“Give me an army of goblins over a Sehrabaddian dragon any day. A death by the first option is painful, yes, but you really don’t want the alternative.” Malafin, ranger.
The key to making an interesting stat block is to assign your creature attributes which follow its design. Assigning random damage immunities, actions, and reactions just for the sake of making a hard enemy to beat doesn’t make sense. Put a little work into the enemy that could TPK!
I’m kidding. Don’t TPK.
Let’s use the goblin as an example. Maybe it’s part of a goblin tribe that lives in the heart of a volcano. It could have a resistance to fire damage, since its species has become acclimated to living there. That way, if you set a fight with it next to a pool of lava, the party can’t easily dispose of it by chucking it in. Go for the fire damage immunity, too, if you think it’s necessary. It’s all about crafting a well-balanced encounter that’s not too easy, but won’t kill everyone.
A simple spear or claw attack is a little boring for this goblin, too. What about it is unique enough that you can utilize as an attack? Maybe it has access to a fireball spell, or maybe it has an ability called Simmering Skin, where any creature that comes in contact with its skin takes fire damage. Then you can give the goblin a charge action, where it’ll try to ram itself into a character, so they take damage from Simmering Skin.
It’s a little goofy. You can lean into the more absurd side of monsters, or aim for the classic low-level realism. Either way works, because it’s a TTRPG, which is an inherently goofy genre.
This can be applied to any part of the stat block. At the end of the day, what’s most important is that the fight fits that sweet spot, of not too difficult, but not too easy. Scale it based on its placement, too. Is it the final boss? A quick encounter? Keeping this in mind, you’ll be able to easily craft a fun encounter for everyone at your table.
By Inti Navia
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