Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 crimfan07 Feb 16, 2015 6:24:22	I'm running a little side trek for three players while the DM and another player are absent for a few weeks. I decided to try a more swords and sorcery or Homeric style, with higher level (12th) characters and low magic. The PCs are a bear totem barbarian, arcane trickster, and a devoted paladin. (There are a few minor house rules: Extra feat at first level, and short rest taking only 5 minutes.) This has been a good opportunity to test out the limits of combat in 5E.    I posted the Dragon Turtle encounter from last week which I think worked very well (http://community.wizards.com/comment/51822801#comment-51822801).   Last night, they discoursed with a gynosphinx in a quasi-Egyptian ruin with broken statues, who was then attacked by a pack of "suitors": Two griffons, a manticore, a chimera, and a hieracosphinx. (The latter I had to stat out myself, will post separately.) The gynosphinx initially stayed out of it by using Greater Invisibility, but got drawn into the fight by the hieracosphinx's True Sight. She proved to be a useful ally, but by the end of the fight everybody but the barbarian was pretty seriously beat up, including the gynosphinx.    What I found really great was the fact that this encounter involved monsters of grossly different Challenge Ratings, but they were still useful. This encounter really worked well. The fact that the PCs didn't have magic weapons readily available made the hieracosphinx, who was the main adversary, really tough, but the fact that he had support made a big difference. They couldn't just focus fire on him. The griffons died fast, but really set the location of the battle and locked the two melee characters down for two rounds while the manticore sniped from the air and the chimera used its breath weapon. The rogue managed to use Tasha's Uncontrollable Laughter to lock down the hieracosphinx for a crucial time, which was pretty cool.    In all, 5E works for swords and sorcery quite well.
#2 crimfan07 Feb 16, 2015 6:55:19	Hieracosphinx (Huge Monstrosity, Neutral Evil, CR 14)   This huge falcon-headed sphinx is stupid and evil. They lust after gynosphinxes, who hate and fear them, and in return fear androsphinxes. They dwell in wastelands, where they waylay travelers and often draw a pack of similar monstrosities such as griffons, manticores, chimera, and other leonine monsters to them to engage in depredations against travelers.      Str 20 Dex 10 Con 18  Int 6 Wis 10 Cha 20  Hit Dice 24D10+96 (216 hit points) AC 18 Speed 40', fly 80'   Languages: Sphinx and Common (barely) Resistances: Bludgeoning, Piercing and Slashing from nonmagical sources.  Immunity: Psychic damage.  Senses: Truesight 120', Passive Perception 18 Magic Weapons: The hieracosphinx's attacks are magical for the purpose of overcoming resistance.    Actions:    Claw: +8, 2D10+5 damage Beak: +8 2D12+5 damage Multiattack: The hieracosphinx makes a Claw and Beak attack. Flyby Attack: The hieracosphinx swoops down and makes a claw attack and is not subject to Attacks of Opportunity.  Shriek (Recharge 6): The hieracosphinx shrieks a piercing cry. All non-sphinxes within 60' need to save DC 15 vs Con or be incapacitated. At the end of their next turn they save again to recover from this effect.    (This is a first cut, and it worked for the fight but could probably be improved.)