Which is better: per encounter or per day?

[gribble]

I would state that whenever the board is clear of all opposition the encounter is over.

Which is fine if:

• You're using a board
• The board is a standardised size

Lets ignore a) for now, but imagine you're playing on one of the fantastic locations maps that WotC produces, where a single encounter (defined by the board being clear of all opposition) can last a whole session or more? Or if you're using something like dwarven forge (or even just a dry erase board and markers) to map the dungeon - in this case, the more of the board that is revealed, the less frequently you get your abilities back?

Or how a campaign where you only get 1 encounter every 2-3 days (say wilderness travel). In that case, your abilities would refresh once per week, whereas in a dungeon it'd be several times a day... very inconsistent, especially in a "mixed" party where some have X/day abilities and some X/encounter.

Just seems weird to me, unless there are rules which define very precisely and consistently what an "encounter" is (as you can define a day)...

 

[Rodrigo Istalindir]

None of the above. I'd prefer special abilities that were skill-based, with DCs increasing after each use (whether the check is successful or not). Per encounter is too metagame-y for my taste, and per day is a bit too limiting.

E.g. we could turn barbarian rage into a pseudo-skill (sort of like wild empathy), and make it Con-based: the initial DC to rage would be 10, and it would increase by +4 for every use beyond the first. A 1st level barbarian with Con 20 would have rage +6, meaning that he'd have a good chance to make his first or second rage check, and could theoretically make rage checks up to DC 26. Even a mere Con 14 barbarian (total rage bonus +3) has a resonable chance to make at least one rage check per day.

Intriguing.

I do like all types. It depends on the ability. A Bow of Truestrike I wouldn't mind 1/encounter. A Rod of Metamagic 1/day would be allright. For the more powerful or oddball stuff I prefer charged items.

 

[philreed]

Which is fine if:

• You're using a board
• The board is a standardised size

I think it's important to note that the game does assume that you're using a board; almost every aspect of play (read: combat) assumes the use of a board*.

* Which is very good for getting new players into the game since it's easier to explain/teach a boardgame than it is an RPG.

 

[philreed]

Or how a campaign where you only get 1 encounter every 2-3 days (say wilderness travel). In that case, your abilities would refresh once per week, whereas in a dungeon it'd be several times a day... very inconsistent, especially in a "mixed" party where some have X/day abilities and some X/encounter.

Actually, the number of times an ability is used means nothing. What matters is whether or not an ability is available when it is needed.

 

[RangerWickett]

An idea I've had is to take the 'Magic: the Gathering' approach to powers. I don't quite know how to implement it, but you'd basically get access to better and stronger abilities as combat progressed, the same way that in magic, you start the game with low-cost spells, and eventually develop enough mana to cast powerful spells.

I think in this hypothetical system you'd still have per-day abilities, that would go along with the charged-up per-encounter ones. Maybe you'd have some powers that you can use 3/day regardless of your current 'mana,' but if you have been fighting a while and your mana is high enough, you can use them without expending one of your charges.

I think that could work for game balance, with some tweaking, but I don't know what the logic behind it would be. Maybe something like, for wizards it takes time to summon your power, and if you rush it you can burn yourself out; while for warriors, you need to get into the groove of combat and become familiar with your environment and foes before it's safe to try any off-the-wall combat maneuvers.

 

[philreed]

An idea I've had is to take the 'Magic: the Gathering' approach to powers. I don't quite know how to implement it, but you'd basically get access to better and stronger abilities as combat progressed, the same way that in magic, you start the game with low-cost spells, and eventually develop enough mana to cast powerful spells.

Take a look at tokens in Iron Heroes.

 

[el-remmen]

I'm with Gribble on this.

X/encounter seems even more arbitrary to me than X/day because an encounter is not a defined amount of time and two or more "encounters" can spill into each other.

I have house ruled any "per encounter" abilities and effects into something else.

For example, Barbarians are not fatigued after raging "for the rest of the encounter" (I scoffed at that from the very first time I read it) - but rather until they have an opportunity to rest one full minute per round they were raging.

 

[philreed]

X/encounter seems even more arbitrary to me than X/day . . .

A hypothetical situation:

Let's say a game session starts and the DM opens the game -- with a combat encounter -- at 11:50 PM (game time). After 10 rounds of combat the encounter is over. The characters then move about for 30 minutes of game time and hit another encounter. Since it's after midnight is this a new day in terms of X/day abilities or, since the adventure started at 11:50 PM, does it not become a new day until 11:51 PM -- 24 hours after the adventure first started?

 

[el-remmen]

A hypothetical situation:

Let's say a game session starts and the DM opens the game -- with a combat encounter -- at 11:50 PM (game time). After 10 rounds of combat the encounter is over. The characters then move about for 30 minutes of game time and hit another encounter. Since it's after midnight is this a new day in terms of X/day abilities or, since the adventure started at 11:50 PM, does it not become a new day until 11:51 PM -- 24 hours after the adventure first started?

I would probably rule the latter - with a chance of replenishing the ability if you get a full night's sleep before then.

 

[gribble]

Actually, the number of times an ability is used means nothing. What matters is whether or not an ability is available when it is needed.

Which is true of abilities that are only useful in combat (which are distinct from abilities - e.g.: lay on hands - which are useful both in a combat encounter and outside a combat enounter).

Which brings up another issue - what about non-combat "encounters" that don't take place on a board? E.g.: traps, social encounters, puzzles, etc? Do they count for refreshing your X/encounter abilities?