For example , reading the row for 1st-level characters
from the 1st-5th Level table, we see tha t one 1st-level
character is the equiva lent of two CR 1/8 monsters or
one CR 1/4 monster. The ratio reverses for higher c ha l-
lenge ratings, where a single m onster is more powerful
than a single 1 st-level character. One CR 1/ 2 creature is
equivalent to three 1st-level characters, w hile one CR 1
opponent is equivalent to five.
Let's say you have a party of four 3rd-level characters.
Using the table , you can see that o ne CR 2 foe is a good
match for the entire party, but that the characters will
like ly h ave a hard time handling a CR 3 creature.
Using the sam e guidelines, you can mix and match
c ha llenge ratings to put togethe r a group of creatures
to oppose four 3rd-level c haracters. For exam ple , you
could select o ne CR 1 creature. That's worth two 3 rd-
level characters, leaving you with two c ha racters' worth
of mons ters to a llocate. You could the n add two CR 1/4
monsters to account for one other character a nd one CR
1/ 2 mons ter to account for the final character. In total,
your encounte r has one CR 1, one CR 1/ 2, and two CR
1/4 creatures.
For groups in which the characters a r e of different lev-
els, you have two options. You can g ro up all characters
of the same level. together, match them with monsters,
and then combine all the c reatures into one encounter.
Alternatively, you can determine the group's average
level and treat each c haracter as be ing of that level for
the purpose of selecting appropria te monsters.
The above guidelines a re designed to c reate a fight
that w ill challenge a party while still being winnable.
If you want to create an easier e ncounter that w ill
challenge ch a racte r s but not threaten to defeat them,
you can treat the party as if it were roughly one-third
smalle r than it is. For example, to m a ke an easy e ncoun-
ter for a party of five characters, put them up against
monsters that would be a tough fight for three charac-
ters. Likewise, you can treat the party as up to ha lf again
la rger to build a battle that is potentially deadly, though
still no t likely to be an automati c defeat. A party of four
cha racters facing an encounte r designed for s ix charac-
ters would fall into this category.WEAK MONSTERS AND HIGH-LEVEL
CHARACTERS
To save space on the tables and keep them simple, some
of the lower challenge ratings are missing from the high-
er-level tables. For low challe nge ratings not appearing
on the table, assume a 1:12 ratio, indicating that twelve
c reatures of those challenge ratings are equivalent to
one c haracter o f a specific level.STEP 4: SELECT MONSTERS
After using the tables from t he previous step to deter-
mine the cha lle nge ratings of the monsters in your en-
counter, you'r e ready to pick individual monsters. This
process is more of a n art tha n a science.
In addi tion to assessing monste r s by ch a lle nge rating,
it's important to look a t how certain monsters mightIA,/\c,"'c,~i"'~ c, tol o{ .,,..i..,.io"'s is IAc.rJ..
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