Is it because there's no other easy alternative? Because it saves argument about how much XP you're handing out, and whether you're appropriately challenging the party? Because you think it's still useful enough despite being so... vague..., to use the nicest term I can think of?
I'm not trying to judge anyone (no one is making me play the game in a way I don't want to, etc., etc.) but some of the stuff I've seen in CR-related discussions just boggles my mind. To paraphrase some of it:
"Just slap some non-associated sorcerer levels on it. So its CR only goes up by X, but you can have it buff itself before the fight, and..."
"Give it some extra HD, but not so many that it hits the next CR bracket."
"They're outsider HD, so technically, they can be unassociated, even though it has a good BAB..."
"A 10th level PC is not the same thing as a CR 10 monster, anyway." (demonstrably true in many cases, but isn't that a problem that needs fixing, not exploiting?)
It just makes no sense to me... All this advice on how to make something considerably tougher, without having to raise the CR. Why? You know you're making the monster or NPC a greater challenge - in fact, it's the point of the exercise - but hiding behind the rules to pretend you're not? If you're doing it, then you know there are holes in the logic of the rules - it's what you're relying on, in fact... And presumably, if you're doing NPC or monster design, you're the GM - so you don't need to try to find loopholes in the rules, since you're the one in charge.
I'm not trying to judge anyone (no one is making me play the game in a way I don't want to, etc., etc.) but some of the stuff I've seen in CR-related discussions just boggles my mind. To paraphrase some of it:
"Just slap some non-associated sorcerer levels on it. So its CR only goes up by X, but you can have it buff itself before the fight, and..."
"Give it some extra HD, but not so many that it hits the next CR bracket."
"They're outsider HD, so technically, they can be unassociated, even though it has a good BAB..."
"A 10th level PC is not the same thing as a CR 10 monster, anyway." (demonstrably true in many cases, but isn't that a problem that needs fixing, not exploiting?)
It just makes no sense to me... All this advice on how to make something considerably tougher, without having to raise the CR. Why? You know you're making the monster or NPC a greater challenge - in fact, it's the point of the exercise - but hiding behind the rules to pretend you're not? If you're doing it, then you know there are holes in the logic of the rules - it's what you're relying on, in fact... And presumably, if you're doing NPC or monster design, you're the GM - so you don't need to try to find loopholes in the rules, since you're the one in charge.