dnd-discussion

[reef tundra]

No problem

[idle oar]

The Foundry devs said their sale might be a little delayed since they’re just getting back from PAX but they have confirmed they’ll have a sale

[ivory shale]

Having a discussion right now

"The norm's usually the player describing. Thr GM already has the job of describing everything else like the world and the NPCs"

This is about narrating players results after rolling. I'm saying that it's the GM job tp narrate them especially bad rolls. The other player is the opposite.

What your opinions on this?

[slow island]

Oh thanks. I was worried

[idle oar]

Check the Foundry discord for more info/latest updates

[slow island]

I don't have access

[reef tundra]

The DM describes it

At my tables, the players can only describe when I say so

That’s why “how do you do this?” Is such a big deal, because it’s a rare moment for a player to describe something cool

[idle oar]

Foundry’s server: https://discord.gg/foundryvtt

[snow agate]

The entire point of me as a player rolling any form of check at all, is because it’s not in my control as my player to make it happen, so it’s up to the dm to describe it unless it’s something commonplace and inconsequential, like hitting a guy or parkouring

[stuck shuttle]

It’s 75/25 in DM’s favor imo. Most of the time a DM should narrate results, but handing the reigns to the player can be good from time to time

[reef tundra]

Yeah, sometimes it’s a nice treat to let the players describe

For the DM and them

[stuck shuttle]

Most times I let players narrate when it’s a core part of the character and so I don’t accidentally end up using the same set of reasons.

[reef tundra]

Although once I asked a player for a description and he sent me the most edgelord anime power fantasy description ever and I just wrote down on my notes “never let [player’s name] describe anything”

[snow agate]

Well now I wanna hear it

[reef tundra]

You don’t 😭

[snow agate]

I like cringecore you don’t know me

[stuck shuttle]

On the other end of the spectrum I once had a DM that 9/10 times would rely on “you didn’t study x” whenever we failed a history/arcana/any intelligence check

[reef tundra]

It’s not that bad but I would have rather died than read it out in a session

[glass granite]

Ok now I need to know

[flat steeple]

I'd say narration is the GM's prescription by principle. In groups I've been in, players are allowed to describe the consequences of their actions, but only after the GM gives authorization to do so.

[stuck shuttle]

One hand alright fair enough On the other hand with the amount of things we apparently didn’t study our scholarly characters should’ve been kicked out of magical uni

[snow agate]

Yeah at that point go collecting books and read them so you get to auto pass knowledge checks

(You should collect useful books anyway because they’re helpful)

[stuck shuttle]

Pretty sure if there wasn’t an adventure to be had our party would have gladly spent years in Candlekeep

[snow agate]

I like to keep them as reference materials

Like for plants or animals or monsters or rituals or how-to guides or holy tomes or doctrines or on nobility or laws or etc

You don’t need to read the whole book but if you know how to use an index it can give you an in-world justification to know a lot about something you might not normally be skilled in

[burnt vigil]

Any campaign worth buying?

[reef tundra]

I myself am enjoying Vecna - Eve of ruin currently, but I heard it’s quite controversial on terms of quality

[autumn socket]

Depends on what you're into. People have different tastes.

[crimson gulch]

my top 5 dnd campaigns for 5e are iceiwnd dale, curse of strahd, Tomb of anhilliation, Phandelver and Below and then Wild beyond the witchlight

[glossy otter]

yeah, Eve was a 50/50 for me, but I'm gonna try some rewrites in certain parts to see if it helps

though I laugh that one of the side bbegs in that book became the main bbeg for one of my campaigns XD

[crimson gulch]

eve of ruin was fun, but i had to add a lot between the chapters because they were so thin, i got to really flex my use of the planescape box set

[glossy otter]

I will say I really did enjoy the new/returning monsters in that book

[crimson gulch]

overall it was not challanging enough to warrent level 20, i bet if i had tracked exp that campaign would have ended at 15 or 16

[glossy otter]

I wont spoil anything but if I may say, I was a little dissapointed in the books endgame

[crimson gulch]

I actually made a full in depth video review of this one

[static trout]

Hey so quick lore question. is there anything preventing demons to just teleport to faerun? like would any deity or world rule prevent them from just teleporting in droves and invade a country of example?

[woven flint]

Well, I know one thing is that Devils and Demons are in an eternal war, pretty much
Kinda keeps them distracted, it seems

[static trout]

so, let say for example graz'zt decides to stage an invasion on the sword coast, would he then get invaded within the abyss by devils or would devils come to the sword coast to fight them or something?

[crimson gulch]

if someone opens a portal they can come on through, its happend a lot and theres a bunch of demons in variose places around faerun

[limber trail]

Teleportation & planar magic tends to be difficult to achieve en masse, is a big one. Devils and Demons are indeed in a war, so that tends to also make it difficult to slip out. Sending mass amounts of forces to faerun could end with them losing that war, which would be bad. Smaller groups of demons 100% slip out, it happens all the time.

[crimson gulch]

Litterally just ran a one shot where the party killed Grazzt Last night lol

[limber trail]

There's an entire paladin oath based around dealing with extraplanar beings who slip into the material plane / into places they don't belong.

[burnt vigil]

Anything worth the money. Im starting now and wanted a cool stuff

[static trout]

yeah it's kind of what I have going on, I'm building a small AP around an invasion and I kind of want to get my lore and world building in order

like what the effects of a large scale invasion would be, and how would the various actors across the planes react to it

[woven flint]

Also, Upper Plane creatures kinda have an eye on the Lower Plane creatures, so, if they made a move, the Upper Plane creatures would probably be ready to intervene

[static trout]

as in deities?

[woven flint]

Depends on how bad it is, Planar's, Solars, Emperyans are also all strong enough to fight Demons and such

[limber trail]

many religious & magical organizations would also likely get in on the action

[woven flint]

I'm unsure if deities can actively intervene

[crimson gulch]

gods have walked on faerun a lot

its the cause of so many plots and issues

[woven flint]

Ah

[limber trail]

"A god got involved" is a premise as old as dnd

[woven flint]

I can see Bahamut being one of the first to the battlefield lol

[limber trail]

(and a good few millenia older than that)

[static trout]

gotcha. on a different note, tho I get this is a super ambiguous and kind of unanswerable question, what do you think the average strength of creatures in the abyss (specifically graz'zt's domain) be? like the roughest of estimates

[humble cairn]

It's a realm of Chaos.

[limber trail]

It's super answerable, every demon in dnd is given a numerical number to represent its strength. Demons range from CRs 1 all the way to like 20, so it varies, but the upper end is very strong (relative to adventurers).

[woven flint]

Well, Demons are powerful, Graz'zt is one of the more Cunning and level headed Demon Lords, I can see him being quite a tactician

[crimson gulch]

There's loads of demons in the monster manual, loads of those for reference

Old modules say he has thousands of demons in his palace

[coral loom]

Excuse me, if anyone can spare time I need assistance

[humble cairn]

I, personally, think it's super unanswerable because as a realm of Chaos it is always spawning new abominable demonic creatures and their numbers are also highly unpredictable, could be infinite, so an average would be impossible to get.

[static trout]

yeah I know but what I don't know is how they would number. like there would be thousands for sure but what would the average CR be, I can't imagine there is an indefinite amount of high level demons, otherwise the war would kind of be pointless

[woven flint]

Well, that's a bit of a problem as Demons and Devils are across the entire CR Range, it seems

[crimson gulch]

Thousands of marilith lamia succubus incubus and other mortal servants serve grazzt for sure

[humble cairn]

There are possibly infinite number of demons .. and the war is pointless.

The Blood War is unending, but the Abyss hasn't simply devoured the Nine Hells because again, Chaos. They aren't waging a directed war.

[static trout]

basically the creatures under graz'zt's control not all the creatures in the realm of chaos. the reason I'm asking btw is because my players want to unleash a fomorian army in graz'zt's layers of the abyss xD and I'm trying to figure out how affective it would be

[humble cairn]

There's no "canon" answer. Make it as effective as it needs to be for your story to happen.

[pastel shuttle]

I have a question about bofa im new to the game

[humble cairn]

What is "bofa?"

[static trout]

on one hand I agree, but I really want to reward the players for coming up with a smart and very creative method to deal with the threat, so I'm trying to make it affective within reason while still not straying too far from cannon

[limber trail]

How many fomorians are we talking?

[static trout]

thousands upon thousands. one of my players challenged their king to single combat, won and became their king after an nearly impossible sequence of rolls.

[hollow turret]

Had a look, Google seems to think it's either the Bow of Faerdhinen or a setup to a "deeznuts"

[humble cairn]

Meh, "canon." You appreciate their creativity and want to reward them, right? Concentrate on that. Give them some plot benefit during their figth against Graz'zt because of the Fomorian allies.

[static trout]

the players cheated on that fight ofc but they were able to get away with it as fomorians aren't exactly smart and intuitive

[crimson gulch]

I run all my games in established settings and I change lore all the time for my own use, and you should too

[humble cairn]

This ... this should have consequences.

[crimson gulch]

There is no authority that keeps you from doing that, ed greenwood in fact loves it and he wrote the forgotten realms

[hollow turret]

As the bow is a runscape weapon, seems it was a deeznuts setup, Happy to ruin it

[static trout]

as in the players should face consequences or them unleashing the fomorian army should have consequences on graz'zt's invasion efforts?

[limber trail]

Ultimately? Just thinking about it practically, the Fomorians are not likely to win. Home turf advantage is real, and Fomorians are not strong enough to beat the demons outright. As a DM, I'd probably frame it like this: You can use them, and it'll make your task meaningfully easier (You can use them as a distraction while your party sneaks into the palace, for example). Many if not all of them will die in the process.

[humble cairn]

I hope you're doing something about giving the new King the Fomorian Curse somehow.

[limber trail]

The demons are strong enough to be in a stalemate with the devils, the fomorians aren't as strong as the devils, therefore the fomorians aren't as strong as the demons.

[crimson gulch]

Cannon fodder for your players to do the real mission

[static trout]

oh absolutely, but they haven't figured out that part yet. actually a worse consequence is them making an enemy of Maab (queen of air and darkness), which they're about to find out about very soon xD

[humble cairn]

Titles and positions are extremely meaningful to Fey magic, being crowned King of the Fomorians would make you definitely a Fomorian for the purposes of the Fomorian Curse.

On top of that, Fomorians have changed their former magical abilities into the ability to inflict symptoms of their curse on enemies. Fey warping magic used on Chaos demons? That's a recipe for ... DM fun, really.

I say this gives you the excuse to make up a whole new kind of demon.

A horrific amalgamation of Fey, Giant, and Fiend.

[static trout]

well they were able to somewhat sidestep it as they refused the coronation, and were able to instill a (fictional) deep hatred for demons and a sense that there won't be a better playground for chaos than the abyss. again I had them roll pretty difficult checks and make them face some hard calls but they really outdid themselves so I don't want to create too many consequences. Maab is already bad enough but the player that won did get inflicted with a curse, but nothing too destructive.

[limber trail]

refusing the coronation tends to mean you don't become the king

[static trout]

oh I'm already toying around with that. made a few unique demons that would have the curse.

[humble cairn]

Though I would probably just use the gibbering mouther, myself.

[old sluice]

Wait is that how their laws of successions work? You kill it you buy it?

[static trout]

more sidestepped rather than refused. it's a bit hard to explain everything that went down in just chat but lets just say they really did outdo themselves. I had to respect a few nat 20's as well, so while what they did does have pretty severe consequences I didn't want to deny them outright. especially since that's not the main point of the AP and like you said, while it's a trump card it's not a solution

[old sluice]

It seems like a very inefficient system. Wouldn't everyone constantly be challenging the king?

He'd just die from exhaustion.

... If the king dies from lack of sleep due to the constant duels, who is considered the successor?

[static trout]

no idea. I read as much as I could about them but I had to make a lot of it up. especially cuz tasha is heavily involved with the party's efforts and it was a good chance for me to incorporate her

[old sluice]

So many questions

[humble cairn]

Sometimes things just happen for the story. As long as the players vibe with it, it's cool.

[static trout]

lul yeah it's complicated. I guess the fate of any AP is to be completely derailed into madness when the party has access to extradimensional travel

[fossil summit]

Maybe only certain "high nobles" can challenge the king?

[old sluice]

I suppose it's not my style. Nothing wrong with that, I would just be baffled by the logic of it.

[old sluice]

That would make more sense yes

[shy stirrup]

"I had to respect a few nat 20's"
You had to?

[fossil summit]

The leaders of powerful houses or stuff

[humble cairn]

The King might also rule purely by fiat. There's no system, whatever the King says, goes. So if the King agrees to trial by combat for the throne?

[static trout]

not anyone would have been able to challenge the king but he was heavily goated into it by the paladin. and he made some truly insane rolls, and said all the right things.

[old sluice]

Sure but in that case once the king is dead, why would everyone else agree to respect his nonsense?

[static trout]

the only reason it was possible is because both sides were played quite heavily by tasha

[old sluice]

Also yeah actually. You don't have to respect nat 20s. Nat 20s are not a super-success. They're not even an auto-success. You can fail on a nat 20

[humble cairn]

New King, new rules. Fomorians are Fey infected Giants. Both Fey Courts and the Ordning kind of just have hierearchies that exist for.. no reason.

[static trout]

well on the surface the reason was that their now former king gave them that order before the fight. the real reason however is that they were enticed by the possibility of expanding into the abyss and escape the feydark, as they are currently really restricted by maab.

[cloud grove]

does anyone know what ToM stand for?

[knotty pasture]

But should nat 20s be an auto success anyways for the shits and giggles

Make sure that no matter how bleak something is, you can still bs your way out of it

[humble cairn]

Check out #learn-to-play and also try to avoid all caps, it messes with people who ise assistive technology to read the posts.

[hot gate]

Tome of Monsters possibly? It's a popular 3rd party monster book.
actually nevermind that's tome of beasts

[static trout]

I mean you can rule it however you want, we treat it like a +10 to your roll. but in reality the only reason I gave them a partial win is only because of how they RP'd it, and the preperations they made before even going into the feydark

[sleek cloud]

Aw

[humble cairn]

Possibly could be Theater of the Mind, which is a play style that doesn't use a play map.

[sleek cloud]

That would make sense

[humble cairn]

Meh

[cloud grove]

Ahh yh thats what it is bcuz the dm mentioned it as if it was an alternative to roll 20 and i thought it was like another website ive never heard of? but thank you for clarifying

[static trout]

oh that looks great honestly. I'm also trying to homebrew a cursed demon that would have a fk'd up abyssal version of a wild magic chart

[shy stirrup]

Usually abbreviated TotM or TOTM

[knotty pasture]

One of my prime arguments is that if you encounter a nigh impossible dc30 roll for example, outside of characters whose stats are designed to beat the score you're just locked out of the option

Nat 20s being an auto pass gives everyone equal chances (some are more equal than the others)

[shy stirrup]

Does the impossible become possible on a nat 20?

[knotty pasture]

Should it? I'd personally allow almost all scenarios to be possible if one scores a nat 20

[shy stirrup]

That's what I'm asking 🙂
I have my own answer but

[humble cairn]

If I want something to be impossible, I don't assign a DC, I don't allow a roll.

[fossil summit]

Me casting revivify on my dead friend because I rolled 20 on my medicine check (I am a fighter)

[static trout]

I mean rule of cool is great and all but I would say that's taking it a bit too far. a barbarian with 8 charisma should never be able to convince a king to declare a war he didn't intent to. I do just set a nearly impossible DC that would only be able to be met by a character that is very good at whatever it is they're trying to achieve

[shy stirrup]

This is my approach

[pastel shuttle]

Now I get timed out for saying power trip. And another warning for not being civil…. 😹 whoever is doing that reevaluate your entire life. No wonder people think everybody who plays this game is a weirdo. Thanks for helping me dodge the bullet of what is this group

[static trout]

there are ofc impossible tasks which you just don't let them roll on

[knotty pasture]

That's where the almost everything comes to play, you can't literally do everything because you got a nat 20, no convincing a boss to only fight with his feet for example

But you can convince him to not use a spell for the whole fight

[humble cairn]

I go by the philosophy that I only call for a roll if something is narratively important and if I have an interesting result for both failure and success.

[shy stirrup]

Same

[static trout]

yeah I heavily agree. if my players roll a Nat 20 by just RP'ing I'm not going to make them roll for it unless it's a truly important/monumental task they're trying to achieve

[humble cairn]

Also players don't call for rolls, DM does. Players describe their actions, DM calls for rolls.

[static trout]

I find it really motivates them to get really deep into their RP

[shy stirrup]

A nat 20?

[static trout]

as in they RP an encounter extremely well. in which case unless it's a truly difficult task, I won't make them roll at all I just give them the success

I generally try to avoid having them roll too much when it comes to social interactions, as in anything they can achieve by themselves as players rather than what their characters do. obviously I won't give the wizard with his negative charisma score a free pass on a deception just cuz he RP'd extremely well, but at the very least the DC will be affected

[shy stirrup]

Ah, so how should one handle a player who is very charismatic - as in, offers a very persuavive argument - but yet has a CHA of 8?

Or, vice versa, a character with a CHA of 20 who just wants to roll crits for success, and can't make a case

[knotty pasture]

Someone with a cha of 8 would probably fumble with the wording so hard that they'd offend someone

[static trout]

exactly like what I just said. I won't let him avoid the roll but I will lower the DC appropriately

[knotty pasture]

"I think both sides should take a deep breath and calm down" would probably turn into "Both of you are being dumbasses, quit being a bunch of whiners"

[shy stirrup]

CHA used to be entirely social, this problem was introduced when it became a Prime Requisite

[knotty pasture]

The person with a 8 cha won't even realize how abrasive it'd sound

[static trout]

that I don't know since i don't have to deal with. I've never had a player playing a high charisma character that wasn't also at least decent in social interactions. that's just specifically because of the party I'm running it for.
Like I wouldn't want to punish someone for being socially awkward irl for failing to live up to his character build, so I guess you would base it on the best of their abilities? honestly it sounds complicated

[shy stirrup]

You wouldn't want to punish the socially awkward, no
But are you punishing the socially adept with low CHA?

The solution, if there is one, is to basically de-couple CHA from certain RP situations, and favour the player's RP/ability to make a case over a dice roll

[static trout]

I generally don't like the approach of forcing characters to play or RP their character in a way that forces them to play within the confines of their character. like sure I would expect the players to take it into consideration with the way they play their characters but I'm not going to force the 8 int paladit to make the dumbest decision he could make (they might get a side eye if they push it which stops them from going too far but it's pretty rare so not really too big of a concern).

[static trout]

again in my case specifically that's irrelevant. all of us are pretty mellow and outgoing, and either good or at least decent at arguments, so we never really had to face that problem. btw I'm mostly a player right I just DM every now and again so our main DM gets to play. maybe that makes my approach to DM'ing fundamentally different but my focus is fun over continuity but to a certain extent

[static trout]

that's genuinely good advice. I'll keep it in mind if I ever have a player like that at my table or if that situation ever comes up 🫡

[shy stirrup]

"You make a very persuasive case that convinces this town guard and me the DM, so persuasive that it would otherwise give you exactly what you want but..." (checks sheet) "...you have 6 CHA so you fail"

[hot gate]

Another thing to remember is that the rules are actually very specific about when such a check is even appropriate and when it isn't:

https://www.dndbeyond.com/sources/dnd/br-2024/rules-glossary#InfluenceAction

A creature is one of three things: Willing, Unwilling or Hesitant

If it's willing, it does what you asked and if it's unwilling, there is no roll, because it's not mind control.

There is only a check if it's hesitant.

[rough basalt]

Yeah treating Charisma like mind control is a quick way to end your game

And asking for rolls too much can be pretty annoying

[shy stirrup]

I sit down at the bar.
Roll Athletics/Acrobatics
I order a drink
Roll Presuasion
I drink the drink
Make a CON save

[clear lark]

Huh

[shy stirrup]

#dnd-discussion message

[old berry]

Fail said save
I move to a table
Make a DEX save

[rough basalt]

Roll to open the door

[old berry]

I would crash out so badly if I ever played in a game like that

[reef tundra]

I’ve played in a few like that

[old berry]

My condolences

[humble cairn]

Yeah ... I seriously dislike when a DM does this.

[minor cargo]

In my experience, DMs doing this often think it's a good way to inject "comedy" or just "memorable" moments (basically fishing for failures). Which, like, I can understand. It's not a good way to try to achieve it but I can understand the thought process.

Black Friday deal was announced recently: #dnd-announcements message

[hexed girder]

got the black friday email about 45 mins ago as well

[uncut zenith]

Yeah, one thing I always like to say is that rolls should only be called for if there’s a chance of failure. I’m doubtful you need to persuade a tavernkeep to sell you a beer, so why call for a Persuasion check?

Of course there may be edge cases. Like if the party goes to a seedy tavern that almost exclusively tends to members of a notorious gang that the party isn’t a part of, the tavernkeep might be a little wary, but that’s just an edge case.

But generally if you’re walking into Ye Olde Tavern, the tavernkeep wants you to spend your money there. So it shouldn’t take convincing/persuading to order a drink.

[shy stirrup]

What you say makes 100% sense, and I am completely convinced
Roll Persuasion

[lean wigeon]

roll athletics to walk

[lavish flame]

CON save or wake up with back pain

[shy stirrup]

I make jokes but apparently #dnd-discussion message this kind of thing does happen :/

[uncut zenith]

I mean, that’s a gross generalization

[sleek cloud]

What in the world is happening here

[sleek cloud]

Failed it 🙁

[violet basin]

i fail this every day

[sleek cloud]

Doesn’t help that the dc goes up every couple of years

[violet basin]

bard and kobold players...

[stoic obsidian]

I wonder what a football(soccer) character be like in dnd

[violet basin]

even with my fancy new attunement item in my back, i still fail it every time 🙁

[sleek cloud]

Oof, even more rough

[violet basin]

It is better than it was, but yea.
back problems are permanent once you get them ,even if 'fixed.'

i should make a dnd char with back problems, easiest RP of my life.

"[charater] stands up, groans, stretches, groans, and says "well, you kids have fun on the adventure, bring me back some gold. I'm going to bed."

"groans again going up the stairs, down the hall ,and into bed."

[shy stirrup]

This is the best refusal to the call of adventure I've ever seen

[lean wigeon]

your character is now an npc. make a new character

[serene sapphire]

“The world is ending”

“5 more minutes…”

[sleek cloud]

Same vibes as that “have fun storming the castle!” Line from princess bride

[violet basin]

"The world is ending you say? My back pain is ending you say?"

rolls over back to sleep.

[stoic obsidian]

I wonder if lay on hands would help with that

[violet basin]

"no more tension headaches every other day or so you say? bring it on evil wizard, end my suffering!"

[stoic obsidian]

The evil wizard doesn’t end you

Suffer more, it amuse me

[violet basin]

floating in the empty abyss were the world used to be, still have back pains.

soundless groan.

[stoic obsidian]

The world is reformed and the people of the new world make a legend about the groaning sky

[violet basin]

vibes of the sun is screaming..
if only we could hear it

[minor cargo]

Would a turkey Tarrasque named Turkesque or Tarraskey?

[sleek cloud]

Turreskey perhaps?

[lavish flame]

Turkor The Ungrateful my beloved

[stoic obsidian]

Why not roll to decide

[violet basin]

The dnd way

[stoic obsidian]

Also, imagine it being a tradition to hunt down food theme monsters for thanksgiving in the dnd world

[minor cargo]

And rob this server of a chance to get in a fight over something of no consequence?! 😮

[stoic obsidian]

I banish the evil chaos being

[sleek cloud]

Steve would never

[serene sapphire]

Dungeon meshi moment

[glossy otter]

and yet I still linger XD

[stoic obsidian]

This version yes

[lean wigeon]

maybe we should talk about mustard catsup diaper

[fickle heart]

I feel like "Turkasque" is too good to not use.

[proven nova]

How would you guys flavor spells?

[knotty basin]

This question is by no means vague whatsoever

[proven nova]

Well………I guess, for example, psychic spells.

[knotty basin]

Depends on the spell and the character

[proven nova]

They’re a bard.

[knotty basin]

Also it’s up to you

[knotty basin]

Can you give me more than just their class? And what spell?

[proven nova]

Dissonant whispers. They’re a swords bard who is a half-elf.

[knotty basin]

The spells have flavor written into their description

With barely any info on your character, there’s not much more to say

[cursive thorn]

There was some advice in XGE or Tasha IIRC, but generally go wild and flavour them however you wish, Flavor is free. Is there something special to the character or a theme you are aiming for. Think image and colour.

[proven nova]

I see.

[cursive thorn]

If someone is struggling to roleplay, and asking questions, I try to not be so dismissive

[proven nova]

Could you flavor Haste as the Sandevistan effect from something like Cyberpunk: Edgerunners?

A lot of media seems to gloss over haste being a spell.

[knotty basin]

Nope, totally impossible. Don’t even think about it or the DND police will knock down your door.

[cursive thorn]

Now your getting it, or the bullet time in the matrix, steal inspiration from other media and make it your own, thats a easy way to get into the roleplay space if your struggling.

[proven nova]

Ahhhhh, so become a pirate?

I’m being facetious.

[marble lion]

Well in some settings flavouring it as a scifi implant might not work

[glad arch]

Flavor is free but make it fit the setting

[marble lion]

You still want the flavour to match the game

[glad arch]

Dont flavour your magic missile as actual missiles in medieval dnd

[marble lion]

But you could make a sandevistan effect that just isnt technological

[proven nova]

No, I mean the effect. Not the implant. Your perception slows and you create afterimages when moving and taking actions. You could make yourself surrounded with a sort of “windy” quality.

[knotty basin]

You could do like… tiny trebuchets, though

Worked by equally tiny army men

[glad arch]

Are you throwing the trebuchets at them... or creating tiny trebuchets that then launch rocks (the missiles)

[knotty basin]

The latter

[proven nova]

The setting is Exandria. We’re playing Call of the Netherdeep.

[glad arch]

Havent played any modules and vaguely know only some so cant really help much there

But take the advice given here
Flavor is free, just make it thematic to your character and the world youre in

[stoic obsidian]

What you guys think of this character name Agur Neri

[snow agate]

eh

[stoic obsidian]

I tried

What be a better named

[marble lion]

What culture

[sleek cloud]

Species,class

[fiery nimbus]

Try Lee, there are many Lees

[stoic obsidian]

Gnome, Rogue

[unkempt lava]

Quick question — is this rules-legal?

I’m checking if you can cast 3 Fireballs at level 6 using Fighter 2 / Sorcerer 4.
The order would be:
1. Action: Fireball
2. Action Surge (second Action): Fireball
3. Bonus Action (Quicken Spell): Fireball

Since the bonus-action spell is cast last, the PHB rule (“if you cast a spell as a bonus action, the only other spell you can cast is a cantrip”) doesn’t stop the first two Fireballs.

[reef tundra]

2024 instantly puts that down with only one levelled spell being able to be cast in a turn

[knotty basin]

Can only cast 1 leveled spell per turn

[crimson gulch]

no, with the 2014 rules you cant because of the bonus action rules, if you had allready cast a levled spell you cant quicken a levled spell.

the first two work just fine with action surge in the 2014 rules

in the 2024 rules Action surge cant cast spells and you can only spend one of your own spell slots on a leveled spell per turn

[unkempt lava]

For a Sorcerer/Warlock multiclass at level 6 — is this sequence legal?
1. Action: Fireball
2. Bonus Action (Quicken Spell): Eldritch Blast

Since I’m only casting one leveled spell (Fireball) and the bonus-action spell is a cantrip, this should follow the PHB rule about bonus-action spellcasting.

[crimson gulch]

for the 2014 rules you have to quicken the fireball and cast the cantrip as your action

for the 2024 rules you could do them in any order

[unkempt lava]

So the tripple fireball is impossible?

[crimson gulch]

no its possible, Sorcerer 2024, Wild magic, Action cast fireball with a spell slot, bonus action cast fireball with a Staff of fire/Staff of power. and then get REALLY lucky on a wild magic surge for a third fireball. but that is very rare

[glad arch]

Would staff of fireball work for this? Or does casting a spell via an item still apply thr same rules

[crimson gulch]

the 2024 rules allow you to only cast one spell per turn with a spell slot of your own, Magic items and other features that allow casting with out one of your own spell slots can enable you casting multiple leveld spells per turn

High elf with a free cast of misty step can ba misty step and still cast a leveled spell.

PC with 3 levels of theif rouge can bonus action activate a magic item to cast a spell or a sorcere with quicken spell can bonus action cast a spell from a magic item too

[stoic obsidian]

Ranger is a good example of this

[storm breach]

Hey all im looking for a online one shot tonight. Does anyone know if any are going on?

[inner silo]

Is gloves as a spellcasting focus op?

[still plover]

Check the listings in #looking-for-players for games that want people, read the details, respond as appropriate and cross your fingers.

There are other Discord servers where people gather for games. You can find them in #looking-for-community .

Aside from here, you could also try LFG areas in sites like Reddit, Roll20 or the D&D Beyond forums to get started. Roll20 has a way to see "pick-up" games being listed. Alternatively, check #looking-for-community - these servers may host games at short notice.

[still plover]

I don't know about OP, but it's not one of the listed forms: https://www.dndbeyond.com/equipment/544-arcane-focus

If it's any help I have a warlock whose focus is a crystal set into a ring.

Although looking at that item description it reckons the minimum weight for a focus is a pound, so maybe I'd rethink that.

[vast pelican]

As long as using the gloves occupies the use of one hand, it seems fine to me.

Unless you're making some sort of gish build, though, what a mage is doing with their hands is often not that important.

Alternatively, the gloves could be a special magic item of an appropriate rarity that explicitly allow using them as a focus instead of anything that occupies the hand.

[inner silo]

Alrighty, thanks!@vast pelican

[orchid marsh]

what ar peoples opinons of swimming in mithril plate mail? does it cause any additional issues? i know RAW it wouldmt cause any problems but curiuous what people think

[inner silo]

@reef tundra why do you hate the artificer?

[reef tundra]

I don't hate it, I just personally don't like it, as a DM

I had a terrible first experiencing DMing for an artificer

[knotty basin]

IMO artificer is too similar to warlock

[reef tundra]

And the fact it can create magic items just irritates me

[orchid marsh]

artificer seems so gimmicky in alot of settings imo

[keen valve]

I do hate artificers. I hate little tech people so much. I hope they explode.

[reef tundra]

Also its subclasses require extra work to make it fit into most settings

And holy hell, I hate replicate magic item

I've seen people compare it to spells, but spells use a resource and have a limited time active, but a magic item is always there, always active, always able to be used

[keen valve]

This I agree with, a lot.

Like it clashes with non-maigtech settings a lot.

[turbid vessel]

almost like it was made for a magitech setting, and introduced with a magitech setting book

[reef tundra]

Almost every subclass for every other class in the game doesn't need much work to fit into a regular fantasy setting, but only one artificer subclass fits a lot of settings

[keen valve]

It was! But because it's presented and sought after, it becomes very difficult to try and fit in when people wanna try it.

[empty thicket]

you can balance it making it have requirements, pieces, materials, money and others

[fickle heart]

I actually think that updated Artificer is easier to fit into settings, with the exception of some of the subclasses.

[reef tundra]

Painfully, my setting can justify an artificer's magitech, so I have no excuse I could use to ban them, other than my personal distaste

[reef tundra]

Okay, cartographer - I like, that's one exception

[empty thicket]

like, copying an alchemy jug would need time to study how it work, the materials for it and finally making a chance of failing in such task

[reef tundra]

But that would mean I need to homebrew a rule to make it harder to use a class ability

[fickle heart]

RMI now just making the items appear is a lot less magitech than modifying existing stuff, as well.

[turbid vessel]

in my experience seeing and testing replicate magic item, i've found that the magic items presented at each level tier aren't really outrageous to add

[reef tundra]

Although, now that I think about it, spell components exist

You have a point, Fracnco

[tough sandal]

Spell components do, indeed, exist.

[reef tundra]

I think if I got myself to play it a little, I could maybe loosen up about it

[empty thicket]

Yeah, and? its the beauty of DND and help to balance it.
The artificier making 30 alchemy jugs just for selling stuff and getting money for free

[wind dawn]

Good evening y'all

What're y'all talking about

[turbid vessel]

i'm not quite sure that's how RMI works

[fickle heart]

RMI is pretty heavily reliant on playing the game "as it's supposed to be played", yeah, which definitely is a turn-off for some and a turn-on for others.

[reef tundra]

I was just saying my counter-argument of making an artificer's abilties harder to use via requirements for components and money is invalidated by the existence of spell components

[reef tundra]

My nemesis - the artificer class

[turbid vessel]

as much as i love the base artificer flavor, i've had a lot of fun reflavoring and reskinning it into a more high-fantasy aesthetic
mmmmmmm plague doctor artificer

[reef tundra]

Okay now that is actually kinda badass

That, I like

[glass granite]

Alchemist, I assume?

[reef tundra]

Same as the reanimator subclass, I am actually a little excited for it

[turbid vessel]

that's the easiest to reskin, yeah. but the others are certainly fair game too

[glass granite]

Wait you like something artificer…

[reef tundra]

yes :(

I may not like some of the choices they made for it, but I cannot say I hate it.

And I will respect that people like it

And I love plague doctors and Frankenstein so ofc I'd love some of those even if they were artificer

[turbid vessel]

battle smith artificer with their Frankenstein-style defender and elixirs to boost their battle prowess

[reef tundra]

I think with time I can learn to like it

Except I do not like artillerist or battle smith

[marble lion]

Are artificers something shunned?

[empty thicket]

im surprised that artificier cant do things like Arrows+1

[marble lion]

This reads like theyre forbidden to like

[reef tundra]

They are very... devisive

[inner silo]

What did they do?

[turbid vessel]

not usually, in my experience. not any more than people might have distate for other classes

[inner silo]

So artificers are too op?

[glass granite]

No, not usually

[marble lion]

I think artificers are only an issue like warforged if the person insists on too technological an aesthetic maybe

[reef tundra]

A lot of the abilities took me by surprise. And the player kept "misreading" abilities and making them OP, and I was just generally horrified with seme abilties

[glass granite]

But they can be difficult for some DM’s to handle

[marble lion]

Why

[empty thicket]

If i would like to do a living armor, would be like a flavored warforged?

[reef tundra]

No, its just irritating to take control away from the DM

[inner silo]

Ah, yeah misreading abilities is pretty bad to do

[inner silo]

I see

[marble lion]

What does an artificer do that takes away control?

[reef tundra]

None of my disliking for artificer is because of objective stuff, and I won't say it's bad design, it's just my subjective experiences and opinions on it

[marble lion]

Im not too wellversed in artificer features

[inner silo]

They give your party magic items so they don't depend on the stuff the dm gives them as much and getting magic items as a reward isn't as big of an event I'm guessing

[reef tundra]

Being able to modify items, body parts, and weapons, it essentially allows them to be a mini DM for themself and grant themself magic gear

[stable solar]

Only if you give them 5 super good magical items...

[marble lion]

I thought it was quite limited

[glass granite]

It is, which is why I allow them at my table

[reef tundra]

They are, it's nothing crazy, it just rubs me the wrong way

[marble lion]

No different from other class features

[reef tundra]

Like I said, it's not bad, I just don't like it

[turbid vessel]

i mean if they hoard the entire feature for only themselves, sure, that artificer will seem pretty stacked with gear. though i think a lot of people end up sharing with the party

[marble lion]

Its just a feature that comes in form of an item

[inner silo]

The dm i play with right now who had an artificer played up to 10th level actually said the artificer underperformed quite a bit, so much so the dm had to give him an additional magical pet that was like a mini beastmasters beast

[reef tundra]

But it just feels wrong to me

[marble lion]

Yeah i felt my artificer player does by far the worst in my game

[atomic kayak]

If the setting has wizards artificers make just as much sense

[reef tundra]

It's valid to not mind it, you're right that it's just a feature, similar to other boons that stuff like warlock gets, I just... don't like it for some reason

[inner silo]

I really hope i get to try them soon tbh though. They seem like the coolest class flavourwise

[stable solar]

Artificer is honestly more of a supportive utility class than a tank or Blaster so them "underperforming" sorta makes sense

[marble lion]

Artificers are magical and can be in shape of anything really

[glass granite]

They’re like if bard didn’t have the crowd control spells
Support is good, utility is fine, but they seem kinda lacking

[marble lion]

It doesnt have to be steampunk

[inner silo]

Yeah that just happens. Sometimes you just don't like stuff

[empty thicket]

yeah... mine its almost in the same place, i didnt see him doing any infussion in all the campaign and he could help us a lot with any of those

[reef tundra]

Yeah.

[marble lion]

Yeah fair

[empty thicket]

more defense, damage, returning weapon, non having to worry about loading a weapon , etc. etc.

[reef tundra]

I don't mind that others like it, I know my distaste for it only has like, one proper valid reason, and the rest is just experiences and subjective opinions

[inner silo]

Ruining the class ngl

[reef tundra]

But when I do reflavour it, I suppose it does feel a little better

[turbid vessel]

maybe you just don't like magitech in general, it's not for everyone

[inner silo]

Like making them a smith over a mechanic?

[reef tundra]

Yeah, pretty much

[inner silo]

I see

[reef tundra]

I have a few magitech places in my setting, but I think I do just prefer regular med-high fantasy

[inner silo]

Interesting how peoples likes and dislikes differ

[reef tundra]

Yeah, everyone is different, and all have their own opinions on things. It's what makes humans so magical irl

[knotty basin]

Honestly, the DM has less control than the party oftentimes

[inner silo]

Yup

I wander if all worms also have different opinions

[reef tundra]

But I will never stop my artificer slander jokes, the arti fans can take it

And it makes me feel better

[woven flint]

You like Vecna, so I'll ignore the slander smh

[reef tundra]

-# Finally, vengeance against artificer for destroying my campaign

[inner silo]

Better enough to let an artificer play at your table?

[reef tundra]

Wrong - I love Vecna

[reef tundra]

Sigh I suppose

[woven flint]

Yaaaaawwwwnnnn

[inner silo]

Do you do online campaigns?

[woven flint]

Generic Lich 5 quadrillion

[reef tundra]

Yes

[inner silo]

Yay

[reef tundra]

Blasphemy

[lavish flame]

Someone's gotta be the poster boy for liches

[reef tundra]

No you're right if you take away specifics you could see him as a little generic.

[lavish flame]

Like how Tiamat is the poster boy for Dragons

[woven flint]

Acecerak is just better

[reef tundra]

But damn I love those specifics

[inner silo]

Every "generic" thing originated from something original

[lavish flame]

which one?

[clear lark]

Tiamat is a girl lol

[reef tundra]

Impossible, Vecna taught that mofo. And unlike Acererak, Vecna is actually... alive

[lavish flame]

but "poster boy" is the phrase

[inner silo]

Battle for wesnoth has some goated liches

[woven flint]

Yeah? Well.. about that Acererak denied God hood so he could keep trolling mortals :p

[reef tundra]

Actually, I can respect that

That's a pretty metal thing to do

[abstract beacon]

Is making stuff up on the spot as a dm valid or nah?

[woven flint]

Vecna wanted to become a Deity because he's a Soyjack

Acecerak thought becoming a God would be boring

[inner silo]

Mal-Ravanal is the coolest lich imo

[glass granite]

Oh absolutely!

[reef tundra]

Valid. That is the DM way

[raw ocean]

Im feeling evil, im setting up a quest where a little girl asks the party to go into the dungeon to find her missing dad, He's going to be dead and have a drawn picture of him and his daughter on his body

[clear lark]

Depends on what's being made up and why?

[abstract beacon]

Man this prep got me befuddled

500 tarrasques

[shy stirrup]

I'm going to make up the answer on the spot

Yes

[reef tundra]

I like both styles of person

[glass granite]

40% of DM’ing is story telling, 20% is prep, 20% is making stuff up, and 120% is scheduling

[raw ocean]

You forgot the 5% of telling your players that they can't have a rail gun

[shy stirrup]

The Scheduling Boss remains undefeated

[woven flint]

Imagine, if you will, thinking you're too good for Godhood, that's insanely metal!

[abstract beacon]

I’m next in line a dm and our current campaign will probably end in 2 weeks

[inner silo]

How many % is arguing if you can use acrobatics to climb walls?

[glass granite]

You’re right

[glass granite]

Hol up lemme correct myself

[abstract beacon]

Me and my friends just play every Saturday

[raw ocean]

"B-but it's for my backstory!" He-he-hell nah!

[glass granite]

40% of DM’ing is story telling, 20% is prep, 20% is making stuff up, 20% is dealing with bullsh%# and 100% is scheduling

[raw ocean]

If a player ever comes to me wanting to be a war forged that has guns right off the bat, im turning it down

[inner silo]

Considering gods often have a lot of responsibilities, no wander someone wouldn't want to become one

[raw ocean]

I have dealt with that ONCE, never again.

[vast pelican]

I've tried where I can to be the de-facto scheduler at tables where I play.

[reef tundra]

It's pretty cool, but I already have this ring on my finger so Imma stay loyal

[glass granite]

Good on you

[inner silo]

So glad I haven't faced scheduling issues yet.

[reef tundra]

Watch me become a chaos god

[woven flint]

I wouldn't want to marry a lich, Personally. they're stinky!

[glass granite]

How can one learn this power

[inner silo]

Chaos still has responsibilities

[reef tundra]

Such as?

[abstract beacon]

So for my campaign I’ve made a map, locations , an opening (aka how the characters meet), and a first encounter, as well as a side quest for a rare item and some gold

[reef tundra]

I have a terrible sense of smell so I'm good.

[inner silo]

Having a fixed schedule that doesn't shift to different days and still has games happen even if 1/2 people can't join has it's perks

[reef tundra]

I used to do the same until my job started needing me in on days where I'd normally do dnd

[glass granite]

Woah HALF don’t make it?!!
I have it with 2 players not there, and that’s cuz I have 8 players!

[reef tundra]

Fortunately that campaign is almost over so it should be done soon

[woven flint]

Wait til Kas comes over for the reunion.

[inner silo]

You'd have to also spread chaos around the world

[glass granite]

Fun

[marble lion]

1 to 2, not half, i think

[abstract beacon]

Our current campaign is 4 , but when I dm it’s probably gonna be 5 maybe even 6….

[reef tundra]

And that's why I have a second spouse

[glass granite]

Ah yeah that makes loads more sense

[inner silo]

We have 6 and sometimes "random appearance's"

[marble lion]

Ok nevermind maybe half was right

[reef tundra]

I suppose I do have to keep my followers to remain a god, damn

[inner silo]

How many followers do you think you could muster in 57 hours as a god?

[stable solar]

Honestly I should start doing that, tho I think its just gonna be me and one other person 😭

[abstract beacon]

I just don’t know what the plot for my campaign is going to be. The estimated max level will be about 10 I think

Maybe 12 or 13 idk yet

[reef tundra]

Probably a lot, I can turn it into a pyramid scheme

[keen cave]

My DM definately has been picking favourites, I just need everyone’s opinion, Because frankly I am undecided whether just to leave or not

So to start: my DM has had my character damaged to introduced new characters a lot, Like being stabbed in the back to introduce a few enemies, being shot with an arrow to introduce a boss, etc

[clear lark]

If you are thinking of leaving, then you should leave. IMO

[stable solar]

Have you communicated that this is an issue for you?

[shy stirrup]

Let him go on before you pull that ejection seat button for him

[reef tundra]

Actually that might be a good idea

[keen cave]

Very much so, And that is just the tip of the iceberg

[stable solar]

Then leave yea

[reef tundra]

Ah, in that case, you should leave

[clear lark]

Sometimes you just have to accept that gut feeling and facts before your eyes.

[shy stirrup]

Keep going, what else?

[sleek cloud]

No dnd is better than bad dnd

[shy stirrup]

And sometimes you should wait for the facts, as we are now doing

[inner silo]

Interesting

[blissful crow]

should i make gelatinous cubes into blue cheese?

[reef tundra]

1 star, burned my insides

[sleek cloud]

Without hesitation

[keen cave]

Basically my character’s main story is that he was enslaved by this human lord, and that human executed his entire family, The DM had the party kill this guy in a session which I was not even there for, Basically putting an end to my characters story as: ‘These dudes went and killed the guy who my entire story revolves around’

[bronze wave]

this sounds disgusting

[real spade]

I'm planning on a new campaign, and my thoughts of session one was to have everyone stow away on a ship and they have to deal with bad weather caused by a blue dragon named Pombat, the eternal that's traveling from one continent to another one. Ultimately the ships runs into a Coral reef or something that wrecks the ship and they all drift ashore.
( Any thoughts on things I could change or add?)

[clear lark]

which one? lol

[blissful crow]

it was it tasted like paw paws fur

[bronze wave]

all of it

[sleek cloud]

I mean,session zero is more about just discussing with your players about the campaign tone,setting,rules, and their characters and how they mesh

[keen cave]

Not to mention he had my character mutilated by this disease, Literally turning him into a completely different race, Turning him into more of a clicker from the last of us than a half orc (his race)

[bronze wave]

thats more a s1, s0 is for like talking about chars limits and more mechanical stuff

[lost flicker]

What would y'all say is better

Composition notebooks or spiralbound notebooks

[sleek cloud]

Sounds like a solid start though

[glass granite]

Have them retcon that as a faked death of it isn’t already, but yeah this sounds weird

[shy stirrup]

And all of this, presumably, without your input or permission

[real spade]

I meant 1 my apologies

[keen cave]

YEAH!

[bronze wave]

then it sounds good to me

[shy stirrup]

Anything else?

[clear lark]

I think Session 0 is a waste of everyone time. Whatever you have to say can be done when the adventure starts

[sleek cloud]

Yeah,shipwreck is pretty good sounding.

[cursive thorn]

Could not disagree more TBH.

[bronze wave]

I disagree, tons of out of game stuff should be in s0

[lavish flame]

This isn't a session 0, this is a prologue or adventure setup. A session 0 is primarily for getting all the players' expectations aligned. You might make characters, talk about what you want out of the campaign, and tell people about your boundaries during a session 0. You don't adventure until session 1.

[minor cargo]

Haha, in this way, I do a Session Zero at the start of every session. We review our safety tools, our expectations, and other over-the-table procedures/processes.

I'm totally in favour of more S0s, not less.

[keen cave]

And so after the lord died I figured ‘well my characters father sold his family off in the first place, Maybe I can shift the focus to him’
My characters father was killed off screen by the BBEG. Literally reducing him to one sentence from the bad guy.

[lavish flame]

i'm partial to spiral notebooks

[bronze wave]

I would leave the campaign seems easy enough

[real spade]

I meant to say one and ik it sounds more like prologue but I want the players to have more freedom and have a chance to escape if it doesn't get wrecked first

[sleek cloud]

Having a session to get in front of all the questions or concerns beforehand instead of having to deal with it during the campaign and cause things to slow down is no small thing, that’s why I’m in favor for session 0’s

[tough sandal]

Spiral can damage my dnd books, so I lean towards any flat notebooks. :3c

[keen cave]

Not to mention he has also had me take at least 20x more damage than any other player. I’m not even a barbarian, My character is a warlock, And not a very tanky one.

[shy stirrup]

This isn't a DM playing favourites, it's a DM that either has no idea what they're doing, or is singling you out. Especially considering you say you've talked to this DM about this to no avail, you should really just leave the table at this point.

[sleek cloud]

Like imagine deciding to be a wizard and then the first session you find out the worlds magic is cursed and your character is hindered, that’d be pretty crappy to find out after you already made a character and backstory

[keen cave]

Sent the message a few minutes ago.

[shy stirrup]

Good. And good luck finding a new and better table.

[keen cave]

I guess it just took me telling a few people to realize how shitty this DM was

[shy stirrup]

Sometimes an outside perspective is helpful 🙂

[bronze wave]

I would also again just leave

[clear lark]

Sometimes it's not necessary since the evidence is overwhelming

[shy stirrup]

Wasn't to the OP, if it was, why would he come here to ask?

[bronze wave]

meh if it doesnt fit i leave, youll find a new group and youll only like the group less and less

[clear lark]

Exactly

[marble lion]

Ok but why not streamline it a bit

[lavish flame]

streamline what?

[bronze wave]

I assume dnd classes into just paladins (maybe wizards and blood hunters to)

[inner silo]

Is Bigby's hand good?

[lavish flame]

its goated

[inner silo]

Alrighty, great!

[meager fractal]

Yes. It’s a tactical powerhouse offering grappling, shoving, cover, and force damage. Because it uses your bonus action, it grants incredible action economy.

[frail wasp]

often imitated, never duplicated

[fathom path]

I noticed on dnd beyond, Absorb elements doesn’t have say what you can absorb.

Does that mean you can absorb any damage type or just following what the title says?

[meager fractal]

has to be acid, cold, fire, lightning, or thunder damage

[glass granite]

It’s “when you take acid, cold, fire, lightning, or thunder damage”

It’s an asterisk next to the casting time, which is a reaction

[fathom path]

I think I heard of that
But I don’t see it written down?

The spell captures some of the incoming energy, lessening its effect on you and storing it for your next melee attack. You have resistance to the triggering damage type until the start of your next turn. Also, the first time you hit with a melee attack on your next turn, the target takes an extra 1d6 damage of the triggering type, and the spell ends.

[meager fractal]

it says it in the asterisk beside the casting time

[tough sandal]

When it comes to spells like those, you gotta look at the Reaction condition listed on "Casting Time".

[fathom path]

I guess it’s just it’s just common sense I guess.

[fathom path]

Oh it might be cause I’m on mobile so it doesn’t have enough room to show that?

[tough sandal]

Oh dang, you're right.

[sleek cloud]

I just looked on the mobile app and it showed it just fine

[fathom path]

?

Oh I can’t show photos

[umbral gazelle]

Hello peeps

[fathom path]

It’s fine I assume I can check on the laptop. It shows the * but nothing else

[fathom path]

Good day, mate

Oh anyone got an idea on combos to help other party members as a cleric?

[umbral gazelle]

I don't sadly, I've only had 2 or 3 sessions to be in until they all just ended without any warning sadly

[glass granite]

What domain

[fathom path]

Life 2024.

[glass granite]

Isn’t goodberry really good with life domain

[fathom path]

Oh umm we rule out that.

Since even I agree since the spell is creating the good berries not giving extra hit points since you need to eat them to get the hp.

[stable solar]

Why would it be good with life domain?

[fathom path]

Adds the class ability on the berries

[stable solar]

Yea I think thats how its RAW

[uncut zenith]

Life domain increases the healing amount done by healing spells

[fathom path]

So like 1 + 2 + 1 =4

[stable solar]

Yea but the berries are food, not spell

[fathom path]

I’m a 6/1 (life cleric/druid)

[uncut zenith]

That’s generally how I rule it too. Goodberry itself isn’t a healing spell, it’s a spell that creates consumables that heal when consumed

[meager fractal]

Bless and then sanctuary is a pretty good combo. Then dance around providing flanking (if that's in your game) until someone needs healing

[stable solar]

I wish more dms used flanking rules but its a tad bit op..

[fathom path]

However the dm will allow deplicite of life added on Aura of vitality

We had an idea of me being the the front line beside the Pali for the aura of protection.

I umm also found out I’m pretty much hard to kill.

[jagged vigil]

Did some big wide-lense outlining for my current campaign, very excited about it. Feels good!

[stable solar]

Yea clerics tend to do that

[fathom path]

Oh umm I also have a special item that each of us has and all different

Mine lets me create a 10ft zone which if someone gain hit point due to my abilities they get temp hp equal to my level.

So I pretty much get blessed healer I get 5 hp + 7 temp hp. Every time I cast aura of Vitality

[high ledge]

I have calculated the chances of getting each result on a roll with disadvantage, made a visualization of it and also calculated the change in the average result

what chat can I share the chart on?

[fathom path]

We also found out ominous winds is very op that the dm had to nerf it.

[stable solar]

Ominous winds???

[fathom path]

Tho I kept not landing it.

Cha save. (-1d12 to attack and saving throws) like Bane on steroids

[high ledge]

please, I have no permission to send images and I must share my chart

[proven mountain]

You can link to images with an explanation about the link but you can't post images in the server

[tame estuary]

and it's better to send that to #optimization
where it will be appreciated

[umbral gazelle]

Does that also mean I can send my character sheet in #character-discussion to see if I need any changes for my character?

[tame estuary]

absolutely

[stable solar]

Okay so question, how are enemies supposed to free themselves from it if they can only do one saving throw at the beginning (and it lasts for a full minute)

[proven mountain]

Yup, that's totally okay 🙂

[tame estuary]

the homebrew spell is broken, totally unexpected

[fathom path]

Yeah and that’s why the dm was like let nerf that.

[stable solar]

It would be balanced if enemies could spend an action to attempt a saving throw to free themselves imo

[tame estuary]

not really

[stable solar]

Also probably not do 3 enemies and just have it be 1

[tame estuary]

if you get this off before the enemy turn, you can really do so much

d4 and d12 is that drastic of a change

[stable solar]

True

[umbral gazelle]

Can't send a pdf file of my sheet ig...

[tame estuary]

you can send it over to a google drive and send a link

or google docs

[umbral gazelle]

I'll try

[stable solar]

Also, charisma doesnt really make sense for a saving throw imo... charisma tends to be more reserved for banishment and stuff

I mean i get its supposed to be related to bane

[fathom path]

Yeah we changed it to a d8, tho I got a 16 DC and keep failing to land it.

[reef tundra]

Charisma is just the bizarro strange miscellaneous saving throw to me

[stable solar]

It is yea

[reef tundra]

It’s just so weird

But I can’t help but love it. Shame it’s so rare

[fathom path]

I tend to roll badly but the rogue rolled 7 natural 1’s in the combat. And through the entire session didn’t roll higher then a 10.

[reef tundra]

Say, what level was this rogue, and what kind of rolls were you making?

[stable solar]

That rogue needs elven accuracy lmao

[fathom path]

Eh like 5 and 2 fighter.

[reef tundra]

Nvm that checks out

[fathom path]

Maybe 6 Nat ones in a row, two being advantage.

[reef tundra]

Yeah, bad luck hits hard sometimes

[tame estuary]

charisma saving throw makes sense for like bane though

[atomic kayak]

(this doesn't work in 2024 anyways)

[reef tundra]

Damn, were you rolling online or in person?

[fathom path]

I think I been rolling okay.

[tame estuary]

bane is supposed to be you bleed from your hand to activate it

[fathom path]

In person.

[reef tundra]

Well in that case I have no explanation, pure bad luck

[umbral gazelle]

Got it

[reef tundra]

What?

[atomic kayak]

No

[fathom path]

Yeah she has very nice dice and even used the dice from our lucky player who keeps rolling max damage and very high all the time.

[tame estuary]

I thought the component is supposed to be your blood

[atomic kayak]

The material component of Bane is a drop of blood. A) this can be replaced with a focus so it wouldn't matter B) it doesn't need to be your blood regardless

[fathom path]

Rolled 3 Nat ones for an attack, second attack, action surge, attack.

[reef tundra]

Even if so, that doesn’t really justify a charisma save

Charisma saves are supposedly enforcing your sense of self or something

[atomic kayak]

You are

[tame estuary]

charisma save is like a rolling against intimidation check I think

[atomic kayak]

It also justifies a save because its a debuff

[tame estuary]

charisma is a lot of things

[reef tundra]

I know that

Actually, now that I think deeper, yeah, charisma against bane is fine /gen

I can’t really think of any other stat it could be

[stable solar]

Idk wisdom?

[reef tundra]

And if it wasn’t a charisma save then I wouldn’t find charisma saves funny

[reef tundra]

Eh, too inflated as a stat for saves

As in, too many things use it as a save

[fathom path]

It’s also a level 2 spell.

[stable solar]

Yea but wisdom does tend to be for save or suck spells, and id say ominous winds is very save or suck

[reef tundra]

I thought it was level 1

[stable solar]

Charisma is more mild inconvenience imo

[reef tundra]

The mild inconvenience of being banished to another dimension

[stable solar]

Yea, a mild inconvenience.

[woven flint]

The mild inconvenience of being possessed

🗿

[austere zodiac]

My dad said bard was the worst class i then told him about rangers

[violet basin]

Your dad is still right.

[loud tendon]

it's okay for both of you to be wrong..

[violet basin]

rangers are actually very powerful

[reef tundra]

I say it’s a matter of confusing subjective opinion for objective fact

Bard is not the worst class, it’s just your dad’s least facourite

[fathom path]

2024 Life domain or Peace Domain?

[hot gate]

I find the whole statement funny because nobody even defined what "worst" meant. Worst at what?

[reef tundra]

Ranger is not the worst class, it’s just your least favourite

[glass granite]

Like which is stronger?

[fathom path]

Mainly best for support.

[glass granite]

Peace

[austere zodiac]

no worst for a long running campane

[reef tundra]

Yeah, because depending on the criteria the class is being judged on, almost all of them will be the worst or best

[austere zodiac]

i also told him about shrek 1 and how that is most bards favorite movie

[crimson gulch]

Some body once told me.......

[loud tendon]

now it just feels like you're trolling..

[reef tundra]

So, how do people feel about the titans we have in dnd?

[glass granite]

We have titans?

[sleek cloud]

I remember them

[reef tundra]

Yup

[violet basin]

has anyone ever actually fought or interacted with a Titan?

[reef tundra]

The titan group of monsters

[glass granite]

Genuinely did not know

[reef tundra]

One of my campaigns had the looming threat of an elemental cataclysm threatening to escape the elemental chaos

And I have had an empyrean appear in another campaign

[reef tundra]

It’s stuff like tarrasques and krakens

Oh and the new colossus

[violet basin]

i was thinking greek titans or so

[crimson gulch]

Yeah, I have used all of those monsters in my games

[reef tundra]

Ohhhhhh

[glass granite]

Same

[reef tundra]

No, sadly I haven’t

[reef tundra]

Nerd /lhj

-# I say that with love, Nugget

[glass granite]

Thanks for the compliment

: D

[reef tundra]

Darn, you’re right. It is a compliment

I had some proper Greek mythology burnout a while ago

[glass granite]

I love Greek myth

[violet basin]

greek myth is methed up

[subtle olive]

Yeah it’s great but a bit weird

[glass granite]

It’s part of the charm

[clear lark]

They aren't there to be fought, hence their crazy attributes along with the Tarrasque etc. They are meant to be plot devices if used at all

[reef tundra]

They are definitely all plot device-y

Like hell I would have intended a fight with the elemental cataclysm in that campaign I had it in

The actual final boss was the arch Druid that was opening the portal to it

[atomic kayak]

They are definitely intended to be fought eventually

[reef tundra]

Although, the empyrean in one of my campaigns is an actual boss, but the players and NPCs have a plan to take her down

[subtle olive]

Naaaahhh man the idea of how the old civilizations lived and how they thought process back then is what attracted me

[atomic kayak]

T3 and T4 are good places for such fights

[crimson gulch]

Nah its 100% ment to be used

[reef tundra]

Definitely

[glass granite]

And yet you sent me that stat block

[snow agate]

how often do you think of the roman empire

[tame estuary]

never

[violet basin]

if it has a stat block, I can kill loot it

[reef tundra]

….. Eve is perfectly fine….

[glass granite]

Bring back the self heal

[austere zodiac]

I was a Dm and one of my players wanted to be a titan

[reef tundra]

Never….

[violet basin]

instant "no"

[glass granite]

Oh hell no

[tame estuary]

aot titan?

[reef tundra]

Classic player request

[glass granite]

No to all of the above

[subtle olive]

I used to watch videos about it

[tame estuary]

approxamate of that, instead of that big, they can play rune knight fighter or giant barbarian

[reef tundra]

Sigh a lot

[violet basin]

Every day, every hour, every minute.
Ave Imperalis Eternum

[tame estuary]

probably a cultural shock, I don't think of the roman empire at all

[glass granite]

Once a month, tops

[subtle olive]

Bro my dm just ghosted me 🧍‍♂️

[austere zodiac]

we compromised and now he's a goliath

[tame estuary]

happens more often than you wish

[violet basin]

👻

[glass granite]

I wonder why they do that. It happens, unfortunately

[subtle olive]

🏃‍♂️

[glass granite]

How long have they not responded for?

[reef tundra]

The closest I’ve gotten to ghosting a player is needing to take a whole day to process a request they sent me

[sleek cloud]

Must’ve been one hell of a request

[reef tundra]

And to process their… intelligence

[austere zodiac]

same

[violet basin]

On a scale of 1, to 10....?

[subtle olive]

For my time the first session supposed to start at 11pm and now it’s 2 am

[glass granite]

Hm.

[reef tundra]

Only a 7 but it was the fifth 7 in a row

[violet basin]

did the dm gohst the entire group? or just you?

[stable solar]

What was it

[glass granite]

Maybe they forgor?
Who am I kidding

[subtle olive]

Nah in dms

[austere zodiac]

at that point give up and go to bed

[violet basin]

maybe you, or they, or both of you, need to go to a casion for all those 7s

[violet basin]

they may have been eepy?

[subtle olive]

Maybe but i don’t really care

[reef tundra]

It was the 6th rewrite of the character backstory and once again they slipped the vorpal sword in there, and the suggestion at the end was a description for me to read. Anime BS

[violet basin]

introduce them to the boot
gently, at first

[subtle olive]

That’s my sleep schedule anyway so no big deal

[reef tundra]

Considering what slim chances the player bets on all the time I’ll send them there

[violet basin]

Reminds me of a player in a campaign im in.

[snow agate]

I should try that sometimes

[reef tundra]

I broke them instead. They haven’t even mentioned the vorpal sword in months

[violet basin]

heheh

[subtle olive]

But for the most of the week it’s good

[austere zodiac]

nice

[reef tundra]

It’s the final session soon so I’ll be free soon

[snow agate]

Maybe I’ll pull a bg3 and say hey dm I’m romancing mystra

[violet basin]

chucks you into a black hole

[austere zodiac]

what level are the players

[violet basin]

I always killed Gale after my first play through.

[reef tundra]

8, but one thinks he can solo an empyrean

[austere zodiac]

k

[reef tundra]

How could you… /lh

[snow agate]

Tbh I just quit the game because I didn’t like the party members aside from Laezel

[reef tundra]

I am too obsessed with the party members

[austere zodiac]

Anyone else got dragon lace stuff

[violet basin]

I always just went with Bae'zel, Karlaugh, and Shadowcute with a tav wood elf gloom stalker usually

[glass granite]

Hi too obsessed with the party members, I’m Nugget

[stable solar]

Again with the dad jokes 😭

[reef tundra]

I will eat you, nugget

[vocal pasture]

Im just trying to find a campaign that doesn’t use ai for once 💔 I had to leave my last one because it became too much and then the one I’m currently at I’ll probably have to leave 🥲

[violet basin]

I would avoid saying that to Laezel....

[austere zodiac]

Anyone else got dragon lace stuff

[stable solar]

Why would anyone use ai

[violet basin]

How many DMs are using AI to run campaigns?

[reef tundra]

Hey don’t worry, I’m sure there are many, many campaigns out there that don’t allow AI, because it’s awful

[reef tundra]

Said it, didn’t regret it

[violet basin]

same

[vocal pasture]

For the characters, and for like to “explain” the setting like bruh

[sleek cloud]

Karlach my beloved

[vocal pasture]

There are SO many alternatives before Ai

[austere zodiac]

I only use it for notes

[stable solar]

When im feeling lazy I just roll dice and pick flaws and bonds and then alter them to fit characters accordingly...

[reef tundra]

Exactly. Here’s one: getting gud

[austere zodiac]

git gud

[reef tundra]

Exactly

[violet basin]

use your brain, and imaginate

[tame estuary]

sometimes your efforts are just wasted on the wrong people

[austere zodiac]

i shaw that reference

[vocal pasture]

Yeah that’s fine but like having to use it for art and shi is just awful 💔 specially cause I’m an artist like IM WILLING TO DRAW YOUR CHARACTER FOR FREE PLEASE STOP 😭idk might not seem like a big deal but to me it is at least

[violet basin]

free, you say? Hmmmm

[glass granite]

Money worth 💰

[tame estuary]

I offer people in my campaign for me to draw their tokens for them, but I find that 6/10 times it's a dealbreaker

[subtle olive]

Guys what is the average time for a session?

[vocal pasture]

I deadass just drew a scene from a campaign that I’ll probably be leaving soon cause the vibes ain’t it for me tbh…..I just joined recently so it’s fine

[reef tundra]

For me, 2-4 hours

[violet basin]

Can you draw my middle-aged half-elf genie-lock/stars druid with his supper tight pants, super-v-neck-down-to-his-hips ultra-tight fishnet vest, and crocs?

[reef tundra]

Well, your talents were wasted on them. You deserve a better group

[austere zodiac]

FREE???

[subtle olive]

That’s good 👍

[tame estuary]

for their campaign, presumably

[violet basin]

2 hours for non-combat, 3-5 for combat...

[vocal pasture]

I can lol I can even do furries

[violet basin]

no

[austere zodiac]

2 hours

[vocal pasture]

LMAO

[subtle olive]

Thx

[austere zodiac]

bet

[violet basin]

2 hours is super short, from my experience.

[reef tundra]

And if you’re ever up for a commission, I have a few NPCs I may need art for

[glacial pulsar]

Man why are the clothes in this game weigh 4 pounds? are they made out of tungsten strings??

[tame estuary]

average is what you're comfortable with

play many games to find out what that is

[reef tundra]

Woah, I didn’t know that

[violet basin]

made with all centuries of road dust built in

[vocal pasture]

That would mean so much to me !

[vocal pasture]

Thank you

[austere zodiac]

quality stitching

[vocal pasture]

Man how hard is it to just find a nice small group like that’s it, that’s all I want, a group to genuinely be friends with and just make pretend with characters and shi lord it’s like trying to find a needle on hay

[austere zodiac]

yes

[craggy flower]

Hello!!

[tame estuary]

weirdly enough, from my experience, most people want to play, not to make friends

[vocal pasture]

so hard for no reason tbh cause I know there are just a bunch of people who are in the same position as me

[tame estuary]

and so they just pick a group best suited for them to play in and after that they try to be friends with the group

[vocal pasture]

Well yeah but eventually if you get along well you become friends which is a plus

[reef tundra]

I wish I wasn’t getting so busy irl, I’d love to make more groups to adopt like I did before

[tame estuary]

you can really tell though if you want to be friends with someone and they won't reciprocate that

[uncut valley]

Hey everyone, I'm very new to dnd, anyone have any good beginner guides for playing online as I don't know where to start

[violet basin]

@vocal pasture can i dm you a discord server, for a west marches rp focused (via tupperbot) group?

[reef tundra]

#dnd-newcomers can tell you everything you need

[uncut valley]

Cool, thankyou

[austere zodiac]

if anyone is in ca hit up a small shop called matrix they do one shots on Tuesdays

[vocal pasture]

West marches ?

[late slate]

kinda sad none of the digital stuff on the dnd marketplace is on sale :/

[sleek cloud]

It’s not?

Thought there’s a Black Friday sale going on

[violet basin]

not really an overarching continual campaign (there is some background story stuff) but just a bunch of mostly disconttected one shots, were player characters are the continutiy.

[tame estuary]

text based westmarches I assume, it's too much of a headache

[late slate]

bundles and physicals are on sale. none of the digital only ive looked at is on sale.

[idle oar]

It's not cyber monday yet though either so... maybe there's more coming?

I dunno

[austere zodiac]

any DMs here and whats your view on homebrews?

[tame estuary]

homebrews I make or approve? 👍
homebrews my player gives me and wants me to run? 👎

[violet basin]

borrowing AI 'description" of westermarches
"A D&D campaign style that features open-world/sand-box driven short campaigns/one-shots with rotating base of players and DMs."

[late slate]

homebrews my players give me that i can tweak

[violet basin]

its a way to have a character, interact with others, and go on adventuers, without needing to create full campaigns

[tame estuary]

it's a niche within a niche, it's different than your dnd experience
I am very much happy with struggling to find 4-5 people to meet once a week

[violet basin]

monkeys paw all the homebrew.

[reef tundra]

My whole setting is homebrew, filled with homebrew subclasses and species, but I even allow player homebrew, as long as o triple check it

[austere zodiac]

headache city

[reef tundra]

Worth it

[austere zodiac]

HOW?

[reef tundra]

Years have been put into my setting

[austere zodiac]

I have headaches with 1?!?!

[reef tundra]

When a player is killed by a villain that the party of another campaign created

[violet basin]

if you want to just play some dnd, and roleplay with people, westmarches servers are very good for that. you get character advancement, lots of rp, and some combat. depending on the dm(s) maybe some puzzles, and other little bits.

[tame estuary]

it's something that's fine to run with people you trust

[reef tundra]

And because of that party, an army of wild magic hunters was created out of fear of another incident happening

[vocal pasture]

So long as there isn’t ai usage than I’m good for it !!

[violet basin]

one of my campaings, the dm is doing that with the other group.

main group (level 15)'s wizard turned into a follower of orcus and turned super evil, (turning into an npc) who is now the main bad of the second group (level 5)

[violet basin]

there maybe AI character art, but mostly non-ai.

[reef tundra]

It is so fun, truly, it is a satisfaction like no other

#find-a-game

[vocal pasture]

😔 mmmh sorry no pass but thank you for the offer !! 🙂‍↕️

[violet basin]

wow, thats all it takes?

i guess not being able to draw and relying on AI for a few character profile pics is truly the sumnation of all the evil in the universe....

[austere zodiac]

ive used ai for like a quick draft

[vocal pasture]

It not like that 😭nothing against your server either or anything, I just don’t want to see more ai if I can avoid seeing it, just personal preference that’s all

[violet basin]

guess you'd better stay away from 99.999999% of all discords

[reef tundra]

Hey, that AI harms lemon’s career

And if lemon doesn’t wanna see it, then they’re allowed to avoid it

[violet basin]

I think I'll go use some AI to make my snake girl's next outfit.

[reef tundra]

No need to be passive aggressive

[vocal pasture]

And I’ll do that if it means I can find the 1% I’m looking for

[craggy flower]

Real, I’m an artist too!

Ai is gross

[vocal pasture]

Go ahead, I can’t stop you lol

[reef tundra]

I respect you 🫡

[craggy flower]

Thank you!

[glass granite]

Hi an artist too, I’m Nugget
I thought your name was Lady tho

[reef tundra]

Art is a celebration of humanity

[craggy flower]

It’s my big passion

[craggy flower]

Nice to meet you!

[glass granite]

Pleased to make your acquaintance

[violet basin]

but apparently one instance of it can stop you from finding d&d to enjoy

personal choice i guess have fun

[vocal pasture]

Yup. Keyword enjoy.

[violet basin]

moving past that then

lets talk about how DMs need to use Rhemorazes and Behirs more

Excellent monsters for terrifying a party in dark lonely caves

[uncut zenith]

Not a lot of campaigns bring parties to the Arctic regions of the world in my experience

[shy stirrup]

Which is a shame

[violet basin]

you can run rhemorazes outside of arctic enviroments though

[uncut zenith]

They’re fun monsters, but there are plenty of cool Arctic monsters to throw at a party, and the remorhaz and behir are relatively high level monsters

[violet basin]

they are exellent monsters to throw at low level parties

[uncut zenith]

Sure, any DM can use any monster outside of their preferred environment

That doesn’t change the fact that they’re typically arctic monsters, hence DMs don’t typically put them anywhere but the Arctic

[violet basin]

dm fiat
'prefered' enviroment doesnt matter

[vast pelican]

Yeah, this is less "DMs need to use these monsters more" and more "tables need to make it to level 10 more".

[violet basin]

throw three of em at a level 9 party and see how well they stack up against the lizard-insect brained giant centipede monster thing

[vast pelican]

3 behirs will wipe any level 9 party

[violet basin]

one of the best combats I've had was a 4 person level 6 party, and we 'stupidily' wandered into a Rhemoraz lair.

we barely made it out, and it forced 2 of the players to finally play smart

[violet basin]

regardless - they are a great and interesting monster that DMs need to use more because they (and rhemorazes) if played right can be a terrifyingly monstrous foe without being absurd. A DM that plays a Rhemoraz like the monster it is, should not actually win a fight against a tier 2 party, if the party is actually "advenuteres" .

A behir...might be a bit more of a challenge, but they can't tunnel so that also makes them slightly different with their climb and lighting breath instead.

[bitter kraken]

Yeah there are almost no tables where you look at lvl 10+

[violet basin]

I have found a bunch of servers (campaigns and westmarches) that are all going to 20.

[stable solar]

I might sound crazy but I think its reasonable to level up after each session...

[reef tundra]

Sounds like a new player’s worst nightmare

[violet basin]

A bit unreasonable

[meager fractal]

Nah I think players need a few sessions between level ups imo to enjoy their new toys

[reef tundra]

Actually, no that’s anyone but a psychopath’s worst nightmare

That’s a DM’s worst nightmare especially

[stable solar]

Idk 4-6 hours is a long time, no?

[violet basin]

instea of decision paralysis every few sessions, weeks, months...ITS EVERY TIME

[violet basin]

no

[stable solar]

Yall got a lot of freetime

[reef tundra]

No

[violet basin]

standard issue D*D for a very long time, is you PLAY the levels, so you have an understanding of your player, and don't immediately jump to new features every, single, session.

regardless of how far apart those sessions are (thats another discussion)

[late slate]

my group usually starts around 1 ish on saturdays and goes till people start getting sleepy. usually 7-10 hours. break in the middle for food and snacks.....

the really good sessions become "we ARE playing tomorrow..... so be here at this time" lol

[violet basin]

dang
never done that for D*D, only for MTG

[reef tundra]

Are you censoring the word DnD?

[violet basin]

no, i just sometimes use an asterix because its next to the and sign

[late slate]

probably hit shift 8 instead of shift 7 lol

[reef tundra]

Fair

[late slate]

SHUSH lol

YOU SAW NOTHING!! lol

[coarse lava]

The main reason for a level system is progression fantasy. Ideally level ups should feel earned. Every session wouldn't feel earned for me but that might just be a personal thing.

[violet basin]

I SEE EVERYTHING. (one of )MY CHARACTER HAS 36 PASSIVE PERCEPTION!
I CAN SEE IT ALL....

got to have some time to play with the new abilities and spells and gear

[stable solar]

Well here's the thing, im assuming you are probably like killing/accomplishing 3 level appropriate boss encounters/dungeons in each session, on top of all the rp and and smaller enemy encounters, and id say those 3 big fights should probably get you like at least half way to leveling up just from an xp standoint alone right?

[violet basin]

uh....No

[late slate]

meh depends if you are using xp or milestone. i prefer milestone for more control. it also gives me more time to figure out what gear they could actually use as rewards between level ups.

[marble lion]

How the hells are you gonna defeat a full boss every session

[violet basin]

THREE bosses....

[marble lion]

That sounds very onenote

I would leave

[stable solar]

Idk, I've personally not often struggled with bosses that often before

Minus like one battle that took 8 hours...

[shy stirrup]

But you said every session. What if the party spends 3 hours shopping? Level up?

[stable solar]

Then they arent leveling up

[violet basin]

3 hours walking from village to village? level up?

3 hours of listeing to the bard lay out their exact plan for bedding the dragon at the top of the mountain? level up?

[late slate]

if they arent struggling.... its not a battle...... >:)

and if they arent having to get up downed party members its not a mini-boss....

[shy stirrup]

#dnd-discussion message So you don't believe then a party should level up every session - just the sessions where its deserved in some way?

[stable solar]

I mean yea, I just assume you manage to do something in those several hours that puts you closer to that

Whether its surviving an encounter or accomplishing a heist

[shy stirrup]

Yea, I think most people would agree doing something = level up

[marble lion]

Only if enough

One encounter is not enough to level up in most cases

[stable solar]

Yea thats why I said like 3 big ones

A big fight takes usually about an hour

[violet basin]

Is it possible to level up every session? Sure. Is it a bad idea, Yes. Very much yes.
Level up should be an event that is a reward for the players in progressing a story to a specific point that they NEED to level up, or in defeating a particuarily difficult challenge that rewards them with experience to level up - not just because they did a battle in this session, even if it might be a hard one.

3 Big battles is NOT one session.

[marble lion]

I would say 3 big ones would be enough to level up until level 7 or so

But how do you cram 3 big encounters into one session

[violet basin]

one hour each they said

[stable solar]

I do wanna point out i usually have parties of 2 or 3 and not like 5-8 that most people have

[violet basin]

which means, not big fight to me...

[violet basin]

8? who has eight ?

[stable solar]

Nugget

[marble lion]

My sessions usually use up at least half of it for exploration, dialogue, travelling and knowledge checks

[void fossil]

Hey everyone

[marble lion]

A 4 hour session with 3 hours of 3 combats sounds very weird to me

[violet basin]

4-6, (5 average) seems to be the common number of players.

More players, usually does mean more time spent on things - but to level up every session? your players are not going to play well with not knowing their abiliites and limitations.

[lean wigeon]

i think the pace at which your players level up is really dependent on how long you wish the campaign to take as well as how much your players value and look forward to progression

[stable solar]

My sessions tend to be like at most 2 hours of role-playing and general background management (i.e crafting, shopping) and then like 1 or 2 hours of puzzles and exploration/ traps and the rest tends to be combat

[violet basin]

Its ok to level up at lower levels 'quickly' but once you reach tier 2, you should in fact level up at a more moderate pace, and into late tier 3 and early 4, leveling up is an adventure of its own....

[stable solar]

I also reward players for managing to do puzzles/traps

[marble lion]

How long are these sessions

7 hours?

[stable solar]

No longer than 7 hours, with a break

[marble lion]

Thats very long and explains why you think it should level up more

Most ppl seem to do 3 to 4 hours from what ive seen

[violet basin]

^

[marble lion]

You play twice as long

[stable solar]

I also have to say I dont do a lot of traveling

Like at most I ask them to go from one village to the neighboring city

[violet basin]

if your players are happy with that, then its fine

its just, odd

[jolly crypt]

Mycelium, bones, mushrooms what's another thing I can add to my witch's motifs that isn't so menacing but also isn't too typical?

[lyric viper]

Little longer than average but not unusual. My weekly game for over a decade was typically 6 hours, but is now closer to 5.

[violet basin]

seashells?

[jolly crypt]

Seashells and bones is delicious combo yeah thanks.

[marble lion]

Insect exoskeletons might fit better if its not a seaside witch

[fossil hollow]

lots of calcium

[marble lion]

I think the location matters a lot here

[lyric viper]

I was going to suggest insect wings (Moth, butterfly, dragonfly, iridescent beetle shells) might work too.
Dried flowers?