Talked to my buddy Mike about DMing encounter balance and now I'm rethinking every fight I've ever run.

He said he never uses the CR system and just eyeballs it based on how many potions the party has, which hit different because I spent 3 years calculating encounters down to the XP threshold and my players still breeze through them.

2 comments

2 Comments

faithb781mo agoMost Upvoted

I gotta disagree with Mike on this one. CR is a tool, not a rulebook, but it gives you a starting point so you don't just guess and hope it works. I've seen DMs who wing it like that end up with fights that are either too easy or way too hard, and players get bored or frustrated. Calculating XP thresholds takes time but at least you know the math is solid for a balanced fight. Your players breeze through because maybe you're not pushing the monster tactics or using the environment right, not because the numbers are wrong. CR works fine if you adjust it for your group's gear and magic items. Don't throw away a system that helps you just because one guy says he doesn't need it.

luna_green1mo ago

yeah honestly i feel you on this. its rough when people just write off something thats actually useful because they heard one person say it doesnt work. like yeah CR isnt perfect but its a baseline, you know? ive sat at tables where the dm just eyeballed everything and it was a mess, fights were either a total joke or a tpk waiting to happen. the math is there for a reason, its not like the designers just pulled numbers out of a hat. and the thing is, you can always tweak it once you see how your group handles stuff, thats the whole point of it being a starting point. dont let anyone make you feel bad for using the tools that help you run a better game.