Engaging Combats

[jamminjelly]

I've just started DMing and I've been wanting to make fights as engaging as possible by having the grid filled with interesting things during combat. I already use trees, tents, campfires, brush, small pools of water, etc. What are some other things that you guys have used to make each combat environment look and play differently?

[Melamoto]

Try adding in things that could be used by intuitive players as combat advantages, like tables that they could jump onto to gain a high ground advantage, or patches of poisonous nettles that they could push enemies into. It's best to think of things that you can find everyday that have a potential combat use.

[Kylarra]

Just try not to get too caught up in the minutiae, otherwise your combat will take hours (unless you like that sort of thing, in which case, carry on).

[afroakuma]

I've found that it's not necessarily about what you add, but what you allow people to expect.

I recently had my players take on fire elementals outdoors by fighting them with snow and dirt, ad hoc'ing all of the damage. Everyone had a lot of fun.

[derfenrirwolv]

An aquaduct (3 peices of wood with a grid drawn on it, 4 peices of carboard tubing and a hot glue gun)

A rope bridge (see kung fu panda for inspiration)

A stream with rocks

Castle wall/portcullis

Kobolds set up behind murder holes

A dining hall banquet (include chandler)

Boats

Mountainside (bullrush anyone?)

On top of an ancient 100 foot tall bronze statue

On top of a dam

In an emperors menagerie (wild empathy check! Wild empathy check!)

In/on a watermill (osha regulations do NOT apply. Make sure to mention Stumpy running the place)

A cave with crystals that have.. weird effects when used.

An abandoned dragon lair (drat.. no treasure.. of course the traps still work though...)

[Blackjackg]

Mountainside (bullrush anyone?)

Is it just me, or is that pretty much what everyone hopes for when they take Improved Bull Rush as a feat? I certainly do...

3rd and 4th ed games don't really support innovative combat the way earlier editions did (more's the pity), but anytime you put props into a combat, you're giving the players stuff to work with.

General ideas:
Anything with tiers (combat on a spiral staircase can be particularly fun).
Anything that's constantly moving or shifting (a magic carousel, maybe?)
Anything where both parties are in constant danger (inside a burning building, or during a sandstorm).
Anything where there's lots of valuables to smash
Anything where there's lots of innocent bystanders to smash (using illusions like Mirror Image in this situation is a particularly effective villainous tactic, because heroes are less likely to stab things they think are you when there are villagers running around behind the images)

[shadzar]

I assume "fill the grid" means 4th edition....

Any "junk" laying around could help the terrain become a part of the combat encounter. But remember it can be used by both sides.

Tables can provide cover/concelament.

Chandeliers can provide interesting perches for ranged attackers.

You need open space so that people can move also, or the pull/push effects will be a real PITA.

Most combat is assumed to be in a wide open space to allow for tactics. Whether this involves the third dimension or is a flat surface is up to you. Fighting form a cave above another makes for an interesting combat over a big pit/drop-off. You would need to take care of the enemy before you could climb to the other side to continue on.

[AslanCross]

3rd and 4th ed games don't really support innovative combat the way earlier editions did (more's the pity), but anytime you put props into a combat, you're giving the players stuff to work with.

Probably not by RAW, but I think it's easy enough for a creative DM if he takes the time to do it.

Here's a days-old thread that might provide some ideas.

[Mando Knight]

I assume "fill the grid" means 4th edition....

Grids of 5' squares have been standard since 3.X, I believe.

Anyway, don't clutter your battlefield. Too many objects only serves to confuse the players, and probably even the DM.

[shadzar]

Grids of 5' squares have been standard since 3.X, I believe.

Anyway, don't clutter your battlefield. Too many objects only serves to confuse the players, and probably even the DM.

Grids of 5' have been used for longer than 3.x, but the wording made me think in 4th edition mode with the terrain features, and was wanting to make sure about those as part of the encounter budget was the right thing.

I still think too much crap like terrain as part of the encounter budget isn't always the best thing. Got to have room to move.

Now a tavern with all the tables and chairs isn't much of a problem with a good round of jump9ing over, or knocking over the furniture, but that won't always make sense down in a dungeon, or outside.

Don't recall too many open-air bars that had no building to begin with.

The best thing for a new DM would probably be work in open spaces to get the feel for the game from that angel. Then add more as you become more comfortable with the system, and find a point you and the player like.

[jamminjelly]

[QUOTE=shadzar;6154541]Grids of 5' have been used for longer than 3.x, but the wording made me think in 4th edition mode with the terrain features, and was wanting to make sure about those as part of the encounter budget was the right thing./QUOTE]

For some reason, when I was typing I couldn't think of any words to describe the place you are fighting at. Yes I am DMing for a 4e game right now but I always use a grid for combat regardless of the edition.

This is all good stuff. I think I have always been fond of the idea of fighting on a boat ever since I played Golden Sun. I like the idea of combat vastly changing every encounter even though the environment never changes.