the dm (kind of)
Okay, I need to point out a few reasons why a CR19 red dragon was able to maim/kill two level 20 PCs. Besides a complete lack of common sense and a gleeful delight in the casting of gate spells, the party was in dire straits from character creation. Aven, crafting a devilish mixture of prestige classes, magic items, and person flair, managed to come up with a rather impressive character. With around 700k to spend on "stuff", I needed an index to navigate his character sheet. So, if insane, he is rather formidable at what he does. (damn irresistable dance nonsense)
The paladin, however, was not.
With his small fortune to spend outfitting himself, he purchased:
1. A holy avenger. (Pretty cool.)
2. A +5 keen holy vorpal greatsword. (Why?)
3. A +5 chain shirt of etherealness. (He bought a chain shirt! He had the lowest AC in the game.)
4. A cloak of resistance +5 (He thought it was +6. Damn was he pissed.)
5. A tome of leadership +5
6. And a periapt of wound closure (Which, by the way, he was convinced wouldn't allow the dragon to drop him below zero. It's too bad the dragon took him to -62. And then ate him.)
And that was it. Now, this guy has been playing D&D for years. He knows dragons are tough. However, when the fight comes, he gets pissed, swings at the dragon once, then goes ethereal to pout. Leaving the sorcerer to do almost all the work by himself.
But, the real reason the dragon stomped around like he owned the place (Well, he did own the place, actually.) is thanks to my brother. He came home from work, and, in an inspired moment, I offered to let him be the dragon. My brother is a devious little guy, the sort that walks into a game of V:tM and leaves with the keys to the city and half-a-dozen elders in his pocket. And Aven, little twink that he is, is having great fun squaring off against this, one of the greatest challenges to his twinkiness. And all I have to do is sit back and watch. It may not be great, it may not be epic, but it sure is amusing.
