Not every encounter should be equal- sometimes, a few brigands with a rope and simple weapons can defeat an armoured knight, where normally they'd be ridden down.
Sometimes, allowing enemies to ambush your Player Characters can make for a very different encounter, putting them on the back foot and unable to lay down a Fireball to instantly incinerate everyone. This might be a matter of planning, or just an attack of opportunity from people who mean them harm. It might even be just a few bandits, eager for enough coin to feed themselves for a few days. If not overused, this can turn a simple encounter into quite a threatening one. You can also let characters with high Perception scores shine here, spotting startled birds, trails of pipesmoke, or crushed branches, and allow them to counter-ambush their attackers. How you can use Roadside Ambushes in your game: - A well-timed ambush can turn the tables and eliminate (or disable) a bunch of NPC guards, allowing the PCs a chance to prove their worth and protect the rich merchant / noble / treasure which they've been guarding all along. - Letting your PCs turn the tables and ambush their foes once in a while can be really fun for them- eliminating some minions or taking a big chunk out of a boss monster and cutting down their mobility. - An ambush might become a complete turnaround if one party recognizes the other- "Malark? Malark, my old buddy, is that you? Have you gone legit now?" Also posted on Game Masters Stash on 20 February 2020. Comments are closed.
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AuthorI'm Luke. He/him pronouns. Archives
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