The 5e way is distinctly different from the 3e way.
Not only does the edition "reset" NPC levels to maybe 5-10 levels lower than the 3e inflation, it considerably simplifies them.
Agreed. My goal has been to learn the 5e way by doing the conversion. The 5e NPCs are simpler builds than the 3e NPC builds. The simplicity of 5e makes it easier for people to start designing and playing, which has probably contributed to the success of the fifth edition.
If and only if the NPC is intended as a combat target is it appropriate to create unique stats. Even then, just drop 75% to 90% of the 3e character's abilities..
That’s a reasonable approach. The avatars serve as combatants for the adventurers. Their stats appear in the 3e
Faiths and Pantheons, so I can look for abilities there.
Otherwise "Archmage" will do just fine. (In actual combat, an Archmage will easily die in the first round of combat even to heroes 5-10 levels lower, so it makes for a poor combat stat line).
I use an Excel calculator to see the challenge rating for various encounters. An archmage is a “hard” encounter for a party of five 8th-level adventurers, deadly for a party of four. My sense is that, with a few rounds for the archmage to prepare, the challenge rating is accurate. In practice, though, a well-prepared and coordinated party that gets initiative can drop an archmage in a round.
Even the specialist (school) wizards of Volo's are better and more inspired than the dull Archmage block of the MM.
Yes, and, after picking up Volo’s, I started to use the specialist wizard templates as the bases for NPC wizard builds in FRE2. The illusionist and the evoker have been used so far, though I’m taking care that the spells Greenwood lists for a wizard NPC indeed recommend using a specialist template of a given kind.
If the named NPC is to face the heroes in combat, I think the best course of action is to create a unique stat block; and invent two or three cool powers it and nobody else has. Look to end bosses in existing modules for guidance - Strahd and Ras Nsi are not off-the-counter stats blocks. One gets bonus hp, the other gets bonus AC.
If the NPC is meant to face the whole party alone you need a Solo, and then you don't need just to bend the 5e framework, you need to break it.
It may be too early in the conversion for me to build the end bosses, then. The Excel CR calculator I wrote is almost done, but it has not been tested for exactness. All the CRs of 240-plus NPCs need calculating or recalculating. I also need a better idea of how much XP an average group will have when facing a given end boss. That will tell me how to write a unique stat block so that the NPC presents a well-balanced challenge. It appears that giving the end boss unique powers will add mystery and authenticity to the final combat. It’s a question of where to set the CR. But to do that well, I first need to test the Excel CR calculator. . . .
Before returning to high-level NPC end-boss drafts, I’ll have a look at Strahd and Ras Nsi.
Thanks for the insights.
