Nullpunkt |
I am struggling to work out how to use Encounter and Exploration Mode at the table.
Originally, I thought Exploration Mode was for overland travel and such but the description specifically says "you could be [...] delving in a dungeon in search of danger and treasure."
So I tried to apply it in part 1 of Doomsday Dawn but even though I think I understand it in theory, the reality of it at the table makes me scratch my head.
An example of one time I think it worked well:
After the fight with the Sewer Ooze, I went around the table and asked everyone what tactic they are planning to use during the exploration of the Ossuray. I then assigned each of them an Exploration Tactic from the list that best fitted their descriptions. I then narrated the transition through the tunnel from the first area to the second area and then asked them to roll Initiative (with those who used the Sneaking tactic using Stealth), placed them near the entrance of the room and we were back in Encounter Mode.
An example of where it gets sticky:
The encounter with the Goblin Commando group was weird to transition into from Exploration Mode. The PCs notice a dim light spilling out from the passage so they know something's up. Some PCs want to sneak in and surprise them. What do I do? Do they just change their Exploration Tactics to Sneaking? Do we start Encounter Mode without rolling Initiative (which the rulebook claims is Step 1 of Encounter Mode)?
Generally speaking, I feel like Exploration Mode is not a good fit for dungeon exploration. Maybe it's because we play on roll20 and the players actually move their tokens through all the passages and down all the corridors or maybe I am just not "getting" Exploration Mode just yet, but so far it just confused me more than it added to the fun.
Comments and insights much appreciated.
Mr.CoffeeCup |
I am struggling to work out how to use Encounter and Exploration Mode at the table.
I found it a bit tricky as well. I think your choices were spot on.
I've run through a single session of Lost Star on Roll20 and we didn't finish.
I started the Ossuary asking what their tactics were as you did, but I had new players that haven't played table top RPGs before and it was a bit tricky working it out from that perspective. Eventually I got to a point where they were all just "looking out for danger" as they moved through. Since it was on Roll20, the new players just wanted to move their tokens around. I found it better narrating what occurred and tell them where they are when something interesting happens, rather than having them "Explore" inch by inch on the map. It really started to bog down the game for us which we were trying to fit into a 2 hour window.
I also tried to be specific for my players when we were transitioning modes, but it didn't come out well from a narrative standpoint and just seemed to have the game focus on mechanics. It really breaks immersion when I say to everyone we are now going to Exploration Mode.
My preference would be to leave them in Exploration Mode as long as possible and give them the option of changing their tactics to Sneaking.
Aramar |
I am struggling to work out how to use Encounter and Exploration Mode at the table.
Originally, I thought Exploration Mode was for overland travel and such but the description specifically says "you could be [...] delving in a dungeon in search of danger and treasure."
An example of one time I think it worked well:
After the fight with the Sewer Ooze, I went around the table and asked everyone what tactic they are planning to use during the exploration of the Ossuray. I then assigned each of them an Exploration Tactic from the list that best fitted their descriptions. I then narrated the transition through the tunnel from the first area to the second area and then asked them to roll Initiative (with those who used the Sneaking tactic using Stealth), placed them near the entrance of the room and we were back in Encounter Mode.
I have had the same confusion so far, especially as it applied to such a small dungeon as in Lost Star. Counter to your example of it working well for the first transition, it was after the Ooze fight that it struck me how odd Exploration Mode can be.
I asked the players roughly what they were doing as they moved through the hallway from the cistern to the crypt, but I didn't even think about applying Exploration Mode, since the hallway isn't more than 40 feet long, and wouldn't take but one or two rounds of walking to get through before combat started again. One of my players who is very by-the-rules stated explicitly that he was using the Defending Tactic, then corrected himself a moment later when he realized that he was concentrating on a spell and that was already a Tactic.I don't see why I wouldn't let him use his three theoretical actions to concentrate, shield, and walk. Granted, this would probably be very fatiguing, as suggested on page 329, but again, these tactics wouldn't have been occurring together for even 30 seconds, much less 2 minutes (pg 329), or even 10 minutes.
Shaheer-El-Khatib |
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It felt like a hard rule that was put here to help DM, but it also create weird situations like the ones you said.
In PF1 I used the "exploration mode" without thinking about that at all. I was just like "well, it's useless to play round by round now, so let's speed up things", asked players what they do and then proceed on what seems the more logical for me.
It feels really weird to me now that it's a "mechanical rule" rather that just a bit of common sense.
kpulv |
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The first session of Lost Star I had some trouble wrangling this, but for the second session I tried being more strict about each player calling our their intentions and/or tactics in an order that they decided. Essentially it turned into a slightly looser encounter mode.
I asked the players to give me the order in which they want to act in exploration mode since a lot can happen in a dungeon, and I need to make sure I'm keeping up with everyone's actions. So I went around the table (also on roll20 here) and asked each of them what they wanted to do, and told them they could move their token where they wanted to go after they stated their goal or intent. If they were searching or investigating, I would ask them to point out where they were looking, and did the perception roll. If they were sneaking, I would just consider them to be in sneak mode until an encounter broke out, and then they would roll stealth for their initiative.
The tighter approach of having each player act on a 'turn' and resolving their exploration tactic worked out much much better for my group. Everyone had a blast with it and they all seemed to be excited to continue with the whole turn-like structure for it, and once they get more familiar with what tactics are available to them I think it will pick up faster. As a GM, it was so much easier to figure out what was going on when only one player was acting at a time, just like in an encounter.
For the Goblin Commando encounter -- my players have not hit that yet, but they did trigger the noise trap, and are now in a stand off position. If they decide to go into the room with the goblins, their tactic will determine their initiative roll. If they walk down the tunnel with the intent of searching/investigating, then as soon as they spot the goblins, or vice versa, their roll will be perception as init and encounter mode starts. If they attempt to sneak into the room, then it will be stealth for their init.
It does feel a little weird still -- but after the second session I feel like both myself and my players are understanding it a lot better.