Our most recent session began with the PCs facing a horrible, brain sucking monster, the Psychephage. It was a tricky scenario to set up for the following reasons: There were 7 PCs and 3 NPCs versus 1 creature, so they could easily wipe out even a very tough monster before it ever took a turn. The PCs are only second level, so if I beef up the monster too much, it could end up one-shotting a bunch of them. The PCs have some very strong magic items, although they tend to forget about them. If used creatively, these could produce all sorts of unforeseen battle conditions. I'd started out with a fairly standard statblock for the Psychephage. I think it was about a CR3? or maybe 5? I don't tend to pay a lot of attention to CR. This is how I adapted it to try and give my players a sustained challenge: Psychephage A debased strain of Blind Antler Man that has devolved into a specialized intellect eater. Medium Creature AC 14 HP 100 Speed 30' STR +2 DEX +1 CON