Dirty Monster Tactics in Dark Sun

[Randomthoughts]

Hey, everyone. I've been lurking on the boards for a few months, but decided to finally join in the discussion.

I really like 4e (warts and all). After many years playing other non-D&D systems, I returned to D&D to run a Dark Sun campaign. I just finished a 6-session story arc and am taking a break while someone else runs Star Wars Saga Edition for a while.

Anyway, I asked my players how brutal they wanted the campaign (which raised questions about PC mortality), with the understanding that Dark Sun is pretty brutal. However, I find that campaign lethality is highly influenced by how I control the monsters. To that end, I asked the players how they felt if I used commonly-used PC tactics like focused fire.

In the end, the players were fine with PC death - and definitely wanted it as a possibility - but preferred that when it happened, it would be "meaningful". They certainly didn't want, say, a PC dying (not zero hp but actually dying) each adventure nor did they care for NPCs using focused fire each and every encounter.

I typically run monsters using some type of "AI". So zombies mindlessly rush toward the closest living thing while tembos pounce on the first target that moves, etc. PCs would encounter more effective tactics against intelligent (and combat-savvy) foes. I've never used coup de grace vs an unconscious PC (unless the monster calls for it...just haven't used one that did).

Fortunately, I find that killing a PC is a pretty difficult thing to do in 4e (in a party that actually helps each other and has some sense of tactics). But if I wanted to, in a meta game sense, I'm pretty sure I could actually kill a PC or two each adventure.

So, how do you make combat "fair" for PCs? Do you use some type of AI? Or do you go all out, using effective tactics like a player would?

 

[OnlineDM]

I role-play the monsters. Undead and beasts are pretty mindless. They'll follow a simple "program" or possibly orders from a more intelligent creature leading them. That intelligent leader, on the other hand, will be far more tactically savvy and will try to flank and focus on the most dangerous PC first and so on.

Coup de grace is a rarity among monsters, and I would only do it if it made role-play sense. So, a particularly cruel intelligent creature might coup de grace just to be as evil as possible. A very hungry creature may not be able to resist tearing into an unconscious PC to start eating it, even if there are other PCs still fighting, and so on.

I try to put myself in the monster's skin and think, "What would this monster do if it were really in this situation?" Then I have the monster do that.

 

[Mummolus]

I try to vary the tactics depending on the NPC in question, similarly to how you do, reserving PC-like tactics for creatures I want to really test them with.

Tembos are intelligent, for the record. Just really really mean.

 

[Randomthoughts]

Ahh thanks for the clarification.

What about encounters with a squad of ranged attackers? Do you focus fire?

Personally, I don't...I spread the fire around, unless the NPCs are combat savvy or have prior knowledge (of who to target for example). But that may change if, for example, a certain PC becomes too big of a threat.

But role-playing the monsters is a good way of describing "monster AI".

 

[OnlineDM]

It depends on how smart and vicious the ranged attackers (and their leader, if any) are. I have an encounter in one of my adventures where some orc archers are manning a guard tower that the PCs are assaulting. They try to shoot clusters of PCs first (since they have an area burst 1 attack), and failing that they try to shoot single PCs that are in danger of being pushed somewhere unpleasant (since they have a push attack and they know about the unpleasantness). Other than that, they tend to spread it around unless a PC becomes a big threat (no PCs are able to hurt them in their tower except the wizard who starts dropping AOEs - then they go after the wizard).

When you role-play the monsters, the tactics will follow pretty naturally. I will say that, when in doubt I let the monster decide who to attack randomly.

 

[Riastlin]

As others have suggested, I tend to look at how intelligent the monster is when deciding what tactics it would use. So zombies generally would not group up on a single target (and might not even fully understand that ignoring the shielding swordmage's mark will mean that they are largely useless). Highly intelligent critters on the other hand will do what makes the most strategic sense (its one way for instance, to make that relatively squishy spell caster seem more dangerous than the mindless zombie).

As for coup de grace, I don't usually do it unless there is a really good reason to. For one thing, there's usually still a fight going on and the conscious PCs are going to be more of a threat at that point than the unconscious ones are. More to the point, I'm not a huge fan of killing PCs, so I tend not to go that extra mile unless it really calls for it. If a PC happens to die during the regular course of combat, that's fine, but I personally don't like to coup de grace all that often.

In 11+ years I can only really think of 3 instances when I did. On the first occasion, the party rogue had decided to go off and explore the dungeon on his own and ended up getting double teamed by a spell caster and fighter. Spell caster rendered him helpless and the fighter finished him off. The second time was when the paladin kept going unconscious in a fight against orcs but kept getting back up (thanks to healing and a nat 20 on a death save). Finally an orc had enough and yelled "Now stay down!" as he coup de grace'd. The last time was the Chamber of Works (I think that's what its called) in Siege of Bordrin's Watch. The party had pretty much been wiped out by the big bad there and the two that were still up bluffed him into thinking they had switched sides and were now his ally. So he told them to finish off the others as he finished off the third. The PCs bluffed of course, but he did not.

All of that being said, the real question comes down to "what do you and your players want?" The key of course is to make it fun for everyone. It need not (and imho should not) be a DM vs. Players mentality. However, I do think there needs to be a threat of death and even tpk in order to make the game truly fun. Knowing that the players could lose makes those close victories all the sweeter. It makes them appreciate the good use of tactics that much more. If, on the other hand, they ever get the sense that victory is always inevitable, then their decisions really don't matter. They don't need to be clever. They don't need to worry about tactics, etc.

So I guess my advice, not knowing your party of course but realizing that they are ok with the idea of character death, would be to try to challenge the players, but still make it fair and fun. Having the monsters always focus fire on the wizard or sorcerer at the start of combat might be effective, but its not all that fun for said player. Now, if said PC decides to win initiative, then open up a world of hurt on the monsters, AP, then open up another world of hurt, well then, he's kind of asking to get ganked.

 

[Knowledge Checks]

I've had monsters kill unconscious PC's before, but as people above had said, it was when it was tactically relevant.

The monsters were wraiths, and when they killed someone (uncle ben dead, not just unconscious), a little buddy minion wraith rose up and attacked the PC's. So they had a decent reason to make sure the Warpriest that was hurting them with radiant damage bit the dust and then animate his soul as their mindless minion. Actually killed 2 PC's that fight in that manner.