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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Alphastream" data-source="post: 6619388" data-attributes="member: 11365">i think it depends on the objective. Untiered/unscaled encounters in previous organized play campaigns were usually meant to cover "the PCs should know better than to mess with this... if they do, hit them with this and probably it's a TPK." With the Encounters adventures it is really more that the DM is given freedom to create an encounter or to adjust an encounter. The certain cloud encounter in HotDQ comes to mind. That could be poor design (the designers have talked about being blindsided by monster changes) or it could just be that DMs are expected to adjust encounters and give hints. Regardless of intent, I would argue that the end result for a DM is the later: The point is for everyone to have fun. If an encounter is up to you to design, is a random table roll, or is an untiered encounter with a potential non-combat or challenge-lessening option, then you the DM should adjust accordingly for fun and give tips as needed for fun. It's never about softballing. But, let's say the party doesn't catch all the previous hints about a powerful creature. Now they are in the throne room and they decide to go straight into combat. As the fight develops, you might place hints in the room: an open journal, it's open page questioning the trustworthiness of the Cult. Or, flowers placed at the base of a portrait of the creature's spouse, showing she recently died (and perhaps begging the question of what happened to her). Add the depth that can trigger players realizing, seemingly on their own, that there is more than just a TPK to be had here. Recast it as almost a combination fight and skill/puzzle encounter, where as the TPK looms they can figure out the way to a non-combat solution. That can be a very awesome experience. Let's say you roll randomly on a wilderness encounter table and only two rounds in realize that monster(s) is brutal. You could have cultists come in on the scene and demand either payment or proof of allegiance to help the party. Or, a far larger creature comes in and desires the original monster as prey - it becomes a skill encounter to exit the combat with as little notice and damage as possible. There are often options to make this a really fun scene without a non-fun TPK or handwaiving the challenge. And, sometimes the players do just earn a fun TPK. That happens too. But, it is hopefully fair and not due to bad design or a DM not understanding the challenge level.</blockquote>

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