System Reference Document 5.2.1
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Example 3. A high-difficulty encounter for six level 
15 characters has an XP budget of 7,800 × 6, for a 
total of 46,800 XP. With that, you could build this 
encounter:
•  2 Adult Red Dragons (18,000 XP each) and 2 Fire 
Giants (5,000 XP each), for 46,000 XP total
Troubleshooting
When creating and running combat encounters, 
keep the following in mind.
Many Creatures
The more creatures in an encounter, the higher 
the risk that a lucky streak on their part could deal 
more damage to the characters than you expect. If 
your encounter includes more than two creatures 
per character, include fragile creatures that can be 
defeated quickly. This guideline is especially im -
portant for characters of level 1 or 2.
Adjustments
A player’s absence might warrant removing crea-
tures from an encounter to keep it at the intended 
difficulty. Also, die rolls and other factors can result 
in an encounter being easier or harder than in -
tended. You can adjust an encounter on the fly, such 
as by having creatures flee (making the encounter 
easier) or adding reinforcements (making the en -
counter harder).
CR 0 Creatures
Creatures that have a CR of 0, particularly ones that 
are worth 0 XP, should be used sparingly. If you 
want to include many CR 0 critters in an encounter, 
use swarms instead.
Number of Stat Blocks
The best combat encounters often pair one kind of 
creature with another, such as fire giants paired 
with hell hounds. Be mindful of the number of stat 
blocks you need to run the encounter. Referencing 
more than two or three stat blocks for a single en -
counter can be daunting, particularly if the crea-
tures are complex.
Powerful Creatures
If your combat encounter includes a creature whose 
CR is higher than the party’s level, be aware that 
such a creature might deal enough damage with a 
single action to take out one or more characters. For 
example, an Ogre  (CR 2) can kill a level 1 Wizard 
with a single blow.
Unusual Features
If a monster has a feature that lower-level charac -
ters can’t easily overcome, consider not adding that 
monster to an encounter for characters whose level 
is lower than the monster’s Challenge Rating.