D&D 5E Lair and Legendary actions for high-level humanoid "Boss" encounters.

[Demetrios1453]

So I'm looking into designing some NPCs to fill in a decidedly thus-far unfilled niche in 5e: high level (CR 15+) human/humanoid foes who can function as an ultimate (or near-ultimate) foe for a campaign. But, as the examples we have thus far in the MM and VGtM show, you can't just create an NPC near-clone of a what a similar high-level PC would look like; those end up around CR 10 - 12 or so, simply due to action economy - a typical party can quickly burn them down before the NPC can do much. Thankfully, 5e does give us the tools to help even out this disparity in action economy, though lair and legendary actions. So, my question here is, what would make for some good lair and (especially) legendary actions a high-level NPC might possess?

Lair actions aren't too hard. Some things I've thought of are various traps for a rogue, weapons and armor that leap from the wall and attack/defend for a turn for a warrior-type, restraining effects for clerics and druids (restraining vegetation for druids, various themed restrains like webs for Lolth worshipers, skeletal hands from the earth for those of death gods, and golden chains of light for those of various good deities), and so on. Given time, I can come up with all sorts of things for lair actions, but I'm definitely open for some suggestions.

Legendary actions are a bit tougher, simply because should the NPC be able to do something that breaks normal action economy, players might be annoyed that their characters can't achieve the same things. Sure, we can have a high-level wizard or cleric NPC be able to cast a second spell as a legendary action, but a someone playing a magic-using character might not be too happy at that, even if is just a cantrip (which is something liches can do, but liches are more a monster than NPCs). Something like a radiant/necrotic AoE burst for clerics/paladins (or similarly bursts of sound/thunder damage for bards) could definitely work, but my ideas are a bit thin on the ground here.

So, our hearty adventurers have finally trapped their nemesis in their sanctum, be they a master rogue in the thieves' guild complex, an evil wizard in their tower, a savage warlord in their keep, or evil-deity-worshiping high priest in their temple. What sort of lair and legendary actions should we give their foe to make this a more complex and memorable encounter, and not just an anticlimactic two rounds and their campaign-long enemy drops dead to the floor?

 

[Tiles]

I’d like to see a “bloodied” condition where they regain hp as a reaction.

 

[neogod22]

One legendary action should be some kind of movement, or move and attack

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[Prakriti]

Some ideas:

Master Thief
Legendary Actions:
* Shadowstep (1 action): The Master Thief teleports through the shadows to a new location within 30' and attempts to hide.
* Quickstep (1 action): The Master Thief takes the Dodge action and one free action of its choice (which it can use to draw a weapon, load a crossbow, open a door, pull a lever, etc.).
Quaff Potion (1 action): The Master Thief quaffs a potion in its inventory (which includes a potion of speed, a potion of invulnerability, and two potions of superior healing).
* Fan of Knives (2 actions): The Master Thief throws out a volley of poison-tipped darts. Each creature within a 15' cone must make a Dexterity saving throw (DC 17). Those who fail take 6d6 piercing damage and must make a Constitution saving throw (DC 15). On a failure, a creature is poisoned until the end of its next turn.

Lair Actions:
* Help Arrives: 1d4+1 thugs join the fight.
* Trapdoor: A trapdoor opens beneath one of the characters, requiring them to succeed on a Dexterity saving throw (DC 15) or drop down a 10' shaft lined with spikes, taking 1d6 falling damage and 1d8 piercing damage from the spikes. Climbing out of the pit requires an action and a successful Athletics (Strength) check (DC 15).

 

[Demetrios1453]

Some ideas:

Master Thief
Legendary Actions:
* Shadowstep (1 action): The Master Thief teleports through the shadows to a new location within 30' and attempts to hide.
* Quickstep (1 action): The Master Thief takes the Dodge action and one free action of its choice (which it can use to draw a weapon, load a crossbow, open a door, pull a lever, etc.).
Quaff Potion (1 action): The Master Thief quaffs a potion in its inventory (which includes a potion of speed, a potion of invulnerability, and two potions of superior healing).
* Fan of Knives (2 actions): The Master Thief throws out a volley of poison-tipped darts. Each creature within a 15' cone must make a Dexterity saving throw (DC 17). Those who fail take 6d6 piercing damage and must make a Constitution saving throw (DC 15). On a failure, a creature is poisoned until the end of its next turn.

Lair Actions:
* Help Arrives: 1d4+1 thugs join the fight.
* Trapdoor: A trapdoor opens beneath one of the characters, requiring them to succeed on a Dexterity saving throw (DC 15) or drop down a 10' shaft lined with spikes, taking 1d6 falling damage and 1d8 piercing damage from the spikes. Climbing out of the pit requires an action and a successful Athletics (Strength) check (DC 15).

Those are great! The trapdoor was one thing I had thought of, and the others are pretty good. Thanks!

 

[Imaculata]

How about a slash attack, where the boss swings his sword around to strike everyone around him?

 

[Horwath]

Henchmen are humanoid "boss" lair actions.

Never have a boss alone.

His strength is in his number of followers.

High level magic can increase speed and trainig can increase speed of attacks(extra attack), but they remain "humanoid".

 

[Demetrios1453]

Henchmen are humanoid "boss" lair actions.

Never have a boss alone.

His strength is in his number of followers.

High level magic can increase speed and trainig can increase speed of attacks(extra attack), but they remain "humanoid".

But that's part of the problem, not the solution. At this level, an adventuring party is usually smart enough to attack a boss NPC when separated from their henchmen, or do something to separate the henchmen from the boss. Or, at worst, ignore the henchmen and focus fire on the boss. And in any of these scenarios, they are going to burn the NPC down quickly and anticlimactically. The boss NPC needs their own actions to ensure a satisfying fight with or without henchmen available...

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[MechaTarrasque]

But that's part of the problem, not the solution. At this level, an adventuring party is usually smart enough to attack a boss NPC when separated from their henchmen, or do something to separate the henchmen from the boss. Or, at worst, ignore the henchmen and focus fire on the boss. And in any of these scenarios, they are going to burn the NPC down quickly and anticlimactically. The boss NPC needs their own actions to ensure a satisfying fight with or without henchmen available...

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At that level, the boss has survived numerous dangerous activities including assassination attempts and has contingency plans for his/her minions to ambush the PC's when they think they will ambush the boss. Plus, when in the history of fantasy has "we are going to hang around for two weeks waiting for the boss to be alone and no one sells us out or spots us and none of our archrivals shows up" ever occurred?

 

[Satyrn]

I'd be okay - and I think my players would be too - with giving the boss NPC simple legendary actions like casting cantrips, but with your desire against that . . . hmmm. So I can't really think of anything offhand, but I do havve some ideas about how you could justify the legendary actions to your players so when tbey ask "why can't we do that," you can answer "well, you can, if . . ."

Spellcasters are still kinda easy, as you could write up some 8th or 9th level spells that simply gave them more actions in a round. Just don't let the spells fall into player hands. ". . . if you find a way to learn this secret ancient spell."

For warriors, you can wrap their legendary actions up as a great blessing from their god ". . . if you're worthy or vile enough to deserve it."

A warlock might get legendary actions from the power of his patron. " . . . if you surrender your will fully to the Great Old One in your head."

It's a cheap workaround, perhaps, and should be used sparingly. But then we probably already use Boss fights rather sparingly, so it'll probably work out okay.