Compelling Encounter Design Part II : Finer Details

Recap from Part I

Previously we mentioned on what makes Encounters interesting, and then in broad sweeping strokes, about :
1) Settings & Encounters : how interesting Encounters are dependent on Settings
2) Letting your Players In on Consequences : putting Consequences in and ensuring that the Players know about them
3) Motivations, Roleplay & Creating Empathy : understanding Motivations sufficiently and using Roleplay to draw them out.

Now in this Part II, we move on to more Finer Details :

4) Victory Conditions & Multiple Endings

The first thing to note is that there are no explicit Defeat Conditions. Failure to achieve an objective does not mean Failing the Encounter, but likewise it means there is no Total Victory.

Unless you are running a Lair Assault of some kind, generally in a Campaign an Encounter should have only 1 "mandatory" condition which lets the story continue, and that is so long the Party does not TPK. Everything else can be made Optional, even if it may result in failure or interruption of the Quest.

Other Victory conditions might relate to the following types.

a) Fixed Objectives : Objectives where either the Party succeeds or they don't.
Capturing or Killing the Villain. You either do it or you don't, it is typically as simple as that. Likewise, when rescuing a Hostage, you either Succeed or you don't.

b) Progressive Conditions : Conditions where the situation gets worse, making the fight more difficult or reducing the Benefits in the case of a Win. Note that a Progressive Condition need not be something the Characters act upon ,though perhaps they might be able to act on it. It could be as simple as how quickly they finish off the fight determines how well they Win.
An example might be fighting while a fire billows around the environment, after the 4th round everyone takes 5 fire damage every round. If the Characters triumph before the 6th round they have time to loot, otherwise they are forced to evacuate without any loot. Another might be where there are 7 hostages, and each round the Golem kills a hostage. The more hostages survive, the more Reputation and Rewards the party gets. However, a Player can take the place of a fallen Hostage, and in return gets hit by the Golem instead.

c) Stage Based Objectives : Achieving the Objective helps to make the Next Encounter easier. Example is if the Party can defeat an Enemy this round and take his Device, they might be able to control the traps in the room making the next Encounter involving Waves of Guards rushing in relatively easy to defeat. Another Example is if they manage to retrieve the Tome from the fire before it burns completely, they may find a Ritual that makes the next Part of the Quest easier.

d) Aiding Objectives : Objectives that when achieved make the Encounter less hard than original. A Classic Example include disarming a troublesome trap that does more damage every round. Another example involves defeating Ritualists that channel Energy into the Main Enemy, making that Main Enemy weaker each time they manage to destroy one.

e) Reinforcement Objectives : These Objectives prevent the Enemies from adding to their numbers and making the fight stretch on.
An Example involves 2 Guards arriving from a Door every Round, and managing to kill off the Door Warden and then lets you close and lock it, so more Guards cannot arrive. Another Example is preventing Wraiths from killing Guardsmen and Civilians, since those who are slain rise as another Wraith the following Turn.

f) Puzzle Solving : These are Puzzles that may be required in order to harm the Enemies. The difference between a Trap and a Puzzle is that it involves thinking by Players rather than Characters passing Skill Checks. Skill Checks can however still be used to provide helpful information to the Players.
An example would be a Combination, Tile-triggered Lock where the Characters have to occupy the triggering squares in a certain sequence, or they all take damage.

g) Bonus "RP" Objectives : These are objectives that make sense to the Setting, and if they succeed they get even more Reputation and/or Rewards, or even do nothing but give Players the sense of Satisfaction.
A real example is a large Orc Warband outnumbering the Heroes attacking a village at night, and the Heroes face them off amidst Village huts with slumbering Villagers. The Heroes could take them out piecemeal while the rest burned huts and slaughtered civilians, or charge them to protect the Villagers but in the process take a lot of punishment and risk a TPK.
The freedom of choice in this Example can really create Player satisfaction, and shows that RP is not just in talking, it is also shown in Action in an actual, potentially lethal Encounter.

h) Alternate Win Objectives : These objectives might involve the Players trying to do something else that can end the Encounter completely. The most classic example involves trying to unlock a Door or Gate so they can leave the Enemies behind, or slam the door shut behind them. Another example would involve trying to convince a group of attacking Constables that they were framed and are innocent.

In general, avoid too many Victory Conditions at one time. There should be no more than 2 of these every Encounter, although negotiating a Truce in the middle of a fight can be a suitable Roleplay Tool. Note also that Skill Checks are meant to be flexible, and you can change the required Action so that it is appropriate. In the above Example of negotiating a Truce with the Constables, you might limit it to 1 check per Minor Action, or else the process of communicating is but a Free Action.

Three-Way fights are a special category that fall into many of the categories, notably b) d) g), and I've run them many times and found them enjoyable, memorable and sometimes cumbersome affairs. They are also very fun to RP around, especially if the Characters are trying to convince Soldiers to listen to them, against the instructions of their Officer. I will touch more on these later in Running an Encounter.

When planning, remember that the Characters can and will likely fail one or more Victory conditions. Plan for contingencies so the story can continue, or how to elegantly end off the Quest. Have Multiple Endings in mind, and if there are a lot of Victory Conditions you can list separate outcomes for separate conditions, and how they interact.

As a natural part of Encounter planning, I encourage everyone to also plan for a TPK. This is a good policy, so that even if you know there is NO WAY the story can continue if the Party TPKs - for example if they are defeated by a horde of hungry wolves - at least you, the DM, are mentally prepared to end your Campaign there and then, or to pull out a Deus Ex Machina (I discourage these, but oh well) just so the story can continue after Failure.

5) Mechanics & XP Budget

For things related to Skill Checks , I prefer to use Easy to Moderate DCs if it involves everyone, or Hard DCs if the only likely Character to attempt is one who is actually good at it, for example the one trained in Thievery disarming a Trap.

Assuming it is a full Encounter, I recommend avoiding Skill Challenges that use up Standard Actions. Typically the simplest involve 4 Successes, and if this involves a Player sacrificing Standard Actions every round, he may feel penalised for being good at the Skill and not being able to participate in the Encounter proper.

For interactive RPs, I don't prescribe to a certain number of Successes or Failures. If the Heroes say the right things, they make a Roll (or sometimes they auto-pass if it is the truly right thing to say), and when I think the NPC is convinced, things just move forward. Working with the Skill Challenge format makes more things to track, especially in the middle of a battling Encounter.

Personally, there is another reason for not following Skill Challenges too closely - it makes you more free to Award XP. I suggest awarding XP based on your gut feel, typically no more than that of an Elite the same level, depending how well they did. If a Player did outstandingly well, then award bonus XP.

And if they did not fulfill the Objectives at all, then don't award XP. And this WILL happen if you run such Encounters with frequency, so aren't you glad you did not bother putting that into the XP Budget?

Three-way fights have large variance in assigning XP, especially if the Players did not contribute to that many Kills. Generally, I remove Enemies that the Players did not engage / defeat from the XP Budget, and then divide by number of Players. Occasionally, the Player's Allies contribute a significant amount of damage, in which case I treat the NPC as a Player to Divide up the XP. This is not very much encouraged though as this reduces the awarded XP very significantly. It may make the Players feel more unhappy about 3-way fights because they get to do less during the fight, compete with NPCs for the limelight, typically bear the brunt of attacks by monsters, and end up overshadowed by the NPCs and getting less XP. On the othe hand, if the Players did all the legwork and heroism, you can award them the XP for all the Enemies (as if they had no Allies), and this typically translates into 1.5 to 2.5 Encounter's worth of XP, and if XP matters to the Players they will generally feel good about it.

6) Running the Encounter

Firstly, you should prepare a sketch of the map, if it matters.

Secondly, you should have Stats of all the Monsters. When you are running a large scale Encounter, keep the Monsters simple. Minions and Mooks (2-hit Minions) are ideal, where they are either Up, Bloodied, or Dead.

Note that Rolling the Dice can often be used as an excuse to Control the Encounter.
Rolling Dice, especially if you're behind the DM screen, but it need not mean anything. You decide what happens next and your Players are generally none the wiser.

When running an Encounter I suggest creating a single reference paper, that roughly comprises of 3-4 lines per NPC. These help me a lot even for normal Encounters. Typically I use Notepad for this, below is just my preference, hope it helps.

NAME (description of Mini) - Level & Skills (only include Perception, 1 Escape, and Stealth if applicable)
DEFENCES ; MAX HP ; Current HP
TRAITS, if any (typically only used for Elites or Solos)
*AT WILL ATTACK : +X vs Def ; Hit Effect
*OTHER ACTIONS / ATTACK (Recharge 5+) : +X vs Def ; Effects.
If the Encounter Attack cannot be recharged, I delete it once used.

eg.
TIEFLING DECEIVER (Sword Tiefling) - Lv 10, Per +8 (low light), Acr +11, Stealth +18
23/21/22/22 ; HP 104 / 73
*Dagger MBA : +14 vs AC, 1d6 + 7
*Balefire : Ranged 10, +14 vs Reflex ; 2d6+8 fire, ongoing 5 Fire (SE), slide 1.
*Cloak of Vengeful Escape (Imm Rxn, Enc, recharge 5+ ) : Trigger : Hit by Melee Attack.
Effect : Teleport 5, does Balefire on triggering Enemy with +1d6 extra damage.

More Complex Enemies may have more Traits but max rechargeable 1 Encounter Power, plus something intuitive like a Healing Attack or Second Wind. This reduces your tracking by a lot.
eg. +2d6 damage with CA against the target or an Aura 2 that slows Enemies until End of Next Turn is far easier and more intuitive than tracking 2 Encounter Powers.
For a complex Encounter, I recommend using a single Initiative for all the Monsters.

In a complicated Situation, such as a 3-way Fight, it is very important to understand what the Enemy and your PC's Allies are going to do. Your Player Characters (PCs) are the stars of the show and don't let it be otherwise. And if you take too long to do your thing, Players can lose interest quickly. Hence, apart from Escort-related Encounters where Assassins may target a particular individual, Recommendations would be :

a) If an Enemy can target a PC or an NPC Ally, always target the PC. If an Enemy can target 2 targets and can target a PC and an NPC Ally, target them both, unless the PC is Bloodied, in which case take out the PC.

b) NPCs target bloodied Enemies and Enemies they can gain CA against.

c) Unless the PCs interact with the NPCs in some way, NPCs act on their own and don't generally coordinate with the PCs. If the PCs interact with the NPCs, I generally roll a dice (often for show) to let the NPC Obeys. If the NPC does not obey, the NPC usually Mentions Why not.

d) If a PC wants to jump in the way of an Attack to try to protect an NPC, or taunt an Enemy to come after them instead of an NPC, I generally let it happen. There are exceptions of course (like the aforesaid mentioned Escort-related Encounter).

e) If the PCs try to hide behind the NPCs, the NPCs will go down pretty fast. Again, there are Exceptions, typically in a group of Soldiers I will have 1 Officer who is statted like a Standard Monster.

7) Suggested Frequency

Not all the "interesting" Encounters are going to sit well with Players. More than half may even be relegated into regular hack-&-slash encounters. Well, that's just part of being a DM. You can throw out a lot of things, but be mentally prepared that at least half are simply going to go over the Players' heads.

One of the favorite things I like about such Encounters is that you don't have to sit down to come up with them - you can conceptualise them anywhere. Inspiration can come from anywhere, and if a particular scene or movie sticks with you, I suggest working it into your Encounters.

But back to the question - how frequent should things be? This actually falls back into Setting, or as Adventure Arcs. An Arc is usually a short adventure driven by a certain objective the Characters have to achieve. Typically it is about 3-4 Encounters long, and the last Encounter involves meeting a BBEG or some kind of Climax.

An "interesting" Encounter should typically be at the end of the Arc. Alternatively, if you wish your BBEG to be simply a hard fight, then have the interesting Encounter come in the form of a Puzzle or saving someone or beating the Army etc before you actually fight the BBEG who is trying to save his plan, or just trying to find the source of the disturbance and get rid of it / get his revenge. In any case, this sort of "interesting" Encounter is typically tied together with the Villain's motivations or the Setting, something related to his Lair, so on so forth.

If you have more energy and creative juices, you can throw in another "interesting" Encounters. In general, you can try and make 1 out of every 2 Encounters "interesting", with all kinds of inspiration. Take care to theme it to suit the Setting, rather than forcing an idea on the Players just because you like the idea so much. Also give Players the flexibility of choice to circumvent some elements of it if they foresaw and RPed accordingly. That is how Players feel empowered to Roleplay, not just through bashing through Monsters but setting up for an easier Encounter.

In Closing

The above details are mainly theories and ideas, but practical examples will likely serve better, and hopefully be more thought-provoking.

For Parts III and IV of this series, I'll be posting some examples I've tried out, with Hits & Misses. Admittedly, more Misses than Hits, but it is still good to learn from real examples and they might save you from making my mistakes, hopefuly.

And in meantime, here's to a Better Game!

Compelling Encounter Design Part I : Putting It Together

What Makes Encounters Interesting?

4E Encounters are basically Players vs Monsters. Eventually, one side wins and the other side loses. Typically, only Players have Heals, and typically Players get rid of monsters one-after-another until there are only so few left, that Victory is a certainty and the rest of the fight is a Formality.

You've probably read this before. If you have, you probably know that altering a mix of Monsters, having interesting Enemies, memorable Terrain, adding a Second Wave of Monsters the works, all makes an Encounter more Interesting.

That's all true, but well, this post isn't about those topics. You will find plenty of references to those everywhere, from the DMG to the online Forums. Instead, we'll be covering the following notes over the next few Posts, tentatively 4 Parts.

Part I : Putting It Together
1) Settings & Encounters
2) Letting your Players In on Consequences
3) Motivations, Roleplay & Creating Empathy

Part II : Finer Details
4) Victory Conditions & Multiple Endings
5) Mechanics & XP Budget
6) Running the Encounter
7) Suggested Frequency

Part III : Live Examples

Part IV : More Live Examples

Live Examples are meant to be more practical and hopefully get your creative juices flowing. They may not just be sharing about Encounters I've Run (or tried to Run and failed miserably), but also about conceptualising ideas and turning them into Encounters, etc.

So without further ado, let's get started on this post proper - Putting It Together.

1) Settings & Encounters

The impact of a Setting on the Encounter should not be underestimated, and typically this may involve immediate concerns like raising the alarm, attracting wandering monsters, to more long term concerns like making an enemy of a noble or king, creating a reputation as a Heroic party, or as ruthless Mercenaries who leave devastation in their wake. And what if the Encounter is not much affected by the Setting? Then it is worth asking yourself - why run the Encounter at all? Just for XP?

Generally there are 2 kinds of "Overall" Location Settings : Wild and Civilised. Just about All Campaign settings use a Mix of this, and they both can impact creating Interesting Encounter Design. For example, in the default D&D 4E Points of Light Setting, the Civilised Setting would be within the "Day" Zone, Hammerfast, Nentir Vale, etc, and the Wild would be basically the "Night" Zone, Dungeons, etc.

In the Wild, Encounter Design would involve terrain, currents, traps, waterfalls, etc. In a Civilised Setting, Encounter Design can involve more elements, such as civilians, soldiers, constables, factions vying for power, hostages, etc. Neither are mutually exclusive, but that said, a Wild setting offers a lot less obvious options, and there are only so many times you can have the Heroes rescue an injured Humanoid before things get old. Plus, there is only so much Roleplaying and reasoning you can do when faced with large pack of beasts, as opposed to intelligent Humanoids with more on their mind than simply wailing on the Heroes.

Hence, I strongly prefer Civilised Settings for the wider range of Options, and I would advocate you consider likewise. It is good also intersperse travel to dungeons or covert operations that take a more "Dungeon Crawl" style even though it is in a Civilised Setting, with Consequences depending on what actions are taken at various parts of the Dungeon Crawl. For example searching some forgotten ruins under a city might at some point trigger a collapse, resulting in the City's Market Square above collapsing down, at least disrupting the City's activities, and at worse causing the deaths of many innocent people.

2) Letting your Players in on Consequences

It is relatively "easy" for a DM to determine that an Encounter has certain Consequences, be it for that Adventure Arc or a Campaign-long impact. In the above example, the Characters may come up with an ingenius way to try and collapse the ruined hallway onto their fearsome enemy, and the DM decides this will result in the aforesaid Market Square collapse. However, this is really only HALF of the story - the other, more difficult part is to impress on Players what the Consequences are, and let them decide which are serious enough not to ignore. Doing this without breaking the Fourth Wall or giving too much away is no easy task. In the above example, perhaps the DM might allow a free group History, Perception, Dungeoneering check for the Party to realize their location, and perhaps even hear the faint bustle of people going about their daily business right above them. In this way, the Players is less likely to feel that the DM is intentionally out to hurt them or discourage them from thinking of creative solutions, and if they fail the check and the catastrophe occurs, they don't feel that it was totally uncalled for.

So what are Consequences? They are incidental things separate from actually beating the Encounter, but which can impact a later part of the Adventure, or have a long term impact overall.
For example, Enemies might try to steal or destroy a mode of Transport that the Heroes have, perhaps a Rowboat which they are using to navigate the River. The consequences that would have to be impressed upon them is that the Rowboat would be important in helping them get to their Destination.

Yes, you as the DM might know the Rowboat is important, but if you are going to affect the Players' actions in the Encounter, they would probably have to know. Preferably in advance by the NPC who sent them on the Quest, so that at worse you would only have to remind them what was said earlier.

To be honest, I've run Encounters where I knew the Consequences of their Actions, but I did not make it clear to the Players. As a result, the Encounter was not as fulfilling or riveting, because the Characters took actions as if it was a regular Encounter.

That said, do not CHEAT the Players. If they do not know the consequences, make it known to them, and let them decide. If you have to, give the Player(s) a free Perception or Insight check to realise what they are doing. It is in Very Poor Taste to have the Players work for Months (real-time) towards an objective and simply fail at the last moment because they decided to do something for self-preservation, which none of them have any chance to know would completely destroy their Objective.

In context of the earlier example, imagine if the Characters let the Rowboat get hijacked / drift off, only to find their Quest has immediately failed. The Players could get very irritated with you.

As a separate note, I personally consider that to mislead Players into working for their Enemy WITHOUT them ever having a chance to realise it is also somewhat in poor taste. Sure, the Enemy may be a Supra-Genius, but then there is no sense of ownership since "We don't know and can't do anything about it." Without the Chance to make Meaningful Choices, Players eventually lose interest in the Campaign. The keyword here is CHANCE, which may include viable alternatives presented.

So as part of conceptualising a compelling Encounter :
a) Create Consequences for Actions other than simply beating up all their Enemies
b) Make Sure that the Players are Aware of these Consequences.

3) Motivations, Roleplay & Creating Empathy

There's 2 general kinds of Motivation among the Players
a) Why the Player(s) comes to play D&D
b) Why the Character(s) get into the Encounter

Ideally, both would be similar, and even much better if everyone playing has the same motivations, but that doesn't happen all the time. Of the two, I would still say Player Motivations matter more in an Encounter.

In my experience, the most compelling Encounters are those that touch the Emotions of the Players, and that is where Roleplaying comes in. Yes, I'm talking about those Detractors who say that 4E has no Roleplaying. Reality is that it has as much RP as we decide to put in, and the most common place to display is in the course of an Encounter.

A simple Example would be a Hostage situation. This is ideal in early Heroic, where there will probably not be immensely complicated Rituals that will destroy cities, and massive arcane traps might not make sense when you're sneaking into a barbarian chieftain's hut. Roleplay comes in depicting the Hostage, the struggles they make, the fear in their eyes, what not. The words of the Villain(s) as they threaten the Heroes and try to make good their Escape. The screams of helpless agony from the Hostages as they are gutted. And how the Heroes react to all of that, of course.

Note that Encounter Details that appeal to Player Motivations and their emotions do NOT NEED to have great consequences involved, but it can lead to Roleplay. Success can lead to Decorations, Reputation, etc.. but if it does not succeed, then it is just that, an unfortunate tragedy. No one need necessarily blame the Heroes, although if the Hostage was important enough, the Hostage's family might abhor them.

This is also ideal when you're first trying out these sorts of Encounters, as they are relatively forgiving when Characters fail to rescue the Hostages in the course of dealing with Villains. Of course, things can be quite different if the Characters were sent to Rescue rather than deal with Villains. The Encounter might even shape the Characters outlook, or more importantly, how the Players see their own Characters. Would they feel obliged to be more Heroic next time, or would they feel indifferent to the deaths of those around them, so long as they win?

Note also that NPC Motivations should also count, and most intelligent NPCs are hardly spoiling for a dangerous fight, especially if it looks like they might get defeated and killed. If the Heroes push all the right buttons making peaceful overtures during the battle, and have taken care to appear peaceful by intentionally knocking out enemies instead of killing them, it may be perfectly fine to let them bypass or to cut short an otherwise violent encounter. That said, the more advantageous numbers and terrain the NPCs have on their side, the less likely they are to simply "Surrender". So go with the flow, reward Roleplay by your Player Characters, and don't be afraid to give up on the idea of making it a Combat Encounter.

For Part II

We'll be moving on to the following, somewhat more technical topics, more specific ideas and recommended guidelines to run such Encounters.

4) Victory Conditions & Multiple Endings
5) Mechanics & XP Budget
6) Running the Encounter
7) Suggested Frequency

Trust this has been a helpful Post for you guys, or for veteran DMs, an interesting post to get your creative juices flowing.

Here's to a Better Game!

The Threat of Death

Here are Optional Rules about Death Saving Throws to increase the Deadliness of 4E. If gamers have complained that 4E is too safe, here are rules that make it more dangerous.

This is especially a problem in late Paragon / Epic, since there is no point playing further if the Players don't feel any Sense of Danger. This is also a common complaint from Players of earlier Editions. Sure 4E is tactical, but you'd have to be really dumb and unlucky to die...

These Rules are probably most ideal if you don't already resort to Coup De Graces.
Coup De Grace is arguably enough, but not for all Encounters especially if like me, you like using Ranged Enemies, or if your Melee Brutes are already down by the time someone falls Unconscious. It may also be antagonistic to Players, and you may have to be artificially "forgiving" to not be obliged to kill someone prematurely. 
So even if you do, these Optional Rules might help you.

Issues with Death Saving Throws

Issue #1 : No Need for Death Saving Throws

My Party (well, actually it was me, while I was the DM teaching the system) engineered a way around Death Saving Throws. If someone looked like he was going to go down, ie Bloodied, he simply delayed until after the Leader's Turn. If the Leader was the one going to go down, he delayed until after someone (typically a non-Striker) who could bring him back up with Second Wind had gone.

That way, if my Monsters reduced him to 0 HP, he would get healed before his Turn came up, typically stand up (they all have Acrobat Boots on) and carry on as if nothing happened. Apart from expending the Leader's resources and creating a sense of Drama, there isn't even much tactical advantage in downing the Hero.

To add insult to Injury, the Leader typically expends only a Minor Action, and can carry on with his Standard Action as normal. This was less of an issue in earlier Editions, where the Leader typically had to spend a full Turn to cast a Heal, at last taking 1-2 Party Members out of the fight, but with Minor Action Heals, it is different.

Eventually Players may feel that "Reduced to 0 HP? No big deal, happens all the time. Just part of Adventuring, no sweat."

Issue #2 : Unfailable Death Saving Throws

Disciple of Death aside, there are Heroic Feats taken by 1 Character that grant a party-wide +5 bonus to Death Saving Throws. To make things worse, there are items that increase this bonus further!
 Not to mention, Items that totally negate the need for Death Saving Throws, or let you roll 2 Saves and take the better result. And Warforged Resilience, of course.
The List goes on...

Issue #3 : Revenant-Cheese

For those of you who don't know about it, here's how it works :
- Revenants can choose to stay Conscious but Dazed after they are reduced to 0 HP. Once they fail 1 Death Saving Throw, they fall unconscious as normal.
- They still take Death Saving Throws as per normal, but they can typically increase their Death Saving Throw Bonuses so that they only fail on a 1 (or maybe, not even on a 1). See Issue #2
- There are also Items and Epic Destinies that ensure you automatically pass a Death Saving Throw.

Meantime, while they are below 0 HP, they typically benefit from the following Feats, Items & Rules
- Revenant feats, notably at Epic, grant the Revenant Insubstantial and extra Move and Minor Actions while they're below 0 HP. Another Heroic Feat grants a Minor Action.
- Superior Will feat allows them to save against the Daze. Passing this returns them back their "lost" Move and Minor. All-in-all, they get 1 Standard, 2 Moves, 3 Minors, every turn, assuming they pass their Superior Will Save.
- Belt of Sonnlinor Righteousness, presumably meant to keep Characters from dying while unconscious, grants them Resist 20-30 to ALL damage while under 0 HP.

Effectively, the Revenant has to take an insane amount of damage before reaching Negative Bloodied, and it may be impossible to get the Revenant to fail a Death Saving Throw. This takes away a lot of excitement from the game.

Optional Rules

These rules are suggestions. They may be adopted in part or in full, or modified etc.
I tend to keep Rules and Fluff separate, but sometimes it may help in your explanations to your Players, so I've included some mention below.

1) Save against Death whenever Reduced to 0 or Less HP

Whenever you take damage that reduces you to 0 or less HP, you make a Death Saving Throw. Players are likely to be more cautious about going down. But of course, that is no big deal if you literally can't Fail a Death Saving Throw.
Fluff : "The Demon ripped a chunk out of Bolg the Barbarian that should have killed a normal person,  but even as he fell to the ground his innate resilience stood him in good stead. He was still alive, albeit barely, as his guts spilled out around him."

2) Death Saving Throw Bonuses apply only for One Roll until End of your Next Turn

Yes, I know you have +9 to Death Saving Throws, +11 with Potion of Heroism. Yes, I know that you're a Disciple of Death serving the Raven Queen. Yes, I know you are a Warforged.
Since now with (1) you may take more than 1 Death Saving Throw per Round, this rule is that you only get to benefit on the FIRST Roll. Which means when it is time to take your Second Roll (or More, if you are hit by more attacks and take ongoing Damage), you have to take an Unmodified Death Saving Throw, passing only on a Natural 10 or more.

This Rule has a good advantage because it does not overly penalise non-Revenant Characters who stay "dead" or only become a viable target after they are Healed. For Revenants who are targeted by Enemies, after being hit the first time, they have about a 50-50 chance of failing the Death Saving Throw when hit. Not to mention, the Death Saving Throw they have to make at the End of their Next Turn. Put bluntly, it nerfs them hard.

Fluff : "Bolg being her servant, the Raven Queen had helped him survive the deadly blow, but now he had only his own inner reserves to turn to, and the whims of Fate..."

Edit ( 27 Nov 2012) : An alternate House-Rule that is easier to remember might simply be this - Death Saving Throw bonuses are capped at +5. So you always fail on a 4 or less. This would be a lot more elegant than what was originally proposed under Item 2), and makes Item 3) much more Optional.

3) No Other Saves while Unconscious

Apart from Death Saving Throws, how does a Character make a Saving Throw?
Well, RP wise, a Character would have to find some way to get rid of an effect, be it patting out the flames burning him, or stanching a bleeding wound, or shaking his head and trying to snap out of the Domination, etc.

Can a Character do any of these things while Unconscious? No, not at all.
Combined with 1) and 2), this makes ongoing damage an exceptionally useful way of killing off Characters with high bonuses to Death Saving Throws. Even with +9 to Death Saving Throws, the Ongoing Damage uses up the insanely high bonuses that they get initially, forcing them into an unmodified Save they could fail at the end of their Turn.

Note that when Stabilizing a Character under these Rules, it should grant a Save against all other Effects that a Save can End. Otherwise it would take at least 2 Standard Actions to Stabilise a Character taking ongoing damage - first to grant a Saving Throw against ongoing damage, second to Stabilise.
(Credit to Clement for this!)

Fluff : "As Bolg lay on the floor unconscious, the flames lapped at his battered body, and the smell of burning flesh clung thickly in the air."

Other Considerations

Monster Damage based on an average of Lv + 8 has been arranged so that it takes about 4-5 hits to reduce an Average Character gaining 5 HP per Level to 0 HP. Given that typically there are 5-6 Monsters facing off against a party of 5 Adventurers, it is not likely that 1 Character will be dropped in the 1st round.
However, Brutes do about 25% more damage, and can down a Character in only 3-4 Hits, and less if they use Encounter Powers.

By the Time a Character has failed 1-2 Death Saving Throws, it is possible the Character will be fleeing for the exit or repositioning to be hit less.

In terms of practical repercussions, if you want 4E to be just as "easy" (which kind of defeats the purpose if you ask me), you may wish to consider 1 or max 2 of the following
1) Reduce all Monster Damage by 4
2) Select Non-Brute Monsters
3) Use Monsters with Encounter Powers that do less Damage but to more Targets.

To prevent an unexpected TPK, you may wish to start at EL+0 or EL+1 with these Rules initially, and refrain from Knocking Out the Party Leader until you have some Feel for how the Rules impact the game.

Get a feel for your Party's capabilities before upping the Difficulty of the Encounters :)

Here's to a Better Game!

Demise of 4E : Beginning with the End in Mind

Beyond the Demise of 4E

With the advent of D&D Next and the relatively poor reception of D&D 4E by the Player Base (or simply in terms of Sales Figures), it seems quite certain to me that 4E is coming to an end. That said, to date it is still far and away the most tactical game I've ever come across, and I look forward to seeing carry on long after WotC has put the gravestone on it. Though there are likely fewer people playing 4E nowadays, this blog is dedicated to those who still love and enjoy 4E like I do.

4E was exceptional for me, since I found it very easy ( though not always ideal ) to simply create Enemies in 2-3 minutes or so, as and when needed to. As I told my friend, I would never waste my time DMing 2.5E or 3.5E where not knowing some rule somewhere, or failing a critical Save, would mean an Encounter I spent hours building could be blown through in a moment.

This Blog is meant for those who want to see the Tactical gameplay carry on in some form, but with more meaningful Adventures, Player Choices ; Campaign Setting Creation and Tips to make a richly interactive world ; ideas and mechanics to more interesting, deadly or versatile Encounters ; simple and intuitive Tools for Players to create Characters ; and Modular Rules for DMs to try out into their game

I'll also be doing some Light Reviews and comments on Adventures, ideas and scenarios for DMs and Players alike. I'll also be writing Plot Ideas to hopefully spark the interest of readers, and occasionally putting up a short Adventure as and when I get down to it. You can see the Full List after a little about Myself.

Brief Background

A little bit about me, I'm a just-married working adult and studying a part-time postgraduate, living in the fastpaced society of Singapore. I've been a long time fan of D&D, once an avid player and modder of Baldur's Gate 2. There's only a few Table Top groups here (to best of my knowledge), and I was initially reluctant about Table Top Gaming as it was too easy for session spanning a precious few hours session to be wasted as the punching bag for some DM in 2.5E or 3.5E. A friend got me hooked onto Table Top 4E, and to have a less linear Adventure (my DM ran a WotC module) I got started DMing since Feb 2012, and have been running almost every week ever since.  I also carried on playing with my original group, which recently completed the Campaign.

Among other things, I enjoy writing stories, stat blocks, and (recently) reverse-engineering game systems. Since May 2012 with my understanding of Edition Wars where I got tired of people complaining and would much rather come up with a solution, coupled with Announcement of D&D Next, I've started to work on my own RPG, tentatively calling it Unbound.

Game Development

The Premise for all the following work is simple :
1) Compatible : Unbound Characters should be compatible with all 4E Modules. Likewise Unbound Adventures should be compatible with all 4E Characters.
2) Simple Character Creation : It should be simple enough for Players to build and create in under 30 minutes. Feat Tax should be eliminated and Stats made intuitive.
3) Single Source : Each Class should have no more than a single Source of Reference, except for Feats & Items. No more flipping through multiple books or scouring the compendium.
4) Quickplay Classes / Builds : Quickplay Options allow New Players to get started without reading Character Creation Rules, even to the extent of neglecting Stat Selection. Quickbuild Options allow Players to try out new Classes without having to wade through tons of Powers.
5) Quickplay Feats : Quickplay Feats build a simple suite progression that does not sacrifice functional optimisation.
6) Optional Rules : allow larger degree of Balance within the same Role, across Classes. This means that with a few tweaks, Striker Class A need not be inferior to Striker Class B in terms of numbers, etc.
7) Simple Optimisation : Above Items also means it should be relatively Simple to achieve at least a Moderate Optimisation. Working adults should not feel they have to pore for a long time just to understand the premise of Optimising enough for a viable game.
8) Modular Gameplay Rules : these allow large variance in the types of game being run, from Easy to Deadly, based on the Players. The Nature of these Rules should not impact the Encounter Design in any way, though of course Players may build and optimise differently. So far my personal favourite is "Encounter Surges". But yes, even I even intend to include the "Save or Die" which I personally dislike / hate, DMs should still have options if they so wish.
9) Edition Integration : Modular Character Creation Rules allow for Edition integration. There are no Superior Editions, the math is meant to have them work together. Vancian Magic works alongside AEDU works alongside Simple Classes (ie built on At Wills).
10) Evolving Magical Items : growing with the Characters. Not all of them though, and guidelines to control and customise them.
11) Item Bloat Reduction : A Short List of Magical Items & Consumables, and guidelines for customising items along the way.
12) Streamlining Paragon & Epic : more consistent options, less redundant choices, and customising them.
13) Simple XP : One problem from earlier editions from D&D was how irregular all the XP awarded was. Here are some options to reduce the amount of paperwork, tracking, and cross-referencing.

Ideas, Adventures & Plots

Development & Rules Aside, also looking into following  :
1) Deadly Solos : While not all Solos should be devastatingly hard, some are much too weak. I have exceptional Issues with Dragons being the way they are - too easy! Here are some rules and ideas for improving them overall.
2) Deadly Encounters : Short deadly Encounters, meant to be used as Lair Assaults of some sort. They can be used in your persistent campaign with a smaller level gap, and with Intelligence options that let cautious players pre-scout / collect intelligence, and how a Party in a Persistent Campaign can survive the likely Failure, or even try again!
3) Villain Development : Seriously, I absolutely DETEST most of the villains in 4E. They are really very boring. Here are some tips for designing and running Villains, including motivations and backstories at various tiers, and proper foreshadowing for Epic Villains even at Heroic level. As a note, I'm not a fan of the "long monologue" villains, and villains who are powerful enough *should* kill an offending party completely unless they have good reason not to... and how to build that reason.
4) Multi-Path Adventures with Meaningful Choices : I'm an advocate of the Rule of Three, in that Players should generally have 3 Paths forward (though they can gradually eliminate those), and in any dilemma they should have 3 or more Options. I typically present 2 obvious choices, with the 3rd for them to figure out, and anything else they can come up with.
5) The DM Spectator : This is more a Mindset. There are some times when its time to set aside the kiddie gloves, the compass of "I-want-the-plot-to-go-here" and let whatever happen, happen. I swear, some of the best (and funniest) movies I've ever seen occurred at the Gaming Table, and only when I decided to let go of the steering wheel.
6) Encounter Recycling : DMs spend time and energy building Encounters. Smart Characters may find ways to work around them. When Players feel obliged not to circumvent an Encounter, it may spoil the Roleplaying mood of the game, or reduce it to slugfest-after-slugfest. Tips for remaking / re-integrating an Encounter might help DMs feel totally fine if Players Bypass / Work Around them. And it makes the game much more realistic.
7) The Dead Player(s) : Characters will die. They *should* die, if you're putting any sort of meaningful challenge on the Table. That said, everyone's time is precious and no one should feel regret coming to a game, but it is hard not to feel that way after going down in the first 10 minutes of a 2 hour long Encounter. Tips on how to keep that Dead Player in the game, or pre-build a mechanism that can bring them back to life... at a Price (both Mechanical penalties and Plot-related)
8) Splice & Dice : Theme mixing. More for Flavor. Ideas to get the creative juices flowing, since more or less you can come up with your own.
9) Setting Creation : I refrain from using the word "World" Creation, because it is just that, a  Setting. Creating interesting factions and plothooks, aiming for an Ideal Number, and how to fit your Players in while giving them a wide variety of Choices.
10) Novel Encounters : Regular Encounters get stale. Encounters where civilians are running helter-skelter, houses are being burned down, Wraiths flit around slaughtering people and raising more Wraiths, Magical Mirror Mazes, Multi-front Fights, so on. Tips for building them, Plot Hooks, ideas, and also Mathematical Balances so that the Segment of the party that does not have the Leader still has a fighting chance.
11) Evil Campaigns : This is really best used as part of Multi-Path Adventures. At some point, DMs should let Players be Evil, but expect them to be smart too. I think it is better if Players find ways to be Evil of their own accord, and it is good if DMs are prepared to let them do so.
13) Epic Arcs : Most players of 4E have probably played through Paragon and likely into early Epic. I think most Groups stop there. Not sure about others, but I've found the villains to be not as compelling, the story not as interesting. Some Plot Hooks and Ideas here.
14) Armies & Hordes : Some of you may have faced the prospect of entering the castle of the BBEG who supposedly commands armies and hordes... only to find a few scattered groups of enemies. Here's ideas how to incorporate Armies & Hordes into your Encounters (not necessarily on a battle map). 2 Separate options includes hordes as enemies, and army units with Characters leading groups of soldiers, against other Forces. Both Mechanical and Plot Hooks. Typically best for Late Paragon / Early Epic.
15) Player Strongholds : Tips and ideas for Players to acquire and build their own stronghold. Again, great for Late Paragon onwards.
16) Ruling a Kingdom : Self Explanatory. Related to the above few topics, Plot Hooks, and ideas, problems that beset a View from the Top. Maybe even the Party running as Subjects. Influential, but the party is ultimately Split and Vulnerable...
17) Power means XP : It was originally planned as a backbone for an Evil Campaign, but it can be applied elsewhere. Players who are into roleplaying, building, stocking up, can achieve their own personal objectives, or even party-wide objectives. When they do it, let them level up. Let them wield that powerful Staff of Whatever. Well, if the bad guy can build it and level a city, and they interrupt him... what's to stop them from taking it, and learning how to do likewise? And if they manage to do something "true to Character", give XP. Both Plot Hooks, Adventure Ideas, and XP Awarding Tips.
18) Anchormen : You know that Player who always shows up? Whose Character is well run, well built, has a deep backstory, well RPed, and never seems to switch Characters? Yeah, build your story around THAT guy. But then there's problems, and here are some tips how to work around - distributing Player Limelight, Calls of Unfairness, and How to handle Character Death or Player Loss, and when the Player wants to Switch. If you know how to manage it, you're more likely to be able to build a deeper, richer backstory, without worrying that your effort goes up in smoke when the Character / Player is suddenly gone.
19) Apotheosis : This has always bugged me. In a nutshell, it is this - you know bad guys spend thousands of years planning how to be a God, execute their plan, and then the Heroes come along and beat them up, and at the end they suddenly achieve it! Without PLANNING! It's like... eh? I know, it is metagaming, but hey. Tips on switches to Player mindset, and the idea that Players will be looking for ways and means to further their own Ascension, or at the very least, secure their Eternal, Immortal with whichever Patron. This need not be Evil, but it could be...
20) Killing Unkillable Foes : Liches have Phylacteries, yet in most WotC material, you will typically come across it somewhere within the same building, if not exactly the next room so-on-so-forth. This is highly unrealistic, but how else to do it? Then there are other high level enemies probably have ways to return to Life that is not normally available, eg. Discorporation. This section reviews creative ideas where as DM, there is no earthly way of Players knowing how to destroy such enemies... unless some PC / NPC learns about it. Plot Hooks, Side Quests, etc.
21) Tactical Notes & Measuring Optimisation : Notes from observing my Players and being a Player myself, who to act first, who to do what, etc. Also benchmarks for DMs to measure the Party's optimisation and building Encounters so that an Unoptimised Party will not take too long.

Crap the list got too long. Oh well, I'm sure I'll think of other stuff...

These subjects have been worked upon to varying degrees, and those interested can drop me a comment here or PM me your Email and I'll get back to you. It may not be complete, but I can certainly focus my effort towards those that Players are more interested in.

Special Thanks

I would like to thank my friends Andy, Merlvyn, Clement, Shaun, Marcus, and my Players who have been such fun to DM. Special thanks to my first DM who introduced me to D&D 4E gaming.
WotC for coming up with 4E, even if Market Reaction is not quite ideal.
And many, innumerable online blog sources that have been instrumental in providing the continual flow of ideas.

If you come across an idea that I've posted here and was not properly credited to you, PLEASE PLEASE let me know via Email. Doubtless though there will be situations where more than one person came up with the same idea, or maybe even I thought of the same idea as you did.

Special Credit to the Person who came up with Mooks.
If you ever read this, please let me know who you are so I can give Credit and link you. I've been using Mooks to very enjoyable effect in most of my games now.

PS : If anyone knows anyone who is interested to do some Fantasy illustration or artwork, feel free to let me know.