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Do you increase monster hit points?
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<blockquote data-quote="Otterscrubber" data-source="post: 7449593" data-attributes="member: 4588"><p>Ya, the easiest way to make fights harder is to increase the HP of the monsters involved or simply add more monsters. I find that PCs do quite well and often have 18s in their primary stat so they will be better at reliably hitting and doing damage in encounters that are slugfests. What really unbalances fights is healing, especially if the party has a life cleric. But in either case if I am in a hurry I simply give the monsters more than average hit points, or at least make some of them have more hit points. If I have more time to design an encounter I will add in difficult terrain that affects the PCs but not the mobs or traps to keep things interesting or some type of buff mechanic for the monsters that the PCs need to resolve. There are options.</p><p></p><p>I think a lot of the monsters were designed to be a challenge for parties with averages stats and that in a simple slug fest will not be a challenge for most PCs that even moderately try to optimize their combat mechnics. However keep in mind that a lot of monsters have charms, stuns,fears, sight blocking cloud spells or other abilities that can really mess up the teamwork of a group of PCs. And dispel magic, don't forget that one <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite1" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":)" />. A few of these can really change the dynamic of a fight. </p><p></p><p>Although lately, I've been giving my PCs encounters that will obviously result in a TPK. It's been interesting to see how they overcome challenges with clever use of non-combat spells, skills and roleplaying. I've stopped trying to balance encounters and simply give my players a situation, then see how they handle it. If they are careless, their characters face consequences based on the situation. I have been very impressed with some ways they have circumvented what appeared to be impossible situations. I'm liking that 5e allows for both hack & slash as well as role-play/skill-based solutions.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Otterscrubber, post: 7449593, member: 4588"] Ya, the easiest way to make fights harder is to increase the HP of the monsters involved or simply add more monsters. I find that PCs do quite well and often have 18s in their primary stat so they will be better at reliably hitting and doing damage in encounters that are slugfests. What really unbalances fights is healing, especially if the party has a life cleric. But in either case if I am in a hurry I simply give the monsters more than average hit points, or at least make some of them have more hit points. If I have more time to design an encounter I will add in difficult terrain that affects the PCs but not the mobs or traps to keep things interesting or some type of buff mechanic for the monsters that the PCs need to resolve. There are options. I think a lot of the monsters were designed to be a challenge for parties with averages stats and that in a simple slug fest will not be a challenge for most PCs that even moderately try to optimize their combat mechnics. However keep in mind that a lot of monsters have charms, stuns,fears, sight blocking cloud spells or other abilities that can really mess up the teamwork of a group of PCs. And dispel magic, don't forget that one :). A few of these can really change the dynamic of a fight. Although lately, I've been giving my PCs encounters that will obviously result in a TPK. It's been interesting to see how they overcome challenges with clever use of non-combat spells, skills and roleplaying. I've stopped trying to balance encounters and simply give my players a situation, then see how they handle it. If they are careless, their characters face consequences based on the situation. I have been very impressed with some ways they have circumvented what appeared to be impossible situations. I'm liking that 5e allows for both hack & slash as well as role-play/skill-based solutions. [/QUOTE]
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