Level 11 encounter: Stone Golem

XP Budget for Party of 4

The XP budget for a a party of 4 at 11 Level is 7600 XP for a low-difficulty encounter, according to the 2024 Dungeon Master’s Guide.

I want to make an encounter with a Stone Golem, which is a CR 10 monster worth 5900 XP. For a party of 4 Level 11 characters, we could have two Stone Golems for a moderate encounter and maybe even 3 (?) for a High difficulty. But just one is maybe not enough for a Low difficulty.

The flavor text for Stone Golems describes them like animated statues which exist solely to follow the orders of their creator.

I’m going to design an encounter for a Stone Golem (at least one) which is tasked with protecting a mage sanctum. Will use the Mage monster for the XP budget.

Stat Block Analysis

The Stone Golem is a brute with a 22 STR and 20 CON. It has a High AC and a lot of hit points. It isn’t fast, with only a +3 initiative from it’s low DEX.

It has two Attacks, using a Slam for melee and Force Bolt for ranged attacks.

The Stone Golem trick is it’s ability to cast Slow as Bonus Action. It’s going to try to Slow and then Slam or Force Bolt.

It is immune to Poison and Psychic Damage, as well as conditions like Charmed, Exhaustion, Frightened, Paralyzed, Petrified and Poisoned. But, the Magical Resistance – with Advantage on saving throws – is going to nerf Spellcasters.

Adding the Mage monster to the encounter will add an some area-of-effect Actions for the monster’s side.

Mage only has an AC 15 and about 80 HP, but the ability to cast Fireball and Cone of Cold, and the ability to Misty Step and react with Shield or Counterspell should make things interesting.

Monster Strategy

By Level 11, your players are probably suspicious of anything on the battle-map.

I’d make a map with a number of statues. Maybe the room is lined with oversized statues of great Wizards. Some are broken, missing limbs or heads, crumbled over time. But of the remaining statues, 1-2 are Stone Golems. The Golems could Slam with whatever they are constructed to appear to be holding: a staff the size of a tree, a closed/open tome, a shape like a crystal ball.

Deep in the sanctum, beyond the statues, you can have 1-2 Mages.

The Mage(s) will need to have justifiable protection to explain why the Golem would not attack them. The Stone Golems could be dormant until someone from the party crosses a boundary, or maybe a Mage activates the defenses which trigger the Stone Golems to attack the intruders.

Immediately the Stone Golems should cast Slow and then begin using their Multiattack.

The Mage will use it’s Bonus Action to Misty Step to move about, then cast Fireball or Cone of Cold. If things get too difficult, maybe the Mage will Fly or cast Invisibility and try to escape.

Scaling the Encounter

Having the player characters caught between a Mage and a Stone Golem could be nasty. But if there is cover from other statues and maybe some other structures, Rogues should be able to use their abilities. The martial characters should be able to do what the do best: stand toe-to-toe with the biggest baddie and trade hit points. The Mage should make it a little more interesting. A single Stone Golem with a single Mage should be a Low difficulty encounter for a party of 4.

For moderate, I might just go with two Stone Golems. Place them on opposites sides of a battle-map and divide the focus of the players attacks. This could be deadly if the squishy PCs cannot cast spells without the Golem beating the DC. You may want to give the players a way to escape without having to down both monsters.

But, if you want a serious boss encounter, two Stone Golems and two Mages are right on budget. That makes it a 4:4 battle. With some decent roles and a bit of strategy, a fresh group of 4 Level 11 PCs could end the combat in < 6 rounds.

Conclusion

Here are some options for a Tier 3, Level 11 encounter based around the Stone Golem, suitable for a party of 4:

The battle-map should place the party between two groups of monsters, and include areas for the players and monsters to maneuver for safety.