Post by gaptooth on Feb 13, 2018 13:25:48 GMT -5
Do you ever have events happen between the "segments" in a combat round?
The T&T combat round usually represents 2 minutes of action. The 5th edition rules offer a sequence for resolving the action in a specific order: Magic, Missiles, Melee, etc. The combat round is divided into "segments" where certain actions will take place, and the results of those actions can impact the rest of the round.
Both the rules and the culture of play encourage the players to take actions that may disrupt the ordinary sequence of combat. Sure, spells go off first thing (provided the casters aren't surprised!), but if you want to bum rush an enemy wizard before he can get his spell out, and your tactic makes sense in the fiction, the GM might let you do it or (more likely) assign a Saving Roll to see what happens.
That's would be a player-triggered event that happens between the segments of the round, but it occurred to me that the GM might do likewise. Have you ever done something like that?
Here are some quick examples, right off the top of my head:
This question came to me as I was examining the combat action sequence again in section 2.31, and I noticed subtleties that didn't discern before. For example, the decision of which delvers will fight which monsters in melee comes after the missile segment, just before melee.
I usually go around the table before the combat round to ask each player what the delvers are doing, and describe what they see the monsters doing, in order to establish the fictional context of the action. At that point, I know who is casting spells, who is sniping from shadows, and who will be fighting whom in melee.
But putting the determination of who will be fighting whom in melee after spells and missiles go off makes sense.
It made me wonder what might happen if the sequence was interrupted at any point. I've seen it happen from the player side, but I don't think I've ever triggered events that disrupt the sequence from the GM chair.
How about you?
The T&T combat round usually represents 2 minutes of action. The 5th edition rules offer a sequence for resolving the action in a specific order: Magic, Missiles, Melee, etc. The combat round is divided into "segments" where certain actions will take place, and the results of those actions can impact the rest of the round.
Both the rules and the culture of play encourage the players to take actions that may disrupt the ordinary sequence of combat. Sure, spells go off first thing (provided the casters aren't surprised!), but if you want to bum rush an enemy wizard before he can get his spell out, and your tactic makes sense in the fiction, the GM might let you do it or (more likely) assign a Saving Roll to see what happens.
That's would be a player-triggered event that happens between the segments of the round, but it occurred to me that the GM might do likewise. Have you ever done something like that?
Here are some quick examples, right off the top of my head:
- After the missile "segment", some of the enemies are a bit perforated and/or dead. But before melee can commence, the GM says "just then, the door breaks down and a half-dozen more monsters begin to file in."
- After casting spells, bur before the missiles are fired, the dungeon is shaken by a sudden tremor, causing the floor to crack and the elevation between sides to change.
This question came to me as I was examining the combat action sequence again in section 2.31, and I noticed subtleties that didn't discern before. For example, the decision of which delvers will fight which monsters in melee comes after the missile segment, just before melee.
I usually go around the table before the combat round to ask each player what the delvers are doing, and describe what they see the monsters doing, in order to establish the fictional context of the action. At that point, I know who is casting spells, who is sniping from shadows, and who will be fighting whom in melee.
But putting the determination of who will be fighting whom in melee after spells and missiles go off makes sense.
It made me wonder what might happen if the sequence was interrupted at any point. I've seen it happen from the player side, but I don't think I've ever triggered events that disrupt the sequence from the GM chair.
How about you?
