Typical player mindset
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Some stuff to remember, if you don’t want a TPK
Never expect that the party will surrender.
If you tell the party it’s dangerous don’t go there , you can bet they’ll be there by the end of the evening
Ignore the critical fail rules when a PC use explosive
this is where dm’ing is much more about storytelling and less about direct mechanics.
for example, in this case I’d let them attack the kraken, only for them to realize as the crossbow bolt sails up towards the eye, then down, into the sea… “Your weapon doesn’t have the range, for shit’s sake, the arms are hundreds of feet long, it’s much larger and further away than you assumed.” Block out a disengagement - it grabs a few villagers and smashes some stuff (roll for athletics to dodge flying debris) and is gone leaving a trail of slime and destruction to the sea before you know what’s happened.
Now, when they follow the fucker to it’s lair… then it’s on like donkey kong lol, stupidity can only survive so many attempts.
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It’s kinda a game flaw. Combat is usually encouraged by most modules, and fleeing is typically a bad option mechanically. So what else do players do?
The only solution is to make running the painfully obvious choice
Some games ask the players to define the stakes and goals when a conflict starts. This can help keep players on track.
Like, the players are on a journey through the mountains, and as they pass through a tunnel they encounter a giant spider. The default mode is “fight the spider to the death!”. But if you ask the players again “what is your goal here?” they might remember it’s “get through the mountains”, not “kill everything we meet.” Now they might focus on how to get past it safely.
If the DM rewards players for advancing their goals instead of just murder, that can also encourage non-murder behavior.
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* Laughs in Pathfinder 2 level scaling.
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I’ll try a backstab!
