A Thought on Repetitive Combat

[Stalker0]

One reason a lot of people talk about balance is they don't like it when players always choose the same abilities or tactics. But if you think about it, in stories characters do this all the time!!

I'll just use Inuyasha for example. That boy is using Wind Scar and Iron Reaver Soul Stealer (I couldn't spell the Japanese words sorry all the time, day in and day out. Superman? Superpunches, eye beams, fly into bad guys. Unless he's forced to do something else, you don't see Superman going: "Hmm....maybe I should try to trip this guy!!"

 

[Adjudicator Tempest]

maybe superman is busy with loius lan - cant spell her name - don't really care too either. But I think this time the bank manager is a crazed idiot that got the job last wednesday, and this latest villain who thinks he is going to steal from him his bank, job, life and a possible freedom? No, I don't think so, so what else does he do, but disapear out back, put on something kinky, and go nuts at this villain with everything he has. no eyebeams, or mega punches, just specified hatred against villains (paladin gone nuts?) with flurry of blows (crossed with munk) or maybe he has the matilda effect, and suddenly becomes one of those psychers that can walk up walls, create big force weapons with concentration, and take on the villain with renewed courage?

Who knows - I think it is better for people to think - I don't want to be a necromancer cleric anyomre - I'd like to try a deepwood sniper. He sounds cool.

 

[Taren Seeker]

maybe superman is busy with loius lan - cant spell her name - don't really care too either. But I think this time the bank manager is a crazed idiot that got the job last wednesday, and this latest villain who thinks he is going to steal from him his bank, job, life and a possible freedom? No, I don't think so, so what else does he do, but disapear out back, put on something kinky, and go nuts at this villain with everything he has. no eyebeams, or mega punches, just specified hatred against villains (paladin gone nuts?) with flurry of blows (crossed with munk) or maybe he has the matilda effect, and suddenly becomes one of those psychers that can walk up walls, create big force weapons with concentration, and take on the villain with renewed courage?

Who knows - I think it is better for people to think - I don't want to be a necromancer cleric anyomre - I'd like to try a deepwood sniper. He sounds cool.

 

[Agamon]

maybe superman is busy with loius lan - cant spell her name - don't really care too either. But I think this time the bank manager is a crazed idiot that got the job last wednesday, and this latest villain who thinks he is going to steal from him his bank, job, life and a possible freedom? No, I don't think so, so what else does he do, but disapear out back, put on something kinky, and go nuts at this villain with everything he has. no eyebeams, or mega punches, just specified hatred against villains (paladin gone nuts?) with flurry of blows (crossed with munk) or maybe he has the matilda effect, and suddenly becomes one of those psychers that can walk up walls, create big force weapons with concentration, and take on the villain with renewed courage?

Who knows - I think it is better for people to think - I don't want to be a necromancer cleric anyomre - I'd like to try a deepwood sniper. He sounds cool.

Best. Reply. Evar.

 

[DonTadow]

maybe superman is busy with loius lan - cant spell her name - don't really care too either. But I think this time the bank manager is a crazed idiot that got the job last wednesday, and this latest villain who thinks he is going to steal from him his bank, job, life and a possible freedom? No, I don't think so, so what else does he do, but disapear out back, put on something kinky, and go nuts at this villain with everything he has. no eyebeams, or mega punches, just specified hatred against villains (paladin gone nuts?) with flurry of blows (crossed with munk) or maybe he has the matilda effect, and suddenly becomes one of those psychers that can walk up walls, create big force weapons with concentration, and take on the villain with renewed courage?

Who knows - I think it is better for people to think - I don't want to be a necromancer cleric anyomre - I'd like to try a deepwood sniper. He sounds cool.

Good I"m not the only one whose gotten into the special stash tonight ...

 

[Westgate Polks]

If the original post is complaining that this player always builds an elven ranger with point-blank shot, precise, shot, etc. then finds the highground while that player always creates an Evoker with maximized fireballs etc. then having players build different characters with different skill sets and abilities will help solve the problem. I LOVE the attitude that the Adjudicator Tempest has, and I try to encourage my players to try different builds by building different campaigns.

I took the stance that the fights themselves are repetative: The orc swings his axe at the fighter, the fighter swings his sword at the orc, etc. In this instance creating different scenarios with different creatures should help add some excitement to combat. Stalker0 seems to be discussing this problem with his example of Inuyasha.

 

[reveal]

maybe superman is busy with loius lan - cant spell her name - don't really care too either. But I think this time the bank manager is a crazed idiot that got the job last wednesday, and this latest villain who thinks he is going to steal from him his bank, job, life and a possible freedom? No, I don't think so, so what else does he do, but disapear out back, put on something kinky, and go nuts at this villain with everything he has. no eyebeams, or mega punches, just specified hatred against villains (paladin gone nuts?) with flurry of blows (crossed with munk) or maybe he has the matilda effect, and suddenly becomes one of those psychers that can walk up walls, create big force weapons with concentration, and take on the villain with renewed courage?

Who knows - I think it is better for people to think - I don't want to be a necromancer cleric anyomre - I'd like to try a deepwood sniper. He sounds cool.

 

[silentspace]

hmmmm

 

[I'm A Banana]

Hahahahahahahahahahahaha. HA.

Uhm, back to the point at hand, I'd say that the "classic repotoire" of abilites of InuYasha, at least (which is kind of typical of a certain genre of anime...but I digress) is changing all the time. He constantly needs to upgrade and enhance his abilities to take on new and interesting challenges. In fact, the whole party he travels with does.

He can use his Iron Reaver Soul Stealer attack, but to handle the newest threat, he needs, say, his sword, the Tetsuaiga. And then he needs to figure out how to get the sword at full power. And then how to use the Windscar. And then how to destroy barriers...etc., etc....

The tactics are from the classic style of "get a cool new power" -> "fight something vulnerable to it" -> "fight something proof against it" -> "get a cool new power." That's how the drama hinges itself.

D&D doesn't bother with that drama *so* much. The challenge isn't mastering the new power, it's confronting the current squad of baddies in front of you. So it's managing the rescources you have available at the moment, which is where the tactics come into play. In the genres mentioned, you can use the same ability over and over again because when the writers want conflict, they'll just give you the next enemy who is somehow immune to that attack, and have the main characters get a new one. In D&D, that's generally considered one of the worst kinds of manipulative DMing, rendering the PC's abilities useless in order to challenge them being kind of a cheap use of DM power to artificially inject tension.

 

[Felon]

Notice that right about the time Inuyasha got the hang of his windscar, it stopped being effective against everything. And then he has to figure out another way to beat the baddie.

D&D doesn't have a lot of "figure-out-the-weakness" to it. Damage is everything's weakness.