Hiya! I am a first time DM and I'm running a mini campaign to dip my toes in the water. I want to build a lich as my main BBEG as a sort of "second phase lore wrap up" character.
I love liches but I wanted this one to be a bit custom and a nod to a PC I play in a campaign we're all in (even the DM is there for it). He is a cleric and while I know it's *possible* clerics can become liches, it's unlikely. The reasoning is not important but I'm a bit confused on what direction to take building this monster sheet because the lich sheets are all technically wizards. I was thinking about making a level 18 cleric sheet as if it were my PC/Lich and then add the additional lich bonuses to it instead of the typical cleric features.
Swapping the lich's spells is probably fine, but you could also try a mummy lord. Powerful intelligent undead spellcaster, but with cleric spells and some more distinctive tricks; they seem intended to be the "cleric lich," just like a lichen lich is kind of a "druid lich." They're a good bit lower on CR than the standard lich-lich (15/16 vs. 21/22 depending on lair), but if you need something comparable in power, you can always add some higher-level spells and crank up the hit points and AC. If it's for a combat encounter, you could also just give him more powerful henchmen or a dangerous mount or something.
Hiya! I am a first time DM and I'm running a mini campaign to dip my toes in the water. I want to build a lich as my main BBEG as a sort of "second phase lore wrap up" character.
I love liches but I wanted this one to be a bit custom and a nod to a PC I play in a campaign we're all in (even the DM is there for it). He is a cleric and while I know it's *possible* clerics can become liches, it's unlikely. The reasoning is not important but I'm a bit confused on what direction to take building this monster sheet because the lich sheets are all technically wizards. I was thinking about making a level 18 cleric sheet as if it were my PC/Lich and then add the additional lich bonuses to it instead of the typical cleric features.
Any advice would be so helpful!
The easiest answer is to just take the lich monster stat block, and then just swap out the spells for whatever cleric spells you want it to have.
Swapping the lich's spells is probably fine, but you could also try a mummy lord. Powerful intelligent undead spellcaster, but with cleric spells and some more distinctive tricks; they seem intended to be the "cleric lich," just like a lichen lich is kind of a "druid lich." They're a good bit lower on CR than the standard lich-lich (15/16 vs. 21/22 depending on lair), but if you need something comparable in power, you can always add some higher-level spells and crank up the hit points and AC. If it's for a combat encounter, you could also just give him more powerful henchmen or a dangerous mount or something.
Medium humanoid (human), lawful neutral