You'll note the one at 36 points also chose to be a monk who multiclasses into a casting class. I think I've got the power discrepancy handled, except that my build has a spike at level 2.

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Yes, I've seen a GM change things up once or twice to shake things up, but generally, the meat and potatoes fights progress the same, with one or two fights like that per adventure. Generally, Haste is your best buddy.