Core Rules Settings?

[GAME GOD FLUENT]

So is Challenging really the core rules comparable to the tabletop? I have a Custom setting that varies from Challenging by reducing enemy strength to Normal. But what is closest to what the developers designed, i.e. "core rules".

[Randomz]

There is no setting. Likely that somebody will throw a reddit post at you that will make creatures "as close to pnp as possible" but even on those settings I've run into owlbears with +24 to hit and damage, and trolls with massive increases to hit and damage.

[GAME GOD FLUENT]

Originally posted by Randomz:

There is no setting. Likely that somebody will throw a reddit post at you that will make creatures "as close to pnp as possible" but even on those settings I've run into owlbears with +24 to hit and damage, and trolls with massive increases to hit and damage.

Okay, so what are closest to what the developers intended to be the "core" experience? It seems like Challenging is the setting because enemies do full damage and fight at full power. Is this correct?

[Soral]

Originally posted by Fluent:

Originally posted by Randomz:

There is no setting. Likely that somebody will throw a reddit post at you that will make creatures "as close to pnp as possible" but even on those settings I've run into owlbears with +24 to hit and damage, and trolls with massive increases to hit and damage.

Okay, so what are closest to what the developers intended to be the "core" experience? It seems like Challenging is the setting because enemies do full damage and fight at full power. Is this correct?

Normal difficulty, there's a sticky with the info in it. The core experience is normal, and yes, normal is supposed to have "slightly weaker" enemies, because the settings are confusing.

[Morgian]

Challenging is similar to the core rules.

What many people don't get is that the game uses advanced critters instead of the basic stock. But monster advancement is part of the core rules, too. There are several options how to do it, and the basic one is to increase stats and HD. The more complicated method is to add class levels, as they did with the kobolds and goblins (their alchemists for example).
The open question is at what CR the devs were aiming with their builds. A standard group in PF consists of four characters, not six, so the CR would have to be upped to challenge them. It would probably have been better to do it by bumping up the critters, but only lightly, and add more of them instead. Or use 2-3 "champions" plus "minions". Encounter building is something of an art and there are no hard and fast rules to get it right.

In the P&P combat can be very deadly and often is. Martial characters can waste pretty much anything, especially if buffed. One of my players once proudly demonstrated how he could do consistently 125 damage per round at level 11, and far more with crits. My current character here has +18 to hit and can crit for 40 damage, which is not bad for a non-fighter without special weapons. Now turn the thing around and you are on the receiving end of the same mechanics. A crit, especially from large weapons, can ruin your day in one sweep. And that will happen at challenging difficulty. So you will need enough healing to be viable, and know enough about the rules and mechanics to make them work for you.