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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Quickleaf" data-source="post: 7826979" data-attributes="member: 20323">Yep, definitely trying to prepare interesting complications that are suited to a stealth-based mission.But there's also a point where those two things meet – actions the players might take, and presenting interesting complications. In order to be interesting, the complications I present need to be meaningful challenges based on the PCs' capabilities and strategies/actions the players lean towards. A DM needs to think of both, right?For example, my players have taken to using pass without trace frequently while their PCs are sneaking about the jungle. This gives +10 to their Dexterity (Stealth) checks. The PCs have Stealth scores of lizardfolk rogue +13, human wizard/rogue +7, grung druid +1 (uses enhance ability for advantage on Dex checks when sneaking, so actually more like +6), and goblin paladin +1 (usually Helped by the wizard/rogue who's a mastermind, so that's advantage, so actually more like +6). And that's not counting a few other spells. That means that the lowest Stealth checks the PCs can roll are 24, 18, 17, and 17, which beats passive Perception scores of the lizardfolk (13). And if treated as a group check, they always succeed against a Perception check or 17 or less. Another example is that my party has a crystal ball which allows them to cast the scrying spell at will (given 10 minutes). One of them can also cast teleport using the Hand of Vecna. This means they can scry the Lizard Emperor's routine and try to teleport in while he's at his weakest. And so as part of my prep I need to include a schedule which accounts for what the Lizard Emperor is doing, say, hourly throughout the day. This sort of defined schedule isn't something I'd normally include in my prep – the PCs' capabilities and possible actions necessitate that I adjust my prep to account for that.</blockquote>

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