA have left for a while?

[Cole]

Orcs breed way faster than you'd think. I had to do a detailed research project on that specific race for my new realm. I'll give you this link to read on;

http://www.padnd.com/arkuth/races_orcs.php

Conception to birth is only 6 months. They may acquire numbers other ways to, but if some of those orclings were around the first time they raided, they would be youth now and able to fight at least. 6 years to full maturity. The young orcs will definitely fight but may throw a moral dilemma at yer PC's. it would be like murdering 5 year old boy humans.

They also could have replenished their ranks easy if another orc war band was within a 50 miles.

[garhkal]

Well, it was a orc war-band who traveled without their women folk/younglings, westward for a while, before turning south, towards a large lake in the center of the continent, THEN they turned eastward, so they could skirt all the human patrolled lands as well as the Elf forest..

[Cole]

They are probably S.O.L. then

[garhkal]

For a few months since, i'd agree, but its been 7 months so far, and at the rate the party's going, i predict its going to be another 3-4 months before they get there. At which time i feel the Orc war-band either disbanded and went home OR got reinforcements..

[Halaster-Blackcloak]

I'd say it depends on the intelligence of the monsters. More intelligent monsters would realize the tactics being used against them and therefore either send overwhelming numbers of reinforcements or plan a sneak attack against the PCs. They may even use scorched earth strategy and booby trap everything, poison the water, send in rabid animals, etc.

With orcs (average INT) and especially orogs (high INT), they would have a double advantage. First, they're intelligent enough to at least try outwitting the PCs. Second, they have such a fast reproduction rate and there are so many of them, they can afford massive losses in wave attacks. I would say the orogs would gather a massive force in those 7-12 months, along with more powerful allies (if they can arrange that) and plan some ambushes and what not.