Normally I like having bosses at the end of my dungeons but I can't think of any to add so I've asked you guys what would be a good boss monster at the end of a dungeon?
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"Life is not a problem to be solved but a reality to be experienced"- Soren Kierkgaard
Could you maybe give us a bit more detail? What level are the players, what kind of dungeon is it? If they're a natural cave, what climate? If they're ruins, what were they used for?
1st level limits things a bit. I’d probably go with a shadow, accompanied by one skeleton for each PC beyond three.
If the PCs have demonstrated an ability to punch above their weight class, I’d maximize the shadow’s HP and add another skeleton or two beyond what was mentioned before.
One thing to remember when designing boss encounters is the Action Economy. In short, in encounters with more or less equal power level between the players and the monsters, the winner is almost always going to be whoever has the most turns. If you let the players fight a monster with CR 1, the players will win (unless they roll really bad) because they can hit the monster more often than the monster can hit them.
Normally I like having bosses at the end of my dungeons but I can't think of any to add so I've asked you guys what would be a good boss monster at the end of a dungeon?
"Life is not a problem to be solved but a reality to be experienced"- Soren Kierkgaard
Could you maybe give us a bit more detail? What level are the players, what kind of dungeon is it? If they're a natural cave, what climate? If they're ruins, what were they used for?
The players are 1st level and the dungeon is an abandoned tomb.
"Life is not a problem to be solved but a reality to be experienced"- Soren Kierkgaard
1st level limits things a bit. I’d probably go with a shadow, accompanied by one skeleton for each PC beyond three.
If the PCs have demonstrated an ability to punch above their weight class, I’d maximize the shadow’s HP and add another skeleton or two beyond what was mentioned before.
One thing to remember when designing boss encounters is the Action Economy. In short, in encounters with more or less equal power level between the players and the monsters, the winner is almost always going to be whoever has the most turns. If you let the players fight a monster with CR 1, the players will win (unless they roll really bad) because they can hit the monster more often than the monster can hit them.
With that, a couple monsters I can imagine are Stone Cursed, Strahd Zombie accompanied by a couple normal zombies or a Damaged Flesh Golem
I'm currently running a combat encounter with a boss as a powerful specter that I added attacks to and increased its challenge rating.
My bosses usually include medusas, Yuan-ti abominations, or a Mind Flayer.