Combat for lvl 1 group

[Pinjata]

Hey guys,

Setting up combat is simple, combat is easy, especially for low-level players. You toss in a few zombies or skeletons and everything is fine. Thing is, after a few years and several campaigns, I manage to get myself into a corner of overthinking it, so such threads (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?533551-In-need-of-some-ideas) help me immensely.

My plea is similar to the one in linked thread: Simple encounters, reflecting Faerun. Something to have my players roll the dice, strike and smite and also have some combat fun. They are lvl 1 if not clear up to this point and they are roaming around in mainly untamed lands on roads, connected only by rare villages, forts and outposts.

thanks guys :)

[JNAProductions]

First off, KFC (http://kobold.club/fight/#/encounter-builder). This is a dang useful tool for building encounters.

Second off... What sorts of encounters you looking for? Hard, easy, strange, normal?

[Pinjata]

Hey man, thanks for reply. This is my problem:
- go to KFC, make an encounter
- get, say Poisonus snake
Me: Poisonosus snake? What, crawling from the bushes? This feels forced and unimaginative.

- go to KFC, make an encounter
- get, say Swarm of rats
Me: Swarm of rats? What, probably swarming from the cellar? This feels forced and unimaginative.

etc., etc ...

Other people's ideas feel fresh and inovative in comparison to mine.

I actually do not need CR calculated and stuff: All I need is some ideas how conflict MAY happen.

[Talamare]

Hey man, thanks for reply. This is my problem:
- go to KFC, make an encounter
- get, say Poisonus snake
Me: Poisonosus snake? What, crawling from the bushes? This feels forced and unimaginative.


A Poisoned Snake biting someone while traveling seems pretty cool. Doesn't seemed forced at all, and sounds interesting to see how players react to the poison.

This seems like a pretty great suggestion.

I think you're trying too hard to create something that is uber imaginative.

[Cl0001]

Is a snake appearing from a book any less imaginative than a necromancer summoning undead or them awakening amidst a pile of corpses? The cool part is that it's a new and dynamic enemy, especially when compared to the horde tactics of undead.

[Safety Sword]

No matter what you do you'll probably kill someone :smallamused:

Combat at low levels can be incredibly deadly. Sometimes as a DM I have to cheat until my players get to about Level 3. Some people don't like doing this, but I find that one critical hit can ruin a player's night because they have to make a new character.

Good luck!

[Kane0]

Try reskinning. Taking a regular statblock and describing it as if it were anything but normal can make all the difference.

"Something looms in the corridor beyond. The smell of damp cloth hits you first, but more striking is the hunched, shaggy creature it comes from. It ***** an ear and sniffs the air, then launches into a lumbering run towards you, gibbering and howling as it drags a spiked club behind it. Initiative!"

An astute player might make the connection between this decription and a gnoll, but if you play it right it still feels fresh and exciting!