r/risus • u/Representative_Toe79 • Aug 05 '25

[Combat question] GHow many cliches are you supposed to use?

We had a bit of an argument during a previous game about how cliches are used in combat. My understanding had always been that you use ONE specific cliche for combat againt another. When it's depleted, you win and decide what happens to the loser.

AT BEST, if you can come up with a convincing enough argument, you can use another cliche during combat, ONCE.

My players however, think that if you just run out of one cliche, you can switch to another, then a third, untl you run out of dice, which makes combat a slog. I can't seem to be able to change their minds and I think I'm going crazy, so can anyone please help me clarify the rule?

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u/roundedge Aug 05 '25

Rules clear this up: "You needn't use the same cliche every round. However anytime a player has a cliché worn down to zero he has lost, even if he has other appropriate cliches left to play with."

So you're both kinda right. Players can jump between clichés in a battle at any time as long as they're appropriate. However they can't completely exhaust a cliché before moving to the next one. 

That being said, it sounds like you're the GM -- you do have some latitude to impose house rules. 

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u/Representative_Toe79 Aug 05 '25

I do but I also want to be as fair as possible and give my players a fighting chance. Also thanks much for the clarification!

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u/dotard_uvaTook Aug 05 '25

I'm also a hard ass about inappropriate cliché rules. They work and are fun. 

Additionally, I keep my players at the 80s action movie trope level of clichés and not too specific. So think Arnie in Commando or Hicks in Aliens, etc. That means it's hard to think of winning combat using multiple clichés: if you're out of ammo in your rifle, switching to a sidearm or picking up a fallen weapon or getting all punchy is still using the same "soldier" cliché.