Spiciness?
Spiciness describes the synergy between the creatures in an encounter. For example, a CR 1/4 and a CR 2 creature doesn't sound like a threat to a level 10 party member. But if that party member is low on health, and that CR1/4 can cast Sleep, then the CR2 Intellect Devourer can insta-kill it with one intelligence check. Because of that, Intellect Devourers are very spicy when combo'd with anything that can stun, sleep, or otherwise leave someone Incapacitated. Here's a breakdown of my system:
| Spiciness | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 1 | Abilities that, if paired with certain other monsters, can be deadly-- but aren't threatening on their own. See the above example. |
| 2 | Strong single-target abilities or ways to bypass death saves. Likely to down players & may even secure a kill or two. |
| 3 | Insta-kill abilities, strong AoEs (damage/crowd control), or combinations so effective that a TPK is more likely than other creatures of equal CR. |
