World of Esaene (ENWorld)

Monday, August 14, 2006

Alpha Game 5 - Fight Night

The intrepid band of adventurers encountered the mysterious Akknals for the first time in the form of a hunting party. Both groups realized the other was out there, but some on both sides managed to be surprised nonetheless. The skirmish set up the night's festivities well and got them into the spirit of it. They found the secret passage into the former dwarven citadel and encountered a large party of Akknal warriors and a Shaman trying to batter down a door.

First off, the fight was fabulous. I have to make some minor adjustments here and there, but it flowed quickly and had a good rhythm. I modified how critical damage is done to not make it so punative over the long haul while still keeping its short term kick in the pants. Now it is something that could very well end your combat, but if for whatever reason you do recover from it, you will not be completely out of everything afterward.

The players had a lot of fun and the system was able to accomodate narrative combat actions quite easily, such as when the (foolhardy) wizard decided to run after the fleeing Akknal hunter and tackle him before he could alert others, or when the sorcerer transformed back to human form from his animal shape under the Sorcerer, knocking him over. The players had some suggestions and I saw some things that needed fixing, but overall it was a resounding success.

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