10 Tips to End D&D Campaigns the Right Way

September 04, 2025
Posted by Luke Hart

By Luke Hart

Most of the advice out there for dungeon masters is about how to start a campaign. You know the drill: do you begin in a tavern, on a caravan, in media res? Entire volumes have been written on campaign openings. But what about endings? Hardly anyone talks about how to end a D&D campaign well—and that’s probably because very few campaigns actually get a proper ending.

More often, games just fizzle out. Players get “busy.” The DM loses interest. Sessions are skipped until the campaign quietly dies. But let’s imagine that’s not your game. Let’s say you’re actually going to finish this campaign. If so, here are ten tips to help you wrap it up in a way that feels epic, memorable, and satisfying.

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1. Build Tension Toward the Final Encounter

Your players should see the final confrontation coming—and want it. Foreshadow the villain through lieutenants, rumors, assassins, and recurring NPCs so that when the final showdown happens, the players know in their bones: this is it.

For example, in my Sword Coast Guard campaign, Lord Paxton was everywhere. His lieutenants fought the group, his ambassador arrived riding a white dragon, and his name hung over every adventure. By the time they reached him, the players were ready.

2. Let the Characters Build a Legacy

Starting around mid-campaign, give your players opportunities to leave something behind. This could be strongholds, followers, or even world-changing projects.

One of my players built a church for the Horned God. Another started preparing for lichdom, gathering ingredients across adventures. These legacies give characters depth, something to care about beyond loot and levels, and they provide closure when the campaign ends.

3. Let a Battle Decide the Final Outcome

Ending a campaign with “talky talky” is often anti-climactic. Sure, negotiation and diplomacy can play a role, but the final resolution should come through a battle. D&D is, after all, built heavily around combat.

One trick: present the villain with a tempting deal you know the players will reject. In my Sword Coast Guard game, Lord Paxton offered them kingdoms if they joined him. They refused, and the fight began—exactly as I expected.

4. Make the Final Battle Challenging and Memorable

This is the big one. Don’t let your final boss fight be a pushover. By level 20, characters are absurdly powerful. Stack the deck against them—three or four times above “deadly” difficulty. Give the villain minions, environmental hazards, and dynamic mechanics.

My Hand of Light group fought Tiamat herself, hacking off heads and climbing into her body just to deal damage. It was brutal, and they loved it. On the flip side, I once made the mistake of running a final boss who wasn’t tough enough—and it fell flat. Don’t repeat my mistake.

5. Give the Characters Cool and Powerful Magic Items

If there’s ever a time to hand out the good stuff, it’s now. Legendary items, artifacts, even the Deck of Many Things—it’s all fair game at the end. You’re about to throw them into the hardest fight of their adventuring careers. Give them the toys to match.

6. Forget About Your Precious Story

The ending is not about your narrative—it’s about the players. Set the stage, but don’t predetermine the outcome. No fudging dice. No last-minute adjustments. Let the dice fall where they may.

If the players triumph, awesome. If they suffer a glorious TPK, that’s just as memorable. Either way, the end belongs to them.

7. Let the Players Narrate the Epilogue

Once the dust settles, invite the players to describe what happens to their characters. Do they retire? Build empires? Disappear into legend? In my Sword Coast Guard campaign, after defeating Lord Paxton, each player narrated their character’s ending—and it gave the campaign real closure.

8. Have Encores at Level 20

Most players rarely get to play level 20 characters, so don’t stop immediately after the final boss. Run one or two encore adventures. Maybe a one-shot in another plane. Maybe a side story tying into your next campaign.

In my Hand of Light campaign, after the main story ended, they took on a bonus mission to rescue a rogue’s soul from Tiamat’s palace in Avernus. It was a blast, and it gave the players more time to enjoy their max-level heroes.

9. Give the Characters a Rematch

If your group wipes in the final fight, don’t let the campaign end in frustration. Allow them to roll up new characters at the same level and try again. Justify it through the story—a divine reset, a second timeline, or even allies stepping in after the first party fell.

It transforms disappointment into excitement, giving the players another shot at victory.

10. End with a Battle Royale

Once the campaign is wrapped, finish with a for-fun, no-stakes battle royale. Pit the player characters against each other just to see who would win. Death isn’t permanent—it’s just a victory lap to celebrate the characters one last time.

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