Combats -- Good til the last (corpses) drop?

[dougmander]

How willing are you DMs out there to hit the fast-forward button on a combat whose outcome seems certain?

Do you feel compelled to run a combat blow-by-blow until the very last bad guy falls, or do you (like me) sometimes just say "It's clear which way this combat is going -- you kill the last couple of orcs easily"? Is the off chance that one of those orcs will score a critical hit before he drops worth taking up extra game time? I only do this when the PCs are winning a fight against mooks, not named NPCs, and I would never do it when the PCs are losing.

Thoughts?

 

[Telperion]

It depends a whole lot on the situation. At the moment I'm running a political campaign with the characters taking part in physical combat none at all or very little. So, for the most part the characters do their battles in their vassals war rooms and such. After all has been discussed and those decisions the characters felt were important have been made the rest is usually just a brief overview of what happens on the battlefield.

On the other hand should I be running a heroic adventure with a group of Good Guys fighting a hoard of weak enemies, then yes I would go trough every blow unless the combat scene doesn't serve any significance other than fill the character sheets with XP. In that case I usually either do something interesting or fast forward over the few rounds of combat such weaklings would slow the characters down.

For the most part I tend to run trough every possible round of combat in the latter cases, because the fact that characters can (and do) lose precious resources even in the last few rounds of any given combat. Once those resources are lost it may be that the characters cannot refresh them until much later. Such resources being: hitpoints, spells, potions, spell-like abilities and so forth. Should their resources be depleted beyond a certain point the players will most likely start feeling insecure and less heroic. Fear and doubt are wonderful tools .

It really depends on the what you, as the DM, are driving at. Personally I switch between different ways of portraying a story as the need arises.

 

[aurance]

How willing are you DMs out there to hit the fast-forward button on a combat whose outcome seems certain?

Do you feel compelled to run a combat blow-by-blow until the very last bad guy falls, or do you (like me) sometimes just say "It's clear which way this combat is going -- you kill the last couple of orcs easily"? Is the off chance that one of those orcs will score a critical hit before he drops worth taking up extra game time? I only do this when the PCs are winning a fight against mooks, not named NPCs, and I would never do it when the PCs are losing.

Thoughts?

We don't need to do this... because generally people tend to surrender when odds are that bad. A rarely used option in D&D, I know.

 

[Thanee]

I do that sometimes, if it really is only going to be boring wiping up the floor with the remainders. That's just a waste of time.

Of course, that is, if surrender or flight isn't an option, like when fighting undeads and only a couple whimpy skeletons or zombies are left, for example.

Bye
Thanee

 

[Flyspeck23]

How willing are you DMs out there to hit the fast-forward button on a combat whose outcome seems certain?

Do you feel compelled to run a combat blow-by-blow until the very last bad guy falls, or do you (like me) sometimes just say "It's clear which way this combat is going -- you kill the last couple of orcs easily"? Is the off chance that one of those orcs will score a critical hit before he drops worth taking up extra game time? I only do this when the PCs are winning a fight against mooks, not named NPCs, and I would never do it when the PCs are losing.

Thoughts?

Let the opponents surrender or flee, but don't hit fast forward.

My players would feel cheated any other way, I'm certain.

 

[S'mon]

Er, if it's obvious which way the combat is going, either:

1. PCs are losing - their choice to flee or die
2. NPCs are losing - they run away!!

99% of the time, anyway. A few creatures are fearless & will fight to the death, but almost every NPC will attempt to withdraw if they're clearly losing. The PCs usually try to prevent them fleeing, and of course that needs to be played out. Sometimes the PCs kill every enemy, sometimes some escape.

 

[Deadguy]

Yep, I use the fast-forward in combat when I am sure of the outcome. Generally it happens when a few small minions outlast their boss, and they are backed into a corner; or they are mindless creatures that don't understand futility. It's a slight cheat, but it is about saving time from a combat for otehr activities. Combat isn't - to me - an end in itself; it's about tension and excitement and fun. When finishing off a large battle becomes mechanical rather than fun, it's better just to do a wrap and move on.

 

[RichGreen]

fast forward

Hi,

I ran a session last Monday and there were two big combats. At the end of the first one, the monk had grappled an enemy and was very slowly killing it. All other combatants were dead, and the monster had virtually no chance of escaping the grapple. I hit fast forward.

Cheers


Richard

 

[Krellic]

I can't say that it's ever occurred to me to fast-forward a combat. I will have badguys cut and run if their side is losing, though I daresay monsters are still braver than they probably should be :\

 

[Al]

Depends on the situation. Many sentient foes will either flee or surrender when the outcome is inevitable. However, if they choose not to, and are still active in combat, I like to play it out to the end. The rewards of victory seem greater if it played through to the conclusion, particularly if the opponents remain a threat: and at the high levels where my party is now, even a single foe several CR points below them can present quite powerful and deadly force over short periods of time.

On the other hand, if the enemy clearly has no chance of affecting the PCs at all, I normally wrap it up there. In particular, if undead have been turned, I feel no compunctions to roll out every finishing blow. Ten rounds should be more than enough to finish them off without even expending spells.