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Message: <blockquote data-quote="The Monster" data-source="post: 5659249" data-attributes="member: 69516">First, decide what your focus really is: if it's just about what the PCs are going to do, then you really are better off just narrating/handwaving the rest of the battle. SPend your time creating encounter maps and NPCs, and preparing fllavor text to describe the battlle around them.  This is pretty much how it's done on TV/movies, where anything that isn't focused on the stars is for show and/or plot device.  If you want to have the players thinking and dealing with the flow of battle, that's a different thing. I'm pondering t his kind of thing myself, since I'm running a Big War campaign. The best idea I've had so far is to use a Risk-style map like Siberys describes, with the battlefield marked off in general areas. Then each area is a kind of skill challenge, with various TNs depending on how well-defended, the terrain, quality of troops, and so forth. The NPC allies of the PCs have certain default skill adds, varying by race, training, experience, etc. If the PCs do not intervene, the NPCs will simply make skill checks against the area TN and succeed or fail according to normal skill-challenge procedure. What the players do then is decide what they're going to help with. When they're in an area, they can swap in their skill for the round; doing so costs a surge. This is kind of a generalized leadership/expertise thing, where the PC is dashing about helping the troops out, inspiring them, or lending their (presumably superior) skills to influence the battle. Note that there's no requirement they all go the same place! They can go different places, depending on what skills are needed in what locations.  If they decide to do a Heroic Spearhead effort, then they all get together and go after a particular target - the bad guys' HQ, a particular item or defended site, or to stop an enemy attack which is succeeding too well or from a surprise direction. Then you get out the regular encounter map and revert to round and roll initiative. If they do this, however, all the NPCs are left to fend for themselves, which may mean that much of the battle goes poorly for the good guys.  That's my thought in brief - I haven't worked out details, but at first glance I think it could work, providing the opportunity to make strategic and tactical decisions without getting too bogged down in the kind of wargame that leaves many roleplayers cold. Just thought I'd offer it as an alternative approach.</blockquote>

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