My house rule is healing potion drinking as an action gives maximum healing where as using a bonus action to drink it get’s you the dice roll.
We also use the 5.5 healing spells (2d8 etc).
I’m a forever DM and I have a constant internal monologue often making observations or narrating what I’m doing. When I was a kid I’d imagine I was always on TV (not really I just liked imagining it).
I still kind of do it now (I’m 51) but not nearly as much.
I also get assailed by images...
I’m more than happy to use AI in my games to knock up some flavour text but if it’s a product I’m buying I want it to be made by a person.
Not least so I know some of the money not just none of the money goes to a creator and not the shareholders.
That’s exactly what I do. I find CR of about half the party level is a good base for an encounter but I dial it up of down by eye.
I certainly don’t think about XP budgets or worry about anything more granular than damage output and AC.
As long as a creature won’t drop a warrior type in two...