Hi Gang, I could use some suggestions on making a specific combat scene interesting.
I’m not referring to armies engaged on a battlefield, but I’m thinking about a scene involving a band of assailants large enough to present a problem to the party and a tavern full of capable people.
If an explanation of the scene would help, the party is currently in a coastal town that’s dealing with some problems involving a mysterious fog that’s enveloped the nearby bay. Ships can’t get in or out of the harbor and it’s starting to take its toll on the city. The party is aware of this situation and has been told by the locals that they blame a religious order from a neighboring continent that erected a temple on an offshore island after the city refused to sell them land. This religious order (who just so happens to be the same faith as the party cleric) has discovered something on the island they shouldn’t have (cavern dungeon, sleeping sea beast/god thing, place of power) and it’s began corrupting them.
So with all that said, I was thinking that a band of these corrupted fish priests are going attack the tavern/dock area next session and I’m not sure how to go about prepping for something like that in a way that will insure the assault is fun and spicy. I’ve got a lot of folks in this tavern with plenty of plot threads that haven’t even had a chance to be revealed yet, so I’d rather avoid killing them off, but I want to make the danger feel real to the players.
As a side note, I’m about 3 months into a Dungeon World campaign and it’s been dragging ass a bit lately, so I’m wanting to right the ship and ramp things up. We’ve been spending a lot of time doing social stuff and taking our time exploring the world and the lore and the character backgrounds, but I’m starting to realize that this isn’t an approach that DW excels at, so I need to shift gears before I lose my players.
I definitely think you should set stuff on fire! Collapse part of the tavern. Maybe have your “fish priests” use tactics that aim to put their foes in the water where they have an advantage.
I definitely think you should set stuff on fire! Collapse part of the tavern. Maybe have your “fish priests” use tactics that aim to put their foes in the water where they have an advantage.
Thanks for the suggestions, Logan Howard!
After typing that out and chatting with a friend on the situation, I had the idea to make the Fish Priest’s motivations to be more about them abducting townsfolk to bring back to the island and less about them attempting to destroy/kill. The Fish Priests have these glands in their throats/necks that allow them to expectorate this sort of thick, glowing, mucous that is incredibly sticky, water resistant, and will act nicely as a binding agent to keep their captives from using their hands. I also had the idea that they have these sort of jellyfish inspired membrane sacks that they’ll place over the heads of their captives. To the players, it’ll appear that they’re being suffocated, but in reality it’s the opposite. These sacks will allow the captives to breath in a sort of biological diver’s bell while they’re being dragged back to the island.
It’s coming together!
Thanks for the suggestions, Logan Howard!
After typing that out and chatting with a friend on the situation, I had the idea to make the Fish Priest’s motivations to be more about them abducting townsfolk to bring back to the island and less about them attempting to destroy/kill. The Fish Priests have these glands in their throats/necks that allow them to expectorate this sort of thick, glowing, mucous that is incredibly sticky, water resistant, and will act nicely as a binding agent to keep their captives from using their hands. I also had the idea that they have these sort of jellyfish inspired membrane sacks that they’ll place over the heads of their captives. To the players, it’ll appear that they’re being suffocated, but in reality it’s the opposite. These sacks will allow the captives to breath in a sort of biological diver’s bell while they’re being dragged back to the island.
It’s coming together!
The tavern is built over water. Fish fellows pull out supports, spilling people into the drink. Group can be separated easily. Heavy armor and weapons could be dangerous, limited ranges, sudden darkness. Lost equipment, NPCs struggling in the dark.
The tavern is built over water. Fish fellows pull out supports, spilling people into the drink. Group can be separated easily. Heavy armor and weapons could be dangerous, limited ranges, sudden darkness. Lost equipment, NPCs struggling in the dark.
John Alexander Oh man, I love that idea, but the party is already in the tavern and there’s no way I could get away with retconning some of the details I already revealed about the place to make that work. I should’ve come here first!
In addition to the jellyfish-like diver bells and the mucous shackles, I’m also thinking that many of these creatures will be wearing these sort of belts made of kelp and seaweed. Dangling from the belts will be these clusters of what look like soft ball-sized tadpole sacks. Beneath the veiny surface membrane a dim glow can be seen within each of the sacks and they’re all bound to these belts via a sort of umbilical root. The Fish Priests will toss them like molotovs and when they burst against a surface they combust into this blinding green flame.
Thanks again for the idea of having them use fire, Logan Howard. I didn’t want them to use normal flame, but I think this works nicely.
John Alexander Oh man, I love that idea, but the party is already in the tavern and there’s no way I could get away with retconning some of the details I already revealed about the place to make that work. I should’ve come here first!
In addition to the jellyfish-like diver bells and the mucous shackles, I’m also thinking that many of these creatures will be wearing these sort of belts made of kelp and seaweed. Dangling from the belts will be these clusters of what look like soft ball-sized tadpole sacks. Beneath the veiny surface membrane a dim glow can be seen within each of the sacks and they’re all bound to these belts via a sort of umbilical root. The Fish Priests will toss them like molotovs and when they burst against a surface they combust into this blinding green flame.
Thanks again for the idea of having them use fire, Logan Howard. I didn’t want them to use normal flame, but I think this works nicely.
I worked on this move several weeks ago and had the opportunity to use it last evening, and it worked well for us. Here is the text:
have your players throw a d6 into the middle of the table, starting with a number facing up. We will call this d6 the “battle die.” The higher the number, the more advantaged the players are, and the closer they are to winning the conflict at the outset. Then, have the players describe what they are doing, engaging the normal DW moves. Anytime that will trigger a move in which the players engage with the large scale conflict, layer this custom move over the top of the move they are doing.
When you make a move that may help in the large scale conflict, in addition to an 10+ results, describe how the battle is going in your favor and advance the battle die by one. On a 6-, you may swap a result from your d6 for the battle die if it will boost your result to 7-9. If you do so, the GM will describe how something in the battle is going against your forces.
When the GM makes a hard move conflicting with the player’s large scale conflict, the GM may additionally reduce the battle die by one.
If the battle die would ever be forced to exceed 6, your forces have won! Describe how your forces have won the day. If the battle die would ever be reduced below 1, you have failed, the GM will describe what this day has cost you and your forces.
If you feel like this move and might use it but have a question about it, feel free to shoot me a message.
I worked on this move several weeks ago and had the opportunity to use it last evening, and it worked well for us. Here is the text:
have your players throw a d6 into the middle of the table, starting with a number facing up. We will call this d6 the “battle die.” The higher the number, the more advantaged the players are, and the closer they are to winning the conflict at the outset. Then, have the players describe what they are doing, engaging the normal DW moves. Anytime that will trigger a move in which the players engage with the large scale conflict, layer this custom move over the top of the move they are doing.
When you make a move that may help in the large scale conflict, in addition to an 10+ results, describe how the battle is going in your favor and advance the battle die by one. On a 6-, you may swap a result from your d6 for the battle die if it will boost your result to 7-9. If you do so, the GM will describe how something in the battle is going against your forces.
When the GM makes a hard move conflicting with the player’s large scale conflict, the GM may additionally reduce the battle die by one.
If the battle die would ever be forced to exceed 6, your forces have won! Describe how your forces have won the day. If the battle die would ever be reduced below 1, you have failed, the GM will describe what this day has cost you and your forces.
If you feel like this move and might use it but have a question about it, feel free to shoot me a message.
Great move David LaFreniere! Thanks for sharing…
Great move David LaFreniere! Thanks for sharing…
David LaFreniere Thanks David, will do!
David LaFreniere Thanks David, will do!
My mind immediately went to the restaurant fight scene from CTHD. Smash the place up, and make sure there are fun things to throw opponents into, through, over and under. Wreck the place, and then during the rebuilding you can reveal more about the NPCs who are also connected to the place. youtube.com – Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon – Restaurant Fight (HD 1080p)
My mind immediately went to the restaurant fight scene from CTHD. Smash the place up, and make sure there are fun things to throw opponents into, through, over and under. Wreck the place, and then during the rebuilding you can reveal more about the NPCs who are also connected to the place. youtube.com – Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon – Restaurant Fight (HD 1080p)
Doug Hagler Thanks for the visual reference, Doug. I haven’t seen this since it first came out and never would’ve thought to pull from it for inspiration.
Doug Hagler Thanks for the visual reference, Doug. I haven’t seen this since it first came out and never would’ve thought to pull from it for inspiration.
Don’t you hate posting, only to find there were posts that google forgot to show you before your post?
I like the jellyfish hoods and fishy fire grenades. Nice touches. Also your move sounds like it would be fun in play David LaFreniere.
Also, the fact things might have been built over water isn’t always obvious. Most visitors to San Francisco or most coastal cities don’t realize how much of the city is built on reclaimed land.
Don’t you hate posting, only to find there were posts that google forgot to show you before your post?
I like the jellyfish hoods and fishy fire grenades. Nice touches. Also your move sounds like it would be fun in play David LaFreniere.
Also, the fact things might have been built over water isn’t always obvious. Most visitors to San Francisco or most coastal cities don’t realize how much of the city is built on reclaimed land.
John Alexander Yeah, I have described the nearby Docks being VERY nearby, so I might be able to pull it off. It’s certainly a neat thing worth considering. The session is planned for tomorrow, so I’ll give it some thought between now and then and report back if I end up using it. Either way, thanks for the suggestion!
John Alexander Yeah, I have described the nearby Docks being VERY nearby, so I might be able to pull it off. It’s certainly a neat thing worth considering. The session is planned for tomorrow, so I’ll give it some thought between now and then and report back if I end up using it. Either way, thanks for the suggestion!
What would you do with a [mob of] drunken sailors?
What would you do with a [mob of] drunken sailors?
Brandon Fincher if you can’t bring the tavern to the water as mentioned above, bring the water to the tavern. I’m sure your fish people can find some way to get a massive wave to come into town, bringing crashing boats and other debris and detritus with it. That should make for some interesting manuevering.
Brandon Fincher if you can’t bring the tavern to the water as mentioned above, bring the water to the tavern. I’m sure your fish people can find some way to get a massive wave to come into town, bringing crashing boats and other debris and detritus with it. That should make for some interesting manuevering.
[x-posting like a mofo, to give and get feedback]
Here’s a two-part move inspired by David’s that I’m trying to tweak. It’s focused on PC interaction with key events during a citadel siege – but could be any mass combat. Maybe someone can yoink pieces and find it useful? Myself, I am struggling to think about how to set up the “siege dice”:
CITADEL UNDER SIEGE
Part I
When the Citadel is under siege and you accept responsibility for its defense, narrate the setup of a personal challenge in detail, and roll +STAT where STAT represents an appropriate Core Attribute that has not been used in a previous challenge.
• on a 10+, the bards sing of your deeds – narrate the outcome of the challenge, describe the boon you receive, and advance the SIEGE DICE by one.
• on a 7-9, your efforts were successful. Narrate the outcome and choose to either receive the boon or advance the SIEGE DICE.
• On a miss, gain one XP and the DM will describe the consequences of your failure to successfully overcome the challenge OR you may swap one of your dice with the SIEGE DICE to secure a more favourable outcome.
Part II
When all of the challenges have been faced, the value of the SIEGE DICE indicates the outcome of the siege:
• on a 6+ the Citadel has been successfully defended; describe the routing of the enemy.
• On a 2-5, the siege breaks with heavy losses on both sides; the result of attrition, etc. For each pip of the SIEGE DICE, choose one friendly NPC who did not survive the siege.
• on a 1- the Citadel has been overrun. Describe your catastrophic failure and the condition of the Citadel and its remaining inhabitants.
[x-posting like a mofo, to give and get feedback]
Here’s a two-part move inspired by David’s that I’m trying to tweak. It’s focused on PC interaction with key events during a citadel siege – but could be any mass combat. Maybe someone can yoink pieces and find it useful? Myself, I am struggling to think about how to set up the “siege dice”:
CITADEL UNDER SIEGE
Part I
When the Citadel is under siege and you accept responsibility for its defense, narrate the setup of a personal challenge in detail, and roll +STAT where STAT represents an appropriate Core Attribute that has not been used in a previous challenge.
• on a 10+, the bards sing of your deeds – narrate the outcome of the challenge, describe the boon you receive, and advance the SIEGE DICE by one.
• on a 7-9, your efforts were successful. Narrate the outcome and choose to either receive the boon or advance the SIEGE DICE.
• On a miss, gain one XP and the DM will describe the consequences of your failure to successfully overcome the challenge OR you may swap one of your dice with the SIEGE DICE to secure a more favourable outcome.
Part II
When all of the challenges have been faced, the value of the SIEGE DICE indicates the outcome of the siege:
• on a 6+ the Citadel has been successfully defended; describe the routing of the enemy.
• On a 2-5, the siege breaks with heavy losses on both sides; the result of attrition, etc. For each pip of the SIEGE DICE, choose one friendly NPC who did not survive the siege.
• on a 1- the Citadel has been overrun. Describe your catastrophic failure and the condition of the Citadel and its remaining inhabitants.