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Message: <blockquote data-quote="sjmiller" data-source="post: 3781783" data-attributes="member: 17262">Part of this was quoted on the front news page of EN World (otherwise I would not have known about it): This may sound a bit snarky, and for that I apologize, but I think these comments by Mr. Noonan are quite telling.  They tell me that Mr. Noonan and I are quite different DMs.  Not only that, but it makes me question how well he know how to run a game.Frankly, I am shocked that a DM has trouble keeping monsters alive long enough to pull off the “cool tricks” that are built into the creature.  I think if you are having trouble doing this you are: a) playing the monsters incorrectly; b) underestimating the power of the PCs; or c) overestimating the power of the monster.  It’s quite possible to be doing all three, which could explain Mr. Noonan’s problems.  If you know your players, their characters, and have fully read the monster description, then you should almost always be able to use a creature’s special abilities.  The only times this will not be the case is if the party surprises the creature or if they do something truly creative and unexpected.Running a mixed group of monsters is not hard at all, and should never make one feel that their head is going to explode.  Simple monster management is all it takes.  I’ve been doing monster management since the early 1980s, and it really hasn’t changed.  Jot down important bits of info on a notecard or piece of paper.  Highlight special abilities and, if needed, flag the pertinent pages in whatever rulebook is needed.  Review your notes before the game begins and quickly scan them just before the encounter.  Sometimes, if the creature has some particularly special things to do, I will make a note of what their first few rounds of actions will likely be.  Keep encounters orderly should be a piece of cake.Convincing your players that something is a threat is practically the first law of being a DM.  The way you describe things, the entire presentation, should easily convince a party they could be in trouble.  Good use of language is key here.  Failing that, good surprise use of the powers of a creature can humble a party in no time.  Plus, you have to remember that sometimes the opposition wants you to think they are weak.  It’s called entrapment.I guess what I am trying to say is that Mr. Noonan, et alia, are seeing problems where I don’t think problems ever existed.  I get the feeling they are fixing things that they think are “broken” or are replacing them with “cool stuff” that are not really necessary.  This, coupled with a number of other comments lately, really makes me question whether my idea of D&D and the new design teams ideas are even remotely similar.</blockquote>

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