Fighting in Rushing Waters

[Mesh Hong]

....but be aware they might "attack" the water itself.

Good point about walls and elemental attacks.

Remember the adventurer motto:
"If it moves kill it!
If it isn't nailed down, steal it.
If it is nailed down, prize it free with a crowbar then steal it, and the nails"

 

[MortalPlague]

I would make all the push affects attacks vs Fort and give the river a spot (or maybe a couple spots) in the initiative order.

Already on it. I'm definitely going to give it the push attack vs fort, and it gets a spot in the initiative. If I give it a few spots in the initiative (like the Behir), I will reduce the recharge chance for the push.

Also consider what happens when PCs start using powers. What if someone puts a Flaming Sphere in the river? Or hits the river with Icy Terrain? Does a Wall spell reroute the river? I don't know what your PCs can do, but be aware they might "attack" the water itself.

Good call, I hadn't thought of that. I don't think anything the PCs have would work on the water, but then again, they have a way of turning up with surprising abilities all of a sudden! Flaming Sphere would be a wash, I think... not powerful enough to boil the water, but certainly powerful enough to stay aflame. Icy Terrain would probably freeze a good chunk of the river, making it no longer subject to the push effects and the like. I would definitely let a wall reroute the river, so long as it were watertight...

 

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

Have you considered giving the Water it's own initiative (maybe the simpest option would be at the start or the end of the round). Then everyone moves at the exact same time, and the goal is to avoid getting slid into an area you don't want to end in, and bumping into each other. I would probably still combine it with a Fortitude Attack, a hit results in sliding 2 squares, a miss in sliding 1 square. Athletics/Acrobatics might be used to negate the attack, reduce (or increase, with control?) the distance by 1 square, or give a bonus to your Fortitude defense.

 

[Storminator]

Have you considered giving the Water it's own initiative (maybe the simpest option would be at the start or the end of the round). Then everyone moves at the exact same time, and the goal is to avoid getting slid into an area you don't want to end in, and bumping into each other. I would probably still combine it with a Fortitude Attack, a hit results in sliding 2 squares, a miss in sliding 1 square. Athletics/Acrobatics might be used to negate the attack, reduce (or increase, with control?) the distance by 1 square, or give a bonus to your Fortitude defense.

Scooped.

PS

 

[MortalPlague]

I would probably still combine it with a Fortitude Attack, a hit results in sliding 2 squares, a miss in sliding 1 square.

I've got a fort attack in there once per round, but I hadn't considered an effect on miss. I think I'm going to use that... That way even the toughest fighter will get pushed a little.

 

[the Jester]

The two things I would recommend, based on a somewhat similar "logs on the water" encounter I ran that didn't go as well as I had hoped, are:

1. No Acrobatics checks to remain standing. Instead, give the option of an Acrobatics check to move upstream at full speed, with a failed check ending your move action.

2. Automatic slide at start of your turn. It's more interesting when opponents slide in and out of reach of each other, and making it an attack is going to end up adding a lot of die rolling (and thus drag) to the combat.

 

[Armadillo]

Nice idea, but the water needs to be deeper. Otherwise, it's just a trip hazard.