D&D General Do You Run NPC vs NPC Battles? Why?

[Hexmage-EN]

So, as a DM I sometimes I find myself playing out battles between NPCs and/or monsters if I have the time.

For example, the previous session of my current campaign ended with a barbarian NPC ally running off to do battle with some monsters out of sheer bloodlust. Today, I had some free time and decided to go ahead and run several rounds of combat between this NPC and some monsters so that when the party catches up with them at the start of the next session they'll join a battle in progress.

For another example, earlier in the campaign the party encountered a squad of tired, injured duergar with little inclination to fight and a dead ally nearby surrounded by the remains of kruthiks. At home I had run this squad of duergar against a number of kruthiks, and their status in the actual session was derived from the results of this battle.

I guess I do it because 1) it helps me familiarize with tactics or test out homebrew creatures, 2) it helps the world feel more real, and 3) it's fun to play out the fight and let the dice help decide what happens (such as if the NPC that ran off has been wrecking all-comers or has bitten-off more than they can chew).

This isn't something I have the time to do often, but I probably would do more if I did. I'm curious if this is something other DMs ever do and why.

 

[Snarf Zagyg]

1. No.
2. Because in my limited amount of time, I have better things to do. Like drink my newly-invented
Cheetos schnapps.

Oh god. It burns….. IT BURNS!!

 

[Shiroiken]

I never do this in session (and hate running allied NPCs in session too), since it takes up too much time. If I need to have an idea of how things might shake out, I make a quick glance of averages to determine who would win, how much time it would take, and how many resources lost. In these cases I ignore most other aspects, such at terrain, cover, and other things likely important to combat, mostly because I really don't want to spend the time.

 

[payn]

1. No.
2. Because in my limited amount of time, I have better things to do. Like drink my newly-invented
Cheetos schnapps.

Oh god. It burns….. IT BURNS!!

Next time try some Taki Sake.

 

[iserith]

If you monsterbate too much, you'll get the blinded condition.

 

[mrpopstar]

If you monsterbate too much, you'll get the blinded condition.

 

[mrpopstar]

So, as a DM I sometimes I find myself playing out battles between NPCs and/or monsters if I have the time.

For example, the previous session of my current campaign ended with a barbarian NPC ally running off to do battle with some monsters out of sheer bloodlust. Today, I had some free time and decided to go ahead and run several rounds of combat between this NPC and some monsters so that when the party catches up with them at the start of the next session they'll join a battle in progress.

For another example, earlier in the campaign the party encountered a squad of tired, injured duergar with little inclination to fight and a dead ally nearby surrounded by the remains of kruthiks. At home I had run this squad of duergar against a number of kruthiks, and their status in the actual session was derived from the results of this battle.

I guess I do it because 1) it helps me familiarize with tactics or test out homebrew creatures, 2) it helps the world feel more real, and 3) it's fun to play out the fight and let the dice help decide what happens (such as if the NPC that ran off has been wrecking all-comers or has bitten-off more than they can chew).

This isn't something I have the time to do often, but I probably would do more if I did. I'm curious if this is something other DMs ever do and why.

I've never done this. Gaming is purely social for me. Friends required!

 

[Hexmage-EN]

I never do this in session (and hate running allied NPCs in session too), since it takes up too much time. If I need to have an idea of how things might shake out, I make a quick glance of averages to determine who would win, how much time it would take, and how many resources lost. In these cases I ignore most other aspects, such at terrain, cover, and other things likely important to combat, mostly because I really don't want to spend the time.

Oh yeah, I definitely wouldn't do this in-session. I'm all about saving time while DMing a session, such as by pre-rolling damage and recording the results on graph paper for the different ways PCs might take damage. If I need to generate damage during a session I use a dice roller app. The only physical dice I use as a DM are two d20s.

I guess I could use average damage to save time, though I'd like to preserve some swinginess by allowing for critical hits.

 

[Grendel_Khan]

I’ve done this once or twice, when it was towards the end of a campaign and I really wanted to dive into the unpredictability of the situation. But it felt a little like I was surrendering to some sort of newfound compulsion, so I doubt I’d do it again.

Plus I’m being pulled closer and closer to the PbtA perspective, where if it’s not directly related to the PCs, who cares? Determining that sort of outcome might impact the PCs but it’s probably just as easy to roll a d6, with a higher roll indicating a better overall result for them (meaning what they’d want to happen with those NPCs)

 

[Sword of Spirit]

One thing I like that it seems most of my friends don't is just seeing how the rules for the game and the monsters play out in a "combat arena" sort of scenario. I'd love to have everyone pick a monster of the same CR, throw them into a bounded space and duke it out to see how things shake up. Part of it is getting experience seeing how the various special features and such work out, and part of it is that I don't have another outlet for that sort of combat-only experience (I think my other players do more video games that can scratch that itch than I do).

So I would have no problem running such a combat, but I've only done it once. Basically, the PCs' choices lead to a group of hunters being attacked by 4 giant apes, and I wanted to see what actually would have happened, rather than just decide. So I made a quick battle map, put all the participants on it, and ran through the whole thing. Because I don't like it to go completely to waste for the campaign, one of the characters got to see it in a dream (I gave a really quick description of the battle) and then the party got to show up afterwards later and see the aftermath.

One thing I have done more than once is to test out a battle that the party is likely heading into before the session comes up. I'll just use the PC stats, role-play their choices the way I think the players would, and see how the battle goes. I did that about 7 times when a 3rd level party was going to fight a young black dragon, to see what sorts of outcomes they could get (everything from a TPK to killing it with barely an injury, it turns out--surprise and initiative were huge on this one).