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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Elder-Basilisk" data-source="post: 1563908" data-attributes="member: 3146">The thing about using description to create evocative combat is that, no matter how many synonyms for miss, wound, wound grievously, kill, kill gruesomely, and kill in manners worthy of a rolemaster crit chart, you're still describing hitting and missing. Combats will generally have the same challenges and tactics.To change this, it's important to change the environment. Use terrain. The evil swashbuckler doesn't just do an acrobatic charge towards the players. Instead, he leaps up, tumbles past the half-orc, lands on the table (makes a balance check to stay there) and stabs at the rogue gaining a +1 advantage for being on higher ground. Grokko the half-orc then grabs the other end of the table and flips it over (making a strength check to flip it over--which, if successful, will be opposed by the swashbuckler's dex check (like a trip roll) to see if Grokko dumps the swashbuckler onto his face or if the swashbuckler deftly lands on his feet. Seeing the swashbuckler land on his feet, the cleric grabs the table and, using it for cover, attempts to bull-rush the swashbuckler into the fireplace.In that example, even the game mechanical descriptions are somewhat evocative because the players and NPCs are taking advantage of the environment and incorporating it into their tactics. Those tactics probably won't be seen again for a long while because there aren't many situations where the situation would allow it but once players get the idea of using terrain to their advantage, combats will tend to look much more dynamic.Another thing to make combat evocative is to run NPCs on different initiatives and have them 1. Talk to each other and 2. respond to the PCs. An NPC who taunts the barbarian about a critical fumble (house rule) and stabs him in the spleen instantly becomes more cinematic than an enemy who simply twists his blade into the barbarian's back. An NPC rogue who says "plan one on pointy hat," pointing at the wizard and then tumbles over next to him and readies an action when his companion replies "got it" and who swears at his companion for being too slow if the barbarian moves onto the other side of the wizard to prevent the flank is more evocative than the NPC who just sits there. And, if the PC wizard says "I'm going to fireball" and the NPCs say "Clear out! Don't bunch up and gak the frikkin' mage!" it's more evocative than if they stand idly by.Evocative combat is about dynamic interaction not just about the gruesomeness of your descriptions.</blockquote>

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