DM looking for TIPs

[Dlabuga]

Hello ppl,

I'm DM and it's been a while since my players have become much stronger than I expected and I'm finding that the challenges I was facing were unfunny, so I put something more challenging and my players complained, is it normal for that to happen?

Thx

[Dlabuga]

another doubt, in a moment I put a NPC that is enemy of the PCs, but at that moment it was only a continuation or presentation of something important, and one of the PC tried to kill it, but the difference of power and much superior between the NPC and PC.

exemple: NPC lvl 20 PC lvl 10

PC trying to kill the NPC more than once, how can I behave at that moment ?! the PC knows that it is weaker.

[johnbragg]

Normal? Probably.

If your players have been happy with a steady diet of encounters that they steamroll, and suddenly for no plot-obvious reason the difficulty goes way up, they're unhappy that their fun was ruined.

Ideally, you'd escalate the difficulty gradually over a few encounters, and provide some suitable reward for accomplishing a much more difficult task than usual. Also, there should be some clues to the players that the fight is going to be different. If the troll in today's encounter looks and sounds just like the last few trolls they curbstomped, the players are sort of justified in wondering how exactly this troll was so much tougher (max HP vs average, added a couple of fighter levels).

You might also get more buy-in from the players if you're giving more interesting challenges, rather than just cranking up the numbers. Trolls don't scare your players? Wait till the "troll" drops its absurdly large cloak revealing bat wings, glowing red eyes and a stench of brimstone because THIS is a Half-Fiendish Troll (+2 CR, flies, acid & fire resistance 10, DR 5/magic, SLAs.) You're seriously upping the challenge (fire and acid resistance on a troll, wings put Flyby Attack on the table if you drop Iron Will or Alertness) but the wings put the players on notice that the game has changed.

You're probably right to turn up the knob on Difficulty. But the players are less likely to notice and grumble that you dialed up the numbers if you also throw in some different abilities. The 5th level barbarian expects to usually one-shot a standard Ogre on a good roll. But an ogre whose skin is smoldering and hot to the touch and whose greatsword is sheathed in flame, well who knows how many hit points that thing is supposed to have.

[SirNMN]

Hello ppl,

I'm DM and it's been a while since my players have become much stronger than I expected and I'm finding that the challenges I was facing were unfunny, so I put something more challenging and my players complained, is it normal for that to happen?

Thx

Ok so as a DM I can tell you that yes sometimes the PC will get a power jump being more that you expected. What was the cause of the jump was it a magic item or level increase of the party? the greater challenge is tricky, because it could have been the way you played the encounter, group of kobalds no problem, group of kobalds using tunnels that are to small for the PCs to easily fit down and harassing them the whole way incredibly frustrating. Can you give some more details.


another doubt, in a moment I put a NPC that is enemy of the PCs, but at that moment it was only a continuation or presentation of something important, and one of the PC tried to kill it, but the difference of power and much superior between the NPC and PC.

exemple: NPC lvl 20 PC lvl 10

PC trying to kill the NPC more than once, how can I behave at that moment ?! the PC knows that it is weaker.

I need to know more about the NPC. Do they have a reason not to straight up kill the PC? Why are they enemies is this something that can resolved or are they the BBEG?

[johnbragg]

another doubt, in a moment I put a NPC that is enemy of the PCs, but at that moment it was only a continuation or presentation of something important, and one of the PC tried to kill it, but the difference of power and much superior between the NPC and PC.

exemple: NPC lvl 20 PC lvl 10

PC trying to kill the NPC more than once, how can I behave at that moment ?! the PC knows that it is weaker.

The NPC can probably defeat the PC without killing him. He's a plot-relevant villain, so he's got pull in the society. Have him take it personally. Killing the PC just costs him 5000 gp and his buddy's best spell slot for the day, or maybe they owe the temple a favor. VEngeance in D&D can be much more--involved.

Can he take a particular interest in the PC, either personally or through underlings using scry-teleport-attack-teleport away tactics? Can he arrange to make the PC an outlaw in the town? Can he take away the PC's cool magic toys? PCs aren't the only ones who can use scry-and-die tactics, and scry-and-DIE doesn't have to be literal. Having a 10th level wizard scry on the PC, teleport into his room at night, steal his best stuff and teleport away is totally on the table.

[Dlabuga]

Normal? Probably.

If your players have been happy with a steady diet of encounters that they steamroll, and suddenly for no plot-obvious reason the difficulty goes way up, they're unhappy that their fun was ruined.

Ideally, you'd escalate the difficulty gradually over a few encounters, and provide some suitable reward for accomplishing a much more difficult task than usual. Also, there should be some clues to the players that the fight is going to be different. If the troll in today's encounter looks and sounds just like the last few trolls they curbstomped, the players are sort of justified in wondering how exactly this troll was so much tougher (max HP vs average, added a couple of fighter levels).

You might also get more buy-in from the players if you're giving more interesting challenges, rather than just cranking up the numbers. Trolls don't scare your players? Wait till the "troll" drops its absurdly large cloak revealing bat wings, glowing red eyes and a stench of brimstone because THIS is a Half-Fiendish Troll (+2 CR, flies, acid & fire resistance 10, DR 5/magic, SLAs.) You're seriously upping the challenge (fire and acid resistance on a troll, wings put Flyby Attack on the table if you drop Iron Will or Alertness) but the wings put the players on notice that the game has changed.

You're probably right to turn up the knob on Difficulty. But the players are less likely to notice and grumble that you dialed up the numbers if you also throw in some different abilities. The 5th level barbarian expects to usually one-shot a standard Ogre on a good roll. But an ogre whose skin is smoldering and hot to the touch and whose greatsword is sheathed in flame, well who knows how many hit points that thing is supposed to have.

Hmm nice, thx for the tips