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<blockquote data-quote="jcbdragon" data-source="post: 5660222" data-attributes="member: 6676432">I'm curious, what sorts of things have other DMs here done to make bad guys more effective without having to use ten times more of them, or artificially inflate their AC/HP/etc?Let's face it, in a &quot;straight-up&quot; encounter, the winner can be reasonably predicted by simple statistics.&nbsp; This means that as your PCs progress in level, it requires more and more powerful monsters/NPCs to provide them with any sort of a challenge, and even then it can still be reduced to an exercise in statistics.&nbsp; Why even bother with encounters with lower-level creatures, when it's a foregone conclusion that the party will just wade through them?For example, in the classic adventure G1: The Steading Of The Hill Giant Chief, the giants have orcs and ogres as servants/slaves.&nbsp; If the party is high enough level to stand up to the giants, then ogres are a minor nuisance, and orcs don't even qualify as a speed bump.&nbsp; Why bother sending them against the party at all?&nbsp; And how are you going to GET them to go against the party when they've already seen you fighting their giant masters?Granted, a Hill Giant isn't the sharpest knife in your back, but one of the current inhabitants of the Steading is a Cloud Giant -- a race known for its intellect, even as military geniuses.Once the party's presence became known, he started organizing their forces into something that would give the characters a FIGHT.&nbsp; For example, the party opened the door into the Great Hall, only to find a shield wall right in front of them preventing them from going in.&nbsp; Crouched down behind those shields were ogres, whose sole job was to hold that shield up and not expose themselves (i.e. full cover, so very hard to hit).&nbsp; On the opposite side of the room, the giants had turned over the tables and were throwing rocks from behind them.Now the party is getting bombarded by rocks, and can't get into the room until they find a way past the shield wall, and the giants are out of range of anything but missile attacks.Unfortunately, my players invoked an old adage that says that the players will always do something you don't expect.&nbsp; After a few rounds of this, the priest realized that they were getting pummeled with stones, and that he was carrying &quot;Transmute Stone To Mud&quot; that day, after which he destroyed their pile of &quot;ammunition&quot;!&nbsp; LOLWhat about you?&nbsp; What particularly clever tricks are you most proud of?</blockquote>

[QUOTE="jcbdragon, post: 5660222, member: 6676432"] I'm curious, what sorts of things have other DMs here done to make bad guys more effective without having to use ten times more of them, or artificially inflate their AC/HP/etc? Let's face it, in a "straight-up" encounter, the winner can be reasonably predicted by simple statistics. This means that as your PCs progress in level, it requires more and more powerful monsters/NPCs to provide them with any sort of a challenge, and even then it can still be reduced to an exercise in statistics. Why even bother with encounters with lower-level creatures, when it's a foregone conclusion that the party will just wade through them? For example, in the classic adventure G1: The Steading Of The Hill Giant Chief, the giants have orcs and ogres as servants/slaves. If the party is high enough level to stand up to the giants, then ogres are a minor nuisance, and orcs don't even qualify as a speed bump. Why bother sending them against the party at all? And how are you going to GET them to go against the party when they've already seen you fighting their giant masters? Granted, a Hill Giant isn't the sharpest knife in your back, but one of the current inhabitants of the Steading is a Cloud Giant -- a race known for its intellect, even as military geniuses. Once the party's presence became known, he started organizing their forces into something that would give the characters a FIGHT. For example, the party opened the door into the Great Hall, only to find a shield wall right in front of them preventing them from going in. Crouched down behind those shields were ogres, whose sole job was to hold that shield up and not expose themselves (i.e. full cover, so very hard to hit). On the opposite side of the room, the giants had turned over the tables and were throwing rocks from behind them. Now the party is getting bombarded by rocks, and can't get into the room until they find a way past the shield wall, and the giants are out of range of anything but missile attacks. Unfortunately, my players invoked an old adage that says that the players will always do something you don't expect. After a few rounds of this, the priest realized that they were getting pummeled with stones, and that he was carrying "Transmute Stone To Mud" that day, after which he destroyed their pile of "ammunition"! LOL What about you? What particularly clever tricks are you most proud of? [/QUOTE]

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