I'd like to load monsters or npcs on the players' side while calculating the challenge rating. Any way to do that? Also is there any way to compare monsters CR to # Lvl pc? So I can add a dummy PC instead?
I think the DMG offers how CR is calculated and might offer how to CR your NPC's so you could create "dummy PC" characters to pop in the encounter builder. I tend to use actual PC characters when I add to the party, so it's moot for me. They just don't use their full potential (or cower in fear, or have wandered off for a moment when fights break out lol) so I can preserver a balance of sorts.
You could copy an NPC stat block to a PC and then keep the level low so as to not mess up the CR calc with added character abilities.
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Talk to your Players.Talk to your DM. If more people used this advice, there would be 24.74% fewer threads on Tactics, Rules and DM discussions.
Thank you. I tried to estimate an equivalence for NPCs based on HD/CR/Powers. This has really been overlooked by the official rules for challenge rating as published by Wizards of the Coast. Assuming you have to smash everything in the MM...
Thank you. I tried to estimate an equivalence for NPCs based on HD/CR/Powers. This has really been overlooked by the official rules for challenge rating as published by Wizards of the Coast. Assuming you have to smash everything in the MM...
Not really overlooked. PCs don't need CRs. CRs are purely meant for setting up encounters and NPCs should be designed as monsters, not as PCs. You can certainly do things differently if you want, do whatever works for you, but we can't expect the official rules to help with all sorts of stuff that's not in them in the first place.
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Thank you. I tried to estimate an equivalence for NPCs based on HD/CR/Powers. This has really been overlooked by the official rules for challenge rating as published by Wizards of the Coast. Assuming you have to smash everything in the MM...
Not really overlooked. PCs don't need CRs. CRs are purely meant for setting up encounters and NPCs should be designed as monsters, not as PCs. You can certainly do things differently if you want, do whatever works for you, but we can't expect the official rules to help with all sorts of stuff that's not in them in the first place.
Not what I'm saying. I don't want PCs to have CR. I want rules to balance the encounters if NPCs in the MM team up with the party. So basically you have "monsters" on both sides. A priest, or veteran NPC just exists for a quick use in a story. Not considering they may have joined the party is overlooking things.
Thank you. I tried to estimate an equivalence for NPCs based on HD/CR/Powers. This has really been overlooked by the official rules for challenge rating as published by Wizards of the Coast. Assuming you have to smash everything in the MM...
Not really overlooked. PCs don't need CRs. CRs are purely meant for setting up encounters and NPCs should be designed as monsters, not as PCs. You can certainly do things differently if you want, do whatever works for you, but we can't expect the official rules to help with all sorts of stuff that's not in them in the first place.
Not what I'm saying. I don't want PCs to have CR. I want rules to balance the encounters if NPCs in the MM team up with the party. So basically you have "monsters" on both sides. A priest, or veteran NPC just exists for a quick use in a story. Not considering they may have joined the party is overlooking things.
Gotcha. In that case I'd reduce the monsters' adjusted XP value by the NPCs' XP value as a monster when calculating the encounter (so during step 5 of encounter creation) and leave it at that. Should be close enough, the encounter difficulty calculation definitely isn't an exact science to begin with. Keep in mind that DMPCs/NPCs not run by the players are typically not expected to play a significant role in the game. I might add a healer NPC or a tracker NPC to the party to shore up a weakness if needed, but I'd definitely restrict them to that specific function - the PCs are meant to be the heroes, after all - and ideally I'd address such a weakness by other means anyway (providing more/cheaper potions or adjusting the rest benefits, de-emphasizing the need for tracking in the campaign, etc).
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Want to start playing but don't have anyone to play with? You can try these options: [link].
Thank you. I tried to estimate an equivalence for NPCs based on HD/CR/Powers. This has really been overlooked by the official rules for challenge rating as published by Wizards of the Coast. Assuming you have to smash everything in the MM...
Not really overlooked. PCs don't need CRs. CRs are purely meant for setting up encounters and NPCs should be designed as monsters, not as PCs. You can certainly do things differently if you want, do whatever works for you, but we can't expect the official rules to help with all sorts of stuff that's not in them in the first place.
Not what I'm saying. I don't want PCs to have CR. I want rules to balance the encounters if NPCs in the MM team up with the party. So basically you have "monsters" on both sides. A priest, or veteran NPC just exists for a quick use in a story. Not considering they may have joined the party is overlooking things.
Gotcha. In that case I'd reduce the monsters' adjusted XP value by the NPCs' XP value as a monster when calculating the encounter (so during step 5 of encounter creation) and leave it at that. Should be close enough, the encounter difficulty calculation definitely isn't an exact science to begin with. Keep in mind that DMPCs/NPCs not run by the players are typically not expected to play a significant role in the game. I might add a healer NPC or a tracker NPC to the party to shore up a weakness if needed, but I'd definitely restrict them to that specific function - the PCs are meant to be the heroes, after all - and ideally I'd address such a weakness by other means anyway (providing more/cheaper potions or adjusting the rest benefits, de-emphasizing the need for tracking in the campaign, etc).
Very useful, thank you!
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I'd like to load monsters or npcs on the players' side while calculating the challenge rating.
Any way to do that?
Also is there any way to compare monsters CR to # Lvl pc? So I can add a dummy PC instead?
The official rules for challenge rating as published by Wizards of the Coast do not support this. These are the rules that the encounter builder uses.
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I think the DMG offers how CR is calculated and might offer how to CR your NPC's so you could create "dummy PC" characters to pop in the encounter builder. I tend to use actual PC characters when I add to the party, so it's moot for me. They just don't use their full potential (or cower in fear, or have wandered off for a moment when fights break out lol) so I can preserver a balance of sorts.
You could copy an NPC stat block to a PC and then keep the level low so as to not mess up the CR calc with added character abilities.
Talk to your Players. Talk to your DM. If more people used this advice, there would be 24.74% fewer threads on Tactics, Rules and DM discussions.
Thank you. I tried to estimate an equivalence for NPCs based on HD/CR/Powers. This has really been overlooked by the official rules for challenge rating as published by Wizards of the Coast. Assuming you have to smash everything in the MM...
Not really overlooked. PCs don't need CRs. CRs are purely meant for setting up encounters and NPCs should be designed as monsters, not as PCs. You can certainly do things differently if you want, do whatever works for you, but we can't expect the official rules to help with all sorts of stuff that's not in them in the first place.
Want to start playing but don't have anyone to play with? You can try these options: [link].
Not what I'm saying. I don't want PCs to have CR. I want rules to balance the encounters if NPCs in the MM team up with the party. So basically you have "monsters" on both sides. A priest, or veteran NPC just exists for a quick use in a story. Not considering they may have joined the party is overlooking things.
Gotcha. In that case I'd reduce the monsters' adjusted XP value by the NPCs' XP value as a monster when calculating the encounter (so during step 5 of encounter creation) and leave it at that. Should be close enough, the encounter difficulty calculation definitely isn't an exact science to begin with. Keep in mind that DMPCs/NPCs not run by the players are typically not expected to play a significant role in the game. I might add a healer NPC or a tracker NPC to the party to shore up a weakness if needed, but I'd definitely restrict them to that specific function - the PCs are meant to be the heroes, after all - and ideally I'd address such a weakness by other means anyway (providing more/cheaper potions or adjusting the rest benefits, de-emphasizing the need for tracking in the campaign, etc).
Want to start playing but don't have anyone to play with? You can try these options: [link].
Very useful, thank you!