Actually, the reverse is working (horde battles working, 1v1 battles are not) but I tried adding that condition but then got a similar error to what I have been getting:
##############################################
ERROR in
action number 1
of Draw Event
for object obj_battlemonsterhud:
Push :: Execution Error - Variable Index [-12341] out of range [419] - -5.active_monster_party(100075,-12341)
at gml_Script_amp_read_var (line 3) - return global.active_monster_party[argument0,argument1];
##############################################
gml_Script_amp_read_var (line 3)
gml_Script_monster_get_name (line 4) - var s = amp_read_var(amp_id,amp_NICKNAME);
gml_Object_obj_battlemonsterhud_Draw_0 (line 12) - draw_text(xx,yy,monster_get_name(amp))
sorry for the trouble! I really appreciate your help as I am still trying to make sense of the ins and outs of the battle system