[RPG] How to speed up 4e combat

A random smattering of thoughts that are too big to fit as a comment, even though this isn't really a great answer on its own:

• If you can, use a very long battle map. On one end is where the enemy army is approaching from, and the choke point should be very near to this edge; the other end features the bridge and, ideally, a road coming from one (or both) sides. On the road is a column of refugees that each round move further along the road, across the bridge, and off that edge of the map. On the bridge have a couple of soldiers guarding the engineers who will drop the bridge; the trigger to do so is when the soldiers are engaged by non-minion enemy troops, or when one is dropped by minions. Having the engineers and the refugees in play should increase the intensity of the encounter, giving the players something concrete to protect instead of the less-so "there is a bridge somewhere behind you". Makes it more like an escort mission than a tactical exercise, but it does provide a sense of urgency for the players. XP payout could be based on the number of refugees that escape before the bridge gets blown. (As a bonus, this scenario may give you a Stage Two: If the PCs didn't get across the bridge, they now must escape themselves as they are trapped between the river and the oncoming army!) You can of course substitute other objectives (e.g. supply wagons) for the refugees, or alternate routes (e.g. a narrow mountain path that the engineers will block with an avalanche) if that fits better.
• The battle itself could be an escalating one. The army is lead by a line or two of skirmishers, represented by minions with the occasional lurker (obviously out of his element here, putting him at a severe disadvantage and keeping the early rounds easy for the PCs). Eventually the mainline troops (i.e. soldiers with the occasional brute) arrive, and not far behind them is the artillery. Soon you'll start getting HQ elements (elites/leaders) reaching the front lines as well. In this manner you can reward your party for conserving their resources early on, while presenting a believable reason for why they'd want to do that. (Probably a good idea to throw in a grizzled ol' veteran NPC on their side who basically explains what's going to happen and why they shouldn't just go nova on the first few ranks.)
• Think about enemy morale. If a unit suffers severe casualties, they may very well turn and flee, causing chaos in the other units and generally giving the PCs a little respite. Not all units should do this, though -- it'd mostly be green troops, especially conscripts who lack the training and discipline of professional soldiers. This gives the PCs an alternative strategy to simply "kill as many bad guys as you can": All they have to do is inflict enough casualties to "convince" a unit to flee; a little bit of Intimidate in here could boost this effect. Diplomacy might also work, but it would have to be a higher DC to reflect just how dang hard it is to speak eloquently during the heat of battle. Of course, this might not work depending on the flavor of your enemy army -- undead hordes probably won't flee, and similarly an army composed entirely of battle-hardened veterans will be quite stubborn opponents.
• You've already got this one it seems, but let your PCs use the terrain. The easiest route should be a narrow one that robs the enemy of much of the advantage of their numbers. However, don't have the enemy just mindlessly funnel themselves to their own doom -- intelligent commanders will order their units through more difficult terrain to try and flank the PCs, while skirmishers/lurkers will likewise try to do the same thing. The bulk of the army should go straight for that funnel, but have a few enemies take the more difficult paths around the choke point (but try to do so on the map so the PCs can deal with them, as opposed to suddenly having troops appear on the sides).
• Encourage the PCs to think outside the box -- a hay-filled barn with flimsy doors provides a very tempting alternate route to the bad guys, once they bash down those doors, but as they near the other side a PC (or even an NPC) yanks a cord that topples a lit lantern into the dry hay, immediately stirring up an inferno that engulfs the troops inside while creating a very effective barrier against others who might have followed. Depending on the prevailing winds (perhaps magically altered), the smoke might blow over the enemy army, reducing the effectiveness of their ranged attacks (or it might drift over the PCs, doing the same to them!). Or, in a similar vein, if there's a wood mill nearby the PCs could gather up sawdust, then use magical winds to whip them up as the wizard ignites it with Burning Hands or a Fireball, resulting in a huge inferno well beyond what the wizard could accomplish on his own! These and other ideas can delay and confuse an enemy army without forcing the PCs to use up much of their own resources.

I think there are some suggestions I can offer, but first I wanted to check with one of the comments that you have made.

You say that characters with a d6 in shooting can't hit. This seems a little off because the odds for hitting a TN of 4, i.e. a target at short range with no cover, are 75% for a Wild Card. I certainly have players in my games with d4s and d6s in shooting that have no problems with hitting, especially once you take into consideration how frequently a d4 will explode (1 in 4 chance).

Assuming that you are applying the rules properly, I can suggest a few things that will improve the situation:

Melee Combat

Ganging Up - This gives +1 to hit for every ally in combat with your foe up to +4. Even if a character isn't hitting they can assist with giving bonuses to other people.

Push Manoeuvre - This relies on the Strength Attribute rather than Fighting Skill, and allows you to move the target around, cause damage if you have a shield, or knock the target prone.

Wild Attacks - These give +2 to hit and +2 damage, and are extremely effective. Watch out for the reduced Parry you get though.

Smarts/Agility Tricks - These have a similar effect to Taunt and Intimidate, but are more dependent on good teamwork as the -2 Parry on a simple success only lasts until the affected creature's next turn.

I'd try and be as flexible as possible as GM when players come up with ideas for tricks. One of the best examples I've ever had is with someone who grabbed a can of baked beans and threw it whilst shouting 'grenade!' - as a successful smarts trick it had all of the enemy diving for cover

Ranged Combat

Aiming - Do nothing for a round whilst you aim and you get +2 to hit, which is very effective.

Using a shotgun (depending on the setting) - gives +2 to all shooting rolls if you fire a single barrel. Makes you more likely to hit an innocent bystander though.

You've also got double tap (+1 to hit and damage), and three round burst (+2 to hit and damage) with certain weapons.

Other general comments

There are a few general Edges that can assist with low skill combat characters. One that springs to mind is Elan, which gives +2 to any roll you make as a result of spending a Bennie.

Consider giving non-combat characters things to do whilst others are fighting. Dramatic tasks are good for this, but get a bit old if overused. For example, your computer hacker is trying to break into a security system so you can escape the room you're in whilst the rest of the group are holding back the drug enhanced super mutants.

Also don't forget that a successful trick, taunt or intimidate with a raise will shake your opponent, making them MUCH easier to wound. For high toughness creatures this becomes a hugely valuable tactic.

Also, there are a couple of general resources that you might find useful:

Savage Worlds Combat Survival Guide - which summarises the options you have, along with suggestions as to when each of these might be used. It should be noted though that there are a couple of new options introduced in the Deluxe version of the rules, e.g. pushes, that are not covered on this sheet.

Whispers From the Pit - Expanded Trickery - which goes into details about tricks and how to run them as GM. ... looks like this site has been corrupted