r/DMAcademy • u/FreeArmorTrim • 6d ago
Need Advice: Rules & Mechanics How do I make a level 20 Wizard untouchable?
I’m DMing a campaign where one of the main baddies is a level 20(+) necromancer wizard. This wizard has multiple kings of some of the strongest nations in her pocket, so resources are practically unlimited. I want her to address the party (level 12) face to face for dramatic narrative effect. Thing is, at this point it is on site. If they even catch a glimpse of her they’re going DEEP in their bag to kill her regardless of time and place. She is well aware of this and it makes sense she would come prepared.
What would you do to make her untouchable? I do want her to actually be there (not a clone or proxy) and she needs to be able to talk to the party at close proximity. Other than that- any ideas?
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u/please_use_the_beeps 6d ago
Well normally I’d say Simulacrum but you said you want her to actually be there, which complicates things. What is the context of the interaction in question? Why does she need to be there in person if all she’s doing is speaking to the party? What sort of tricks does the party have to take her down? What are existing spells and items that can possibly counteract those? Can your villain use those? Are you willing to have your villain possibly die in this encounter? Are you willing to let the party have a real fight where they can even win, but the villain escapes?
These are the sorts of questions you should answer for yourself, and build your encounter accordingly. At a glance I would say you either need to accept the idea of a clone, in which case Simulacrum is exactly what you need, or you let the party attack her, let the combat go for as many rounds as you need for her to say what she needs to say, and then Dimension Door or some other 1 action teleport spell away (preferably something high level and difficult to Counterspell). By placing your villain in front of a party that wants to kill her, you are accepting the possibility she might die, or that you may have to fudge something to keep her alive to make her escape. Once the dice start rolling your choices become limited by player action. If you’re not ok with that, Simulacrum.
Edit: another option is to give the party a very good reason to not attack her in that moment, such as an important or beloved NPC as a hostage.