| Mark Hoover 330 |
So I'm putting together a low-level adventure. For story purposes I'm adding Thawns. These are Humanoid (giant) type creatures who are not described as wearing armor.
Reading through Humanoid type, I see that if they don't have a Class then all Humanoids get Simple Weapon proficiency. Thawns also get Throw Anything as a Feat.
Would it be overpowering to give these creatures huge, spiked clubs (use Heavy Mace from Simple weapons) that deal 2d6 damage in their hands which they could also throw? For that matter as a more general discussion, does it tip monsters out of their CR to outfit them with the best weapons their normal Type allows?
For example, I've been advised by a couple folks in real life that even though a kobold warrior 1 can use any Martial weapon, their 1/4 CR gets broken if you upgrade them from a Sling (Simple ranged weapon which inflicts their Str penalty on damage) to a Longbow (Martial ranged weapon with superior range, 1d6 base damage, no penalty from low Str). But then, why give them an NPC class that grants Martial weapons if they don't actually USE any Martial weapons. Please discuss.
| Lusinian |
Considering a PC may min-max and optimize beyond the power his class and level may normally imply, it would seem natural that opponents could do the same. The CRs are a rather wide indication - at the same CR, one can be incredibly efficient, and another terribly not, just like two characters of equal level can be radically different.
So, I would have it without changing the CR. However, as a GM, I feel it important to decide whether the party can take them on by a careful read of their character sheets and some experience handling them. That's why I would use a bunch of encounters in or outside of context to judge the effectiveness of my players in a fighting situation before launching real monsters at them. If they seem to get out of it easily, too easily for their level, I'll start by raising the opponents to the top of their CR - with the sort of manipulation you're suggesting. If on the contrary it's too hard, I'll go to the bottom of the CR. Then if it's still not enough, I'll consider changing the CR.
Making a good encounter is managing the monsters by comparison with the party. Making a monster for a bestiary, the monster could be rather good or rather bad for his CR, depending his concept, it's alright. In the end, the final, optimal, almost failure-proof way to do it is to play-test it, anyway.
By the way, when giving out classes to monsters, you should check the wealth; if it goes over top for the intended level/CR, then you indeed rise the CR. That's why equipping a level 1 kobold with rather good stuff might be raising his CR too.
| Mark Hoover 330 |
Lu the sin ian makes a good point: you should know what your PCs can survive. In the point of the Thawn however I'd point out: a single orc barbarian with a greataxe is technically a CR 1/2 and they can mete out 12.5 average damage in a single swipe. A thawn with a heavy mace delivers less damage at a higher CR, with a less devastating critical effect.
By contrast the average level 1 Martial PC has between 10 to 18 HP, depending on how they're built. I generally assume an average from my players for a martial type of about 13 HP. This means, barring a crit, they can survive a single hit from either creature.
I do think its important to gauge what your PCs can take, but I also feel it's important to look at what the monster can dish out in comparison to other monsters.
Another excellent point you make however Lu, is the idea of wealth. A CR 1 encounter should involve on average 260 GP for medium advancement. A band of kobold warrior 1 villains with top rated gear may come out to up to twice that in loot that can be scrounged from their combat gear alone. If they've got highly specialized equipment that gives the monsters not only a combat advantage but also raises their treasure considerably I'd definitely consider upping the CR. Thanks for your excellent observations!