Is a bandit ambush a fatal, cliche mistake?
Background
I've planned the chapter I'll write tomorrow. It features a bandit ambush! That's so exciting! Wow! The sickly scent of blood, the glistening blades and powerless enemies. They are nothing compared to my godly knight who is so skilled with a sword she can slice asunder the shaft of an arrow. Here's my characters mission plan:
We're getting tired on the road. There's a building up ahead, maybe we should go and spend the night there because it's snowy. But, it's filled with people from the Black Cross bandit gang or something. We're going to need to clear it out, face the bandits, and fight valorously. Luckily, we have the young lady who is able to cut arrows in half on our side. Automatic victory.
The idea is, they dash in and wreck the fort the bandits are staying in. Compared to the combined tactics and communication of our heroes, they are naught. So, the plan will be successful without any issues, and they will successfully clear out the bandits. Furthermore, my godly knight will have another time to shine, where she mercilessly shall sever an enemy's head from their shoulders.
Question
So here's my question:
Is it really cliche to have an ambush?
Is it a good idea to make the adventure a little more interesting by having the occasional battle?
(6)6 Comments
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As I see it, there are three possible uses for such a scene.
You show the skill of your protagonist because you need your reader to know it later. Just saying that your knight is skilled is not sufficient, you need to prove it.
This is like the bus fight scene at the beginning of the movie The Specialist, where before the fight starts we know that the character played by Sylvester Stalone will beat the ruffians' asses, but the scene is there to show just how effortlessly Stalone puts them out. Also, he pets the dog.
Michael J. Sullivan uses a bandit ambush in this way at the beginning of Theft of Swords.
Fantasy fiction isn't always as plot driven as thrillers. In some books, some scenes are there only to allow the reader to spend more time exploring the fictional world.
Tom Bombadil at the beginning of the Lord of the Rings serves no purpose regarding the main plot. We learn nothing about the characters, or the background of their quest. This scene is just there because the Lord of the Rings is about experiencing a world.
While the ambush fails predictably, something else happens during it.
If it was me writing that book, then one of the knight's companions would be all sexed up from the violence and they would all hump each other afterwards ;-)
Did I say three? Here's another.
If the tongue-in-cheek style of your question is any indication then your novel might have a humorous touch. If that is so, repetition and meaningless events might be part of the humor.
I am with Mark Baker on this one. Looks like you have already established the level of competence of your character, so showing it again would be redundant and would likely annoy me as a reader.
What you can use the situation like this for is to introduce a twist of sorts—your good guys win (of course), but someone gets hurt, and can't walk or ride for a while—or show a previously hidden character trait—she suddenly shows mercy, or the opposite, etc.
The idea is: do not repeat yourself, it makes your story boring, even with the full of action fight scene.
If cliches were a mistake they wouldn't be cliches. Depending on what your goal is, what you want from your work and what your definition of success the cliche might help you get the results you want.
As has been mentioned in other answers to this question, if we already know the over-powered-ness of your knight, then we need to learn something new from this fight, or something has to change: either the physical circumstances for their journey or something within them.
Physical consequences
Someone already mentioned that the fight could leave one of "good guys" wounded, resulting in a challenge for the group after the fight. Or someone could die, or their (enter important object) is broken, and so on.
Psychological consequences
Another option is to let the Hero(/group) experience something that changes her(/their) mind about their mission, their look on good vs bad -guys, violence, relations, words, power, genders, beliefs, clothing... You name it. Maybe their goals are questioned. Maybe they have gained valuable knowledge in achieving their goals.
In general
As with most in life; repetition quickly becomes tedious. Therefore, summarize what we already know, and focus instead on what is new/different.
Does your ambush have a purpose in driving the goal of the protagonists, or create new information for the reader?
Action shouldn't be there just to 'be' there. You could be introducing a new secret weapon that these bandits got ahold of, a new faction that appeared that poses a threat or makes a lead towards the protagonist's goal, or it could be that they are just there to display how much the protagonist has improved after a training session or learning a new power.
A story won't be interesting if you just have mindless battles that just get in the way of the protagonists. Like you've probably heard by now, Everything has been done before, however, it depends on how you take advantage of it for advancing your story. You can have a cliche such as the main character being a chosen one that's bullied by others, but as long as you can make it interesting and lead in your story in a unique way - the readers won't care.
If they can't possibly lose, it is not a battle, it is a spot of exercise. There is nothing exciting about a bandit ambush if the bandits have no chance. Certainly going to win and do is not exciting. Probably going to lose and don't is exciting.
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