Total hit points give a quick indication of encounter challenge, but attacks in unison and critical hits mean more monsters are a bit more challenging and less monsters are a bit easier. If a party of 4 4th level heroes are to take on goblins, 96 hit points worth of level 0 goblins (48 goblins!) could be far deadlier than a single epic level 4 goblin. Erring on the cautious side with high monster numbers and the lenient side with low monster numbers is a good rule of thumb.
The goal of an encounter is to add tension to your story and give heroes the chance to be heroic. Because almost all combat rolls are made by players, a DM should be free to focus on creativity, cinematics, and fun.
A MONSTER'S ROLE
On their turn, monsters, like heroes, can move and attack. However, monster 'attacks' are not resolved as hero attacks are. Instead, they present a threat, such as a sword strike, series of claw swipes, or a breath weapon, and the targeted heroes defend against it. This ensures players get to make rolls and decisions (and therefore play the game) as much as possible.
Just like in any great story, this makes the monster's role a platform for heroic growth. Which means the variation, fun, and tactical impact of a monster is more important than the explanation of the effect. Where you can, use encounters that make sense. But more importantly, use combat to make your players grin.
If combat is going poorly, disrupt it. A sudden rockslide taking out the monsters, a tidal wave sweeping the heroes away, or a spell igniting an unseen conflagrant that fills the room with smoke, blinding everyone, are all great ways to hit eject on a fight that isn't serving is purpose. So is a cinematic victory—following one player's success, describe the rest of the monsters breaking moral and the heroes cutting them down with aplomb to end things.
By the same token, monsters can present threats that heroes can't. For example, a monk used as a monster might be able to attack all adjacent creatures every turn, whereas a monk hero might not. However, the monster's ability to do so forces players to make tactical choices, keeping things interesting, whereas a player's ability to do so would have the opposite effect.
In addition, use the following tools to keep things interesting.
ATTACKING IN CONCERT
In most cases, multiple monsters or monsters with multiple attacks should attack in concert, making their attacks at the same time and allowing players to resolve those attacks with a single roll. This not only speeds up combat and keeps the focus on hero turns, it makes the threat of multiple foes much greater. Heroes don't face monster attacks one at a time but rather must find ways to survive a volley of arrows, surrounding goblins, or the sudden onslaught of a panther's claws and fangs.
Having monsters attack in concert also gives heroes the chance to showcase defenses against such onslaughts and give more weight to hampering and devastating effects of their successes when they use them to break up coordinated attacks.
Heroes can throw themselves between monsters and their allies and force tactical adjustments from their foes. So feel free to have monsters focus fire a single hero, rather than split their attacks among everyone equally, if the players stop paying attention to tactics.
Objectives
Another way to keep monsters engaging is to give them a goal other than a Total Party Kill. Grimps might try to distract heroes while one of them rides a hero's horse away. Hobgoblin phalanxes might provide defensive cover to the trio dropping the draw bridge holding back their allies. Wolf packs might work together to trip a hero and drag them off to eat.
When monsters use tactics beyond moving to advantageous places and attacking in concert, it can require additional attention from players and express new story elements.
Capture
Capture
A monster with a capture objective may be unwilling to use deadly force or look to isolate and abscond with one or more party members. Wolves and wyverns are good examples of creatures that may just be looking for food and content to snatch a victim, living or dead, and flee. Similarly, a posse might confront the heroes with the intent to bring one or more of them to justice, alive.
Facing monsters attempting to capture heroes or their allies forces players to defend themselves in different ways or restrain their own deadly force if they do not want to aggravate their situation.
Cull
Cull
One of the most frightening monster objectives can be to single out a single hero. A bounty hunter might be after the rogue's head. A revenant might have come for revenge against the wizard. Grimps may drop in to steal some horse meat.
Use culling objectives to raise dread and force the party to use defensive tactics they might not normally.
Delay
Delay
A monster with a delay objective wants to slow the heroes in their advance, perhaps by using deception, leading them on a chase, or simply costing them time. Hobgoblins form a shield wall to buy time for the drawbridge to be lowered so their reinforcements can arrive. A kobold awaits its allies finishing up a trap around the corner. Goblins delay until the arrival of their friendly neighborhood cave troll.
Use delay objectives to force heroes to take risks to break lines or consider their escape from a coming threat.
Escape
Escape
Sometimes the most frightening monster can be the one trying to run past the party to escape. A cave troll breaking through the heroes' line might be humorous at first as they consider stopping it from running away, only to find out a balrog is on its tail. A hill giant may perceive the party as part of a greater invasion and run to save its child. A white dragon might be trying to siphon off the horde of a black dragon, and spotting the heroes, think the jig is up.
Use escape objectives to setup bigger monsters, require the heroes to use different tactics to slow or chase, or build toward a bigger story.
Inflict
Inflict
Monsters with the inflict objective are intent on delivering, consuming, or triggering a certain outcome. A rust monster may only attack a specific hero to devour its suit of armor before running away. A wererat may ignore a hero once it has bitten them. A bloated ghoul may only try to get into the center of the party to detonate itself.
Use inflict objectives to inject fear and force heroes to protect themselves in different ways or suffer terrifying consequences.
Relocate
Relocate
Monsters intent on relocating heroes are usually trying to set them up for something else. Kobolds might cower from foes to lure them into a trap. Cloud giants might have moral problems with direct killing but no qualms about tossing a hero from their floating island. Goblins might see shoving heroes into a lava river as the fastest method of defeating them.
Use relocate objectives to bring out environmental danger and constrict the lines of a battlefield.
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