encounter-balance

Encounter Balance Review

Purpose

Analyze encounters in modules against expected party composition to identify deadly, trivial, or unbalanced fights using D&D 5e encounter math.

Analysis Process

1. Establish Party Parameters

Ask for or assume:

• Number of players (default: 4)
• Average party level
• Party composition (optional, for tactical analysis)

2. Gather Encounter Data

get_campaign_details()
list_modules()
# For each module:
get_module_details(module_id: module_id)
# Extract monster list with counts

# Also check maps for token placements
list_maps(module_id: module_id)
get_map(map_id: map_id)  # includes token positions

Important: Verify the module exists and has monsters before analysis. If a monster is not found in the catalog via search_catalog(category: "monster"), flag it as homebrew.

3. Calculate Per Encounter

For each encounter:

1. Sum base XP — Add XP for each monster by CR (see references/5e-encounter-math.md)
2. Apply multiplier — Based on monster count
3. Compare to thresholds — Determine difficulty category
4. Flag concerns — Deadly, trivial, or resource-draining

4. Adventuring Day Analysis

D&D 5e assumes 6-8 medium encounters per long rest. Calculate:

• Total adjusted XP across module
• Expected adventuring days
• Resource pressure (will the party run out of spell slots?)

Output Format

# Encounter Balance Report: [Module Name]
**Party**: [X] players, level [Y]

## Daily XP Budget
- Easy threshold: [X] XP
- Medium threshold: [X] XP
- Hard threshold: [X] XP
- Deadly threshold: [X] XP
- Daily budget: [X] XP (6-8 medium encounters)

## Encounter Analysis

### [Encounter Name/Location]
| Monster | CR | Count | Base XP |
|---------|-----|-------|---------|
| [Name] | [CR] | [N] | [XP] |

- **Total Base XP**: [X]
- **Adjusted XP** (x[multiplier]): [X]
- **Difficulty**: [Easy/Medium/Hard/Deadly]
- **Assessment**: [Notes]

### Summary

| Encounter | Difficulty | Adjusted XP | Concern |
|-----------|------------|-------------|---------|
| [Name] | Deadly | 5,400 | [WARNING] TPK risk |
| [Name] | Easy | 200 | Filler |
| [Name] | Hard | 2,100 | Good challenge |

## Concerns

### Deadly Encounters
- [Encounter]: [Why it's dangerous] -> [Suggestion]

### Trivial Encounters
- [Encounter]: [Why it's too easy] -> [Suggestion]

### Resource Pressure
- Module contains [X] adjusted XP
- Expected adventuring days: [Y]
- Assessment: [Over/under tuned]

## Recommendations
1. [Specific adjustment]
2. [Specific adjustment]

Interactive Mode

1. Ask for party composition
2. Present module-by-module analysis
3. For deadly encounters, offer alternatives:
   • "This encounter is deadly. Should I suggest monster substitutions?"
   • Search catalog for CR-appropriate alternatives
4. For trivial encounters, suggest enhancements

Reference Data

For XP thresholds, CR-to-XP tables, and encounter multipliers, see references/5e-encounter-math.md.