Newbie Combat

[Breschau of Livonia]

After a brief session this Monday our group had it's first full RuneQuest game.

There were a lot of plusses - task resolutions were pretty intuitive, even opposed ones. Oddly we seemed to have the most issues with combat - though maybe that's not such a big surprise. A lot of this may be due to getting used to a new engine but I'd like to take advantage of other's experiences when I can.

There was some frustration with the flow and tracking of combat actions, especially for folks performing multiple action tasks like shooting bows and then spending an action reloading. I think we lost track once or twice. My ideas for that include use of some tokens for CAs and maybe having some sort of action sheet or chart tracking progress.

The other issue was some monotony in maneuvers. The virtue of the head shot seemed to dominate, though one player who did some prep work managed to overextend a multitentacled beastie, allowing axdude to finish it.

I'd also be curious how people find it plays as experience in the system grows - I don't have many system junkies in my group so part of me is wondering if I'd have been better off with a less crunchy brp incarnation. But there's a lot I did like out of the session, so I'd prefer to work on what we need to smooth out rather than throw the baby out with the bathwater.

 

[ThatGuy]

The optional rule of penalizing repetition of CM choice should encourage your players to pick different CMs, which actually makes for a more strategic, more fun game for the players.

It makes the player have to weigh the penalty versus the effectiveness of the CM. If it's a kill shot, the penalty is worth it, but if not, the penalty may prevent a kill shot.

More fun if your players need a nudge in the creative direction.

 

[Chalupacabra]

For keeping track of Combat Actions, I had difficulty my first session, but it was all new for everyone. Second session I located some poker chips to represent them. Ingenious and color coded! But alas, I forgot to pack them so we used pennies and nickles and it worked wonders. I think some token, no matter what choice, is invaluable for tracking CA's. Just don't leave 'em at home!!!!