#or repurposed existing monster stats with full character reskins on top

[pagesofkenna]

Oh there absolutely are not any good CR/Level equivalencies, unfortunately

I think the way I always understood it is that a CR 4 monster is one that a 4-person party of level 4 adventurers could kill easily, but not without getting hurt themselves. So if I wanted a single monster to be a real threat to that party, I'd want it to be CR 6 or higher - but, in reality, how much of a threat that monster would be really depends on what kind of abilities it and the party are bringing to the table, and how well each side rolls on initiative

Add to that the fact that you're not trying to threaten the party but to assist it, and there really are too many variables at play to give a guaranteed answer

My recommendation would be to aim for CR 5, and be willing to adjust the statblock after a session or two if you feel the NPC is outshining the PCs, or clearly failing to match up to them

Help I’m trying to build stats for an important ally NPC (who is a ghost so I want to use monster stats for guidelines), what CR range would put her close in power to a level 5 character so she’s around even to the party’s skills/durability? Google will not give me a straightforward answer on CR-Level equivalences, everyone is just like “don’t build NPCs with player stats” which isn’t even what I’m doing.