Combat Challenge For Wandering Monsters

[Kurtomatic]

I'm working on a skill challenge framework for overland travel hex-crawling during short (4 hour) Living Forgotten Realms adventures (MYRE). In this design, failures during an overland travel skill challenge can cause wandering monster encounters. However, tactical combat for semi-random encounters usually take too long. I want to provide players with an option for playing out combat encounters they can't manage to avoid but don't want to spend 30+ minutes on. So I'm bringing skill challenges full circle, and using a custom combat challenge to resolve random encounters.

Assumptions

• Limited game session time (4 hours).
• No extended rests during the game session (very common in LFR).
• The players have no desire to kill, capture, or loot the wandering monsters; engaging them in a combat challenge to drive them away and continue the travel challenge uninterrupted by tactical combat.
• Not intended to be bone-crunching hard or long; most challenges should cost the players a few minutes of dice throwing and a handful of surges.

Combat Challenges

Combat challenges are a special skill challenge made up of several combat checks (skill and attack rolls) versus various DCs. Each player must attempt a combat check before any player makes a second combat check, etc. The DC, success, and failure outcomes vary according to the skill or attack used and the targets, if any.

• When making a combat check, the player chooses a skill, basic attack, or at-will attack power, and a target if required.
• Successful attack rolls made as part of a combat check cause the targeted enemy to become bloodied. Wandering monsters will retreat or flee the battle once bloodied. Minions die immediately when bloodied. Elite monsters, undead, and other high morale opponents must be hit twice in this fashion to become bloodied. Solo monsters require three hits to become bloodied, and solo or elite high morale creatures may require three or more hits to bloody. Critical hits automatically cause the target to become bloodied. Wandering monsters bloodied in a combat challenge do not actually lose any hit points, and if encountered later in tactical combat, will not show any effects from the combat challenge.
• Failures on attack rolls (misses) grant the enemy target a counter-attack roll against the player character. Wandering monsters can choose a basic attack or at-will attack power and roll against the appropriate defense. If the failed attack was ranged, the monster will also use a ranged counter, if possible. If not, the monster may charge the attacker (see Dazing Charge, below). A wandering monster with a ranged attack can counter-attack in any allied monster's place. If a monster counter-attack roll succeeds, the attacking PC loses 1 healing surge; 2 healing surges on a critical hit.
• Basic attacks may be rolled as a combat check. Choose the target and roll against indicated defense normally.
• At-will attack powers may be rolled as a combat check. Choose the target and roll against indicated defense normally.
• Skill rolls made during a combat checks cannot be aided by other characters, but Aid Another (PHB p.287) can be used on any basic melee attack roll; the +2 bonus must be used for an attack roll made during the aided character's next combat check against the same target.
• When making skill rolls for a combat check, choose an action and skill. If the action calls for an attack roll, use a basic attack or at-will attack power. The following action, DC, targeting, success outcomes, and general effects are available:
  
  [*]Rolling Flank; Acrobatics or Athletics vs. Reflex; one creature; make a melee attack roll with combat advantage and grant combat advantage against the same target to one other ally's next attack; on a success the target can roll a counter-attack with a -2 penalty.
  [*]Dazing Charge; Athletics vs. Fortitude; one creature; make a melee attack roll with combat advantage and the target suffers -2 penalty on its next roll; the target and one ally may counter-attack on a miss.
  [*]Stutter Feint; Acrobatics or Bluff vs. Reflex; one creature; target offers combat advantage to all your allies for next attack roll; does not cause a hit and the target cannot counter-attack.
  [*]Area Attack; Perception vs. 10 + encounter level; before check, choose intended targets up to twice area size--one creature plus one additional creature for every 5 above the Perception DC; make area attack roll against each target; Area Attack always targets at least one creature and only one target (DM choice) can counter-attack on a miss.
  [*]Crushing Press; Intimidate or Endurance vs. Will; one creature; make a melee attack roll; target suffers a hit even on a miss and the attacker grants combat advantage to the target for any counter-attack.
  [*]First Aid; Heal vs. 15 + inflicting creature level; single ally; restore most recently lost surge; cannot restore surges lost before the previous heal check on this target.
  [*]To The Pain; Endurance vs. Fortitude; one creature; after losing a surge, make any basic or at-will attack roll with a +2 bonus per surge lost during this combat challenge (not counting surges restored by healing); must be the next combat check after losing a healing surge.
  [*]Spot Weakness; Insight or Perception vs. Will; one creature; target grants combat advantage to all your allies for next attack roll; does not cause a hit and the target cannot counter-attack.
  [*]Psych!; Arcana or Bluff or Religion vs. Will; one creature; make any attack roll and the target has a -2 penalty to its next roll; attacker grants combat advantage to the target for any counter-attack.
  [*]Didn't See You There; Stealth vs. Reflex; one creature; when an enemy makes a counter-attack roll against an ally, make any attack roll against the target with combat advantage; make this combat check immediately after your counter-attacked ally's check.
  [*]Walk It Off; Endurance vs. 20 + inflicting creature level; personal; restore a surge you lost on your previous combat check; no other effect.
  [*]Bless It All; Religion vs. 10 + encounter level; personal; your allies each gain a +1 divine bonus to their next skill roll; on a natural 20 this bonus applies to all skill rolls until the end of the combat challenge.
  [*]Dirty Bastard; Streetwise vs. Reflex; one creature; make a melee attack roll and your target's Reflex defense is reduced by 4 until your next combat check; if the target's counter-attack hits, you grant combat advantage to your next target.
  [*]For Your Own Good; Diplomacy vs. Will; one creature; make any two attack rolls; target can only counter-attack once.
  [*]Ain't It A Bitch?; Nature vs. Fortitude; one creature; make any one attack; you gain a +2 cover bonus to any counter-attack on this check.​
• The combat challenge ends when one side or the other fully retreats. Player characters may retreat from the combat challenge by losing 1 healing surge for each remaining wandering monster left in the fight. If all the wandering monsters have fled, the players have won the combat challenge, and may resume their travel skill challenge immediately.

This is an initial draft with no testing yet, and I'd greatly appreciate any reality-checks or suggestions before I spend quality time on this. The current list of skill actions was seat-of-pants, and can use more work; I tried to include a reasonable list of skill options. How does the basic idea hold up?

Cheers!