NOW LIVE! Today's the day you meet your new best friend. You don’t have to leave Wolfy behind... In 'Pets & Sidekicks' your companions level up with you!

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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Hussar" data-source="post: 7138567" data-attributes="member: 22779">Actually, 4e was a throwback to AD&D here.  Sure, you could build an NPC using PC rules in 4e, but, it wasn't recommended and the advice was far more, "Build this like a monster".  Which is exactly how NPC's were built in AD&D.  5e is simply continuing that same trend that was established in AD&D.Put it another way.  3e was the only edition where ALL NPC'S were built using PC rules.  There were no rules or guidelines given for "just make a monster".  So, your master sword smith had to be a 6th level (or higher) commoner with the commensurate HP and attack bonuses.  In 2e, a master sword smith didn't even need to be anything other than 0 level commoner with the Weapon Smithing NWP.  In AD&D, he didn't even need to be that.Remember how I talked about Village of Hommlet?  In the village, over half of the inhabitants (again, mostly women and children) didn't even have a stat block.  And that was quite common.  Non-combatants didn't have stats at all.  The Keep on the Borderlands module has all sorts of inhabitants in the Caves of Chaos that don't have any stats whatsoever.  IOW, if something isn't meant as a combatant, you don't bother giving it any stats.  Same as 4e.  If it is meant to be a combatant, then you choose between arbitrary stats, a sort of hybrid class/arbitrary statblock or actually give it PC levels if it's a humanoid.  If it's not a humanoid, you don't give it PC stats.</blockquote>

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