Shouldn't Monsters Recharge at End of Turn?

S

sfedi

First Post

• Dec 31, 2009

• #1

I love telling players lots of info about monsters attacks and defenses.
I find it keeps them making meaningful choices.

But lately I've found that when a monster recharges a power at the start of it's turn, it usually uses it right away.

The problem with this is that PCs can't plan accordingly, and it doesn't generate tension.

May be it would be more tense if at the EoT the monster recharges, and everyone knows it, and modify their actions due to that.

 

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AbdulAlhazred

Legend

• Dec 31, 2009

• #2

Certainly isn't going to be a big deal in general mechanically. I suppose knowing what's about to hit you could be fun. Go for it.

 

Dice4Hire

First Post

• Jan 1, 2010

• #3

That sounds like a good change for me.

 

keterys

First Post

• Jan 1, 2010

• #4

Sounds fun, yep.

 

Mouseferatu

Hero

• Jan 1, 2010

• #5

Here's the only downside: Bookkeeping.

If you only roll to recharge when you're about to use the power, there's nothing to keep track of. It either works or it doesn't. If you roll at the end of a turn, though, you have to roll for each separate recharge power, and you have to keep track of which powers recharged.

If you're willing to do that, and it doesn't slow you down or make the bookkeeping more complex, I'd say go for it. But for me personally, it'd just be one more thing to have to track.

 

keterys

First Post

• Jan 1, 2010

• #6

Technically, you have to track whether you've used a power or not in the first place... for simpler creatures that will automatically use a recharge power if it's available, that's true, but for others, you'll need some sort of system in the first place.

 

DracoSuave

First Post

• Jan 1, 2010

• #7

sfedi said:

But lately I've found that when a monster recharges a power at the start of it's turn, it usually uses it right away.

Click to expand...

That's sort of the point of doing it at the beginning.

The problem with this is that PCs can't plan accordingly, and it doesn't generate tension.

Click to expand...

Bullocks. The PCs never have perfect knowledge despite their best intentions. The tension is of a different sort. It's not 'The Dragon will unleash now so spread out' but it's 'We have to spread out just in case he can get his breath off this turn.' That is tension, the tension of drama and the unknown.

 

FireLance

Legend

• Jan 1, 2010

• #8

sfedi said:

May be it would be more tense if at the EoT the monster recharges, and everyone knows it, and modify their actions due to that.

Click to expand...

This is something that I'm currently doing in my Eberron game, and it's working out fine. So, that's one bit of anecdotal evidence in support of this.

Mouseferatu said:

Here's the only downside: Bookkeeping.

Click to expand...

I get around that by using my own custom-designed monster cards which allow me to note when a monster's power has been expended or has recharged. It also works nicely for tracking encounter powers, triggered powers, and action points.

DracoSuave said:

Bullocks. The PCs never have perfect knowledge despite their best intentions. The tension is of a different sort. It's not 'The Dragon will unleash now so spread out' but it's 'We have to spread out just in case he can get his breath off this turn.' That is tension, the tension of drama and the unknown.

Click to expand...

Yes, there is still tension if you roll at the start of the monster's turn, but it is (for want of a better word) a fairly uniform tension. The PCs more or less do the same things each round because the probabilities are the same.

 

S

Saeviomagy

Adventurer

• Jan 1, 2010

• #9

DracoSuave said:

That's sort of the point of doing it at the beginning. Bullocks. The PCs never have perfect knowledge despite their best intentions. The tension is of a different sort. It's not 'The Dragon will unleash now so spread out' but it's 'We have to spread out just in case he can get his breath off this turn.' That is tension, the tension of drama and the unknown.

Click to expand...

There's a big difference between tension generated because some random number might come up, and tension generated because this turn you want to spread out, but there is some factor that prevents you from doing so.

 

J

Jhaelen

First Post

• Jan 1, 2010

• #10

I agree with DracoSuave. In my game players don't even know if a power is rechargable, at-will or encounter. And I think that's exactly what keeps them on their toes.