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| #1coops72Aug 28, 2015 9:53:45 | Hi there,
I am very new to DMing and only been playing a short while. But due to a lack of DM's in my area I'm giving it a shot. Anyway I think I have a good grasp and am nearly ready to conduct my first session, my only problem is I'm not sure how to calculate CR on the fly. I understand about the XP threshold for the team etc but for the terms of using the loot table based on the Challenge Rating. I've been using online challenge calculaters to help with the level for my planned battles but when I have to go improve is when I am worried. Sorry if this is a really easy question but I can't seem to find it in the DMG or elsewhere.
Thankyou so much for any help given. |
| #2Lord_KadarianAug 29, 2015 1:07:27 | To be honest it partially has to do with how well your players roll, how often you give out suprise round combat in the players favor, and even just how experienced you players are.
I usually go with this I look at the xp chart for what my party can take then I multiply that by the size of my party, at this point I ignore almost all other rules about xp multipliers for challenge and just fill in the xp pool. From here if my players seem to be likely to die as the fight begins I might allow them to try and demoralize the opponent or use other tactics to end the fight (you would not believe how often my party talks an opponent out of the fight, although they have found that undead are great listeners but are unwilling to be disuaded from eating villagers) In situations where it wasn't hard enough a few reinforcements arriving can help bring that extra challenge my players desire.
CR is more of an art than a science and each group is different the first thing to figure out is what is your party looking for, and also importantly what are you looking for (constant challenges, lots of little battles that wear them down, or really big fights) This will help you decide what is your goals once you know your goals it is possible to build the path to them.
I hope this helps and if you have any questions or want help building a path to your goal just let me and the forum know. |
| #3DM_HEEGZAug 29, 2015 4:08:46 | On the creature stats it lists the CR for each one. If you have an encounter with several CR 1/2 creatures and their boss of CR 2, you use the lowest treasure table for them. As your players level up and face higher CR creatures you simply use the next level of treasure tables as the CRs go up on the creature stat sheets. All of this is explained on p. 133 in the DMG.
As Kadarian said, all of this is more art than science. If you want to roll on a higher or lower treasure list you can. Also, many DMs simply pick out what loot to award. I really like the random tables so I use them often. However, sometimes it doesn't make sense and so I will hand pick something else.
In previous editions (3.5) I almost always hand pick the treasure awards, but in 5e I use the tables fairly exclusively because I like how they are designed. It is really handy how the items are split up based on CR of enemies. This has the added effect of ensuring that your PCs aren't getting +2 magic items too soon, and so on. Same thing goes for the consumables, everything is pretty balanced based on the tables so it is a good starting place. Feel free to tweak as needed though based on your gut instinct.
One of the key things to remember with giving out treasure/loot as a DM: you can break the game by giving your players too much magic loot or too powerful of an item. If you give your level 4 fighter a vorpal blade, your level 5 paladin a Holy Avenger, and your level 7 wizard a staff of Magi... prepare for all of your plans to fall apart as the party blows through everything with ease. Use the tables as a guideline, and bump up or down a step to help keep your party's gear fairly balanced. |
| #4coops72Aug 29, 2015 4:06:04 | Thankyou so much both of you, that actually helps alot. I'll give that a shot working towards using it as a gut feeling rather then a strict rule set to go by. Will be able to put that detail in and hopefully have my first session in a week or so. Again thankyou very much. |
| #5DM_HEEGZAug 29, 2015 4:10:19 | You're welcome! Also, I just remembered this really interesting breakdown of treasure item awards from the DMG on a different RPG forum. It gives you another perspective on things as a DM, and the big picture:
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