Thread by @qh_murphy

But in other, more important news: I wanna talk about COMBAT.

So, I am going to talk about systems where combat is more 'atomic' and more blow-by-blow, but I think you'll easily see where the use is for systems with a more summarizing, gestalt view.

Systems where we are rolling for particulars each round have cons that are well known:
- can be time-consuming
- can be complex
What I am not going to do is talk about how to minimize these things. Let's lean into strengths!

So, what are the strengths of what I'll call "atomic" combat systems in TTRPGs?

- real peaks and valleys create intense highs
- achieving system mastery can feel really good
- good systems allow you to be very expressive in approaches to fight

Before delving in, disclaimers!

It's fine to not like atomic combat engines! I am not trying to convince you. Any system in a TTRPG is basically a contract that says " I want to spend X time talking about Y thing".

If you don't want to talk about combat in detail, I feel you.

But none of what I am talking about is system-dependent. I am not going to tell you how to speed up combat or make it something other than what is mechanically.

I wanna talk about "fight feel" - how a a TTRPG combat flows and sits in your mind.

"Define fight feel."

Sure!

In TTRPG, fight feel describes how the narrative of the fight fits with the participant. It is the mood and tension and excitement of the fight.

So, if we acknowledge "fight feel" as a thing, how do you want your group to feel during and after the fight?

What happens in atomic combat is going through the process we tend to lose track of emotions and stakes.

To make atomic combat engines (ACE from here on) more fun, we provide thematic and emotional context to bridge the individual moments together into something greater than the sum of its parts.

In an ACE system we are looking to take individual moments, turn them into situations, which then generate narrative. We can also use themes and terrain (I have a previous thread on that) to create surprise and further tension.

Back to feelings. Let's start with our feel-bad friend, the *miss*. How much does it suck to wait fifteen minutes for your turn, make your move and then do literally nothing?

It feels...pretty bad.

What if we create narrative out of that situation?

Sorry, what if we make a situation out of that moment?

Rather than an isolated swing, what if the miss becomes the first part of a situation?

"You try to hit, but your opponent seems familiar with your style; they are reading you like an open book with a large font."

That detail provides context, it makes a situation out of this one roll. That situation now creates the prompt for a narrative to play out over the next few rounds.

You might miss over a few rounds, describing your PC's frustration growing...

When you hit, you not only have relief as player, your character has a story....

Suddenly you switch up styles...

"I have something to confess...I am not actually left-handed."

You switch hands and land a your first blow.

...or any number of different narratives you want.

Next point: use tables.

Not random generation tables..."Tables" are how I think about the type of terrain I like to use in fights.

A table in a fight scene is simple, but it is symmetrical, and can be used by combatants in a lot of ways.

Have at least one "table" in a fight.

Why? ACE systems are prone to reward folks running into position and doing a few things really efficiently. A good fight is about having ways for PCs to

A) overcome obstacles that make them inefficient
B) be expressive without penalizing then for it.

Use terrain and fight variables that compel or force players Todo something other than their plan A.

Your tables also then create moments that become situations that become narrative.

And really, that is where I'll leave it.

Embrace the moments of your fight and create situations that they can fit into. The events of the combat will create an overall narrative that you and the players can express and detail.

Hopefully y'all liked that surprisingly long thread!

Oh, and also:

Before folks tell me about games where the system is focused on positioning (hello PbtA/FitD!)...

I see them, I love them...but this is a technique thread more than it is a system thread. You can use a lot of this in those systems.