D&D General War! What is it Good For (in your campaigns)?

[Baldurs_Underdark]

You might want to consider having the right type of general, using a Pit Fiend that will literally dismember the first PC that disrespect him would do wonders. PCs are heroes of their story for sure, but there are more powerful agencies than them in any world...

Ha! You actually have a very good point!
I remember once using a death knight to the same effect. Wasn't in an army, but I did manage to herd that bunch of cats that I call my players/PCs in a particular direction. Of course, that instantly made the death knight their #1 enemy, but for a little while they listened.

 

[Lyxen]

Ha! You actually have a very good point!
I remember once using a death knight to the same effect. Wasn't in an army, but I did manage to herd that bunch of cats that I call my players/PCs in a particular direction. Of course, that instantly made the death knight their #1 enemy, but for a little while they listened.

That's great, Pit Fiends and Death Knights welcome that hate, they feed on it...

 

[Lanefan]

Undeniably true. But not with the players I know.
The only time my players would listen to a general is after one of them successfully cast Dominate Person on the general and mad him issue orders that they'd want to follow... and even then they would bicker about it and paint flowers on the general's face, just to make a statement.

I think your players went to the same Player Training School that mine did.

 

[Shadowdweller00]

The presence and function of war in games I run varies quite a bit. Most often it's either a set of background obstacles or a story arc - something that takes a few sessions before the plot moves onward. That said, it's pretty easy to adapt warfare into a set of concrete encounters and/or challenges for the PCs. I really don't care very much for mass combat rules....they seem pretty fiddly and ultimately arbitrary. I'd rather highlight the PCs' collective agency in deciding the course of a battle. So when war is the focus of a campaign or story arc I favor writing up a sort of battle plan, with "lynchpin" challenges that the PCs can find and tackle that will decide the course of said battle. For example:

The town of Aspengrove lies along a shallow promontory inside a bend of the Grey River. The mysterious warlord Bloodletter has been ravaging the area with his goblinoid army, though where specifically his army is and what their battle plans are is unknown. Unbeknownst to most, he is going to attack Aspengrove in four days time so as to secure a ford across the river. A day and a half's travel from Aspengrove lies the dwarven stronghold of Stonegirth, where allies might conceivably be found to assist in the battle. The PCs have the opportunity to scout out Bloodletter's army, intercept communications, or interrogate a goblinoid officer to learn where Bloodletter is going to attack. If they do not, Bloodletter's army crosses the Grey River south of town (via rafts) on the fourth night, then proceeds to attack the town. The Grey River isn't very wide but it's pretty fast. PCs could delay the fight by a day or two by noticing the crossing and destroying enough rafts. Once battle starts (presuming the PCs are still around the area for whatever reason) there are 3-4 lynchpin challenges that can save Aspengrove. One can allow the PCs to notice these challnges on their own initiative (potentially after a skill check), or introduce them in an episodic manner.

Challenge 1 - If Bloodletter is found and killed, his army will disintegrate. Bloodletter is a fair bit stronger than the PCs and surrounded by powerful bodyguards, but if the PCs can think of a clever way to draw him out and assassinate him then they win. Otherwise, the PCs will need to solve the other 3 challenges.

Challenge 2 - The goblin army vastly outnumbers the townsfolk. They will eventually outflank and slaughter the defenders if something isn't done. Most of the rank-and-file goblins would really prefer not to fight, but are kept in line out of fear of the army's officers. If a few officers are killed by the PCs, then enough goblins will run away to prevent outflanking. Alternately, some clever fortification ideas might solve this problem.

Challenge 3 - The town of Aspengrove is surround by.... a grove of aspen trees... that protects the townsfolk somewhat from arrows. At some point during the battle, the goblins will set the grove on fire with incendiary concoctions. If the grove is allowed to burn, the towns' defenders will be decimated by arrow fire. If the fires can be controlled, this will not happen.

Challenge 4 - Bloodletter has a cadre of goblin shamans that serve as artillery, using dark magic against the town from across the river. The shamans are pretty weak in combat (particular, when distracted by using their spells against the town) but are protected by a small contingent of burly hobgoblins with maybe a troll, or a couple ogres thrown in for good measure. If the bodyguard is slain, the shamans can be killed off before they cause too much damage.

 

[David Howery]

I can remember going through three editions of the mass combat rules... first was the old 'Swords and Spells' supplement... tried solo gaming out a battle with it and found it lackluster and not so great. Then Battlesystem 1E came out... it was better, but sooooo much bookkeeping involved. Battlesystem 2E was by far the best, and was the only one I ever used in a campaign....

 

[Lyxen]

I can remember going through three editions of the mass combat rules... first was the old 'Swords and Spells' supplement... tried solo gaming out a battle with it and found it lackluster and not so great. Then Battlesystem 1E came out... it was better, but sooooo much bookkeeping involved. Battlesystem 2E was by far the best, and was the only one I ever used in a campaign....

None of these were ever convincing to me. As mentioned, the only one that I found really in line with the spirit of the game is the BECMI (Companion, actually) War Machine, which I have updated for every single edition of the game since then, except 4e.

 

[Redwizard007]

Good God, son!

War is easy to throw into a game, but takes a lot of work to do well. Personally, I like to keep PCs out of the chain of command. As others have shared, players sometimes balk at taking orders. This is an escape for many of them, after all. Keeping that in mind, I usually use the war as scenery, motivation, and a seemingly unstoppable force.

My PCs might quest to find some McGuffin that could end the war. A legitimate heir to the throne of a country wracked by civil war, the tomb of Gith to turn the tables on a Githyanki invasion, the Aritifact of War Ending (trademark pending,) something like that. In these scenarios, the campaign plays out with typical research, exploration and dungeon diving. It feels like every other generic campaign.

If the PCs have relationships with powerful people things might play out differently. Old quest-givers may return to their valued outside-the-box contacts when they need high-value targets removed from the battlefield, or outright assassinated. The PCs might be tasked with delivering documents to or from the front, between garrisons, or even direct communication between waring parties. They could act as spies or counterspies. They may even assume command of units or fortifications for short periods, but never for major battles.

Sometimes my players won't even bite at the war storyline, but try to carve out a niche for themselves in the chaos. This can be a lot of fun, especially for morally questionable PCs. I get to describe the effects the war has on every aspect of the campaign world, often taking inspiration from the players' questions. They try to ally with, betray, tripple cross, and play every major force against one another for their own personal gain. Sometimes they dungeon dive for loot or magic, but most of the energy is spent on social maneuvering and clandestine eliminations.

PCs running armies... this isn't really the system I'd use for that, but it has happened.

 

[Lanefan]

In one memorable D&D war scenario I was in as a player, the PCs were the ones who got an army together to drive out some trying-to-become-entrenched invaders. At the first small town we had a few hundred, plus ourselves, and won. Village by village we went, gathering recruits along the way, until we'd ended up with an army of a few thousand that we threw into pitched battle against the invaders' regional stronghold (another town). Depending on class the PCs were either ground-force leaders, scouts, artillery, or assigned to deal with any counterparts the enemy might have.

We really only played out the first battle and the last one, the rest were done by basic die rolls, but for the played-out battles we pretty much made up the rules on the fly. It worked, though, and was lots of fun.

 

[zarionofarabel]

How have wars been important in your games?

Often as a central aspect of the events happening in the world the PCs live in. War is devastating. Destruction of infrastructure and massive loss of life can ruin whole societies. It can take generations to recover from such conflicts.

So how have you used wars in your campaigns?

As a central conflict. As background events. As something happening in a far away land that has an effect on the society the PCs inhabitant.

Did the characters participate?

At times, yes. If the war was taking place within the society the PCs inhabit they were intimately involved.

Was it happening during adventures?

It was the adventure, or the adventure was happening because of the war.

What worked?

PCs in leadership positions being responsible for conducting the war effort. PCs working as scouts, spies, or diplomats. PCs assisting those affected by the war. PCs helping the recovery efforts after the war is over.

What didn't?

Mass combat rules. Never had a group that wanted to stop roleplaying their PCs and start playing a tactical wargame instead.

 

[David Howery]

None of these were ever convincing to me. As mentioned, the only one that I found really in line with the spirit of the game is the BECMI (Companion, actually) War Machine, which I have updated for every single edition of the game since then, except 4e.

never did see that one. The Battlesystem 2E one wasn't too bad, it kept everything flowing pretty smoothly (unlike the 1E version).
As a player, I can only remember being in one mass battle scenario, our group was stuck in a city under siege. We never did lead any troops, but operated as commandos on the edges. From what I remember, the city was run by a bunch of warlords with no 'one guy in charge', so there were a lot of power struggle shenanigans going on, in spite of the siege, and one of the warlords was actively conniving with the besiegers...