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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Vayden" data-source="post: 4602425" data-attributes="member: 57791">I think Shilsen and MyISP both had good follow ups to this. I'd like to chime in and agree that it's perfectly fine if the players try and focus on one opponent. That frees you up to move the other opponents around and hammer on the wizards etc hiding in the back. If you make an encounter that only has one interesting opponent, and they make it boring by focusing on and taking down that one opponent, that's your own fault. I don't know if this is worth making into its own tip or not, but A) Use lots of monsters! and B) Use a good variety of interesting monsters so that the fight stays interesting even after half of them are dead. I think the infamous Irontooth encounter from KotS is a good example of this being done well - Irontooth himself is a huge threat, and the players will be naturally inclined to focus on him, but the caster is deadly in his own right if left alone, with his fire attacks melting down anyone with a bad reflex defense, and the skirmishers, dragonshields, and minions are threats as well if they're ignored. It also has interesting terrain with multiple pathways to maneuver and attack from various sides, and the fact that it's just a little bit too tough has made it famous and the best remembered and most discussed portion of that adventure.</blockquote>