Newbie DM question: How many encounters per day?

[Larissa]

I'm a longtime RPG player hoping to get into D&D. I'll be the DM, so it's up to me to create adventures. I just have one big question.

How many encounters per day (of a CR equal to the group's average level) can a group be expected to handle before sleeping for 8 hours?

The DMG suggests that it's four, but I'm not clear if the need to "rest" after every four equivalent-CR encounters refers to "take a few minutes to heal" or "set up camp for the night and let the spellcasters get new spells."

If you do have to sleep every four encounters, why don't published adventures ever seem to take that into account? I would expect it to really affect the flow of certain games. Are players just supposed to pitch a tent wherever they are? And at high levels, it seems like spellcasters could never use up all their spells after just four encounters.

Any clarification or expansion upon this guideline would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Sledge]

Healing spells and potions are part of the resources expected to be used in each encounter. Resting is to regain spells and to complete healing etc.

As for dungeon design, the goblins are not going to make sure that 1 in 5 areas is a public rest stop. If the party needs to rest, then it is their job to figure out how.

 

[Shuffle]

It means a full eight hours minimum.
A CR4 encounter should, in theory, take 20-25% of party resources.

Thus after 4 encounters the party should have to rest.

Resources in this case imply, spells, hit points and consumable items. Spells take 8 hours to replenish for wizards. Hit points could take longer unless you spend spells to increase the acquisition rate.

 

[Nareau]

That's a pretty broad theory, though. And following the book could lead to a pretty boring game.

In my experience, you have to think about more than just "# encounters/day". I tend to think of it in terms of "# encounters/session". My group doesn't want to spend a full 4-hour session doing nothing but fighting. I plan for the session, and let the day division fall based on the PC's actions.

Low-level characters tend to be able to handle 1-2 fights/day. Consider that most combats last 3-5 rounds at that level. And consider that your typical 1st level spellcaster has 2-4 1st level spells/day. After 2 fights, there's a real good chance they'll have gone through their whole repertroire.

Piel did run a module awhile back where our ~9th level characters went through a rediculous number of encounters in a 48-hour period. It was fun, and rather challenging, but not how I want all of my games to be.

Spider

 

[Lord Pendragon]

How many encounters per day (of a CR equal to the group's average level) can a group be expected to handle before sleeping for 8 hours?

Roughly 4. Sometimes it will be 3 or 5, depending on how the encounters go. The DMG suggests that an equal CR encounter takes up about 20% of a party's resources, but in reality, some encounters are going to be tougher or easier than expected. That's the fun of rolling the dice.

The DMG suggests that it's four, but I'm not clear if the need to "rest" after every four equivalent-CR encounters refers to "take a few minutes to heal" or "set up camp for the night and let the spellcasters get new spells."

It refers to a complete, eight-hour rest period. A full recharge. Every encounter is assumed to have "a few minutes to heal." If the party does battle, then is thrown into battle again without any time between, then it isn't two separate encounters at all, it's one bigger encounter with a couple-round lull in between waves.

If you do have to sleep every four encounters, why don't published adventures ever seem to take that into account? I would expect it to really affect the flow of certain games.

This is one of the big differences between a table-top roleplaying game and a video game. When you're designing your sessions, you shouldn't be concerned with providing rest stops. You should be concerned with designing lairs and villains that are plausible and make sense. It's up to the players to know when they've expended their resources and need to retreat to recover their strength. Note that the game itself gives players and their PCs tools to help them with this, such as spells like Rope Trick.

Are players just supposed to pitch a tent wherever they are?

Players are supposed to do what they think is necessary to survive in your world. Sometimes that means retreating from a dungeon and finding a safe place to camp (as hidden as possible) until you can recover your strength. Sometimes that means casting Rope Trick inside the dungeon. Sometimes that means pressing on even when your resources are low. It depends on the game situation you provide, and the way the encounters go, and the personalities of the PCs.

And at high levels, it seems like spellcasters could never use up all their spells after just four encounters.

Yes and no. At high levels, a spellcaster is always going to have spells available. He's not always going to have useful spells available. After all, the balor isn't going to be impressed that the wizard still has a couple Magic Missiles and a Scorching Ray still in the tank.

 

[Someone]

I suggest you to slightly change your approach. It´s not that you have to rest every 4 encounters, it´s that after 3-5 encounters the party´s resources (mainly spells, but also hit points) should be low. Those 3-5 encounters should make a dent in available wands´ charges, scrolls and potions. What the party do in that moment is their problem.

 

[Yig]

We all know the answer is only one:

http://www.giantitp.com/cgi-bin/GiantITP/ootscript?SK=145



Seriously, IMC we usually do 1 or 2 max per day. Unless the region the party is in has more monsters than usual.

 

[Larissa]

I really appreciate the different perspectives. I've played the SWRPG a lot and resting has never been a problem; then again, we're usually on a starship heading somewhere new after every 3-5 encounters.

While I don't plan on placing "save points" in my adventures, it's good to have a general sense of where the PCs might need to stop and rest. It means I can't plan an adventure, for example, where the players work their way through a villain's entire complex in one day. It also seems important to keep in mind for "time limit" or "race to the finish" adventures.

Thanks again for the advice!

 

[Corlon]

Generally I just design encounter for the PCs based on plausibility.

My game generally has the players teleporting all over various continents trying their peaceful world from slowly collapsing in on itself, so there aren't set numbers of encounters, and the PCs sleep whenever they feel they need to, and they get attacked whenever I think they should get attacked.

But yes, according to the DMG, 4 a day on their average party level, less if the CRs go up, more if they go down. But as it has already been said, dice and capabilities of the party can cause the characters to be easily destroyed by an "easy" encounter, or get a flawless victory on a "difficult" encounter.

 

[S'mon]

It's 4 encounters of level = party level; at 1st level that'd be 2 CR 1/2 opponents. However many GMs and scenarios have encounters averaging more like 2 over party level, which will absorb 40-50% of resources, a party will need to rest for 8 hours after 1 or 2 of those.