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Your Nemesis
2010-04-27, 01:24 PM
I have seen a recent thread about using gestalt save that one half of the gestalt must be LA. What advice do you have for running such a campaign? How can you challenge players of such a high level?

reptilecobra13
2010-04-27, 02:14 PM
Check out some of the monsters in the Fiend Folio and the Epic Level Handbook. Additionally, consider making opponents who are an even match for your players' characters. Make gestalt opponents for them. Utilize touch spells like Shivering Touch for maximum effectiveness against players with high AC. Make use of crazy items from the Magic Item Compendium.

Eldariel
2010-04-27, 03:06 PM
Spells, spells, spells. Magic must defeat magic. A single-classed level 20 caster can be a viable challenge to most gestalt characters. Just make sure to learn the high-level magic and all that it entails, the key wards, the key counters, the key protections and the key items.

And yeah, a mover behind the hostile actions makes things more believable. Gates, Dominates, Animates and such ensure that almost anything is a fair game for a high-level caster BBEG. Of course warded against simple Scrying and the like, forcing stronger divinations into game.

The Glyphstone
2010-04-27, 03:18 PM
Gestalt the monsters. That dragon is a lot more fearsome when it's also a 30th level Sorcerer.

Eldariel
2010-04-27, 03:20 PM
Gestalt the monsters. That dragon is a lot more fearsome TPK when it's also a 30th level Sorcerer.

Fixed that for you.

The Glyphstone
2010-04-27, 03:21 PM
Fixed that for you.

Hey, he doesn't have to use Epic magic. :smallcool:The wizard in the party might survive.

Reynard
2010-04-27, 04:05 PM
Wouldn't the PCs run out of decent templates eventually?

I mean, it's going to be Celestial–Dracoinc–Half-Minotaur–Half-Vampires for damn near everybody.

ShadowsGrnEyes
2010-04-27, 04:24 PM
i have run a gestalt game up through 16-17 level somewhere. it was mostly standard getalt but they were allowed to throw in templates and other level adjustments when they could think of a good excuse to do it.

for the most part using one side as template or level adjust monster, makes it way more powerfull than standard gestalt. its one thing to have a rogue sorcerer at 16the level. . . its another to have one member of the party decide that their character is gonna be a shadow dragon/druid/warshaper. . .he didnt even optomize. yeah, probably one of my larger mistakes in GMing allowing that. . . fun game though.

gestalt monsters or adding 3 to the parties effective CR seems to help.

Ernir
2010-04-27, 04:57 PM
Make damn sure you know what your players are capable of. Don't be caught off guard when you realize they can Teleport anywhere ever, unleash thousands of points of damage every round all day long, and become flat-out immune to most forms of attack. The opponents need to be aware of (or at the very least capable of similar stuff) too, if they are to be more than speed bumps.

A party of high-level gestalts is a terrifying force. You have to know how terrifying.

Boci
2010-04-27, 05:02 PM
Hey, he doesn't have to use Epic magic. :smallcool:The wizard in the party might survive.

By teleporting away after his daily casting of Contact Outer Plane "What will be the most important spell for me to ready tomorow?".

On topic, caster should be forbidden from epic magic. They can use their higher level spell slots for "free" metamagic.