dnd-discussion

[empty thicket]

Making an arrogant character that is fighting the party give them advantage for free like (hey guys, you all have free advantage) is something i considerate a way to "talk" in a fight

[hidden spindle]

Rations and water

[snow zephyr]

Rations and water are the easiest things to handle with spells. A good way to force it is for there to be wild or anti magic zones

[blissful ibex]

literally implement it anyway, it forces them to use slots and makes them feel like they're contributing

[snow zephyr]

That too, but also wild magic

Is that good berry worth becoming a plant for 10 minutes?

[blissful ibex]

yes, it's like top 3 level 1 spells

[glass granite]

Oh I don’t have issues with that (honestly survival in terms of food and water isn’t very big in my games)

It’s more like it feels like they’re jumping from one big event to the next

[empty thicket]

or just make the idea of getting natural food not so bad and more rewarding,
hunting down a lets call it hog can give them more fun than just "abra cadabra make this leaf into good berries"

and train tactics//understand each other ways to fight or do the things

[hidden spindle]

Break it down in days. And each day, roll on the Random Magic Item Table

[blissful ibex]

rig something up so they need to like, roll a 1d4 and run into minor snags on an odd roll or something when moving between points

• a pickpocket nicked one of their coinpouches, after them!
• they bump into a merchant that goes all karen on them and needs to be talked down
• etc.

[empty thicket]

Or make the food made with magic just fill the belly but some meat from hunting and natural fruits//vegies//roots//nuts give a little benefit.
Same if they carry flour for making bread

[blissful ibex]

give them a few temp hp or like a +1 morale boost bonus to their next skill check

[empty thicket]

a small T.hp feel nice and rewarding after taking care of such task

[humble cairn]

Maybe try adding more "encounters" whose purpose is solely ambiance. Just things to give the vibes of your setting.

[glass granite]

Hmmm
156 goblins sounds about right /j

[empty thicket]

that is another important thing, if you adapt patterns of "rewards" to them through things//actions to the players, they would make some actions without need to push them and reward they efforts to do things

[snow zephyr]

So what I found that works best is introducing stuff like shopping episodes or adding in side characters that have quests that do matter but aren't "this is so important that it needs your primary focus right now"

[empty thicket]

my dm had me threatened of fighting like 20k Skaves from Warhammer vermintide 2 or 200 baboons... (im a fighter)

[blissful ibex]

Lessons of the First Ones is a really nice Eldritch Invocation

usually end up grabbing tough or skilled with it though >.>
already have healer <3

[radiant geyser]

How can I get my dnd party to work together?

[timid current]

talk to them outside the game about expectations and what everyone wants to do and if you can start working together a little more

[rugged hawk]

Here's your guide to the five stages of grief. You're currently in the denial stage.

[timid current]

remember each of you is the author of your character. you can write your characters to be able to cooperate betterif you choose to

[rugged hawk]

No amount of character-building can fix uncooperative players

[timid current]

"but my character wouldn't do that" means that you chose to make your character not do that

[blissful ibex]

communication :x
gotta talk to them and let them know, 'hey, I really need yall to stay together and work as a group'

[timid current]

you just gotta talk to each other like adults and find a way to coexist in a way that's fun for everyone

you're capable of it! I believe in you

[rugged hawk]

Or, you know, just pull a BG3 and curse them with a McGuffin that forces them to stay in a group because wandering off has really bad consequences

[empty thicket]

make them understand that is TEam game and if they dont work with each other the game wont work

[snow zephyr]

Critcrab is a product of the Studios and Merchandise era

[wheat shore]

Yo

[glass granite]

Yo

[hidden spindle]

Yo

[remote wadi]

Punishing them for always running off is usually funnier then preventing it outright

[naive cedar]

Yo

[remote wadi]

Good example: Subnautica

[empty thicket]

yo

[empty thicket]

Subnautica would be a weird thing to make into a campaign
i would say more like RAFT, the game where you have a boat and have to upgrade it and stuff or if i could, more like Sea of thieves so i justify fighting another creatures, undeads and more

[snow zephyr]

Bastions system

Also, spelljammer

[empty thicket]

care to explain please

[snow zephyr]

There's a systems book or two about setting up things players can dump resources into

Castles and even stuff like ships

[remote wadi]

Didn't say to make it campaign. Just that punishment > prevention
"Detecting multiple leviathan class lifeforms in the region. Are you certain whatever you are doing is worth it?" scared 17 yo me straight quickly

[snow zephyr]

Spelljammer has the opportunity for traveling a la sea of thieves

[empty thicket]

OH THAT.... "there is such threatening creature coming that you all are feeling the run or flight instinct, Run" would be what i say

[empty thicket]

okey okey, mmmm......the thing is, i like the idea of a mobile base for the party

[snow zephyr]

It also has a bunch of enemies from a bunch of different settings like dark sun

[empty thicket]

Call it ship, wagoon, etc. etc.

[snow zephyr]

The spelljammers make for excellent bastions

[humble cairn]

Have them create their characters in Session 0 together and write in shared history in their backstories so they know each other and trust each other before the game starts. Is one way.

[snow zephyr]

The real power move is getting a giant get-along t-shirt

Sing a little "why can't we be friends?"

[humble cairn]

A Sam Riegel type move.

[snow zephyr]

It's either that or start putting them in encounters that require teamwork to avoid death

[stoic obsidian]

I realize spell sniper is useful increasing range of ray of frost

[humble cairn]

Anything but "you all meet in a tavern" which is something I personally find really old.

[snow zephyr]

"You all meet in a loan shark's office"

[humble cairn]

That's ... great!

[snow zephyr]

Except it's just an actual shark that gives out loans with unreasonable apr

[hidden spindle]

Poison Spray too

[snow zephyr]

Kuo toa fiat currency

[humble cairn]

PC A, what is it you say you owe and which PC knows what you really owe? PC B, it's secretly your fault that another PC owes the shark, what did you do?

[snow zephyr]

Banking Fraud and Dragons

[knotty pasture]

Its against tos to ask for books

[snow zephyr]

You don't need the monster manual, dice rolling apps exist, and the hobby costs adult money now

[blissful scaffold]

Eh- why was my message deleted?

[snow zephyr]

Back in my day, there was a free SRD

[hushed mason]

There still is, but it doesn't include everything.

[empty thicket]

"you all meet in jail"

[hidden spindle]

"So, you're finally awake"

[empty thicket]

i find it more interesting because each one of them had to do something to end up in jail and some can be a describing way of them

[snow zephyr]

"you meet at a parole hearing"

[naive cedar]

ah, the bethesda approach

[empty thicket]

Welp, isnt a bad idea tho

and make a BBEG dragon like skyrim

[snow zephyr]

Then you better get comfy spending them codex prices as a routine buy-in

[snow zephyr]

Best villain I ever fought was a LE blue dragon. Used the tax code like a shotgun

[naive cedar]

its not a bad idea i just find it funny bc every elder scrolls game starts with you in jail. even arena

[empty thicket]

if something work, why try to fix it?

[snow zephyr]

Why raid, pillage, and burn things yourself when you can just weaponize guards?

[snow zephyr]

It just works

[empty thicket]

yep, it just work and its what matter, it can be a "new try" for some of the players, just anotehr batch, etc. etc.

[modest wave]

Is there anyone in a play by post DnD game that’s accepting beginners???

[snow zephyr]

#looking-for-dm

[keen cave]

I love it when nat 20’s happen in DND. Except when it happens to my players and it is a charisma check

For context in my campaign there is a woman who is a 200 year old performer and is now immortal and perpetually in her 20’s, One of my players nat 20’s charisma and it fades to black in five minutes, probably less.

Holy crap.

[remote wadi]

What is it with people and immortality?

[humble cairn]

Charisma is not mind control. If the character would not do it, no Charisma roll will make her.

[fair summit]

Persuasion isn't mind control, and natural 20 only affects attack rolls. You don't need to have players bend reality or automatically succeed at whatever just becuase there's always a 5% chance to do so

[remote wadi]

That too. Nat 20s are not an instant success for whatever they say they're doing

[umbral girder]

“Hey! You 4-5 people! You’re the ones trying to cross the border?” /jk

[empty thicket]

its a "best scenario" some stuff too, lets say a lvl 3 barbarian want to lift an elephant, they get a nat20

[hot marlin]

One day we really should list our usual answers to nonsense. You know, those sentences we all use like "Persuasion is not mind control" or "Lungs are not open containers" or "internal organs are not objects"

[umbral girder]

I need to work on my Skyrim campaign

[empty thicket]

that mean they lift it? nope, that mean they try it and the elephant move out of the way for himself.

[hot marlin]

Give them a name or number. That way when people say stuff, you can just say "refer to rule C25: A spell is obviously a spell"

[viral kraken]

somehow this seems like it would make a good magnetic poetry set

[humble cairn]

D&D is not a reality simulator. No D&D is preferable to bad D&D.

[empty thicket]

You can try to deceive the king that you are a far parent and they must give you a gift, but you will know that if they found out is a lie, the consequence wont be small

[humble cairn]

"You cannot cast two spells in the same turn" has never been a rule in 5E.

[empty thicket]

Always remember that some actions have consequences

[hot marlin]

Oh or "A nat 20 only does something special on attacks and death saves"

[coarse ravine]

Saying thats bad dming if thats disallowed

[empty thicket]

wait, it is or not? because i read that sorc with this spell thing that turn it into a bonus action cant cast 2 of them, lets call it a fire ball and an ice knife in the same turn

[humble cairn]

What?

[hot marlin]

The answer is different if we're talking 2014 or 2024 rules

[empty thicket]

i try to make it be like "oh look ,the luck was in your side in this one"

[humble cairn]

No, it has never been a rule in 5E, not in 2014 nor in 2024.

[empty thicket]

now im getting 2 answers!!! decide please

My brain cant do braining

[hot marlin]

You can cast two spells, but there are a few caveats

[coarse ravine]

Im asking, are you saying thats not actually a rule? Or not allowing two leveled spells in one turn is bad dming?

[remote wadi]

Like, if i said that I was saying to the king that i was going to take the throne and got a nat 20 on persuasion, common case scenario is the king getting a great laugh and gives me some gold for my services (assumes I am a jester)

[humble cairn]

In 2014 there was a limitation that triggered if you cast a Bonus Action spell. In 2024, you can only spend one spell slot to cast spells per turn. Neither of those technically limits you to one spell per turn, not even one leveled spell per turn.

[humble cairn]

It is not actually a rule and never has been in 5E, people mistakenly think it is.

[coarse ravine]

Action surge is the only real way. However you can do stuff like call lightning round 1.
Then round 2 use call lightning again and use healing word as a bonus action.

[coarse ravine]

I always thought that was the rules

[humble cairn]

Nope, never.

Which is why it goes into the pile of stuff that I end up saying over and over again.

[hot marlin]

Depending on which set of rules we're talking about and some other specifics, the only thing that might not work is the healing word

[humble cairn]

In 2014 even without Actions Surge you can do it, but the situations in which you could are niche. If you cast a leveled spell and then the enemy Counterspelled you, you can use Counterspell in Reaction on the same turn even if both are leveled spells. You never used a Bonus Action spell so you never triggered the restriction.

In 2024 it's much more clear and easy. Only one spell slot per turn specifically to cast spells.

[hot marlin]

Let's see... Other usual answers we can put in the list?

Maybe "The giant ice block falls on your enemy's head for 1d6 damage"

[humble cairn]

"Blood inside a creature does not count as water for the purposes of Shape Water."

[hot marlin]

(Referring to the wave of "create a two ton ice block above the enemy's head to instakill them" strategy that was spread online some time ago)

[coarse ravine]

Same with a elemental they cannot be targeted

Also the mage hand heart idea is stupid. Its not a object if the person is still attached to it

[hot marlin]

Yep, that's why "internal organs are not objects" is on the list

[delicate owl]

Ah, the common sense and reading comprehension list.

[empty thicket]

so, i could cast a cantrip and spell?

or unless i have some sort of "free spell" i could cast it?

[humble cairn]

Yes, if the action economy allows.

[empty thicket]

yeah, action economy is.... a thing
Many builds with companions get burned by it

[humble cairn]

In 2024? Yes, if you have a spell that you can cast without using spell slots, you can cast another leveled spell in the same turn, as long as you have the action economy for it.

[snow zephyr]

"the iron in their blood isn't eligible for heat metal"

[humble cairn]

Beast Master generally wants to use their Bonus for their companion, but it's generally worth it.

[empty thicket]

Damn... but unless you get some feat that give you a free lvl 1 spell and use it for action while using the bonus action spell in a higher level... damn this make my brain dont want to do braining

[humble cairn]

You don't get burned if you plan around it and don't pick too many options to compete for that Bonus.

[humble cairn]

It's .. not that hard. You don't have to try and use more than one spell a turn, it's not something that necessary to do.

[snow zephyr]

Or just pick thief as a multi class

[empty thicket]

My dm made the cursed blade of the paladin dont get affected by heating metal, he asked me how i would like to do the intervention chapter because we are helping him to get rid of it.
I told him to use that "not affected by heating metal" to show that the blade is something living and evil.
He asked me too if i would like to purify it or destroy it

[empty thicket]

thanks canneloni i dontplay sorc
i will play wizard

[snow zephyr]

"if you don't want to be run down by an angry puma, you'd best run them pockets"

[humble cairn]

If you have Gift of the Metallic Dragon it gives you one casting of Cure Wounds that doesn't use a spell slot, you can cast that in the same turn as a Healing Word.

[empty thicket]

i will have to see which subclass

[humble cairn]

Or if you use a spell scroll to cast a spell, that doesn't use a spell slot either.

Or an enspelled item.

[snow zephyr]

Spell scrolls get slept on too much

That's how we lost the last three scribes

[empty thicket]

i will ask my dm but still, i would like to know, How one would be able to make a spell scroll?
I know that a wizard can get one and add it to the spell book even if its from another class you wouldnt have access at first

Arcana, materials and something else?

[snow zephyr]

You take a lil fiat and some homebrew and a lil gold

[humble cairn]

Here are the rules: https://www.dndbeyond.com/sources/dnd/br-2024/equipment#ScribingSpellScrolls

[snow zephyr]

Oh, 2024 has actual rules for it

[humble cairn]

Many questions are answered in the rulebook if one takes the time to read it.

[empty mural]

Hey, what’s up everyone?

[snow zephyr]

The cost of aasimar livers

[modest wave]

Any suggestions for a level 1 sorcerer for spells and things

[humble cairn]

Full casters have access to the biggest toolkit in the game, which makes spell choice probably one of the more complex character building exercises in D&D. My guidelines are usually this:

• At least one combat Cantrip
• At least one Utility (non-combat solution) Cantrip
• A handful of powerful Concentration spells targeting more than one enemy Saving Throw
• At least one powerful Concentration Support spell
• A handful of useful non-Concentration spells that you can apply after you get your Concentration spell up (An Attack spell and various defense spells like Shield and Absorb Elements)
  This way you have an answer to a lot of situations you may face. This may not all be possible at level 1, but after a few levels a full caster wants to be a Swiss Army Knife of spells to solve any problem the group may face.

[empty mural]

Meh, I’m a human so not my problem.

[snow zephyr]

I don't own the 2024 books, my 2e collection yearns for money more deeply and much more greedily

[humble cairn]

Luckily the basic rules are available to read for free. Also my comment about reading was more for the person who was asking about how to scribe spell scrolls.

[snow zephyr]

Original prints are expensive, and I would much rather read the full ruleset in context and with the full layout available. That and I'm generally opposed to giving WotC money at the moment

[empty thicket]

Like, im will....5days and 150 gold for just learning "Prayer of healing"...if not some church or palace making me pay more than 150.... welp, will see what i do then

[humble cairn]

Scribing spell scrolls isn't about learning spells, it's about storing spells you do know in a form that you can more easily use later.

[snow zephyr]

It's also a good way to enable your party to use more versatile spellcasting

[humble cairn]

And I don't believe Wizards can learn Prayer of Healing at all. It's not on their class spell list.

[empty thicket]

damn....i thought a wizard could add a spell to their book in some way

[humble cairn]

They can ... but only Wizard spells.

[snow zephyr]

Give it a few quarterly reports, we'll get a divine nerd before long

[empty mural]

It must be a wizard spell

[empty thicket]

Daaaamn.... nvm then, will take only magic initiative cleric for guiding bolt, its a good spell and maybe teh chance of change it for any supportish spell

[humble cairn]

Here are the rules on Wizard spellcasting: https://www.dndbeyond.com/sources/dnd/br-2024/character-classes#Level1WizardSpellcasting

It helps if you read your class abilities.

[snow zephyr]

It's 50/50 we get "soul researcher" or some such within the next 5-10 years

Abominable intelligence

[empty mural]

Out of curiosity, what’s everyone’s favorite published campaign?

[remote wadi]

Only played CoS. Stay spoiler free

[empty mural]

Oh 100%

Just wanted to ask

[glass granite]

Never played one, idk

[empty mural]

I remade Storm Kings Thunder into a pirate campaign once, just with a new map

[snow zephyr]

5e?

[empty mural]

Any

[humble cairn]

I'm not sure I've played enough of them to say.

[burnt valley]

ADND Tomb of Horrors (haven't actually played it)

[lavish flame]

Prolly Lost Mine of Phandelver tbh

[humble cairn]

I had a great time playing that one.

I learned the fun in the low levels.

[lavish flame]

Oh wait no. Stealing from Red Hand of Doom was so much fun.

[snow zephyr]

Aunroch: Empire of Shade

[empty thicket]

xD, yeah. Just had a misinterpretation of some stuff

[burnt valley]

Has anyone tried playing geoguessr but with dnd statblocks

[snow zephyr]

If you ever get the chance, you should read the old thay book

"They're horrible tyrants who have no redeeming qualities. They also make the best bread in the entire forgotten realms, even the halflings will tell you that"

[quartz ice]

Serious question to everyone to share your opinion.

i’ve been a dm for many years, runned a few campaigns, played a lot of characters, and i love the form of art that is provided for each campaign, but recently i decided to homebrew my very own campaign lvl 1-20, i’ve written a whole book containing everything that I need to run it, but the one thing I don’t have is art, I’m not a particularly good artist and some stuff i use was basic free stuff you can find on pinterest or google, but recently i discovered ChatGPT, and the art some people have made with the program. i had a thought in my head for awhile to use it only for art for NPC’s and nothing else. in your opinion, is the use of AI to make NPC art an okay decision or no?

note: i don’t make much money so it’s hard to hire an artist for my art desires.

[serene jolt]

2014 or 2024?

[empty thicket]

nvm, i cant put a spell that isnt for wizard in my wizard nerdy book

[serene jolt]

If you're using 2024 resources and you're allowed to use feats from the new Eberron book, take Mark of Healing. You can add more cleric spells in that way, including Prayer of Healing.

[snow zephyr]

No, AI is marginally useful for some tasks but to use it is to support an industry that despises creatives and wishes to see us ousted from the very institutions that saw it created

[empty thicket]

i can maybe talk it out with the DM to do it because of Magic initiative cleric but meh, i will just thug it out

[knotty pasture]

I think you could just copy and paste faces from random video game characters to serve as your npcs

[serene jolt]

That's fair. I'm just giving you options! It's pretty new and not many people know about the new Dragonmarks yet.

[snow zephyr]

Put simply, it is anathema to all with sense

[empty thicket]

Btw, with teh same dm i got 2 rolls for stats, one giga good and anotehr more Meh
i told him that if all the players roll high, i will use the big roll
If they roll kinda meh i will use the Meh because making a powerhouse between not so powerful players feel bad and all being meh feel funnier
Or all being strong too

[empty thicket]

i will see that now, maybe i can make that and use other spells too, the idea of teh character is one that seek knowledge for giving freedom in the world

[serene jolt]

I won't disclose whether I like or don't like AI. However, a great non-AI option if you're not comfortable using it for any reason, is Heroforge and Picrew. My DM uses Heroforge for his NPCs and it works great for him!

[knotty pasture]

Heroforge is excellent

[quartz ice]

yeah i use heroforge a lot, problem is the quality of the photos i take is bad so its hard for my players to see 😭😅

[serene jolt]

Talk with your DM for sure! It's a really cool feat. I'm using it on my Celestial Warlock and it's a godsend for my little half healer!

[knotty pasture]

Or for a more pricy option, use bg3 as a dress up game for npcs

[serene jolt]

Also totally valid. I know some people are willing to take good pictures of your heroforge for cheap or free.

[primal forum]

guys if someone lands a critical hit, they do double the damage dice right? but do they also double the modifier?

[snow zephyr]

I will belabor the point further, that even in the absence of alternatives, the use of AI to generate images is never an okay decision

[primal forum]

like if it was 1d12+2 is it now 2d12+4

[quartz ice]

i do it differently. for crits, i make the player roll normally but they add what that attack would do at max. so if 2d6+3 is 15, then i’ll get them to roll normally and add the 15 to it

[serene jolt]

Yes. No.

So RAW, it would be 1d12+2 + 1d12 crit damage

[snow zephyr]

I run crits as double max

[serene jolt]

-# I think they're asking RAW

[tidal bough]

Like double the maximum damage??

[snow zephyr]

Math out the maximum damage and do it twice

[tidal bough]

Thats certainly a way to tpk your party kekw

[atomic kayak]

I'm a fan of 1x Max + Roll for crits

[glass granite]

Oh that is CHUNKY

[atomic kayak]

(more for the sake of the players on both ends of the crit)

[snow zephyr]

It goes for both sides. That's why healing potions and clerics exist

[serene jolt]

I think crits feel good enough to not do all that 😅

[tidal bough]

True, but potions and clerics dont crit heal

[quartz ice]

noted. thank you for your opinion, i was gonna use it but i might stick to my crappy heroforge screenshots 🤣

[sullen ingot]

But I like rolling more clickety clacks.

[atomic kayak]

basic crits imo can tend to be disappointing for players when they get them if they roll poorly

[serene jolt]

If you allowed crit healing, I'd be down for it

[snow zephyr]

One must decry evil where one sees it.

[serene jolt]

🤣

[atomic kayak]

"oh boy I crit! ... and I rolled a 1 on my damage dice!"

[primal forum]

thank you @quartz ice @serene jolt

[tidal bough]

Maximum damage on even smaller creatures like cr 1 can do like 30+ if youre doubling

[snow zephyr]

Potions heal for max outside combat and if you use a full action

[tidal bough]

40+ even

Goblins and wolves become insanely deadly as well since they have easy access to adv

[snow zephyr]

You may survive, but you also get to have your hero moments too

[tidal bough]

For their level*

[serene jolt]

My dm does Max potion heal if you take an action to drink it. Action to feed it to another player (for rolled). Bonus action to drink it (rolled).

It works great!

[snow zephyr]

No, they stay fairly deadly until around level 14 or so

[serene jolt]

30-40 damage for level 1-3 is absolutely horrific.

[tidal bough]

The legendary party that took on dragons and warlords, taken out by a random goblin ambush

[quartz ice]

i like that rule. mind if i steal it!

[serene jolt]

I don't care, and I don't think he would either. It's pretty common. Go for it!

[snow zephyr]

You are not immune to pointy objects

[primal forum]

because I have my players fight a challenging enough enconter. but with their luck got multiple crits. and I was wondering why they had a lot of damage. I found out in the end that they also doubled their modifiers

[snow zephyr]

Or heavy objects, for that matter

[serene jolt]

If I doubled my modifier as a sharpshooter, I would be doing some absolutely godtier damage.

+10 becomes a +20 😎

[snow zephyr]

You may be able to chop up a beholder, but if you get ambushed when you're on the brink of death you're probably gonna die

Just pray the goblin shaman doesn't have any scrolls of counterspell kicking around

[primal forum]

is this even allowed? one of my players is a gnome rogue, climbed up a tree, stayed hidden and fired enemies like some turret in a tower defense game. is he even allowed to keep having advantage because he is hidden?

[glass granite]

Yup

They can’t see him, and he hid himself, soooo

[primal forum]

GOD DAMN. and he was the one who kept getting nat 20s! he kept doubling the damage modifer!

[glass granite]

Yeah that’s not RAW

[primal forum]

I was forced to silently add more hp to my mobs lololol

[atomic kayak]

Would have to keep re hiding fwiw

[snow zephyr]

I'm entirely unreasonable and I despise power balance

[serene jolt]

He also definitely did not need to do that with sneak attack.

But yeah as long as he was Bonus Action hiding, rolling higher than their passive, then they're good for adv and sneak attack.

[primal forum]

i'm overwhelmed, they're all new to the game and I'm also new to DMing. with barely a year experience as a player.

[glass granite]

Hi entirely unreasonable, I’m Nugget

[primal forum]

but it was a fun 1st session. last session happens later.

[knotty pasture]

Rehiding isn't that big of a deal, just hide on BA

[glass granite]

Mhm

[knotty pasture]

Rogue struggles to keep up in damage anyways so let the Rogue laugh it up while they still can

[snow zephyr]

Hi Nugget, have you ever thrown a lich at a level 15 party?

[serene jolt]

Some sessions will be frustrating. You'll think you balanced the encounter to find you were absolutely wrong. And it could be good rolls, good party comp, bad rolls, bad party comp, or just pure luck (or bad luck) and strategy.

[primal forum]

he did this the first encounter. he was the mvp during that. but he was useless on the next one.

[glass granite]

Nope, never played above level 6

[snow zephyr]

Fascinating

[serene jolt]

And that happens too. Sometimes rogues also struggle when someone has invisibility, insane passive perception, etc etc.

But ya know, it's always fun letting them have their moment. They are a one-trick pony so I often just let them have their trick.

[glass granite]

I’d imagine if you kept seeing arrows fly from a tree, though you may not know where they are specifically, you’d know something is probably in the tree

[snow zephyr]

Rogue is like discount ranger

[serene jolt]

AOEs are also fun

[glass granite]

Fireball!

[primal forum]

I'll keep this in mind. He might do the same thing later.

[snow zephyr]

I am the Lorax, I speak for the trees, and for some unknown reason, they speak Vietnamese

[serene jolt]

Also faerie fire is one of my favorite ways to mess with a rogue.

[glass granite]

That’s cuz they’re me (I’m Vietnamese)

[serene jolt]

It becomes really hard to hide when you're uh... Glowing.

[snow zephyr]

It's like when the snow starts speaking Finnish

[knotty pasture]

On the other hand, you get advantage on attacks

So Rogue can just directly Sneak Attack the enemy couldn't they

[primal forum]

his gnome rogue did a leap of faith on top of a crawling bandit who's leg was chopped off by the barbarian of the party

[snow zephyr]

#stealthinginadeadsprint

[dry ledge]

Should I be jealous if my friend rolled a hundred

[snow zephyr]

You should be suspicious

[serene jolt]

You should be superstitious.

[burnt valley]

Very fishable

[serene jolt]

In fact, you really should be superfishes.

[snow zephyr]

Well. Friends, foes, and those still under review. I wish you luck in your endeavors

[wary meadow]

If anyone read my msg last night I FIGURED IT OUT

INSTEAD OF AGING IN REVERSE MY PARTY GETS OLD

[primal forum]

soo... normal aging e.e

[burnt valley]

Have they got a dragon wyrmling for some reason

[tranquil temple]

Has anyone here played Baldur's Gate Descent into Avernus? Is it good? What's the combat to rp ratio?

[warm valley]

hiyaa

[knotty pasture]

There's like 2-3 fights that are infamous for having a high rate of TPK

[pearl hedge]

YOU WOULDN'T DARE

[pearl hedge]

i think i'm playing descent into avernus atm in a PBP, it's actually pretty fun, it's very laid back, it's like a 70/30 rp to combat

[umbral girder]

It plays a lot like a Source book than an adventure book

[woven flint]

Your Rogues hide in combat?
Cowardice!
My own Rogues simply fight like skirmishers, ducking in and out of melee and occasionally firing potshots
My favorite combination is:
Hand Crossbow, Scimitar and Bracer of flying Daggers on a Thief Rogue 🧐

[umbral girder]

Except the Baldur’s Gate stuff

[burnt valley]

This is why you bring melee specialist creatures

[umbral girder]

Perhaps the toughest boss fight my players every fought was a psuedo adventuring group of NPCs

They had a Mage, Thief, Warrior, and Priest stat blocks and they kicked butt hard

[burnt valley]

What spells did the Priest and Mage have?

[umbral girder]

The ones the Priest and Mage stat blocks have

Warrior Veteran and Master Thief was the name of the other two stat blocks

Basically 3 Monster Manual stat blocks with 1 MotM stat block

[pearl hedge]

hi tokii!!! i was gifted a circlet of blasting today (scorching ray built in, +5 to hit) because it was the DM's birthday

[burnt valley]

Ohh thought it was modified or something

[umbral girder]

No I usually do exactly what a stat block says it does

[woven flint]

Guh

[umbral girder]

Only big one I can think of was giving the Warrior max hp

So they had 100hp instead of 68

[burnt valley]

What tier did they fight them in?

[pearl hedge]

it's a wondrous item

[woven flint]

I know

[umbral girder]

Level 8 party

[pearl hedge]

uh no level 2 party here

[umbral girder]

It was half way through a dungeon and the synergy of the bad guys worked well over all to make it a tough fight

[urban river]

i think i found an evil combo

so i made a warlock focused on hexing and curses

[burnt valley]

Nice

[burnt valley]

Evil mechanically?

[stark tundra]

Nah evil as in chaotic evil

[umbral girder]

Basically mage does AOE damage, the rest of the group focus fire and the Priest keeps the damage dealers up.

[urban river]

1. Use BA to Hex.
2. Give Disadvantage on INT (I don't know if this works on saving throws.)
3. Use Action to Mind Sliver.
4. Psychic Damage, Necrotic Damage, Disadvantage on INT, and -1d4 to a saving throw.

[umbral girder]

Does not work on saving throws it’s on ability checks

[heavy oxide]

it does work on saving throws if you use goolock

[urban river]

what is a goolock

[heavy oxide]

great old one warlock

[umbral girder]

A much more evil combo is Synaptic static + Mind Sliver

[urban river]

ok for a second i thought i fell for a 'mind goblin' joke.

[burnt valley]

Fallen for the Hex spell trap 🥀

[urban river]

shiggles

[burnt valley]

Befuddlement and Geas is funny tho

[umbral girder]

Because that’s a -1d4 and -1d6 on concentration saves

Geas does take 1 minute (10 rounds) to cast

[heavy oxide]

na na level 10 goolock and you get eldritch hex

[urban river]

cant wait to level up currently im at level 1 cause new sesh

[pearl hedge]

OH NO

[umbral girder]

It’s an OK build

[urban river]

:(

[umbral girder]

I heavily relies on someone else casting a saving throw spell

[heavy oxide]

my dm asked if i wanted to be a villain so i have a level 9 goolock and im hyped to play iy

[umbral girder]

Because most of those good ones require concentration, just like Hex

[urban river]

oohohoho

[umbral girder]

So if you don’t have another player to take advantage of it, it’s just mid overall

[burnt valley]

Take Agonizing Blast, Repelling Blast and Lance of Lethargy if your party is mostly melee

Also dont forget mounts to kite them

[heavy oxide]

its 2024 rules i have everything but lance of lethargy

[burnt valley]

Idk why but we cant choose it for some reason

[umbral girder]

Likely a programming error on D&D beyond’s part if you are using that site

[burnt valley]

Either way, if they are and you are playing as a villain, you can kite all of them

Bait them into an open area or something

[quiet mist]

Playing as a villain seems pretty badass

[burnt valley]

Yes

[cursive grail]

woah totally offtopic scout pfp

[burnt valley]

Yuh its my main

[cursive grail]

#hellyeah

[remote wadi]

Never looked closer at it. Didn't think it was scout

[slender frost]

Hello

[burnt valley]

The lime version

[modest wave]

What race and spells would u recommend for a dnd beginner on the sorcerer class

[delicate locust]

dragonborn sorcerers are a great choice, they got a charisma modifier and dragons are cool

[knotty pasture]

I thought I told you the spells you should pick

[modest wave]

U did just looking for other opinions as well

[glass granite]

Race doesn’t matter as much in 2024 rules (choose one that buffs your charisma in 2014)

I remember Ophid gave ya a good guide earlier

[modest wave]

Yea I got screenshots of it to look back

[delicate locust]

be a dragonborn.... they are super super cool, you are like, a guy but with the head of a dragon, is that not the coolest?

[modest wave]

Yea I’ve heard abt that but is that good for a 2024 player preference

[delicate locust]

plus you can customise it however you want, there is a lot of personalisation when it comes to dragonborns

[delicate locust]

like nugget of truths said, race doesnt matter really in the new rules, just pick one that looks cool lowk (so dragonborn because they have cool dragon heads!!!!!!) also with dragonborn, the reason for your inherent sorceror powers can be explained by a draconic bloodline, any species can have that but i think it makes more sense when you are actually a dragon man hybrid

[modest wave]

Alr thanks a lot

[delicate locust]

also, dragonborns have draconic resilience which will give you a little extra HP per level which is super useful when sorcerors have so little, my advice, just be a dragon guy, dragons are very cool!

[timid current]

what do you mean it doesn't matter? do any other species get a breath weapon?

[delicate locust]

no

im just saying if you are new to the game like them it can be really overwhelming picking a race as you want to get the "right" one, in 2014 it mattered more with ability scores but now that its been changed it doesnt matter, AS MUCH (i should have said)

[timid current]

or are you just referring to the ability score increases? because that's the least flavorful/least meaningful part

[delicate locust]

what are you talking about?

ability score increases in what way?

[timid current]

I was asking if you're referring to no longer having ability score increases attached to race being why it doesn't matter

when you said it doesn't matter I'm just looking for clarity there - dragonborn got boosted a good amount from 2014 rules

breath weapon being more versatile and getting more uses is pretty awesome

[umbral girder]

Yeah races don’t need asi to be good

[delicate locust]

okay well it obviously matters but i am just simplifying things because this stuff is hard for new players, its why premade characters come in modules

and dragonborn sorceror is super common, and for good reason

[timid current]

I was thinking that it matters a good amount because you can pick the cool stuff you want to be able to do

[delicate locust]

of course, i even said that

[timid current]

yeah you just confused me when you said it doesn't matter in the new rules

[delicate locust]

.

[timid current]

that's all

[umbral girder]

Good grammar makes a message easier to understand.

[scenic zinc]

but what if i no speek guud

[delicate locust]

okay, the message was not meant for you, im sure you can understand it is a lot more nuanced but im just simplifying it to someone who seemed paralyzed by too much choice

[cosmic roost]

No pings, please :pray:

If you see someone with “No Pings” in their name, please don’t @ that user. If you Reply to them, please turn the alert @OFF, and if you forget, a simple apology is appreciated. Thank you!

[delicate locust]

is that about me

[delicate locust]

what is this thing

[scenic zinc]

it's saying you forgot to unclick the mention of dave

[delicate locust]

oh alright thanks

[scenic zinc]

this shouldn't cause that to happen

yep. it was that.

pretty fancy bot to pick up on that

[delicate locust]

what is asi, i forgor

[timid current]

ability score increase

[scenic zinc]

ability score increase

it was tied to species prior to tashas

[delicate locust]

yeah im surprised, i just do it because its hard to tell who people are talking to sometimes

[scenic zinc]

which added an optional rule to let it not be tied to species

[delicate locust]

(case and point) i struggle with it especially so i try to do it a lot, replying to messages that is

[scenic zinc]

and now it's tied to backgrounds, but I'm sure a fair amount of people ignore that and do what tashas provided anyway

[jovial badger]

woofer woof

[atomic kayak]

That backgrounds were a one step forward two steps back because they removed custom backgrounds as a default no DM required option

[delicate locust]

oh yeah okay, well yeah for sure, dragonborns are just awesome, and like i said its simplified for a different audience not someone who is knowledgable about the game and doesnt need to ask a question like what race is good for a sorceror, the answer is usually just what you want to play and what you think is cool (which i happen to think is dragonborn because dragons are the best)

[tame forge]

Damn really.

[atomic kayak]

So loss of fully flexible ASIs for starting PCs is the two steps back

The one step forward is decoupling ASIs from species

[scenic zinc]

eh

technically, they didn't, since it's a background option that existed and the '24 phb said you can use old options that exist

[delicate locust]

am i the only person who preferred ASIs?

[umbral girder]

Nah I love removing the flexible stats, makes things matter more

[atomic kayak]

To a degree yes, but still

[tame forge]

Felt punishing tbh. Sooo many cool feats that change a character but then having to choose those or actually getting stronger rolls was like sooo suffocating.

[atomic kayak]

Removes so much customization that was already in the game its actually ridiculous

[atomic kayak]

ASIs still exist though

[delicate locust]

they do? i mean like, linked to race sorry i wasnt that clear

[tame forge]

ASI's and feats should have always been seperate systems.

[scenic zinc]

I don't mind it being tied to backgrounds or species. both have a possibility of making narrative sense.

[atomic kayak]

It definitely makes more narrative sense than it did for species certainly

But its still a large degree of A) its a mechanical thing that had no real reason to be removed and B) still prevents customization to something that makes more narrative sense depending on character specifics

[scenic zinc]

I'm fine with either limiting customization. ¯_(ツ)_/¯

[atomic kayak]

You get the same starting ASIs as always they are just technically linked to background rather than species now

[scenic zinc]

that just means there's more uniqueness in the game

[atomic kayak]

My issue is that the flexible ASIs had been the new standard for about 5 years.

Even outside of tashas, all new species that had been released had fully flexible ASIs

[scenic zinc]

I understand it for game balancing reasons having it be flexible. that point is entirely valid.

[atomic kayak]

It straight up does just remove uniqueness from any given character

Like I said, it runs into basically all the same issues that the species linked ASIs had

[scenic zinc]

I'm just saying that I don't mind it being restricted for narrative reasons

[delicate locust]

ive been making a few characters on dnd beyond with the new rules the last couple of days, ive only played 2014 then, and i have found it annoying, i like the link with species to ASI because it gives me a guideline for what would work well together which acts as a starting point for making a character for me, i mean i dont see anything wrong with elves being inherently linked to wizards for the intelligence bonus, that being said i know what you mean because it has really annoyed me wanting to be a human wizard so i can have a long white beard but not being able to because i would be missing out on better rolls. in that way i actually see exactly what you mean but i still do like that link with race, it made me play a wizard which led me to a character i never would have made before and these constraints inspire so much to me creatively. sorry for the essay btw

[atomic kayak]

Its not even a narrative thing really

Its still better than it being species linked, due to all the bad connotations (even aside from the bad mechanics of it) and is technically slightly more flexible than those ones were

But its still a net negative change from the standard the game had been using

[delicate locust]

wdym bad connotations

[scenic zinc]

racism

[delicate locust]

wait what?

[atomic kayak]

^ short version yea

[scenic zinc]

species X being better than species Y

[delicate locust]

guys sorry im a little blind to all this sorry, i have been active on this server since yesterday, ive only played on pen and paper with my school friends until literally yesterday so im not well versed in the online discussion

[scenic zinc]

dnd has a very weird history of doing that kind of thing either intentionally or unintentionally

[delicate locust]

oh sure, that being said i can see the argument

[umbral girder]

An example to give is how Orcs originally had a -1 to INT.

When previous and future official art of Orcs depicted them similar to actual people

Which implies a lot of bad stuff

[delicate locust]

ah, okay, i see now

[cinder timber]

Races used to have penalties?

[scenic zinc]

genders used to have penalties.

[umbral girder]

Yes in the 2014 DMG and Volo’s until it was changed

[humble cairn]

Telling people that they are better at certain things because of how they were born is uncomfortable for those of us who were told that in real life.

[cinder timber]

That is actually way more recent than expected

[lyric viper]

I think also more to avoid 'Biological determinism' The idea that your gender/ethnicity/species/ so on is the main deciding factor in what you're good or bad at.

[delicate locust]

with that argument, it changes a lot for me, idk why it hardly ever occured to me, i mean i have thought about lore stuff like drows being inherently evil until "recently" but actually being linked to mechanics wasnt something i thought about

[cinder timber]

I know that is very old tho. The orc thing is recent.

[atomic kayak]

Slightly longer version

People got incredibly bioessentialist about the species ASIs, despite the ASIs never actually being a biological thing

They were meant to represent an archetypal member of a given species. And due to how dnd has done species since forever that was also an assumption of a specific culture.

Aka it also didnt leave room for your character if you wanted to say, play an orc raised by humans, or dwarf by elves, or similarly ""atypical"" things (aka: what adventurers are, atypical)

[scenic zinc]

define old.

[cinder timber]

Wasn't it in 2e or something?

[scenic zinc]

That's within my lifetime, lol

[umbral girder]

Yeah that’s pretty old

[scenic zinc]

In fact, I played 2e

[atomic kayak]

But yea. This is annoying. There's no actually good reason for it. From a mechanical standpoint especially.

[cinder timber]

Ok, the -1 thing is crazy tho. Like ouch!

[delicate locust]

one thing that bothered me was the languages, i played a half orc raised by dwarves and humans but my character knew orcish but had no way mechanically to know dwarvish even though he never met orcs and spent most of his life with dwarves

[scenic zinc]

rude
-# jk

[humble cairn]

This is why i regard the fully custom background as default

[delicate locust]

lmao

[umbral girder]

Ah I was wrong.

It was a -2 INT

[scenic zinc]

that's so much worse lol

[umbral girder]

Some could say it’s twice as bad

[cinder timber]

Wow, that is ridiculous

[scenic zinc]

especially when orcs have been explicitly utilized to represent PoC for a long time in this game

[umbral girder]

It’s +2 STR and -2 STR

[atomic kayak]

Thats why its so annoying too! The custom background was a default no DM permission required in the 2014 books. But now it's specific DM allowance in 2024! Its not even in the PHB anymore. Its a completely nonsensical change.

A full two steps back situation for no good reason

[umbral girder]

I remember before 4e coming out we had Drizzt novels doing analogies of Orcs and African American people. So yeah that’s a big oof

[cinder timber]

Yeah that is sad

[delicate locust]

whenever i imagine orcs i imagine them like tolkiens orcs being artificially created just to destroy so i always thought of it as them being dumb and having high strength, i think the issue comes once you put these races into like faerun where they are removed from what they were originally and placed as almost demi-humans then you say they are racially inferior not because of some way they were actually designed to be as a part of the world building and magic but because of a cultural thing with how orcs are raised

which then you can obviously see that as some imperialistic racist idea

[lyric viper]

It's one of the tricky things with game design and mechanics! The game wanted species to change how things played and there is definitely logic in there- species with wings can fly, some species can see in the dark, maybe some species have supernatural powers so on.

But then by gamifying some aspects you end up reducing them down and setting them as the main common denominator. All X are Y type vibes. Sometimes it was never meant to capture the 'nature' of an entire species, but the 'nuture' of a very specific group, which just ended up conflating ethnicity and species.

Like drow were very specifically focused on Lolthian drow with a very specific culture- matriarchal society, worshipping the values of a spider demon. So, women would have the advantage and often be slightly stronger, more educated and trained so on. Typically, that society tends towards evil values.

But.. yeah not all drow everywhere, in different regions and cultures should have the same tendencies. But making specific mechanics for all that would get messy.

[scenic zinc]

dunno what you're talking about.

tolkiens orcs aren't artificial, and neither are uruks.

[umbral girder]

This is a rough read.

[rotund lagoon]

Hi all 🙂 Quick question, do people think the Assasin x Gloomstalker build is still worth it after the 2024 addition? I'm looking at playing a Drow for a Curse of Strahd campaign and have always wanted to play this build, but not sure if its worth it anymore?

[delicate locust]

in what way, is my grammar really bad, sorry

[umbral girder]

Eh Multiclassing isn’t as strong in 2024, you’d do better with a mono class of either

[atomic kayak]

Tolkien orcs are also famously based on stereotypes (of the time) of Mongolian people

[scenic zinc]

orcs in tolkiens world aren't even meant to be thought of as one-dimensional and always evil.

[cinder timber]

Fr?

[delicate locust]

what about the uruk hai? arent they like made by saruman just to help his cause?

[scenic zinc]

they're meant to be shown as people who are evil because of who their leader has twisted them into.

[scenic zinc]

nope. both the movies and the books say otherwise.

[rotund lagoon]

Really? So it wouldn't be worth it with x3 gloomstalker 7x Assasin to get that extra dark vision and the umbral shroud?

[umbral girder]

Notably Tolkien made the races based on actual people as Middle Earth is meant to be an AU with fantasy elements

[delicate locust]

yeah its true, they are bow legged and have slanted eyes and stubby noses and yellow skin which were some racist stereotypes, there is obviously something wrong in that

[scenic zinc]

it's meant to be written/read as a pre-history that was discovered and translated

[delicate locust]

wait for real, it must just be some headcanon i made up myself

[feral finch]

What are you guys favourite creature to encounter in a campaign

[scenic zinc]

it's a common misconception.

a lot of people thought they were elves that were twisted into orcs somehow for a while

[umbral girder]

An evil adventuring party

Because the synergies that make a PC party tough can be seen partially with them

[delicate locust]

i had it be that way for some setting i had where the orcs were like how the elves were twisted into orcs but in my world it was that druegar and drow were twisted dwarves and elves and orcs were twisted humans, i know this sounds like a copout but i had a warlock guy who was doing all this and i might have genuinely just mixed him up with saruman😭

[delicate locust]

wait i just said this, is that not true???

[scenic zinc]

nope. They're just super orcs.

[delicate locust]

who are, uruk hai?

[scenic zinc]

yep

[delicate locust]

but the original orcs are from elves right?

[scenic zinc]

nope

[lyric viper]

Miight be getting a little off topic. But for future readings these might help:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tolkien's_moral_dilemma (Tolkien's dilemma on the nature of orcs)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tolkien_and_race (Some of the influences of racial coding in Tolkien's work).

But to twist this back round to D&D- as inspired by tolkien's works (even if Gygax would prefer to name other authors first) and Gygax being very much a biological determinist, it's one of those things worth looking out for and deconstructing

[delicate locust]

where are they from? were they just around

[lyric viper]

In the Simillarion, yes-ish, but getting too into Tolkien Lore here.

[delicate locust]

i really swear that orcs are twisted elves by morgoth?

[scenic zinc]

yeah... gygax (both gary and his kid ernie) are rather problematic

[delicate locust]

yeah i know sorry, this has gone really really off topic, i am just so surprised that i would get that wrong

[umbral girder]

I love Tolkien’s way of discussing in order for Orcs to be evil they must have the ability to also be good. I love that some Planescape stuff delves into similar stuff

[lyric viper]

Yesish- I recommend my first link there as it goes into how Tolkien tried changing the origins a few time to make sense

[umbral girder]

I got very concerned thinking Luke Gygax did something

But I realized you meant Gary’s eldest son.

[scenic zinc]

yeah, I mean ernie - fixed to add clarity

[hot marlin]

Ernest Gygax also had a tendency to involve himself with what I would charitably call disreputable fellows.

Uncharitably and accurately, I would call them racist pricks.

[scenic zinc]

doing that enough times kinda makes it seem like you hold similar opinions

[hot marlin]

There is a german saying about people sitting at tables, yes.

[cinder timber]

I heard that Gygax guy is kinda notorious

[lyric viper]

In any discussion like such there will be nuance and some folk will be protective. But it's one of these things- you can still like some of the things said and done by someone, and be grateful for works they have produced, while also being critical of other things they have said and done.

[delicate locust]

i am reading through the wikipedia articles and even faced with this stuff, i do find myself somewhat trying to defend it in my mind automatically because i do really love tolkien and it is worrying that without thinking i can so easily turn away these things blindly

[lyric viper]

These have been conversations within the community from... well the very start. Gygax held certain opinions, particuarily on biological determinism (such as how sex and species determine personality, morality, interests and so on) that.. yeah. Should be scrutinised.

[atomic kayak]

To a degree certainly, but there is a point with being grateful for things they've done etc, that either implicitly or explicitly condone their views. Gygax and a certain wizard author probably being two of the more prominent fantasy adjacent examples of the phenomenon

[slow orchid]

Hi, Scene importing on AboveVTT from my bought Adventures is not working anymore for me? Has anyone the same issue?

[umbral girder]

#third-party might help. This really isn’t a VTT server

[idle oar]

Contact the extension developer for support. DnDBeyond does not support AboveVTT

[exotic sinew]

Will the extended sourcebooks like Tasha’s and Xanathars be republished to establish them with them 2024 ruleset more easily with the subclasses and stuff that were left out of the PHB?

[delicate locust]

im not in touch with online discussion at all, who is the wizard author and what did they do? what can i read about this online?

[glass granite]

I think some will

[umbral girder]

No but a few may get repurposed in different books.

So far the UA shows more interest in setting books

So it’s a matter if they can make it fit for a setting

[flat kraken]

Hello all

[glass granite]

It seems I was incorrect
And TopiderDa hi

[flat kraken]

Good bye

[exotic sinew]

Gonna be a dumb question as well but I had a session 0/1 today and idk how to explain it but I just wasn’t really having fun idk. I know I am new but I had more fun at the local game store for the last few fortnight than this random campaign I tried to join. I don’t know if it is because I am new and everyone else at the table seemed super experienced and like new the min max way of doing things or if it was just the vibe or the session or me or what I don’t know but it just seemed weird and idk I laughed at times but it was necessarily “fun” what should I do?

Sorry to dump that here I just don’t know what to do

[flat kraken]

Hi Nugget of Truths

[idle oar]

Talk to the group about how you felt.
Usually session 0's are not playing session but rather establish expectations and boundaries around the game so everyone knows whats what.

[delicate locust]

maybe you just need to settle in and will get into it with this group the more you play, thats what happened in my group i joined, maybe their playstyle just isnt compatible with yours and you are simply different which is definitely possible

[exotic sinew]

Well it wasn’t really a session 0 like I have had in the past. We just wrote up our character sheet and then boom straight into the campaign so I guess not a session 0 more a session 1

[timid current]

btw it's Tolkien's birthday today

[scenic zinc]

can't be your borthday if you're dead

[timid current]

only the smartest handsomest folks are born today

[delicate locust]

OH my friend told me the cinema was doing a lotr marathon and i wondered why they would have it at such an awkward time of the year, that must explain it lol

btw why do so many peoples names have just the first letter then ellipses?

[idle oar]

It could also just be a matter of figuring out the group (and character) dynamics.
But yeah if it's not feeling like fun, have a discussion about it and see if it can be resolved.
If not, perhaps that group or their game is just not the right one for you.

[olive wasp]

I mean there’s many different styles of play. Maybe they emphasize more of an others learn more about your character as you go

[idle oar]

Yeah sometimes it takes a bit of time for things to start meshing both at a group and character level.

But don't discount your feelings either.

[scenic zinc]

in my experience, it takes at least 10 sessions

[hot marlin]

I find many of the comments of Gary Gygax, at the very least, to be vile.

[olive wasp]

Oh yeah for sure

[timid current]

on the flipside, he isn't making any of those comments anymore

[hot marlin]

I am not one to rejoice at death. But I do rejoice at silence when the noise would have been racist.

[timid current]

there's some I'll rejoice at. but mostly I tend to the just enjoying the lack of further harm

like if we ever figure out how to end strahd rightly and truly!

[exotic sinew]

I think a big part of it for me personally was I was kinda excited to find a group that actually wanted to play 2024 rules and then a week ago it was more “up in the air” if we were doing 2014 or 2024. Up until literally yesterday that is when the rug was pulled out and it was decided that it was 2014. Idk reading the 2024 rules and the 2014 rules as a new player the 2024 rules just seemed weird way more straight forward and not so hard to find stuff in the book either. But maybe that’s just my brain.

[delicate locust]

i am not clued into any of this, what did gygax do? to me i only know him as the creator and not much else as an actualy person, and that he was in an episode of futurama

[olive wasp]

Nonsense 20 million more strahd

[exotic sinew]

Sorry though I’ll move on and let yall talk

[timid current]

he posted a lot of bigoted garbage.

[cosmic roost]

No pings, please :pray:

If you see someone with “No Pings” in their name, please don’t @ that user. If you Reply to them, please turn the alert @OFF, and if you forget, a simple apology is appreciated. Thank you!

[timid current]

hey Fatrabbit, it's all good to talk about D&D here 🙂

[olive wasp]

GOSH I CANT read now can I

Sorry daveeeeee

I’m just used to replying to keep a line going

[delicate locust]

what kind of thing? i want to look into it a bit because i really am oblivious to all of this

[idle oar]

Let's move on from the Gygax and Tolkein topics as I think we've discussed it well enough and we do need things to be generally on topic

[woeful heart]

Is dnd iust storytelling with some built in monsters

[idle oar]

Collaborative storytelling even! With dice! And monsters!

[glass granite]

It’s make believe with rules!

[scenic zinc]

the monsters are the friends we made along the way

[woeful heart]

Im playing my first campaign today and it sounds so fun

[exotic sinew]

I look at it as interactive storytelling with a group of people more than a game.

[delicate locust]

on topic to what? this is dnd discussion and the discussion was about race in dnd which is derived largely from tolkien, i am really interested in all of this because its quite new to me

[hot marlin]

Gygax justified paladins (back then they had to be lawful good) killing prisoners, with the sentence "The old addage about nits making lice applies"
It was on the dragonsfoot forums in 2005. Now, what does "nits make lice" mean? Historically the sentence is associated colonel John Milton Chivington, the perpetrator of the Sand Creek massacre where 600 Cheyenne were murdered. Chivington incited his men to murder the non-combattants and the children with that sentence. In essence, Gygax was engaging in genocide apologia.

Oh, sorry, moving on.

[idle oar]

Discussing Gygax's troubling statements and viewpoints is not specifically D&D related

[olive wasp]

I mean that’s fair, I’ve only played 2014 and barely touched magic so that’s why I’ve never had a huge issue with it but as a new(ish) player i definitely see it as confusing especially when using dndbeyond and both 2014 and 2024 items come up with differences between them

[idle oar]

I mean it touches D&D a bit but yeah, we've discussed it earlier. Feel free to scroll back up and read through what was discussed.

[delicate locust]

oh wow, that is just insane okay, im just hearing of this now

[olive wasp]

Some rule differences and class differences as well but it’s not too hard to pick up on but I get the confusion

[exotic sinew]

I think it’s more the way that the 2024 book is organised I find it just much easier to know where to look for information quickly. The 2014 one feels like I need to know where it is before opening the book or I just have to use the index to find the page number cause to my monkey brain it’s all over the place

I have a -2 to intelligence in real life ahaha 🤣

[olive wasp]

Ah I’ve never looked at a single book lol

[scenic zinc]

the '24 book is better organized for sure

[olive wasp]

I like to joke that I’m illiterate when I wanna be because I refuse to read

Everything I know I’ve just been told over and over again lol

[exotic sinew]

Oh I love reading but I don’t necessarily like reading things that are in book form online. That’s why I like that there are hardcover books for this game. Also I am a weirdo and the smell of paper is nice. All books have a unique smell.

[idle oar]

that's a shame because there is some pretty good stuff even in just the free basic rules that you can pick up with reading

(I should note that I also understand folks have different mental models and learn differently so I get it)

[exotic sinew]

Also the artwork in the new book is so good

[timid current]

(and happy birthday to JRR Tolkein, and by proxy all of his characters)

[olive wasp]

Oh I’m sure it’s just not how I like to pass the time. I often just zone out when I read and have to read the same lines over and over again because I lose place. Reading is just my kryptonite tbh

I used to be a huge fan of reading when I was a kid but when I got older I fell out of it

But anywho I just aim to prove it’s never too bad to pick up on the rules as you go if things are confusing. A reasonable dm will be patient

[exotic sinew]

Omg I am the complete opposite. I hated reading as a kid cause I felt like I was forced to do it but now as an adult I love it. How strange

[olive wasp]

Up to when I was 11 I loved it. Book projects killed the drive and now it haunts me

Also I mostly have to read textbooks and articles now which are not fun reads to be honest

I just prefer lecture and note taking

[umbral girder]

Meanwhile I always love reading at nearly all ages. The amount of “how do I do this in D&D?” I get from reading Fantasy is fun

My goal is to read all of the “Inspirational reading” books in the 2014 DMG and PHB

[olive wasp]

I get my dnd idea inspiration from many other media facets. Music is a big one, letting my mind wander and imagining a character based on the rhythm and the lyrics of a song and wanting to implement it

I see a post with an interesting concept and sometimes I get an urge to execute. Or a small idea pops into my head and I just keep expanding on it

[umbral girder]

I just go by “I can probably run fantasy stories better if I actually know what goes on in a fantasy story”

[rotund abyss]

How often do people novelise their games? I intend to novelise mine

[olive wasp]

What does novelise entail? Like make it like a book?

[rotund abyss]

Exactly that

[umbral girder]

Make it into a Novel, yes.

[olive wasp]

I’m all about the rush of an idea and just creating more and more off of it

[rotund abyss]

Doesn't have to be a published novel, but a novel that's been made

[rough basalt]

I imagine some

[rotund abyss]

I think it's great cuz you have stock characters that you can expand on later

[olive wasp]

As a player I’m not a huge note taker so I’m not autonovelising my DMs campaign

[olive wasp]

I have so many characters I want to play

[stark tundra]

Oh I have a entire book of characters

What class ya want I got it

[rotund abyss]

Respect 🫡

[stark tundra]

Don't ask why there all dwarfs

[olive wasp]

I have my cleric, and two future wizards picked out

[rotund abyss]

A monk that's actually always asleep and he's just aleep fighting

[hot marlin]

I find that often D&D campaigns do not make for very interesting books

[olive wasp]

Just gotta wait until I get to use em (never)

[hot marlin]

Every medium has its own specificities

[stark tundra]

Oh simple a astro monk

[rough basalt]

Notably one of the most successful based off a DnD game works is a Japanese IP called Record of Lodoss War

[timid current]

my face my beautiful face

[glass granite]

Do you have a gun monk?

[stark tundra]

He doesn't know he's a monk only fights in his astro form

[stark tundra]

I called him neo

[olive wasp]

I think it has to be done correctly, I think a campaign has to be finished first and then revised for details

[stark tundra]

Monks aren't my specialty but made them

[rotund abyss]

I don't think any idea is automatically bad, it's just execution. It has to be told correctly and through the correct lense rather than a mere summary of the whole game

[rough basalt]

True gotta leave out a lot of the memes and toilet humor

[olive wasp]

Because muffin throwing at party members should not make the Final Cut (no matter how many times I’ve done it)

[rotund abyss]

Fr 💔

[olive wasp]

It’s what happens when I have like a months supply of muffins I gotta start chucking some at some point

[stark tundra]

Muffin button

[rotund abyss]

I've been using the actual game as the blueprint then I'm writing the book as if it was an actual book rather than a recap

[olive wasp]

Especially at the party members that irk my character (and me)

[rotund abyss]

I'm not really aiming to straight up tell people this is what happened in the campaign, I'm just aiming to tell a good story

[stark tundra]

I once played a Goliath who's only weapons were the warforged gnomes

[olive wasp]

I have three main bits, being a meathead and ripping things off its hinges rather than doing things the normal way (like just a regular door I just gotta rip it off instead), throwing muffins, and lugging around a massive hippo skeleton with one other party member

[hot marlin]

Thing is, stories are made for their medium. When you write a graphic novel, you make sure your plot allows you to work with the strength of your artist. When you write a novel, you make sure your story matches the style of your prose. When you write a movie, you make sure the story takes the camera into account. Translating from one medium to another is not impossible, but ask yourself: What does the new medium bring to the story? Or what does the story bring to the medium?

And there is a certain point where I think it's just not worth it.

[olive wasp]

I’m throwing a muffin at you

[rotund abyss]

Nom

[stark tundra]

You right it is whose my bad

[olive wasp]

That’s the usual reaction

[rotund abyss]

What else would it be

[timid current]

this is one thing that informs the best homebrew stuff too - not every character concept is something that works in a game with other people.

[hot marlin]

Indeed.

[olive wasp]

Hitting them in the forehead or refusing to eat it because the person doesn’t eat

[rotund abyss]

Naw muffin grants +4 plot armor you'd know that if you actually played the game properly 🤓🤓

[hot marlin]

Novels have two main benefits compared to TTRPGs. Novels allow a deeper look at a character's inner monologue and reasoning and feelings. And novels allow for a POV outside the main cast and information the main cast does not have. If I were to novelize, this would be what I focus on. A certain dramatic irony born from the fact that the reader has information the main characters do not have, something that is normally best avoided in TTRPG.

[stark tundra]

He also did carry around a ship cannon that he could basically shoot standing

[olive wasp]

She just wants to spite my fun loving character (and is also a vampire) the rest usually eat it or look at me very disappointed

[hot marlin]

TTRPGs center around party dynamics. Everything is about how PCs interact between each other and interact with the world. These are the two levels of character interaction in a TTRPG and they work very differently.

[olive wasp]

That’s always fun, that’s the type of person my 5’2 barbarian half orc aspires to be

She wants to move mountains but she is oh so itty bitty

[stark tundra]

Ah he was a 7'5 Goliath

[olive wasp]

But she can move em

[rotund abyss]

Actually sometimes the reader is right in a character's perspective so they only know as much as they do, that's what most great horrors do. Show don't tell.
It's really the perspective and the technique rather than the concept of novelisation. Right now I'm putting each chapter in different character perspectives based on whose perspective it makes more sense in

[stark tundra]

He kinda died in the last battle

[olive wasp]

Rest in peace Goliath

[stark tundra]

My old characters don't tend to live to see old age

[hot marlin]

Yes, some novels are more introspective and don't use POV outside the main cast. But the medium allows it, which is not something allowed by TTRPG

[olive wasp]

Oh I like my characters too much but this one I recklessly endanger because A she’s kinda dumb and B she can take it

She’s street smart, she don’t use her thinker

[near brook]

Is it rather frowned upon to play as a Changeling in DnD 5e?

[stark tundra]

Honestly fair only PC death that's never gonna happen is Kane and du'kurn

[rotund abyss]

You're still novelising the trrpg. Again, execution, not concept. Everything is possible

[olive wasp]

I loved playing as a changeling it was my first character

[stark tundra]

Nah just dms don't like that you can adapt

[delicate locust]

how do you two get your names all shiny like that?

oh mine is a little bit shiny

[olive wasp]

You have it your name is just shorter so it’s hard to see

[delicate locust]

yes i see that now lmao

[rotund abyss]

Get a longer name

[stark tundra]

Mine is extra long so easy to see it all

[delicate locust]

sorry guys lol

[olive wasp]

Sorryyyyy finished typing my sentence first

[near brook]

Is it likely for a DM not to accept me into the game cause I am a Changeling? I mean even the shapeshifting ability is very limited, so it shouldn‘t be rulebreaking. Like otherwise it wouldn‘t be part of 5e, right?

[rotund abyss]

You see just a second ago I thought your pfp was a wolf

[timid current]

talk to the DM, don't assume beforehand

[delicate locust]

i actually cant see your name at all, its just a d with dots it says "d..."

[glass granite]

You should be making your character for a campaign a lot of the time. Either way, ask

[stark tundra]

They should allow it honestly if they don't they just can't have fun and write around something minor

[olive wasp]

It’s always a dm confirmation first otherwise it gotta stay in drafts or be changed up

[rotund abyss]

Depends on the game

[delicate locust]

i just see what i want to see, i have been amazed looking at profile pictures and realising they not even remotely close to what i thought they were, i thought nugget of truths one was a foot bicycle pump until just now when i looked closer

[near brook]

Cause my Fiancé and I wanted to learn how to play DnD. We‘re still kinda struggling with figuring out everything on the character sheet, ngl. I kinda suck at these things, but I would love to learn it anyway cause DnD seems to be super cool

[stark tundra]

Hey everyone starts somewhere maze

[delicate locust]

i doubt it, its a spell you can get so as long as you arent being malicious then i wouldnt think so

[rotund abyss]

Yeah I started playing a decidueye from pokemon

[olive wasp]

Start by doing the most complicated thing possible

[stark tundra]

I didn't start out knowing this much I've just been playing for way too long lol

[glass granite]

No shame in being new! And feel free to ask for assistance

[near brook]

Like whenever something is explained, it just raises even more questions to me. For example how you level up

[olive wasp]

I was a changeling rogue

[stark tundra]

My first PC was a 3.5 halfling barbarian

[olive wasp]

Two systems on how to do it, one is just dm discretion, the other is an xp system like a video game

[glass granite]

Either XP (killing stuff/completing quests rewards put into numbers) or milestone (whenever the DM decides)

[stark tundra]

Name was brick

[near brook]

Nah. I would just like to be a deceiver here and there, you know? For example trying to deceive guards by turning into one myself to bail out my companions for example

[stark tundra]

I started before 5e was a thing

[olive wasp]

Mine was skippy toad the changeling rogue

[glass granite]

Sounds great!

[stark tundra]

Noice noice

[olive wasp]

You would not believe it but he loves frogs

And is the mayor of fraugzville

(He can’t spell all too good)

[glass granite]

That’s peak

[near brook]

I hope I‘m not too old with 26 to start. I tried starting 5 years ago but then stuff came in between and I kinda forgot about it. But now with my Fiancé it sounded like a great thing to share

[delicate locust]

i dont see any problem with that, seems really cool, my rogue has a cloak of disguise self, there isnt an issue there because i dont go around stealing stuff from my own party. your thing seems completely fine and really cool, is that an official species you can play thats so awesome?

[olive wasp]

That’s definitely not too old

Peoples grandmas play it I heard it here

[near brook]

I looked it up and it seems to be part of 5e

Btw. thank you for being so nice to me. It‘s always seemed rare to find communicative and reassuring people on Discord community servers, as contradicting as that might sound lol

[delicate locust]

yeah some like mordenkainen thing, i dont own that book so i hadnt heard of it, looks awesome, one thing is to just ask though since some dms are picky about what books to use since a lot of stuff in books outside of the base ones are a lot more powerful

[glass granite]

You’re as old as one of the founders of DnD.
The other co-founder was 35 or smt FYI. You’re fineeee

[delicate locust]

but it seems fine to me, just ask before you play i guess

[near brook]

Thank you so much, I‘m just getting too paranoid sometimes lol

[rotund abyss]

Guys would batman be an oath of vengeance paladin or a rogue (post flashpoint)

Without multiclassing

[glass granite]

Hi just getting too paranoid sometimes, I’m Nugget
:D

[delicate locust]

rogue

[late axle]

Champion Fighter/Assassin

[rough basalt]

Never too old/young for dnd

[rotund abyss]

Why did I just summon you 😭😭

[olive wasp]

I think rogue he’s too much of a sneaky crafty fella

[near brook]

Hmmm I should keep that in mind then. Funny enough, I once created my own interpretation of Changelings for a different lore that wasn‘t DnD related. In there, they actually only had one human equivalent of themselves they could turn into and that‘s it. Cause their creator didn‘t want them to be too powerful in that regard

[delicate locust]

he would be a rogue inquisitive, worlds best detective, but realistically batmans thing now is that he is like a human at peak performance so i think he would just be a ridiculous level 20 multiclass of everything i think that reflects batman the most

[late axle]

What specie would you choose for a Oath of the Genies Paladin follower of Sune (neutral gender)? (Dex based, not STR).
I'm thinking dragonborn is what I want to roll with.

[near brook]

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA I actually troll my fiancé with dad jokes all the time. She learned to tolerate it 😂😂😂

[glass granite]

Oh that’s a good question…
I’m liking Aasimar Dragonborn actually

[delicate locust]

sorry, that last part was something that was inside of the book?

[glass granite]

Helll yeaaa

[near brook]

Wait really?! If so, that is a huge coincidence cause I never read anything DnD related ever

Neither did anyone ever tell me

[delicate locust]

no no no no, i was asking you a question, i have no idea

im just confused by what you meant

[hot marlin]

Human.

[near brook]

Ohhhhhh ok gotcha. Nah, it was a fan fiction I wrote

[stark tundra]

I mean can always go with the best race

[delicate locust]

" In there, they actually only had one human equivalent of themselves they could turn into and that‘s it. Cause their creator didn‘t want them to be too powerful in that regard"

Was this something from the dnd book or was this your thing?

[late axle]

That's, the least probably answer I expected. Why?

[stark tundra]

Drow

[near brook]

Btw. how does leveling up even work in this game? I never played a pen and paper game before so I have absolutely no idea

[knotty pasture]

Up to the DM but its split into two methods

[hot marlin]

When in doubt, I choose human. If I don't plan on engaging with the lore and themes that come with a non-human species, I play human.

[umbral girder]

Sounds human too

[knotty pasture]

• Milestone, where you get a fixed amount of exp once you finished a certain quest or reached a certain point of the campaign, regardless of how you got there
• XP based, where you get exp per NPC killed (rewards you for being a murder hobo)

[hot marlin]

And here the concept is "oath of genie paladin worshipper of Sune". Nothing in here has any species

[delicate locust]

i think most people run milestone nowadays so i wouldnt worry about it, if they run xp then it's probably split equally so the party will level up at the same time, so you dont need to worry, in conclusion, dont worry, you will know when to level up

[lavish flame]

Story-Based Levelling also just avoids dealing with Experience entirely

[hot marlin]

Actually you do not get exp "per NPC killed". You get exp for enemies beaten. Not even necessarily in combat.

[olive wasp]

But DMs love when you ask them every session if you leveled up btw

They love love love that

[stark tundra]

Yeah completely avoids everyone asking if they leveled up every game

[knotty pasture]

Can't you just kill an innocent for like 1 xp? I swear you could

[hot marlin]

No you can't

[stark tundra]

Even though they are gonna still

[knotty pasture]

Aw no how could our evil run work now 😔

[near brook]

I think I’ll just need to participate in a dnd game with a very patient DM to learn with experience. Once I fully figured out how the stats on the sheet work

[delicate locust]

i dont think most DMs would reward you for being a murder hobo

[knotty pasture]

Oh no just because you get exp doesn't mean its worth getting the exp

[olive wasp]

I think most DMs would try to exterminate you for it

[knotty pasture]

Beating a Flaming Fist Guard would give you like 100 xp but do you really want to go to jail after

[delicate locust]

i have heard it described as challenge so if you killed something without challenge or did something without challenge you dont get xp

[late axle]

Or build characters with the D&D Beyond char builder. It'll will show you around quite easily.

[hot marlin]

You only get xp for things that are an active obstacle. You can't poison the well of a town and wait a few days to level up

[delicate locust]

yeah but im just saying, almost no one will actually give you xp if you kill npcs just for the sake of it

[hot marlin]

And you don't get xp for killing chickens for dinner. Nor do you get xp for pulling the lever at someone's execution

[near brook]

Wait is it that one app that scatters the points across the different skills etc. for you? Cause my fiancé did that today

[stark tundra]

Yep that's the one

[near brook]

I just don‘t know if I should need to know how to do this myself to get how the very game mechanics work

[knotty pasture]

Or get so little exp that its a waste of effort to run around fighting innocents/critters

[vale sage]

You guys have dnd in real life?

[late axle]

https://www.dndbeyond.com/characters It's free. You'll understand the process. You can create level 20 character, but start with level 1, and just level them up. Build different chars.

[near brook]

Thank you so much

[stark tundra]

I can also answer any questions you wanna know just gotta ask

[vale sage]

Like DnD 5e set?

[hot marlin]

You will not get xp for non-threats, regardless of if they're innocent or guilty

[delicate locust]

from my experience, ive never met a DM who wasnt patient with new player, its a lovely community

[knotty pasture]

Threaten a rando hard enough so they would grant exp by RAW

[delicate locust]

you will also get the hang of it pretty quick

[knotty pasture]

(Don't actually do that)

[near brook]

Thank you, that really is a relief. Cause I gotta start somewhere lol. Prepare yourself for a lot of character sheet questions in the future cause there is some stuff I am a bit slow with 😂

[stark tundra]

Unless you get a neck beard

[late axle]

I never used XP rewards in any of my games in 25 years. Milestone is always what I use. Make things so much simpler.

[delicate locust]

it is not a challenge to threaten a rando though is it?

[stark tundra]

Feel free to DM me if you want

[near brook]

I‘m really glad, cause ngl I can be very slow sometimes

[hot marlin]

? Milestone is XP.

[near brook]

Much appreciated!

[knotty pasture]

But if the random ends up becoming an obstacle (as justified as it is because you just threatened them), would that mean they now classify as being a walking bag of exp?

[hot marlin]

The milestone system consists of giving XP at certain points rather than awarding it based on defeating enemies

[stark tundra]

Milestone works differently than a xp bar

[woeful heart]

Guys its my first time playing dnd with friends theyve never played before will it be hard being the dungeon master?

[late axle]

I mean, instead of handing out XP for specific actions/quests. I just pace the "leveling" through the story, ideally when it make sense.

[humble cairn]

No, technically Milestone still uses XP.

[olive wasp]

I’ve never had milestone be xp, it was always just. You accomplished this obstacle or reached a certain point in the story to be that level

[stark tundra]

Did you sacrifice the goat

[knotty pasture]

A mix of Milestone and XP would be nice personally

[near brook]

I‘m just wondering about leveling up cause it does seem to matter from what I saw. Like there are adventures that are only advertised for certain levels

[woeful heart]

What goat

[hot marlin]

Too artificial for me. I prefer to have the story forced to adapt to the medium rather than force the medium to adapt to the story

[delicate locust]

no not really, you saying some random kind of implies they are weak and not apart of the plot and not an obstacle, you are just doing it for the sake of it, it is no different to just poisoning the well

[stark tundra]

To matt mercer

[olive wasp]

Lebron james

[late axle]

Yes. But it's going to be epic. My friends still remember their first game from 28 years ago. And they still say it was so bad it was laughable. But, it opened to the doors to many great adventures.

[stark tundra]

For the ability to dm

[olive wasp]

The greatest to ever do it

[knotty pasture]

Aw damn

[woeful heart]

Yes i sacrificed him

[humble cairn]

Yes, it does matter. You get more hit points, more features, and more general proficiency at stuff when you get higher in level.

[olive wasp]

Oh well sounds like you’ll be just fine

[stark tundra]

Yeah exactly

[woeful heart]

Ooo

[near brook]

Have you ever created a custom adventure where others had to go through a dungeon with several obstacles to eventually gain an amazing weapon as loot?

[knotty pasture]

That is the crux of dnd yes

[humble cairn]

Uhh, that's very specific. And not at the same time?

[stark tundra]

I once gave a rouge the hammer of justice

[near brook]

I was thinking about an episode from Adventure Time actually, sorry. That‘s what made it so specific. It reminded me of what might be possible in homebrew dnd campaigns 😂

[humble cairn]

Well yes, it sounds like a very standard D&D adventure.

[stark tundra]

Ah finn is a crying baby

[near brook]

You mean Finn Mertens? 😂

[stark tundra]

Yep

[near brook]

HAHAHAHAHAHA trueee

No wonder his dad designed a dungeon to toughen him up

[stark tundra]

He's a level 20 palifighter human

[near brook]

Is this good or bad? 😂

[stark tundra]

Good

Oh he's also a bard

[near brook]

Oh yeah, with his flute ^^

[stark tundra]

And he swallowed a small computer

[near brook]

Btw. I always wanted to talk with a D&D player about this: Isn‘t it kinda ironic that, even though the monsters in Stranger Things aren‘t supposed to look like the D&D characters they were named after, Vecna‘s design started resembling D&D Vecna‘s design a lot in certain ways? Like spikes rising from his shoulders, a virtually non existent abdomen etc.

That‘s how his look changed in season 5

[stark tundra]

Honestly asking the wrong person with me I don't have Netflix nore the want to watch that show

[near brook]

That‘s fine, it‘s not a must by any means ^^

just thought that was a kinda interesting detail

[stark tundra]

Fair enough

[severe rain]

helloooo

[glass granite]

Gooood morning afternoon evening!

[void quail]

hii

[near brook]

That way everybody is pretty much covered here 😂

I‘m from Germany for example and therefore most likely have a discrepancy of 6 hours from many in here ^^

[glass granite]

It’s also a reference to a fandom I’m in (which is why I omitted goodnight)

[near brook]

Ohhhh ok gotcha ^^

[glass granite]

Also, you’re even further off me from me cuz I’m an Australian:D

[near brook]

Is it true that you have giant spiders and other scary things breaking into your homes or is that just a stereotypical cliché? Cause ngl I was kinda scared 😭😭😭

[glass granite]

They’re not that big. And much less so if you’re in the city.
That being said, I have based some areas in my setting off of our Outback

[humble cairn]

Can you maybe put spoiler tags on this for people who are not caught up?

[near brook]

Don‘t worry, it‘s in the trailers

[glass granite]

Or haven’t watched it

[humble cairn]

But WOTC definitely tried to capitalize on the popularity of the show, so I'm not surprised.

[glass granite]

Hi not surprised, I’m Nugget

[humble cairn]

Still more polite to spoiler tag it.

[near brook]

Ok, didn‘t think it would matter since it has nothing to do with the plot, just a design change

[humble cairn]

What spoils something for you and what does it for someone else might be different. Do you know how to do spoiler tags? You put two of these || in front and back of the thing you want hidden. Also you can go back and edit your previous posts.

[glass granite]

Btw folks wanted to ask, what’s the most underrated DnD weapon in your opinion? And are you happy with the weapon selection?

[formal dove]

bread

[glass granite]

Which type

[humble cairn]

Light Hammer, methinks.

[near brook]

Yeah like || ||

[humble cairn]

And I was very happy using them on my Paladin.

[glass granite]

Those are definitely underrated yeah. Most people use daggers in their place, but they got their uses

My favourite probably that they work with smt like crusher

What’s your opinion on the Lance?

[formal dove]

any but has to be extremly stale

[near brook]

Can I reuse a character for other campaigns (if the DM allows it) or do I have to create a new character for every adventure?

[glass granite]

If the DM allows it pretty much anything goes

[humble cairn]

Looking at it, it's a little annoying that they combined Topple with a Reach weapon. If you knock them down with your first attack, now you need to get within 5ft or else suffer Disadv.

[burnt grove]

You can reuse assuming it’s a new campaign hell there’s a running gag about Adam, Badam, Cadam or whatever when people die vowing vengeance on their fallen brother

[knotty pasture]

I wish we have more magical weapons/armor if anything

[glass granite]

Oh? How come?

[humble cairn]

Prone causes everyone to have Disadv to attack the prone target unless they are within 5ft.

[woeful heart]

Guys whats the longest campaign youve ever done

[glass granite]

I…did not know that

[vale sage]

zero minutes, im brand new 🙁

[woeful heart]

Yeah me too

[glass granite]

Hi brand new, I’m Nugget!

[humble cairn]

It's why it's bad for archers when you knock their target's prone.

[vale sage]

Ive had job interviews less extensive than some of these D&D campaign applications

[humble cairn]

But it's also bad for people using Reach weapons.

[burnt grove]

So, A friend of mine asked About Mordeschlaug and Dnd combat.. let’s say a short sword 1d6 or long 1d8 if it was used to do bludgeoning damage by using the hilt instead actual combat stance what the damage would be. I replied probably 1d4 with a disadvantage on the attack roll as it’s not designed for it. Friend argued with me, just asking did I rule this correctly?

[glass granite]

I thought it was just melee and ranged attacks, not a distance thing

[humble cairn]

It is not.

[glass granite]

I know that now!
The more you know~

[humble cairn]

But it is double bad for archers. Because if they are over 5ft away, Disadv, but if they are within 5ft .. Disadv!

[glass granite]

It would likely be a 1d4 improvised attack

So not disadvantage, but no proficiency bonus unless you’ve tavern brawler
At least that’s how I’d rule it

[humble cairn]

D&D is not realistic. This is homebrew so basically whatever you want, I guess. Personally I would just say it's a regular attack, but you're doing non-lethal damage if they hit 0. Which would keep it in RAW.

[burnt grove]

lol just trying to get a middle ground and damn got a d4 or up to infinite lol jk

[humble cairn]

Up to infinite?

[burnt grove]

*whatever you want^ lol jk

[outer whale]

Hellooo!
I'm wondering if someone is interested in roleplaying with a small group. Just a casual fantasy rpg with 2-3 others; would anyone be up for that?

[humble cairn]

I didn't say it just puts them to 0 hp, I said that it's a regular attack and just nonlethal if you put them to 0 hp.

[glass granite]

“Whatever you want” is homebrew, which is completely custom.

[burnt grove]

Yea I know I’m just pulling their leg lol

[glass granite]

Hi just pulling their leg, I’m Nugget
Edit: damn autocorrect

[burnt grove]

Also how’s everyone’s new year going lll

Damn Nathan lol

Giving our state id names huh

[humble cairn]

Nice! Bangkok gets quiet right after new year, apparently, so there's less traffic which is nice.

[burnt grove]

That’s great get some sleep take advantage of that let someone cast dream on you

[glass granite]

I cast punch. Gimme a break I’m a monk main

[burnt grove]

Damn monk of mercy or monk of the open fist

[glass granite]

Monk of elemental warrior

[burnt grove]

I need to know what’s being rolled here a tooth gone or healing lol

Oof get shock therapy!!!

[glass granite]

lol

[remote wadi]

Found out the hard way from a Wizard's Sleep spell

Is it at least not a bad idea to take Poisoner in CoS under the idea of "poison resistant or neutral = more damage, poison immune = high chance if radiant vulnerability = Paladin time"?

[prime pewter]

New monster idea! Elder Brian

Just an old guy named Brian

[humble cairn]

Could you unpack this just a little more? I don't understand.

[remote wadi]

Alert is a good fest, but not something I feel like i need at the moment. DM gave me the option to swap out Alert for Poisoner on next level up

[humble cairn]

You're getting to swap an Origin Feat for a General Feat for free?

I mean Alert is actually a good feat for teamwork.

[glass granite]

Personally I’d take alert

[remote wadi]

The premise is that if the enemy is something like a bandit captain, no problem. Poison will work easily

Druid made some comments on the side about how undead are immune to poison and there would be a lot of it in CoS. Which I don't think is the largest deal because I can have Paladin take care of that. Or when I get more items, silvered ammunition and/or a magic bow

[humble cairn]

Class/Subclass, weapons, current Feats, please.

[remote wadi]

Alert is good, I just wanted some extra damage to give me a small leg up in this early game

[remote wadi]

Level 4 Gloomstalker, longbow, Sharpshooter, Piercer, Alert

Long story, but sniper build

[humble cairn]

You're planning to go Assassin eventually? Don't give up Alert.

Especially for 2014 Assassin.

[remote wadi]

Eventually, sure. But I can just pick up Alert at level 6 (more feats than normal)

[humble cairn]

Wait, is this 2014 Alert?

[remote wadi]

Yes

[humble cairn]

Argh, it's different and I have to go look at it again.

[remote wadi]

+5 initiative, unable to be surprised under normal circumstances

[humble cairn]

Right right ok it's not an Origin Feat in 2014.

[remote wadi]

And I believe also being able to swap initiatives with a willing ally

[humble cairn]

That's 2024 Alert.

[remote wadi]

Oh

Ah. I remember there being a third part, but that wasn't it

Enemies don't gain advantage from being unseen by you...

Hold up, that could pair pretty well with Fog Cloud if I ever need to use it

Beforehand, wasn't too useful because both sides were neutral anyways

But with that, it removes (one of) the most common ways enemies have advantage

Would it still reasonably be able to attack them from within the Fog Cloud?

[humble cairn]

Hmm ... I think Poisoner is fine? You may run into poison immune enemies, but as long as you're okay with not using poison against those enemies, being able to do more damage and improve ally defense because of the poisoned condition is not bad. Will you have the money and time to craft those poisons?

If you apply the poison before combat it won't even compete for your Bonus Action.

But that's risking wasting that money.

[remote wadi]

It only costs 25 GP and an hour to make 3 potent doses. And technically, I could find ways to make more lethal poisons

[humble cairn]

Uhh ... the Feat says 50gp.

[remote wadi]

Oops
Still not terribly expensive

[humble cairn]

And my question still remains .. do you have the money? I don't know how much money your DM has been giving you.

[remote wadi]

Well, after this fight against the bandits, we have the equivalent of roughly 4k gp of money

Even with some lackluster rolls, I might add...

[humble cairn]

Ok so yes.

[glass granite]

Go grab a gun!

[remote wadi]

Actually

I think Alert would be best for a much later level

[glass granite]

You can swap initiative with allies tho

[humble cairn]

You'll want it when you hit the Assassin subclass.

[remote wadi]

2024 rule

[glass granite]

Oh that’s not a thing in 2014?

[humble cairn]

They're using 2014 rules.

[remote wadi]

Which would be at level 8

As of now, I would need Poisoner now, Gunner at Level 6, then the next feat isn't until level 9

[glass granite]

(They’re using homebrew feat levels)

[remote wadi]

An extra feat for the first and every third level

Quite tame, if you ever saw the other rules

[glass granite]

Poisoner is cool

So I’m for getting it.

[knotty pasture]

Get some nice gear with that 4k gold

[glass granite]

^i second this

[knotty pasture]

Muskets are only 500 gold

[remote wadi]

Being that he did have a military origin and is at least familiar with overseeing budgets or the equivalent, it gives a good reason for him to be the party's accountant of sort

[restive gorge]

Haii

[fervent karma]

hello