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Message: <blockquote data-quote="n00bdragon" data-source="post: 6051339" data-attributes="member: 6689371">My group made it to level 19 before we called it quits (just started a new one at level 1 a couple weeks ago). It's not quite epic level but I had enough encounter design experience up this advice is probably still relevant:The biggest thing with high level fights is that everything has to be bigger. The players have become almost godlike (and in epic they will in many cases be demigods quite literally) and that's reflected in what they are able to do. Each party member probably has several encounter abilities to get themselves out of serious trouble and probably one way to come back from the brink. The party healer(s) are extraordinarily powerful and if left to their own devices the players may find most fights a bore as they cannot be credibly threatened.Terrain is always important in 4e but at higher levels it should go from being a distraction or an obstacle to an outright weapon. The very ground the PCs fight on should often conspire to kill them and shield the enemies. Include gratuitous pools of lava, acid baths, and 100 ft deep chasms anywhere they could conceivably be found. Just always remember the golden rule of terrain: Someone in the fight should not be happy where they are at the beginning. This is so that both sides don't just lock into a static slugfest. At high levels you will frequently want to make this the players. A good way to do this is start encounters when PCs trigger a trap of some sort. That way the fight starts with them literally in the trap.Second, don't pull any punches. One of the biggest difficulties for 4e DMs is realizing just how tough the PCs are, especially at high levels. I would almost encourage you to aim for fights that are unfairly difficult (but not grindy) and then let the PCs surprise you with their resilience. This is difficult to do with the Monster Manual 1 and 2 monsters so you will probably have to really get into making your own baddies, good thing this is easy. Aim to do heavy damage that can quickly drop characters if they aren't careful and give them powers and abilities that interact with their specific terrain.Lastly, the primary strength of the players is that they can heal and that monsters largely can't. This is huge and very difficult to understate. At high levels, just to compete, monsters need that ability too. Include a healer or maybe two in most fights. It can be as simple as another generic monster who has a healing power. Make sure the monster stands out from the crowd so the party can target him. It also gives good direction to the fight and forces the players to move about and get at the well defended healer instead of just bashing through the closest monsters first.Example: If I were designing a fight around pools of lava that involved deathknights as basic enemies I might add that the deathknights are on fire (with a requisite damage aura and immunity to fire damage) and give them abilities to push players into the lava. The encounter begins when the players trigger a trap in which the floor turns into a slide that guides them straight into a pool of lava around which the deathknights are waiting to pounce. Among the Deathknights is a deathknight king with a recharge power that can revive a fallen deathknight with 1/4 hp. Much of the rock around the pool is unstable and if certain squares are stepped in by PCs they have to make checks or have it crumble away beneath them possibly falling into the pool.</blockquote>

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