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<blockquote data-quote="rrealm" data-source="post: 1687810" data-attributes="member: 20630">It says &quot;Very Hard&quot; because the effective party level is 4.6 and the EL of the 8 hobgoblins is a 7.&nbsp; Although, I would say a more proper EL would be 6 since most hobgoblins have fair to poor equipment.&nbsp; Anyway, the calculator isn't perfect but once you get past level 2 or EL 2, things fan out much better.&nbsp; I use the calculator for my party and their cohorts so I can send a balance of kou-toa and drow at them while they attack an underground stronghold.After playing with the number of hobgoblins (I made it 6 for the program but I’d still use 8 for the battle) to make it say the EL was 6, the difficulty factor was 1.6 which roughly translates to one or two good blows will need to be healed from the battle.&nbsp; No one should die.&nbsp; If no one is injured, it’s probably because one of the wizards used their highest spell levels to do a mass immobilization to the enemy group.&nbsp; Either way, the party’s amount of available resources is reduced.&nbsp; This “roughly translates to …” is my interpretation of the difficulty factor and the recommended information on encounters in the DMG where it talks about an equal EL should consume X% of party resources.&nbsp; It is no way scientific or based on specialized charts.Oh, BTW, it's not my calculator and I take no credit for it.&nbsp; I was just providing the link.Personally I ignore what the &quot;Difficulty&quot; box says because I think the text provided is out of whack from what the &quot;Difficulty Factor&quot; is.&nbsp; But, I do think the &quot;Difficulty Factor&quot; is pretty much on the money.&nbsp; Obviously it can’t be perfect.&nbsp; A group with a lot of fighters is going to have an easier time with a large melee battle than a group of wizards.&nbsp; A battle with skeletons and ghouls are harder without clerics and effortless even with a low level cleric.&nbsp; Just take that into consideration but give the difficulty factor a little credence for your next encounter.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="rrealm, post: 1687810, member: 20630"] It says "Very Hard" because the effective party level is 4.6 and the EL of the 8 hobgoblins is a 7. Although, I would say a more proper EL would be 6 since most hobgoblins have fair to poor equipment. Anyway, the calculator isn't perfect but once you get past level 2 or EL 2, things fan out much better. I use the calculator for my party and their cohorts so I can send a balance of kou-toa and drow at them while they attack an underground stronghold. After playing with the number of hobgoblins (I made it 6 for the program but I’d still use 8 for the battle) to make it say the EL was 6, the difficulty factor was 1.6 which roughly translates to one or two good blows will need to be healed from the battle. No one should die. If no one is injured, it’s probably because one of the wizards used their highest spell levels to do a mass immobilization to the enemy group. Either way, the party’s amount of available resources is reduced. This “roughly translates to …” is my interpretation of the difficulty factor and the recommended information on encounters in the DMG where it talks about an equal EL should consume X% of party resources. It is no way scientific or based on specialized charts. Oh, BTW, it's not my calculator and I take no credit for it. I was just providing the link. Personally I ignore what the "Difficulty" box says because I think the text provided is out of whack from what the "Difficulty Factor" is. But, I do think the "Difficulty Factor" is pretty much on the money. Obviously it can’t be perfect. A group with a lot of fighters is going to have an easier time with a large melee battle than a group of wizards. A battle with skeletons and ghouls are harder without clerics and effortless even with a low level cleric. Just take that into consideration but give the difficulty factor a little credence for your next encounter. [/QUOTE]

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