Ten things playing D&D taught me about writing Fantasy Fight Scenes
Growing up I loved Dungeons and Dragons. I played it with friends, and with my little brother and his friends. After I married I found RPG video games and between the two my life has been filled with fantasy and adventure. What I never would have expected, playing as a teen, is just how much playing those games would help me in my writing. Especially when writing fight scenes.
I love fight scenes. More than love scenes to be honest. There is nothing like watching the Avengers take down Ultron. Or seeing Gandalf ride in to save Faramir and the other horsemen from the Nazgul. And how many of us didn’t cheer watching Jon Snow battle the White Walkers? Battles and fight scenes are fun to read, write and watch… if they are done right.
So, here are the top ten things that playing D&D has taught me over the years when writing.
1) Does this broadsword make me look fat?
I love the pictures of females in a chainmail bikini, wielding a 10-15 lb. Greatsword that’s between 50-72 inches long. Sigh…really? All equality for women aside, most women don’t have the upper body strength for that. They’d be more comfortable with a smaller lighter sword, a short sword, or a rapier perhaps – Think Arya Stark.
So when you’re looking to outfit your characters in a fight, (with a sword, a battle ax, a war hammer, spear, quarterstaff, a bow or whatever) do some research to find the right kind of weapon for their body type and race, as well as their profession. Also, make sure that the weapon you choose can do the kind of damage you want it to. A quarterstaff is great for disarming, tripping and knocking people out, but you can’t actually stab it through someone unless you are Hulk or Thor.
2) Of course this armor is made of real plate mail!
There are many kinds of armor. (plate mail, chain mail, leather, studded leather, wizarding robes, hide, etc.) and they aren’t all the same. Remember the girl in the chainmail bikini? No one wears that. No, not even He-man.
Figure out the mechanics of your armor. Plate mail is heavy and takes a minimum of one other person to help the wearer assemble it as well as time. It also needs padding underneath because, well, metal against skin chafes in the nether regions. And you’d never sleep in it. You also need to realize what each kind of armor is good for what. Plate mail is great against piercing and glancing blows, but a war hammer will cave it right in. Leather is easy to maneuver in, but doesn’t stop many arrows, sticks to skin when it’s wet and can shrink when heated.
Most armor is also expensive and usually custom made for the wearer. So a peasant wouldn’t just have some lying around the hut; and if he did, it’s pretty likely that his great-grandpa’s hand-me-down wouldn’t fit him perfectly.
(P.S. Armor can also be weighty. So can your character realistically carry it, let alone fight in it? All while packing a sword, boots, helmet, shield, satchel, two weeks worth of food and a hundred-foot rope?)
3) Look at my pretty shield! I painted it with my family crest.
A shield is so underutilized; it’s not just for blocking. It’s great for bashing, pushing and knocking people down. A blow to the face will break a nose, or worse. If you don’t believe me, just watch Lord Tyrion from Game of Thrones, and you can see a kite shield in action crushing in a skull! Okay, yes, that’s TV, but a shield’s still handy, just ask Captain America.
4) Fighting is like making love. We can do it all night long!
The ending fight sequence between Liam Neeson and Tim Roth in the movie Rob Roy is not only one of the longest fight scenes ever, but it’s also pretty darn accurate as to how people tire quickly from tossing around huge swords and fending off would be attackers. Remember that adrenaline is a short burst of energy that runs out quickly and leaves the person more tired than when they started. So fatigue is a real issue. Ask Daredevil in season one. Those are some of the best scenes ever written. Very realistic in my opinion. Daredevil barely makes it out alive in most of his fights even though he is highly trained.
5) But Legolas can stab people in the eye with arrows. Why can’t I?
Bows, slings, and crossbows are wonderful for those who’re quick and dexterous but not as strong in hand to hand combat. However, ranged characters (those who fight from far away) are just that. Ranged! They don’t stand next to the sword wielders and shoot arrows at someone two feet away. For the maximum damage, they need to be able to load, pull the string back, aim and then shoot. That’s hard to do close up. Once again, going from putting your bow away to grabbing a sword takes a minute, and if you are only a foot away from your opponent…well… Apparently, Hawkeye is the exception to this rule though. He can shoot people so quickly and accurately that being in melee range doesn’t matter. He uses his bow as a melee weapon as well as arrows for ranged weapons. But in fantasy, this doesn’t work because both bows and arrows are made of wood, not metal.
6) I’ll kill you all without remorse!
You fight with the intent of people getting hurt or killed. A fight, especially a battle, is bloody, smelly and messy. The sight alone would make most go weak in the knees. Also, taking a life has an emotional toll. It might not hit the heroes while they’re fighting for their lives, but it would at some point. Unless they’re so battle-hardened that it just doesn’t affect them anymore, which a reader would also need to see. Lastly, a first-time fighter might be overwhelmed and freeze, possibly sustaining injury before having a fight or flight moment and their training kicks in. Not unlike John Silver in the pilot of Black Sails.
7) Sorry about your antique vase Madame!
You’re standing in a three-foot wide hallway and from up ahead a troop of mini ninjas runs right for you.
First, it takes time to switch places, pull out weapons or cast spells, giving the enemy the advantage. Second, remember your surroundings. You can’t swing a sword in that hallway without knocking off a painting, hitting a low hanging light, or rendering the companion behind you unconscious. And if there’s a carpet runner on a wooden floor, falling should be a real concern.
8) Dang, I knew I should have packed more weapons!
There’s always a moment in a good fight when the hero or heroine will lose their main hand weapon. No hero has just one weapon. They have a knife in their boot, a potion on their belt, a sap up their sleeve, a spell memorized. Something! Remember to put the backup weapons in there and to make use of them.
9) Ah, look at that, I lost a leg! It’s okay, I’ll sleep it off.
If your hero is stabbed in the shoulder joint, it’d be unrealistic for that same hero to use said arm the next day to chop wood, or prop himself up while making love. And without tending to it, the wound will fester and most likely be fatal. So, when your characters get injured, know the symptoms and how long healing will take. (Unless magic or paranormal healing is employed in your story, then anything goes.)
10) Of course I can defeat the oncoming horde single-handedly! I took Fencing 101 through my community college.
When your hero’s surrounded by fifty men, and his only companion is his trusty dog Muffy, we’d like to think that our hero’s going to be a master swordsman like The Bride from Kill Bill; but truthfully most are like Chunk from Goonies.
Being a master swordsman takes practice, lots of practice. Daily practice. For Years! Becoming an expert archer doesn’t just happen. A grand wizard dedicates their life to studying and skill building.
So your hero’s the savior of the universe and Obi-Wan spent a couple of hours teaching him how not to cut his own arm off with his lightsaber, Big Whoop! That doesn’t mean he can now defeat all fifty of those men he is surrounded by. He’s better off jumping into his land speeder and getting the hell out of there. Skill takes time and practice and patience. Or as we say in D&D, experience and leveling up.
There are tons of other things playing D&D and RPGs have taught me about fight and battle scenes, especially turn-based games. But these are the top ten things they’ve taught me that have helped me craft scenes that not only “suspend disbelief” but also make the scenes believable.