(New Feature, “Chatty’s What if” explores a less-conventional idea, to see where it will lead, enjoy!)
What if a DM judged that his playing group could use a little object lesson in resource and risk assessment? What if an extended rest could be turned into an adventure?
My ‘What if ideas’ comes from an old article I read on Mike Mearls‘ blog about having Random Monster crash extended rests in dungeons.
I don’t like random monsters. On the other hand, the idea of having players sweat for their extended rest could be worth exploring once or twice in a campaign. This is especially true if your group chronically blows their wad of dailies in the first encounter and then request an extended rest. So, what if you said ‘Yes’ to resting in a dangerous area (like in the middle of a freaking dungeon) but did it with a twist?
What if you made setting up and getting through the extended rest (relatively) unscathed into a Skill Challenge? In essence, the PCs would be challenged for the possibility of successfully resting in a high danger area.
If they win, they get through and regain all their daily resources. If they lose, they get interrupted sometime during the setting up/rest period and get partial resources back. As all good skill challenges I’ve played, the secret resides in a strong narrative to support the challenge, a sense of threat to PCs and making both individual successes and failures interesting.
While the challenge could be structured like those found in published adventures,I believe this particular situation calls for a looser, quick and dirty approach.
It’s too dangerous to rest here!
This technique resides in semi-improvising a decision tree based decisions you ask players to make while trying to set up and protect their camp. The challenge is based on a 6 successes/3 failure skill challenge .
The core idea of the challenge is that each success incurred will mean that by the end of the challenge, the PCs will have had the equivalent of 1 hour of full rest and recover a set fraction of their daily resources (Daily powers, Healing Surges, HP and Daily Magic Item use) based on their race.
The challenge starts by describing the PC’s situation and asking where and how exactly they intend to set camp. After the likely “are you screwing with us?’ response from your players, calmly explain that you’ll gladly let them rest safely if they manage to, as a party, find and secure a rest area that will, hopefully, not be found by the alerted denizens of the area.
If they don’t get the idea, just repeat, in your best 1980’s computerized voice impersonation “it is not safe to rest here”, they should eventually get the message.
Each action they want to attempt is not going to be played directly on the area/dungeon map, but is abstracted to represent PCs trying to scout/sneak/find secret passages/guard their campsite/etc. Each is represented by a single skill check by a lead PC with possibly one or two helpers (or a group skill checks, as applicable, see DMG II).
As a DM, you determine if the skill to be rolled is a primary one, moving the challenge forward or cancelling a failure (ex: scout an area, lead a hostile patrol into the jaws of a hungry monster, discover a lost temple). Otherwise, it is a secondary one, helping the challenge (ex: Lead chasing monsters away from party, find likely spot for a secret door, map the dungeon during the challenge).
Skill check DCs should be moderate to hard for primary skills and easy to moderate for secondary. See page 42 of the Dungeon Master Guide for the list (or the updated version in the DMG 2, I prefer the original one).
Note that each skill check does not mean that one hour out of the 6 needed to rest has passed. Chances are the PCs did anything but rest during the abstracted time covered by the skill check. See ‘Success’ below
When a primary skill succeeds, you move the story 1/6th closer toward completion in your “story tree”, providing a cool narrative about the PCs exploits (or letting the players do it). Each success will allow PCs to recover 25% of their resources at the end of the challenge (see below).
They then get to describe what they want to attempt next, wash and repeat if they are lucky enough.
I would initially map the success tree as: Move undetected , Scout, Secure safe area, Set camp, alternate sentry shifts, Rested! Of course, this would be subjected to change as failures occur.
When a primary skill fails, you branch off into trouble for the PCs: a new prowling monster caught their scent, a patrol approaches or the PCs are hit by a noisy cave-in, etc (once again, page 42 is your friend). They’ll at least need another skill roll to get out of this one which may or may not count for the overall skill challenge. You have a full grip on the pacing of this challenge, juice it for all it’s worth! A second failure should become a chase or something dire that spells imminent failure.
After each failure, ask players for another action to try to achieve their goal, making it clear that it’s going to be much harder now. If monsters are involved in the failure, I’d consider allowing PCs to fight them (moderate challenge) to cancel the failure or, if you are a softy, convert it to a success. In essence, each failure should make future successes harder, forcing players to use more secondary skills to get them out of trouble.
Finally, at all points, the players should be allowed to quit the challenge and either leave the area (if possible) or resume adventuring where they left off. If the incurred a few successes, consider rewarding them accordingly.
The end result of the challenge is two-fold:
Success: Party found a place to rest for 6 continuous hours in safety, all daily resources are recovered, each failure will make the general area somewhat more dangerous to PCs from now on.
Failure: The area goes on high-alert and the party is too much in trouble to manage a complete rest period. The party fails to get full rest and may get attacked/chased by a moderately challenging encounter. PCs needing 6 hours of rest recover 1/6 total daily resources per success, starting with lower level ones. Others needing 4 (like elves) recover 25% for each instead.
(This will make elf players very happy!
You adjust the story/situation depending on the relative successes and failures encountered in the challenge. If 2 failures were incurred during the challenge, then the area is on high alert and the PCs are much more likely to face a tougher opposition. If the challenge was a pure success, well you had a good 10-15 minute roleplaying session where you got to screw with the minds of your players a bit.
I will likely give it a try soon. But not this week as my players are now probing the blog wary of what I’ll spring on them next 🙂
Any thoughts to make this cooler?
Post Publication Edit: Many commenters chimed in to mention that the Rest Challenge should not be used for every extended rest. I thought this was self evident as I pointed out that early in the post but it might have been missed by some. I believe that no skill challenges should be played more than once or twice, ever. This challenge is a once or twice a campaign thing, or a little ‘lesson’ for 5-min a day work gaming groups.
This idea’s been around for a long time (like since 1st Ed.). It’s very much in the spirit of old school AD&D, where DMs tended to create these epic, gigantic dungeons that practically forced PCs to make camp within dungeons on a long run. Of course, back in 1st Ed., your chances of getting jumped by mobs while studying your spell book were a lot more arbitrary. You’d describe precautions taken to the DM (spiking doors, setting up trip alarms, rotating watches, etc.), and they’d make the call whether to roll on the wandering monster table.
Using the skill challenge system for this is a slick application of that mechanic and a great solution to the old challenge of arbitrating when the monsters should fall on the PCs while they rest. I like it!
.-= Jack Graham´s last blog ..Never Mind Flying Cars… =-.
I like the idea here.
However, I don’t know how well it would play without being formulaic quickly.
I mean, besides from picking a strategically sound spot and picking turns for watch (or not, if you have an Eladrin or Elf on board), what else is there to do?
Whipping up an encounter based on probabilities of them being found is basically the same idea simplified. Pick a bad spot, chances are you’ll be found. No body standing guard? if there’s an encounter you’ll be flat-footed… and probably weaponless!
While I love the idea of the challenge, I think a combat encounter is still the best – it could even be rewarding for prepared groups!
If the ranger spotted the enemy way ahead of time, the PCs could do an ambush that will destroy the unwelcome guests in seconds.
.-= Eric Maziade´s last blog ..Hocksprocket Corporation’s Claw of Elevation [R&D Report] =-.
Coming from the “let the players win” camp, I would suggest that this kind of challenge should be used when PCs should otherwise not get an extended rest (per your example, if they blow their dailies in the first fight or two). By comparison, the pbp I’m currently in has us looking to maybe take an extended rest after something like 6 encounters (one of which went pretty badly, and used more of our surges than would have been prefered), but we’re still in the dungeon since it is apparently more than 6 encounters long. I know I would feel a little upset if the DM said “okay, you need to complete this challenge in order to take your rest”. While it makes sense from an in-game perspective, it basically means that we’re being punished for going through a dungeon that requires more than 1 days worth of PC resources. And I’m always trying to be careful NOT to “punish” players (because I hate when it happens to me!)
So if the PCs are deserving a rest, give it to ’em! But if they don’t deserve it (or, as you said, you just want to shake things up once during a campaign), this sounds like a fun way to do it 🙂
This is why “Rope Trick” was one of the most important spells to have in pre-4th edition versions of the game. Unless the they used resources to protect themselves (like Rope Trick), I have never allowed a party to sleep in an unsecured location.
I find quite interesting as a way to have the equivalent to a random monster without actually needing to do any combat.
This can be a real boon to keeping the pace of your game instead of popping a meaningless fight where it’s only purpose was to highlight the fact that the players could not rest there… I most definitely take note of the idea and will probably use it in a form or another if the occasion ever present itself in my game….
I tried something similar in a wilderness environment, where a skill challenge to set up camp does IMO offer even more possibilities for a skill challenge than a dungeon. There is the selection of a defensively optimal spot, creating traps and camouflage, sheltering from the elements, foraging, etc. The players did not feel as if being punished, as creating camp in such situation was seen as something obviously necessary.
On the other hand, the adventure at that point was driven by a structural skill challenge, where the combat encounters were triggered by PC skill check failures. A camp-building part fits into such a structure much better than into a location-based adventure like the typical dungeon.
I really like this skill challenge concept, Phil. I’m with highbulp regarding this as a sort of party punishment for being reckless with their resources, but I also consider this challenge fit for very daring parties — those who laugh in the face of danger!
Some additions I would implement:
– Being able to lock doors/portcullises from their side grants them a bonus/success
– Long corridors, chasms, or other sound-channeling architecture should penalize some actions
– Strong magic auras emanating from protections may attract magic-hungry monsters
– The presence of incorporeal monsters should ramp up the difficulty
— JP
I’m endlessly fascinated by how well the “skill challenge” tool in our DM Toolbox can be used in so many ways, to resolve so many game quirks, and yet continue to make the Players feel even more involved. Excellent ideas here!
.-= Neuroglyph´s last blog ..Review of Clever Classes: Jester by Alluria Publishing =-.
The only concern I have is the fractional recovery of daily abilities. Personally, I’d run it as an all or nothing. Success means you get the use of your dailies (etc) back. Failure means you don’t. End of story. But otherwise I like the rest of the setup.
.-= Cameron´s last blog ..Hrm =-.
@Jack: Yes, I remember that quite clearly. That’s actually my attempt to apply 4e’s approach to simulate that. Although, like I said (and Eric missed apparently, he he he), I’d do it just once or twice in a campaign to stir things up, unless everyone enjoyed it enough to do it more.
@Eric: As Yan points out in the comments, this challenge is an abstraction of the whole ‘lets set a camp somewhere and try to rest’ that allows you to create dynamic, “once in a while” scenes without breaking out the battlemap while still letting players decide to fight it out.
It lets you create a role playing scene where the party sneaks around, finds a safe spot, hear a monster approach, lead it to a Lava pit, meet a Patrol on the way back, lose them in a chase and finally get a pitiful 3 hours of sleep before the patrol finds them again.
All this with skill checks and a bit of mouseguarding.
That buddy, in my book, beats a random encounter check when you apply this challenge at the right time in a campaign.
@highbulp: You hit my concept on the head there. The goal is to use this as an object lesson, a dramatic focus for an adventure or as a model for new quick and dirty skill challeneges.
It could still be used in your ‘but we’re spent!!!’ scenario if threats affecting the party trying to rest were easy to moderate encounters and the GM was a bit more generous in letting you recover dailies (making a 4/3 or even a 3/3 skill challenge, screw the rules I say).
@Walker: Agreed. I must confess that I’ve let players rest in areas they should not have because it would otherwise have them killed. I also found Rope Trick to be a slightly ridiculous spell. I wonder if I should have used it as a DM to drop monsters on PCs in the middle of a fight.
@Yan: Thanks friend! Coming from you I greatly appreciate it. Actually the mechanic of the rest challenge came from me doing thought experiments in making Dungeon Crawling itself into a skill challenge (as I told you) and I may use this to springboard the design of a wider application of the quick and dirty SC where skills are chosen as they are named by the players.
@Mak: I agree that from a Camp-specific skill challenge, an outdoors one is easier to narrate/play out. But the trick inside a dungeon is to spread the Party’s “challenge area” over a larger part of the dungeon as they abstractly explore it.” In my mind’s eye, the ‘camp’ part would come later in the 6-part narrative, but maybe that’s just me being all indie an all. 🙂
@Juan: Thanks. Actually, your suggestions would make great examples of secondary skill use (1st one) and possible outcome of one failed check (2,3 and 4).
@Neuroglyph: The untapped potential of SCs, is staggering. Getting baseline players and DM to master them may take a while as they really are hard to learn from the books. Playing one straight from a book without adding a LOT narrative often feels like such a dice chucking fest. Thanks for the kudos.
@Cameron: As you would see fit. But you’d get a happy surprise from your players when you told them that they got some things back even after a fail. But you can really swing it either way. I’ll call your variant the ‘Classic Variant”
I like the idea, though I would probably use it sparingly. Particularly depending on what kind of environment the PCs are exploring:
If they are adventuring in the ‘wilderness’ (a forest, underdark tunnels, blasted plains of the elemental chaos, etc), then yes this works well.
If they are infiltrating a highly-populated and/or fortified location (Enemy castle, Temple of Evil Cultists, etc), then it becomes much harder to sell. Any place with a high traffic throughput is going to make it almost impossible to find a secluded, undisturbed location for such a long period.
There is too much chance for one of the regular inhabitants to stumble upon the PCs, call for help, and bring down the whole place on their heads. There are of course exceptions; if the party can find a previously undiscovered or very-rarely-used secret room, or if it’s late at night when most of the inhabitants are asleep also.
Good ideas overall, I’ll definitely try to incorporate some of these ideas into my next game.
@ Aaron: What about secret passages that weren’t on your map? Lost levels? Areas that people shun because there’s a Huge monster sleeping?
I say that this kinda challenge if played with some improv, can open up the dungeon map, no matter how densely populated, to some interesting concepts.
Also, a densely populated dungeon in which PCs must fight tooth and nail in each room might also be a tedious adventure… maybe those secret passages can be a boon to break an unexpected drop in player/DM enjoyment!
I really like it. Not for every extended rest, but occasionally; it is a great way to get more skills and puzzles involved in the game. I think this scenario also helps with one of my biggest issues with skill challenges: that is always having the guy with the highest score do the roll. If the players take turns guarding the camp, then the awake person will have to make the appropriate rolls, even if he is not the best in that area. That would encourage the players to diversify and allow people to feel like some of their skills are actually useful.
The other thing I’d encourage is allow use of rituals for successes. There are number that are useful in a camping scenario: such as detecting monsters, alarms, sanctification, etc. Even creating food and water might turn a less than idea spot for rest into a useful one.
Touché.
Man, I can’t wait to get back into the DM’s chair…
@Mike: This is EXACTLY what I was going for. Making DMs imagine how this idea could be fitted in their own group’s dynamics.
And, like all SCs, feel free to cut it short if the narrative has reached a point where it’s obvious the Players succeeded (they’ve reached a temple protected by a Solar) or failed the challenge (the sentry leads monsters in camp instead of misleading them) .
A comment about failures: I’m starting to be wary of punishing failures by throwing combat encounters at the group: they do not usually see more combat as a negative outcome… Or as a co-DM put it: “Why take the risk of letting a good combat encounter go to waste if they succeed?”
Coming up with interesting results for a failure has this far been the hardest thing for me to design in a SC: having the area go on alert is a good one, forcing the PC’s to re-think their tactics (and even strategy)
Just a note, skill challenges have been updated in the latest Star Wars Saga Edition Book, “Galaxy of Intrigue:.
Moving on from that, finding a safe resting spot is a staple for any sort of adventure where you’re rebels or spies or being hunted. Choosing a bad spot to rest means a squad of stormtroopers kicks in the door and starts shooting, or the terminators find you.
I say if you desire to engage in this sort of thing, give it a purpose. Have enemies trying to find them, instead of vice-versa. Maybe an intelligence officer has been tasked with tracking their location, or they’re being preyed upon by bounty hunters. Maybe a golem has been tasked to kill them by a wizard with scry or other divination powers.
Having monsters randomly drop in is unlikely. But if they are heroes and they’ve killed lots of people they’ve more than likely made enemies who would gladly murder them in their sleep.
Good insight. And the first failure of such a challenge should introduce these Hostile NPCs (like the classic heroes stuck in air vents while the Bounty Hunter says, did you hear something? And starts shooting into the vents, causing the SW equivalent of rule 42 damage on a group of PC as they scramble away)
I really need to have a look at Galaxy of Intrigue
Good post. I’m not sure how I feel overall, mostly because so far I despise Skill Challenges. I’ve tried to run them twice already and they were ridiculously mechanical both times. (I also played in one during a D&D Game Day last year and it was miserably mechanical there too.)
I like the idea behind it though, and maybe trying this would give me more to like about SCs. There would at least be a legitimate reason for each check roll, and it wouldn’t be the same characters making the check repeatedly using the group’s best score (with the Aid Another addition.)
When you say “random” encounters, do you mean old-style “roll the dice and compare against this table” or do you mean more like wandering monsters that are specific to the situation that show up? For example, if the party is camping in a dungeon and they fail the check have you predetermined that a pack of rats and a couple spiders come in through holes in the walls/ceiling and this exact encounter happens the first time the party fails the check/challenge?
@Chatty:
I’d have to try it to believe it past the concept point… as I still feel the “random encounter” (which does not need to be so random) is a good, simple abstraction of failing to do properly perform all the repetitive tasks of setting up camp.
In most cases, I would prefer to assume the experienced PCs set up their camp properly. If they set it up in an obviously bad spot, I’d tell them. If they insist, they risk getting an encounter.
I see roughly three basic camp types : in the wilds (most often during travel – I rarely see the need to do encounters there), within enemy grounds (if they haven’t cleaned up the place or didn’t pick a clever hiding spot, encounters could happen here).
Third type would be “unconventional locations”.
Now, if they choose rest in an unconventional location – where the normal experienced adventurer wisdom does not apply – I can start seeing the skill challenge work and be interesting.
Maybe I just need a solid example to see it for other cases 🙂
.-= Eric Maziade´s last blog ..Hocksprocket Corporation’s Claw of Elevation [R&D Report] =-.
I ask for a skill challenge in use and you deliver! Next time I’ll ask for a winning lotto ticket.
I like this idea a lot! A lot of the time I’d include hidden rooms just for the purpose of keeping the characters in the dungeon and not having them leave the dungeon to continue on.
I still have problems with the continuity of the scenario when the players want to take a rest when I didn’t expect it. (e.g. just before the BBEG room. Wouldn’t he leave room at some point in those 6 hours and discover the massacre then quadruple the guard? Or just leave…)
Would you award XP on a success as well?
@Alio: Random Encounter means ‘old school, roll on a chart and make shit up to make it fit in the story if need be… or not). In the case of the challenge, I would have a few mobile encounters ready… or use the ones I have in the dungeon moving around on patrols, errand, hunting packs.
@Eric: Man, I really hate arguing with coders. 🙂 Actually I think you’re just baiting me to DM for you again. I think the one element the post has failed to clearly convey to you (and possibly others), is that the challenge does not start with “We rest here” unless you want to. And I wouldn’t for the exact reason you mentionned.
The challenge should, IMO, start when players say “We rest” and you answer “oh yeah? Where?” and then you start the challenge that creates kind of a Montage scene where the PCs find the spot, chase huge lizards from it, etc. Then, as soon as a failure hits, you go ‘Mission Impossible’ on the PCs and you screw the plan and see how they react…. without resorting to another fight (remember they just concluded one)… unless they feel like it. But then, you decide if they can rest here or maybe new monsters arrive.
In the end, the challenge mechanic shows you the overall quality of the rest they got, like all those numbers that pile up too fast to read in those casual Pop Cap games.
🙂
@ChattyDM : Well… get your specs right, then! I’d swear you’re baiting me to boost your comments count!
.-= Eric Maziade´s last blog ..Hocksprocket Corporation’s Claw of Elevation [R&D Report] =-.
@Eric: I would never (hesitate to) do that! You better never rest in one of my games man, ir if you do, save a little pillow space for Orcus. 🙂
@Ismahel: Yes, I’d give out XP as well, and possibly more than it’s face value if the whole thing evolves in a more complicated challenge. This could end up taking your whole gaming session.
@ChattyDM : Haven’t you done away with XP yet? I though XP was for CRPGs…
(Chatty DM Edit: I see what you’re trying to do here Eric… don’t even try buddy. he he he)
.-= Eric Maziade´s last blog ..Hocksprocket Corporation’s Claw of Elevation [R&D Report] =-.
This is a really good idea. I like how the integration of a skill challenge lets the players have some control over how safe the place is, instead of the GM simply deciding “it’s safe” or “it merits Random Monster”.
.-= Andy´s last blog ..Sick of Being Sick? =-.
I’m all about the flavour in campaigns and for the past 4-6 months i’ve been using a rest system that allows the PC’s to gain back HP (this isn’t HP as you know it), Mana, Feats/Powers. However when they decide to rest they have a d4 event happen before they are actually able to rest.
1. Random Encounter – usually tied to an upcoming story or bad guy
2. Side Mission – Offer of a secondary mission thats usually 1 skill challange and 1 short encounter long = 20-30 minutes. I use these to flesh out PC stories and also reward some really unique gear upon completion
3. Bonus – Good fortune shines upon the PC’s and they are helped by a good samaritin, stumble upon some treasure, Overhear some key information
4. Boon – Usually a silent event that has the BBG achieving a key victory while the PC’s sleep. for example: The Necromancer kills the Princess before the PC’s can rescue her. No the aim of the mission completely changes. Do they make a deal with the Necromancer to revive the princess? at what cost? Do they kill the Necromancer and inform the King of the unfortunate news? How does the king react.
So far both myself and the players have enjoyed this system, with some very interesting unforseen events occuring.
On a Bonus roll they slept in a circle of Psychic power which had them enter the minds of the BBEG’s while they were asleep. They then got to control the BBEG’s for 6 hours or so. that was a fun.
A Side mission saw them assaulting a young red dragon! which turned out to be a young sickly copper dragon… with a substantial hoard i might add. They chose to help it and now have a very powerful ally that they can call on within the dragon… they were also rewarded with their choice in loot, obviously.
Scott W.
IMHO, I would not force an event *every* time the players go to rest. Sometimes it is just fine to let them just rest and move on if they pick a quiet place and nobody’s around.
We have done a little of this in the group but we approached it from the player side using skills to lower the chance to a random encounter. Nature to cover tracks to the cave, bank the fire, perception to determine a less monster rich location, Stealth to sneak the party off the path and hide our presense.
All though this wasn’t approached as a skill challange but it seems very similar to your concept. I would then on succes reduce the chance of an encounter, then used opposed checks by the monster to see if the party successfully remained camoflaged.
From a skill challange view you could then let the party make a perception check by the person on watch and offer say an insight check on what was tipping the monsters off. This might offset some of the partys success at hiding if the monsters suspect something is in the area, Random encounter chance jumps back up unless the party wants to do something to continue to hid there presense.
I like the idea of a skill challange to avoid a random encounter in a threatening area, and a failure is interrupted extended rest by action or even combat. Rest is the reward but the experience is for sleeping during the night in the goblin lair. Not a perfect tool but a great way to approach hostile environments, thanks for sticking the idea in my head.
This post did give me an idea I’m definitely gonna try and work into a campaign soon. I’d want to wait for a natural lead-in: The players are nearing the end of their resources, and the actual session is nearing it’s end time. The Players decide to make camp and get an extended rest and then end the session.
The following session, though, wouldn’t begin with them breaking camp and getting ready for a new day of adventuring, but instead pick up right where the last session left off. I’d start it with a quick skill challenge of finding and securing a good camp site. Make a couple basic, obvious options: Turning over furniture to make barricades, setting traps, spiking doors, etc. Then the “One Crazy Night” session begins.
As each character takes their turn at watch they get a specially crafted mini-adventure (1-2 encounters max) that either plays to their strengths or makes them shore up weak points. Maybe the Ranger has to play a Cat and Mouse game with a kobold scout that’s found their position and is trying to get back to report it. The Rogue gets to go all “Solid Snake” on a dispatch of goblin guards trying to escort a treasure wagon through the dungeon. The Fighter has to wrestle a bugbear captain in an “honor duel” to prevent his forces from coming down atop his team. The Cleric finds a batch of mostly benign ghosts who he has to shepherd on to the next life. And the Wizard, who was allowed to skip watch duty, still gets in on the action while he spends the whole night dueling with some freaky astral entity in a dreamscape. (And maybe playing his last so he can get glimpses of all the things the rest of the party is getting up to from his side of the veil).
I think it would be an entertaining one-off night, let you really try to cement the characters identities, and just be one of those memorable events. I’d even recomend only having the character involved present, so the Rogue doesn’t get peer-shamed into splitting that treasure wagon with the rest of the party, or making the Cleric explain what is going on since those ghosts temporarily possessed the sleeping bodies of his friends and was about to have them re-enact the ghosts murder-suicide. Of course. I’d also make sure to have gotten a good multi-player videogame or new munchkin set or something for the rest of the group to do in the interrim.
Think this idea has merits?
@HartThorn
I think that sounds like it could be fun. The best way to get the rest of the party into it might be to have them play the “villains” in each vignette. That way people can get involved (I always have less fun when people aren’t involved, even if they are playing munchkin or whatever. The party is where the people are), and there could even be a bit of give-and-take since each person gets to be both the villain and the hero in an encounter.
Heh, having the other party members play the villains could turn it into a real game of munchkin! I’d probably also have some sort of reward for the “villainous” player if they actually achieve their goal just to encourage them to really work for the monsters goals instead of limping along. Or just spring this at a period of high party contention and let them vent their frustrations, lol.
Could definitely work that into it…
I wrote a skill challenge back in January in the same line of what you describe here. I posted in on my blog last month if you want to check it out.
http://thisismygame.wordpress.com/2010/02/04/my-first-skill-challenge/
The basic idea is the group is trapped in a house with zombies outside trying to break in. If they pass a skill check they keep the zombies out for one round and get 1 healing surge. On the 4th success they get encounter powers back, on the 5th they get dailies and are ready for a fight with a solo zombie who breaks in. Every time they fail a skill check a random number of zombie minions break into the house and interrupt their rest meaning they don’t get healing that round. 3 failures would result in the solo zombie hulk breaking in early.
It worked really well.
T.
.-= Thadeous´s last blog ..A freaken exciting week! =-.
@Thadeous: Ah, that works well!
Figures the concept only needed zombies…
(or non-common survival skills)
.-= Eric Maziade´s last blog ..Hocksprocket Corporation’s Claw of Elevation [R&D Report] =-.