They generally don't. The most successful approximations of this tactic that I've seen involved liberal use of concealment and occasionally fighting defensively. But the action economy required to do hit and run under normal circumstances just isn't there. This isn't that strange--it's not a terribly realistic tactic to hit-and-run in melee, so it takes extraordinary abilities or circumstances to make it viable.
An alternative is mounted combat. You don't even need Ride-By Attack for that to work, though it certainly helps.
Quicklings using blue whinnis poison.
+1
I was thinking the same thing.
Adding poison is just evil. :)
The Escape Routes teamwork feat can help in avoiding those attacks of opportunity. Outflank, Pack Attack and Precise Attack are also good. For snipers I like Stealth Synergy, have enough people rolling and you're sure to get a nat 20 eventually. Also, don't forget range penalties for perception checks. Seeing the sniper from 10 feet away is pretty easy, seeing him from 200 feet off is another matter entirely
Is there anything simple that has burrowing and some blast spell? (ie- something with those traits that doesn't need a template or class levels)
At CR 2? Not much.
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tanglefoot bags
At CR 2? Not much.
Well yes, but the range we are working with here is CR 2 to CR 6, so I thought there might at least be something.
Your monsters need to attack while the PCs are busy doing something else. Like camping, disarming a trap, opening a stuck door or eating. Or fighting some other monster. Or failing that, they need a way to get away without being pursued, such as an area of fog or Darkness that the PCs won't be happy about charging into lest there's a pit or spikes or braced spears or something else there. Even a door with someone ready to slam it shut.
And if your PCs are Readying bows against that sniper over there, they can't be Readying against the monsters that charge them from behind (and neither can they use those bows to make AoOs as they run away).
So my game is still in low-mid levels, at APL 6. This means that often a mixed group of CR 2 monsters will surround the party. How do you make them good at "hit-and-run" tactics?
First off there's sniping, but most ranged attackers of CR 2 or even CR 6 for that matter aren't really good at it. They suffer -10 to -20 on their checks and my PCs will just use a Held Action with the trigger being when the monster pops out to make its ranged attack so that they gain little benefit from Cover.
Then there's Dodge/Mobility/Spring Attack. In order to hit this combo however my monsters need to have at least 5 HD, so they're either CR 2 kobolds, CR 3 NPC-classed monsters, or they're even higher in CR which smashes my XP budget for the encounter. Then there's the hindrance of actual speed. Yeah, you can dart in, make an attack, then dart out, but even if you move at 50 this means that after you attack you only get 40' away from the PCs.
Finally, and here's the biggest thorn in my side, there's the rules around running away and AoO's. They are so prohibitive, so punitive against fleeing melee combat that you might as well just stay put. If you leap into melee on round one, with the intent of leaping out the next, you've got to eat an AoO (which, likely, kills the low CR monster), make a strategic retreat that gets you through the first 5', or else use an ability/spell/device which likely provokes also.
Help me make hit-and-run a possibility for my CR 2 - CR 6 monsters, please!
Flyby attack works well. Give it to a strix or similar creature, make them an archer, have them fly into point-blank shot range, shoot, and fly away. Buff beforehand with entropic shield potion and now readied actions to return fire are less reliable, meaning they have to try and take you down.
Spring attack is less effective for hit and run than shot on the run because of how close you have to get. Get 2 4th level fighter NPCs with shot on the run, then give favorable terrain and you have a CR 6 encounter. Have them move from opposite sides and pepper the party with longbows. Alternately, mounted archery works pretty well for hit and run. Just make sure they have enough space to move.
If you want spring attack to work, combine it with a reach weapon. Maybe giving the creature ways of stacking reach on top of that as well. A 5th level bloodrager can have dodge, mobility, spring attack and with the abberant bloodline and a glaive can hit someone while still 15' away, then slink back away. It is a CR4 though, so probably only one of them.
If you want to try sniping, the -20 penalty isn't a problem as long as you leverage the reach of a composite longbow. A 3rd level NPC warrior (CR1) can have point-blank and far shot, meaning from 200ft away they can attack with only a -1 penalty for distance, and they balance out the stealth penalty with a distance modifier to the perception check. 3rd level NPC fighter is a CR2, but they also have more feats to play with, giving room for weapon focus and deadly aim.
Finally, getting an incorporeal creature with flyby attack is a really strong way to hit and run. Take an Allip (CR3) replace its Improved Initiative or Lightning Reflexes with Flyby Attack, have it dart up to the PCs, touch, and the dart back through a wall or into the ground. Really difficult to counter, especially if magic weapons aren't thoroughly distributed. Does have the AoO problem, but they take half damage at best, and sometimes no damage.
Remember, almost any useful solution does give a +1 CR for favorable terrain, because if the terrain isn't one-sided, it is rather tough to outmaneuver PCs. Also remember that it takes a feat to ready a charge, otherwise they need ranged attacks.
Hmmm... does it have to be 'monsters'?
I suggested burrowing and blasting before because I once played around with a group of earth elemental focused druids that acted as assassins.
Between decent attack/AC boosts from their form, earth glide for fleeing, and some light blast and healing spells, they could drag out a fight with guerrilla tactics. And lets never forget their spontaneous summoning spells for some diversion. This is what I imagine when I think "what if druids decided to go eco terrorist?"
Of course, this kind of hits the upper limit for the CR range you are working with here.
Hit and run is hard to pull off without amazing stealth modifiers, and/or being really fast. A CR 2 monster is not going to do this well against higher level PC's without one of the two conditions I mentioned or some special ability that I'm not thinking of.
PS: Flyby Attack does not prevent attack of opportunities, and spring attack is not available until much later in the game.
Web, Entangle, Tanglefoot bags, caltrops... and ranged weapons.
Incorporeal creatures (like a shadow, CR 3) may be able to pull this off. Walls & floors being solid cover would help a lot especially against less PF tactics-savvy players, especially if not all the PCs have magic melee weapons to use for AoOs.
Is there anything simple that has burrowing and some blast spell? (ie- something with those traits that doesn't need a template or class levels)
Some dragons have burrow speed, all of them have breath weapons, and if they are young enough they fit your CR range.
In the range CR 2-6 there are:
white (wyrmling, very young, young), crystal (wyrmling, very young, young), brass (wyrmling, very young), underworld (wyrmling, very young), blue (wyrmling), forest (wyrmling), lunar (wyrmling)
There are also pixies: CR 4, constant greater invisibility, and ranged attack.
Just have a lot of wolves (or whatever critter fits). Wave 1 charges. Next round, wave 1 Withdraws and wave 2 charges. Third round, wave 2 Withdraws and wave 1 charges again. Etc etc.
My gm in our short-lived attempt at Kingmaker used this on us during one random encounter at night, I think there were at least 8 wolves at the start.
Have the monsters stealth up, trying to get a surprise round.
They launch a volley of missiles in the surprise round, firing from further away than the PCs can cover in a round. Those doing well on initiative get a second shot off, then they all move / run / withdraw away in different directions as the PCs start to close.
Difficult terrain is perfect for this - gives cover for the sneak up, stops charges.
Perhaps they have prepared a few trapped squares to slow pursuers - tripwires or even just caltrops.
Alternatively, in open terrain, have mounted opponents with ride by attack & lances. A level 1 fighter could have mounted combat + ride by.
Oh, I just found something good- Crysmals.
They are basically an earth elemental scorpion made of crystals, and they view all gems as their babies (they can turn the gems into babies).
They are CR 3 (4 hd) and have a burrow speed, a natural ranged attack (1/day, but hey- 3d6 with a slight AoE on that CR), dimensional door as a 3/day SLA, and they have at will use of silent image, ghost sound, and mage hand. Oh, and DR/bludgeoning that could mess with first response archers that forgot to bring their blunt arrows.
So they have a nice, low CR and a nice array of things that can make them a pain. Get a handful of them, and have them attack the party after the party loots a stash of gems. I could see them harassing the party for days through hit and runs, traps (the illusion stuff), and theft attempts during the night.
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Utilize architecture or natural terrain.
Have your PCs end up is a large open location that is surrounded by many obstacles of different distances, shapes, and heights. Then choose a creature with a ranged attack and a bonus to both Perception and Stealth, and have them snipe. If a PC closes in, have them use Stealth to change locations. Track their locations separately using your DM screen.
If you use a single creature, make sure it's Perception and Stealth are at the upper end of what your PCs are capable of. If you use multiple creatures, make sure their Perception and Stealth are at the median end of what your PCs are capable of. Give your creature Spring Attack if you want to do more than just snipe.
Most importantly, be fair. Be clear about how you will adjudicate Perception vs Stealth (the CRB gives more guidelines than hard rules), and let that cut both ways across the table. Make sure your PCs are familiar with the Ready Action rules.
You will know if you are doing it right if your PCs are paranoid but engaged.
A mixed squad of gremlins. A couple of Pugwampis along with Hobkins is a menace.
Use a combination of missile-fire, stealth, and tough terrain that makes pursuit difficult. If the bad guys had time to prep, they could also use traps to slow down pursuit: caltrops, snares, deadfalls, etc. Magic, such as entangle would also work.
In other words, the bad guys set an ambush, and then fall back as soon as the PCs counter-attack.
If the bad guys have magic, they can use that to distract the PCs, perhaps sending them off chasing in the wrong direction. (E.g. ghost sound, dancing lights, silent image.)
Hit-and-run with melee combatants doesn't really work. However, the bad guys could send in trained animals or release an expendable monster to fight the PCs while they run. E.g.: the bad guys throw a wasp nest into the party's campsite. Summon monster works too.
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When I was working on Spheres of Might I wrote up a tactics section that described how to run different kinds of monsters, including hit-and-run opponents. While it's mostly geared towards campaigns using Spheres of Might, it does have some advice that is generally applicable to running different kinds of combats with different kinds of monsters, and that advice is actually free on the Spheres wiki if you''re interested.
A rogue can pick up the fast getaway talent at level 2. Meaning they can sneak attack (for example after flanking) and withdraw in the same round. For a low level NPC respective monster that might be quite helpful.
And if players have some success with prepared actions and reach weapons against such tactics, that's a fair reward for them thinking and spending precious combat actions.
First off there's sniping, but most ranged attackers of CR 2 or even CR 6 for that matter aren't really good at it. They suffer -10 to -20 on their checks
Well, there is the Expert Sniper feat for a penalty reduction of -10. Beyond that:
Halfling alternate racial trait swift as shadows: Reduce penalty by 10
Rogue (guerrilla) 4: Set penalty to -10
Slayer (guerilla) 1: Reduce penalty by class level/2
Further, you can look for significant bonuses to Stealth in general, to make sniping work. Getting them from race (such as being Small) is usually cheaper than from feats, at that low level.
Oh, I missed Kobold Sniper (reduces penalty to -10) and tiefling's race trait Fiendish Sniper (+5 on the check).
Clever use of maze like corridors and silent image can also help out- the enemies know the area better than the players do, and you don't get to save vs. silent image until you interact with it. So adding a wall that blocks off a hallway is a rather good method for providing quick hidy holes for enemies.
They just need to have someone waiting at the safe spot with the image up. This works best if it is after a blind corner- that lets the enemy escape the party's sight for a second which gives the time to get behind the illusionary wall.
The monsters can also set up an ambush from such a hidey hole (which is a good way to tip off the party that illusions are at play, on the off chance that the party doesn't get suspicious after the first disappearance or two).
Hit and run can be very frustrating to handle as a player, especially if done well. With that word of warning out of the way, lets talk how to do it properly.
1: Scouting -> The enemy group should have scouts that are on the lookout to catch the PCs before the ambush and figure out where they are going. Once they know that, they can begin to plan their ambush.
2: Location -> The location of the fight is important to decide upon, if the enemy is laying an ambush they will probably try to find terrain that works best for them. Once you have a good starting terrain, they can alter it to better fit their particular fighting style. Rough terrain, traps, caltrops, and other tools of area denial are a good start. Remember, traps are hard to disarm mid-combat so they function as area denail. Even if the PCs spot them (especially if the PCs spot them), those tiles will be unusable, allowing you to force them through choke points or into specific spots during the combat. This is great for AoE attacks.
3: The Ambush -> Before the fight starts, the ambushing group can use their surprise round to pre-buff before the fight. I'd suggest potions of Expedious Retreat as they are quite cheap at 50gp per use and maximise their ability to get in close and then get back out. Once the fight is going, its a good idea to have a pre-planned escape tactic such as a Fog Cloud, Obscuring Mists, Black Tentacles, Entangle, or other battle field control spell that can lock down the enemy and allow your companions to escape. Since the combat will be far under 10 rounds, the Expedious Retreat potion will still be active allowing the other party to escape at 2x movement compared to the party that is currently gummed up. If some folks make their saves, that is ok, since they will then be trying to catch up verses very fast folks and be a numbers disadvantage which can lead to you turning the tables if they try to chase you down.
4: The Get Away -> Once you've broken off combat from your prepared ambush spot, lead the PCs into a second area that you have prepared. Setting up fake tracks before hand can lead them into traps, or if your group is agile enough they can make it through the trapped zone themselves. Regardless, the PCs will break off pursuit upon hitting a second wave of traps and redouble their guard. This will make luring them into a second ambush harder, but the whole goal is to have made the PCs use resources in a fight that was non-conclusive.
5: The Reengage -> A hit and run fight only counts as a win under two conditions. One, you've weakened the PCs enough to finish them with a second attack. Two, you've driven them away. If you have not accomplished goal B and the PCs are still coming, then you are aiming for A so you need to plan a reengage. The PCs will be paranoid, so you'll need to find a new way to get the jump on them as opposed to your first ambush. Additionally, you need to do this on the same day as if the party can rest they'll regain all their expended resources. The PCs will exhaust their most resources during the first encounter as they will not be expecting the fight or their opponents to run. Once they know an opponent will run away, they will be conservative on their resources (Or use all their resources to try and nuke the runners before they can run). If you can't exhaust the PCs resources before your encounter's resources are empty then the monsters have not gained anything from these encounters, because the Hit and Run group will never gain a chance to finish off the players. Without that, their only chance of being effective is in pissing off your players so much they decide to abandon their current route or objective in order to avoid further encounters.
The most effective hit and run group I've ever used were a tribe of natives who would engage the PCs, grapple one of them, tie them up, and book it out with a hostage. After two players disappeared they had to track down the native village and save folks from ending up in the soup.
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Might help to use animal companions to increase action economy without CD bloat. Mounted archers on Giant Owls can pepper the PCs from above, fly away, and return pretty quickly. If course, it depends on how thick the forest canopy is. Alternatively, sending a pack of animal companions to fight in melee while archers stay out about 100 ft away might give better odds, having the archers retreat when the companions start dropping.
Building off of the mounted archer idea above:
Make the NPCs 3rd level druids with the nature's fang archetype, mounted combat and archery, and a small race. What the race is should probably depend on the campaign. Have them pre-buff. Longstrider, Ant Haul, Greensight, and if they have a 14 or higher wisdom, barkskin, can go up before heading out on a 'patrol' of the forest. Barkskin and Ant Haul are for Giant Owl animal companions, Greensight and Longstrider are for the archers. When they first see the PCs, have them cast Glide which will work if they have to leave their animal companion in a hurry. With greensight they can see through the forest canopy, removing concealment (though I'd probably still give soft cover for the branches, depending on how thick the overhead is). Just before attacking, feed the mounts potions of entropic shield and study the PCs. Double move each round with the owls, making long broad circles overhead while the archers attack. The owls should last a few rounds, considering any concealment or cover from the canopy or entropic shield as well as barkskin and mounted combat, but will likely die still as they won't have too many HP. After the owls start dropping, the druids can glide to safety in the trees where they can't be tracked (trackless step) and can regroup for later assaults. 3 of these is a CR6 encounter, and they can be added to other encounters with any forest-dwelling cults as well.
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Summoned monsters are great for hit and run, as they don't actually need to run. The caster (perhaps a druid) can stay well out of the way while dumping a host of animals on the party.
If your PCs' perception is so high that traps become trivial, apply night or fog. The PCs might not be moving, but if they charge off into the night to chase Monster Group A, then Monster Group B can come in from behind and ransack their camp while they're away.
Stupid idea- goblins with the 'roll with it' feat.
This way, they can get out of the reach of the creature threatening it. Sure, it is staggered afterwards, but it can still use a move action in order to run away. You could also take advantage of the fact that the attacker has to waste time following the goblin around (the full attack centered nature of the game always puts the person approaching with a move action at a disadvantage).
Of course, this strategy goes downhill quickly if the party has good ranged support. But if the party is melee heavy, then there could be a delay while they pull out their bows- time to run away. If the party has a blaster caster, then that also reduces the ability to survive, but hey- you can get them to eat through spells.
flyby attack doesnt have all those other pesky prereqs, if memory serves me
One way to fix the 'freeze on their initiative" is to not let your players SEE your tracker. And if you have decided on the players turn, what they are doing, you can fluidly skip right past them, allowing them to trigger what they want, when they want. If that still doesn't work remind players, by "knowing an opponent hasn't acted this round" That's metagaming. The entire round is comprised of 6 seconds, and if a player has been watching everything an enemy did for those first few seconds to see if they are hesitating at all, then they are either skipping their turn just to watch, or metagaming, there's really no other reason
It was suggested above, but the escape route teamwork feat might help improve withdraw strategies by reducing AoO's. Also potions of blur or displacement to make them less vulnerable to stray attacks.
Expeditious Retreat and Vanish potions. Super cheap and useful in ambushes and hit and run encounters. Drink the ER potion first, ready Vanish potion, charge in and hit. Next turn, 5 ft step away, drink potion, next turn retreat. Rinse/repeat as necessary.
This is one reason I like using Trailblazer rules for reactions though. Allows groups to use Wolf Pack tactics using their reactions to aid each other, instead of blowing an entire round on a wasted +2 bonus.