Catullus64
2022-03-13, 11:35 AM
Strict application of the movement rules can turn a potentially exciting chase into a dull, predictable affair. Faster creatures always catch up to slower ones, while creatures while creatures with the same speed never close the distance between each other.
To my mind, this text and the thought behind it needs more attention, and should have been more prominently placed in the game rules. My mind was turned to this issue when discussing with some of my players how seldom they run from a fight, even one that they clearly recognize is going wrong. Generally speaking, by the time they realize it's time to run, someone, or multiple someones, is already unconscious and making death saving throws. At that point, running often means leaving someone behind. Opportunity attacks and the problems mentioned by the above quote make players feel that running is generally just a way to die tired.
There's a lesson learned the first time a new player Disengages and moves 30 ft away, only to have the goblin they were fighting move 30 feet forward to keep attacking them; or when they risk the opportunity attack, Dash 60 ft away, only to have the goblin dash 60 feet and close right back into melee. In short, players tend not to retreat enough because the rules condition them not to. An experienced player can pull all kinds of tricks with spells and abilities to facilitate an escape, but I don't think you should need to have that level of system mastery in order to run away.
I don't think this is actually a problem with the rules, however, merely with the running of the game. Simply put, the combat movement rules are for just that: combat. The usual dance of disengages, opportunity attacks, dashes and so forth is quite alright for modeling people moving about in a fight, in between the primary activity of exchanging attacks and spells. It's not a criticism of those rules in themselves, but they are limited in their scope.
How I handle it is that once the party is agreed to retreat, initiative ends. Opportunity attacks are no longer a concern, and we're in a theater-of-the-mind skill challenge to escape, though movement-based abilities may still be relevant. And to counteract the perception that the combat movement rules create, I will tell the players that, "if you guys decide to retreat, we'll end combat and transition to a chase sequence." If some player wants to stand and fight to the finish while others flee, I allow those other players to exit the combat altogether. The same goes for the enemies; if they're routing, pursuit automatically shifts to a skill challenge, though I usually allow the PCs to finish the combat round before pursuit begins.
This is not necessarily an endorsement of the exact chase rules as presented in the DMG, which I think have some problems; but all the same I would strongly advise new DMs to read them and think about how you want to handle retreats and pursuits, because the most basic rules provided in the game might be affecting the ways your players react to danger and defeat.
To my mind, this text and the thought behind it needs more attention, and should have been more prominently placed in the game rules. My mind was turned to this issue when discussing with some of my players how seldom they run from a fight, even one that they clearly recognize is going wrong. Generally speaking, by the time they realize it's time to run, someone, or multiple someones, is already unconscious and making death saving throws. At that point, running often means leaving someone behind. Opportunity attacks and the problems mentioned by the above quote make players feel that running is generally just a way to die tired.
There's a lesson learned the first time a new player Disengages and moves 30 ft away, only to have the goblin they were fighting move 30 feet forward to keep attacking them; or when they risk the opportunity attack, Dash 60 ft away, only to have the goblin dash 60 feet and close right back into melee. In short, players tend not to retreat enough because the rules condition them not to. An experienced player can pull all kinds of tricks with spells and abilities to facilitate an escape, but I don't think you should need to have that level of system mastery in order to run away.
I don't think this is actually a problem with the rules, however, merely with the running of the game. Simply put, the combat movement rules are for just that: combat. The usual dance of disengages, opportunity attacks, dashes and so forth is quite alright for modeling people moving about in a fight, in between the primary activity of exchanging attacks and spells. It's not a criticism of those rules in themselves, but they are limited in their scope.
How I handle it is that once the party is agreed to retreat, initiative ends. Opportunity attacks are no longer a concern, and we're in a theater-of-the-mind skill challenge to escape, though movement-based abilities may still be relevant. And to counteract the perception that the combat movement rules create, I will tell the players that, "if you guys decide to retreat, we'll end combat and transition to a chase sequence." If some player wants to stand and fight to the finish while others flee, I allow those other players to exit the combat altogether. The same goes for the enemies; if they're routing, pursuit automatically shifts to a skill challenge, though I usually allow the PCs to finish the combat round before pursuit begins.
This is not necessarily an endorsement of the exact chase rules as presented in the DMG, which I think have some problems; but all the same I would strongly advise new DMs to read them and think about how you want to handle retreats and pursuits, because the most basic rules provided in the game might be affecting the ways your players react to danger and defeat.