Elminster fanboys lost their mind...

[Dreamakuma]

I'm going to mention that:

VIEW CONTENT:

Strahd bested Mordenkainen in Curse of Strahd.

Pretty sure that's on Elminster's level, or pretty close.

[Resonant Curse]

I'm going to mention that:

VIEW CONTENT:

Strahd bested Mordenkainen in Curse of Strahd.

Pretty sure that's on Elminster's level, or pretty close.

Mordenkainen was way lower than Elminster in 2nd edition, and I believe 3rd edition he is weaker as well. I know he doesn't have nearly the magical item suite that Elminster does, nor the Chosen of Mystra abilities, etc. Heck, in 2nd edition Mordenkainen and almost the entire Circle of Eight get killed by a basic lich in Vecna Lives.

[ewancummins]

Elminster has always been quite a bit more powerful than Strahd, I every edition, so far as I know.
He was a very powerful character even in his very first full stats appearance in Dragon Magazine (109? 129), and that contained none of the special Mystra's Chosen cheese he later acquired.

I'm going to go with Alhoon on this one.
I should add I almost totally ignore novels. Fiction isn't games(and I have read few gaming fiction novels, besides some Ravenloft books). I am looking at the stats and game mechanics.
Could Strahd defeat Eliminster through a combination of luck and cunning? Sure. But would I bet that way? Nope.

[Five]

Elminster has always been quite a bit more powerful than Strahd, I every edition, so far as I know.

Elminster (1E): 26th level magic user
Strahd (1E): 10th level magic user

Elminster (2E): 29th level wizard
Strahd (2E): 16th level necromancer

Elminster (3E): Fighter 1/Rogue2/Cleric 3/Wizard 20/Archmage 5/Epic 4 (CR 45)
Strahd (3E): Fighter 4/Necromancer 16 (CR 24)

Elminster (4E): ignorant
Strahd (4E): ignorant

Elminster (5E): no idea. I can't find him in SCAG
Strahd (5E): listed as 9th level spellcaster (CR 15)

[ewancummins]

So it is definitely true in AD&D, AD&D 2E, 3E/D20. Very likely true in Fifth, unless Hasbro actually made Elminster much, much lower level than in previous editions, which seems pretty unlikely to me.

[alhoon]

I'm going to mention that:

VIEW CONTENT:

Strahd bested Mordenkainen in Curse of Strahd.

Pretty sure that's on Elminster's level, or pretty close.

I think the Dark powers did, not Strahd. And the archmage you mention is a flimsy CR12 creature while Strahd is CR15. Of course he would win.

[Zilfer]

Do you also think it matters on "Where" they fight? I mean... I think Elminister would be hard pressed to fight Strahd in ravenloft due to the DP's influence.... They don't like people toying with their toys. Also the alteration to magic within the realm of Ravenloft. He presumably has not been to Ravenloft and Strahd could have an advantage on that and knowing how they work... <.<

I think Elminister is kinda like superman though, and i dislike superman because he just seems to be "too good" at everything. XD

[Resonant Curse]

Do you also think it matters on "Where" they fight? I mean... I think Elminister would be hard pressed to fight Strahd in ravenloft due to the DP's influence.... They don't like people toying with their toys. Also the alteration to magic within the realm of Ravenloft. He presumably has not been to Ravenloft and Strahd could have an advantage on that and knowing how they work... <.<

I think Elminister is kinda like superman though, and i dislike superman because he just seems to be "too good" at everything. XD

Really, magic in Ravenloft mainly only changes with divination (mainly with alignment detecting, which in a vs matchup is pointless), necromancy (Elminster just doesn't really use it), and occassionally illusion (again, not usually a huge help in these types of bouts unless you are an illusionist specialist or something)

[IrvyneWolfe]

Could
Ryan Naylor has statted Strahd as a Fighter 3/Wizard[Necromancer] 8/Eldritch Knight 9 with a CR of 30 and that's the version I prefer. Thrown in the golf bag full of magic items that stat block has and Strahd is nothing to sneeze at even for a champion of a god.

Ryan Naylor, in The children of the night Netbook, actually made Strahd a Wizard (Necromancer) 16, Fighter 4, ancient Vampire; CR 24;
I gave him 4 more levels as a necromancer, one level more as fighter.

On a thread here about it, he threw out the above alternative take for the character due to the prompting of certain admirers of his work.

[Zilfer]

Do you also think it matters on "Where" they fight? I mean... I think Elminister would be hard pressed to fight Strahd in ravenloft due to the DP's influence.... They don't like people toying with their toys. Also the alteration to magic within the realm of Ravenloft. He presumably has not been to Ravenloft and Strahd could have an advantage on that and knowing how they work... <.<

I think Elminister is kinda like superman though, and i dislike superman because he just seems to be "too good" at everything. XD

Really, magic in Ravenloft mainly only changes with divination (mainly with alignment detecting, which in a vs matchup is pointless), necromancy (Elminster just doesn't really use it), and occassionally illusion (again, not usually a huge help in these types of bouts unless you are an illusionist specialist or something)

Part of the whole Ravenloft thing is to research and know your enemy before engaging them because again not everything works the same in ravenloft. DR could be Higher than normal, SPells might function differently, Magic ratings could change (like ToT), ect ect. Just putting out there it probably wouldn't be a land slide. Recent Strahd also has a heart in his tower that takes the first 50 damage for him and renews each day which is also helpful.

But yeah, as I said Elminster is superman and I don't like those Archetypes.

[alhoon]

The default D&D next MManual Lich can make short work of CoS Strahd. Just saying...

Of course, the default D&D next lich is again an uber-creature that can crumble empires.