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<blockquote data-quote="Thasmodious" data-source="post: 4164649" data-attributes="member: 63272">I want to open my 4e campaign with a bang and not necessarily a straight forward combat, as much of the combat system has already been well previewed.&nbsp; Reading up on skill challenges got me thinking that they might be very useful tools in running chaotic. mass battles in which the main goal is not for the party to achieve certain small objectives, like eliminating a leader or tough monster, or taking out the flanking group.&nbsp; For example, the PCs may begin the game on opposite sides in a small fight between warring lords fighting for ownership of a nearby mine or something similar.&nbsp; During the battle, I want to introduce some of the villains and elements of the campaign at large, so I was thinking both sides would be attacked by a force of minor devils and cultists (the cult will feature prominently in the game as an ongoing antagonist), and the battle will quickly turn into a fight for survival.&nbsp; I was thinking running the chaotic struggle to escape as a skill challenge might work really well and it seems, with what we know of the framework so far, that it would fit.&nbsp; PCs could use their skills, abilities, and maybe even combat powers to some extent to earn successes.&nbsp; Setting it up as a ratio of successes to failures would be less than ideal, though, as what would happen if the number of failures are reached first?&nbsp; Death, by skill check?&nbsp; So I was thinking failures, maybe in groups of two, result in small scale combats - such as being confronted by three enemy minions as the PC rushes to a copse of trees for cover from airborne devils, or a PC has to hold off a spined devil for two rounds until the flow of the fight carries it away from his position - meant to only last a couple rounds.&nbsp; It wouldn't take much prep work to have a few such situations ready to go.So, what do you all think, does this sound like an interesting, fast paced way to run a larger scale, chaotic encounter like this?&nbsp; Does it sound like something that would fit with what is known of skill challenges so far?</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Thasmodious, post: 4164649, member: 63272"] I want to open my 4e campaign with a bang and not necessarily a straight forward combat, as much of the combat system has already been well previewed. Reading up on skill challenges got me thinking that they might be very useful tools in running chaotic. mass battles in which the main goal is not for the party to achieve certain small objectives, like eliminating a leader or tough monster, or taking out the flanking group. For example, the PCs may begin the game on opposite sides in a small fight between warring lords fighting for ownership of a nearby mine or something similar. During the battle, I want to introduce some of the villains and elements of the campaign at large, so I was thinking both sides would be attacked by a force of minor devils and cultists (the cult will feature prominently in the game as an ongoing antagonist), and the battle will quickly turn into a fight for survival. I was thinking running the chaotic struggle to escape as a skill challenge might work really well and it seems, with what we know of the framework so far, that it would fit. PCs could use their skills, abilities, and maybe even combat powers to some extent to earn successes. Setting it up as a ratio of successes to failures would be less than ideal, though, as what would happen if the number of failures are reached first? Death, by skill check? So I was thinking failures, maybe in groups of two, result in small scale combats - such as being confronted by three enemy minions as the PC rushes to a copse of trees for cover from airborne devils, or a PC has to hold off a spined devil for two rounds until the flow of the fight carries it away from his position - meant to only last a couple rounds. It wouldn't take much prep work to have a few such situations ready to go. So, what do you all think, does this sound like an interesting, fast paced way to run a larger scale, chaotic encounter like this? Does it sound like something that would fit with what is known of skill challenges so far? [/QUOTE]

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