Relax And Take It Easy

[alcyone]

Last night, our configuration of players was such that no one wanted to run their usual game and be missing someone, so I brought out C&C and the Goodman Games conversion of "Mysterious Tower". I'd had it prepared for a while, having had played through the NWN module for it and printed up paper minis from the Fiery Dragon digital counter collection.

Our usual C&C game is on hiatus, it's a grim, challenging, hopeless ordeal, fighting against overwhelming odds in the Blacktooth Ridge (exactly the kind of game I like as a player). It's a campaign, and the characters might be around for a while, so I play pretty much by the book, trying to keep things consistent and looking at long-term balance. But all of that challenge, being thrust into the unknown, I think hasn't been my players cup of tea. Add that to the fact that sometimes adventures are so far apart they just forget where they are, even who they are, and my beloved A-series campaign looks further from a possibility all of the time.

Well, last night, I generated several level 6 characters and gave them a few magic items. I brought out Of Gods and Monsters and said, go ahead and choose a deity and take the granted abilities, and spells if they are a spell-caster. I said I wouldn't say no to any deity they chose. So my cleric ended up getting the ability "start at level 2", so I just said, take yourself to level 7. The gnome illusionist ended up with a +2 armor/save cloak. Even the dwarven fighter chose a god, and was able to take +2 to attacks where there was visible treasure. The accompanying taboos weren't likely to come up, but they inspired roleplaying throughout.

Normally I'd be terrified at the long term repercussions, but tonight I thought, to hell with it, let them have fun.

The level spread for the module is supposed to be 4-6 players of level 3-5. I had a feeling that even though we were short a player, they were going to be too powerful. But I thought, so what. Everything has been grueling for them since we started Rising Knight. Maybe it will be fun.

I also relaxed my "by-the-book" rules. I took out the combat maneuvers for withdrawing and replaced with simple attack of opportunity. I allowed "holding" an action, as nwelte does in his maptool games. I allowed a little more freedom of movement and attack/move order, and just in general tried saying "ok, make a ___ check" instead of "let me look this up".

Well, guess what? One player that I thought merely was tolerating the game said "I really like C&C. It's a lot simpler." The bickering at the table was non-existent last night when previously it got down to hairsplitting, probably because the poor characters were looking for any angle to get around their imminent death. Everyone loved the gods and monsters stuff, especially the gnome, who just loves the gnome pantheon flavor with its spells for making beer, sandwiches and cookies.

And yeah, it was WAY too easy. We are about 1/3 of the way through the adventure and they are cutting through monsters like butter, making every spot check, never missing a secret door. And I must be an idiot, because I thought, who would have fun doing that?

They had fun doing that, they didn't care at all, they loved winning. Maybe it would get boring long term, but I recommend if you run a game that seems to be a grind for the players you just try one night, relax, don't sweat the details, let them have the cool stuff they want, throw balance out the window, and let them win. I think you'll find you win too.

[mbeacom]

This is great advice. I'd add that a big part of the reason you had so much success is because of what they were used to.

It's important to give some really challenging scenarios so that you have control of the tension. You can't "lighten things up" if there ALWAYS light.

I actually do what you recommend about every other session in some form or another. I'm only getting started with C&C but your advice works well in 4E as well. One encounter per night, or even just one portion of an encounter, I'll go a bit easier on the PCs, give them a few "slow pitches" so they can hit them out of the park. I'm not laying down, but I'm not trying to do them in either, just in that sweet spot. It makes the challenges they face seem more rewarding when they can bounce back and really do some damage from time to time. As they get higher in level I give them a bit more of that since they SHOULD feel more powerful as they gain levels.

Also, whats their "usual game?"

Thanks for sharing!

[Omote]

The key is to mix it up. Some adventures can be gritty and tough, others can be light and easy. Learn to moderate. Without players having a good time, there will be no game to play.

~O

[alcyone]

Also, whats their "usual game?"
Thanks for sharing!

We play a lot of games but right now we have a rotating game with different referees based on which people show up. The ones we are doing in person right now are

• Cortex (Homegrown dimensional travel/weird west)
• Top Secret (Aces and Clubs)
• 3.5 D&D (Adventure Path, long running, we are on Lord of the Iron Fortress)
• C&C A modules

[Treebore]

Yeah, I don't know if my players realize, but I am very open about letting them try anything they come up with than I am "by the book". Fortunately my house rules show that I am by default a "Make a SIEGE check" CK rather than a "Let me see what the rules say" kind of CK. Not that I don't follow the rules as much as possible, but I am willing to just say "F it!" when I think the rules will get in the way.

Plus I don't worry about giving out too much loot. If I find the stuff they have is too game unbalancing I have a number of Thieves, Mage-Thieves, etc.... that are at my beck and call to take care of such things while the groups guard is down. They may not like it, but its either that or I end the campaign. Besides, being robbed by great thieves is part of the mytho's, and is "realistic". Being robbed is never fair or feels good, but it is a "realistic" thing to do, especially if it will allow you to continue a campaign you would otherwise terminate. Besides, nothing says they can't try and hunt the thief or thieves down to the ends of the world. I had a group do that too, and that ended up being a lot of fun, and because it was "personal" had pretty much everything to do with that.

IT is also hard to balance a game between "life ending grind" and "I am of a kick butt level". I find most fights should be somewhat challenging, make them sweat a bit, but some should also be pretty easy, show the players how kick butt they really are, and then as they get close, and to, the main encounter, thats when it should become adrenaline pumping. The climactic encounter, ideally, is either sides victory. Depending on whether or not they do good tactics and get in some good die rolls, the party can win or lose.

Believe me, that can be very disappointing too, like when you have the party fighting this big ancient White dragon of death and destruction, and they cast a fireball on it, do a SIEGE check, successfully, to maximize the damage, and then you roll a "1" for its save, AND they overcame the SR with ease! OR, later in the same campaign, they find an even bigger, badder, nastier Very Ancient Red Dragon, buff up, go in for the fight of their lives, and cast Charm Monster on it. Overcome SR, and then I roll a 2 for its save, and the next thing you know the Dragon is their B*!h!

But hey, things like this is what makes the memories they talk about fondly for years.

[TheMetal1]

This is great advice. I'd add that a big part of the reason you had so much success is because of what they were used to.

+1 on this.

It must have been an all around great weekend for Castles & Crusades. My planned work trip was canceled so I was around this past weekend. As of late, my gaming group is playing Rogue Trader and we're working our way through the adventure that came with the RT Game Master Screen. It's been fun, but as my time here was unexpected, when they came by they didn't their character sheets. So we decided after much haggling on my part, that we'd play some C&C. We had a blast, just a homebrew adventure and played it to the hilt. The group loved it and we are going to continue with it this coming weekend.

[Just Jeff]

They had fun doing that, they didn't care at all, they loved winning.

One problem in a really long running AD&D campaign I was in was that the GM was big on "challenging" us, and it started to drag on suspension of disbelief. We weren't the top of the food chain, but could see it from where we were standing. How could we go through adventure after adventure and never have a cakewalk?

On the very rare occasion the GM allowed us to dominate the opposition, it resulted in a memorable session. Once I wanted to keep a young mageling from escaping without crippling or killing him. I rained near-miss spells down around him, always blocking his path. Finally he turned around and said, "How many of those can you throw!?" Ah, the satisfaction.

[obatron]

Plus I don't worry about giving out too much loot. If I find the stuff they have is too game unbalancing I have a number of Thieves, Mage-Thieves, etc.... that are at my beck and call to take care of such things while the groups guard is down. They may not like it, but its either that or I end the campaign. Besides, being robbed by great thieves is part of the mytho's, and is "realistic". Being robbed is never fair or feels good, but it is a "realistic" thing to do, especially if it will allow you to continue a campaign you would otherwise terminate. Besides, nothing says they can't try and hunt the thief or thieves down to the ends of the world. I had a group do that too, and that ended up being a lot of fun, and because it was "personal" had pretty much everything to do with that.

I like the , powerful items draw powerful attention...so much so that they found a staff of the magi and immediately sold it for much less than it was worth, but still a tidy sum. Otherwise, they tend to conceal the items until they are sure they can defend themselves from would be takers, which means later when the item is more appropriate to their level. When they make the mistake of using too soon, well, that makes an excellent side adventure or encounter at some point later.

[serleran]

The last adventure I ran winded up with the party getting a ton of powerful items. Why? I wanted to see them in action. In the years I've been gaming, no one had ever had them, and I thought "why not?" The game ended in a near-TPK anyway, which I knew it would (that's what happens when you face down a Greater Demon) so it was not going to break anything. Of course, now they know what those things do and may whine to get them again...