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Message: <blockquote data-quote="FormerlyHemlock" data-source="post: 6990546" data-attributes="member: 6787650">Well then, it seems that the lich will have some time to at least cast some spells before the PCs show up; and time is on the lich's side. In that case, I'd suggest the following spells:Absorb Elements, Shield, Counterspell, Blade Ward: Common sense defense spellsShapechange: can shapechange into an ancient white shadow dragon and abuse resistance to everything plus necrotic breath with a Con save (no Absorb Elements! no Evasion!) that makes shadow minions plus bonus action hide and stealth expertise plus some bonus Legendary Resists and flight and 333 extra HP PLUS all of your regular lich legendary actions. And you still have the freedom to choose a new form every round if you need to, e.g. if it turns out the PCs are all resistant to necrotic damage, you can turn into a regular ancient black with AC 22 (27 w/ Shield).Symbol: throw down a Symbol of Insanity and a Symbol of HopelessnessWall of Force: no-save divide-and-conquer spellAnimate Dead: a few extra mooks with no concentration cost is never a bad use of extra spell slots. If you've got 3 of 5 PCs trapped behind a Wall of Force, having a dozen or so armored zombies with greatswords to meatshield, grapple the PCs, threaten opportunity attacks, Help you attack, and generally buy more time and space for you to whittle down the PCs with offensive actions is a great thing. The lich only has 135 HP, so 270-odd HP of armored AC 16+ zombies is a great thing to have available for no concentration cost.Programmed Illusion: when the PCs show up for the showdown (heh), instead of one evil lich, they see four of them, each doing a different menacing thing like shapechanging into a dragon, Gating in a Goristro, performing the evil ritual, and casting a Prismatic Wall. Which one do you nova? Who's going to walk into the Prismatic Wall to test if it's real? What if they're all real? Just watching the player's reactions is going to be hilarious.Teleport, Dimension Door, Expeditious Retreat: mobility is always useful when the unexpected happens. This is your compensation for not having a phylactery available. (Probably can't use Teleport in this fight because you've already spent your 7th/8th level spell slots, so if you have to drop one, this could be it. Depends on the circumstances of the ritual and how long the lich has had to prepare.)Fireball, Blink, Mirror Image, Cone of Cold, Disintegrate, Fire Bolt, Greenflame Blade, Sword Burst: your basic ways of doing something useful with an action (or legendary action in the case of cantrips) when your concentration is busy elsewhere.That's sixteen non-cantrip spells out of the twenty-three a lich has available. I guess I'd add Dispel Magic, Power Word: Stun just in case an opportunity arises (though again you probably won't get to use it), Longstrider (useful pre-combat buff), Feather Fall, Conjure Elemental, Conjure Minor Elementals, and... I dunno, Greater Invisibility.</blockquote>

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