Combat Rating (CR)

Not all monsters of the same tier are made equal. Monsters are classified by their tier and their Combat Rating (CR). A breakdown of the CRs:

• CR 1: Imps, for example.
• CR 2: Ogres, Basilisks, etc.
• CR 3: Minibosses (especially powerful enemies).
• CR 4: Adversaries (like Denizens, the Black King, etc).
• CR 5: Extra (for when you really want your player pushed to the limit).

A player in any given tier will want to start off with CR 1, moving onto CR 2 as they get the hang of things. As they alchemize gear of their current tier, they’ll be ready for CR 3, though they’ll want all of it ready before tackling CR 4.

When designing an encounter, just add the CR of all its participants:

• Encounter has two CR 1 Imps? It’s a CR 2 encounter.
• Throwing a CR 2 Ogre and a CR 1 Imp? It’s a CR 3 encounter.
• Three CR 2 Ogres? It’s a CR 6 encounter and you should probably ask yourself if there’s a more stylish way your player might be destroyed.

A monster from one tier higher counts as twice its CR, while a monster one tier lower counts as half its CR.

• Do you hate your player? They’re Tier 1? Throw eight Tier 0 CR 1 imps at them, this would be a CR 4 encounter.
• Do you also hate your player? They’re Tier 2? A single Tier 3 CR 2 Acheron would also be a CR 4 encounter for them.