Re: Long Drawnout Combat (was Durations of Edges)

From: Steven White <fringe_worthy_at_...>
Date: Tue, 20 Jun 2000 21:33:19 -0000

>> 3) On our first night, combat proved quite exhausting for us and a
>> little tedious. First, let's talk about the tediousness. Because
>> the players were closely matched to the opposition, they were NOT
>> willing to

Well, looking this over, and considering our gaming group, here are some of my suggestions:

I like carrots and sticks, so why not do some of these to encourage high AP bids, and big fun:

  1 / Toys: Give a couple Special thunderstones that can be thrown by anyone. Given these are one use, powerfull magic items, you have to make big bids or you effectively waste them. As well, you plan to spend a hero point when you use them. Hey, wouldn't you like to turn that 15ap bid into a tranfer? I know you do.... I did. I think they have something like +5 edge (Added to sling edge) Real nice to get tranfers with.

  2 / Mooks and the big Sorceress/High Theist. Give them a bunch of mook they _have_ to take down fast before the mage behind them turns the lot of them into swiss cheese. It also help if the mage has very high magic, and truelly pathetic combat, and they know it.

  3 / Kill it now before it can be nasty: We had a wyrm, hiding inside a longhouse. We got it at the doorway (Did I mention thunderstones seem to be real effective against dragon kin? :) And kept it from getting outside before it's massive bodyslam ability would toast us.

  4 / Mention another group of villains is coming. They play too cautious, take too long they'll have 10 people at once, instead of two groups of five) For example, escaping from a place you're spying at.

  4 / Hey, villains get hero points too. Make sure that villain gets his 15+ point transfer in. Invoke fear on your players.

  5 / You have a Humakti who wants to get covered in glory? Give him a good situation where he has use that bezerk death song of his. I'd make sure to run a simulation privately, so you understand how it works, and how to play it correctly; You don't want to kill him by bad planning. We had a Holmgang(sp?) in our group, with our Humakti going up against a Uroxy bezerker. They both fell over, luckily with the bezerker dead. (Trial by combat) Bezerking is scary. Even when it's only your foe doing it. Although, it can be vulnerable to someone waiting you out, defending until you exaust yourself.

Spending heropoints in combat is part of the fun. It can really amplify the heroic part. (I _will_ succeed at this blow) That and occasionally preventing you from gacking yourself on a idiot accident (You mean I impaled myself falling off my horse as I was getting ready to go to war? Damn!)