![]() ![]() Let’s take a look at the three ways D&D 5E provides of getting out of a sticky situation: Dodge, Dash and Disengage. one of many reasons why one is always advised to choose one’s battles wisely. In short, even when executing an orderly retreat, combatants simply had to hope that their opponents wouldn’t pursue them, because pursuit could very well mean death for those who ran interference. In many cases, the pursuers are just as exhausted as the retreating forces and following at a quick pace is strategically unwise or just plain impossible. ![]() There were many examples of successful rearguard actions that didn’t involve the delaying force to sacrifice their own lives, sometimes even turning the tables on their pursuers.īut having a rearguard involves manpower, willing soldiers, and supreme discipline/training on the part of those staying behind to fight, knowing they are the last ones to leave. Sometimes these rearguard actions were essentially suicidal in nature, where the assumption was those fighting in the delaying action were doomed, but not always. This is where ‘blocker’ forces are used to essentially buy the rest of the retreating army time to fall back and regroup. In short, it was incredibly hard and it was the sign of a robust army. It also involved many men receiving and adhering to orders in the heat of battle. Here’s the part that leaped out at me (emphasis in original):īeing able to disengage and retreat in good order was the sign of a professional, disciplined, and loyal army because it would invariably cause casualties as men were cut off, left behind, parts of the line losing coherency, etc. ![]() It seems unfair, and yet, as I learned from this Reddit post, retreating from combat is supposed to be difficult. But if the combatant uses his or her action to Dash, he or she risks getting struck by an opportunity attack upon leaving the opponent’s zone of control. But because of the turn-based nature of these games, a combatant who wants to retreat is confronted with a difficult and unpleasant choice: If the combatant uses his or her action to Disengage, then uses his or her full movement speed to retreat, the opponent can use its full movement speed to close the distance again, then use its action to Attack. It existed in D&D version 3.5 and fourth edition, and many other tactical games, both tabletop and computer, incorporate opportunity attacks. Plan A was “Get ’em!” Plan B was “Run!”įifth-edition D&D, with its inclusion of opportunity attacks, has made it curiously challenging to execute plan B. My post–high school Advanced Dungeons and Dragons group had a running joke-OK, we had about 600 running jokes, but one of them was that for any given encounter situation, there were always a plan A and a plan B. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |