©2016WizardsoftheCoastLLC

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UnearthedArcana:EncounterBuilding

ThiseditionofUnearthedArcanaintroducesan
alternativesetofencounter-buildingguidelinesfor
D&D.Thoughthisapproachusesthesamebasic
mathunderlyingtheencountersystempresented
intheDungeonMaster’sGuide,itmakesafew
adjustmentstohowitpresentsthatmathto
produceamoreflexiblesystem.
Thisencounter-buildingsystemassumesthat,as
aDungeonMaster,youwanttohaveaclear
understandingofthethreatposedbyagroupof
monsters.It’llbeofinteresttoanyDMswhowant
toemphasizecombatintheirgames,whowantto
ensurethatafoeisn’ttoodeadlyforaspecific
groupofcharacters,andwhowanttounderstand
therelationshipbetweenacharacter’slevelanda
monster’schallengerating.
Buildinganencounterusingthesenew
guidelinesbreaksdownintoaseriesofsimple
steps.

Step1:AssesstheCharacters

Tobuildanencounterusingthissystem,firsttake
stockoftheplayercharacters.Thissystemuses
thecharacters’levelstodeterminethenumberand
challengeratingofcreaturesyoucanpitthem
againstwithoutmakingafighttoohardortooeasy.
Butthoughcharacterlevelisimportant,you
shouldalsotakenoteofeachcharacters’hitpoint
maximumandsavingthrowmodifiers,aswellas
howmuchdamagethestrongestcombatantsor
spellcasterscaninflictwithasingleattack.Even
thoughcharacterlevelandchallengeratingare
usefultoolsfordefiningthedifficultyofan
encounter,theydon’ttellthewholestory,and
you’llmakeuseoftheseadditionalcharacter
statisticswhenyouselectmonstersforan
encounterinstep4.

Step2:EncounterSize

Determineifyouwanttocreateabattlethatpits
onelegendarycreatureagainstthecharacters,orif
youwanttousemultiplemonsters.Ifyouwantto
useasinglemonster,you’retypicallybestoffusing

alegendarymonster,allofwhicharespecifically
designedtomakelifeinterestingforagroup.

Step3:DetermineNumbers
andChallengeRatings

Theprocessforbuildingfightsthatfeatureonlya
singlelegendarymonsterissimple.Thetable
belowshowsyouwhichchallengeratingtousefor
alegendarycreaturefightingapartyoffourtosix
characters,creatingasatisfyingbutdifficultbattle.
Forexample,forapartyoffive9th-level
characters,aCR12legendarycreaturemakesan
appropriateencounter.
Foradeadlybattle,matchupthecharacterswith
alegendarycreaturewhosechallengeratingis1or
2higherthanoptimal.Forafairlyeasyfight,usea
legendarycreaturewhosechallengeratingis3or
morebelowthechallengeratingforanoptimal
encounter.

1stto20thLevel(SoloMonsters)

Character

6

5

4

Level

Characters Characters Characters

1st

2

2

1

2nd

4

3

2

3rd

5

4

3

4th

6

5

4

5th

9

8

7

6th

10

9

8

7th

11

10

9

8th

12

11

10

9th

13

12

11

10th

14

13

12

11th

15

14

13

12th

17

16

15

13th

18

17

16

14th

19

18

17

15th

20

19

18

16th

21

20

19

17th

22

21

20

18th

22

21

20

19th

23

22

21

20th

24

23

22

Ifyourencounterfeaturesmultiplecreatures,
balancingittakesalittlemorework.First,you

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needtodeterminehowmanycreaturestheparty
willface,alongwiththechallengeratingforeach
creature.Thefollowingtablesarebrokenupby
levelranges,providinginformationforhowto
balanceencountersforcharactersof1stto5th
level,6thto10thlevel,11thto15thlevel,and16th
to20thlevel.
Tocreateyourencounter,findthelevelofeach
characterontheappropriatetable.Eachtable
showsyouwhatasinglecharacterofagivenlevel
isequaltointermsofchallengerating—avalue
representedbyaproportionthatcompares
numbersofcharacterstoasinglemonsterranked
bychallengerating.

Thefirstnumberisthenumberofcharactersof
thatgivenlevel.Thesecondnumberindicateshow
manymonstersofthelistedchallengeratingthose
charactersareworth.
Readingtherowfor1st-levelcharactersfrom
the1stto5thLeveltable,weseethatone1st-level
characteristheequivalentoftwoCR1/8monsters
oroneCR1/4monster.Theproportionreverses
forhigherchallengeratings,withcreaturesatCR
1/2andhigherbecomingmorepowerfulthanone
1st-levelcharacter.Three1st-levelcharactersare
equivalenttooneCR1/2creature,whilefiveare
equivalenttoaCR1opponent.

1stto5thLevel(MultipleMonsters)

Character

—ChallengeRating—

Level

1/8 1/4 1/2

1

2

3

4

5

6

1st

1:2

1:1 3:1 5:1

–

–

–

–

–

2nd

1:3

1:2 1:1 3:1 6:1

–

–

–

–

3rd

1:5

1:2 1:1 2:1 4:1 6:1

–

–

–

4th

1:8

1:4 1:2 1:1 2:1 4:1 6:1

–

–

5th

1:12 1:8 1:4 1:2 1:1 2:1 3:1 5:1 6:1

6thto10thLevel(MultipleMonsters)

Character

—ChallengeRating—

Level

1/8

1/4 1/2

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

6th

1:12 1:9

1:5 1:2 1:1 2:1 2:1 4:1 5:1 6:1

–

–

–

7th

1:12 1:12 1:6 1:3 1:1 1:1 2:1 3:1 4:1 5:1

–

–

–

8th

1:12 1:12 1:7 1:4 1:2 1:1 2:1 3:1 3:1 4:1 6:1

–

–

9th

1:12 1:12 1:8 1:4 1:2 1:1 1:1 2:1 3:1 4:1 5:1 6:1

–

10th

1:12 1:12 1:10 1:5 1:2 1:1 1:1 2:1 2:1 3:1 4:1 5:1 6:1

11thto15thLevel(MultipleMonsters)

Character

—ChallengeRating—

Level

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10 11 12 13 14 15

11th

1:6 1:3 1:2 1:1 2:1 2:1 2:1 3:1 4:1 5:1 6:1

–

–

–

–

12th

1:8 1:3 1:2 1:1 1:1 2:1 2:1 3:1 3:1 4:1 5:1 6:1

–

–

–

13th

1:9 1:4 1:2 1:2 1:1 1:1 2:1 2:1 3:1 3:1 4:1 5:1 6:1

–

–

14th

1:10 1:4 1:3 1:2 1:1 1:1 2:1 2:1 3:1 3:1 4:1 4:1 5:1 6:1

–

15th

1:12 1:5 1:3 1:2 1:1 1:1 1:1 2:1 2:1 3:1 3:1 4:1 5:1 5:1 6:1

16thto20thLevel(MultipleMonsters)

Character

—ChallengeRating—

Level

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

16th

1:5 1:3 1:2 1:1 1:1 1:1 2:1 2:1 2:1 3:1 4:1 4:1 5:1 5:1 6:1

–

–

–

–

17th

1:7 1:4 1:3 1:2 1:1 1:1 1:1 2:1 2:1 2:1 3:1 3:1 4:1 4:1 5:1 6:1

–

–

–

18th

1:7 1:5 1:3 1:2 1:1 1:1 1:1 2:1 2:1 2:1 3:1 3:1 4:1 4:1 5:1 6:1 6:1

–

–

19th

1:8 1:5 1:3 1:2 1:2 1:1 1:1 1:1 2:1 2:1 2:1 3:1 3:1 4:1 4:1 5:1 6:1 6:1

–

20th

1:9 1:6 1:4 1:2 1:2 1:1 1:1 1:1 1:1 2:1 2:1 2:1 3:1 3:1 4:1 4:1 5:1 5:1 6:1

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Let’ssayyouhaveapartyoffour3rd-level
characters.Usingthetable,youcanseethatoneCR
2foeisagoodmatchfortheentireparty,butthat
thecharacterswilllikelyhaveahardtime
handlingaCR3creature.
Usingthesameguidelines,youcanmixand
matchchallengeratingstoputtogetheragroupof
creaturesworthfour3rd-levelcharacters.For
example,youcouldselectoneCR1creature.That’s
worthtwo3rd-levelcharacters,leavingyouwith
twocharacters’worthofmonsterstoallocate.You
couldthenaddtwoCR1/4monsterstoaccount
foroneothercharacter,andoneCR1/2monster
toaccountforthefinalcharacter.Intotal,your
encounterhasoneCR1,oneCR1/2,andtwoCR
1/4creatures.
Forgroupswithavarietyoflevels,youhavetwo
options.Youcangroupallcharactersofthesame
leveltogether,matchthemwithmonsters,and
thencombineallthecreaturesintooneencounter.
Alternatively,youcandeterminethegroup’s
averagelevelandtreateachcharacterasbeing
thatlevel.
Theaboveguidelinesaredesignedtocreatea
fightthatwillchallengeaparty,butwhichisstill
winnable.Ifyouwanttocreateanencounterthat
willchallengecharacterswithlittlethreatofdefeat,
youcantreatthepartyasifithadroughlytwo-
thirdsofitsmembers.Forexample,apartyoffive
characterswouldhaveaneasytimeofan
encounterdesignedforthreecharacters.Likewise,
youcantreatthepartyasuptofiftypercentlarger
tobuildbattlesthatarepotentiallydeadly,though
stillnotlikelytoyieldanautomaticdefeat.Aparty
offourcharactersfacinganencounterdesignedfor
sixcharacterswouldfallintothiscategory.
WeakMonstersandHigh-LevelCharacters.To
savespaceonthetablesandkeepthemsimple,
someofthelowerchallengeratingsaremissing
fromthehigher-leveltables.Forlowchallenge
ratingsnotappearingonthetable,assumea1:12
ratio,indicatingthattwelvecreaturesofthose
challengeratingsareworthonecharacterofa
specificlevel.

Step4:SelectMonsters

Havingusedthetablesabovetodeterminethe
challengeratingsofthemonstersinyour
encounter,you’rereadytopickindividual

monsters.However,thisprocessismoreofanart
thanascience.
Inadditiontoassessingmonstersbychallenge
rating,it’simportanttolookathowspecific
monstersmightstackupagainstyourgroup.Hit
points,attacks,andsavingthrowsarealluseful
indicators.Comparethedamageamonstercan
dealtothehitpointmaximumofeachcharacter.
Bewaryofanymonstercapableofdroppinga
characterwithasingleattack,unlessyouintend
thefighttobedeadly.
Inthesameway,considerthemonsters’hit
pointsascomparedtothedamageoutputofthe
party’sstrongestcombatantsandspellcasters.
Havingasignificantnumberoffoesdropinthe
firstroundsofcombatcanmakeanencountertoo
easy.Likewise,lookatwhetheramonster’sbest
attacksaremadeagainstsavingthrowsthatmost
ofthepartymembersareweakwith,andcompare
thecharacters’attackstothemonsters’saving
throwsinthesameway.
Iftheonlycreaturesyoucanchoosefromatthe
desiredchallengeratingaren’tagoodmatchfor
thecharacters’statistics,don’tbeafraidtogoback
tostep3.Byalteringyourchallengeratingtargets
andadjustingthenumberofcreaturesinthe
encounter,youcancomeupwithdifferentoptions
forbuildingtheencounter.

Step5:AddComplications

WhilemanyD&Dgroupsarecontenttolookat
encounterssimplyintermsofcombat,thereality
isthatanysituationoffersthepotentialfor
problemsolvingandroleplaying.ThefunofD&Dis
thatyouneverknowwhattheplayersmighttry
next.Ifyouaccountforthechancethatthe
charactersmighttrytotalktothemonsters,you’re
settingyourselfupforamoreinterestinggame.

MonsterPersonality

Ifyouhavethetime,createnamesand
personalitiesforafewofthemonstersinvolvedin
theencounter.Youcanusethetablesfromchapter
4,“CreatingNonplayerCharacters,”oftheDungeon
Master’sGuide,usethequicktablebelow,or
simplyjotdownafewpointsofyourownbasedon
acreature’sMonsterManualwrite-up.Duringthe
battle,youcanusetheseideastoinformhowyou
portrayindividualmonstersandtheiractions.To

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keepthingssimple,youcanalsoassigntraitstoa
groupofmonsterstocapturehowthemobasa
wholeacts.Forexample,onebanditgangmightbe
anunrulymobofbraggarts,whileanotheris
alwaysonedgeandreadytobreakatthefirstsign
ofdanger.

MonsterPersonality

d8 Trait

1 Cowardly;lookingtosurrender
2 Greedy;wantstreasure
3 Braggart;makesashowofbraverybutrunsifin

danger

4 Fanatic;readytodiefighting

5 Rabble;poorlytrainedandeasilyrattled
6 Brave;standsitsground
7 Joker;tauntsenemies
8 Bully;refusestothinkitcanlose

MonsterRelationships

Arethererivalries,hatreds,orfriendshipsamong
themonstersinanencounter?Evenifthe
charactersdon’ttrytotalktotheirfoes,youcan
usesuchrelationshipstoinformthemonsters’
actionsandreactionsduringcombat.Thedeathof
amuch-reveredleadermightthrowitsfollowers
intoafrenzy.Abitterrivalcouldslinkawayas
soonasitsenemyfalls,oramistreatedtoady
mightbeeagertosurrenderandbetrayitsmaster.

MonsterRelationship

d6 Trait

1 Rival;wantsonerandomallytosuffer
2 Abused;hangsback,betraysatfirstchance
3 Worshipped;otherswilldieforit
4 Outcast;othersignoreit
5 Mercenary;caresonlyforself
6 Bully;allieswanttoseeitdefeated

TerrainandTraps

Afewelementsthatmakethebattlefield
interestingcangoalongwaytowardmakingan
encountermorememorable.Asagoodruleof
thumb,trytosetuptheareaofthebattlesothatit
wouldbechallengingevenwithoutafighttaking
placethere.Whatthingsmightdrawthe
characters’attention?Whyaremonsterslurking
here?Interestingareafeaturescanhelpprompt
improvisationandkeepthingsfresh.

Toadddetailstoanencounterareaatrandom,
looktothetablesinappendixA,“Random
Dungeons,”oftheDungeonMaster’sGuideto
determineroomandareafeatures,potential
hazards,obstacles,traps,andmore.

RandomEvents

Considerwhatmighthappeninanencounterarea
ifthecharactersweretoneverenterit.Dothe
guardsrotateinshifts?Whatothercharactersor
monstersmightvisit?Docreaturesgatherthereto
eatorgossip?Arethereanynaturalphenomena
suchasstrongwinds,earthtremors,orrain
squallsthatsometimestakeplaceinthearea?
Randomeventsarefunbecausetheyaddan
elementoftheunexpectedtoanencounter.Just
whenyouthinkafight’soutcomeisclear,an
unexpectedeventcanmakethingsmore
interesting.
AnumberofthetablesintheDungeonMaster’s
Guidecansuggestrandomeventstobeaddedtoa
location,dependingonthenatureoftheencounter
setup.Thetablesusedforencounterlocation,
weirdlocales,andwildernessweatherinchapter5,
“AdventureEnvironments,”oftheDungeon
Master’sGuideareagoodstartingpointfor
outdoorencounters.ThetablesinappendixA,
“RandomDungeons,”canbeusefulforindoorand
outdoorencounters—especiallythetablesfor
obstacles,traps,andtricks.