CR for NPCs?

[Xahn'Tyr]

Is the challenge rating for an NPC equal to his character level?

I thought that it was but I'm looking at a gang of 1st level rogues compared to a gang of hobgoblins and the former just doesn't seem twice as challenging as the latter. Same goes for a Hill Giant (with 102 hp) versus a (20 hp) Sorceror4/Rogue3.

The SRD doesn't talk about this and I'm a long way from my books. Could someone confirm (or refute) this for me?

 

[Bastoche]

As far as I know, CR=NPC's level.

But I think that depending on the encounter you could modify this.

CR works for a party of 4. If you take one NPC of the same level of the average PC's level this obviously is not a fair fight...

 

[CRGreathouse]

CR works for a party of 4. If you take one NPC of the same level of the average PC's level this obviously is not a fair fight...

CR = party level isn't suposed to be a fair fight; it should be an all-but-certain win for the PCs with little or no chanxce of any PC deaths.