I rolled a 16 to attack, does that hit?
Yes, how much damage?
Seven!
Okay great, how about you, Rogue?
I rolled an 11.
Does that hit?
Nope, sorry.
Fighter, how about you?
Fighter?
FIGHTER!
Hey, wake up you idiot!
What?
What?
What’s going on?
Why, we’re in a high-stakes, fast-paced,
dramatic combat, of course.
Oh, the crap we are.
This sucks!
Yep, that’s right.
How long have we been playing?
A year now?
I agree, as much as I enjoy higher mathematics,
I would have expected our dungeon master to
figure out how to make combat a little better
by now.
Yeah, Mr. Dungeon Master, sir, I kind of think
combat in Dungeons & Dragons should be a little
bit more interesting than just rolling dice
and doing math.
Fat Cat agrees.
Do you know how hard it is to roll multiple
dice with paws?
You see?
It doesn’t work.
Look you guys, combat is combat.
You’re killing stuff.
What more could you possibly want?
I beg to differ!
Combat is one of the three pillars of D&D
and can be so much more.
Yeah, like we should be roleplaying during
combat, not just hacking things limbs off.
Well, actually, hacking things limbs off IS
roleplaying for some of us.
Indeed, there are many things you could do
as a dungeon master to make combat better
for your players.
Oh yeah, like what?
Give me an example.
Well, actually, I know someone who’s been
a dungeon master since high school who could
give you TEN examples!
Yeah, and this illustrious dungeon master
even has SEVEN cats!
I see, but are they FAT cats?
Well, um, not all of them.
Actually only four of them have achieved the
title of “chonker.”
Oi – oi -oi!
It’s time to fatten the kitties up!
Welcome to the DM Lair.
I’m Luke Hart, and I’ve been a dungeon
master since—well, um, high school.
And on this channel I give practical dungeon
master advice that you can implement at your
game table.
Today in the Lair we’re going to be discussing
ten tips for better combat in Dungeons & Dragons.
And just as a preface to this discussion,
BETTER combat doesn’t always mean FASTER
combat, though admittedly, boggy combat that
goes way too slow can definitely suck.
By the way…my Kickstarter, Into the Fey,
has now launched.
It’s an adventure module I designed to take
a party from level 1 to 5, featuring tons
of new fey creatures, fey magic items, and
even fey spells.
Did I mention that there are lots of Fey in
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It will come with a fully fleshed out starter
town, Aeredale, that serves as a hub for the
adventuring party’s forays to thwart the
Vex’Mortem Fey’s evil ambitions for the
region.
Of course there will be lots of awesome art,
and beautiful dungeon maps to accompany the
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Oh, and let’s not forget the dope Kickstarter-exclusive
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We’ll have high-quality micro-suede dice
bags, t-shirts, and even Tactical Tokens.
Now, the Kickstarter closes at the end of
September, but everyone who pledges on day
one—that’s today, September 1—will get
a bonus digital Wallpaper and Art Pack for
all the art I commission for the module.
Click the link below to lock in your pledge.
Okay, better combat in Dungeons & Dragons.
Let’s get this show on the road!
Number 1: Roleplay during combat!
Have you ever wondered what the world’s
most boring combat looks like?
Yeah, it’s something similar to the first
part of my opening skit.
Come on, folks!
Combat should be more than just rolling dice
and doing math!
Roleplaying doesn’t stop when initiative
is rolled!
Something that I routinely do in my games
is have the enemies continue to talk to the
characters during combat, often taunting them
or ridiculing them.
Or perhaps letting loose barbaric war cries.
And remember that combat is roleplaying, too.
When people say “roleplaying” what they
usually mean is all the talky-talky bits in
the game.
However, everything we do in the game is roleplaying,
including combat.
So make sure you continue to roleplay your
enemies or characters during combat.
Would that troll really rush up to the vulnerable
wizard that just tossed a firebolt at its
buddy?
Or would it rather stay away from Mr. Firehands
and attack the fighter instead?
Number 2: Describe the action and continually
set the scene during combat
Dungeon masters, what I mean here is to continue
to narrate the enemies’ actions during combat.
Don’t just say it’s a hit or a miss.
Five damage or fifty damage.
Describe the warlord swinging that sword and
having it glance off the heavily armored fighters
cauldron.
Describe the arcs of lightning running up
and down the sorcerer’s body before she
flings a bolt of lightning at that shambling
mound.
And then describe in exquisite detail how
all the monster’s injuries are HEALED.
And encourage your players to describe their
own actions in combat as well, not just call
off to hit and damage numbers.
You might consider rewarding them with inspiration
or luck points when they do a good job of
it, too.
Also, dungeon masters, from time to time,
when one player has just finished their turn,
set the scene really quick before the next
player takes their turn.
The manticore is banking above you all, about
to take another pass.
Dalinor, you’re up.
What do you do?
However, however, HOWEVER, I have a word of
caution here with all this description:
Don’t go overboard!
If you describe things in TOO MUCH detail
it will bog the game down and bring your awesome
combats to a grinding halt.
There is a thing as too much description,
so keep things short and sweet.
Number 3: Ask your players to describe their
killing blows
Lethal or non-lethal?
Oh, definitely lethal!
Would you like to describe the manner of your
enemy’s demise?
Oh, yeah!
I bring my axe down on his head, splitting
it open, and spraying brain matter all over
my face.
Then I jerk my axe free from his twitching
body.
Now, describing killing blows is similar,
of course, to narrating actions, but I’ve
found that encouraging players to narrate
the killing blow is particularly effective.
Many players won’t want to narrate every
little thing
—and for the sake of not bogging things
down, I don’t think you’d want them to—
But asking them to do it for the killing blow
works well because it corresponds to a moment
of excitement when they’ve just vanquished
a foe.
At that moment, even reserved players are
pumped and more willing to spread a little
frosting on the cake.
Oh, cake…let’s not start talking about
food in this video!
Number 4: Only give players a few seconds
on their turn to decide on their actions
I have found that the single biggest thing
that BOGS combat down is players taking FOREVER
I mean like FOREVER
To decide what they’re going to do on their
turn.
I was once in a game with a wizard who took
about fifteen minutes to decide what spell
she was going to cast.
I crap you not.
I’m not exaggerating.
And I could not believe that the dungeon master
was not doing something to move things along.
It was absolutely horrible.
There’s actually lots of stuff from that
game that was horrible.
I’ll just keep those stories for future
videos!
So, when I’m running a game and it’s a
players turn, I give them just a few seconds
to tell me what they are doing.
I mean, they should have been thinking about
it during the other players’ turns anyway,
not just when I called their name.
If the player can’t give me an action, they
dodge for that round, and do nothing.
You would not believe how effective this technique
is for getting players to make decisions faster.
And quite your game if it routinely takes
them FIFTEEN MINUTES to make up their minds
on which spell to cast.
Like, come on, as the dungeon master, I have
a whole crap ton of stuff I need to do.
Create the game world.
Create the adventures.
Create the NPCs.
Run the adventures.
Run the NPCs.
Run combat.
Buy all the books.
Buy minis.
Paint minis.
The list goes on.
You telling me you can’t at least read up
on the ten spells you know before the game
session?
Doing this also helps simulate the tension
of combat, making things more dramatic and
exciting.
When combat becomes too slow, I’ve found
it can easily become boring as well.
Number 5: Give the players one minute between
rounds to discuss tactics as a group
This is a house rule I’ve been using for
some time now, and my players generally love
it.
It gives them an opportunity to decide as
a group how they want to approach the next
round, reinforcing the feeling of teamwork
and the tactical nature of combat in D&D.
It also simulates the fact that professional
warriors—because that’s what a group of
adventurers is—would almost assuredly be
discussing and practicing their combat tactics
all the time.
While traveling.
Around the campfire.
Some light sparing in the clearing before
the day begins.
And, when you give players a minute between
rounds to discuss what they’re going to
do, it helps players to know what they’re
going to do on their individual turns.
So, you’ll get answers quicker, and rounds
will run more smoothly.
Number 6: Have enemies use special tactics,
spells, and effects to make things more dynamic
and interesting
Dungeon masters, come here.
Do you want to know what is one of the most
boring types of enemies you can plop in front
of your players?
Ones that are just big sacks of hit points
that do damage.
They swing their swords or slash with their
claws, but other than that, nothing much of
interest is going to happen.
But what about if that warlord tripped the
barbarian down to the ground and then has
his goons swarm him and hold him down in a
grapple?
And the warlord started cleaving him to pieces
with his sword?
Wouldn’t that be more interesting than just
going toe-to-toe and hacking away at each
other?
Also, feel free to give your bad guys special
abilities, magical effects, and even spells
that are not in their stat blocks.
Look, I love Dungeons & Dragons, but holy
crap some of the monsters in the book are
lame and boring.
Many of them need some spicing up!
So, uh, yeah, get to work.
Number 7: Use terrain and environmental effects
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again,
a bare room with four walls, a ceiling, and
preferably a floor—but with nothing interesting
in it is a wonderful way to kick off a lame
and boring combat.
Let there be a bed, cabinet, and mirror in
the room.
The fighter swings her sword, missing the
bad guy, but smashing the mirror.
Then the rogue scoops up shards of glass and
slings them at another bad guy.
There are jagged stalagmites spaced about
the cave and a ledge with a long drop down
to an underground river.
The enemies and the players can just the stalagmites
as cover, or even shove each other into them,
possibly dealing damage.
And that ledge?
Well do you know a faster way to get rid of
an ogre than pushing it off the ledge and
into the underground river?
I don’t.
With regards to the environment, the gas stove
in the corner is giving off a fetid stench,
forcing everyone to make Constitution saving
throws every round or spend their turn retching.
Or the screaming wind is blowing so forcefully
that snow is being whipped up all around the
party, effectively blinding them in the middle
of a wild combat.
The white half-dragons, however, can see just
fine thanks to their blindsight.
Number 8: Have bad guys flee or surrender
Look, even bad guys value their lives.
When things are going badly for them and defeat
seems certain, many villains and enemies are
going to try to flee
--which usually doesn’t work in D&D 5th
edition, of course—
Or they’re going to surrender.
Now having the bad guys run away changes the
dynamic of the battle immediately, and players
now have to consider not just how to deplete
hit point pools, but how to keep foes from
getting away.
And in my games, my players are usually terrified—and
rightly so!—that if they let a bad guy get
away, he might get reinforcements.
If the enemies surrender, well that can segue
perfectly into a questioning and interrogation
scene during which the players can glean useful
information.
Such scenes are also extremely valuable for
dungeon masters to dole out plot points and
clues that will help progress the adventure
and campaign.
By the way, if you want to learn about my
house rule for running chase scenes, there’s
a link to that down below.
Number 9: The goal of combat doesn’t have
to be murder!
Sometimes enemies need to be taken alive,
either as a requirement or because the players
need information from them.
If you build these alternative endings into
combats from time to time, things get more
interesting.
Or perhaps someone must not only be taken
alive, but not harmed at all while being apprehended.
The point here is to use your creativity and
imagination to make the parameters be a tad
bit different than just “kill everything
in sight.”
Number 10: Use Combat Music
Dude, seriously, few things set the mood like
some awesome music during the game.
When I would play in-person, I would always
have music going for the group, not just during
combat, but the entire game.
The right music during combat can really make
the battle pop.
I enjoy using tracks from movies such as Conan
the Barbarian or video games such as World
of Warcraft.
Or you can use free online music such as Tabletop
Audio, which is another personal favorite.
Don’t forget to pledge to my Kickstarter,
Into the Fey, at the link below.
Remember, it’s only open through September.
Let me know your top tip for improving combat
in D&D.
Next week the Barbarian will be explaining
the history and lore of Beholders.
But until then click here to learn 10 ways
to make combat faster in D&D.
And until next time…
Let’s play D&D!
