The Unbeatable Trick

[Stormonu]

A good example of someone attempting to use the "Unbeatable Trick" is the Crane Kick from Karate Kid. It is the "move that when done properly, cannot be countered." Yet, if you've watched to movies, every time Daniel-san tries to use the move in later movies, the bad guy counters it and Daniel-san must now use his new "Unbeatable Trick" to overcome his new foe.

If it comes up in a game, I think the response is generally the same. If PCs are too heavily relying on a certain trick, the DM usually pulls some monster or effect that makes the player's little trick work not so well.

For example, if the characters use Tenser's to float over hazardous terrain, the smart DM puts in geysers, or inserts a terrain-immune creature that tips those on the disc into the terrain. If he's really smart, he puts a mcguffin item the characters need under the terrain. Kudos if he gives the bad guys their own Tenser's to conduct a fight over the surface on the discs...

In the end, there are so many ways for the DM to gently or firmly direct the players so that "Unbeatable Tricks" aren't. A lot of times, it doesn't even have to be a permaban - one or two thwartings of a "Unbeatable Trick" is often enough to make most players back down on using it.

 

[The Shaman]

I prefer it when the DM should referee the setting; if the player comes up with a good trick, it'll work - except when it doesn't. The DM shouldn't (in this play style) take any extra pains to squash it or make it awesome or whatever.

Agreed, with the added corollary that an intelligent opponent who learns of the trick may reasonably be expected to counter said trick with a trick of his, her, or its own.

 

[utopia27]

co-evolution

In combat in general, there is a never-ending evolution of techniques. If someone's being very successful with a particular technique, word gets around. Then everyone and their brother wants to hunt the big dog and take them down a peg - demonstrate how their patented kung fu unbeatable trick is better than the existing kung fu unbeatable trick. Does that apply to beasties and monsters? well... mostly in the sense that there'll also be LOTS of wannabees and imitators that'll be trying the unbeatable trick on all the monsters they encounter. Just wait till the dragon scoffs and says, "why yes, the last three chain-weilding tripping specialist barbarians that came around must not have been the real deal. You do it better. Glad I got the practice in." <munch>

In Earthdawn, character advancement is measured by characters' fame and renown - it builds their connection to the archetypal patterns of the universe - and bends those patterns to the likeness of the characters. If it doesn't make a good story, it doesn't contribute to your fame. Slaying 378,000 wild boars will NOT get you to 40th level (though South Park teaches us that WoW likes that approach). There's a bit of a story there - but not enough to win the fame and renown of REAL heroes. As a result of this philosophy, one-shot-wonders (or the masters of the unbeatable trick) simply become boring and uninteresting, and their exploits fail to enlighten them or link them to any universal truths. READ: dock 'em XPs for an other-than-creative response to plot complications. Oh - and have NPCs start making fun of them and their one-and-done trick.

Magical one-twos/unbeatables are a bit more difficult. My favorite approach was from Mage the Ascension. The magical philosophy in the system is that magic is a violation of the proper order of the universe. If you do it and no one notices, not so bad. If you do it tricky and clever, you can get away with it. But if you're blatant about violating the rules of the universe, or you repeatedly reuse the same bit of clever trickery.... well... the universe gets annoyed with you. <munch>

The balancing point for the GM being that if players go back to the same well of "it worked before" too frequently, it uses up some quintessential element of uniqueness and adventure from the universe. That can result in adapted monsters (usually the less stupid kind), adapted competitors, reduced fame and celebrity (what, the light-the-grease-spell guy _again_?), docked XPs, and reduced 'oomph' from over-drawn-account magics. Remember also that many character abilities are essentially "magical" in character.

Keep at it - remind the players that "vivid" sells. The (imagined) audience that you're building theater for does not respond well to repitition. Remind them that "didn't THAT look great on screen" gets 'em an extra DC or couple damage dice and stuff. And same-old-same-old is a bit travel-worn and dingy - drops a couple dice of damage, or maybe a DC or three. Engage the players in building an interesting story together.

 

[LostSoul]

Agreed, with the added corollary that an intelligent opponent who learns of the trick may reasonably be expected to counter said trick with a trick of his, her, or its own.

Yes, good point. That is something I didn't understand until I started all the sandbox questions.

 

[S'mon]

If a player locates a broken rule/power I tend to allow it once, then nerf it after the session. 3e has so much broken stuff you need to do that to retain sanity. I thought 4e was much better balanced, but last session a player found a 1st level Daily in Divine Power that gave the party 5 points of Resist (all) for the entire encounter; and he could precast it like a 3e Cleric, which is overpowered at least IMC.

 

[Iron Sky]

In 3.x, I think our closest thing to an "unbeatable trick" was the Mount spell. In all the years we played 3.x (from a bit after it came out until a bit after 4e came out), I don't think anyone ever used the Mount spell to ride somewhere.

Summon it, push down the tunnel that might be trapped? Check.
Summon it in a narrow hallway to slow down the orcs that are charging after you? Check.
Summon it above an enemy so that it falls on him and flattens/pins him? Check.
Summon it and chase it towards the suspected monster ambush so they murder it and you can figure out where they are hiding? Check.
Summon it between you and the angry PC that's trying to knock you out? Check.
Summon it and push it into the inky black void behind that rune-inscribed metal door you just found deep in the dungeon? Check.

It wasn't exactly the unstoppable, "unbeatable trick" that this thread might be talking about, but damned if whoever was playing the wizard didn't always prepare Mount and try to find some crazy, clever, useful way to use it. Hilarious fun ensued.

The running joke was that every time you summoned the same horse too, so it would be teleported from munching grass in the plains of Elysium, see the party, get off one plaintive "nay" and then die horribly.

 

[Aran Thule]

I remember in a 2nd Ed adventure one of our common tactics against mobs of weak foes was to mass throw pots of burning oil.
After returning to a cave complex after returning to base to rest we were attacked by a swarm of orcs throwing burning oil at us.
We lost several people that day...

Basically if a trick gets used once or on the odd occation then fair enough, but if its constantly being used then news of it will spread.

Using Iron Sky's example, would it not be karmic if his party got ambushed by a group of kobold sorcerers that mass summoned mounts to drop on them.
Fall damage followed by a stampede, maybe over a cliff

 

[Cyronax]

The ultimate trick was quite prevalent in 3.X.

I remember numerous arguments with a few old players about some spell here or there which that they always thought should be uber, even at middling levels.

One combo I got particuarly sick of was the 'scry', 'buff,' and then 'teleport' tactic. Sure by the time Spell Compendium came out, more spells existed to help mitigate this combo, but it didn't change the underlying problems inherent with those tactics.

The 'ultimate trick' problem a little less annoying in 4e, since nearly every power is effective in multiple instances.

 

[Thornir Alekeg]

There is no such thing as the unbeatable trick. If a combat tactic works so well that it is unbeatable, the PCs won't be the only ones who figured it out. Others will soon use the same tactic (perhaps on the PCs themselves), and eventually someone will develop a counter to the tactic (perhaps the PCs themselves when they get the tactic used against them).

As for creative counters to other challenges, such as difficult terrain - so what? Ok, difficult terrain, or whatever, is no longer a challenge - under normal circumstances. Then it is up the DM to be creative in finding other ways to challenge the PCs.

 

[Piratecat]

In one 3e adventure we summoned a celestial squid to set off a glyph with harm in it. Doing so saved us, but we felt so awful looking at the miserable creature squirming on the floor near-death, we decided to never use that trick again.

I believe our comment at the time was "This is not our finest moment."