J-H
Hero
One thing that helps high level play be fun is to not be stingy with magical items.
A level 20 samurai has almost the same capabilities as a level 7 samurai, except he hits things more often, slightly harder, and is tougher to kill. Magic items make a huge difference for martials.
The just-hit 20 samurai in my game has:
-A +3 greatsword that lets him roll to intercept single-target visible spells (as I mentioned earlier) aimed at him. He can literally block Disintegrate. They had to solve a complicated fey riddle to get this. Two characters had to save or die doing so, as they used themselves as material components for some of the solutions.
-A Helm of Teleportation. He is now the party's taxi. They've started collecting rocks as Teleport focuses.
-An Amulet of Protection from Detection and Location. Everyone picked these up when they realized they were being tracked (artificer + found crafter at right time).
-A Broom of Flying
And a few other things like +2 Full Plate and two other nice two-handed weapons. He has strategic mobility, tactical mobility, and antimagic defenses as a result of his items. If he had "One very rare, one rare, two uncommons" for his magic items, he'd have a lot fewer options.
A level 20 samurai has almost the same capabilities as a level 7 samurai, except he hits things more often, slightly harder, and is tougher to kill. Magic items make a huge difference for martials.
The just-hit 20 samurai in my game has:
-A +3 greatsword that lets him roll to intercept single-target visible spells (as I mentioned earlier) aimed at him. He can literally block Disintegrate. They had to solve a complicated fey riddle to get this. Two characters had to save or die doing so, as they used themselves as material components for some of the solutions.
-A Helm of Teleportation. He is now the party's taxi. They've started collecting rocks as Teleport focuses.
-An Amulet of Protection from Detection and Location. Everyone picked these up when they realized they were being tracked (artificer + found crafter at right time).
-A Broom of Flying
And a few other things like +2 Full Plate and two other nice two-handed weapons. He has strategic mobility, tactical mobility, and antimagic defenses as a result of his items. If he had "One very rare, one rare, two uncommons" for his magic items, he'd have a lot fewer options.