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Changing rest periods
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<blockquote data-quote="EpicureanDM" data-source="post: 7625269" data-attributes="member: 6996003"><p>I use a variation of this idea and it's been very successful.</p><p></p><p>Often, threads like this acknowledge that pacing is the DM's responsibility, but miss the fact that 5e's current rest system puts a lot of control over pacing in the players' hands. The trouble comes from the players being able to dictate when a rest occurs and the DM being unable to come up with organic ways to prevent it. The solution is to do what 13A does: put short and long rests on a strict schedule. </p><p></p><p>In my campaign, the sequence looks like this: two encounters -> short rest -> two encounters -> short rest -> one encounter -> long rest and the sequence resets. They can spend Hit Dice after any encounter. Abilities like a Bard's Song of Rest only work during a regular short rest. If the players think they're in rough shape, they can jump right to the long rest at any time, but they suffer a "campaign loss," a penalty that usually involves advancing their enemies' plans or having them lose access to a valuable resource.</p><p></p><p>I also borrow the most important part of 13A's rest philosophy: rests don't take up any in-game time. This is the part that people struggle really struggle with, which is divorcing the idea of "rest" from "the passage of time in the game." Using this system, short and long rests take as much time as the players wish. If they want to describe an hour of time passing in-game, that's up to them. Conversely, their "long rest" can take just one in-game minute if that's what they want. This is what trips up so many DMs: trying to find ways to interrupt an hour-long rest or to decide whether to interrupt a long rest. This system removes that tension. You just point at the sequence if anyone's angling for a rest and get to what's important.</p><p></p><p>This solution will single-handedly solve your problems. Tension will naturally develop as players legitimately worry about their dwindling resources. As a bonus, 5e's CR ratings start to work better, because you're getting closer to their theoretical "6-8 encounters per day" design philosophy. Medium and Hard encounters become more of a challenge and, as a bonus, they're usually quicker because they feature monsters that are closer to the PCs' power level. It works in my 5e games, so give it a try. <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite1" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":)" /></p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="EpicureanDM, post: 7625269, member: 6996003"] I use a variation of this idea and it's been very successful. Often, threads like this acknowledge that pacing is the DM's responsibility, but miss the fact that 5e's current rest system puts a lot of control over pacing in the players' hands. The trouble comes from the players being able to dictate when a rest occurs and the DM being unable to come up with organic ways to prevent it. The solution is to do what 13A does: put short and long rests on a strict schedule. In my campaign, the sequence looks like this: two encounters -> short rest -> two encounters -> short rest -> one encounter -> long rest and the sequence resets. They can spend Hit Dice after any encounter. Abilities like a Bard's Song of Rest only work during a regular short rest. If the players think they're in rough shape, they can jump right to the long rest at any time, but they suffer a "campaign loss," a penalty that usually involves advancing their enemies' plans or having them lose access to a valuable resource. I also borrow the most important part of 13A's rest philosophy: rests don't take up any in-game time. This is the part that people struggle really struggle with, which is divorcing the idea of "rest" from "the passage of time in the game." Using this system, short and long rests take as much time as the players wish. If they want to describe an hour of time passing in-game, that's up to them. Conversely, their "long rest" can take just one in-game minute if that's what they want. This is what trips up so many DMs: trying to find ways to interrupt an hour-long rest or to decide whether to interrupt a long rest. This system removes that tension. You just point at the sequence if anyone's angling for a rest and get to what's important. This solution will single-handedly solve your problems. Tension will naturally develop as players legitimately worry about their dwindling resources. As a bonus, 5e's CR ratings start to work better, because you're getting closer to their theoretical "6-8 encounters per day" design philosophy. Medium and Hard encounters become more of a challenge and, as a bonus, they're usually quicker because they feature monsters that are closer to the PCs' power level. It works in my 5e games, so give it a try. :) [/QUOTE]
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