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Message: <blockquote data-quote="random user" data-source="post: 1831237" data-attributes="member: 16581">Yeah, I think it's very easy to build NPCs specifically to foil your PCs, and this should be avoided at all costs.  It's very important to allow your PCs to shine at certain times (if they choose not to, well that's not your fault).To get in the habit of buffing all your NPCs with protection from energy: fire when your wizard gets fireball will just lead to grumpy PCs.I assumed (a bad assumption on my part, I realize now) that almost all die rolls are in the open.  Personally I would have a hard time playing in a campaign where the DM rolled hit and damage behind a screen.  If you do hide die rolls, all the wizard of oz'ing becomes trivial (ok, not trivial, but you aren't accountable to the numbers which makes it a lot easier).If I had enough time I would probably stat out more NPCs (and I should note that any NPC which is going to be around for more than 2 sessions I will stat out); however, a lot of times I don't even know those NPCs are going to be interacted with, let alone whether there will be a fight or not.For example, let's say I have two guards near a cave complex which the PCs have no interest in going in.  But they need to get past the two guards, and there are many ways to do this.  If they choose to attack the guards (instead of bribing them, intimidating them, sneaking past them etc), and if the guards get a chance to act (ie they don't get slept, or sneak attack killed on first round etc) then they will call for reinforcements.There is really a very minimal chance that things are going to play out in such a way that I need to use those reinforcements.  So I quickly come up with who would probably come (let's say 2 4th level fighters followed by a 3rd level rogue who will sneak) and I leave it at that.  If the fight actually breaks out, I don't have a statblock for those NPCs but I know enough that I can wing it, especially since they aren't elite troops, and they are (unless the PCs interact with them) going to fade back into obscurity.</blockquote>

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