DrunkonDuty
he/him
Why shouldn’t there be NPCs who are on par with the PCs? I find it quite interesting to have people that the PCs need to either be careful around, create alliances with, or plan for a confrontation with.
I don’t have players that tend to go murder-hobo, though, so maybe I’m missing something?
Sorry, I could have been clearer in my post.
Absolutely no reason why there shouldn't be NPCs on par with the PCs. I'm all for the sort of scenarios you outline. In fact they're my favourite. I feel we get the best drama out of closely balanced conflicts. And I like drama in my RPGs.
I was just responding to the implication that PCs* can present a narrative problem if they decide to flip the script. Not that that means it must be a problem, just that it can be. It all comes down to campaign, play styles, group expectations, etc. etc.
I haven't had to deal with murder-hobos in a long ass time. I think the last time I had someone (1 player out 5) who was that way inclined was more than a decade ago. I handled it by saying "Sorry, we're not playing that sort of game." But back in my youth I struggled with how to deal with it and did err on the side of bigger NPCs laying the smackdown. It was unsatisfying all round and I recommend not doing it.
* I was thinking specifically of high level PCs in DnD et.al. but honestly it can happen in any game where the PCs are expected to be the best of the best.