I love combat descriptions, and Eberron is supposed to be all about the cenematic swashbuckling flair. Unfortunately, I find that they often bog things down during the actual combat round. Some people I know (myself included to some degree) are even so afraid of being accused of metagaming that they don't ever talk about hit points, damage reduction, AC, etc. even while they're trying to figure out what the hell just happened in a fight.
On the other hand, reading off combat actions like an announcer reading bingo can get boring as heck too. "Paladin hits AC 25, roll damage, 7 hit points. Next." Blah.
Taking a cue from White Wolf, I've devised an inventive solution. Segregate them. The IC and OOC combat descriptions should be separate from each other so as to prevent confusion and speed up gameplay. During the combat round, players and DM alike can freely speak in terms of attacks of opportunity, levels, feats, hit points, damage reduction, AC, attack bonuses, etc.
After each combat round, once everyone has taken their turn, then comes the IC descriptive phase. At first, until my players get used to it, I'll recap the action dramatically myself (complete with my typical flailing), giving a cinematic flair to the previously crunched numbers. Once they start catching on, I'll ease them into describing their own actions this way until I only have to describe the NPCs.
Sound like a good plan?
On the other hand, reading off combat actions like an announcer reading bingo can get boring as heck too. "Paladin hits AC 25, roll damage, 7 hit points. Next." Blah.
Taking a cue from White Wolf, I've devised an inventive solution. Segregate them. The IC and OOC combat descriptions should be separate from each other so as to prevent confusion and speed up gameplay. During the combat round, players and DM alike can freely speak in terms of attacks of opportunity, levels, feats, hit points, damage reduction, AC, attack bonuses, etc.
After each combat round, once everyone has taken their turn, then comes the IC descriptive phase. At first, until my players get used to it, I'll recap the action dramatically myself (complete with my typical flailing), giving a cinematic flair to the previously crunched numbers. Once they start catching on, I'll ease them into describing their own actions this way until I only have to describe the NPCs.
Sound like a good plan?
