What encounter for you has truly stood out among all your others? Was it something funny? An epically good, or epically bad roll? The people you were with?

Stories from both GM and Player perspectives welcome and feel free to talk about any TTRPG just remember to include relevant information if you're talking about things that require people understand the rules of that system.




I'll start with a small one:

This encounter took place on an airship where the bad guys had snuck several thugs onboard and were hiding out until the perfect time to jump the party.

After a few rounds of combat, the Dragonborn Warlord picked a bad place to stand trying to chase down a wounded enemy and another baddie bullrushed and pushed him over the railing of the ship.

The Paladin in the party, who's turn was next, decided to be a hero and to jump overboard and try to grab onto the Dragonborn AND the railing as he jumped. He rolled a natural 20 on his acrobatics which is pretty much what he needed else he'd have fallen to his doom with the Dragonborn.

As the rounds came back around both were able to pass their checks to pull themselves back onto the deck, and the group went on to be victorious.

Epic save was epic.

I had a humourous encounter once shortly after the Players Handbook 2 was released for D&D 4 Ed. Well not so much 'humourous' as 'flagrant abuse of RAW for the purposes of my own amusement'. Effectively the Bard's 'Majestic Word' power allows you to slide the target 1 square regardless of whether or not that target wishes to move. There is nothing more humourous then having an uptight Paladin jump head long of a cliff because you healed him. Fun times.

On a different note my group once had to fight a running battle out of a spirit filled forest because our diplomat, upon entering into discussion with the lead spirit therein, opened with a tactful and respectful 'Yes we did commit genocide against your people, but...' Circumstance modifiers to Diplomacy checks can be brutal.

I have two stories from the same adventure. In a 2e pbp adventure I took over a dropped cleric mid-adventure, it was a dwarf cleric and he had a nifty multi-powered mace that was decent in damage, but great versus undead. So anyway, while searching for the crystal mask of Amaunator, we were travelling through a tunnel in a glacier, and it was BIG. My anticipation was rewarded because it was the lair of a mating pair of Rhemorraz. Ever since 1e as a kid, I have loved that creature, and I finally got to square off against one. Awesome. The fight in a gothic-like ice cavern was everything you'd want to have. Chaos abounded.

Well, in the same adventure, at the temple, our group had to face off against a circle of undead priests, the high priest being a really nasty thing that paralyzed you with but a touch. Well, so my cleric is rocking against the priests, and its down to me, one other player, and the high priest since the rest of the party is paralyzed and out of action. The priest gets the other guy as I double damage the priest. Next round, I roll ANOTHER double damage and just about maxed the damage roll, too. The hit's about to destroy the high priest, right? Too bad he had higher initiative that round and I failed my save, and the blasting hit never landed...Oh Snap! I'm paralyzed, we all die, game over. Epic fail, still a great ending, though.

So don't ever fool yourself into thinking initiative ISN'T important. It turned a glorious moment of victory into everyone dying.

As a DM - probably a fight where the group was transversing narrow ledges and floating platforms. I like having the terrain be just as much of a part of the battle as either side and it really gets people thinking when a well place bullrush or dragonfrost could send you plummeting to your death. Players had to be really mindful about how they positioned themselves, way more so than just imply trying not to get flanked like most encounters.

As a player - We had no weapons and were down in a fortress having just broken free of their jail. Minions where everywhere but there were also several hogoblins. Two of us were forced to use makeshift weapons while the paladin was nuking all the minions with his halo. Overall it was a very tough yet very rewarding fight. I guess just like the above I like fights that are outside the norm and not just two sides meeting on a flat battlefield. I like there to be a bit of a puzzle involved as well.

So there was this bar right...

I f---ing knew it.

~SE++