Thanks for the feedback!

Has anyone read the Unearthed Arcana for bastions? Is it good?

Make this a level 15 ability for fighters and then emigrate so that the caster inquisition won‘t crucify you for doing it

Rules option for DnD 5E, specifically for legendary and mythical monsters that tend to be the ones with the most HP:

'Attacks from legendary or mythical monsters hit automatically if they require an attack roll and the effects of the attack would not give the target a condition. Legendary resistances of monsters can only be used against effects that can be assigned to the spell schools abjuration, illusion, transformation or enchantment. Otherwise, monsters can still use their Legendary Resistance to pass saving throws against any effect that would give the monster one or more conditions. In case of doubt, the DM decides. After a monster has used Legendary Resistance, its movement rate is halved until the end of its next turn. The damage caused by the monster’s attacks that require attack rolls is also halved until the end of the monster’s next turn after using Legendary Resistance.

(These rules can ensure that battles are both shorter and more exciting due to the higher damage dealt by both sides. The battles also become more dangerous, making PCs think twice about taking the risk. Creativity is encouraged when considering alternative strategies for conflict resolution. Both ensure that there will be fewer battles overall, which remain the most time-consuming scenes in the game. The increased risk also makes combat itself more creative when searching for ways to damage the enemy or use the environment for a tactical advantage. It also encourages the player characters to improve their supply of healing options, e.g. through the help of NPCs that can cast healing spells.)’

Scribbled together based on this post and its comments as well as some additional ideas I’ve had.

EDIT: Fixed something that got lost in automatic translation.

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Did one of your spellcasters know the Gate spell? If so, what stopped the PCs from pulling the BBEG out of their lair and beating them up from the comfort of their homes? I’m having trouble coming up with challenges that don’t actively oppose the abilities of high-level PCs. Just saying ‘no’ and refusing to let a spell take normal effect would very likely seem unfair, no matter how logical the in-game explanation might seem.

I like your approach to speed up combat, although I inevitably will have to look up stuff and I would understand if my players would view it as unfair if only they have to skip their turn while this wouldn’t apply to NPCs.

We have repeatedly debated the matter of spells for almost a year while never quite reaching a consensus. I understand your opinion on winning D&D, I just think that the game will not be able to develop any depth anymore if the preparation can’t be relied on, being replaced by an inflation of poorly thought through plot hooks made up on the spot.

We will dive into that style of play as well, yes. But there are perils left in the game world that can’t be taken care of by lower-level NPC adventurers. Thanks for your feedback!

Similar development with my group. I’ve come to enjoy RPing a lot more than combat, which actually takes us much more time to calculate with all the higher-level abilities than improvising NPCs on the spot. But I know fighting will still be inevitable in the future, so we’re blending in some rules from Worlds Without Number and home-brew to speed it up in the future.