Session Prep and Encounter Building in the D&D 2024 DMG – Lazy RPG Talk Show

2466.674 - 2488.557 Mike Shea

There is one other element to the benchmark, though, which is a single monster may be deadly if its challenge rating is greater than the average of the character levels or 1.5 times the average character level if you're above fifth level. So even though you have a benchmark of four, if you were to drop a single CR4 monster against your characters of third level, that monster might be too much.