Challenge Ratings Are Useless in D&D

If you think Challenge Ratings (CR) are meant for balancing game play, I have news for you…

You’re wrong.

Wait, what’s a Challenge Rating?

You see, Challenge Ratings are NOT 100% accurate and there are other factors to consider.

Things like:

• party size

• average party level

• party class/race combos

• players’ game experience

• Etc.

And using CR to balance your campaign as a DM, is unrealistic!

Monster don’t hang out in dungeons based on their CRs.

Yes, in Original D&D, it was well known that monsters with higher Hit Dice “lived” in the lower depths of the dungeon.

This is how they balanced party threats in 1974. The players knew it would get harder the deeper they descended.

But it’s 2024, and not all adventures take place in dungeons.

What Should You Do Then?

As a Dungeon Master of the 21st Century, this is how you should handle it…

Tell your players—straight up at the start of your campaign—to be careful, not stupid.

Tell them not to engage every single threat because it could be dangerous.

Tell them you prefer a realistic campaign where they have the power to make decisions based on their wants, needs, and observations.

Tell them your campaign has:

• no safe zones

• no bomb shelters

• no chill-out rooms

Tell them you’re not going to “baby proof” your world.

They’ll learn over time which monsters are too weak or too powerful and they’ll act accordingly.

Let the environment be what it is. The flora, the fauna, and the geography could all be dangerous. That’s it.

I mean, no player character would be dumb enough to jump into a pool of molten lava because they don’t know how hot it is.

Right?!

Also, if they think you did baby proof the world, it could be even more dangerous because they’re not expecting the new monster to be such a bad ass becasue they’ve never encountered it before.

Just be honest from the start with a simple disclaimer: approach monsters at your own risk.

Let them learn from the environment, and their past mistakes.

So, if an ancient red dragon lives near a town, don’t switch it for a swarm of bees.

The red dragon is there for a reason. A key piece of the storyline.

Let your players discover that reason and act accordingly.

They’ll thank you for it, because the unknown is much more fun to explore.

And feel free to remind them of this: not all enemies are defeated in battle.

Enjoy the game, because it’s yours to enjoy.

Thanks for being awesome,

-Joe

P.S. If you want to be even more awesomer as a DM, I have a mini-book coming out.

It’s called the Essential Dungeon Master.

If you want to be one of the first to get your hands on this bad boy, reply to this email with the words “essential” and I’ll add you to the limited wait list.

Tired of reading? Go watch some videos.