- Armor Class
- 17 (natural armor)
- Hit Points
- 135 (18d8+54)
- Speed
- 30 ft.
- Challenge
- 21 (33,000 XP)
- Proficiency bonus
- +7
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|
| 11 (+0) | 16 (+3) | 16 (+3) | 20 (+5) | 14 (+2) | 16 (+3) |
- Saving throws
- Con +10, Int +12, Wis +9
- Skills
- Arcana +18, History +12, Insight +9, Perception +9
- Damage resistances
- cold, lightning, necrotic
- Damage immunities
- poison, bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from nonmagical attacks
- Senses
- truesight 120 ft., passive Perception 19
- Languages
- Common plus up to five other languages
Traits
Legendary Resistance (3/Day). If the lich fails a saving throw, it can choose to succeed instead.
Rejuvenation. If it has a phylactery, a destroyed lich gains a new body in 1d10 days, regaining all its hit points and becoming active again. The new body appears within 5 feet of the phylactery.
Spellcasting. The lich is an 18th-level spellcaster. Its spellcasting ability is Intelligence (spell save DC 20, +12 to hit with spell attacks). The lich has the following wizard spells prepared:
- Cantrips (at will): mage hand, prestidigitation, ray of frost
- 1st level (4 slots): detect magic, magic missile, shield, thunderwave
- 2nd level (3 slots): acid arrow, detect thoughts, invisibility, mirror image
- 3rd level (3 slots): animate dead, counterspell, dispel magic, fireball
- 4th level (3 slots): blight, dimension door
- 5th level (3 slots): cloudkill, scrying
- 6th level (1 slot): disintegrate, globe of invulnerability
- 7th level (1 slot): finger of death, plane shift
- 8th level (1 slot): dominate monster, power word stun
- 9th level (1 slot): power word kill
Turn Resistance. The lich has advantage on saving throws against any effect that turns undead.
Actions
Paralyzing Touch. Melee Spell Attack: +12 to hit, reach 5 ft., one creature. Hit: 10 (3d6) cold damage. The target must succeed on a DC 18 Constitution saving throw or be paralyzed for 1 minute. The target can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success.
Legendary actions
Cantrip. The lich casts a cantrip.
Paralyzing Touch (Costs 2 Actions). The lich uses its Paralyzing Touch.
Frightening Gaze (Costs 2 Actions). The lich fixes its gaze on one creature it can see within 10 feet of it. The target must succeed on a DC 18 Wisdom saving throw against this magic or become frightened for 1 minute. The frightened target can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success. If a target's saving throw is successful or the effect ends for it, the target is immune to the lich's gaze for the next 24 hours.
Disrupt Life (Costs 3 Actions). Each non-undead creature within 20 feet of the lich must make a DC 18 Constitution saving throw against this magic, taking 21 (6d6) necrotic damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.
How liches fight
A lich is an undead archmage, CR 21, and above all it’s a spellcaster. It casts as an 18th-level wizard with a spell save DC of 20, and its prepared spells include Power Word Kill, Counterspell, Shield, Globe of Invulnerability, Dimension Door, Finger of Death and Disintegrate.
Its body is hard to hurt, too. It’s immune to poison and to nonmagical weapons, resists cold, lightning and necrotic damage, and can’t be charmed, frightened or paralyzed. It has truesight to 120 feet, turns three failed saves into successes each day with Legendary Resistance, and between turns uses legendary actions to cast cantrips, paralyze with a touch or blast every living creature within 20 feet with Disrupt Life. And if it has a phylactery, destroying its body isn’t the end: it returns in 1d10 days.
Common questions
How do you kill a lich for good?
Destroy its phylactery. The Rejuvenation trait brings it back in 1d10 days as long as it has one. How to find and destroy the phylactery is usually the adventure itself, and the rules leave the details to the DM.
How dangerous is a lich?
It’s CR 21, worth 33,000 XP. For four characters, the Dungeon Master’s Guide’s encounter math makes a lone lich Deadly through 16th level, Hard from 17th to 19th, and Medium at 20th. Its spells and preparation often make it deadlier than that.
Can you Turn a lich?
A cleric can try. The lich has advantage on saves against turning, and it’s far too high a challenge rating for Destroy Undead.
Does a lich need magic weapons to hurt it?
Yes, for bludgeoning, piercing and slashing damage: it’s immune to them from nonmagical weapons. Spells work, except poison.
Can Power Word Kill kill a lich?
Only once it’s at 100 hit points or fewer. It starts with 135.
How many legendary actions does a lich have?
Three per round: Cantrip (1 action), Paralyzing Touch (2), Frightening Gaze (2) and Disrupt Life (3).
A lich is worth 33,000 XP. Using the 2024 encounter budgets (SRD 5.2), this is how many liches fit each difficulty for a party of four characters of the same level. A dash means even one would be over the budget.
Budgets add up every monster’s XP, so you can swap some for other creatures of the same total. Try other party sizes and mixes in the encounter calculator.
Against the 3 other challenge 21 monsters in the SRD 5.1, the lich has more hit points than 0 of them, which makes it one of the frailest at its CR. See every CR 21 monster.
Lich 2024 stat block
The 2024 Monster Manual revised the lich, and the SRD 5.2 carries the new stat block. What changed:
- Armor Class: 17 → 20.
- Hit points: 135 → 315.
- Ability scores: INT 20 → 21.
- New in its stat block: Spirit Jar, Multiattack, Eldritch Burst, Protective Magic and Deathly Teleport.
- Gone from it: Rejuvenation, Turn Resistance and Cantrip.
- Armor Class
- 20
- Hit Points
- 315 (42d8 + 126)
- Speed
- 30 ft.
- Challenge
- 21 (33,000 XP)
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|
| 11 (+0) | 16 (+3) | 16 (+3) | 21 (+5) | 14 (+2) | 16 (+3) |
- Damage resistances
- cold, lightning
- Damage immunities
- necrotic, poison
- Senses
- truesight 120 ft., passive Perception 19
- Languages
- All
- Gear
- Component Pouch
Traits
Legendary Resistance (4/Day, or 5/Day in Lair). If the lich fails a saving throw, it can choose to succeed instead.
Spirit Jar. If destroyed, the lich reforms in 1d10 days if it has a spirit jar, reviving with all its Hit Points. The new body appears in an unoccupied space within the lich’s lair.
Actions
Multiattack. The lich makes three attacks, using Eldritch Burst or Paralyzing Touch in any combination.
Eldritch Burst. Melee or Ranged Attack Roll: +12, reach 5 ft. or range 120 ft. Hit: 31 (4d12 + 5) Force damage.
Paralyzing Touch. Melee Attack Roll: +12, reach 5 ft. Hit: 15 (3d6 + 5) Cold damage, and the target has the Paralyzed condition until the start of the lich’s next turn.
Spellcasting. The lich casts one of the following spells, using Intelligence as the spellcasting ability (spell save DC 20):
At Will: Detect Magic, Detect Thoughts, Dispel Magic, Fireball (level 5 version), Invisibility, Lightning Bolt (level 5 version), Mage Hand, Prestidigitation
2/Day Each: Animate Dead, Dimension Door, Plane Shift
1/Day Each: Chain Lightning, Finger of Death, Power Word Kill, Scrying
Reactions
Protective Magic. The lich casts Counterspell or Shield in response to the spell’s trigger, using the same spellcasting ability as Spellcasting.
Legendary actions
Deathly Teleport. The lich teleports up to 60 feet to an unoccupied space it can see, and each creature within 10 feet of the space it left takes 11 (2d10) Necrotic damage.
Disrupt Life. Constitution Saving Throw: DC 20, each creature that isn’t an Undead in a 20-foot Emanation originating from the lich. Failure: 31 (9d6) Necrotic damage. Success: Half damage. Failure or Success: The lich can’t take this action again until the start of its next turn.
Frightening Gaze. The lich casts Fear, using the same spellcasting ability as Spellcasting. The lich can’t take this action again until the start of its next turn.
