The Steam Mephit's Real Price
The Steam Mephit (D&D 5e, CR 1/4) reads like a problem. It is immune to fire and poison, which convinces tables they are facing something durable. They are not. Its AC is 10. A commoner with a club connects more often than not, and 21 hit points do not survive a party for long.
The Steam Breath is the headline and the disappointment. It recharges on a 6, so most rounds it never fires, and when it does it asks for a DC 10 Dexterity save against 1d8 fire damage. That is the full threat. The immunities are defensive trivia, not a wall.
The real waste is procedural. The Steam Mephit is immune to the poisoned condition and does not tire, so players who try to poison it or grind it down are spending resources on nothing. The counter is not fire (it laughs at fire) and not endurance. It is a weapon that hits AC 10 and a saving throw it can fail.
At the table: When a player’s fire spell fizzles, let them notice the AC 10 themselves. One handaxe or a Fire Bolt replacement against its weak armor ends the encounter faster than any clever plan to exhaust it.
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