D&D 5E (2024) The Most Meta Party to Make the DM Cry?

[DrJawaPhD]

Just a clickbait way of asking which is best

Well ok, annoying clickbait phrasing aside, how are any of these party compositions better than another? Whatever approach the party goes with, the DM will tailor encounters to match up with whatever is required to challenge that composition.

The entire concept of a "best" composition doesn't even make sense unless you assume the DM is running a published module and not allowed to change it (in which case literally any composition of remotely optimized characters should steamroll it)

 

[FrogReaver]

Well ok, annoying clickbait phrasing aside, how are any of these party compositions better than another? Whatever approach the party goes with, the DM will tailor encounters to match up with whatever is required to challenge that composition.

The entire concept of a "best" composition doesn't even make sense unless you assume the DM is running a published module and not allowed to change it (in which case literally any composition of remotely optimized characters should steamroll it)

Consider this...
If the DM is tailoring encounters to the actual party and what the PCs actually do then full caster heavy parties that are stingy with spell slots and don't always play optimally is going to lead to the least difficult encounters with the greatest ability to punch harder if/when things go badly.

Thus, any DM trying to calibrate encounters to what players actually do, the players already have a legit optimization method specifically for that. It's not especially complicated and synergizes well with other optimization ideas.

 

[Zardnaar]

Just a clickbait way of asking which is best

I might cry with my players tbh.

 

[sevenbastard]

I will boldly state that regardless of edition the most powerful party is the all Cleric party.

 

[Zardnaar]

I will boldly state that regardless of edition the most powerful party is the all Cleric party.

Didn't think of that one as you'll never see it IRL. I've seen 3/6 priests recently in 2E.

Bit weak at range woukd be one weakness.

 

[Seramus]

Why would the DM cry with any of those party compositions?

Agreed, but for a different reason. If you are efficiently killing monsters, you are playing the game exactly as intended, and that should almost never make a DM cry.

Making a DM cry is like... doing something unexpected that makes them throw out weeks of prep. And killing monsters intended to die is NOT the way you achieve that.

 

[Sorcerers Apprentice]

Just remember that you can meta-optimize as much as you like, but the DM will never run out of dragons until he wants to.

 

[Zardnaar]

Agreed, but for a different reason. If you are efficiently killing monsters, you are playing the game exactly as intended, and that should almost never make a DM cry.

Making a DM cry is like... doing something unexpected that makes them throw out weeks of prep. And killing monsters intended to die is NOT the way you achieve that.

If you do it will enough the DMs probably sitting their twiddling their thumbs. Monster die sure but I don't think its fun ymmv

 

[Seramus]

If you do it will enough the DMs probably sitting their twiddling their thumbs. Monster die sure but I fint think its fun ymmv

As a DM, I prefer to be engaged as well as my players. The dice will always tell their own tale, but I enjoy it when my monsters get to do their thing and put up a fair fight.

Of course, I tailor my monsters to the party and don't use modules, so "meta" doesn't apply as much as an Adventure League table might.

 

[Zardnaar]

As a DM, I prefer to be engaged as well as my players. The dice will always tell their own tale, but I enjoy it when my monsters get to do their thing and put up a fair fight.

Of course, I tailor my monsters to the party and don't use modules, so "meta" doesn't apply as much as an Adventure League table might.

I want my monsters to die but a bit of tension on the way out