D&D 4E The 4e Solo Thread

[MENTION=1165](Psi)SeveredHead[/MENTION]
Wow, that's a great list of ideas, and some very creative ways of making action economy not work against solos. Some of them, like downgrading dazed to 10 damage and grant combat advantage, seem like they rob the players of some of their agency. For example, one of the main used of dazed is to prevent opportunity attacks / immediate actions.
[MENTION=6696971]Manbearcat[/MENTION]
Totally agree that the lair needs a lot of thought in a solo fight. Your guidelines are a great place to start, and compliment the role/terrain pairing tips in the DMG nicely.

Note: Most of what I put down isn't mine.

Another good solo trick- sorry if someone else has mentioned it, I'm a bit fuzzy headed this morning - is to design them with a way to interact with a steady stream of minions. I think there's a particularly good example in the Dark Sun creature book, but it's at my girlfriend's house and I'm not, so I couldn't tell you which sorcerer-king it is.

But here's an example of that from my own design work- converted from the 3e MM5 IIRC- including the accompanying minion type. This is a much lower level solo than the others I've posted so far.

Hmm, this is yet another solo I designed with all at will attacks- she's just about dishing out tons of damage, and she can do it every round. And with her ability to incite attacks from her minions at range... I guess I'm satisfied with her. I haven't actually run her in a game, though.

Clearly I need to post a more interesting, less all-at-will-attacking solo to this thread.

Howler Wasp Queen --- Level 3 Solo Brute (Leader)
Large fey beast (insect) --- XP 750
HP 232; Bloodied 116 Initiative +1
AC 15; Fortitude 18; Reflex 13; Will 15 Perception +2
Speed 5
Saving Throws +5; Action Points 2

TRAITS

Pheremones of the Queen * Aura 3

If the howler wasp queen is stunned, dazed or dominated at the start of its turn, each of its insect allies in the aura makes a basic attack as a free action.

STANDARD ACTIONS

(mbasic) Bite * At Will
Attack: Melee 1 (one creature); +8 vs. AC.
Hit: 2d8+4 damage.
Effect: If the howler wasp queen is bloodied, it makes the attack a second time.

(melee) Sting of the Queen (poison) * At Will
Attack: Melee 1 (one creature); +6 vs. Fortitude.
Hit: 1d12+4 poison damage, plus ongoing 5 poison and the target is slowed (save ends both).

MINOR ACTIONS

(melee) Claw * At Will
Attack: Melee 1 (one creature); +8 vs. AC.
Hit: 2d6+6 damage.

(ranged) Inciting Pheremone * At Will
Attack: Range 10 (one creature); +6 vs. Reflex. This attack does not trigger opportunity attacks.
Hit: One 3rd or lower level insect ally of the howler wasp queen adjacent to the target makes a basic attack against it as a free action. It gets a +2 bonus to its attack roll and a +3 bonus to its damage.

TRIGGERED ACTIONS

Serve the Hive * At Will
Trigger: The howler wasp queen starts its turn and there are less than three howler wasps within 20 squares.
Effect (No Action): Three howler wasps appear within 20 squares of the queen. They act immediately following the queen. The first five of these wasps do not add to the experience point value of the encounter.
---
Str 18 Dex 11 Wis 13
Con 18 Int 6 Cha 8
Alignment unaligned Languages -


Howler Wasp --- Level 3 Minion Skirmisher (Leader)
Small fey beast (insect) --- XP 38
HP 1; a missed attack never damages a minion Initiative +6
AC 17; Fortitude 15; Reflex 17; Will 13 Perception +2
Speed 3, fly 10

STANDARD ACTIONS

(mbasic) Sting (poison) * At Will
Attack: Melee 1 (one creature); +8 vs. AC.
Hit: 4 poison damage.
Effect: The howler wasp shifts 2 squares.

TRIGGERED ACTIONS

(close) Pheremone Squirt * Encounter
Trigger: The howler wasp is reduced to 0 hit points.
Attack (No Action): Close blast 2 (the creature that slew the wasp); +6 vs. Reflex.
Hit: The target is doused in pheremones (save ends). While it is doused in pheremones, howler wasps gain a +2 bonus on attacks and damage against the target.
---
Str 8 Dex 17 Wis 13
Con 13 Int 3 Cha 6
Alignment unaligned Languages -

Okay, here's one that was really fun in play, made the pcs work a bit and really lived up to his name- he was quite vexing to fight. He's full of Devil's choices- "Oh, do I want to get screwed in way A or in way B?"

Note that, while at first glance his damage seems a touch low (averaging 17), in practice, he'll almost always have combat advantage, bringing his average up to 27. I think his non-CA damage is reasonable in this light, and in practice, he did indeed almost always have combat advantage when he attacked (often giving up one minor action per round to get it). Not quite always, though.

Lurpask remains one of the most fun solos I've run. He was truly solo, too, with only a couple of nearby one-shot traps (essentially minion traps) to aid him.

Lurpask, Vexing Bugbear --- Level 16 Solo Skirmisher
Medium natural humanoid (goblinoid), bugbear --- XP 7,000
HP 600; Bloodied 300 Initiative +17
AC 31; Fortitude 27; Reflex 28; Will 28 Perception +16
Speed 8 Darkvision
Saving Throws +5; Action Points 2

TRAITS

Combat Advantage
When Lurpask hits a creature he has combat advantage against, he deals an extra 3d6 points of damage.

STANDARD ACTIONS

(mbasic) Longsword (weapon) * At Will
Attack: Melee 1 (one creature); +21 vs. AC.
Hit: 2d8+8 damage.

(rbasic) Shuriken (weapon) * At Will
Attack: Ranged 5 (one creature); +21 vs. AC.
Hit: 2d8+8 damage.

(melee) Acrobatic Strike (weapon) * Recharges when first bloodied
Attack: Melee 1 (one creature); +21 vs. AC.
Hit: 4d8+11 damage, and the target grants combat advantage until the end of Lurpask's next turn.
Effect: Lurpask moves up to 4 squares and gains a +4 bonus to defenses against opportunity attacks triggered by this movement.

MINOR ACTIONS

Take Advantage * At Will
Effect: Lurpask makes a basic attack against a creature granting combat advantage to him.

Vexing Recovery * Recharge 5 6
Effect: Lurpask makes a saving throw against each effect or condition on him, even if that effect or condition does not normally allow a saving throw.

(melee) Vexing Feint * At Will
Attack: Melee 1 (one creature); +19 vs. Will.
Hit: Lurpask gains combat advantage against the target until the end of Lurpask's next turn.

TRIGGERED ACTIONS

Vexing Movement * At Will
Trigger: An enemy ends its turn adjacent to Lurpask.
Effect (Free Action): Lurpask moves up to 3 squares. Enemies that decline opportunity attacks triggered by this move grant combat advantage to Lupask until the end of Lurpask's next turn.

Vexing Target * At Well
Trigger: An enemy makes an opportunity attack against Lurpask.
Effect (Free Action 1/turn): Lurpask takes a standard action. If he is subject to an effect that normally prevents him from taking actions (such as dazed, dominated, stunned, etc) other than unconscious, he makes one saving throw against an effect that prevents him from taking actions instead, even if that effect does not normally end on a save.

Delver's Armor * Daily
Trigger: Lurpask rolls a saving throw and dislikes the result.
Effect (Free Action): Lurpask gains a +2 bonus to the triggering saving throw.
---
Skills Acrobatics +20, Stealth +20
Str 20 Dex 24 Wis 17
Con 14 Int 16 Cha 20
Alignment evil Languages Common, Goblin
Equipment +4 delver's feyleather armor (PH 214, 229), longsword, 18 shuriken, bag of 6 rubies worth 200 gp each.

It seems like we should come up with a checklist of features a solo ought to have, and sublists of options that have that feature.

Example:
Action denial counters
Begin turn saves
automatic condition removal
Free minion attack when denied (idea from the Queen's Pheromones)
. . .

That way when someone is designing a solo they can make sure they've remembered all the basics.

PS

That's what I do for my solos, but I also include notes for skirmishers, brutes, etc. (Skirmishers are really crippled by being knocked prone or immobilized, for instance, unless they can teleport, and I try to give them a power that lets them shift recharging when first bloodied, so if surrounded and ganked they might be able to escape).

An example might be the death knight's condition-resistant power. A skirmisher might have the same power, only it gives saves against being immobilized or marked instead of the original conditions.

[MENTION=305]Storminator[/MENTION] Yes, that's exactly my intention, to assemble a list of solo design precepts. I will volunteer to put it together in the first post of this thread and also as a PDF.

My secondary intention, if we get enough DMs contributing, is to create an index of homebrew solo monsters.
[MENTION=1210]the Jester[/MENTION] Great design on the bugbear solo! I'm curious in the narrative how you justify a bugbear as level 16 solo, which is the equivalent of some adult/elder dragons? Was the bugbear an ongoing villain who leveled up or was there some kind of magic power up involved?

Quickleaf said:

[MENTION=1210]the Jester[/MENTION] Great design on the bugbear solo! I'm curious in the narrative how you justify a bugbear as level 16 solo, which is the equivalent of some adult/elder dragons? Was the bugbear an ongoing villain who leveled up or was there some kind of magic power up involved?

Click to expand...

He was a cunning and canny bugbear adventurer who had built a lair inside a very, very nasty dungeon. He survived there through his wits, and was basically the equivalent of a tough, high-level bugbear rogue (narratively). I have no problem with exceptional individuals like that of almost any type.

the Jester said:

He was a cunning and canny bugbear adventurer who had built a lair inside a very, very nasty dungeon. He survived there through his wits, and was basically the equivalent of a tough, high-level bugbear rogue (narratively). I have no problem with exceptional individuals like that of almost any type.

Click to expand...

Cool. I was wondering because the big bad (well *one* of them) to my current campaign is an Archmage who I am considering statting as a solo. Narratively, I can explain the really high HP as a series of wards and protective charms that need to be broken thru. When I was looking thru the monster builder, I found most of the high level humanoid solos were iconic NPCs like Drizz't, Vlaakith, Strahd, and Elimindter. So I decided my Archmage needs to have that level of gravitas and impact in the world...people need to talk about the time he cast a spell which moved stars (minute meteors), his name is whispered with reverence or fear or maybe not spoken at all for fear he will scry on you, and the PCs need to come across the fallout of his magic and find ways to learn about his background. IOW make him a big presence in the narrative.

Here's another epic-level one of my conversions. This one has considerably more options.

GENIUS LOCI
Source: 3e Epic Level Handbook.

A genius loci is the primal spirit of a large area of landscape, such as a mountain, small lake, isolated valley, small forest or deep cavern. Sometimes entire small demiplanes are actually genius loci. It is difficult to spot a genius loci before it is roused to action, as it appears similar to any other landscape, and natural animals and plants live on and around it just as they would were it an entirely natural area.

Ensnared Guardians: Most genius loci have an enslaved guardian creature, mystically bound to defend the genius loci. Such a guardian inhabits the genius loci in whatever manner best suits it, constructing shelter if intelligent, feeding on the native plants and animals and so on. Often, other creatures living in the area that makes up the genius loci will also work with it, bargaining for food and treasure from creatures that disturb it.

A genius loci's ensnared guardian does not age while within the genius loci's demesnes. The genius loci also imitates the guardian creature's intelligence score.

Imitative Intelligence: A genius loci has no innate intelligence, but instead imitates the intelligence of the creatures inhabiting its area, including any guardian that it has ensnared. When awakened, a genius loci's intelligence score is equal to that of its guardian creature, if any. If it has no guardian creature, the genius loci's intelligence score is equal to the highest intelligence of any creature that lives in its area, minimum of 1. However, regardless of the intelligence of the creatures it imitates, a genius loci never acts or plots outside of its own area.

Relatively Common, but Quiescent: Unlike most epic monsters, genius loci are very common in the world. Most large geographical features have a genius loci, but these creatures are usually quiescent and very hard to rouse. A significant threat to the genius loci's area might not even be enough to rouse it; some sleep through even their own destruction. When this happens, a genius loci manifests in a distinct area; it is this animation that adventurers can fight. However, the true body of the genius loci is much larger, typically comprising an area several miles or more in diameter.

Genius Loci --- Level 30 Solo Controller
Gargantuan fey animate --- XP 95,000
HP 1172; Bloodied 586 Initiative +13
AC 44; Fortitude 44; Reflex 42; Will 42 Perception +27
Speed 4, burrow 4 Tremorsense within entire environment
Saving Throws +5; Action Points 2

TRAITS

I Am the Land
A genius loci ignores all terrain, including blocking terrain, within its own environment.

Primal Power
If the genius loci is dazed, it instead loses its minor action. If the genius loci is stunned, it instead grants combat advantage and may only attack three times when using I am everywhere. If the genius loci is dominated, it cannot attack the dominator. In addition, the only standard action it can use is the land comes alive.

STANDARD ACTIONS

(mbasic) The Land Comes Alive * At Will
Attack: Melee 10 (one creature); +35 vs. AC.
Hit: 4d10+16 damage.

I Am Everywhere * At Will
Effect: The genius loci uses the land comes alive up to five times against different targets.

(area) Bury (zone) * Recharge when first bloodied
Attack: Area burst 2 (each creature on the ground in the burst); +31 vs. Reflex.
Hit: The target is knocked prone and buried. While buried, the target takes ongoing 30 damage and is restrained. To escape, a target must make a total of three Acrobatics or Athletics checks (DC 32) as move actions. A creature that is adjacent to a buried creature can contribute move actions and Athletics (but not Acrobatics) checks to help the buried creature accrue successes.
Effect: The burst permanently becomes a zone of difficult terrain.

(area) Sudden Eruption (fire) * Encounter
Attack: Area burst 2 within 30 (each creature in burst); +31 vs. Reflex.
Hit: 3d10+7 damage, plus 30 fire damage.
Miss: Half damage, plus 15 fire damage.

(area) Rumbling Sky (lightning, thunder) * Encounter
Attack: Area burst 1 within 30 (each creature in burst); +31 vs. Reflex.
Hit: 4d12+8 lightning and thunder damage, and the target is stunned (save ends).

(ranged) Enslave (charm) * Encounter
Attack: Ranged 20 (one creature); +33 vs. Will.
Hit: The target is dominated (save ends).
Second Failed Save: The target instead becomes the willing guardian of the genius loci. Only a break enchantment, remove affliction or similar effect will end this effect.

MOVE ACTIONS

Movements of the Earth * At Will
Effect: The genius loci changes up to 4 unoccupied squares on the battlefield to clear, difficult or blocking terrain.
Here, There and Everywhere (teleportation) * Encounter
Effect: The genius loci teleports up to 40 squares.

MINOR ACTIONS

(melee) Boggy Grasp * At Will
Attack: Melee 10 (one creature on the ground); +33 vs. Reflex.
Hit: The target is immobilized (save ends).

(area) Sinkhole (zone) * At Will
Effect: Area burst 1 within 30; the area of ground permanently sinks to a depth of 20', becoming essentially a 15' diameter pit. It requires an Athletics check, DC 24, to scale the crumbling, slimy walls of the pit.

(melee) Moving Earth * At Will
Attack: Melee 10 (one creature on the ground); +33 vs. Reflex.
Hit: The genius loci slides the target up to 4 squares.

(area) Sudden Growth * Recharge when first bloodied
Attack: Area wall 8 (each creature in the wall); +31 vs. Reflex.
Hit: The target is restrained and takes ongoing 10 damage (save ends both).
Miss: The target shifts to the nearest space outside the wall as a free action.
Effect: The area permanently becomes a wall of thorny shrubs. It requires 2 extra squares of movement to enter a square of the wall; a creature doing so other than the genius loci also takes 15 damage.
---
Str 35 Dex 6 Wis 24
Con 45 Int see Imitative Intelligence, above Cha 26
Alignment unaligned Languages -