Immoralkickass
Adventurer
I recently started DMing, and when I create new NPCs, or even BBEGs especially humanoids, I realise that I love to give them player levels. I feel that the rules of the game is like the laws of physics: it applies to everyone.
Of course exceptions do apply, hey even the PCs get special treatment sometimes. But for a starting point, I like to start with the player options. So if you see a half-orc cleric enemy, he has the same racials as any half-orc player, and the same abilities that a cleric has (depending on their domain). I even go as far as to hand pick spells known and spells prepared.
I read somewhere that to make your world more believable and logical, a BBEG wizard for example, would not always be at full available spell slots, with all the combat ready spells prepared and good to go. He might be doing something important that day, like crafting magic items, so he would prepare Invisibility if he wants to make a scroll of Invisibility. Or he wants to beef up his tower defenses, so he would prepare Glyph of Warding, Mord's Faithful Hound, and Guards n Wards. Or he went shopping and sight seeing, so he would have prepared Dimension Door, Misty Step, Locate Object and Locate Creature, and Suggestion for haggling.
Of course exceptions do apply, hey even the PCs get special treatment sometimes. But for a starting point, I like to start with the player options. So if you see a half-orc cleric enemy, he has the same racials as any half-orc player, and the same abilities that a cleric has (depending on their domain). I even go as far as to hand pick spells known and spells prepared.
I read somewhere that to make your world more believable and logical, a BBEG wizard for example, would not always be at full available spell slots, with all the combat ready spells prepared and good to go. He might be doing something important that day, like crafting magic items, so he would prepare Invisibility if he wants to make a scroll of Invisibility. Or he wants to beef up his tower defenses, so he would prepare Glyph of Warding, Mord's Faithful Hound, and Guards n Wards. Or he went shopping and sight seeing, so he would have prepared Dimension Door, Misty Step, Locate Object and Locate Creature, and Suggestion for haggling.