D&D (2024) Wrapping up first 2-20 2024 campaign this week, some of my thoughts

[Chaltab]

Well, high level D&D has always been wonky and unbalanced. From personal experience, either PCs mop the floor, or they get moped.

 

[GrimCo]

That bold bit is the problem, it's even less present in 2024 than 2014. In both it pretty much gets tossed out the window of plausibility quite a bit before "high level" & the only real difference is how far it gets tossed outside that window

That depends entirely on how you structure encounters. Combination of opponents and environment in which fight takes place also has huge impact. I don't run published adventures ( read trough lot of them and will use bits and pieces). But take OP-s party, which is magic and magic user heavy and give them encounter in anti magic zone with some heavy armor bruisers. It will hurt. Published adventures avoid using antimagic zones like plague.

 

[Zardnaar]

That depends entirely on how you structure encounters. Combination of opponents and environment in which fight takes place also has huge impact. I don't run published adventures ( read trough lot of them and will use bits and pieces). But take OP-s party, which is magic and magic user heavy and give them encounter in anti magic zone with some heavy armor bruisers. It will hurt. Published adventures avoid using antimagic zones like plague.

Dead magics zones another option. You don't want to over do things though.

 

[GrimCo]

Dead magics zones another option. You don't want to over do things though.

Yup. But have one or two encounters like that in big campaign towards end of tier 4, it's ok. Adventures shy away from anything that shuts down PCs abilities. Or God forbid, destroys their magic items.

Late teen levels were always problematic from encounter design perspective and they do require more tinkering. If you go with hp bloat or just more monsters, you risk turning it into a slow grind fest. If you go with one big monsters, PCs focus fire and go nova.

If you are rushing trough the levels, with party level every or every other session, as a DM you don't have time to customize encounters and tailor them to your party. You need to slow down, throw some encounters to test the waters, see what and how they do things, so you can tweak it for next session. Rinse and repeat. That's why personally, when PC enter tier 4, they stay at same level for at least 3-4 sessions. It gives me, as a DM, info on what to do and time to do it. But then, i don't do published AP-s. And i wouldn't do them out of box for players who are good at optimizing their characters and synergies.

 

[YouMeetInATavern]

You get advantage on that if you are invisible

Do you have a reference for this? AFAIK in 2014, being invisible just lets you make a hide attempt in places you'd otherwise be in plain sight, it doesn't give advantage.

 

[Oofta]

That depends entirely on how you structure encounters. Combination of opponents and environment in which fight takes place also has huge impact. I don't run published adventures ( read trough lot of them and will use bits and pieces). But take OP-s party, which is magic and magic user heavy and give them encounter in anti magic zone with some heavy armor bruisers. It will hurt. Published adventures avoid using antimagic zones like plague.

Published campaigns seem to be allergic to any environmental factors that favor the enemy as far as I can tell. Meanwhile I will mix it up on a regular basis, limiting sight lines, stopping teleportation, providing plenty of cover along with nooks, crannies, side passages and connected rooms. Constantly facing enemies in 20x20 featureless room is boring to me.

 

[Oofta]

Do you have a reference for this? AFAIK in 2014, being invisible just lets you make a hide attempt in places you'd otherwise be in plain sight, it doesn't give advantage.

The rules that I know of are Chapter 7 > Using Each Ability > Dexterity > Hiding

You can’t hide from a creature that can see you clearly, and you give away your position if you make noise, such as shouting a warning or knocking over a vase. An invisible creature can always try to hide. Signs of its passage might still be noticed, and it does have to stay quiet. [bold added]​

​

If you're invisible you can hide but I have no idea where the advantage to hide from someone comes from. You have disadvantage to hit someone you can't see but that's it. On a related note if you're a rogue it's a bonus action to hide not an action (even if you want to use your bonus action for something else, you don't have to).

 

[UngeheuerLich]

The rules that I know of are Chapter 7 > Using Each Ability > Dexterity > Hiding

You can’t hide from a creature that can see you clearly, and you give away your position if you make noise, such as shouting a warning or knocking over a vase. An invisible creature can always try to hide. Signs of its passage might still be noticed, and it does have to stay quiet. [bold added]​

​

If you're invisible you can hide but I have no idea where the advantage to hide from someone comes from. You have disadvantage to hit someone you can't see but that's it. On a related note if you're a rogue it's a bonus action to hide not an action (even if you want to use your bonus action for something else, you don't have to).

In 2014 if you were hidden, enemies have to search for you to know your location. Or just make a guess. You roll with super disadvantage (this is: if you did not correct correctly, you never hit)

An only invisible creature makes noises and so you can always attack at disadvantage.

 

[Oofta]

In 2014 if you were hidden, enemies have to search for you to know your location. Or just make a guess. You roll with super disadvantage (this is: if you did not correct correctly, you never hit)

An only invisible creature makes noises and so you can always attack at disadvantage.

It's up to the DM, but this is an old argument. Just because someone can know where an invisible creature based on noise, to me, does not mean that they automatically do it depends on the environment and other factors. In any case, you can always make a stealth check to hide while invisible which for a rogue can be a bonus action.

 

[ECMO3]

But take OP-s party, which is magic and magic user heavy and give them encounter in anti magic zone with some heavy armor bruisers. It will hurt. Published adventures avoid using antimagic zones like plague.

I don't know about this, we have a pretty bad-ass fighter and my character has more Rogue levels than anything else.