The month has gotten away from me! I swear that just a moment ago it was early January and now here we are almost to the middle of February!
This month I wanted to talk about some general tips for running a tabletop roleplaying game like Dungeons and Dragons!
To start off, I'm jumping straight into the thing I struggle with the most: combat! Yeah, I have a hard time running fights in a lot of my games. I tend towards improv conversations with non-player characters rather than a long, drawn out fight. It's something that I am working on so here are some tips that have helped me start leveling up my combat!
1. Use the environment
Not every fight needs to or should take place in an open field. Fights could break out anywhere in a chaotic fantasy world where giant, hungry demons roam freely. Use the environment to create extra challenges for your players. One of my favorite encounters including a forest of free-floating trees. Because the trees constantly moved around, the scene shifted and line of sight, hiding spots and more changed. The players had to stay on their toes to keep ahead of the trees or risk getting knocked off their fight.
2. Use more than numbers!
This is one I try really hard to work on.. consider these options when describing a hit:
"Does an 18 hit?" your player asks.
"No," you answer. "You need a 20."
versus
"Does an 18 hit?" your player asks.
"Your great sword grazes against the ghost knight's chainmail but isn't able to find a vulnerable spot," you answer.
They're both giving the same information: the hit doesn't land, but one feels bit more cinematic and exciting than the other. Describing the fight in terms of action sequences versus just a clashing of numbers makes the fight feel more real and urgent. On the other hand, it can also make fights run longer so be aware of that downside as well.
3. Adjust
This is one I have really leaned into and may or may not work for your game. My current group is made up of all casters, most of them are very squishy with low hit points. I have absolutely almost one-shot the group because of a good damage roll... that I then tweaked. Yes, I'm talking about fudging the dice rolls.
For me, games are all about fun and my table isn't about the 'constant looming threat of character death', it's something we've agreed on already. So, adjusting the damage to not splatter the wizard in one hit makes sense.
It also means that if the wizard nails the big boss with a fireball, well maybe that enemy has a few extra hit points now.
This one is a fast and loose rule for certain and really takes a lot of knowing your group. If the group is tired and obviously not feeling combat, people have a few less hit points and the fight ends quicker... otherwise, maybe the fight goes a little longer.
I know this can be a controversial take cause, let's face it, fudging dice rolls is a slippery slop but with a group that trusts one another, I think it can help combat feel more exciting, engaging and cinematic!
So that's where I am in working on ttrpg combat! What are your tips for helping combat run smoother?