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Message: <blockquote data-quote="CapnZapp" data-source="post: 7444168" data-attributes="member: 12731">I started calculating how much xp this series of encounters would net the heroes, had I actually used xp awards. I was shocked straight away.This encounter rates as deadly. Already the first one. I only intended it as a warm-up, where the challenge was to prevent any guard to sound the alarm. But according to the rules, this gets the hardest rating. Yeah, right.  According to the xp calculator I'm using the challenge ratings of 1x7, 4x3, 4x2 and 4x1 gives you 8300 xp, and for a party of five* level 11 characters adjusts to 24900 xp, well over 21000 xp into "deadly" territory.However, there was nothing deadly about this encounter! They practically toyed with the hapless yuan-ti! I knew I amped up the challenge so the party wouldn't feel they could just mow down everything and everybody, but I'm getting the suspicion this will amount to something like eight deadly or super-deadly encounters in a row(!)A substantial credit must go to the Druid player who used his 6th level slot on Feast of Heroes. Poison immunity for everybody really takes the bite out of snake people.We'll see how much xp it amounts to in total. No wonder I'm not using the CR system, though. Edit: I couldn't be bothered with the tribal warriors or zombies, and I've probably forgotten about half a dozen Purebloods or so. And I've bluntly ignored the way I beefed up many monsters**. But it adds up to 73 monsters and 55900 XP (9317 per character, assuming they were six all along*). At least that's good - all that slaughter (it probably took 8-9 hours of play time, divided over two day-long Sunday sessions) and still it's not enough to level up (you need 15000 xp at this stage).Zapp *) the first session (up until they holed up on Ras Nsi's quarters) was played by five players; the Barbarian player could not attend.**) I am generally quite liberal with the action economy of monsters, allowing them to take their signature abilities as bonus or free actions - I'm tired of having monsters die before they get to show what they can do! Many monsters get max or double hp. Specific changes included: Ras Nsi started out with +10 AC on top of having +4 bracers, and each time he was hit despite this, lost 1 AC (making him go from AC 27 to AC 26). Since only one and a half character could teleport in each round (on average), the fight against Ras Nsi was probably the hairiest. The Spawn of Kyuss got to inflict 1d6 worms in one attack, which I said the character could get rid of by inflicting 2d6 damage per worm removed. I rolled a six, and the Barbarian promptly shaved off a cool 46 hp off of herself! Since they'd already met a Bone Naga out in the city, I maximized this one, and let it cast as many spells as it could. The yuan-ti's most devastating power was probably the clouds of mesmerizing incense - since it is neither magic nor poison, and miss the DC 16 save and you need magical restoration or you're out for the full hour. The Oracle maidens created apparitions that was mobile versions of the Nightmare Speaker ability. Fenthaza herself got a free improved invisibility.All this, and yet the heroes prevailed. At least they're utterly depleted. I think it was a success - enough danger but not unfairly so.</blockquote>

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