XP
XP
A party of five 2nd-level characters faces three 3rd-level Golden Hand combatants.
| Enemy | Creature Level | Level Difference | XP Each | Quantity | Total XP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Golden Hand Mercenary | 3 | Party Level +1 | 60 XP | 2 | 120 XP |
| Golden Hand Archer | 3 | Party Level +1 | 60 XP | 1 | 60 XP |
Encounter Budget — Five 2nd-Level PCs
| Difficulty | Standard (4 PCs) | Adjusted (5 PCs) |
|---|---|---|
| Trivial | 40 XP | 50 XP |
| Low | 60 XP | 75 XP |
| Moderate | 80 XP | 100 XP |
| Severe | 120 XP | 150 XP |
| Extreme | 160 XP | 200 XP |
Total Encounter Budget: 180 XP
This encounter is 30 XP above the Severe budget and 20 XP below the Extreme budget for five 2nd-level characters.
Expressed as a percentage of the Extreme budget:
180 ÷ 200 = 90% of Extreme.
Three Creature 3 enemies against five 2nd-level characters represent a dangerous encounter approaching Extreme difficulty.
Each opponent is one level above the PCs. The mercenaries can coordinate flanking attacks while the archer threatens characters attempting to remain at range.
The encounter may be survivable with good tactics, terrain advantages, and available resources, but poor positioning or unlucky critical hits could quickly overwhelm the party.
Encounter-building cost: 180 XP.
Pathfinder 2e adjusts encounter budgets for parties larger than four, but the XP awarded to each character remains based on the standard four-character difficulty.
For this encounter, a proportional five-character adjustment gives:
180 × (4 ÷ 5) = 144 XP
Suggested award: 144 XP per character.
This is an interpolated award between the standard Severe (120 XP) and Extreme (160 XP) awards, rather than a separately listed encounter tier.
The award is not divided among the five PCs. Each character receives the full award if the party defeats or otherwise overcomes the encounter.