Videos, articles, posts, podcast, etc. Posting any links that support this topic is greatly appreciated.
I am not focused on someone's favorite battlefield control spell or the build of your tank player. Looking for guidance on how to assess the following decisions:
1) Process to select the primary target: Teaming up is a basic strategy, but knowing where to focus your attention is key. While there is a good argument in taking out the Goliath Warlord that has three attacks averaging a total of 46 points of damage to you party per round; the priest hiding off in the corner casting healing spells on the Goliath might be a better target to start off with. Two dozen Kobolds might be serious threat to you casters, but they could be a simple annoyance to your Fighter and Paladin. So does it make sense to clear the heard before focusing on the DracotLich? Or is this the process to have melee fighters cut down the numbers while others bombard the big bad guy with artillery.
2) Selecting Formation: There are advantages to staying close together. Several feats provide protections to conditions, bonuses to saves, and actions that can save the party from damage or allow the party to increase their attack productivity. But when creatures can move around the front line, fly, burrow, and attack with reach; now the weaker party members may be exposed to multi-attacks. And then there are area of effects: spells, breath weapons, battled conditions (falling rocks or collapsing bridge). What clues do you use to assess whether it makes to bunch up vs divide.
3) Control the Enemy: Do you position the beast in the center of the battle map or force baby into a corner? How do you counter a best that can fly? One that can submerge or burrow? Where do you set up difficult terrain so it remains effective for the party. How do you coordinate tactics so the party doesn't end up being effect by an area of a effect the party is implementing?
4) Choosing Actions: Do you always start combat by casting Bane, or if you at the top of the order and can bomb all the enemies with an AoE you go for it? Is it better to come up with some playbook where you start all combats in a similar way. Is there a benefit in this type of consistency? Or should you evaluate your decisions at the top of the round. After killing a foe, do you charge to the next enemy with your maul prone to smash or do you reposition yourself to respond only on your next turn as to allow your party members to implement their tactics in turn. The gut feeling is to implement an action that has an immediate effect on the game, but strategic decisions that build to a tactical advantage can pay more dividends. How do you evaluated these decisions?
5) Failure: Well, that didn't work. Do you move on to a new tactic or do you accept that the percentages say it will work in two or three attempts. Dice rolls shouldn't be the deciding factor in evaluating tactics, right? Now a creature being immune to Fireball or doesn't response to Turn Undead or shrugs of piercing damage while struggling to stand up to bludgeoning strikes is not the scenario I am asking about. This is more about failing to grapple a creature on your opening attack; if the strategy is that a grappled creature gives the party the highest rate of success then do you attempt it again or draw your ax.
Thank you in advance for input, ideas, and discussion points. I know there is a lot to discuss and no one stop solution. But I appreciate the dialog and look forward to responses.
It's really all but impossible to give a blanket strategy to use every time. What's the party composition both class/subclass and species? What spells do the casters have prepared? How many enemies are there? What's the terrain like? How many encounters has the party had, and how many of their powers/spells do they have for this one? Do they know there will be more fights, so they need to leave some gas in the tank, or can they blow through everything they have? Or is it somewhere in between where a short rest might really be a good choice, assuming you have characters that get much if any benefit from one? What kind of enemies are you fighting? (Do they have AoEs? high AC? High saves of a certain kind?) What's the goal of the fight? Lots of times, sure, its kill all the bad guys. But sometimes, its stop them from retreating, rescue someone, stop a specific baddie from doing a specific thing. Do you even need to actually fight them to the death, or can you just run in, grab something, leave and close the door behind you.
Those questions are just the beginning. If I really sat to think about it, there would probably be more. So really, you can't give broad strokes advice for what to do in a fight, since each one is unique, and will require tactics suited to those circumstances.
The best advice is to just know your character backwards and forwards, so you can know what you can offer in a situation. And it helps to have at least an idea of what everyone else can do. Then adapt to the specific situation.
That said. Always focus fire. People are as effective at full hp as they are at 1 hp. So, kill one enemy, don't wound two. As far as targets, usually I say go for the healer, then other casters. Then you worry about whittling down the tanky one.
Videos, articles, posts, podcast, etc. Posting any links that support this topic is greatly appreciated.
I am not focused on someone's favorite battlefield control spell or the build of your tank player. Looking for guidance on how to assess the following decisions:
1) Process to select the primary target: Teaming up is a basic strategy, but knowing where to focus your attention is key. While there is a good argument in taking out the Goliath Warlord that has three attacks averaging a total of 46 points of damage to you party per round; the priest hiding off in the corner casting healing spells on the Goliath might be a better target to start off with. Two dozen Kobolds might be serious threat to you casters, but they could be a simple annoyance to your Fighter and Paladin. So does it make sense to clear the heard before focusing on the DracotLich? Or is this the process to have melee fighters cut down the numbers while others bombard the big bad guy with artillery.
2) Selecting Formation: There are advantages to staying close together. Several feats provide protections to conditions, bonuses to saves, and actions that can save the party from damage or allow the party to increase their attack productivity. But when creatures can move around the front line, fly, burrow, and attack with reach; now the weaker party members may be exposed to multi-attacks. And then there are area of effects: spells, breath weapons, battled conditions (falling rocks or collapsing bridge). What clues do you use to assess whether it makes to bunch up vs divide.
3) Control the Enemy: Do you position the beast in the center of the battle map or force baby into a corner? How do you counter a best that can fly? One that can submerge or burrow? Where do you set up difficult terrain so it remains effective for the party. How do you coordinate tactics so the party doesn't end up being effect by an area of a effect the party is implementing?
4) Choosing Actions: Do you always start combat by casting Bane, or if you at the top of the order and can bomb all the enemies with an AoE you go for it? Is it better to come up with some playbook where you start all combats in a similar way. Is there a benefit in this type of consistency? Or should you evaluate your decisions at the top of the round. After killing a foe, do you charge to the next enemy with your maul prone to smash or do you reposition yourself to respond only on your next turn as to allow your party members to implement their tactics in turn. The gut feeling is to implement an action that has an immediate effect on the game, but strategic decisions that build to a tactical advantage can pay more dividends. How do you evaluated these decisions?
5) Failure: Well, that didn't work. Do you move on to a new tactic or do you accept that the percentages say it will work in two or three attempts. Dice rolls shouldn't be the deciding factor in evaluating tactics, right? Now a creature being immune to Fireball or doesn't response to Turn Undead or shrugs of piercing damage while struggling to stand up to bludgeoning strikes is not the scenario I am asking about. This is more about failing to grapple a creature on your opening attack; if the strategy is that a grappled creature gives the party the highest rate of success then do you attempt it again or draw your ax.
Thank you in advance for input, ideas, and discussion points. I know there is a lot to discuss and no one stop solution. But I appreciate the dialog and look forward to responses.
It's really all but impossible to give a blanket strategy to use every time. What's the party composition both class/subclass and species? What spells do the casters have prepared? How many enemies are there? What's the terrain like? How many encounters has the party had, and how many of their powers/spells do they have for this one? Do they know there will be more fights, so they need to leave some gas in the tank, or can they blow through everything they have? Or is it somewhere in between where a short rest might really be a good choice, assuming you have characters that get much if any benefit from one? What kind of enemies are you fighting? (Do they have AoEs? high AC? High saves of a certain kind?) What's the goal of the fight? Lots of times, sure, its kill all the bad guys. But sometimes, its stop them from retreating, rescue someone, stop a specific baddie from doing a specific thing. Do you even need to actually fight them to the death, or can you just run in, grab something, leave and close the door behind you.
Those questions are just the beginning. If I really sat to think about it, there would probably be more. So really, you can't give broad strokes advice for what to do in a fight, since each one is unique, and will require tactics suited to those circumstances.
The best advice is to just know your character backwards and forwards, so you can know what you can offer in a situation. And it helps to have at least an idea of what everyone else can do. Then adapt to the specific situation.
That said. Always focus fire. People are as effective at full hp as they are at 1 hp. So, kill one enemy, don't wound two. As far as targets, usually I say go for the healer, then other casters. Then you worry about whittling down the tanky one.
A D&D YouTuber focused on tactics and builds discussed about this in very good and short videos sone years ago. It’s called Bilbrons & Dragons.
Please find it here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLE826u3cKWr4ga8q2YK9F9WCM1O8vT4Kn