Stuff DMs can use better

[danielxcutter]

As title. Rangers are a decent example: match up Favored Enemies with the PCs. Necrocarnate's also a good example. Any others you've found?

[Uncle Pine]

Stuff DMs can use better
This generally applies to everything in the game. It's the reason rules such as "whatever you use in your build, I can use it against you" work as a way to enforce the gentlemen's agreement that is "don't bring incredibly broken stuff with infinite loops at my table": the DM can simply tailor whatever encounter to the players, while the players have a build and the only ways they can tweak their characters against a new specific opponent are:
a. Prepare their spells accordingly - note that, unless they're playing Clerics or Druids, players generally have a restricted spell list compared to the entirety of their class list and all the spells they prepared must support them until the next time they rest; NPCs and creatures created on the spot can choose any spell they want and only need to survive a single encounter before they're killed.
b. Buy specific equipment to help in the fight - note that players usually have a limited amount of gp lying around, while a single NPC can spend the entirety of his WBL to equip himself specifically for the fight against the PCs.
c. Gate in solars - but anyone can do that. :smalltongue:

[Beheld]

1) Anything based off HD, since you know the players HD, and it is always very nearly the absolute lowest for that "power level" where monsters can have 33HD and be CR 7 or whatever.

2) Anything based off of BAB or feats, because of the above HD stuff.

3) All minute per level duration buffs and 20 minute per level buffs, since the PCs will fight multiple fights, and can't guarantee that some monster won't kite them around preventing them from using buffs until they wear out, where PCs are usually trying to make progress and win encounters by overwhelming force rather than attrition, so monsters and NPCs get to have all their buffs for 100% of their fights.

4) Consumable items, since when an NPC drinks a potion out of his wealth, the PCs face a tougher challenge, and get less loot, than if he had a permanent item, but when PCs use consumables, they now have less wealth going forward.