tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5341638943627118769.post8185073882250777553..comments2024-03-27T22:17:20.127-04:00Comments on The Bedrock Blog: Adjusting LethalityUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5341638943627118769.post-37926741707700392562012-08-13T22:02:52.092-04:002012-08-13T22:02:52.092-04:00I agree genre is a big consideration. That was one...I agree genre is a big consideration. That was one of the reasons I mentioned dungeon crawls versus mafia (in the former you don't want characters dropping every other fight but in the latter most players seem to prefer high rates of lethality because the genre is about spilling PC and NPC blood). For me the first consideration is how gritty the genre is. If I am playing pulp then nerfing the lethality makes sense to me, if I am playing a more gritty horror setting then I want more lethal options. But I think in general I hover more on the side of lethal. <br /><br />For me the measure of a systems lethality is how likely or possible is charact death from a single attack. BEDROCK GAMEShttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14733374103521848906noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5341638943627118769.post-74902962748848463632012-08-13T21:48:43.046-04:002012-08-13T21:48:43.046-04:00Interesting! Of course, I agree that groups need ...Interesting! Of course, I agree that groups need to find their own preference. For me, the key thing for combat is that it be consequential. Lethality is one consequence, but how lethal combat ought to be depends a lot on genre, and what the game is focusing on.<br /><br />In political, intrigue or organized crime games, combat is often straight-up murder, the culmination of a process of social conflict. One roll combat is appropriate because the conflict was well underway before 'combat' started. Death is important because, usually, you're trying to prevent someone from revealing information, which they can do just as well when they're injured. With that in mind, the damage track could be: Healthy, Shaken, Comatose, Dead.<br /><br />The death itself is a big deal - it's usually illegal (or at least reputation-busting), so it's a big secret, and managing who knows about it becomes the next problem.<br /><br />You can have also games where combat is very consequential, even if death is nearly impossible. Needing to hold objectives, force the rebels out of the treasury, fighting your way to the king before he's captured, or fight bravely enough not to be considered a coward might all be mechanically or narratively meaningful enough that players are on the edge of their seats for every combat. When a loss means that everything the players currently care about comes to ruin, all the better if they're alive to taste bitter defeat!<br /><br />A pulp system might be about how cool your character looks while winning (think Indiana Jones, bumping along under the truck), or perhaps where and when you win, rather than /whether/ you win.<br /><br />Adventure path-style D&D (linear and combat-centric) inhabits a tricky spot, because combat is so commonplace and grindy that fights just can't be meaningful on their own. (It might take, for example, ten fights in a row to accomplish a plot objective, so the fights individually are more about 'how it goes down' than what's on the line.) This is underscored by the hit point approach, where basically nothing happens to you until you run out; managing the risk of death is a little like budgeting for groceries.<br /><br />So D&D combat goes the other way, trying to make combat inherently interesting rather than consequential. It's about enjoying the sand castle you're building - using your newly purchased, clever feat combos you had your eye on since level 1, and reacting to novel tactical challenges (invisibility, reach, interesting locations, etc.)<br /><br />I don't think increased lethality makes this sort of combat better - D&D characters have become so complicated over the editions that to have one die is like having the tide take your sand castle, it mostly just sucks! (Though, I have seen more than a few people express gratitude, now they have an opportunity to play a character with different tactical options.)Michael Prescotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04704966067758312492noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5341638943627118769.post-29984309514527318732012-08-06T04:05:09.497-04:002012-08-06T04:05:09.497-04:00When hammering home the real risk of loss of eithe...When hammering home the real risk of loss of either life or limb, I tend to always go for the limb first. In a system which makes this survivable, it really hones everyone's attention to how dangerous a combat can be. Every combat.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com