So, I run 2 groups. They're all getting together tonight and my plan was to run a battle royale. There's been a lot of anxiety over this, so I'm thinking I'll start it as a battle royale, and switch it so they end up fighting a singular big bad as a group. Any ideas of what the big bad should be? One group have played Strahd before, and the other group I was planning to move on to it after their current game ends, so I was thinking maybe him?
They're level 10. There's 13 of them! 8 on one and 5 on the other. 2 players play in both games 🤣😭
If you're thinking an everyone for themselves battle its an interesting idea, but with that may people, it sounds excruciatingly sloooow. A round of combat at 45 to 120 seconds each will take you 10 - 15 minutes?
I honestly do not think dnd works for PVP. For starters, the PCs abilities are meant to be able to destroy stuff effectively, whereas the monsters are meant to be a challenge.
The biggest problem is time - on several fronts:
1: 13 players in one game will be slow, as said above.
2: If the game is split, you may have a combat to resolve on one side, and a roleplay/exploration event on the other, so will strugle splitting your time evenly - players will get bored.
3: Lets say the gae starts with a violent clash. 2 characters go down, and die. For the rest of the session, those two players are out of it.
Now, to make the game a little more interesting on that last point, you can go down the zombie virus/undead route. Pit the team against a horde of powerful monsters, and each time one of them goes down, that player gets a bigger, scarier monster than the rest to control, ramping up the difficulty as the characters number less and less. Points go to last character standing, most kills, most kills of a character with a monster. This keeps everyone in the game for the duration, and gives them a good reason for eaming up, particularly as the game reaches its conclusion of everyone falling to the endless horde!
Played through this successfully last night, we had an amazing time. Two teams pitted against each other for the amusement of a sinister being. He promptly got bored after 5 rounds and pitted them all against a nightwalker. Everyone had an amazing time. Took about 3 hours, no one died, although several came close to it.
I only just came across this, but congrats on the success.
If you were going to do it again I'd have suggested a Lich, Necromancer or something similar as the big bad, but that way the entire group might have to cut through the minion horde of skeletons, zombies and other such undead between them and the big bad.
Likewise, I love pairing a Dragon and several guard drakes. Throw in some Kobolds and it becomes and immense challenge.
So, I run 2 groups. They're all getting together tonight and my plan was to run a battle royale. There's been a lot of anxiety over this, so I'm thinking I'll start it as a battle royale, and switch it so they end up fighting a singular big bad as a group. Any ideas of what the big bad should be? One group have played Strahd before, and the other group I was planning to move on to it after their current game ends, so I was thinking maybe him?
They're level 10. There's 13 of them! 8 on one and 5 on the other. 2 players play in both games 🤣😭
If you're thinking an everyone for themselves battle its an interesting idea, but with that may people, it sounds excruciatingly sloooow. A round of combat at 45 to 120 seconds each will take you 10 - 15 minutes?
It was the two teams against each other. That part is ok, I'm looking for a big bad they can fight together
I really don't think the idea would translate very well to a TTRPG.
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I honestly do not think dnd works for PVP. For starters, the PCs abilities are meant to be able to destroy stuff effectively, whereas the monsters are meant to be a challenge.
The biggest problem is time - on several fronts:
1: 13 players in one game will be slow, as said above.
2: If the game is split, you may have a combat to resolve on one side, and a roleplay/exploration event on the other, so will strugle splitting your time evenly - players will get bored.
3: Lets say the gae starts with a violent clash. 2 characters go down, and die. For the rest of the session, those two players are out of it.
Now, to make the game a little more interesting on that last point, you can go down the zombie virus/undead route. Pit the team against a horde of powerful monsters, and each time one of them goes down, that player gets a bigger, scarier monster than the rest to control, ramping up the difficulty as the characters number less and less. Points go to last character standing, most kills, most kills of a character with a monster. This keeps everyone in the game for the duration, and gives them a good reason for eaming up, particularly as the game reaches its conclusion of everyone falling to the endless horde!
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Played through this successfully last night, we had an amazing time. Two teams pitted against each other for the amusement of a sinister being. He promptly got bored after 5 rounds and pitted them all against a nightwalker. Everyone had an amazing time. Took about 3 hours, no one died, although several came close to it.
I only just came across this, but congrats on the success.
If you were going to do it again I'd have suggested a Lich, Necromancer or something similar as the big bad, but that way the entire group might have to cut through the minion horde of skeletons, zombies and other such undead between them and the big bad.
Likewise, I love pairing a Dragon and several guard drakes. Throw in some Kobolds and it becomes and immense challenge.
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Hey how about you give the players a flee option? that'll shave a little bit off combat.