Buffing the 4e Lich
I recently ran a group through an encounter involving a lich, and found them grossly underpowered. Their lack of a melee attack renders them weak in the face of a single 15th lvl fighter, let alone a full party. To make up for this likely accidental shortcoming, here are some powers that beef up the 4e lich.
Fear Aura (psychic) 
Aura 3
Any creature beginning its turn in the aura takes 5 damage and is immobilized (save ends).
Necrotic Touch (necrotic) At-Will
Attack: Melee 1 (one creature) +15 vs. Fortitude
Hit: 2d6 +5 necrotic damage, and the creature is dazed until the end of the lich’s next turn
Dominate the Living (psychic) Minor Recharge 
Attack: One living creature within close burst 10, +15 vs. Will
Effect: The lich dominates one living creature (save ends).
These effects provide the lich with plenty of up-close-and-personal, up-in-your-Kool-Aid power that will make your players truly fear an encounter with this granddaddy of the undead. Feel free to adjust the numbers to make an appropriately-powered lich for your encounters.
Update: after writing a draft of this post, Scott Murray of Save Versus Death pointed me to the Monster Vault, which includes a number of improved variants of classic creatures that seemed underwhelming in 4e. The Lich Necromancer on page 183 takes on similar traits, as well as added ranged attacks and movement.
Happy player hunting!
Posted in 4th edition Dungeons & Dragons, Creature by Adam A. Thompson with no comments yet.
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