So, I quickly read (mostly scrolled, tbh) through the fine pdf I got yesterday (thanks!) and stumbled upon the combat rules. A quick search here didn’t really answer this, so maybe someone could help me with this:
Splitting bigger groups of enemies into a couple of Open Fire or Launch Assault rolls seems a good solution to slow down fights a bit, if it seems necessary (I think somewhat important encounters should not be resolved with a single roll).
But what about a single, big opponent? Let’s say the group is attacked by a gigantic worm on a desert-planet. The rulebook does not have a specific solution for that and a single roll (especially if the entire party gets a shot) would take away a lot of the tension, imho, no matter how well described the cinematic is. So would you suggest to give an enemy like that hit points (probably difficult as there is no damage), or require the group to roll a certain number of successes, or how would you guys do it?
Just playing with ideas here, or maybe I even missed a bit in the book. Not hating the mechanic in general, I actually like it, but have the feeling certain fights should be more than potentially one roll.
If its a huge worm, why not treat it as multiple threats? Its Maw, its Armored Plates, and its Thrashing Body? The worm is HUGE right? Its not just one danger to the party, its clearly a bunch of dangers for anyone foolish enough to go up against it! On top of that, who says the party can even damage it straight-up? More likely than not, the party is going to have to Face Adversity just to get into a position to have the chance to Open Fire or Launch an Assault.
I think the answer to your question really comes in two parts: one, look at how starship combat has you treat enemy ships as multiple threats and definitely copy that for complex dangers the party comes across. If there are a number of things that they ought to be on the lookout for, it sounds like its more than one Threat. Secondly, look up the 16 Hit Point Dragon: its an article about Dungeon World, but it is just as true here as it is there. Difficulty in Powered by the Apocalypse games doesn’t come from shifting numbers you need to roll (its alwasy 7 and up, yeah?); difficulty comes from the stakes of any given roll.
Alfred Rudzki beat me to it as I was writing this, heh.
One way is to make it so that simply saying “I attack them” doesn’t work, narratively. Instead of being a creature that can be killed, make it a puzzle that needs to be solved. How they approach the situation will lead to multiple rolls (purchase a vehicle and explosives (Acquisition), rig the vehicle with explosives (Expertise), attract the worm (Mettle), escape before the whole thing goes up (Physique))
Another way is to have the Worm represent multiple threats, each of which will harm the players if it’s “unoccupied”. So the Maw and Tail (Mindless threats) would each be actively threatening the characters, while the Armor (passive threat) would be getting in the way of attacks, and the Body (passive threat) would be “fueling” the other threats. If the Body dies, then the other threats are defeated too.
Also, you can do “pseudo” hitpoints, if you want: The Worm is three nested threats. When the first form is defeated (Passive Threat. Agenda: Burrow, Swallow Whole), the worm is battered and bloodied, and changes behavior (Mindless Threat. Agenda: Thrash, Smash). Defeat that form, and the worm becomes a third threat (Intelligent Threat. Agenda: Burrow, Escape, Destroy terrain)
Thank you guys! That was really helpful 🙂
This whole thing could be a nice addendum for one of the upcoming PDFs.
I had indeed planned on including tips for GMs running Giant Monsters in Carta Galaxia’s Xenofauna section. The solutions presented here only really work for gigantic things like Sand Worms or Colossus Mechs or Star Krakens or whatnot, not for the more human-sized stuff in base UW. (The president of an all-powerful, galaxy-spanning Faction can still be taken out by a single bullet to the head)
Sure, but if you embrace the “Boss” term, that president IS a Boss, so it could be pretty anticlimactic to get him dead with 1 roll. I know, maybe UW isn’t that kind of game, however solid rules/hints about how to manage a Boss fight could be useful to a lot of readers.
Maybe that president SEEMS easy to be managed, BUT when the bullet hits the target, the players see his hidden super hi-tech shield simply goes down (an hidden threat?). And the following round, a couple of bodyguards shoots the PCs party from a distant roof! Ehi, snipers! (another hidden threat that they needs to overcome before they can actually arm the target?). And when they roll again, they find out that the president has an experimental nanomachines-based implant, capable to regenerate his body in seconds! (another threat?). So, at least 4 challenges to be won: a climatic road to the final victory!
Sure, often reality doesn’t work that way, but this is the stuff that fiction are made of! ;-D
Yes absolutely. The president herself is a minor threat; all of her resources and power structures have to be overcome first. Heck, the “boss fight” is getting into a position to take out the target, rather than the target itself. So the multi-threat encounter rules apply in force 🙂