Here's an unfinished schematic that doesn't have all of the elements in it (it's on my other computer) but shows the offending posts which are why a change is needed. The continuous ones that go up to the upper purlins are about 21feet and though the sawyer originally said he could handle them, he can't and buying elsewhere isn't an option (long story). It's a modification of a dutch barn, so the upper, large tie beam would have actually been a wedged through tenon in that dutch barn style.

{How do I add an image that's not from a web site?}

What if I interrupted those posts at the large upper beam, set the beam on top of the posts (some tying joint there to be decided on later) and then set the posts continuing on up to the purlins on top of that beam?

B