One-on-many

[finarvyn]

Years ago I had a wonderful conversation with Erick about what to do when one character faces multiple foes. His advice was to break the conflict down into many smaller (one-on-one) confrontations and deal with it that way, where the character faces first one opponant and then another.

Erick always made it sound so easy. (And if anyone has more to say on that topic I'd be interested in that discussion as well as my main question.)

However, while re-reading Nine Princes in Amber for the Nth time, I was struck by the battle up the stairs of Kolvir. First Bleys fighting a seemingly infinite stream of guards, then Corwin taking up the slack. As a series of one-on-one Warfare conflicts Bleys (then Corwin) clearly win each one, which tells me that the stroll up the staircase is really one of Endurance. This made me wonder how other GMs handle this sort of situation.

I think that Erick would say "you created the situation so you know who will win" but that's cheating. Perhaps Erick (and Roger) would decide that we aren't really counting the number of guards on the stair, but instead are looking at this as a single long-running confrontation. (A lot like invoking a "mook rule" where the group of guardsmen count as a single collective foe.)

I'd like to hear what others have to say on the topic. Anyone want to weigh in on this?

[JesterRaiin]

I'd like to hear what others have to say on the topic. Anyone want to weigh in on this?

Now, I am fully aware that I'm no extraordinarily good Narrator, but I don't count myself among worst either, so allow me to address this interesting question:

I'm tempted by the little greenskin in me to pull a cheap move and say that works of fiction (or at least certain episodes) don't match often the reality of role playing games and it's difficult or entirely impossible to recreate certain scenes according to some specific ruleset, setting, among certain group of players, etc, etc.

"It's all about circumstances" that green creature living in my mind would like to scream and then laughing maniacally pretend that it's the correct answer and that the problem doesn't exist in reality.

To tell the truth, the little guy has some right. After all, are both Bleys and Corwin player characters, or one among them is a NPC, already destined to fall? Am I - the Narrator - in total control here, or it's players who should come up (rather quickly!) with a combat plan, thus dictating the narration? Isn't "you fight in a narrow corridor so one PC at a time" a proper solution, or merely a cheap trick that enforces the illusion of free will, while allowing me to do everything according to my plans? Is it possible, that neither of players did think about something that suddenly and totally changes the circumstances, for example, managed to smuggle some artifact, pulls mass mind control trick or simply finds a way to distract enemies, thus allowing other players to infiltrate the Castle without meeting any resistance? And so on, and so forth.

This being said, that's all only an attempt to avoid the answer. In reality, if you ask me: unless I'd already know what's "better" for my players (and I usually know, after a prolonged gameplay) I'd simply settle it with them prior to the Big Moment. Really, as immersion-breaking as it might sound, I'd provide the players with a choice:

This is it, guys, the final step on your long road to the goal. There's only the award you so much desire, you and an unknown number of protectors guarding it and something tells me they are gonna fight to the bitter end. You know it for a fact, since you know some among them from the times you were their superior. The combat is unavoidable and frankly, I don't think any of you counted on anything else.

• Either we do it one-on-one, in which case we're postponing the outcome, but I'm not forcing any either. It's up to you, for better or worse. It will certainly take more time, perhaps all of you are gonna die, perhaps none, perhaps only some. Some among you might come out of this in better (or worse) condition, which in turn might help you (or impair) later OR...
  
• ...you're giving me the details of tactics each of you are going to rely on for the majority of time (while it's true, that the war has no constant form or dynamics, there's no denying that you may choose to either push forward as strong as possible, play it safe and such), in which case I'm gonna describe what is going to happen. I can assure you that nobody ends unharmed, however I'll guarantee that at least SOME among you won't die. Whatever it might mean, I can't say.
  

How does that sound?

[Headless]

Is your question about one player facing multiple NPCs?  Or multiple player charcters?  

I have read, that multiple opponents can be at a disadvantage against one fighter of superior skill unless they have trained together.  I would also include fighting style as much or more than attributes.  Each player is vastly superior to the shadow or deamon (provided they didn't sell down) but in Amber and all Zelezneys books the immortals are most mortal.  In a long enough fight they will take wounds and get warn down.  If they fight defensively they lose after along time.  But if they attack and scatter their attackers they could break free.   Or break their moral.  

Maybe watch wolves take down a bufflo or moose, to see how a prince of Amber would deal with a pack of demons.

[Jason D]

The fight up Kolvir (and indeed, everything prior to it) wasn't Corwin vs. a bunch of guards... it was Corwin and Bleys vs. Eric, Gerard, Caine, and Julian.

They were just using their troops as proxies.

Put the conflict in those terms, and determine how it plays out.

[yosemitemike]

I just have them all gang around and attack unless there is some feature of the terrain that prevents them from doing this.  I see no purpose into breaking it into small one on one fights.

[jibbajibba]

I roll the antagonists into a mass and give them an overall rating then run the fight on that basis.
The numbers usually work by rank so if rank 2 and rank 3 fought Rank 1 they would have the advantage. but it would take possibly rank 3 4 and 5 to provide the same challenge.
In amber terms I think Eric and Corwin together would best Benedict. I think Corwin and Bleys would easily beat Eric.

Roughly 6 Amber rank is a challenge for rank 1 but Chaos rank shouldn't be an issue unless you are using range and then its probably 36 or so (so a unit of Chaos Ranked Space Marines with power rifles would give rank 1 guy pause.)

The top rank guy then needs to concentrate on taking down the opponents. In the rank 1 vs rank 2&3 the rank 1 guy drives to isolate one of the combatants then take him out aggressively that would probably work though he might take a wound. In the firefight the rank 1 guy probably needs to stay defensive and pick off the Chaos ranked marines 1 at a time. If they do that using cover and tactics they can probably get through unharmed.