Many times in my DMing career a need has arisen for a fight between a force of local men mustered by the PCs and some group of monsters attacking the town. If you try to role play this scene on a individual bases you would be rolling an hour at a time for a single round of combat. I know TSR has a book (Optional Combat & Tactics) out to cover just such an occasion, but why spend 20 bucks on something you can figure out for your self, right. Well, here is my solution to the problem.

You run a mass combat scene just like any normal round of combat, but instead of each member of a 30 man group having individual stats, they are represented by one set stat based on the most common in the group or * sub group. Say that 30 man group were almost all 0 level humans, wearing leather armor and carrying spears.

Their THACO would be 20, and their AC would be 8. Their base HP would be 6, giving them a total of 180 (base times the total number of men in the group), and the damage done by their weapons (spears in this case) would inflict 1d8x30 points of damage as a group.

To work combat you use the same procedures presented in the DMG & PHB listed in the combat system section, except it is on a group level. If one member of the group hits they all hit. Granted this is not very realistic, and is a bit general, but it can get you through the scene and saves on the number of dice rolls.

The DM should keep in mind that all the stats should be drawn up before hand, and some alterations during play will arise depending on how the group is handled.

Furthermore some individuals such as the PCs, and certain NPC/monsters can not be handled in a group setting. This should include any NPC/monster the PCs are encountering at that given moment, and any overly powerful NPC/monster( the group leader, specific allies, or monsters that are not in a group by them selves).

Final Note

One final note, this system should only be used with large numbers facing each other, in simulation of a battle or war. Such as a hoard of goblins storming the town, or the noble folk rebelling against some evil monarch. But all said and done, it is left up to the DMS discretion. *sub groups are smaller groups inside the main group, or a group with in that group that is tacking separate actions. In most cases only the weapon type, damage, and total HP will differ from the main group. But if a group is made up of say Dwarfs and humans, they would each be under their separate stats even though they were in the same group note however this only applies if and when separate actions occur with in the group, or the forces are roughly equal in size.)

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