D&D 5E How do you handle Random Encounters?
- Thread starter MostlyDm
- Start date
[MENTION=20323]Quickleaf[/MENTION] that is some awesome content, man. Very cool.
I vaguely remember reading about the escalating die method before but I don't think I've ever used it. That's going to change, though. You put it to such elegant use, it seems like a great tool.
Thanks for your contribution! That goes for all of you, of course. It's always neat to read how many wildly different approaches people take.
I vaguely remember reading about the escalating die method before but I don't think I've ever used it. That's going to change, though. You put it to such elegant use, it seems like a great tool.
Thanks for your contribution! That goes for all of you, of course. It's always neat to read how many wildly different approaches people take.
robus
Lowcountry Low Roller
I've stopped using them for travel and now I devise some interesting set of encounters that will give the party an adventuring day or two during the journey.
But when inside a dungeon I still use them to make it a living environment (and the challenge is interesting because they're rarely fully rested)
But when inside a dungeon I still use them to make it a living environment (and the challenge is interesting because they're rarely fully rested)
Flamestrike
Legend
I'll have a few random encounters statted up before the session starts.
If the group rests too often, or everything is getting a bit boring, ill roll a dice behind the screen against an arbitrary DC that I make up on the spot.
If I roll that number or higher they get an encounter that makes sense.
Sometimes I ignore the roll and just throw an encounter at them (depending on my read of the situation, how well rested they and if i feel theyre need of some resource depletion, it's been a quiet session, or theyre bickering amongst each other or whatever).
Sometimes I ignore the roll and they don't get one (It's the roll itself that speeds them up - and\or puts the fear of God into them that an encounter might be coming).
A good GM knows that the best random encounters arent really random.
If the group rests too often, or everything is getting a bit boring, ill roll a dice behind the screen against an arbitrary DC that I make up on the spot.
If I roll that number or higher they get an encounter that makes sense.
Sometimes I ignore the roll and just throw an encounter at them (depending on my read of the situation, how well rested they and if i feel theyre need of some resource depletion, it's been a quiet session, or theyre bickering amongst each other or whatever).
Sometimes I ignore the roll and they don't get one (It's the roll itself that speeds them up - and\or puts the fear of God into them that an encounter might be coming).
A good GM knows that the best random encounters arent really random.
The Crimson Binome
Hero
In the games I run, random encounters serve two important game functions:
1) They eat resources, thereby bringing the party closer to death. This also gives the players a chance to feel smart, by minimizing their resource expenditure, with the knowledge that spending too much now may mean the difference between life and death later on.
2) They give experience, thereby bringing the party closer to the next level. This gives the players positive feedback, making sure that they are always improving, even if they can't figure out a particular puzzle or aren't sure what they want to do next. No matter what else happens, even if you never find that magical sword you were looking for, you're still getting something out of all this.
Having played in games where resource-management wasn't a thing (because you could full-heal overnight, and were unlikely to face more than two encounters in a day), and where experience wasn't a thing (because the DM was running from a book, and giving levels at designated chapter breaks or however those work), random encounters felt like a big waste of time. They didn't consume any meaningful resources, and they didn't give experience or useful loot, so the only interesting outcome - the only outcome that changed the status quo in any way - was the miniscule chance that the party could die. It was the worst.
1) They eat resources, thereby bringing the party closer to death. This also gives the players a chance to feel smart, by minimizing their resource expenditure, with the knowledge that spending too much now may mean the difference between life and death later on.
2) They give experience, thereby bringing the party closer to the next level. This gives the players positive feedback, making sure that they are always improving, even if they can't figure out a particular puzzle or aren't sure what they want to do next. No matter what else happens, even if you never find that magical sword you were looking for, you're still getting something out of all this.
Having played in games where resource-management wasn't a thing (because you could full-heal overnight, and were unlikely to face more than two encounters in a day), and where experience wasn't a thing (because the DM was running from a book, and giving levels at designated chapter breaks or however those work), random encounters felt like a big waste of time. They didn't consume any meaningful resources, and they didn't give experience or useful loot, so the only interesting outcome - the only outcome that changed the status quo in any way - was the miniscule chance that the party could die. It was the worst.
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