[Spoilers] Running Hell's Rebels: Dilemma

[Alyksandrei]

So I'm DMing a PbP for the first time ever, with almost no experience as a DM. I'd really like to reward my players for their great roleplaying by bypassing the combat...but the AP seems to expect, even require, the riot and its attendant combat to occur. So I'm looking for advice: how can I reward such awesome roleplay at riling up and then diffusing the crowd without totally derailing the AP? Do I need this first combat to occur before anything else in the adventure, or can I safely skip it, as long as the inform they're supposed to discover about Thrune's bodyguard is available elsewhere before they're expected to face her in combat again?

Any advice you can give me, general DMing or specific to my AP, will be appreciated. Thanks!

[motteditor]

I don't recall the start of Hell's Rebels, but a lot of it is dependent on the players, I think. Can they be invested in the plot without the combat? If so, I'd say you're free to skip it should you so choose.

I would remember some players really *like* combat (even in PBP) and may be disappointed if you let them bypass too much, though.

[Alyksandrei]

Well, I asked them earlier, when they were clearly riling them up, if they were going to start a riot, because I was ready to have a NPC start throwing things. Several NPCs, actually. Made it clear that a riot was about to happen...and they started trying to calm people down. So I'm not sure they want combat right now, but the book calls for a riot. I think it's partly to give the players a little information about a high-level NPC they will have to fight later in the AP (possibly not until after book three; I haven't read through all 3 books from the bundle yet). But the players have done some wonderful RP and I do want to reward them for that.

[Joana]

I'd ask in the Hell's Rebels subforum. There will be more GMs there who have prepped and run the AP and who will have a better idea of what's important and what you can skip.

The question isn't really PbP-specific but could apply to a live game as well.

[Alyksandrei]

Thanks, I will.