I would like an active CR calculator for both the party and the encounter builder, taking into account things like magic items, manually adjusted stats, or monster abilities.
I think having a way to build random encounter tables that can be saved in a campaign would be cool. Name the list of options with set probabilities and it selects one when clicked/dragged into the encounter table.
Along the same lines, being able to create waves of encounters would be awesome too. Like if a certain condition is met (boss life falls below X, or number of enemies killed, even so many rounds have gone by) then a set amount of "minions" can enter initiative.
speaking of minions. Being able to set enemy health would be great.
If you could have a public-facing encounter builder/manager, then this website would be more or less the only thing I need for DnD night.
Here's the list of things I use on a weekly basis for my encounters (I currently use improved-initiative)
1. A simple way to add and manage encounters based on my campaign and locations. A simple folder approach works wonders for me, but a multi-tiered folder approach would be amazing (T1 folder: DoMM T2 folder: Level 10 T3 Individual files for encounters: 01 Shattered Mirrors). Some sort of clean organization goes a long way for those of us who DM on a regular basis
2. Easy way to see difficulty. I used to have an excel sheet that would take the list of heroes and their levels and then on one sheet would label every single encounter and its difficulty. It is the one major thing I miss from improved-initiative (as you have to add the heroes into the fights to see difficulty and then reset the encounters if you want to check a new encounter). Having a simple page of "for your currently selected campaign, the following encounters contain
Folder Heading - (average difficulty for subheadings [allowing for a rough idea of how my party can handle a particular chapter if I am in a rush and need to run a previous chapter with less preparation than I normally have)
Encounter Subheading
Number of monsters, calculated XP value, difficulty value
Encounter Subheading
Number of monsters, calculated XP value, difficulty value
3. Dynamic sidebars for monster statblocks and information. In improved-initiative (seriously, just look at that for what I assume most people want in an encounter builder, except have it tie in to the plethora of information in DnDBeyond), whenever my players have me roll for the odd wisdom or charisma save, I can just hover over/click on the monster and the statblock will pop up, showing me all of the information I need to quickly know which monsters have which bonuses to which stats. Having a spell-slot tracker would be nice as well, but not as necessary I believe.
4. Basic dice roller with options for advantage, disadvantage, crit, spell-casting, etc. Essentially, have the dynamic sidebar have access to the dice roller you already have 18. Have a manual dice roller as well for those dice rolls we have to do manually
5. Something often overlooked, but necessary at higher levels, I need "dummy" monsters with static initiatives that can function as lair actions as well as environmental issues. Create the "dummy" monster with a manually inputted initiative and let me copy-paste the lair action and have the program find the relevant dice rolls so that I can keep track of all of the lair actions/environmental issues in high-tier combat
6. Some simple condition tracking. Improved-initiative does a wonderful job with the ability to add conditions to players/monsters and have what those conditions are be readily available by just hovering over the condition. Many DMs still have the occasional trouble remembering the difference between some of the conditions.
7. Basic notes. If this is going to be a public-facing encounter builder (I pay for X tier, I can build encounters that anybody with a password can see, allowing my players/twitch viewers to see the encounter), then I would also like notes (both DM private notes and public notes). Allow me to put in stuff like "the room is this high/wide, their is a table in the far-right corner, the light is dim, etc." Then, in the private notes, I can put in things like "NPC so and so is currently at 1 hp and will join the party if they heal her, but she will then instantly attempt to run away if still in combat. Drow so and so is currently tied up in the back of the room and spiders will burst from his stomach after X turns."
What I am looking for when making an encounter. Ease. I want to be able to search for a monster (normally I do this by CR, but name and habitat can be also really useful, so my honest take here is to be able to search monsters by multiple filters including homebrew monsters) and add it to the encounter with minimal faff. I would also like to be able to edit the monster if possible - I find upping HP or AC can be really quick way of making the encounter harder while maintaining an encounter that isn't overrun with enemies. I'd like for the stats to be shown in a simple block as well. A randomised encounter would be great, especially if you could place it under certain filters. I'd also love to have the ability to save and edit encounters, especially because in the early levels players tend to level fairly quickly and I find a lot of my encounter prep for previous side quests that they now have interest in is outdated. I'd also enjoy a highlight over any monsters that are immune or have resistance to any of my players, I've misread that one before and ended up with an entirely useless wizard for one combat.
What I'm looking for when running an encounter. An automatic initiative tracker would be amazing. Especially if I could link it to the campaign group I already have and I would only have to input their rolls. A simple "next" button, and an ability to mark off any limited-use skills on the monsters. I'd also like to be able to get a way of marking out which monsters are attacking which players, as for me that would make keeping the pattern of attack a lot more cohesive. Perhaps an ability to track what moves have actually been made in the combat so far would cover this? Even if it's just a little text screen telling me that goblin 4 attacked PC 1 and PC 2 attacked goblin 3, etc.
How you currently build encounters for your home game. Currently, I just work out the rough CR limits that my monsters should have (exp calculators have saved my life) and then find something that fits the place that they PCs are in. I update them every now and then, but broadly speaking if it's not main plot relevant, I only give myself a rough outline of what to expect and then work it out on the day. Sometimes my players want a slog and sometimes they want to breeze through the encounters (not that I allow that one) and it makes it more fun for it to be an adjustable scale.
I basically want to be able add monsters with stat blocks. Be able to name the mosters individually. And be able to track their uses of powers, HP and conditions.
I would like to be able to compile an encounter by selecting the monsters that i have access through dnd beyond or ones that i have created myself. From there i would like to be able to number them how i see fit so i can place their initiative order. I would like the monsters to then place themselves into that order once numbered. On each monster I would like to be able to place on active statuses such as prone, bound, 5 ongoing poison dmg, etc. I would also like to be able to actively track each monsters health through this feature. It would be nice if i could have the loot added for the monsters and then be able to add it to my player characters straight from this feature. this would allow not only a encounter creature but an active encounter tracking system as well!!!
I would love to see some kind of implementation similar to the Encounter+ app on the apple App Store. Initiative tracking, tied with player management and access to the monster database.
Here are the steps that I take when creating an encounter:
1. Concept
I come up with an overall name and concept for an encounter, and some brief notes on what its purpose, place in the story and difficulty are.
2. XP range
Based on the concept I calculate which characters will be involved, what the difficullty should be (trivial, medium, etc, etc) and therefore what the XP range for the encounter should be.
3. Select monsters
I use various tools to select monsters and opponents that will meet the XP goals, I try to use vanilla monsters when possible, but when necessary I will reskin another monster to use standard stats but have a different "flavour" to match the overall encounter. I search based on monster type, CR range and environment,
4. Transcribe monsters
I copy the monsters, overwriting descriptions and names where necessary, into the same document as the concept. Then break out a separate table for tracking hit points.
I have not gone through all the comments, so I don't know if anyone has already suggested any of the things below. However, I wanted to still throw my wish into the mix. For an encounter builder I would like:
To be able to view all my monsters/npcs in a grid format that will allow me to easily toggle healing/damage, any conditions affecting them, and their abilities (actions, spells, etc) in a collapsible box that can be expanded when needed (this would be useful for encounters that have multiple of the same monster. I would only really need one list of abilities to refer to with 6 goblins in the encounter). When a monster/npc is reduced to 0 HP, I would like that monster to gray out to simplify interaction so I can focus on those that are still in action.
One button that I can click/tap on that automatically starts the encounter by rolling initiative for everything in the encounter. I like to roll initiative for each monster in my encounters, as it encourages a deeper strategy from my players, but can be time consuming.
A way to group my encounters based on my campaigns so they aren't just in one confusing list.
I think I see you updating the Monsters because now there's an L in a hexagon for all large creatures and larger, but a <span id="Large creature"> for the image would be great as I was looking for what was up for that symbol.
I would like an active CR calculator for both the party and the encounter builder, taking into account things like magic items, manually adjusted stats, or monster abilities.
I think having a way to build random encounter tables that can be saved in a campaign would be cool. Name the list of options with set probabilities and it selects one when clicked/dragged into the encounter table.
Along the same lines, being able to create waves of encounters would be awesome too. Like if a certain condition is met (boss life falls below X, or number of enemies killed, even so many rounds have gone by) then a set amount of "minions" can enter initiative.
speaking of minions. Being able to set enemy health would be great.
If you could have a public-facing encounter builder/manager, then this website would be more or less the only thing I need for DnD night.
Here's the list of things I use on a weekly basis for my encounters (I currently use improved-initiative)
1. A simple way to add and manage encounters based on my campaign and locations. A simple folder approach works wonders for me, but a multi-tiered folder approach would be amazing (T1 folder: DoMM T2 folder: Level 10 T3 Individual files for encounters: 01 Shattered Mirrors). Some sort of clean organization goes a long way for those of us who DM on a regular basis
2. Easy way to see difficulty. I used to have an excel sheet that would take the list of heroes and their levels and then on one sheet would label every single encounter and its difficulty. It is the one major thing I miss from improved-initiative (as you have to add the heroes into the fights to see difficulty and then reset the encounters if you want to check a new encounter). Having a simple page of "for your currently selected campaign, the following encounters contain
Folder Heading - (average difficulty for subheadings [allowing for a rough idea of how my party can handle a particular chapter if I am in a rush and need to run a previous chapter with less preparation than I normally have)
Encounter Subheading
Number of monsters, calculated XP value, difficulty value
Encounter Subheading
Number of monsters, calculated XP value, difficulty value
3. Dynamic sidebars for monster statblocks and information. In improved-initiative (seriously, just look at that for what I assume most people want in an encounter builder, except have it tie in to the plethora of information in DnDBeyond), whenever my players have me roll for the odd wisdom or charisma save, I can just hover over/click on the monster and the statblock will pop up, showing me all of the information I need to quickly know which monsters have which bonuses to which stats. Having a spell-slot tracker would be nice as well, but not as necessary I believe.
4. Basic dice roller with options for advantage, disadvantage, crit, spell-casting, etc. Essentially, have the dynamic sidebar have access to the dice roller you already have 18. Have a manual dice roller as well for those dice rolls we have to do manually
5. Something often overlooked, but necessary at higher levels, I need "dummy" monsters with static initiatives that can function as lair actions as well as environmental issues. Create the "dummy" monster with a manually inputted initiative and let me copy-paste the lair action and have the program find the relevant dice rolls so that I can keep track of all of the lair actions/environmental issues in high-tier combat
6. Some simple condition tracking. Improved-initiative does a wonderful job with the ability to add conditions to players/monsters and have what those conditions are be readily available by just hovering over the condition. Many DMs still have the occasional trouble remembering the difference between some of the conditions.
7. Basic notes. If this is going to be a public-facing encounter builder (I pay for X tier, I can build encounters that anybody with a password can see, allowing my players/twitch viewers to see the encounter), then I would also like notes (both DM private notes and public notes). Allow me to put in stuff like "the room is this high/wide, their is a table in the far-right corner, the light is dim, etc." Then, in the private notes, I can put in things like "NPC so and so is currently at 1 hp and will join the party if they heal her, but she will then instantly attempt to run away if still in combat. Drow so and so is currently tied up in the back of the room and spiders will burst from his stomach after X turns."
What I am looking for when making an encounter.
Ease. I want to be able to search for a monster (normally I do this by CR, but name and habitat can be also really useful, so my honest take here is to be able to search monsters by multiple filters including homebrew monsters) and add it to the encounter with minimal faff. I would also like to be able to edit the monster if possible - I find upping HP or AC can be really quick way of making the encounter harder while maintaining an encounter that isn't overrun with enemies. I'd like for the stats to be shown in a simple block as well. A randomised encounter would be great, especially if you could place it under certain filters. I'd also love to have the ability to save and edit encounters, especially because in the early levels players tend to level fairly quickly and I find a lot of my encounter prep for previous side quests that they now have interest in is outdated. I'd also enjoy a highlight over any monsters that are immune or have resistance to any of my players, I've misread that one before and ended up with an entirely useless wizard for one combat.
What I'm looking for when running an encounter.
An automatic initiative tracker would be amazing. Especially if I could link it to the campaign group I already have and I would only have to input their rolls. A simple "next" button, and an ability to mark off any limited-use skills on the monsters. I'd also like to be able to get a way of marking out which monsters are attacking which players, as for me that would make keeping the pattern of attack a lot more cohesive. Perhaps an ability to track what moves have actually been made in the combat so far would cover this? Even if it's just a little text screen telling me that goblin 4 attacked PC 1 and PC 2 attacked goblin 3, etc.
How you currently build encounters for your home game.
Currently, I just work out the rough CR limits that my monsters should have (exp calculators have saved my life) and then find something that fits the place that they PCs are in. I update them every now and then, but broadly speaking if it's not main plot relevant, I only give myself a rough outline of what to expect and then work it out on the day. Sometimes my players want a slog and sometimes they want to breeze through the encounters (not that I allow that one) and it makes it more fun for it to be an adjustable scale.
I see. I was under the impression that it was already accessible. Looking forward to seeing it in the future. Cheers!
I basically want to be able add monsters with stat blocks. Be able to name the mosters individually. And be able to track their uses of powers, HP and conditions.
Being able to track initiative would be nice to.
Oh also Trap and Terrain stat blocks maybe?
Maybe a help option you can turn on and off for new DMs or people interested in DMing but still learning how to make an encounter.
I would like to be able to compile an encounter by selecting the monsters that i have access through dnd beyond or ones that i have created myself. From there i would like to be able to number them how i see fit so i can place their initiative order. I would like the monsters to then place themselves into that order once numbered. On each monster I would like to be able to place on active statuses such as prone, bound, 5 ongoing poison dmg, etc. I would also like to be able to actively track each monsters health through this feature. It would be nice if i could have the loot added for the monsters and then be able to add it to my player characters straight from this feature. this would allow not only a encounter creature but an active encounter tracking system as well!!!
I would love to see some kind of implementation similar to the Encounter+ app on the apple App Store. Initiative tracking, tied with player management and access to the monster database.
I would like the ability to add monsters to the encounter with assigned stats but have the option to edit those stats myself.
i would also like the ability to add the player characters into the this so you can track them all the same
I see with the website updates that the Encounter Builder is now noted as 'coming soon'. Do we have a soft deadline when that will become available?
I'd hope to see everything I've done here, at the very least.
Here are the steps that I take when creating an encounter:
1. Concept
I come up with an overall name and concept for an encounter, and some brief notes on what its purpose, place in the story and difficulty are.
2. XP range
Based on the concept I calculate which characters will be involved, what the difficullty should be (trivial, medium, etc, etc) and therefore what the XP range for the encounter should be.
3. Select monsters
I use various tools to select monsters and opponents that will meet the XP goals, I try to use vanilla monsters when possible, but when necessary I will reskin another monster to use standard stats but have a different "flavour" to match the overall encounter. I search based on monster type, CR range and environment,
4. Transcribe monsters
I copy the monsters, overwriting descriptions and names where necessary, into the same document as the concept. Then break out a separate table for tracking hit points.
This has probably been addressed elase where but I didn't see it. Is the Encounter Builder website based or will it be in the D&D Beyond app?
Dave
I have not gone through all the comments, so I don't know if anyone has already suggested any of the things below. However, I wanted to still throw my wish into the mix. For an encounter builder I would like:
I think I see you updating the Monsters because now there's an L in a hexagon for all large creatures and larger, but a <span id="Large creature"> for the image would be great as I was looking for what was up for that symbol.
And no T in a triangle for Tiny?
Attack: [roll]1d20+[AMOD][/ roll]
Damage: [roll]if([roll:-1:fumble],=1,0,if([roll:-1],<[TARGET],0,if([roll:-1:critical],=1,2{[DAMAGE]}.expand(),[DAMAGE])+[DMOD]))[/ roll]
Let us know what you are looking for when making or running an encounter.
Let us know how you currently build encounters for your home game.
Let us know how you use / modify official encounters for your home games.
Anything else you want to share with us about encounter building!
Let us know what you are looking for when making or running an encounter.
Let us know how you currently build encounters for your home game.
Let us know how you use/modify official encounters for your home games.
Could you possibly be referring to the symbol used for Legendary Monsters?