D&D 5E Keep on the Borderlands - OOC (Filled UP)

[EarlyBird]

I will leave that up to the players - as everyone plays differently. It is meta so it should be how you like to play.

I do not mind everyone being engrossed in both.

 

[Li Shenron]

Group 1:

Tassarion to finish the round.

Already 24 dmg to the thing and it may be prone to boot.

Everyone:

As these were to be fun test campaigns a question for all out there.

Given an average CR (lvl equal to party STR), are one big creature encounters more challenging than a bunch of smaller monsters to you as a player. I know there are a bunch of factors in how you would play it, but I thinking overall, have you found overwhelming numbers more or less of a challenge than say the big bady with a bunch of attacks.

This encounter could have easily been a group of harpies, and I wonder now if that wouldn't have been a bit more of a challenge, especially with the day about to end and the group at full strength.

My personal opinion :

An encounter with lots of small monsters can benefit from doing lots of attacks (action economy) BUT it makes a HUGE difference whether they concentrate their attacks on a single PC or spread them around.

A single powerful monster usually always focus on a single target (unless you make it change each round).

Tactically, it is always convenient to focus fire. But from a gaming point of view, it is very risky for the DM because losing a PC obviously doesn't have the same weight on the game as losing a monster. This is metagaming territory, but usually I cringe when I hear DMs claiming that the realism of war should take precedence, and I wonder if they've ever thought how action movies would last 5 minutes if they were realistic.

Because of that, I am generally more worried when using a single big monster because I know that it can kill a PC just by winning initiative, even if in the course of the whole encounter it might have a lesser damaging impact on the whole PC party. But as a DM I would MUCH prefer to have an encounter that ends with all PCs down to few HP but still alive, than having one dead PC and all the others unscathed!

As a player, I would fear the focused-fired monster army even more, but as a DM I always have control over that.

 

[jonathonhawke]

(Group 2) If someone else moves into melee with the Swamp Giant, I can get Advantage on attacks from my Pack Tactics feature.

 

[EarlyBird]

Group 1: Got it right this time.

I'm ready to advance, does everyone wish to go find the Bee-Man or go find the lumber jacks/land shark??

 

[jmucchiello]

I didn't remember there were lumberjacks (as they aren't on the map). Which direction are they in relation to the bee man?

 

[EarlyBird]

Unknown to the party as their camp moves - I think the group was told to follow the tree line.

 

[KahlessNestor]

Yeah, I'm not reading the other group's IC, mostly due to time and RP reasons (my character wouldn't know what happened). As for solo vs. mobs, keep lair actions in mind if you want a truly solo boss, too.

I'm going out of town for my grandfather's funeral for the rest of the week, so won't get to post again. I will be back next week to play catch up.

 

[EarlyBird]

My condolences to you and your family. We will be here when you return.

 

[KahlessNestor]

Thank you. I'm back and slowly catching up in all my games.

 

[EarlyBird]

WB, will be advancing this soon-ish, going to be busy at work do to the weather. Treated lumber likes nice dry heat not the soggy days we are about to get.

 

[Radaceus]

is that a euphemism about us getting old?

 

[EarlyBird]

Haha, not getting there, I feel I already am.

 

[TallIan]

I'm going to be away on vacation for the next 11 days with very limited access to emails. So don't wait for me to post and have my character do whatever goes with the group.

 

[JustinCase]

Apologies for my extended absence. My daughter was born 2 weeks ago, and I severely underestimated the time she would occupy. I'll get back into this game ASAP!

 

[jonathonhawke]

OOC: True, but it seems chases area bit to involved for pbp. So we will just go back to a regular combat.

I think it was more that the Giant lacked a decent head start, and that I had picked a perfect form for chasing it down. (I picked the dire wolf for speed, to reach the scene quickly.)

 

[EarlyBird]

Also true, but again you didn't see where the giant went when it first ran off. Probably the same effect in a city with a crowd of people about and numerous side alleys to go down.

So to keep a true account of where everyone is (as it seems you wished to do here), is what is to much for pbp. Especially when you could move a few feet - make a perception check - and then go off in a different direction - and maybe change directions again before your Dash movement was used up. Too much for a simple chase and using the rolls/actions to narrate what happens.

 

[Radaceus]

I was fine with the chase, i get it, because i use the same situation in my 5E games, and it went similarly the first time i used a chase scene, it was very foreign to my players who play in grid format with miniatures.

there is the argument that the creatures reduced speed allowed us to catch up, there is also the argument for Plant Growth 'becoming thick and overgrown' causing visibility issues ( i did not point this out before because it comes down to DM ruling, but had it been me i would have said visibility was heavily obscured at +50', and partially obscured at 20' ), the party were able to move through the Plant Growth, but it still obstructs their visibility ( the pants move around them allowing the normal speed). And the fact that chase scenes assume some juke and jive going on (DC contest) allowing the chased to elude the pursuer, this concept took my grid and miniature gang a few attempts to accept. I played it out in melee format the first time, because our monk was crying foul ('no way it can evade me with my step of wind!'). and he failed a Dice contest, the prey elude him as he overshot /took a wrong turn/had to double back...etc etc.

 

[EarlyBird]

Right I think chase should be thought of more as a skill challenge but when they start using combat actions (Dash) and allowing spellcasting it does get a bit confusing as to what a chase really is (Combat or Non). Maybe it needs more than a page or two of explanation haha.

In pbp there are to many other factors even if you treat it as a non combat - complications (that are suppose to be rolled for the next character in line) is just one thing. And it not having a good way to tell when it was over. Without a map who knows if the pursers really can catch up. So I figure like a skill challenge you get thee success before three failures and you did it.

 

[Radaceus]

ah. the complications do force us as players to strictly adhere to turn order...
something I notice to be elusive itself...it's as if initiative order is it's own chase scene around here

 

[EarlyBird]

Group 2: About to advance the round just need to make a few saves and answer a few questions.

10 dmg force
11 dmg necrotic
12 dmg bite
STR save DC:13 [roll0]
DEX save DC:?? [roll1]
9 dmg force
7 or 4 fire dmg

Sorry about the resistance I thought it was 1 minute no concentration - will change to hex

And the giant did take dmg and Everan will notice it isn't wounded when he reaches it - I'll put that in the IC

Thanks for the HP update on Ungar - I normally quote the last cpmbat post to move it up. Bt can't see the dmg rolls from before.