No combat in a whole session

[berdoingg]

Last week we went a whole night without any combat at all. I don't think we've done that more than a couple of times in 15 years of play (while playing D&D anyway). Is this as rare an occurance for you as for us?

 

[Crothian]

It is rare, but not that rare. I think it might happen as often as once per two months for us. It really depends on what the players do. I have one player that things if we have entered combat she has already failed, and I have other players that think the session is a near bust without some good butt kicking.

 

[Len]

We did that once in a Neverwinter Nights campaign. We were on a ship and we spent the session arguing about a contentious event from the week before, and telling tall tales. I think one player was bored but the rest of us had a great time.

 

[Tuzenbach]

In my most recent games, combat only was going-on about 60% of the time. So, yes, there would be totally combat-less sessions. Those were with me as a player, though.........

As DM, I'd often put together ridiculous riddle/trap combos designed to confound players. The nature of the challenge was such that, if they didn't solve the puzzle correctly, death would ensue. Thus, it wasn't out of the ordinary for no combat at all to take place in an 8-hour span, just a lot of puzzle/riddle/trap deciphering/avoiding/removing.

 

[DungeonmasterCal]

It used to happen a lot more than it does now. I had a group that usually consisted of 3 players (with occasional "guest appearances" by other friends as time permitted), and we'd have 4 hour sessions with no combat whatsoever.

 

[Thanee]

Depends on the campaign. But it ranges from fairly rare to fairly common. In our Stargate campaign, for example, we have maybe a combat every dozen or so sessions.

Bye
Thanee

 

[Shieldhaven]

My session last Tuesday (unexpectedly) had no combat, though the characters ended the session laying in ambush for another group of adventurers. The PCs were in a predominantly hobgoblin town, and knew that they'd get rolled if they tried to jump any of the various people they wanted to spike. It was awfully close, though.

Anyway, it was a no-combat session (not the first of that sort that I've run) and it was just about the most enthusiastic player response I've gotten from this campaign. I need to figure out how to do that more often.

 

[TroyXavier]

In the current campaign I'm playing in(Birthright), it's common if we don't have a fight at all in a session.

 

[dren]

No, not at all.

In a civilized area, it might be more trouble to them if they do start something, especially if the characters are lawful and noble and avoid the troublesome areas during the evening.

 

[el-remmen]

Now that the campaign is winding up and the PCs are taking care of loose ends, each session has had combat. .

But for a while there, two of every five sessions had no combat. . and we went a three session run with the PCs purposefully avoiding every encounter they could while traveling through the wilderness.