@Umbran
@5ekyu
@Oofta
If you follow the guidelines for encounters per adventuring day, and the guidelines for building easy, moderate, difficult, and deadly encounters, and follow also the guidelines for how often each of those types of encounters should occur, my point is simple: 5E is not deadly once you reach a certain point.
One of the biggest complaints is it is too easy. Of course, the DM can adjust whatever they want to make it more challenging, but the base design presented in the core books is such that the players
should win. Healing is too frequent, too accessible, and general recovery of hp to quick (again, following the suggested two short rests per long rest, etc.).
So, again, I am
well aware you can make the game deadlier. My observation is that if you follow the suggestions presented, once you get to certain point, it won't be deadly and you will pretty much always win in the long run. Is that a bad thing? Probably not for newer players and DMs. After all, who wants to play a game you are likely to lose? Most people wouldn't get much fun out of that IME. But for experienced players picking up a new (to us) system, it is really "safe".
And that is precisely my point. I am not saying the game doesn't play well or anything, just that if you follow the guidelines, you are playing a game you can reasonable expect to "win."