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<blockquote data-quote="Tony Vargas" data-source="post: 7701445" data-attributes="member: 996">I started the year earlier, and that's how I remember it.&nbsp; There was some advice in the 1e DMG, and there were implications about monster 'level' here and there, in summoning spells and encounter tables, and many thing keying off HD/levels as if they were equivalent.&nbsp; But nothing like CR until 3e, and nothing that 'worked' in the least dependably or simply until 4e. It's perhaps ironic that 5e, in trying so hard to be (or at least feel) 'simpler' in other ways (particularly BA) has managed to saddle itself with such a complex-seeming set of encounter guidelines.&nbsp; But, ultimately, most of us probably don't need them, anyway - experience and the freedom 5e allows us as DMs is enough to handle 'balancing' encounters (and adventuring days and divergent PC power levels, etc) - whether intuitively or on the fly or more carefully beforehand, with or without such guidelines (though having them, even if only to give a once-over or ignore, is better than not).&nbsp; It all just becomes part of the art of running a good game, and that becomes second nature.That just might be exactly the situation that a new DM sits down to run.&nbsp; New players, with basic pdf characters.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Tony Vargas, post: 7701445, member: 996"] I started the year earlier, and that's how I remember it. There was some advice in the 1e DMG, and there were implications about monster 'level' here and there, in summoning spells and encounter tables, and many thing keying off HD/levels as if they were equivalent. But nothing like CR until 3e, and nothing that 'worked' in the least dependably or simply until 4e. It's perhaps ironic that 5e, in trying so hard to be (or at least feel) 'simpler' in other ways (particularly BA) has managed to saddle itself with such a complex-seeming set of encounter guidelines. But, ultimately, most of us probably don't need them, anyway - experience and the freedom 5e allows us as DMs is enough to handle 'balancing' encounters (and adventuring days and divergent PC power levels, etc) - whether intuitively or on the fly or more carefully beforehand, with or without such guidelines (though having them, even if only to give a once-over or ignore, is better than not). It all just becomes part of the art of running a good game, and that becomes second nature. That just might be exactly the situation that a new DM sits down to run. New players, with basic pdf characters. [/QUOTE]

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