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How to Run an Epic Level Dungeons and Dragons Campaign

The highest level tier of the pen and paper role-playing game Dungeons and Dragons is the epic level campaign, which has the characters on an even level with the most powerful creatures in the universe. Although it can be hard to come up with appropriate challenges for an epic level campaign, many players enjoy this level of play the most as it allows them to take their characters to previously unexplored territory and watch them reach their ultimate potential.

Things You'll Need

Dungeons and Dragons rulebooks
Character sheets
Polyhedral dice

Instructions

- 1
  Conclude the main storyline that was present at earlier levels in the campaign and come up with a whole new story arc. Unless you were planning the story to reach epic levels from the very start of the campaign, it is unlikely that your main villain or obstacle for the characters to overcome will be able to sufficiently challenge them by the time they reach the epic levels.
- 2
  Move beyond mundane concerns that only affect small groups of people and give the characters missions that affect the very foundations of the universe or that could destroy entire worlds. Ignore even larger scale issues such as entire nations being invaded by monsters, unless that issue is just a symptom of an even bigger problem that the epic level characters would want to deal with.
- 3
  
  Have the characters regularly interacting with massively powerful creatures and people, such as solar archons, dukes of hell or avatars of the various deities.
- 4
  Allow the characters to continue to put into play the various skills they found useful at lower levels, but raise the stakes for success or failure. Whereas before there wasn't too much of a repercussion for failing to bribe the guards to gain entrance to nobleman's home, the potential problems caused by failure will be much higher when the characters are trying to bribe the angels with flaming swords to get entrance to a deity's personal treasure vault.
- 5
  
  Throw bigger and meaner monsters at the characters that would absolutely wipe out even a high level party without much effort. Epic level characters have access to spells and abilities that put them in a whole new league above any other type of party, and they should be forced to use those increased powers against equally strong opponents. Creatures such as ancient red dragons, demon lords and even demi-gods make good enemies for epic level characters.
- 6
  Conclude the campaign with the characters ascending to full godhood, effectively turning them into non-player characters, or with them dying bravely in the name of some greater cause. There really isn't any higher goal for characters to reach for after the epic levels; when the epic campaign is ended, it is time to retire the characters and start over.

Role Playing Games