The most POWERFUL classic monsters! (Read intro before voting!!!)

[Renaissance Man]

Gotta go with devils on this one. Illithids and liches run a very close second. I wish that dragons ranked up there, but it never seems to work out that way for me. Not in terms of a sustained story, anyway.

Ditto Mercule's remark about the drow. Yawn.

 

[RobNJ]

Lich for me. For "making the party scared", it's got to be something specific and iconic. There're a few of those up there: dragons, beholder, etc. So that when they see one, they go, "Oh my god!" But the other part of your question was a sticktoitivness, and liches are made for that. They can live for centuries, are intelligent by definition, are long-range planners, etc. And best of all (if I remember correctly) they need not necessarily be evil, which adds another layer of moral complexity to them if you use them as antagonists.

 

[Jeremy Ackerman-Yost]

I've been thinking... Which mosters put the most dread in the minds of players...

Especially since I always play Good characters, it has an impact when a Celestial gets involved, especially when they're on the other side. "Is this a fallen celestial? Or am I on the wrong side of this?" Makes my character question what's going on, and (in a metagame way) wonder if the DM is trying to tell me something. It's obvious, but effective.

 

[Werewolf_26]

Since Humans were not on the list (other people as villains most of the time), I vote Vampires.

It really does bother the PCs when one of their old trusted commrades is transformed into a creature that willingly seeks their undeath or destruction.

Dragons are a good challenge and something not to trifle with. Definately grand creatures, but not used as campaign fuel.

Lichs however, are the current fuel for the plot line the party is following, but vampires will come back into the story as soon as they go home.

Especially when the horrid creatures have actually *staked* the PCs before...

 

[HellHound]

I don't know why... but the Beholder has always been the big FEAR ME target in our games.

EVERYONE panics at the thought of a beholder.

Lich? Whatever... I hear he has a beholder pet... PANIC!

 

[Cor Azer]

Personally, I've always found humans to be the most 'powerful' of the classics. If you're including drow, then humans belong in there as well.

There are so many fewer stereotypes about humans in general that they keep you guessing much longer than any of the 'classic' antagonists you describe.

 

[ArcOfCorinth]

I voted for Demons. Why? A balor can summon another balor if its in a tight spot. Second, demons are the summoned creature of choice by the drow. Advanced Drow + Demons= a PC's nightmare.

 

[takyris]

I voted devils. I like dragons and liches for good long-term villains, but I like devils more (probably because I've got a CG party right now, and these are their best possible enemies). Devils stick together, fight as a team, cover each other's backs, and haev morals of a sort -- they just happen to have evil ends. They can be negotiators, uneasy allies, or ruthless enemies. They can tempt, trick, or just tear up the PCs, depending on what works best.

-Tacky

 

[Noldor Elf]

I voted for Drow. They can be part of the campaing from early (3rd - 5th) levels all the way to the bitter end. PCs can encounter them many times, losing sometimes, winnig sometimes.

Dragon was close at second. It's THE main villain, but can't have the same close appearance in the campaing that drow can have.

 

[kenjib]

For me the toss-up was between demons/devils, liches, and dragons. Here's why I ended up with liches:

demons/devils: Evil, wily, and a truly great nemesis but their primal connection to evil makes them more two-dimensional in their aims and their outsider-ness makes them less directly connected to the affairs of the world of the PCs. They are the ultimate invader.

dragons: They are the classic, archetypal monster. Not a villain, a monster. They are made to represent a mythic idea, a harrowing of hell. Destroy the dragon and the kingdom attains it's happily ever after. Dragons are aloof and above humanity. Monsters are, ultimately, a scapegoat and a proxy for issues that can not be resolved -- an enemy fabricated as an imaginary solution to a real problem.

liches: Ancient, powerful, and all too human, the lich has a full range of complexity, and solid connection to the PC's world (of which he was once a part, after all). The interesting thing about a lich is how his past relates to his present. There is a source of tension and dichotomy here. The lich also represents a theme of absolute power corrupting absolutely, which is a great theme, especially as it is tinged with fatal flaw. The lich is, ultimately, the result of failure of the ultimate test. He damns his soul eternally, unable to resist the lure of an ultimately unattainable power. He loses everything, but can never truly attain what he seeks in return. Given this ambiguous existence, what is the lich's goal? Does he seek material power to fill the void left by his unattainable spiritual goals? Does he descend into the depths of madness? Does he become spiteful for his mistake, too proud to admit defeat, and lash out with destructive rage in a seemingly random and unfocused manner? Does he go into denial, becoming a reclusive hermit, refusing to admit to his condition and trying to live on in a bizarre and delusional mockery of his former life? Woe to he who dares to confront such a lich with the truth!!! This fundamental aspect of the lich ultimately being a failure I think is central to the idea and makes for a great, colorful nemesis with a great variety of goals and characterizations.

He is a tragic figure, and a bit of sympathy makes for the best villains, as what truly frightens us are those aspects of the villain that we see echoed in our own hearts. Every time you do something that you know is not the right thing to do, when your greed or lust overpowers your sense of morality and ethics, the lich laughs mockingly at your failure, for miserly loves nothing more than company.