#tabletoprpg

Thessarak is a legendary final-boss monster for tabletop role-playing games.

A few quotes from DMs and players just before facing this gargantuan Destroyer of Worlds:

“This is not a monster. This is the end of the map.”

“When Thessarak appears, players stop asking about loot.”

“The heroes came prepared. That was adorable.”

“You don’t roll initiative against a catastrophe.”

Chases are fun in TTRPGs, and they don't appear enough in my opinion. Recently I’ve been thinking about how to run them, and I thought I would throw together a simple system-agnostic framework. 

Distance

Distance in this framework is intentionally abstract. Instead of measuring in feet, miles, or light-years, a chase is measured in three states:

1 - Almost Caught

The chaser has almost caught the target. 

Examples: The chaser can almost touch them; cars are bumper to bumper or close enough for a tractor beam to lock on.

2 - Mid-distance

The chasee isn’t about to escape, but they’re not about to be caught either.

Examples: The chaser is a few lengths behind the target, on the same street as they sarlom through traffic, and is able to see the target as they dip and dive through an asteroid field. 

3 - Escape Distance

The target is close to getting away. 

Examples: The chaser can only catch glimpses of the target as they push through the crowd or see the tail lights of the car as it makes another turn or the target has gained enough space so they can enter hyperspace. 

Chasers can move beyond distance 3 as long as they remain within 2 distances of another chaser.

Multiple Chasers and Targets

There can be multiple chasers in a chase, but each chase can only have one chasee. A chasee can represent a single individual or a group acting together.

If several chasees and chasers are present, each chaser chooses which target they pursue. If there are more targets than chasers, the extra targets escape.

Chasers start a chase at whatever distance makes the most sense for the situation.

The Chase Loop

A chase proceeds in repeating rounds made up of two phases.

1. The Target Flees

The target describes how they try to get away, be it parkouring across rooftops, recklessly driving through traffic, diving into an asteroid field, and so on.

The target then makes an appropriate check, and the chasers describe how they respond and make their own check.

If the target succeeds and a chaser fails (or by whatever comparison system your game uses), that chaser moves one distance farther away from the target.

2. The Chasers Chase

Choose one chaser to take the lead and describe how they attempt to close the distance. For example, taking a shortcut, using sirens to clear traffic or firing at the target’s engines. 

The target and all the other chasers describe their responses and make a check. 

If a chaser succeeds and the target fails (or loses the comparison), that chaser moves one distance closer to the target. The closest possible position is distance 1. 

These two phases repeat until the chase ends.

Ending the Chase

A chase ends in one of two ways:

The Target Is Caught

If a chaser is at distance 1, they can attempt to end the chase instead of closing distance.

This could take the form of tackling the target to the floor, ramming the target vehicle off the road, or locking on to them with a tractor beam. 

The chaser makes a check. If they succeed, the target is caught, and the scene shifts from being a chase. Perhaps into a fight, negotiation, or capture.

If they fail, the chaser falls back to Distance 2.

The Target Escapes

We kicked in the tower expecting death.

We got… psychological damage.

Meet the Wizard of Awkward Doom —

the only boss who doesn’t kill the party.

He just makes you wish you weren’t alive.

Secondhand embarrassment damage.

Sensory overload spells.

Mortifying debuffs that never expire.

🎵 Wizard of Awkward Doom

—

He’s the wizard of awkward doom

You won’t die — you’ll just pray to soon

That the floor opens up

Swallows the room…

What’s worse: TPK…