Challenging My Players

[Chi Chio]

In my Jadeclaw campaign, I run with 3 other of my friends, I'm having a hard time challenging them.

One of them is a Tiger thief that has such incredibly high stealth because he has overlapped many of his stealth skills with racial stealth skills and other stealth skills he's increased. He basically can sneak past almost anything in the game.

Another one of them is a Porcupine smuggler that has such high persuasion skills etc., that he could literally convince someone to kill themselves or make him a king.

The other one is a Lynx warrior with the best physical combat skills possible for a newer character.

Each of these players are ubers in their respected area's but fail dramatically at almost all others. They closely cover each other's backs and have the best person for each situation participate.

I'm not saying this is really bad, there are some ways I could think of challenging them, except these methods are a tad cruel, and they already often feel as if I'm not on their side.

Can anyone think of some ways I could challenge them?

[Luke Lavin]

Well if you want to challenge them I'd say have them run into a witch or whatever that casts a spell on them that causes their stats to go down by 25% or 50% and then hit them with some meatgrinder stuff.

[kalabar]

:well with the high speed guy...use that to your advantage, like if hes running at you, just before he gets to you throw some thing at  him or stab him like a shishcabob...or bind him to the floor with something, with the guy that is spactacular in hand to hand combat...block his attacks till he gets tired and the fight him...and the last one im not sure...just use there abillities against them

[Magus]

If you ask me, YOUR SCREWED! You let these guys become way to powerfull, you should only let you players become as powerfull as you can handel them becoming. But, i can save you.
Have you read ria's new thread on the nemesses. You can use something like that except with a winnable situation. You can have the players battle underwater. LASTLY! the biggest one, MAKE A QUEST THAT DOES NOT INVOLVE COMBAT! ive added my two cents.

[MoonHunter]

While I am loathe to admit it, Magnus is right.  This problem came not from experience, but from character creation.  GM's need to keep tight reigns on characters in character creation. That way you don't have issues like this.  

To be honest, most problems most GMs encounter come from not being in control of character development, making sure they characters fit the campaign, can work together, and are of a powerlevel appropriate for the campaign. All the effort you invest in the begining pays you back in lack of campaigns issues.  

Now for our GM Magic less for the day

Repeat the magic mantra of GM control until the problem is banished.

"While your character is perfectly legal, I do not feel comfortable with it for this campaign.  Can you please create a character without XXX" (in your case dice of X in something).  "

Repeat until the player gets the idea or creates some new monsterous character that needs to be banished.  

The known variation on this...

"While your character is perfectly legal, it does not fit within the story and spirit of the campaign. Can you please try something...."

See the idea?

[Andimia]

what about complex traps? or, like in a campaign that my cousin ran there was a hallway filled with mirrors on the walls, floor and cieling, what the PC's didn't know was if you talked, an exact replica of them would jump out of the mirror and attack. Always makes things interesting.

[Incarnadine]

Easiest way I've found:

Me: Well, looks like you'll have to split up...

Characters: Oh dear. Maybe we shouldn't have powergamed.

Teaches them a lesson they won't soon forget.