Challenge Multiplier
Encourage Resource Management with a Challenge Multiplier
In Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition, an Adventuring Day is considered to be the period of time between long rests. Players may often mitigate risk by ending their Adventuring Day early without tapping into a majority of their potential resources so they can regain use of their most powerful abilities. This is often referred to as the "5 Minute Work Day" style of adventuring.
Are you a DM with a group of players addicted to the 5 Minute Work Day? Then reward players for effective resource management and bold adventuring by modifying XP awards with a Challenge Multiplier.
What is a Challenge Multiplier?
The Challenge Multiplier is a weighted modification of the standard XP award for defeating monsters in combat. The multiplier is set to 50% at the start of an Adventuring Day. It increases each time the players are awarded XP for a combat encounter. More difficult encounters provide a greater increase in the multiplier until it reaches a maximum value of 150% (see table below). The multiplier resets to the starting value of 50% after a long rest.
How to Use the Challenge Multiplier
- Start with a baseline Challenge Multiplier of 50%
- Determine the difficulty of an encounter (Easy, Medium, Hard, Deadly)
- Increase the Challenge Multiplier relative to the difficulty of the encounter (150% maximum)
- Multiply the sum of the enemies’ Standard XP by the the Challenge Multiplier and award the characters the Modified XP value
- Reset the Challenge Multiplier to 50% after a long rest
| ENCOUNTER DIFFICULTY | MULTIPLIER INCREASE |
| Easy | +5% |
| Medium | +15% |
| Hard | +20% |
| Deadly | +30% |
Remember, the Challenge Multiplier is not bonus XP in addition to the standard XP award. It is directly modifying the standard XP award for an encounter.
Example Using the Challenge Multiplier
Here is a series of six encounters for a group of four 5
th level adventurers. For each encounter, compare the Standard XP award to the Modified XP award using the Challenge Multiplier.
Encounter #1
Current Challenge Multiplier: 50% (starting multiplier)
Monsters: 8 Gnolls
Encounter Difficulty: Medium (+15%)
New Challenge Multiplier: 65% (50% + 15% for a Medium encounter)
Standard XP Award: 800
Modified XP Award: 800 * 65% = 520
Cumulative Standard XP: 800
Cumulative Modified XP: 520
Encounter #1 starts with a 50% Challenge Multiplier and increases relative to the difficulty of this encounter. Since it is a Medium encounter, we add
15% giving us a New Challenge Multiplier of 65%. Once the party successfully completes the encounter, they receive the Modified XP Award instead of the Standard XP Award.
Encounter #2
Current Challenge Multiplier: 65%
Monsters: 5 Hobgoblins, 2 Ogres
Encounter Difficulty: Hard (+20%)
New Challenge Multiplier: 85% (65% + 20% for a Hard encounter)
Standard XP Award: 1400
Modified XP Award: 1400 * 85% = 1190
Cumulative Standard XP: 2200
Cumulative Modified XP: 1710
For the Encounter #2, we roll over the total of the previous Challenge Multiplier (65%) and increased it relative to the difficulty of this encounter. This is a Hard encounter, so we add
20% giving us a New Challenge Multiplier of 85%. Again, the party receives the Modified XP Award instead of the Standard XP Award
Let’s take a look at the rest of the encounters and analyze the numbers.
Encounter #3
Current Challenge Multiplier: 85%
Monsters: 5 Shadows, 1 Will-o’-Wisp
Encounter Difficulty: Medium (+15%)
New Challenge Multiplier: 100% (85% + 15% for a Medium encounter)
Standard XP Award: 950
Modified XP Award: 950 * 100% = 950
Cumulative Standard XP: 3150
Modified Standard XP: 2660
Encounter #4
Current Challenge Multiplier: 100%
Monsters: 2 Bandit Captains, 1 Berserker
Encounter Difficulty: Medium (+15%)
New Challenge Multiplier: 115% (100% + 15% for a Medium encounter)
Standard XP Award: 1350
Modified XP Award: 1350 * 115% = 1552 (rounded down)
Cumulative Standard XP: 4500
Cumulative Modified XP: 4212
Encounter #5
Current Challenge Multiplier: 115%
Monsters: 1 Displacer Beast, 5 Duergar
Encounter Difficulty: Hard (+20%)
New Challenge Multiplier: 135% (115% + 20% for a Hard encounter)
Standard XP Award: 1700
Modified XP Award: 1700 * 135% = 2295
Cumulative Standard XP: 6200
Cumulative Modified XP: 6507
Encounter #6
Current Challenge Multiplier: 135%
Monsters: 2 Manticores
Encounter Difficulty: Medium (+15%)
New Challenge Multiplier: 150% (135% + 15% for a Medium encounter)
Standard XP Award: 1400
Modified XP Award: 1400 * 150% = 2100
Cumulative Standard XP: 7600
Cumulative Modified XP: 8607
At the end of this series of encounters, the Challenge Multiplier has reached the maximum amount of 150%. If the group pushes on to face more encounters this Adventuring Day, the Challenge Multiplier will no longer increase.
You can see the group's Cumulative Modified XP comes up a bit short of the Cumulative Standard XP after Encounter #4 and bit ahead after Encounter #5. After pressing on to complete Encounter #6, the group earns another extra 700 XP with the Modified XP Award versus the Standard XP Award. Through the Adventuring Day, the group has earned an extra 1007 XP from the Challenge Multiplier.
Questions and Considerations
What is a Challenge Multiplier and why should I use it when I run my game?
The Challenge Multiplier encourages your players to use their resources efficiently by weighting the XP value of monsters relative to the number and difficulty of previous encounters during their Adventuring Day (the period between long rests).
Why should an encounter at the end of the Adventuring Day be worth more than an identical encounter at the beginning of the Adventuring Day?
The encounter at the end of the adventuring day should be more difficult due to the group’s limited resources.
Do I give my players the Standard XP Award and the Modified XP Award as bonus?
You give your players the Modified XP Award instead of the Standard XP Award. When the Challenge Multiplier is lower than 100%, your players earn LESS than the Standard XP Award. When the Challenge Multiplier is greater than 100%, your players earn MORE than that Standard XP Award.
So my players won’t earn the standard amount of XP for an encounter until the Challenge Multiplier is at 100% or higher?
By setting the Challenge Multiplier at 50% after a long rest, the first few encounters of an Adventuring Day will award less than the standard amount of XP. Your players should make up for this deficit with the extra XP earned after the Challenge Multiplier is over 100%.
My players aren’t earning enough XP because they don’t fight a lot of monsters.
If your game doesn’t feature a lot of combat encounters, consider increasing the 50% starting multiplier or use an alternate method of awarding XP.
My players are using resources outside of combat to overcome social challenges and exploration challenges. Does this affect the Challenge Multiplier?
No, but hopefully you are awarding XP for non-combat encounters when the party taps into its resources.
Why does the Challenge Multiplier stop increasing once it reaches 150%?
The 150% multiplier maximum acts as a safety cap if a DM grossly underestimates Encounter Difficulty through an Adventuring Day. Most groups will require a long rest around the time they reach the 150% maximum. You can increase the cap or remove it entirely if you want to encourage your players to continue to test their limits.
What about multi-part encounters?
If an encounter features multiple waves of enemies, each wave should treated as a separate encounter with its own Challenge Multiplier.
Are there any special circumstances that affect the Challenge Multiplier?
You may want to adjust Encounter Difficulty based on environmental hazards, traps, monster tactics, or special abilities of your group. Consider setting a static Challenge Multiplier in situations that involve a sudden dramatic shift in party resources.
Does the Challenge Multiplier favor classes that rely on short rests for most of their class features?
In theory, a group composed solely of Fighters, Monks, Druids, Rogues, or Warlocks could string together more encounters than an average group during an Adventuring Day. However, a group that thrives on short rests will eventually require a long rest to recover hit points and hit dice. If this is a recurring problem, you may consider reducing the multiplier (-15%) after a short rest.
My players refuse to take a long rest, and they rely on sources outside the party for healing.
Reset the multiplier any time the group needs to sleep (or trance). If no one in the party requires sleep, consider resetting the Challenge Multiplier every 24 hours or after a long break between encounters.
My group is exploiting the Challenge Multiplier by seeking out lots of Easy encounters!
A long string of Easy encounters that don't require the players to expend resources, particularly at the beginning an Adventuring Day, could artificially inflate the Modified XP Award of subsequent encounters. If you feel an encounter poses no tangible threat or expenditure of resources, do not increase the Challenge Multiplier or award XP.
My group is earning too much XP because of the Challenge Multiplier!
If your players have a very powerful group of adventures that easily overcome most challenges, consider using a smaller increase in the Challenge Multiplier values relative to the difficulty of the encounter (+5% for Easy, +10% for Medium, +15% for Hard, +20% for Deadly).
