Stop Combat From Getting Samey: The Taco Bell Strategy

Most of us have been to Taco Bell at some point in our lives. Some of us have probably tried most of their menu by now. However much or little of the chain's food you've eaten, though, you've likely had the same thought while staring up at the menu, or browsing the app on your phone.

"What's the difference between all this stuff?"

As Jim Gaffigan pointed out years ago, you can boil most of the components of our favorite dishes down to tortilla with cheese, meat, and/or a vegetable of some kind... but if you've gotten different meals from different parts of the menu, it all tastes different when prepared in slightly different ways.

The same thing is true of combat in RPGs.

It's always the same... but you can easily make it different!

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What Makes Combat Samey?

Combat, at its core, is pretty basic in a lot of RPGs. Participants roll initiative, and then everyone takes actions on their turn. Generally speaking melee specialists will close and swing, ranged specialists will shoot, spellcasters will cast a spell, and so on, and so forth.

And yeah, that can get pretty samey. However, all it takes is adding some ingredients and spices to take the same old experience, and to turn it into something that feels different when all is said and done.

Attack. Miss. Counterattack. Miss. Attack again. Hit. Still up? Yep.

And while I talked about this a bit several years back in 3 Ways to Spice Up Combat in RPGs, I wanted to do more than just give a few examples of how one could do this. Instead I wanted to offer up some categories that Game Masters can use to create situations that feel new and unique, but which are still using all the same ingredients their players are used to... just not in this particular order.

Ingredient #1: The Arena

If we had to pick an equivalent of the tortilla for this metaphor, it would be the arena. Where is this combat taking place? Well for most games the answer is typically in a well-lit room with clear sight lines where everyone can move around freely. Like an open field on a sunny afternoon, or in a sandy floor of a Coliseum-style arena.

We can change that up, though, can't we?

Is that functional? Absolutely. But it is pretty bland, and making any changes here tend to get immediately noticed by players... especially if they're not used to having flavor in this aspect of the game.

Some of the more common things you can do to alter the arena (and thus change up challenge when it comes to a fight) include:

- Lighting: It's hard to fight what you can't see (true for PCs and NPCs alike).

- Terrain: Hills, high ground, mud, and muck... all of these things change up a battle significantly.

- Cover: Whether it's ruined walls or forest trees, this is a highly underutilized element.

- Space: Ever tried to fight goblins while squeezed into a tiny space? It's a bad time all around.

- Weather: From mist and fog, to rain and wind, this is stuff we rarely include.

- Movement: Whether it's fighting on a wagon train or a pirate ship, this presents challenges.

These are just a few of the obvious categories that can really change up the challenges involved in a combat. This is true both for the PCs, but also for the enemies, depending on who has what abilities.

Ingredient #2: Monster Strategy

I almost labeled this section "monsters," but I think every game changes up the monsters players fight from time to time. However, what doesn't always get taken into account is the strategy these antagonists use, and how that can affect players when it's time to take action.

Not yet... wait for my signal...

For example, if players are dealing with monsters are they:

- Using Superior Numbers: Action economy is what decides the game often times.

- Using Stealth and/or Traps: Sneaky enemies, and those who lead you into traps, are deadly.

- Retreating: Living to fight another day is something intelligent foes often do.

- Calling in Reinforcements: Sound travels in fantasy worlds, too.

- False Diplomacy or Intimidation: Demoralizing or tricking foes can go a long way.

- Magic or Unique Abilities: Perhaps the most common, but putting unexpected spells or items into the hands of unexpected foes can go a long way.

An example I've given in the past is a squad of orcs who use wargs as attack dogs to pin down PCs. The orcs then fire their bows from a distance, working in tandem with their fierce partners. The wargs could even have a kind of alchemical collar on that, when they died, exploded to damage those in their vicinity.

Changing up how fights are presented, and the kinds of strategies enemies do or don't use, is important for making sure challenges always feel new and unique. And keep in mind what enemies have heard about the PCs, or think they know about them, to keep things organic. More on that in Character Reputation in RPGs: The Small Legend for those who want more discourse on the topic.

Ingredient #3: Victory Conditions

Most of the time when combat starts in an RPG the focus of the players is just killing everything... but sometimes that's not what you want. What's important is that you make it clear that's not what your players should want, either.

Blood is not always the goal.

Changing up the victory conditions is, if I had to assign it a place, the sauce on your combat. It's one of the most immediate flavors, as well as one of the strongest, and it often leaves the most lasting impression. For examples of this consider the following:

- Bring 'Em In Alive: Whether it's for the bounty, or because they have information, killing is out.

- Disrupt The Ritual: Doesn't matter if the cult is dead or alive if the summoning succeeds.

- Rescue The Hostages: Fighting is secondary, you're there for the people.

- Acquire The Treasure: Might be a heist, or a smash-and-grab, but you want the treasure.

This one can take a wide variety of forms, but in general it focuses on something other than the combat being a goal in and of itself. This, ironically, makes it more interesting because now there are different stakes. Do you get the hostages out of danger? Do you escape the dragon's lair before the mountain erupts? Do you accomplish the goal beyond just surviving a fight? This can go a long way toward changing up how combat feels in your game.

Ingredient #4: Combat Isn't Always a Foregone Conclusion

This may seem counterintuitive, but one of the things that can make combat stale in RPGs is when it feels like it's going to happen no matter what. Whether it's because you only break out the map and the minis before a fight, or because you need to get XP somehow, if your players can always predict when combat is going to happen it can start to seem like drudgery.

I challenge him to a battle of the bands!

There are so many Game Masters out there who lament that their players don't use stealth, guile, intimidation, or diplomacy to try to avoid combat, but often it's because in many of these games combat ends up happening no matter what the players try to do. Whether it's because the bandit lord is immune to even the most ironclad arguments of logic, because the dungeons are filled exclusively with mindless undead creatures and constructs, or because the cultists are completely zealous in their own ideology, there are lots of times where players fight not because it fits the story, or because it's what would be fun, but because it's what they're made to do.

And turning combat into a glorified Quick Time Event you need to pass to get back to the game... that's one of the worst things you can do to what should be the most tense, pulse-pounding aspect of many RPGs.

Further Reading

If you're looking for some additional challenges, complete with unusual victory conditions (or you just want to change things up at your table), consider checking these out!

- 100 Random Encounters For on The Road or in The Wilderness: Whether your party is heading overland through rough country, or going down the highway, this supplement should give you some interesting ideas. Additionally, it's available specifically for Pathfinder Classic and DND 5E if the generic option isn't to your taste.

- 100 Encounters in a Fey Forest: The fey are tricksy creatures, and they always have something up their sleeves when it comes to those who trespass in their domains. Also available for Pathfinder Classic and DND 5E!

Also, for folks who are curious about a new project, my audio drama Dead Man's Bluff is finally up on Daily Motion! This is the first in a planned list of longer, more involved audio projects, but it can only go forward if I get a lot of ears on it. So please, check it out, follow my channel over there, and share the video on your social media! I need to hit 1k views to get monetized, and while it might seem like a lot, every view helps.

CW for those sensitive to flashing images (due to the projector effect).

Stock footage provided by Vedeevo, downloaded from www.vedeevo.net

Thank you to Tabletop Audio for the following tracks:
- Lonesome West
- Antiquarian Study
- Nightmare
- Dark City" />

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