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"Marching order" is the term used to refer to a standardised arrangement of the characters in a party as they advance down unexplored dungeon corridors. The gaming term comes from the early Dungeons & Dragons rules, but ultimately stems from earlier military use, referring to the equipment, uniforms, and arrangement of soldiers as they march in formation. In fact a lot of the terminology of modern roleplaying games traces its roots back to military jargon, via the filter of Gary Gygax's wargaming background before he wrote the first D&D rules books.
Commentary by memnarch (who has not seen the movie)
Ooo! We might just get a grue! With at least one really big mouth!
Pete's got a pretty good paradigm here. But as Ben points out, all that means is that it's down to a dice roll or who the GM thinks should get attacked or trigger a trap. In which case, why not simply roleplay it? The GM might at least allow the players to test their preparedness fairly in that instance.
Though if we do end up having wild life, escaped experiments, or something else running around, that'd put a damper on my idea of this being a Dark Side pit. There's only been humans that have made appearances in them (the sleen doesn't count as it didn't attack), so a mole rat attack would be extremely unlikely if the Dark Side pit is a concept. Unless they've all got like Kylo Ren or Palpaclone faces. Now wouldn't that be a really weird idea?
Transcript
Rey: Marching order is super important in dungeon exploration scenarios.
Finn: Why is that?
Rey: Threats often come from ahead. You want your damage sinks there. Armoured fighters. And dwarves, for example, with good saving throws.
Poe: And your valiant leaders! Gangway! {pushes his way through to the front}
Chewbacca: I’m content to bring up the rear.
Rey: That’s the other risky position. Surprise attacks from behind are an ever-present hazard.
Finn: So the middle is the safest?
Rey: Ha! No! GMs love traps that target the middle of a party.
Finn: So...
Chewbacca: Marching order doesn’t decide if someone dies, just who.
GM: If we’ve had enough of Pete’s Practical Paranoia Paradigm, the tunnel opens into a chamber, with three other tunnels leading away.
C-3PO: So being in the front row was safe after all.
GM: Looks like they’ve been dug by fangs.
C-3PO: I vote we reverse the marching order immediately.