Advice on tactics

[blargney the second]

Build characters with at least a half a rank in every knowledge skill so you have in-game justification for knowing things. Jack of All Trades for the win!

 

[Gold Roger]

Use the frikkin terrain.

 

[Infernal Teddy]

Ummmm.... "Try not to die"?

 

[EP]

Don't be afraid to improvise with the rules a bit. If you have a hard time bringing someone's hit points to 0, just try and cut his head off. If the DM interprets rules the same as you, he'll see your shortcut and roll with it. One of my players did that and it made perfect sense for him to do it, but my big bad boss died in one round, but it was a smart move. Only gave him half the XP for it, but the baddie was dead.

Flank your opponent, but keep half the party back an additional 5'. The closest PCs attack, then step back, the further PCs step up, then attack. This way when the NPC takes a full attack option, less targets... unless you take the advise given above in reverse and figure that more PCs means less damage per character in one round.

Use the props. Toss a guy into the fireplace, push him over a fallen log, use a chair to disarm your opponent. If you throw the DM for a loop, it's the same as throwing the NPC for a loop and gives you an advantage.

And worse come to worse, use Avengers tactics. Can't seem to hit the guy you're fighting? Switch with another party member.

 

[DragonLancer]

Stealth, maneuverability and the Powell doctrine. That's pretty much how my gaming group operates if we *have* to get into a fight - regardless of level or even of game. (We use the same tactics in Shadowrun and Serenity.)

Whats the Powell doctrine?

 

[Primitive Screwhead]

Powell Doctrine both considers the options prior to combat with a focus on specific questions such as 'do we have to', 'what is the end goal of combat', and 'how do we get out of this'..
Its also called the doctrine of Overwhelming Force... or as my old group used to say "Over-kill? Whats that?"

My advice depends on who is running the game, but some above comments fit in, especially

Use the terrain... I have run so many combats where the players treat the battlefield as an open chess board.

Peni Griffin is right on with adapting to the situation

Woas is right on with looking ahead instead of 'reacting to contact'


If your GM has read Sun Tzu... you might want to read it as well..heck, even if he hasn't

Points from Sun Tzu:
- All warfare is deception
- Know yourself and your enemy
- Strike where your enemy is unprepared

In DnD encounter combat this equates to manuever, team tactics, and using the enemy against themselves.

 

[dren]

Stay in character no matter what. Dying by acting on in-character information is, for me at least, better than living through metagaming.

QFT

 

[Ranger REG]

Stay in character no matter what. Dying by acting on in-character information is, for me at least, better than living through metagaming.

Yeah, but my group instituted a 30-second time limit on play-acting their character's death scenes.

Some of my players are over-dramatic about death scenes.

 

[Nifft]

Points from Sun Tzu:
- All warfare is deception
- Know yourself and your enemy
- Strike where your enemy is unprepared

Translation into D&D (IMHO):

- Do not make your roles obvious; the spellcasters should not be easy to identify. Do not make your weaknesses obvious.

- Prepare your group to compensate each other's weaknesses and augment each other's strengths. This usually means spell selection includes condition-removal and group-buffs.

- Target your foe's weak points:

• Melee Thud: Will save.
• Archer: Sunder his bow.
• Mobile Skirmisher: control battlefield, including visibility.
• Spellcaster: grapple, direct damage or Fortitude save.
• Group: de-buffs, area effects, battlefield control.

At high level, scry-buff-teleport to kill your toughest foes, and be prepared to fend off up to two such attacks each day (which usually means keeping a stock of expendable magic items like scrolls, but also means contingency).

Cheers, -- N

 

[Olaf the Stout]

Don't be afraid to improvise with the rules a bit. If you have a hard time bringing someone's hit points to 0, just try and cut his head off. If the DM interprets rules the same as you, he'll see your shortcut and roll with it. One of my players did that and it made perfect sense for him to do it, but my big bad boss died in one round, but it was a smart move. Only gave him half the XP for it, but the baddie was dead.

Do you find that the players try and chop the head of all the BBEG's now? Because if I was in your campaign that's exactly what I would be doing. You may have opened a barrel of worms there, depending on what your players are like.

Olaf the Stout