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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Blue" data-source="post: 7641565" data-attributes="member: 20564">Okay, let's start with a few things:At my table, I find that the classes balance best when doing an average of 5-6 encounters between long rests, with that target changing based on level as they have fewer or more resources available.  If I do 1-3 encounters per day, the full casters really shine.  (Even with tougher encounters - a lot of buffs last all encounter but it's still a single slot.  With more foes area of effect does better.  With more powerful foes then crowd control and debuff does more for the same casting - and with 4 of 6 saves bad a well prepared caster can hit a low save regardless of how how powerful the foe.)With 8+ encounters, the at-wills dominate.  Casters are usually worn out and just spamming cantrips, and weapon wielders do great.  There's a definitely thrill when out of resources and trying to come up with a little bit more to survive, but just like few per day it's good to hit this occasionally but not every day.So having days all over that spectrum, some short, some long, some in the middle, gives good variation.If story wise they are spending time traveling and it's one encounter because that's all that makes sense narratively, it's trivial.  Casters nova, it's done.  We also don't do dungeons often, with a high density of encounters, so even reaching the 5-6 often seems contrived narratively, much less hitting 9+ as often as we hit 3 or less.With this I get varied numbers of combats per long rest and short rest, without having to try to cram in many level-appropriate encounters (or none at all) on days (24 hour period) when it just wouldn't make sense.And the exceptions are what let me tailor it.  Coming to a sanctuary and getting an unexpected long rest.  Bathing in the sacred glade, getting a blessing from the Lady of the Forest giving a rest.  Even bottled sunlight that the party can use once.  Whatever.Basically from a narrative side I feel no pressure to cram a large number of encounters between sunrises just to appropriately achieve attrition threats for the party.  I can pace them how it makes sense for how I DM at my table.  It could be a good number in a day, maybe with an exception that grants a short rest in the middle, or they could be spread out over twelve days to trek across a forgotten jungle, with several days having 1-3 and other days having nothing.  (Which keeps the short rests in sync as well.)   Whatever the story needs.Part of this was being spoiled by 13th Age, where a full-heal-up is every 4 encounters, and all other powers are basically at-will or per-encounter.  Could be less at the DM's choice if they were particularly hard, and the players could take one early by accepting a campaign loss - maybe the foes were able to complete the first stage of their ritual, or their reinforcements came, or whatever.  You just worked it into the narrative.  Have a day of 8 encounters dungeon delving, maybe there was a magic fountain that refreshed around half way through.  Have a three week splunking expedition through the Underworld with encounters every few days with a single long rest - that works as well, without being able to get real rest in the tainted underground that has never seen light.Coming back to D&D after that, where rest periods are arbitrary and there are no tools for the DM to craft to what the story needs outside changing the density of encounters, was what made me look at those options.EDIT:  Again, I am talking at my table.  Where I don't run many dungeons and they are five-room dungeons if I do.  Where the pacing (and leveling) is often much more spread out over the in-game weeks, months and years.  Where we can regularly have sessions with challenges but nothing that turns into combat.  With my table of players for casters owning short days and at-wills owning long days.  This may not be your experience - I was talking about what I was tweaking for next campaign, not saying other tables need to do the same.</blockquote>

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