I've given my players a lot of magic items. Is it reasonable for me to give them harder encounters?












6












$begingroup$


I'm running a campaign for a group of 6 level 8 characters. Last session, they went shopping, and I let them buy about 2 magic items each. On top of this, I let them each start with an extra feat and a free magic item when the campaign started (at level 8).



(Selling magic items to my players was a lot of fun for all of us! My question is not about whether that was a good idea - I believe it was the right call.)



Given how many nice things my players have, I'm thinking about balancing my encounters as though they were for a party of level 9 characters instead of level 8. Is this a reasonable approach for me to take?






dnd-5e magic-items balance cr-calculation







share|improve this question









$endgroup$








  • 2




    $begingroup$
    Answerers should remember to support their answers by citing relevant evidence or experience, per Good Subjective. (Good question!)
    $endgroup$
    – V2Blast
    1 hour ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    For a well-informed answer it would be helpful to know the specific items. Including the benefits of each item would be convenient. Otherwise respondents will have to look up 18 magic items.
    $endgroup$
    – lightcat
    59 mins ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    @lightcat makes a good point, though perhaps only include details for combat relevant items. Bag of Holding is a useful item but it unlikely to significantly effect combat difficulty. (Barring very clever play)
    $endgroup$
    – linksassin
    56 mins ago










  • $begingroup$
    Unfortunately, I don't remember all of the specific items I gave my players. Most of them are definitely combat-oriented, though.
    $endgroup$
    – Kevin
    6 mins ago
















6












$begingroup$


I'm running a campaign for a group of 6 level 8 characters. Last session, they went shopping, and I let them buy about 2 magic items each. On top of this, I let them each start with an extra feat and a free magic item when the campaign started (at level 8).



(Selling magic items to my players was a lot of fun for all of us! My question is not about whether that was a good idea - I believe it was the right call.)



Given how many nice things my players have, I'm thinking about balancing my encounters as though they were for a party of level 9 characters instead of level 8. Is this a reasonable approach for me to take?






dnd-5e magic-items balance cr-calculation







share|improve this question









$endgroup$








  • 2




    $begingroup$
    Answerers should remember to support their answers by citing relevant evidence or experience, per Good Subjective. (Good question!)
    $endgroup$
    – V2Blast
    1 hour ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    For a well-informed answer it would be helpful to know the specific items. Including the benefits of each item would be convenient. Otherwise respondents will have to look up 18 magic items.
    $endgroup$
    – lightcat
    59 mins ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    @lightcat makes a good point, though perhaps only include details for combat relevant items. Bag of Holding is a useful item but it unlikely to significantly effect combat difficulty. (Barring very clever play)
    $endgroup$
    – linksassin
    56 mins ago










  • $begingroup$
    Unfortunately, I don't remember all of the specific items I gave my players. Most of them are definitely combat-oriented, though.
    $endgroup$
    – Kevin
    6 mins ago














6












6








6





$begingroup$


I'm running a campaign for a group of 6 level 8 characters. Last session, they went shopping, and I let them buy about 2 magic items each. On top of this, I let them each start with an extra feat and a free magic item when the campaign started (at level 8).



(Selling magic items to my players was a lot of fun for all of us! My question is not about whether that was a good idea - I believe it was the right call.)



Given how many nice things my players have, I'm thinking about balancing my encounters as though they were for a party of level 9 characters instead of level 8. Is this a reasonable approach for me to take?






dnd-5e magic-items balance cr-calculation







share|improve this question









$endgroup$




I'm running a campaign for a group of 6 level 8 characters. Last session, they went shopping, and I let them buy about 2 magic items each. On top of this, I let them each start with an extra feat and a free magic item when the campaign started (at level 8).



(Selling magic items to my players was a lot of fun for all of us! My question is not about whether that was a good idea - I believe it was the right call.)



Given how many nice things my players have, I'm thinking about balancing my encounters as though they were for a party of level 9 characters instead of level 8. Is this a reasonable approach for me to take?






dnd-5e magic-items balance cr-calculation




dnd-5e magic-items balance cr-calculation






share|improve this question













share|improve this question











share|improve this question




share|improve this question










asked 1 hour ago









KevinKevin

8921915




8921915








  • 2




    $begingroup$
    Answerers should remember to support their answers by citing relevant evidence or experience, per Good Subjective. (Good question!)
    $endgroup$
    – V2Blast
    1 hour ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    For a well-informed answer it would be helpful to know the specific items. Including the benefits of each item would be convenient. Otherwise respondents will have to look up 18 magic items.
    $endgroup$
    – lightcat
    59 mins ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    @lightcat makes a good point, though perhaps only include details for combat relevant items. Bag of Holding is a useful item but it unlikely to significantly effect combat difficulty. (Barring very clever play)
    $endgroup$
    – linksassin
    56 mins ago










  • $begingroup$
    Unfortunately, I don't remember all of the specific items I gave my players. Most of them are definitely combat-oriented, though.
    $endgroup$
    – Kevin
    6 mins ago














  • 2




    $begingroup$
    Answerers should remember to support their answers by citing relevant evidence or experience, per Good Subjective. (Good question!)
    $endgroup$
    – V2Blast
    1 hour ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    For a well-informed answer it would be helpful to know the specific items. Including the benefits of each item would be convenient. Otherwise respondents will have to look up 18 magic items.
    $endgroup$
    – lightcat
    59 mins ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    @lightcat makes a good point, though perhaps only include details for combat relevant items. Bag of Holding is a useful item but it unlikely to significantly effect combat difficulty. (Barring very clever play)
    $endgroup$
    – linksassin
    56 mins ago










  • $begingroup$
    Unfortunately, I don't remember all of the specific items I gave my players. Most of them are definitely combat-oriented, though.
    $endgroup$
    – Kevin
    6 mins ago








2




2




$begingroup$
Answerers should remember to support their answers by citing relevant evidence or experience, per Good Subjective. (Good question!)
$endgroup$
– V2Blast
1 hour ago




$begingroup$
Answerers should remember to support their answers by citing relevant evidence or experience, per Good Subjective. (Good question!)
$endgroup$
– V2Blast
1 hour ago




1




1




$begingroup$
For a well-informed answer it would be helpful to know the specific items. Including the benefits of each item would be convenient. Otherwise respondents will have to look up 18 magic items.
$endgroup$
– lightcat
59 mins ago




$begingroup$
For a well-informed answer it would be helpful to know the specific items. Including the benefits of each item would be convenient. Otherwise respondents will have to look up 18 magic items.
$endgroup$
– lightcat
59 mins ago




1




1




$begingroup$
@lightcat makes a good point, though perhaps only include details for combat relevant items. Bag of Holding is a useful item but it unlikely to significantly effect combat difficulty. (Barring very clever play)
$endgroup$
– linksassin
56 mins ago




$begingroup$
@lightcat makes a good point, though perhaps only include details for combat relevant items. Bag of Holding is a useful item but it unlikely to significantly effect combat difficulty. (Barring very clever play)
$endgroup$
– linksassin
56 mins ago












$begingroup$
Unfortunately, I don't remember all of the specific items I gave my players. Most of them are definitely combat-oriented, though.
$endgroup$
– Kevin
6 mins ago




$begingroup$
Unfortunately, I don't remember all of the specific items I gave my players. Most of them are definitely combat-oriented, though.
$endgroup$
– Kevin
6 mins ago










2 Answers
2






active

oldest

votes


















7












$begingroup$

In part it depends on the magic items. Did you give them magic items that were useful in combat? Like, have they mostly got +3 plate armor or have they mostly got sovereign glue?



Broadly, the answer to your question is yes: it's probably appropriate to give them more difficult encounters because they have nice stuff. But, especially at higher levels, the encounter tables are a very loose guideline anyway. You'll have to get a feel for what your group can handle.



Here is what I do when I'm uncertain: I start with an encounter that I'm expecting to be fairly easy, and then if the players seem to be winning too hard, I tell them reinforcements are showing up and I add more monsters of the same type.



The good news is that most players don't really want or need you to give them a super-difficult-but-still-survivable battle. If you give them a battle where everyone gets attacked once, and everyone gets to show off their cool abilities or items at least once, generally they'll be happy.



(source: I run a lot of games and this is what I do)






share|improve this answer









$endgroup$





















    1












    $begingroup$

    I think I have to answer this question with a question:



    Are your current encounters challenging the players appropriately?



    If yes, then there's no need to increase the difficulty. If they're already getting close to dying in every fight they get in, or if they're blowing all their abilities just to stay alive, then there's no need to make things harder on them.



    If no, then you should think about making your encounters harder. I'm in a similar situation with my players. I have been particularly generous with magic items, possibly a little too much. Each player has more items than they can attune to, and our paladin had an AC of 23 at one point. As a result, when they were level 10, they were blowing through CR 11 encounters without breaking a sweat. I had to start using action economy more to my advantage, giving boss monsters additional abilities and Legendary Resistances, and coming up with better tactics for monsters.



    Remember, 5e is balanced around the players having no magic items at all and still being able to take on threats at their CR. Players having more magic items than usual is a good a reason as any to make encounters more difficult.





    share








    New contributor




    theCerealKillr is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
    Check out our Code of Conduct.






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      2 Answers
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      2 Answers
      2






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      7












      $begingroup$

      In part it depends on the magic items. Did you give them magic items that were useful in combat? Like, have they mostly got +3 plate armor or have they mostly got sovereign glue?



      Broadly, the answer to your question is yes: it's probably appropriate to give them more difficult encounters because they have nice stuff. But, especially at higher levels, the encounter tables are a very loose guideline anyway. You'll have to get a feel for what your group can handle.



      Here is what I do when I'm uncertain: I start with an encounter that I'm expecting to be fairly easy, and then if the players seem to be winning too hard, I tell them reinforcements are showing up and I add more monsters of the same type.



      The good news is that most players don't really want or need you to give them a super-difficult-but-still-survivable battle. If you give them a battle where everyone gets attacked once, and everyone gets to show off their cool abilities or items at least once, generally they'll be happy.



      (source: I run a lot of games and this is what I do)






      share|improve this answer









      $endgroup$


















        7












        $begingroup$

        In part it depends on the magic items. Did you give them magic items that were useful in combat? Like, have they mostly got +3 plate armor or have they mostly got sovereign glue?



        Broadly, the answer to your question is yes: it's probably appropriate to give them more difficult encounters because they have nice stuff. But, especially at higher levels, the encounter tables are a very loose guideline anyway. You'll have to get a feel for what your group can handle.



        Here is what I do when I'm uncertain: I start with an encounter that I'm expecting to be fairly easy, and then if the players seem to be winning too hard, I tell them reinforcements are showing up and I add more monsters of the same type.



        The good news is that most players don't really want or need you to give them a super-difficult-but-still-survivable battle. If you give them a battle where everyone gets attacked once, and everyone gets to show off their cool abilities or items at least once, generally they'll be happy.



        (source: I run a lot of games and this is what I do)






        share|improve this answer









        $endgroup$
















          7












          7








          7





          $begingroup$

          In part it depends on the magic items. Did you give them magic items that were useful in combat? Like, have they mostly got +3 plate armor or have they mostly got sovereign glue?



          Broadly, the answer to your question is yes: it's probably appropriate to give them more difficult encounters because they have nice stuff. But, especially at higher levels, the encounter tables are a very loose guideline anyway. You'll have to get a feel for what your group can handle.



          Here is what I do when I'm uncertain: I start with an encounter that I'm expecting to be fairly easy, and then if the players seem to be winning too hard, I tell them reinforcements are showing up and I add more monsters of the same type.



          The good news is that most players don't really want or need you to give them a super-difficult-but-still-survivable battle. If you give them a battle where everyone gets attacked once, and everyone gets to show off their cool abilities or items at least once, generally they'll be happy.



          (source: I run a lot of games and this is what I do)






          share|improve this answer









          $endgroup$



          In part it depends on the magic items. Did you give them magic items that were useful in combat? Like, have they mostly got +3 plate armor or have they mostly got sovereign glue?



          Broadly, the answer to your question is yes: it's probably appropriate to give them more difficult encounters because they have nice stuff. But, especially at higher levels, the encounter tables are a very loose guideline anyway. You'll have to get a feel for what your group can handle.



          Here is what I do when I'm uncertain: I start with an encounter that I'm expecting to be fairly easy, and then if the players seem to be winning too hard, I tell them reinforcements are showing up and I add more monsters of the same type.



          The good news is that most players don't really want or need you to give them a super-difficult-but-still-survivable battle. If you give them a battle where everyone gets attacked once, and everyone gets to show off their cool abilities or items at least once, generally they'll be happy.



          (source: I run a lot of games and this is what I do)







          share|improve this answer












          share|improve this answer



          share|improve this answer










          answered 1 hour ago









          Dan BDan B

          37.8k869144




          37.8k869144

























              1












              $begingroup$

              I think I have to answer this question with a question:



              Are your current encounters challenging the players appropriately?



              If yes, then there's no need to increase the difficulty. If they're already getting close to dying in every fight they get in, or if they're blowing all their abilities just to stay alive, then there's no need to make things harder on them.



              If no, then you should think about making your encounters harder. I'm in a similar situation with my players. I have been particularly generous with magic items, possibly a little too much. Each player has more items than they can attune to, and our paladin had an AC of 23 at one point. As a result, when they were level 10, they were blowing through CR 11 encounters without breaking a sweat. I had to start using action economy more to my advantage, giving boss monsters additional abilities and Legendary Resistances, and coming up with better tactics for monsters.



              Remember, 5e is balanced around the players having no magic items at all and still being able to take on threats at their CR. Players having more magic items than usual is a good a reason as any to make encounters more difficult.





              share








              New contributor




              theCerealKillr is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
              Check out our Code of Conduct.






              $endgroup$


















                1












                $begingroup$

                I think I have to answer this question with a question:



                Are your current encounters challenging the players appropriately?



                If yes, then there's no need to increase the difficulty. If they're already getting close to dying in every fight they get in, or if they're blowing all their abilities just to stay alive, then there's no need to make things harder on them.



                If no, then you should think about making your encounters harder. I'm in a similar situation with my players. I have been particularly generous with magic items, possibly a little too much. Each player has more items than they can attune to, and our paladin had an AC of 23 at one point. As a result, when they were level 10, they were blowing through CR 11 encounters without breaking a sweat. I had to start using action economy more to my advantage, giving boss monsters additional abilities and Legendary Resistances, and coming up with better tactics for monsters.



                Remember, 5e is balanced around the players having no magic items at all and still being able to take on threats at their CR. Players having more magic items than usual is a good a reason as any to make encounters more difficult.





                share








                New contributor




                theCerealKillr is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                Check out our Code of Conduct.






                $endgroup$
















                  1












                  1








                  1





                  $begingroup$

                  I think I have to answer this question with a question:



                  Are your current encounters challenging the players appropriately?



                  If yes, then there's no need to increase the difficulty. If they're already getting close to dying in every fight they get in, or if they're blowing all their abilities just to stay alive, then there's no need to make things harder on them.



                  If no, then you should think about making your encounters harder. I'm in a similar situation with my players. I have been particularly generous with magic items, possibly a little too much. Each player has more items than they can attune to, and our paladin had an AC of 23 at one point. As a result, when they were level 10, they were blowing through CR 11 encounters without breaking a sweat. I had to start using action economy more to my advantage, giving boss monsters additional abilities and Legendary Resistances, and coming up with better tactics for monsters.



                  Remember, 5e is balanced around the players having no magic items at all and still being able to take on threats at their CR. Players having more magic items than usual is a good a reason as any to make encounters more difficult.





                  share








                  New contributor




                  theCerealKillr is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                  Check out our Code of Conduct.






                  $endgroup$



                  I think I have to answer this question with a question:



                  Are your current encounters challenging the players appropriately?



                  If yes, then there's no need to increase the difficulty. If they're already getting close to dying in every fight they get in, or if they're blowing all their abilities just to stay alive, then there's no need to make things harder on them.



                  If no, then you should think about making your encounters harder. I'm in a similar situation with my players. I have been particularly generous with magic items, possibly a little too much. Each player has more items than they can attune to, and our paladin had an AC of 23 at one point. As a result, when they were level 10, they were blowing through CR 11 encounters without breaking a sweat. I had to start using action economy more to my advantage, giving boss monsters additional abilities and Legendary Resistances, and coming up with better tactics for monsters.



                  Remember, 5e is balanced around the players having no magic items at all and still being able to take on threats at their CR. Players having more magic items than usual is a good a reason as any to make encounters more difficult.






                  share








                  New contributor




                  theCerealKillr is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                  Check out our Code of Conduct.








                  share


                  share






                  New contributor




                  theCerealKillr is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                  Check out our Code of Conduct.









                  answered 9 mins ago









                  theCerealKillrtheCerealKillr

                  420412




                  420412




                  New contributor




                  theCerealKillr is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                  Check out our Code of Conduct.





                  New contributor





                  theCerealKillr is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                  Check out our Code of Conduct.






                  theCerealKillr is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                  Check out our Code of Conduct.






























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