Post/Author/DateTime	Post
lanlosa 03-02-06, 11:03 PM	I'm having some problems getting a new campaign off the ground and i need some help. Specifically, i need the most amazingly fantastic CR3 boss monster you can come up with. thx
speeblefreak 03-02-06, 11:35 PM	CR 3. That's a bit vague. What kind of monster are you looking for?
Mock26 03-03-06, 01:49 AM	How about my ex-girlfriend? She'll scare the crap out of your players and their characters! :D
scott644 03-03-06, 07:25 AM	Give us a feel for what you have in mind from the start, and we'll be better able to assist. ^_^
Zherog 03-03-06, 07:49 AM	Have you looked through the villian and NPC compendium? I'm sure there's some stuff there...
Morka 03-03-06, 10:31 AM	What about an half-dragon orc fighter 1 in full-plate armor and tower shield, with a DEX of 12? You get an AC of 28 (or 32 if he claims cover from his tower shield), but only 10-15 HP. It will be long before the PCs can hit him, but when they figure out how to bypass this AC, they will be reward by a quick BBEG death.
R2 03-03-06, 10:44 AM	At that level, an evil cleric might be your best bet. In combat, he can cast a few spells to interfere with the PCs, and if they press to melee, he's still got a good weapon, some armor and a shield. Evil clerics tend to be a part of larger organizations, too, so there are plenty of cohorts and henchmen to use. It will be long before the PCs can hit him Magic Missile! Magic Missile!
DeadKeepWalking 03-03-06, 11:31 AM	Gelationous Cube Rust Monster Ghast Wight Ankeg
Fenris78 03-03-06, 12:03 PM	I believe a Bugbear with 2 levels of Cleric would be CR 3 (as it could be considered a non-associated class), otherwise just 1 level would still be worth it. You want something that can take a lot more punishment than it can dish out as 1st level characters can die very easily! A Bugbear with one level of fighter would only be CR3 but using a great axe (even with only the 15 Str listed as standard) would be averaging 9-10 damage a hit, enough to kill everyone other than the fighters and barbarians in one hit.
Faithless the Wonder Boy 03-03-06, 12:38 PM	Well, you could always unleash the monstrous crab (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/fw/20040221a) on them, but that could just be cruel... I'm still fairly convinced that CR 3 on that thing was a misprint. I mean, after all, you've got almost 70 hit points, AC 19, two claw attacks with a +10 bonus dealing a minimum of 10 points of damage, improved grab (with a +4 racial bonus on grapple checks, for a grapple modifier of +19)... oh, and it has pretty good movement, too. Again, only do this if you're looking for a TPK at that level but want to proclaim that it was within their CR. The average ECL 3 party will NOT be able to handle the monstrous crab, especially if you use the tactics described in its entry. Picture a giant crab-like vermin swimming at the bottom of a lake, then springing out, charging at one of the adventurers (move 40' means 80' on a charge, so you're talking a good distance), with a +12 attack roll, dealing at least 10 points of damage, then grappling them with a +19 bonus. On the following round, it can retreat back into the water, pinning it underwater until it dies. Then it can leisurely eat its fill and come back to do it again, and again. *shudder* Luckily, my DM never looks at the "Far Corners of the World" supplements WotC releases - and that I have the self-restraint to never release one of these on the party in the game I DM, without seriously raising its challenge rating. .....anyways, that said, dragons tend to be your best bet for difficult but beatable encounters. A wyrmling blue dragon could be fun, and will be far more difficult than most other CR3 encounters you could give them (monstrous crab excluded, of course). Other options? A bugbear with a level in Barbarian and maxed-out constitution will take a lot of beatings, and with Power Attack can dish out a lot as well, but will have a low enough armor class that he won't be impossible. Advancing a Choker by character class could be interesting, but its intelligence is so low that doing so could be dubious. Chokers in general, if you use their tactics well, can be far more than the CR 2 implies. A dretch with a level in barbarian could be far more vicious even than the bugbear, since it'll have a nasty combination of high hit points and damage reduction. Soften opponents up with a stinking cloud, then rage and jump in, clawing and biting... not a bad move overall. A grig with four levels in ranger (technically non-associated, so CR 3) could be vicious... Of course, I think the whole associated/non-associated class level for calculating CR can get a bit silly, and as a DM I use a completely different method for calculating encounter levels and challenge ratings, but if you want a powerful CR 3 encounter that's by the book......
SokenzanMarauder 03-03-06, 01:33 PM	That damned crabs CR had better be a mis-print! *shakes fist at WoTC* As for the creature, how 'bout a lesser orc chief (Just a normal orc w/ 1 or 2 levels in Fighter or maybe Barbarian) or something like that. He'll have a small clan following and it'll give the players something to slaughter before they reach him. -Gene