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Message: <blockquote data-quote="ruleslawyer" data-source="post: 1330792" data-attributes="member: 1757">Check out Piratecat's and James McMurray's story hours for some guidance; high-level adventures are very complex, so you'll want to get an idea of the kinds of scenarios that can pop up.Basically, my primary advice centers around genre style and pacing. However much you may equate high-level D&D gaming with "high fantasy," it doesn't actually share many elements of that genre. It's much more like superhero comics or Star Trek: The PCs have vast information-gathering and communication powers, they can travel anywhere in an instant, and given time, they can get around or over essentially any obstacle. Consequently, the pace of your adventures needs to be fast. Get used to describing the flow of events in short, pithy sound bites, and to moving the game beyond the leisurely flow of something like The Lord of the Rings and into a snapshot-by-snapshot pace more like The Authority. If the PCs are in the middle of an adventure, do NOT give them time to rest or do leisurely detective work. Keep the pace fast and furious.As far as more concrete suggestions for gaming: Recognize that combat at these levels is incredibly lethal, more so than at any time except possibly 1st-2nd level. One failed save or a single critical hit can end a PC's life with appalling ease. Make sure your players know that, and either get comfortable with their throwing around true resurrections or create a hero point system of some sort that allows rerolling of saves or ad hoc bonuses.A 24th-level lich; by that, you mean a 24th-level spellcaster with the lich template? Pretty powerful, but certainly within the realm of possibility for a 20th-level party to handle. The key here, though, is not to give the PCs a single target. If you do that, they'll just hammer on it until it's dead. Make sure the lich is surrounded by a host of servant creatures, either summoned, charmed, or simply loyal. (This is also a good chance to give party members who might be less than optimally effective against the BBEG, like the rogue, an opportunity to shine.) Keep in mind, also, that the lich can survive in a number of settings that are severely hostile to living beings: Airless, poisonous, or simply water-filled chambers are all options for the lich's lair.</blockquote>

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