ccs
41st lv DM
When I said Mass stupidity, it was regarding the 1st level PCs attacking the dragon or lich that you had as a story NPC. That would be my example of mass stupidity.
If you are TPKing 1st level parties you probably have the difficulty off. You can adjust numbers of foes, reduce HP (have an old ogre, or young bugbear, or have the NPC already wounded). Or the goblins recognize their own mortality, flee, take captives etc.
I don’t think you’re doing it ‘wrong’ as such. There are advantages to killing players even at 1st level as other posters have said. I just think it’s a waste of everyone’s time to spend 3 hours generating characters, doing the setup only to wipe them all out in the 1st/2nd session.
None of what you suggest stops the D20 from still hitting, the damage dice rolling high enough, the PCs rolling low, or any combination.
Like I said, we roll our dice in the open. And my DMing dice are bright yellow with black #s because I want you to see them.
So as there's not going to be any fudging of #s/cheating going on, please don't suggest that.
If I wanted a certain result? Then I would narrate it to you, not waste time rigging encounters to ensure it.