Combatastic Descriptions

[Negflar2099]

Combat is a big part of most RPG's but actually describing the swing of every sword or the blast of every spell can get boring at times. I don't know about you but as a DM I find my combat descriptions can get a little stale. I have certain phrases or words that I fall back on far too often and battles can lose some of their sizzle.

To that end I thought I'd create this thread where we (players and DMs alike) can share our favorite attack descriptions. The goal here is to keep it short and sweet. Something that can be said in as few words as possible but that really adds flavor to the battle. It's not meant for any one game (or game edition) so rules references should probably be left out. I meant it more for Sword and Sorcery style games (in the vein of D&D) but if you want to include Space Opera or Modern descriptions (or whatever suits you) feel free.

I'll start it off.

Basic Sword Attack:
Miss: "Your sword slices through the air but strikes his shield with a dull ringing sound."
Hit: "You dance around him poking him with a thousand tiny gashes of your rapier."
Critical Hit: "He drops his guard for just a moment but that's all you need. With all the force you can manage you impale your sword in his chest."

Fire Spell
Miss: "Your blazing fire spell soars over his head scorching his hair but leaving the rest of him untouched."
Hit: "With a thunderous roar your fireball explodes at his feet engulfing him in flames."
Critical Hit: "He gives you a fleeting look of terror before you blast him right in the chest with your spell which explodes around him sending dust flying into the air."

Okay granted those aren't great but I hope it gets the ball rolling.

 

[Dragon Snack]

You said leave out rules references and then included criticals (and on a spell no less)! [/joking]

I have certain phrases or words that I fall back on far too often and battles can lose some of their sizzle.

Me too, my players used to make fun of "nasty", "vicious", and "wicked" hits...

A hit that did very little damage (especially at higher levels when they had lots of HPs) was "You duck as the axe comes at you, but it catches your helmet and leaves you with a ringing in your ears" or "You avoid the main thrust of the sword, but you feel a twinge of pain as your body bends in an unnatural way".

 

[Grymar]

We tend to get graphic and hyper-violent, almost worthy of 300 in our descriptions.

{The monk character one-shot kills an opponent, I say} "Putting your body behind the blow, your fist meets his face and passes right through, connecting with the back of his skull. You rip it back covered in gore and gray matter as the body falls trembling to the floor."

If a player takes down a tough or key opponent, I'll let them describe the "finishing blow" however they want, which they usually enjoy. I do have a player or two who will just say "um...I hit him with my sword."

 

[Charwoman Gene]

“RIPS RIGHT THROUGH YOUR EYE SOCKET FOR TWO POINTS OF DAMAGE!” - Mike Mearls.

Apologies to Kzach for stealing this from you CM sig.

 

[Drkfathr1]

The sword slices through your abdomen, you clutch desperately at your gut, struggling to hold your entrails in...

But its okay. After six hours of rest you're good as new.

 

[Obryn]

I don't know about you but as a DM I find my combat descriptions can get a little stale. I have certain phrases or words that I fall back on far too often and battles can lose some of their sizzle.

Heh. Guilty as charged. Unbeknownst to me before I started gaming, I have a quite short list of famous adjectives and adverbs. And a few phrases. I all too often talk about monsters "not being too happy," for example. And my players have callled me on it, repeatedly.

-O

 

[Festivus]

I have been trying to imagine the combat in my head and then describe what I see. However, I too find that gets a bit difficult to do when you are busy managing the game too.

Perhaps what D&D needs is a color guy for combat encounters, designate one player at the table to describe the action, with a simple thumbs up or down from the DM

 

[ExploderWizard]

The problem with too much/detailed description is that the mechanical effect will differ from the description too much. Pretty much its the whole hit point/abstract thing that has been debated to death.

Using more broadly defined terms such as a jarring blow, solid shot,ect.

Its actually more fun to roleplay the antagonists during a battle than describe thier actions passively. Sound effects work well in conjunction with typical dialogue: " Thog SMASH!!!" , " This is how its done old chap!", " gurgle, gurgle.......sloooorp.......gurgle."

Either way, avoiding descriptions of graphic wounds keeps the mapping of mechanical effects to observable detail more in the imagination.

 

[darjr]

If you know the terrain, you can include parts of it.

"Your blow causes the Undead Yuan Ti pureblood to slip, kicking up the ancient temple dust of a thousand dead years."

 

[Negflar2099]

You said leave out rules references and then included criticals (and on a spell no less)!

D'oh. I should have caught that. Apologies. I've obviously been playing a certain game too much lately.

Love the idea of designating a player as the "effects guy" so to speak. That's a great idea.

Mike Mearls is right though. Combat descriptions for effects that don't do that much damage shouldn't be so over the top. Perhaps "your mace swings down at his head. At the last second he blocks you with his shield but the force of the blow sends a ringing pain down his arm." Or maybe "with a primal scream you lunge forward to stab it in the back and your knife digs in deep but the lumbering beast barely seems to notice." Or "With great force you smash your axe again and again into its body until scales flake off and fall at your feet but you're still nowhere closer to the mighty dragon's soft flesh."