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As DM, Do you have monsters always fight?
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<blockquote data-quote="Charlaquin" data-source="post: 9323937" data-attributes="member: 6779196"><p>When I roll a random encounter with monsters, it’s not even a guarantee that the PCs will ever actually see the monsters, let alone fight them. In my book, a random encounter with trolls in the woods means there are trolls in the part of the woods the PCs are passing through at the time. That <em>could</em> mean they randomly wander into each other, but it could also mean that the PCs happen to pass by the trolls’ camp and smell the mutton they’re cooking. In fact, I generally prefer something more along the lines of the latter. Random encounters with wandering monsters in a dungeon are much more likely to end up in a fight, if only because the confined quarters makes passing like ships in the night much more difficult. But in any case, whether or not combat happens depends on a wide variety of factors. I voted “they react based on the party’s interactions” because it sounds closest to the mark out of the available options. But, there’s a lot of additional context surrounding any given random encounter that might or might not end up resulting in combat happening before the party really has a chance to interact.</p><p></p><p>Also, most foes, be they monster or NPC, are likely to attempt to escape when near death. Some might make a tactical retreat where others might flee, but it’s a rare creature that stands its ground when it is clearly not likely to survive. And most of them are mindless and/or under external control.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Charlaquin, post: 9323937, member: 6779196"] When I roll a random encounter with monsters, it’s not even a guarantee that the PCs will ever actually see the monsters, let alone fight them. In my book, a random encounter with trolls in the woods means there are trolls in the part of the woods the PCs are passing through at the time. That [I]could[/I] mean they randomly wander into each other, but it could also mean that the PCs happen to pass by the trolls’ camp and smell the mutton they’re cooking. In fact, I generally prefer something more along the lines of the latter. Random encounters with wandering monsters in a dungeon are much more likely to end up in a fight, if only because the confined quarters makes passing like ships in the night much more difficult. But in any case, whether or not combat happens depends on a wide variety of factors. I voted “they react based on the party’s interactions” because it sounds closest to the mark out of the available options. But, there’s a lot of additional context surrounding any given random encounter that might or might not end up resulting in combat happening before the party really has a chance to interact. Also, most foes, be they monster or NPC, are likely to attempt to escape when near death. Some might make a tactical retreat where others might flee, but it’s a rare creature that stands its ground when it is clearly not likely to survive. And most of them are mindless and/or under external control. [/QUOTE]
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Community
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As DM, Do you have monsters always fight?
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