Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 Ostyf Aug 26, 2014 7:07:24	I was rolling a bunch of Dragonborn character sheets (Fighter, Rogue, Barbarian, Cleric) to challange my players in place of the Chapter 1 creatures in HotDQ.  But I dont know what CR level they are and what XP value to assign them.  I dont want to put too much up against my players, but I want it to be a Difficult/Deadly fight.   Level 5 Dragonborn (Red) Barbarian, Totem Spirit Bear   Level 5 Dragonborn (Black) Rogue, Archetype: Assassin   Level 5 Dragonborn (White) Fighter, Archetype: Champion   Level 5 Dragonborn (Blue) Cleric, Archetype: Tempest   My thoughts were half their level rounded up or down,  That would be CR 2 or 3, equating to 450 or 700 exp per.   With 4 of them in a fight, thats double the XP for a Group so:   450 x 4 x 2 = 3600 or 700 x 4 x 2 = 5600   My players would be Level 5, 5 of them so 1,100 x 5 = 5,500 XP Budget for a Deadly fight.   Pretty good fit if Im right, but I want to get some clarification incase I got these numbers wrong?
#2 Thoughts_My_Aim Aug 26, 2014 7:15:39	There's no formal rule on this but ISTR that in 3.X enemies with PC stats had a CR equal to level. PCs can dish out a lot more damage than they can take, which means that a single PC-equivalent character is a serious threat to an at-level party.
(Reply to #2) Ostyf	Thoughts_My_Aim wrote:
#4 Thoughts_My_Aim Aug 26, 2014 8:01:10	I'm mostly going by 3.X, and actual deadliness will vary a lot depending on builds and gear.   A 5th level Barbarian can dish out some serious pain - assuming they rage they'll be attacking twice a round with Advantage, be Resistant to all damage, getting their Rage bonus as well. Remember that NPCs aren't going to need to conserve resources for future battles so they'll be able to give it all they've got.   If you're worried, I'd split them up and give them minions. If you find they go down too quickly you can always adjust the XP afterwards, but it's generally better to undertune than overtune.
(Reply to #4) Ostyf	Thoughts_My_Aim wrote: