Out Now on the DMs Guild
Wintry Blast |
Recently, I've been struggling with gridded combat. It's not that I don't know how to do it, or that I don't understand how to count 5-foot squares, it's that I'm over it. With COVID-19 having us all on lock down, I'm missing two of my three regular D&D games. Those two games are the ones that met in person and used theater of the mind combat. The other game, the one that is still going, meets on Roll20 and naturally uses gridded combat as that is one of the main features of that platform.
So why am I over it? I think the grid distracts too much from the creativity of the game. I feel the game turns into a war-strategy game, not a role playing game. What's more, the DM is stuck having to track those tokens, measure movement, size area-of-effect spells, and the like. I've been on both sides of this Roll20 headache, as a player and as a DM. The tools are great, but they can just as easily detract from that game as add to it. Now I'm no Luddite. I use an iPad at the table when DMing. I've embraced (slowly) the merits of D&D Beyond, and I've learned a whole host of techy things in writing Wintry Blast. This isn't a bash on Roll20, I love Roll20. If it wasn't for Roll20 I'd have no current D&D game at all. I also wouldn't be able to stay in touch with far flung friends over dice and drinks. This post is a bash on gridded combat, regardless whether it is online or at a physical table. Zipperon Disney has a great video on his YouTube channel all about the merits of theater of the mind. In that video he talks about a lot of interesting concepts, among them, the use of conjunctions. If it's been a minute since elementary school, we're talking about the words AND, OR, and BUT. Zipperon challenges us to use these conjunctions in adjudicating player actions. One example from the video, "You can run up to the bugbear chief, BUT you'll take an opportunity attack from the goblin on the way by." This is a perfect example of allowing your players agency, while at the same time imposing consequences. When I run theater of the mind combat I'm very abstract with distances and positioning. If a player wants to do something, I usually let them, but I'll impose a catch just like the opportunity attack example above. I find this approach improves pacing, limits meta-gaming, and results in more organic game-play. If you need a good example of theater of the mind combat, read any of the Drizzt novels by R.A. Salvatore. In those books, the author expertly navigates the complexities of combat with fluidity and tempo. He never gets bogged down in the mechanics of combat, it's all story. Our games can strive to capture that. Zipperon goes on to say in that video, "...rather than think of themselves as a referee in a war game, DMs should think as themselves as a director in an action movie." Exactly. Take 9 minutes, go watch that video. If you are a DM, I have no doubt that you'll get plenty of inspiration from it. If you are a player, you can incorporate some of these principles the next time your roll for initiative. Think like an action star, not like a chess piece. Looking for more great resources? Checkout the Toolkit page where I've listed my favorite resources. Zipperon Disney's YouTube channel is among them! Be sure to check him out on Twitter too, @zipperondisney.
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AuthorD&D 5e enthusiast. Creator on DMsguild. Supporter of creators, content and good times. Follow me on Twitter @rjquestgiver Archives
July 2021
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