Paul & Dan have a spirited discussion on Challenge Ratings -- as well as Monster Levels from classic D&D, the Monster Mark system from White Dwarf, Equivalent Hit Dice, and other ways of measuring a monster's threat. Do they address any useful goal in D&D? How hard or easy is to compute them for a new monster? Can they ever be reliable, or are they just random noise?

• Get Dan's Monster Database for OD&D and software tools for measuring risk level
• Read Dan's thesis on simulation for game design balancing

Wandering DMs Paul Siegel and Dan “Delta” Collins host thoughtful discussions on D&D and other TTRPGs every week. Comparing the pros and cons of every edition from the 1974 Original D&D little brown books to cutting-edge releases for 5E D&D today, we broadcast live on YouTube and Twitch so we can take viewer questions and comments on the topic of the day. Live every Sunday at 1 PM Eastern time.

Subscribe to Wandering DMs for new episodes