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quiet1mi
2008-03-06, 01:09 AM
howdy yall, i got another problem that is dm related...

i am currently working on a war campaign for some level 6

i can not seem to find a reliable system that can produce an encounter that allows for multiple monsters with those monsters being too wimpy. And when i produce a monster that is a challenge, it is usually stuck by itself and dies due to being out numbered.

any ideas that i can use that will produce a balanced encounter?

evisiron
2008-03-06, 01:17 AM
Just to check, are you already using the normal system for ECl and challange rating and the such?

Anyway, my opinion is that intelligent creatures are the most dangerous of threats, but only if the DM plays them in a smart way. If using many, have an ambush played. Use disarm and trip to rob the group of vital weaponry. Have them focus on one foe until they drop then pick the next target. Have a caster buff them before or during combat. Make full use of flanking and tactical maneuvering.
Fight Smart.

Otherwise... make another group of level 5 or 6 characters using Player classes. This will make one of the most balanced fights (as long as you have them fight smart).

Bitzeralisis
2008-03-06, 01:25 AM
Just keep shoving statistically identical kobolds in their face until you've got an CL 6 encounter. Then watch them get slaughtered by the truckload. :smallwink:

Hazkali
2008-03-06, 02:55 AM
howdy yall, i got another problem that is dm related...

i am currently working on a war campaign for some level 6

i can not seem to find a reliable system that can produce an encounter that allows for multiple monsters with those monsters being too wimpy. And when i produce a monster that is a challenge, it is usually stuck by itself and dies due to being out numbered.

any ideas that i can use that will produce a balanced encounter?

Don't forget, unless you're playing a bizarre "DM vs PCs" variant, the monsters that you send against the PCs are supposed to die. Of course, how easily they die is another matter, but it's an important point to remember- eventually, all your creations will die a horrible, pointy death.

On the single monster front, try to find one with multiple attacks and reach, and perhaps combat reflexes as well. That way, the monsters can threaten (in both senses of the word) many of the PCs at once.

Also, when you say a "war" campaign, does this imply that the adventures happen outdoors, on a pretty featureless plane a-la most wargames? If so, you might want to introduce limiting environmental features to keep the monsters and PCs within a certain area; especially with casters, if they have the use of fly and medium-ranged spells, you're heading for disaster unless a) the monster or some allies can take them down or b) they can be reeled in, say, by having to escape high winds.

Rad
2008-03-06, 03:11 AM
Just keep shoving statistically identical kobolds in their face until you've got an CL 6 encounter. Then watch them get slaughtered by the truckload. :smallwink:
With ranged weapons.

AslanCross
2008-03-06, 03:37 AM
D&D is generally not suited to having the PCs fight hordes of enemies. It's very difficult to balance the encounter so that the PCs don't gobble up the monsters like peanuts and at the same time not having them slaughter the PCs wholesale.

It's best to have the PCs go on small-yet-extremely-vital missions related to the war, such as assassinating a commander, ambushing a supply caravan, disabling a very powerful artillery battery, or taking down a single giant monster that is slaughtering the whole party.

As for individual enemies, I find that it's best not to have individual Medium-sized humanoid enemies, especially if they're groundbound. Once they get surrounded, they're most likely going to die quickly. If they're too tough, the battle can get tedious and boring, while it might not be much of a challenge at all if they're too weak. (As a rule I stat my humanoid bosses at party level + 5, which works because my party is a high-stat 5-man party with a paladin, ranger/swordsage, rogue/swordsage, cleric and wizard).

If you want to use individual monsters, try to use ones that are at least Large-sized. That way a party can't surround it quickly since not all characters are willing to go into melee range to lock in the monster.

JBento
2008-03-06, 04:48 AM
Alternatively, try to delay that sort of encounter a few months - it seems 4E's encounter system does EXACTLY what you want