dnd-discussion

[silk hare]

yeah from what I know 100% correct

imagine you have eternity and all u do is torment what is a continent over some lost love

[shut lance]

bad boys confirmed

[empty thicket]

Strahd could win against the 400 baboons?

[hot reef]

Use whichever philosophical lens works best for your D&D game

[proper forum]

I have concluded that Strahd is, indeed, not hot

[silk hare]

action economy says no, at least not the battle

[shut lance]

chimpanzee bolt from the wizard king?

[silk hare]

but then again the baboons probably cant kill him really

since he just reforms in his coffin iirc

[empty thicket]

then just win one battle against him, only that

[shut lance]

yeah, only one way to kill Strahd canonicly

[silk hare]

oh yeah sure

[empty thicket]

let me guess, stab his heart with some special weapon? sun?

[silk hare]

||stab his heart with a stick and destroy his coffin or sth||

||or while he is in his coffin iirc||

||it definitely was sth with his coffin||

[hot reef]

can regen and stay out of range of them, so yeah
Baboons don't have ranged attacks they can ready, they also don't have the strength to do damage by throwing random rocks

[feral fulcrum]

You sure you're not thinking of Dracula?

[scenic zinc]

Baboons are unlikely to hit him, he has regen, and resistance if they do hit him... he's probably fine

[feral fulcrum]

It's 400 baboons. Action economy says he dies

[silk hare]

I mean yeah, also depends on the environment, if your goal was to have them actually fight, just surround the area with flowing water or sth

[twin chasm]

I dunno, 5e Strahd is pretty easy to clown.

[silk hare]

but yeah, same as always for fictional character arguments: depends on the "writers"/dms goals

[hot reef]

||nvm he doesn't have fly speed, but I don't think he can take enough damage from the number of baboons that would fit nearby||

[feral fulcrum]

Anything without an AOE, or an escape method, dies to 400 Baboons.

[silk hare]

if you want them to fight head on, the baboons probably win

[scenic zinc]

Action economy math would only work like that if you make strahd non-strategic

[still plover]

Spoilers, bud.

[empty thicket]

so spawncamped, amazing

[silk hare]

||I think he can turn into mist no?||

[shut lance]

removing

[silk hare]

||so like, he could run away||

[empty thicket]

Welp, time to drop him a Sun Nuke on him or smt

[shut lance]

||To kill Strahd von Zarovich in Curse of Strahd, players must destroy the Heart of Sorrow, use radiant damage (sunlight) to halt his regeneration, and confront him in his tomb. Essential items include the Sunsword, Holy Symbol of Ravenkind, and Tome of Strahd. He must be defeated in his coffin to prevent his return.||

[feral fulcrum]

He's a vampire, you'd figure that'd be obvious.

[hot reef]

||takes action but yeah I suppose, it just may not be worth spending an action||

[empty thicket]

Yep

expected something more... complex ngl

[feral fulcrum]

Well he's not a elder litch.

With a dozen backup bodies

[shut lance]

keeping Vecna down is... more complex

[silk hare]

||true, but also depends, bc if the baboons are anywhere close to him they WILL eventually reach him, he also "only" has 1 turn||

[feral fulcrum]

He's just one annoying vampire, and a whiny one at that.

[silk hare]

dont forget the loser

and maidenless

[scenic zinc]

Only if you decide to pretend that's true. That's not at all how he's written.

[feral fulcrum]

He may be king of the castle in his little pocket realm, but he is a speedbump to the major players outside of it.

[shut lance]

even if you do prevent Strahd from soming back , Ravenloft may just hip check you and revive him

[hot reef]

on average he takes 0.5 damage from being hit by a baboon, and a baboon has a +1 to hit
he'd need to take 7ish baboon hits to even deal a single point of damage, or ||140|| baboon attacks to outpace his regen
that many baboons cannot reach him in a single turn

[feral fulcrum]

Hush, I'm insulting and demeaning him on purpose because he's a loser :V

[silk hare]

yeah I suppose thats fair

[shut lance]

iirc only one person ( as far as those who are overlords of a pocket) has escaped Ravenloft, but Soth has a chance to as well.

[hot reef]

if you use average baboon damage... they can't hurt Strahd

[valid geyser]

are they fighting strahd in his castle?

[scenic zinc]

Just because it's funny and commonplace to make those jokes about him doesn't make that true about strahd

[silk hare]

||but then it also depends on whether or not it is day ||

[valid geyser]

if not, could baboons survive for 8 hours worth of rounds until it's sunny and destroy his regen?

[crimson gulch]

I made strahd immune to weapons under plus 2 and spells under level 4

[silk hare]

sure, but he also is a fictional character and people can do whatever🤷

[still plover]

Fair.

Unless you're doing some AL stuff, big bads should have their capabilities tweaked from the statblock. Make them individual.

[silk hare]

||or can they urinitae on him to put him into "running" water to outpace his regen? ||

[bronze wave]

1 billion baboons vs strahd

[hot reef]

||he has 7-8 turns to find shade, and can be a cloud of mist and just ignore the baboons||

[crimson gulch]

The only final boss I dident have to change was toa

[silk hare]

||yeah the cloud of mist makes it kind of pointless xD, u right||

[scenic zinc]

Sure... but then "lul tiamat iz a 5 headed dummy with 0 brain"

Why bother having any kind of shared lore about a character if everyone is just going to say their own personal version of that character?

[silk hare]

bc its a storytelling game and your interpretation of a character is usually decided by how they are first portrayed to you

[scenic zinc]

How do we even talk about characters at that point?

[shut lance]

I hate that they made Tahkisis just Tiamat.
Tiamat usually succeeds. Tahkisis takes constant Ls

[silk hare]

so unless the dm is fully aware of the lore and how strahd "should" be, he will be pictured differently from group to group

[shut lance]

Tiamat: Sometimes the rainbow tastes you

[feral fulcrum]

The dunking on Strahd will continue so long as he remains so dunkable.

[umbral girder]

Non-magical BPS immunity saving him.

Until the Baboons get the magic sticks.

[scenic zinc]

That's not my point. I'm saying claims are consistently made about strahd as though they're actually accurate - rather than "this is my portrayal of character X"

[loud tendon]

This is going on for quite sometime more than baboons v strahd feels necessary. Its almost more of a whiteroom situation at this point building the perfect scenario, numbers and theorycrafting.

[bronze wave]

well all dnd villains are like that? they all are played by diff groups, theres no such thing even if someone was aware of how strahd should be bc the module leaves stuff up to the dm

theres like parameters but thats about it

[meager fractal]

I've fought a baboon irl before and they are much fiercer than their stats in dnd give them credit for

[feral fulcrum]

I wonder if they're bringing the madness stuff back in the Ravenloft book

[bronze wave]

I mean did you win?

[meager fractal]

Not really it ruined my trip

[scenic zinc]

Which is fine.

I'm talking about the conversation of a character outside of the table setting. Such as here.

[bronze wave]

you are weaker then a commoner in dnd

[light creek]

hello

[bronze wave]

sure which goes to the point there is not real strahd personality outside of the parameters. I could see the mf likes cheese like sure

[light creek]

can sm1 have a convo with me. i dont wanna sleep so

[shut lance]

I would play Strahd like Leslie Nielsen's Dracula

[bronze wave]

prob would be accurate as long as it fit the parameters alr set

[loud tendon]

This is the official d&d discord, why dont you join the ongoing conversations? Non-dnd talk otherwise goes to #non-dnd-topics

[meager fractal]

It stole my phone. I couldn't let that stand

[light creek]

oh mb i was looking for that channel. i didnt see it so i cane here planningto talk smthing abt dnd

[scenic zinc]

Strahd has been part of dnd for 43 years. There's plenty of personality that can be referenced that doesn't amount to "lol he is a loser"

[shut lance]

ok guys i gave a serious question.
We are going to be starting at level 3.
Gnome swashbuckler, has squat nimbleness for origin feat.

level 4 feat- would skilled be better for a skill monkey, or fade away?

[meager fractal]

Anyone have any ideas for barbarians that I can turn into a custom subclass

[bronze wave]

yes ergo parameters

[shut lance]

me and my dm made a shamanistic barbarian that got druid spells along the arcane knight ..whatever that fighter subclass is, and could cast spells while in rage to a level up to one half their proficiency bonus

[meager fractal]

That sounds cool

[shut lance]

only casting druid spells of course. But rage + shillelagh is golden fun

[woven flint]

Strahd is a loser because of his actions
People don't like him because he's an abusive misogynistic ass.
It's fun to make fun of him because he's a terrible person but also there's no repercussions because he isn't real

[shut lance]

IMMA HIT YOU WITH THIS STICK

its thicker than bacon

look at my stick

[woven flint]

Strahd has cool moments, but arguably, he's still a loser because of cultural perception

[scenic zinc]

Then say you don't like him. He's not "a loser".

[meager fractal]

Accerak. Now that guy knows how to party.

[shut lance]

Lord Soth is a violent emo in my headscanon

[bronze wave]

He def is a loser

[woven flint]

Yes, Strahd is a more complex individual than his terrible actions, but his actions make him icky to modern sensibilities so, he's classified as a loser.

[meager fractal]

Soth is a huuuuuge softie for Kitiara

[bronze wave]

Like he has lost everything he cares for, is a perverted version of himself, is hated widely, has nothing, and its all hsi fault

he also only punches down

[woven flint]

Strahd is by no means a "Badass" and I don't think he's meant to be viewed that way.

He preys specifically on weaker individuals and folds to people on his level.

[bronze wave]

His whole plot line with ireena is loser tier behavior lol

[scenic zinc]

Strahd exists in a game that doesn't and almost never has done horror well. That's his true curse.

[woven flint]

Strahd is Strahd and Strahd kinda sucks

[bronze wave]

roll a d20 to be scared

[woven flint]

If they didn't spend time making the man comically evil, maybe he'd be more appealing as a horror icon in D&D

[scenic zinc]

Rolled a nat 1. I'm gunna act like I'm being brave even though I have the Frightened condition.

[shut lance]

the Madhouse of Tasha's Kiss has been pretty good horror

[woven flint]

Strahds other curse is existing within a realm that D&D characters also exist lol

[scenic zinc]

The mechanics of dnd don't encourage the players to participate in themes that would benefit a horror plot.

[minor cargo]

Tasha's Kiss is a really good module (it's 3rd party). But yeah, to azerick's point, I wouldn't call it horror because, well, we played D&D characters. Violence was generally the answer to most problems.

[crimson gulch]

Horror works great in dnd, thats why the most popular modules are the horror ones

[scenic zinc]

They aren't.

[woven flint]

"Violence is usually the answer!"

[scenic zinc]

They're not horror modules. They're triumphant.

[crimson gulch]

Curse of strahd is the most popular module of 5e, and thats a horror campaign

[scenic zinc]

It isn't

[meager fractal]

CoS is the most popular one because the rest are for the most part mediocre, not because it does it's horror elements particularly well.

[woven flint]

CoS isn't popular because it's "Horror" it's popular because it's Heroic Fantasy with Gothic paint

[scenic zinc]

Exactly

[shut lance]

I was going to suggest one where the heroes come to a town that is being attacked by wood spirits and fey, BUT its because the townspeople are killing the forest.
who do they side with? There is no clear villain.

[woven flint]

I dunno, the Townspeople sound pretty bad in that situation

Time to massacre a village for the fey homies

[shut lance]

the townspeople need the land and lumber though ..and yes I would choose the fey myself

[scenic zinc]

You're gunna have a pretty hard time convincing the players to kill the town unless you make the town silly amounts of clear evil

[crimson gulch]

sure is, but go ahead and ignore that i guess? page 7 of the book clearly identifies it as a horror book and talks about how to tackle that

[shut lance]

the town isn't blatant evil. Its neutralish, the fey as well

[copper warren]

Hey do you guys have any tips on how to survive the Tomb of Annihilation since my party is going to go in it next session?

[crimson gulch]

10 foot pole

[scenic zinc]

It isn't horror. It's light gothic themes. The module, and system as a whole, isn't set up for horror.

[shut lance]

stick your hand in everything to find secret doors

[hot reef]

ran a similar arc in Q'barra with dragonshard mining

[woven flint]

It's not as bad as some dms make it to be.
Just run it carefully and with consideration

[copper warren]

Ok

[scenic zinc]

I can write "I'm a spooky vampire" on my forehead. Doesn't make it true.

[crimson gulch]

Hard disagree, dnd works great for horror

[woven flint]

Reads your forehead

Hm.. Oh..? AAAAAH!!

[scenic zinc]

I didn't say you can't get it to work. Just that it's not built for it by default.

Purely based on the existing mechanics.

[bronze wave]

You can make it scary despite of the system not due to the sytsem

[crimson gulch]

hard disagree once, feeling dread and fear is essential to any game of dnd

[shut lance]

@copper warren just be glad Tomg of Annihilation isn't Tomb of Horrors. use a ten foot pole

[scenic zinc]

Other systems have mechanics that actively encourage horror themes.

[copper warren]

To be honest this my first time going in it

[minor cargo]

I know I bring it up a lot, but I think Ten Candles is a great game to hold up to D&D (when talking about horror). I think Ten Candles' "dice pool" mechanic and the "burning traits" mechanic are both really aligned with horror as a theme/genre/play experience.

[woven flint]

ROTFM, TOA and COS are popularly scary specifically because they've been heavily talked about as Meat Grindery.

[scenic zinc]

That has nothing to do with mechanics

[shut lance]

Horrors was written specifically to kill/threaten players who think they are invincible. Annhilation is more balanced. Just use extreme caution

[scenic zinc]

Yes. That's true.

[woven flint]

CoS but everytime I hear about Strahd I ask when can I kick him in the Cajones

[shut lance]

DO IT

[woven flint]

Kas is a scarier vampire than Strahd, let's be honest

[bronze wave]

as he should be he is much stronger and on a grander scale. I also think they are portrayed diff within the parameters

[crimson gulch]

sure does, when you are down to the wire and you dont know if you are going to live or die, cleric rolling death saves, fewer hit points left than fingers on one hand and Strahd is up next and the DM looks at you, that is a moment of Tabletop horror at its finest

[bronze wave]

Would you say that applies to everything, like you are on low hp ans the enemy is next

idk if thats bc of dnd or is that just a basic game mechanic?

[woven flint]

CoS but when the party fight Strahd, Kas comes to claim Barovia as his and then the real boss fight starts /joking

[scenic zinc]

I feel like you're interpreting what I'm saying as "dnd bad!". That isn't what I'm saying.

I'm saying it's not a universal system. It does well with many things, but other systems do certain things better because the mechanics of those systems accentuate certain themes or ways of playing.

[crimson gulch]

it is the natural expression of tension in a dnd game to evoke horror

[umbral girder]

Again*

[bronze wave]

Im saying that isnt a dnd thing rlly yk? like any game with hp will do that

[crimson gulch]

but were having the conversation here so were talking about DND

[bronze wave]

i wouldnt say its horror tension sure but like every game with hp if you get low will have some tension

[crimson gulch]

i dont care about other systems, i dont play them, most folks dont

[bronze wave]

sure but that has nothing to do with a dnd centric/specfic mechanic

Its a universal one

[bronze wave]

I mean I think the convo was a comparision

[crimson gulch]

Horror is still horror when the people going through it are powerfull

[bronze wave]

in. a void dnd can do horror fine ig

[fickle heart]

D&D may work for horror in-spite of the system, not because of the system. It's truly not a system designed for horror, though.

[minor cargo]

Hmm...

...I hate to say it, but my gut says that the word "horror" isn't specific enough - and that's probably a root cause of why we can't get on the same page.

[bronze wave]

whats your fav paladin subclass

[crimson gulch]

im not here to compare other systems, im saying dnd horror works great and its some kind of Definition twisting to say otherwise

[fickle heart]

Redemption Paladin, 4sure.

[bronze wave]

I have to be scared or creeped out Id say, which doesnt occur in games in gen for me

[shut lance]

I like Redemption myself

[scenic zinc]

You're ignoring the entire point of the conversation to approach it this way though.

[bronze wave]

Like RE also isnt very good horror to me

it isnt scary

[shut lance]

I usually play good characters, heroic, and redemption makes a nice vessel for it

[bronze wave]

Been seen that alot, might be my next subclass I play

Ive been thinking of playing a blind char was gonna go monk but redeem could be fun

[shut lance]

could be a blind ranger

[crimson gulch]

Correct, because this is the DND server. so im here to talk about DND

[scenic zinc]

I never once said you can't do horror in dnd. I said it's not designed for it.

[scenic zinc]

... for real?

[crimson gulch]

there is so much great horror designed for dnd

[minor cargo]

"Grilling is the best way to have a steak. I don't care about other cooking methods. I don't use any other cooking methods. In fact, most people don't."

This is what it feels like sometimes when we talk about horror.

[scenic zinc]

You can compare and contrast things

[bronze wave]

Id rather be a blind commoner

[crimson gulch]

if this was a discord about Grilling i would expect that, if someone wanted to talk about frying that would be off topic for there

[scenic zinc]

Dnd doesn't exist within a vacuum

[shut lance]

Blinkin. from men in tights?

[bronze wave]

but maybe Id try ranger, like a gloomranger or smth

[fickle heart]

I generally consider the topic of "D&D works for [X]" to be something that works best with a wild example, like romance.

One can say D&D works great for romance, because they've had tons of great romance plots in D&D, but at that point we aren't actually referring to what D&D actually does, but what we're doing within D&D. Those two things can be easily conflated, though, and untangling them is partly definitional, yeah.

[scenic zinc]

It isn't off topic to talk about the shortcomings of the system, it's mechanics, and what themes work well or are more difficult to achieve

[shut lance]

a blind Peace cleric could be fun

or samurai (zatoichi)

[silk hare]

if you enjoy disadvantage on attack rolls sure

[crimson gulch]

the difference being we dont have several offical books on romance, but we do for horrror, we have a lot for horror

[shut lance]

Peace clerics try to avoid attack rolls

[silk hare]

I mean yeah, but at some point you wanna deal damage

[lavish flame]

We highkey should get a romance book. Graz'zt presents: Smooching And Other Sweet Delights

[silk hare]

nice in theory, but same as "pacifist" characters, only works to some extent as combat is inherent to most dnd tables

[shut lance]

true.

[frail wasp]

mmm we musnt ignore the violence inherent in the system

[scenic zinc]

Gothic settings aren't the same as a horror theme being achieved

[shut lance]

Look at me being oppressed!@frail wasp

[woven flint]

You should be the author, Gwyn, I'd actually buy the book 😎 /silly

[fickle heart]

Just because an official book exists, that doesn't inherently mean it works. If we got an official book for romance, would we say that romance inherently works? Same goes with stuff like Spelljammer where they made a book for spaceship combat and it got panned for not really being comprehensive. In that case, even though the official book exists, it doesn't conclusively drive a point home.

The largest point I'm personally trying to make, though, is that we need to be a bit less focused on individual subjective experiences and more on wide-scale principles of game design.

[woven flint]

My Warlock has a gudge against Demon kind.

But me.. as a person?
Heh...
Heh heh..

[shut lance]

I wanted to adapt the Deathgate Cycle to dnd, but sartans and patryns would be on a spell point system..or maybe sorcerers are patryns, wizards are sartans

[silk hare]

I mean, in order to vanquish demons, someone has to summon them first no? he. he he..

[crimson gulch]

Spelljammer 5e was great too, the books we have for dnd work great. this just sounds like you haven't had a good time with it personally but man these books do work great, i have ran all of them, have you?

[scenic zinc]

I think you're fully missing the point urizt

It isn't a conversation of "it works"

It's a conversation of what the system is designed for

And what it inherently encourages with its mechanics

[crimson gulch]

it works great because the design intention of 5e dnd makes it work great, that is my position that is in opposition to yours.

[scenic zinc]

Again you're missing the entire point of the conversation.

[crimson gulch]

nope im just rejecting the point you are trying to make, im not missing it.

[glass granite]

-# I’m getting Deja Vu

[scenic zinc]

You're not rejecting my point. You're not even arguing against it. You're making a fully separate and unrelated argument.

[crimson gulch]

these conversations happen from time to time

[bronze wave]

I have a feeling this convo is gonna go in circles lol

[frail wasp]

it is fated

[bronze wave]

Maybe you both just are locked into your respective beliefs

[scenic zinc]

He's not even engaging with the actual conversation is the issue.

[minor cargo]

Maybe this could help us? We can still stop the conversation or take a break, but I'm hoping this direction might prove more fruitful?

@crimson gulch You mentioned you think D&D mechanics are great for a horror themed game. What specific mechanics do you think work well for horror? Extra info about why you think they work will well will also help IMO.

✌️

[empty thicket]

Rolling 3 nat1 consecutive

[bronze wave]

Sure and idk if that’s going to change lol

[empty thicket]

peak horror moment

[bronze wave]

I’d be aight 😼

[minor cargo]

And then if folks disagree, we can at least have that as a starting point? I know it's a lot to ask, but we can also reverse it. For example, @scenic zinc , you could list out specific D&D mechanics and say why you think they don't work well for horror - and also give some extra reasoning why.

[valid geyser]

i also think there's different goalposts on what that means
If we wanna go back to horror, I think people can say "d&d does horror" because it has scary elements, while others think it can't do horror because it isn't designed to provide that same feeling that horror games, movies, etc can provide

[empty thicket]

I dont.

[woven flint]

Skittles?! Who Telekinetically Shoved you?!

[scenic zinc]

I have hope in Steve's question

[valid geyser]

psions are mean

[woven flint]

I'll kill 'em!

[bronze wave]

If you play a Paladin you’ll be able to do it

[woven flint]

Let's beat em up

[valid geyser]

you go do that. i'm 5 feet away and they can just use that bonus action again

[empty thicket]

i dont play any of those paladins yet, someday

im a fighter for now

[severe rampart]

Don't get recruited...

Stay strong

[fickle heart]

A lot of people expressed these sentiments, including myself, so it may be that your perspective has entirely different values behind it.

[bronze wave]

Relax bard, go back to singing

[severe rampart]

We're doing stereotypes now? okay Paladin, throw it back /ref

[fickle heart]

Like, I think D&D can do thriller well, but I wouldn't say it can do horror. Tension is heavily used in the thriller genre, and I say that as a huge fan of the thriller genre.

[bronze wave]

Throw what back? L stereotype

[crimson gulch]

the fact that your pc can be killed very quickly in so many situations, that its filled with Horrible monsters in dark depths, filled with war and terror. and villas with dark desirers You are a powerful hero yes, but even teir 4 hero's can be made to feel small and weak by designing your encounters and adventuring days to make it happen.

you take everything that's in a horror book or movie and you can run dnd with all of that RAW and make a horror game sing as your players scream.

[empty thicket]

no church or king hold something i need so badly. I am good with my party

[severe rampart]

Out of all charisma casters, paladins are... okay

[wanton roost]

Yeah just be a guy with armor and be able to use every weapon. Just like....attack twice and do some neat stuff

[woven flint]

I mean.
They're a Half-Caster

Spellcasting isn't their entire thing typically

[severe rampart]

Yup, they do have some nice features though, I must admit

[crimson gulch]

i can 100% agree that i have different values than a lot of folks here, i actualy do think 5e DND is the worlds greatest RPG

[empty thicket]

for charisma chaster we have
Bard, warlock and sorc so....
1 is a wizard with extra steps
the other 2 have some special things i like

Warlock pact slots are something i find interesting

[fickle heart]

That's not what I mean by values, really. I'm referring to everything behind that perspective, all of the reasoning, and so on and so forth.

[severe rampart]

Which is the wizard with extra steps?

[woven flint]

Sorcerer

[frail wasp]

world's greatest RPG as in TTRPG? Or RPGs period?

[empty thicket]

Bard
Sorc at least have metamagic

[fickle heart]

What I value in a horror game is not something D&D could ever provide, really, unless we're heavily homebrewing.

[severe rampart]

Thought so, with the way they phrased it I thought they meant Bard

[severe rampart]

I will not accept this Bard slander

[woven flint]

.. Bard is definitely more than Wizard with extra steps.
They get access to 4 entire spell lists at level 10.

[severe rampart]

we are not just "Wizards with extra steps"

[opaque flower]

guys i have a question. my dm wants us to make a backup builds bc the campaign we are running is very difficult bc we want hard combats. can someone coach me through the strongest 5.5e build they can think of for damage dealing. mix max friendly table

[empty thicket]

A wizard with some sort of bless in feature

[woven flint]

Yeah, Bards are just bad
(I am making wide sweeping claims to enrage people on the internet) /joking

[severe rampart]

Play something you want to play, you don't have to be the strongest

[river plank]

For dealing I’m pretty sure berserker barb is up there at least just on a basic level

[hot reef]

depends on level and magic items
If you want maximums, #optimization is the best channel

[empty thicket]

Fighter, wizard or paladin. Each one is the "best" in their category

[shut lance]

I have rolled two nat ones with advantage.

I had my character slip on a banana peel

[crimson gulch]

the thing i dislike about these kinds of conversations is people in here saying that dnd Cant do X Y or Z may dissuade new folks from even trying, i like seeing more positivity, its a game that we all play for fun here, and there are so many different ways to do it.

[empty thicket]

one time in a session the DM rolled 14 times nat20
WE call that the "Miracle session"

because we managed to survive in some sort of weird way

[opaque flower]

I kind of like the idea of fighter but when i look at the class it just doesn’t seem that special. i tried building a true strike eldritch knight but it doesn’t really work

[crimson gulch]

if i had listend to the haters and never tried to run horror or spelljammer or any of the "Bad" campaign books i would have locked myself out of so many great times

[severe rampart]

one time in a session I never rolled anything above a 15 till the end of the session, I threw those dice into a tupperware takeout box and never played with them again.

[empty thicket]

what about it you didnt end up liking?

at least 24 fighter get more love and is more manageable ngl

[shut lance]

If you want magic and fighter but eldritch knight isnt your jam, try wizard and blade singing

[wanton roost]

That reminds me, I have to checkout to see if Echo Knight got updated for 2024 and see if it got buffed or nerfed

[opaque flower]

i haven’t really found a good guide to that class

[valid geyser]

it wasnt

[scenic zinc]

I think it's more of the fact that there simply aren't existing mechanics to support horror themes, rather than the ones that exist doing it poorly - but I'll try. Three off the top of my head are:

1. Nearly all rules related to making the game more difficult or gritty are part of the optional rules rather than part of the core rules, and most didn't get reprinted in the updated version of the rules. (Example https://www.dndbeyond.com/sources/dnd/dmg-2014/dungeon-masters-workshop#AdventuringOptions)

2. Failing an ability check, RAW, simply leaves events as they were prior to the attempt being made. There is, mechanically, no punishment for trying something you're not good at. Again, RAW. Yes, a dm can interject and make a decision point here and provide some consequences, but that's not the system doing that at that point.

3. The CR system, as designed and as advised, does not ever put the PCs in an overwhelming amount of danger.

[wanton roost]

Thank you God

I wouldn't know what to do if my favorite Subclass got smacked

[shut lance]

https://rpgbot.net/dnd5/characters/classes/wizard/subclasses/bladesinging/ ? maybe

[scenic zinc]

I never once said you can't do horror in dnd, though. I've reiterated that many times.

[fickle heart]

See, I don't entirely disagree. I think people can get overly critical of 5e, but I think people can get overly defensive of it, too.

In the grand scheme, though, 5e is a game that does some stuff good and some stuff bad. Other games often do their specific focuses better, because that's their specific goal. Where I'm always cautious is when someone approaches a conversation of "D&D can do X" without the quiet part stated that it can take a huge amount of effort to actually accomplish that. If something is sold to be easy when it's not, even if a particular individual finds it easy, it can just muddy the waters to the point that there's no ACTUAL ability to look at the topic holistically. It's kinda why anecdotal evidence is taken with such a heavy grain of salt, because it's very easy for biases to inject themselves into the conversation without being stated.

[shut lance]

I saw a bladesinger barbarian - because blade song and using spell levels for protection can be used in rage

[valid geyser]

i also dont think it puts them in the same kind of danger relative to horror. Like, the game expects you to fight back against threats by just running at them and hitting them or something like that. People in horror movies, games etc often win because of their surroundings or some plan rather than a special feature they got. in d&d, by default you're not helpless where i think the opposite is usually true in horror stuff

[scenic zinc]

Yes. A lot of horror themes center around dealing with powerlessness.

[frail wasp]

stabbing the alien in the vents that's chasing you is indeed unhorror

[silk hare]

If you are able to cast spells, you can't cast them or concentrate on them while raging.
unless it changed in 2024, no you cant

[delicate owl]

Ah yes, the long form convos. Delightful. Time to get some popcorn.

[hot reef]

Features which use spell slots but aren’t spells still work

[frail wasp]

hoping you make it to the safe zone in time as you run through the hallway KNOWING it can hear you, that's the horror

[woven flint]

I've had my popcorn ready

[shut lance]

at the least bladesong and rage can stack iirc

granted thats using 2 major consumables at once

[silk hare]

isnt "casting spells" not only pertaining to spell slots? but using them in general?

[woven flint]

Or just...
Be a full Barbarian or Bladesinger 🧐

[scenic zinc]

And requires you to have at least a 13 in int and str

[glad arch]

Dont think so

[hot reef]

Casting spells without spell slots isn’t allowed by rage
Using features that aren’t spells but use spell slots are allowed by rage

[woven flint]

My Bladesinger was pretty powerful as a full-classed Wizard...
But he also got 30 Intelligence so-

[valid geyser]

and of course my stance doesn't have any "nevers" and i dont want to stop people from having fun. I will not doubt that urizt is having fun, but i also dont think many DMs are as at urizt's level, and might not have as much fun trying to make something work

[severe rampart]

How?

[woven flint]

My dm joked about him and Mizzit having a tea party lmao

[shut lance]

thats one of the bladesinger ability. It just eats the slot, no spell

[silk hare]

oh you meant as in racial features that "allow you to cast sth", yeah thats fiar

[silk hare]

theres plenty of ways (if your dm allows for them)

[woven flint]

Artifact.
Homebrew Artifact.
It was tge only benefit he got though.
Had to spend in game months fully attuning to it for more

[hot reef]

I’m not aware of any racial features that have features that use spell slots which aren’t spells

[silk hare]

oh right, pardon me I am a bit tired

brains a bit mixed up, read it wrong

[shut lance]

well a forest gnome can't cast minor illusion whild in rage

[wanton roost]

Hey so I'm sure I'll sound like a goober for asking this. What the hell is VTT?

[scenic zinc]

I'm saying this from the pov of someone who plays and runs games in a multitude of systems. I've done, and do, horror in many of them including dnd. I'm in no way saying you can't do it. I'm only saying other systems have mechanics that better support horror than dnd.

[shut lance]

but thats an actual spell being cast

[severe rampart]

Virtual Tabletop

[wanton roost]

Ohhhh

Thank you

[woven flint]

Though, that Wizard retired because he's got two kids now
And I'm playing another character lol

[silk hare]

virtual table top

[scenic zinc]

Virtual table top

Roll20
Owlbear Rodeo
FoundryVTT

[severe rampart]

Oh I remember him

[severe rampart]

Mmmm, table table

[glad arch]

Table²

[severe rampart]

Of course, with it comes the chair chair

[woven flint]

Yup, my Harengon fellow Raising a Wyrmling and a God Reborn as a Wyrmling

[scenic zinc]

Who would say table table?

I certainly didn't.

[valid geyser]

true. I think when this comes up, it is a relatively unexperienced DM doing something that would take a lot of time and effort to be good. In that scenario suggesting a different game is often gonna be the easiest solution, unless it's that difficult to learn and teach players a new game (which it can be at times)

[woven flint]

Table⁴

Table Table Table Table, eh?

[wanton roost]

So VTTTTTTTTCCCC?

[lavish flame]

I agree, but also I do think its tough to quantify where Power/Agency stops something from being Horror. I think stuff like A Quiet Place or The Walking Dead might be better inspiration for D&D Horror, where the supernatural horror elements are relatively killable. The protagonists have agency over the horror there, and its still horrific and scary.

[valid geyser]

oh for sure

[silk hare]

what about x^e table

an exponentially growing table huh

[woven flint]

Better run like an egg yolk before you get folded like am omelet >:[ /silly

[lavish flame]

I don't think either franchise mentioned maintained their Horror tone for the full duration, one is basically an Action franchise and the other became a Soap. Maybe thats telling for how D&D horror works best idk.

[wanton roost]

Everytime you look away from the table it grows in length and width by one inch

[fickle heart]

I also just want to add to this that I'm not making these comments from the perspective of the audience, but the prospective game designer. If someone tells me they used content I made to do something wildly outside what I expected as a genre, I'd have to assess that to see if it's a fluke, their definition of X is different than mine, I agree with them, or if I have no clue what they mean.

I say this because the designers of D&D are people, too. Often times the designers did other stuff before working on D&D, as well, which means that every designer brings their own approach and perspective into the games or content they create. D&D is human-made, after all.

[woven flint]

I know it's scramble like an egg, I like being extra

[silk hare]

hahaha, why run, Ill just sit on my x^e table and grow away xD

[valid geyser]

which is i think what d&d wants horror to be. Fantasy adventure with a horror sheen, which is all well and good

[silk hare]

yeah I was thinking sth didnt quite add up

[severe rampart]

Is it just me, or Disarming Attack is kind of useless, as a maneuver?

[crimson gulch]

No its amazing

[severe rampart]

How so?

[valid geyser]

it does extra damage

[frail wasp]

you can disarm all the no weapons that monsters use

[severe rampart]

As most maneuvers do, you add your superiority die

[wanton roost]

Nah cause it takes an action for them to pick their stuff back up 😎

[scenic zinc]

It's you

[crimson gulch]

If you take away the enemies weapon, or spellcastinf focus you are going to remove capabilities from them

[frail wasp]

dragon gonna look real silly once it's disarmed

[severe rampart]

No, it's not an action, iirc

[minor cargo]

I think comparing a hypothetical D&D game to The Walking Dead can be helpful. I see a lot of similarities.

Heroes start off pretty much thrown into the "action". There's shock and awe at the start, just like in most early campaign sessions. Then heroes slowly start to gain power. They get resources, find allies, etc. Then there are twists, and the threat amplifies (and often times, even changes completely).

But if you continue that on, you need to keep amplifying the threat and at some point, it gets kind of silly - but not necessarily in a bad way. Like by the end of the TV series The Walking Dead, zombies could climb and even use tools and plan. To me? Not a great move and really took away from the series. But is it still a fun lil' romp where you get to watch a monster take another crossbow bolt to the face? For sure.

[scenic zinc]

Making that giant drop his axe greatly decreases his damage potential

[woven flint]

Disarming attack isn't bad!
You're taking off an ARM! duh. /joking

[valid geyser]

yeah, i was just saying thats what keeps it from being completely bad

[hot reef]

it's a game changer against any enemy which has a single weapon
One failed save, you grab the weapon, and the enemy's damage plummets

[wanton roost]

Oh....hecc

[severe rampart]

"RAW disarming doesn't do anything special. According to the rules, picking up your weapon from the ground and attacking with it is no problem."

[wanton roost]

Either way Riposte is best Maneuver

[crimson gulch]

Yeah that's why you run away with it

[severe rampart]

Oh I get it now I think!

[crimson gulch]

You don't just disarm them and leave it there where they can reach

[severe rampart]

You could maybe use your Limited Time Object interaction and kick it away?

[scenic zinc]

Who would leave the weapon there to be picked up?

[severe rampart]

I kinda forgot about LTOI, sorry it's late in here lmao

[wanton roost]

Oh wait that's right picking stuff up is a free action if I remember it right

[crimson gulch]

Or if they are flying or something, there it goes.......

[hot reef]

It's an object interaction which you get one of iirc

[woven flint]

One attack
Disarming, the nest.. Push weapon mastery + Shoving Attack, boom, profit.

[severe rampart]

Just planning something for my battlemaster mini boss vs my battlemaster player next session

[frail wasp]

oh you're using it on players?

[severe rampart]

Yup

[wanton roost]

Give the battlemaster mini boss riposte and I promise you....it'll be so funny

[frail wasp]

shoulda led with that lol

[severe rampart]

It already does

I've created some custom rules for this "duel" of battlemasters

[crimson gulch]

Enemy's with graze weapon mastery are super fun

[wanton roost]

Bless you kind soul 😭

[woven flint]

When the enemy misses me with a Riposte, so I Riposte them back

[valid geyser]

my mind definitely has changed on graze recently

[severe rampart]

You don't have to limit yourself, you can throw a bag of sand in his eyes if you want, improvised weapons are a-okay

Missing the opponents AC by 10 or more will provoke Attack of Opportunity

Attempting to hit "weak" spots will grant you disadvantage on the attack roll but advantage on the damage roll

Critical Hits will grant an extra attack

Riposte Chain (Riposte until one hits)

After getting to 0 hp, roll your hit dice (5d10), gain an injury, and get back up with that amount of hp and that will count as a failed death save

[severe rampart]

This is because the Battlemaster Mini Boss has insane hp (165), and the player has 54

[severe rampart]

Exactly

[wanton roost]

Gosh it would be funny to have like a couple of reactions for each battlemaster because if they miss their riposte then it's just a funny back and forth

[severe rampart]

wanted it to be fun, attack miss, riposte, riposte misses, riposte, and then keep on chaining that until someone hits their counter

[severe rampart]

yup exactly

there's about an 80% chance the battlemaster player will die

[wanton roost]

Good job, I'm proud of you

Do it for the vine

[severe rampart]

In character, their party sacrificed them so they could live (above table, they were alright with it, we talked about it first of course)

Going to be fun

[woven flint]

That's wild.

[severe rampart]

You gotta do what you gotta do, and I feel like the Warlock has a trick up their sleeve

[wanton roost]

Abandoning a party member is the saddest thing. It's like....leaving behind a puppy

[severe rampart]

Funnily enough the Battlemaster is a lycanthrope

[wanton roost]

Duuuuude

[severe rampart]

the context of it is, they just failed their stealth mission twice in a row, the monk just went unconscious and now the mini boss arrived once more, which from their last encounter left them with single digit hp

[rough basalt]

I like when PCs leave behind party members. It means I'm guaranteed a fresh PC soul harvested.

[wanton roost]

Every fighter is getting lycanthropy, I got it like 2 sessions ago in Curse of Strahd. So now I got like 4 days left until the next full moon

[severe rampart]

I love the battlemaster player, he was so cool with it and he was actively teeing up his backup character

[wanton roost]

If I could send gifs it would be the cat smacking the other one repeatedly.

[severe rampart]

Don't feed themberchaude

he's getting too fat 😔

[wanton roost]

But...I wanna

Honestly....the player is fine with it. How does the character feel about it? Because personally I sense a revenant in the future

[severe rampart]

I have no idea how they feel about it in character

they battlemaster is honorable and gave them some time first for the duel, even gave them "The Art of War" by Tzun Su

and gave back their +1 Halberd

[wanton roost]

What is this game!? Please tell me more about it

[severe rampart]

This is Curse of Strahd lol

I wonder what to do if my player does a disarming attack against the mini boss and kicks away their weapon

the boss just spits out blood and raises their fists lmao

[glass granite]

Picks up the player and uses them as a weapon

[wanton roost]

Oh no, I just realized I'm in the worst place for CoS spoilers

[severe rampart]

No worries, my game is very different from CoS

[glass granite]

CoS spoilers are generally only in #1029833015423143957

[severe rampart]

I add in my custom bosses, etc.

[wanton roost]

Phew

[severe rampart]

and the stuff I talked about aren't really things you would see in Curse of Strahd

[wanton roost]

I finally get to play CoS and it's amazing so far. I wanted to play it for so long and now I wanna try and find an in-between week day game. But tell me more about these custom bosses 👀

[severe rampart]

Generally when I want players to get magic items they need to earn them, my battlemaster for instance has to kill or otherwise defeat this battlemaster mini boss in order to get it, however this mini boss has become more prominent as the party's toughest opponent yet

As I've said before, there's a very high chance the battlemaster will die next session

[wanton roost]

Dude better buff himself with some lycanthrope form and use his Maneuvers

[severe rampart]

"The Art of War" by Tsun Zu is an item I made that allows him to change a battlemaster maneuver after a long rest and "upgrade" one of his maneuvers once

The Battlemaster Mini Boss has custom "upgraded" maneuvers, so I thought that'd be cool to include

[celest spire]

I ran Curse of Strahd

[glad arch]

Never underestimate a dedicated player and fate of the dice

[severe rampart]

I've given custom rules to give him a good fighting chance

[wanton roost]

Make it so that if he eats him in lycanthrope form he gets a lil bit of battle knowledge and gets some extra upgrades to his Maneuvers

[severe rampart]

I've done all I can

[severe rampart]

Nahh

[wanton roost]

I need my fellow fighter and lycanthrope buddy to survive and get stronk

[severe rampart]

That would only prove the Mini Boss right for hating him

[wanton roost]

Aw man, a purist eh?

[crimson gulch]

i love curse of strahd, its such a great campaign

[wanton roost]

Dude it's so good so far, I am loving it

[celest spire]

Ravenloft is my favourite setting

[severe rampart]

I'm not saying he can't do it, I'm saying it'll drastically affect the story

To spare or to execute

[wanton roost]

Wait is this player spare or execute or boss spare or execute? I was referring to the mini boss as a purist

Rolled character flaw is like basically the equivalent of "Gotta make sacrifices to get the job done and if the job gets done the end justifies the mean."

[severe rampart]

They don't have a "flaw"

It all really boils down the what the player/character wants to do if they win

[wanton roost]

Whoops that one is on me for clicking on that, we're close to that fight though so it's okay

[severe rampart]

the mini boss hates them because they see lycanthropes as mindless evil creatures, beasts that devour the innocent

So killing the mini boss is just proving his point

[wanton roost]

I do enjoy the player makes the characters flaws and such type of deal. Just kinda makes them feel more...realistic? Human? I suppose.

Honestly that's a fair view from a resident of Barovia

Ah sheesh, it's sort of a damned if you do, damned if you don't kind of situation. On one hand ya win, kill him and his point is proven. On the other however, it's spare him and run the risk of him continuing to hunt you and your party.

[severe rampart]

the rest of the party is safe

honestly, (don't read if you're my player) ||If the player does spare the battlemaster, that'll probably make him see that the player is different, probably wouldn't harm them||

[wanton roost]

Ahhh okay okay, I was saying that continuing to hunt them for future sake. Though, I do like this plan. Ya got this and I'm sure it'll be a very memorable duel and story

Unless my fellow lycanbro just gets bodied

[severe rampart]

I got everything under control

[severe rampart]

I'm sure they'll last at least 4 rounds, due to the custom rules I added for duels

[wanton roost]

I'll be praying for my fellow lycanbro. I also bet 20$ on 5 rounds

I believe in dude

If not 7 rounds

[severe rampart]

The dice have a story to tell

Merciless, but fair

[civic ember]

wasnt their a server called "Tialston"?

[glad arch]

Im sure there is a server with that name, whats the relevance here though?

[civic ember]

im pretty sure it got wiped, because i was in that server, shit like usual, then i was suddenly removed from the server, i came to this server to check if i was banned or not and now it just doesnt show up when searching for it.

or does the search function not pick up on bot messages?

[wanton roost]

Sadly true

[sweet osprey]

A dnd campaign based on avatar's last airbender. But there's no avatar in the campaign. It's just a bunch of benders trying to traverse the world.
I've been sitting on that idea for too long

[severe rampart]

So... everyone is just a Way of The Elements Monk?

[civic ember]

And seems like my questions get unanswered again... well... back to the mines searching for a good community server.

[hot reef]

I believe there are TTRPG systems specifically for the power system of Avatar

[sweet osprey]

Oooo

No, I just need to find a campaign to do it on

[glad arch]

Dnd doesnt really facilitate the idea of benders well

[wanton roost]

Fire Nation on top 🔥

[hot reef]

What's a fire nation?
-sincerely, Ba Sing Se resident

[glad arch]

Most people probably havent heard of a random community server so cant say anything about it, try reaching out to people you know were on there and see what they think

[civic ember]

i remember one of them had the name of sam, but i wasnt in dms with anybody there.

[wanton roost]

You look this war in the face and accept the ugly truth!

[civic ember]

and it was decently sized too, 300 members.

[scenic zinc]

Where Sifu Hotman lives, of course

[civic ember]

and the search function does pick up on bot messages, which means the posting for Tialston is completely gone.

[severe rampart]

yeah... highly doubt anyone will know about that here

[scenic zinc]

300 people is less than my graduating class from highschool

[severe rampart]

but 300 is actually a large number, imagine 300 people chasing you...

[civic ember]

regardless i still think it got wiped.

[wanton roost]

Nah I'd win

[glad arch]

300 out of 300k people on here

[scenic zinc]

Spartans!

[wanton roost]

Angry mob, say hello to grapeshot, tally ho lads!

[dense sequoia]

I'm a new dnd player and joined a campaign recently, one of the players just randomly blocked everyone and the DM lost motivation and is ending the campaign entirely

Pretty disappointing, might just give up on trying to find a game as well 😭

[wanton roost]

Nahhhh, that's dumb

Be strong like bear and find new game

[glad arch]

Yeh finding a good game can definitally be discouraging. When you finally find one though it is in my experience a great time

[dense sequoia]

I just spent a while preparing for it, wasted a lot of time

[wanton roost]

I think the party is what makes it a good game. Sometimes people don't vibe and it doesn't work out

[dense sequoia]

Dont wanna keep wasting more time if people are going to be rude (which ive heard how rude people can be)

[wanton roost]

Just find ya a group that vibes

[dense sequoia]

Easier said than donee

[wanton roost]

That's why ya give them a vibe check in a session zero

Or better yet, just have a hangout call to break the ice at first

Getting to know the party is equally as important

[dense sequoia]

i tried doing that, the response I got from everyone basically was "Sure that sounds good ill see if I can" and then ignoring me when I tried to initiate it 🤷‍♂️ guess its just not the right group in general

[civic ember]

@spring wigeon naeski, do you got a functioning link to the "Astrallae" server? because the link for your posting is down.

[silk hare]

see, the "if I can" means its not a priority

so didnt pass the vibe check

[dense sequoia]

True

[wanton roost]

Sometimes that happens m8. Just keep looking. You'll find some peeps

[civic ember]

actually question, what is westmarch exactly? like for play styles, is it text or voice based?

[errant crag]

You're not gonna find the perfect group first try

You're gonna have to throw some lines out there if you wanna catch any fish

[dense sequoia]

yeah but it takes a long time to see if a group is right or not, and its discouraging when it isnt

[dense sequoia]

never liked fishing anyway lmaoo

[wanton roost]

Then perhaps try to start collecting peeps ya vibe with for a game and try to get a DM?

[still plover]

Can be either.

[civic ember]

is it favored to one side more then the other?

[still plover]

Couldn't say.

[wanton roost]

Plus like....when ya do get that perfect game with the homies then you'll want to stick with that group longer

[civic ember]

its always like playing guess who lmao...

[dense sequoia]

yeah thats true

[wanton roost]

Damn I had a decent character idea yesterday but I have forgotten it

[still plover]

What class was it? Look at the list, see if anything sparks.

[silk acorn]

Do the 2024 rules changes to darkness upset anyone else?

"Item cant be worn" Okay so let me just be a complete and total inconvience to any party i play with if i take this now 🙂

Thats fun

[woven flint]

... What?

[still plover]

Cast it on an item, then carry it?

[glass granite]

You can work around it

[woven flint]

Cast it on an enemies weapon :3

[still plover]

While they aren't wearing or carrying it?

[glass granite]

For example, cast darkness on a coin, and put it in your mouth and close it when you want the darkness to disappear, and open your mouth when you want darkness

[woven flint]

I'm tired shhh..
Me no thinky

[still plover]

Like a creep.

[glass granite]

I did the same thing with a glass eye, that example is just one I was taught

[woven flint]

I'd make a joke but the haters would sabotage me.

[silk acorn]

It just feel unnecessary to create hoops like this.... which means setting an item aside to cast it on is probably a loop hole that theyll close in the next rules update

Idk why they felt the need to add that to it

[spring wigeon]

That's weird, it should be working cause we've had people join from it. Try from the disboard here:

https://disboard.org/server/1260602846307684444

[civic ember]

will do, the link is invalid on the posting for it on the looking for community tab.

[still plover]

I know, I'm just thinking of the guy who forgets they can carry it in a pouch, remove it with a clasped hand and pop it in for use. They just go around with their mouth shut all the time, communicating via eyebrow movements until it's time to let the darkness spill forth.

[glass granite]

It’s probably to stop you casting darkness on an enemy’s armor or clothing. I wouldn’t call casting it in an object and picking it up a loophole.

[silk acorn]

I dont think you could keep it in your mouth. It says covering it blocks the darkness

[glass granite]

That’s the point

[silk acorn]

But for RP purposes.. Imagine someone looks at you and cackles and shadow begins pouring forth

Wowza

10/10

[glass granite]

That way it doesn’t inconvenient teammates

If you want it always out you can just cast it on anything you have out

[woven flint]

I simply grapple them :]

[silk acorn]

or you could just walk out of range of the enemy since darkness usually means no opportunity attack but yes

I like that

[glass granite]

As a shadow monk, do both

[woven flint]

No, I mean

Nvm

[rough basalt]

i did the unthinkable

I actually remembered to do everything i shouldve before my session tonight

[wanton roost]

I think it was something for a Forge Domain Cleric but I can't remember

[rough basalt]

Tonight i throw a tarrasque at my level 7 party

[wanton roost]

Why are you so evil?

[rough basalt]

I'm hungry

[wanton roost]

Well stop that

You dingus

[vernal orchid]

Again im really sorry aaaghhh I feel really bad
It was the second time to happen and its so much set-back especially for my first time advertising a campaign with people I dont know beforehand. I thought the session 0 went well and we did end up breaking the ice but I guess other players didnt agree. :( Wish i was communicated with atleast a little bit, again im really sorry it wasted your time/got your hopes up

[dense sequoia]

It aint your fault 🙏

[wanton roost]

What days is it?

[vernal orchid]

Was mondays and thursdays but i ultimately scrapped it. I dont wanna risk a third person leaving after a search and losing motivation over and over again. It kept getting delayed as is auurgg

Person who left recently had alot of issues that werent brought up with me and finding out was really hitting since im not too much of a pro dm or anything, first time doing stuff with people who arent friends so it was an odd blow to get and made me just not. really want to do it anymore oug

[wanton roost]

Tell me about said game

[vernal orchid]

Was just dragons of icespire peak

[errant crag]

Darn I can't trigger 5.5e Alchemist's level 5 subclass feature with Green Flame Blade

[woven flint]

I'm feeling devious

[wanton roost]

I got no idea what that is my friend

[dense sequoia]

its one of the premade dnd campaigns

[wanton roost]

My experience is with Homebrew worlds

[vernal orchid]

uaa premade campaign for beginners that D&D made. It was a simple campaign about a dragon misplacing monsters by trying to settle near a large town

[wanton roost]

Shhhh

[vernal orchid]

I usually also do homebrew for the most part, was the first time doing anything fully set up

[wanton roost]

Well hey dude

[wanton roost]

Well like what were the times you were doing your games amd what were they on? Like roll20?

[vernal orchid]

D&D Beyond but we didnt get to start the game really. We had a session 0 and that was about it, everything kept getting delayed beforehand

[woven flint]

It's because we Survived that adult white dragon at level 6 😔

[dense sequoia]

The player who left had been occasionally dming me complaints they had, to me alone (no clue why)

suggested they talk with the dm about it and they ignored me so idk

[vernal orchid]

probably social anxiety maybe? maybe used to DMs being aggressive idk

benefit of the doubt here im going to assume it wasnt anything malicious and just. not good at communicating

[wanton roost]

Ah hecc I have no experience with D&D beyond. But hey dude if ya want I can possibly fill in for the player who left depending on the time. Keep this ball rolling and all

[vernal orchid]

campaign is already cancelled

Dont rly wanna do it anymore, with people i dont know atleast

[wanton roost]

Understandable

[wanton roost]

Though hey man, just remember that sometimes it just happens. Don't attribute a lashing out to your skill as a dm and don't let it discourage you m8

[errant crag]

The stars are aligning to make the build I'm making not work

[wanton roost]

Don't let your dreams be dreams pinky

[wanton roost]

But tell me about this build

[errant crag]

Great Weapon Master requires the Attack action it doesn't work if I use a Greatsword with True Strike

[crimson gulch]

Yeah the limit on the new GWM feat is there for sure

[wanton roost]

This is why you bribe the DM to let it work

[errant crag]

I would rather just use a different build

[viral sphinx]

Hey guys never played the game before, but i would love someone playing to try understand a little more

[rough basalt]

Slip the dm a 20 dollar bill

[errant crag]

I hate making a build that requires the DM allow it to work

[wanton roost]

Nah buy them some pizza

[idle oar]

Check out #learn-to-play and #dnd-newcomers

[rough basalt]

I got confused for a second then remembered that my EK used booming blade which does with GWM not TS

[crimson gulch]

Not with 2024 gwm

Unless you are still taking the attack action, and getting the cantrip too with their higher level feature

[rough basalt]

Yeah that's what I meant

[errant crag]

I went from (2d6 + Int Mod) + (1d6+ Int Mod) + PB to having that but without the PB

[split canyon]

Hey everyone^^
I'm new to this sever I hope you all are doing well!!

[wanton roost]

What's bad is that my mind went to N'wah from morrowind...my brain is so cooked

[tawdry sentinel]

I also dislike it because then it always feels like being the fun police for the "um actually no you can't do that"

[rough basalt]

I'd argue it's better your mind went to a fantasy one.

[wanton roost]

N'wah is just such a funny word

[rough basalt]

It's funny how basic elder scrolls became after Kirkbride left.

[errant crag]

Wondering for this Greatsword Artificer if I should take Shadow Touched for Wrathful Smite or Weapon Master for Graze

[wanton roost]

I just hope the 6th one is good

[rough basalt]

Went from complete batcrap insane to generic eurofantasy in oblivion to barely fantasy scandinavia

Shivering Isles was the last real "fantasy" thing of ES till ESO imo

[wanton roost]

Gosh I would kill for a Space Marine based 40k dnd game, sorry just had to throw that out.

Personally I would love if Morrowind got a huge remaster

I'm sure a lot of people would though

[rough basalt]

There's 40k tabletops that aren't the wargame.

[errant crag]

Warhammer 40k has its own TTRPG

[rough basalt]

Dark Heresy, Wrath and Glory I believe is 40k I'm not 100%

Rogue Trader I think has a ttrpg

[wanton roost]

I know it does but it's just like the systems are all very confusing to me

It's like I'm getting punched in the face by math instead of the gentle slap in the face DnD does

[rough basalt]

Good

It's immersive too

[wanton roost]

Sora....you're so evil

[rough basalt]

Cause most of the imperium sucks at math too

[lean wigeon]

people gotta stop thinking 5e is simple ngl because i think it creates this misconception that every other TTRPG is like as complex as GURPS and lose interest in reading

actually GURPS is a bad example because it isn't really complex on its own as it is just super modular

[wanton roost]

Hey man I just wanna be an Iron Warrior and use artillery...just let a brother dream

[errant crag]

Sea Elf has become one of my favorite races lately and I hope they never reprint it

[lean wigeon]

mayhe Burning Wheel might be a better example?

[rough basalt]

A true child of the imperium can handle a little math

[river plank]

What’s GURPS

[rough basalt]

Generic Universal Roleplaying System

[wanton roost]

Yeah but when ya gotta keep track of getting hit in specific areas, armor resistances and such it makes the whole thing a slog for me

[rough basalt]

It's a modular game where it can be as easy or as complex as you want it to be.

[wanton roost]

Like it's just....so much

[rough basalt]

Sounds really light

[river plank]

That sounds pretty cool

[lean wigeon]

it fixes D&D it's a toolkit for making your own RPG by plugging and playing different sourcebooks together

you could make up your own TTRPG for alot of settings and tones, like horror or sci-fi or fantasy, hence why it's called the Generic Universal RolePlaying System

[wanton roost]

Shhhh you're evil and you scare me

[rough basalt]

Like sounds like it's only as complicated as an old dnd system

[river plank]

Sounds really cool actually

[lean wigeon]

it's personally not my cup of tea but i know alot of people really like GURPS

[wanton roost]

Oh I've never played the older dnd systems before

[rough basalt]

Shadowrun is a game that'll desensitize you to most systems.

[lean wigeon]

but I prefer Fate or Cortex Prime for generic systems

[rough basalt]

That game requires degrees to play

[wanton roost]

I've heard pathfinder was cool though

[rough basalt]

Pf1e is about as complex as warhammer tabletop systems

[errant crag]

I'm rather partial to D&D myself

[rough basalt]

Which is akin to dnd 3.5e

[broken imp]

it was pretty cool

[wanton roost]

Ha....nerd

And this is when I am glad that Sora isn't my dm or a bolt of lightning would strike me

[rough basalt]

But yeah after playing Shadowrun, most crunchy systems seem much more manageable for me.

Shadowrun being one of the most crunchiest tabletop games in history

[broken imp]

well just ask if he lets u have super op builds

[wanton roost]

Sora will you let me have super op builds?

[rough basalt]

Orcus (DnD 4e reimagined) aka the crunchiest system of today vs Shadowrun 3rd edition aka the Crunchiest system in history.

I don't think there's a system more crunchy than Shadowrun 3e

GURPs and Rolemaster are definitely contenders

[errant crag]

I don't know what it is but something about Shadar-kai just makes me not wanna play them.

[lean wigeon]

are you crunchy because you are shadowrun or are you shadowrun because you are crunchy

[minor cargo]

Mind if I ask a question on this? Not a gotcha or anything.

So my friends and I were talking about class design in D&D (historically) we were talking about two UAs, that we think really showcase two extremes in design.

Modern Magic UA: https://media.wizards.com/2015/downloads/dnd/UA_ModernMagic.pdf
Path of the Giant UA: https://media.wizards.com/2022/dnd/downloads/UA2022-drjwf73f8n.pdf

So in Modern Magic, you have maybe the most player options. Like you can do a lot with it. But it's highly dependent on the DM. Like even if you're playing a "modern" setting, if there's nothing to hack, you can't use any of those features.

Compare it to Path of the Giant UA, where you get a handful of abilities that, IMO, boil down to "get big, hit hard". But doesn't actually say anything about giants, if that makes sense?

Given what you said, I imagine you have very little urge to play a Modern Magic class - but would find Path of the Giant UA really interesting?

Again, not a gotcha. I just think it's interesting to talk to players who have different views on this stuff than me.

[rough basalt]

Shadowrun because you are crunchy

[wanton roost]

Though on a serious note I've been spoiled by 5e. The only experience of other systems is watching like warhams and their stuff and it confused me.

[rough basalt]

You can use ruleslite hacks but it'll never replicate the spirit of needing to know 300 pages of rules to run a spellcaster.

[wanton roost]

I'm sorry 300 pages?

[errant crag]

My issue isn't with a class or subclass needing the DM to work with you to make it work like 2014 PHB Ranger and stuff like that, it's with needing the DM to allow something to work in a way that it doesn't normally work as intended.

[rough basalt]

I'm exaggerating. The actual corebooks are around 300 pages on average

But my first shadowrun character was literally only good at Stealth and Blowing people up and his character took 4 hours to make

[broken imp]

only 300

[wanton roost]

Woah man blowing people up is a precious ability

[rough basalt]

Keep in mind I suffer from information overload and need someone to walk me through stuff like this but generally yeah, Shadowrun characters take a couple hours for experienced players to make.

Hilariously enough, in play its very fast

[broken imp]

idk about barb but for the modern magic i feel like it's highly dependent on the campaign setting

[rough basalt]

It's just roll a bucket of d6s

[broken imp]

and the dm obv

[broken imp]

it's always fun to kill people by blowing them up, even if u fail at the killing part 😊

[rough basalt]

Shadowrun is a system where I feel like Play By Post is good to mix with actual table play

Due to all the time and effort that can go into prep work for jobs. (Quests)

[wanton roost]

Play by post?

So just like rp then?

[rough basalt]

Text based between sessions

Then during sessions you handle all the action

[wanton roost]

So true my friend, so true

[minor cargo]

Yup, it's an extreme example where if you aren't playing it in the right setting and/or with the right DM, it falls flat - hard.

There are other examples. For example, the old Purple Dragon Knight. That's something specific to the Cormyrian army in Forgotten Realms. But it also says a lot about the game you'll be playing.

But then you can also design classes to be setting agnostic. So path of the giant, even if there are no giants, still functions pretty much the same.

I'm not really driving at a point or anything. Just talking about these two kinds of design methodology.

[rough basalt]

That's one way to play it.
Another way to play it is just 100% guns blazing every job till you die.

You either do slow methodical and serious or complete batcrap insane guns blazing.

Mixing the two can lead to some boring sessions where some people are left out of stuff.

[minor cargo]

I wonder if going 100% guns blazing, having nothing to lose but everything to gain, in an anti-capitalistic and anti-corporation game has any synergy. 👀 /s /lh

[sleek cloud]

Torn between abjurer or Evoker wizard

[broken imp]

um any reason for u to choose those two?

[rough basalt]

Hilariously enough my first character had this policy and he didn't die.

[tawdry sentinel]

Fireballing your own party is fun.

[rough basalt]

He had a good ending for Vancouver in Shadowrun

He robbed a high school delivery driver of his scooter, then rode off into the sunset with his elf girlfriend that he believes is a cosplayer cause magic isn't real.

[sleek cloud]

Because I have ideas for either one, arcane investigator type for abjurer or family specialty for Evoker since his name is orziver Kindlethread

[broken imp]

i'd love to try this but i have yet to played a combat heavy campaign where i can use my nice and op build

[sleek cloud]

There’s pros and cons for both

[broken imp]

exactly what one of my players did, landed a max damage fireball on herself and the people around her

[broken imp]

so are u asking for roleplay purposes or optimization purposes?

[wanton roost]

Cyberpunk theme plays

[fossil hollow]

wake the [Redacted] up samurai

[rough basalt]

Hmm. My party of 4 is party of 3 tonight

[wanton roost]

Sad

So one of them gets spared

[rough basalt]

With the heroic pc gone, I fear for the engagement and parties rep /j

[wanton roost]

Nahhhh they got this

[faint musk]

where is the channel for those seeking GM advice?

[wanton roost]

Ya know cleric kinda makes a really good necromancer

[scenic zinc]

Depends. Either #dm-discussion or #dm-world-building

Perhaps even #homebrew

Or if it's a particular module:
https://discord.com/channels/516367331358801950/1029833015423143957

[sleek cloud]

Bit of column a, bit of column b. Moreso just what anyone’s general opinions or experiences are of those two

[broken imp]

i'd say i like evoker better

[warm shore]

I’m biased cause I like chronurgy better than all of em

Hands down they’re easily the most fun people to have in your party

[sleek cloud]

Don’t have that available to me sadly

[errant crag]

The D&D community makes me wanna give up on D&D entirely sometimes

[minor cargo]

What’s up, vague poster? lol.

[glad ferry]

It seems like a succubi race would be fun to use in a campaign. I didnt realize there were so many different parts even fallen angels

[fossil hollow]

you can just use tiefling. the last thing we need is something to propagate the problematic reason why there isnt a succubi species

[glad ferry]

A cleric necromancer would be interesting

[fossil hollow]

death and grave are a thing

[lavish flame]

I might hit up them new Tiefling subtypes, Chthonic and Abyssal. Might be worth your while idk

[glad ferry]

Ill take a look at them

[fossil hollow]

played a chthonic tief for a while until she died yesterday

[glad ferry]

I like the tiefling class

[fossil hollow]

not a class

[glad ferry]

Tiefling race

[broken imp]

u mean race?

nvm

[primal estuary]

hot(?) take: tortles would be a way cooler race if they were med/large instead of small/med

[glad ferry]

And I would never want a succubi playable race. As an enemy sure

My brain ain't fully here

[fossil hollow]

you did say it would be fun...

[gusty charm]

They should live longer, too

[fossil hollow]

i see you there, galapagos tortles are peak

[primal estuary]

i kinda thought they already lived very long

[scenic zinc]

Just get a feature that let's you get bigger. There's plenty of ways to do it

[fossil hollow]

they used to live for 50 years

[gusty charm]

I thought their lifespan was 60 yrs? Lemme double check

[hollow estuary]

Why does wotc not make any large sized races

[fossil hollow]

worse, 50

[primal estuary]

i have a character named salty thats a 12 foot tall, roughly 200 year old tortle

he's heavy as hell, too. he weighs as much as a buick lmao

[scenic zinc]

My druid is often a Gargantuan creature

[fossil hollow]

giant tentacle yeah

all the better to be hit with aoes

[hollow estuary]

I found a dm counter to find familiar giant fly!

The counter in question?

German sticky grenade. (Table insurance not included)

[errant crag]

It can lead to some potential balancing issues

[primal estuary]

tortles need a lore buff lmao

[fossil hollow]

they did

[scenic zinc]

Kill me three times and I will come back stronger than ever

[fossil hollow]

ill just kill you a 4th

[hollow estuary]

Kill me once and I'm dead 💀

[errant crag]

My CoS character can't be revived

[scenic zinc]

Oh no, my feelings

[crimson gulch]

Just remind them that the things in the dm guide only exist at the dms digression

[hollow estuary]

Stick a note to the sticky grenade. 👍

[primal estuary]

"Dearest Joanthony, I hope this grenade reaches you in good health. I am simply writing to let you know that you are going to explode. Kind regards, Sol."

[glad ferry]

The holy hand grenade!

[primal estuary]

that would just be the same thing but the letter's a bible verse or some shit lmao

[hollow estuary]

This is actually so peak.

[primal estuary]

"Explosives 12:21 "Then, the lord said, BOOM. and everything exploded. The end."

forgive my non biblical bible quote, im not religious

[hollow estuary]

This statement is fact checked by real pelorian patriots ✅

[errant crag]

It just annoys me how there can be such creative open minded people who are also extremely uncreative and closed minded at the same time

Like its pendulum swinging wildly from one day to the next

[minor cargo]

Yeah.,, the D&D community is really big. So that doesn’t surprise me. But it sucks to get whiplash no matter the context.

Want to say more? I figure you’re just looking to vent.

[errant crag]

Nah I'll just drop it there

[hollow estuary]

chris cocks should totally mod this dude for real. (thats the hasbro ceo)

[fossil hollow]

what

[undone bloom]

hasbro paying more people? but where would C.C. get his third yacht?

[hollow estuary]

Biggie C would never 😂

[spiral girder]

Which sounds cooler Siren of war or Wail of war

[wanton roost]

Siren of War

[fossil hollow]

SoR

[hollow estuary]

Wail of war

[fossil hollow]

the latter would be cooler if it was Whale of War

[spiral girder]

Well it isn’t whale unfortunately

[wanton roost]

Wait hold on, what's the context for this name?

[spiral girder]

it’s for a dragon who’s flight is very loud like a jet

[limber trail]

The Siren of War

Maybe the Banshee of War? That’s not as good

[fossil hollow]

-# ... Valstrax?!

[spiral girder]

I feel like siren of war has won unless any other good ideas come

[spiral girder]

Ngl that is literally just them it wasn’t on purpose

[fossil hollow]

hard to think of anything else when dragon and jet are in the same sentence

[spiral girder]

Yeah

[primal estuary]

BANANA BOMBBBBB

[errant crag]

One of my players quoted Pack Tactics and I just don't wanna deal with this low-key

[fossil hollow]

oh god

[undone bloom]

i send you my sanity like charging a spirit bomb

no one deserves to listen to pack tactics

[hollow notch]

how does pact magic slots add to regular slots

[undone bloom]

you just get them with your regular slots

[primal estuary]

we need a banana spell

[undone bloom]

you need a funnier bit if you're gonna be this intrusive

[primal estuary]

like wish but it turns the target into a banana

i actually have no words that was a really impressive sentence

i’m genuinely appalled i don’t have a comeback nor a response

[fossil hollow]

you slap how every many warlock levels you got onto other caster slots. its not combined unlike other casters

[hollow notch]

wiz 1 war 2 4 slots?

[fossil hollow]

you get level 1 wiz spell slots
and you get level 2 warlock pact slots

[primal estuary]

are there any races that are made out of food

[lyric viper]

I mean... All of them. I guess.

[primal estuary]

not like “human haha if you try hard enough” like an actual food like cake or something

[fossil hollow]

everyone is made out of food, technically speaking. just depends on your diet

[primal estuary]

i knew this was gonna happen

[spiral girder]

being made of food sounds like a curse

[primal estuary]

that’s the idea

[lyric viper]

Cannabalism comes up surprisingly often.

[fossil hollow]

to a lizardfolk, everyone is potential food

[lyric viper]

I do want to see a ginger bread man construct now.

[primal estuary]

i’m saying

i want a dude made out of a brownie or something

[fossil hollow]

i should curse my warforge to be made out of gingerbread when he enters Cyre

[undone bloom]

not the gumdrop buttons :(

[crimson gulch]

Not warforged

[spiral girder]

it’s not like a common thing it feels wrong to say this but like why not just fish for a race with that description

[sonic quiver]

tell that to a rust monster

[fossil hollow]

metal is yummy to gold dragons

[lyric viper]

Plasmoids?

[fossil hollow]

is plasmoid jelly... edible?

[crimson gulch]

Oooh I love rust monsters, I have scored 3 sets of full plate destroyed over the past 2 years

[errant crag]

It was in the context of martial balancing too

[sleek cloud]

One way to find out

[sonic quiver]

forbidden jello 2.0

[fossil hollow]

well, you only live once

[errant crag]

At the table with 3 martials, and the warlock player was the one quoting Pack Tactics

[sonic quiver]

i like that you keep tally 😄

[lyric viper]

So many forbidden puddings in D&D.

[fossil hollow]

Waiter, I request your strongest plasmoid!

[primal estuary]

because fish are more commonly animals than food. i’m talking something that’s exclusively a food. fruits and baked good and such

i want a breadfolk race

[sleek cloud]

Can I get the diet plasmoid?

[astral hull]

I’m new is there any group I can join

[sleek cloud]

With a side of flies

[sonic quiver]

...is pepsi ok

[fossil hollow]

no, 100% only

[idle oar]

Read #find-a-game to learn how to use the LFG channels to find a game

[sleek cloud]

Drat

[crimson gulch]

Yep, record keeping is essential.
29 player kills this year so far in 87 sessions.

[empty thicket]

try at first with #find-a-game buddy, good luck

[fossil hollow]

what are we? monsters? we feed our plasmoids as much as they like here

[sonic quiver]

duuuuuude, that's awesome and terrifying

[crimson gulch]

Natural 40 games are serious 😃

[fossil hollow]

chasme

[crimson gulch]

Oh I killed them like 3 times now

[fossil hollow]

nooooo not [monotone text to reader voice]: "chasme"

[sleek cloud]

After the 2nd time were you like “ah, the gift that keeps on giving”

[crimson gulch]

Oh no, the pc that keeps summoning them

[fossil hollow]

OH

chasme survives still

[crimson gulch]

They also true polymorped a player into a marilith and I nearly nailed them with a dispel evil and good to send them to the hells

[fossil hollow]

owch

[errant crag]

I don't believe in serious games at this point

It's a made up thing

[fossil hollow]

in this day and age, no. too much serious shit outside of the game

[undone bloom]

ain't that the truth

[sleek cloud]

I love a little whimsy

[sonic quiver]

i've never had a 100% serious game. They can absolutely have serious moments, but I need—nay, require—whimsy

[rose ingot]

Finding a game that fits my uni schedual is rough man...

[crimson gulch]

It's real, there's a lot of laughter and fun but my games at their core are a all serious

[empty thicket]

yep, good luck doing it buddy

[errant crag]

Serious doesn't have to mean depressing

[limber trail]

I mean… I run a pretty “serious” game and it’s a great time. It can work. But I totally understand that not everyone wants that weekly

[rose ingot]

I only have 1 week left, which I hope frees up a lot of my time

[spiral girder]

I feel like a dm will always need at least 30% whimsy at all times

[errant crag]

And serious doesn't mean no humor allowed

[sonic quiver]

as a DM, I operate at 70% whimsy at a minimum

[primal estuary]

this is a fantastic sentence

[crimson gulch]

Nope my games are far from depressing, by serious I mean folks are committed and locked in, my session skip rate is about 2%

[spiral girder]

oh

I thought you meant story wise

[crimson gulch]

And I'm running 7 games, it's my full time job. You better bet I take it seriously

[spiral girder]

Wow

[fossil hollow]

we try to make him laugh to farm heroic inspiration

[crimson gulch]

Whimsy is great, my moonshae islands campaign is spectacularly whimsical

[fickle heart]

Do you mean serious in tone or serious in terms of investment?

[sonic quiver]

actually, i am curious: how many of y'all play together

[primal estuary]

i’ve never met any of these people in my life

[sonic quiver]

i feel like it's a few based on conversation

or have played together

[odd valley]

i’ve met a total of one person here irl

[primal estuary]

i’ve met a total of one person here irl too

[odd valley]

and it was purely by coincidence

[primal estuary]

myself

[fossil hollow]

god, speaking of the moonshae, ive been having the biggest urge lately to do a more natural campaign that focuses on fighting against colonization and industrialization. i blame steve

[crimson gulch]

Just ti has been at my table at the shop

[errant crag]

Mix of both, I'm fine with humor being had above the table and jokes being made above table but I want the world to be taken seriously and the game to be taken seriously. I've played at a lot of tables where throwaway jokes become things in the games or where people play jokey non serious characters in what's supposed to be a more grounded game and it just kinda brings it down for me personally.

[fossil hollow]

jadepunk campaigns also are piquing my interest haaaard

[primal estuary]

dude idk if that’s you or someone else in your pfp but whoever it is seemed to be having the time of their life

i aspire to have that much fun doing ANYTHING one day

[fossil hollow]

nohing is stopping you

[crimson gulch]

That is a photograph of me that a player shot while I was running a game at the shop

[primal estuary]

depression, mostly

[fossil hollow]

damn. why did i have to shoot my foot

[sonic quiver]

um.

[crimson gulch]

They were fighting the displacer tarrasque and dragon tower in that photograph

[sonic quiver]

i would advise against that generally

[primal estuary]

sorry, that was more somber than i meant it to be lmao

[fossil hollow]

but dear god the urge to use Sina Una is strong

i need my SEA game

[sonic quiver]

one of my most favoritest campaigns was sina una

[fossil hollow]

maybe i run sina una when i start an irl group again

[primal estuary]

one time i ate an entire set of dice. i don’t advise any of you to do so, but i was fine. i have a disorder that gives me compulsions to eat non-food items

i just wanted to brag my dice consumption rate

[undone bloom]

you've eaten six more dice than me

[sonic quiver]

rookie numbers (I do not eat dice)

[crimson gulch]

I dropped a d6 into a candy bowl and absent-mindedly bit it, the dentist made a joke about me failing that roll....

[primal estuary]

unless you’ve eaten 1 dice, i’ve eaten 7 more than you. i also ate the percentile die

[undone bloom]

i have eaten, in fact, one die

[primal estuary]

which one

[crimson gulch]

It was about the same colour and size as the Cadbury mini eggs

[undone bloom]

someone snuck a tiny d20 into my meds at the table lmao

[primal estuary]

something something critical failure

the d4 wasn’t actually as bad as the d6

[hybrid quarry]

Ooh...

[undone bloom]

wombat-shaped

[primal estuary]

the d6 was the only one i actually nearly choked on

[primal estuary]

why do your letters seem more lowercased than mine

i’m having a stroke

[undone bloom]

my vibes are more pristine than yours will ever be until you throw off the shackles of obeying cringe and embrace whimsy in everything you do

real answer: it's the text-equivalent of body language. some guy has a TED Talk about it i think

[rustic walrus]

We love embracing whimsy

[spiral girder]

any avid world anvil users

[fickle heart]

Yeah, that can be a struggle, 100%. From my own experience, one of the primary things that enables that seriousness is PCs having goals that exist outside of "survive", and those goals having actual ties to the world that can be leveraged by both the player(s) and the DM.

For example, my Halfling Druid in a Grim Hollow campaign (hence, quite serious) is very whimsical normally, but I created very strong "lines" as part of his backstory. A party member was afflicted with vampirism (very much unwillingly and grappling with that existential dread is a fundamental part of that PC's development) and said vampirism is progressively getting worse over time. (TW: child harm; mods, I attempted to make this very tame, but please feel free to delete if this is still too much and I can try to make it more vague), ||his vampiric urges caused him to kill two orphan children||.

My Halfling's values are huge towards family, due to him canonically having a massive family and the group has very respectful lines against PvP unless both party members consent and the purpose is narrative, so it was decided OOC that my PC would be the only one in the group not told about that information. It's one of the few things IC that he would find unforgivable, and he would be liable to immediately try to kill this other party member (and he would almost undoubtedly succeed, having anti-vampire spells already) if he knew, both out of rage from what this party member has done and mercy to prevent said party member from falling further. It's the type of social dynamic that requires the group as a whole to be very mature and on-board with PCs coming in conflict with each other where the players themselves might have to work something out for the health of the story, which can involve an individual's character to be "sacrificed" for doing something the group can't in good conscience forgive.

At the same time, it's an absolute blast of a campaign, and all of us players take personal responsibility for contributing to its success, both by being very invested, and by ensuring we give the DM as much possible leverage to use over our characters via relationships in the world. At least three fingers, an arm, and part of a thigh have been sacrificed among the party for the sake of relationships, and it's likely that number increases over time.

[primal estuary]

koose

flying moose enemy with laser eyes

armor class: 90

hp: 6

plural: keese

usually travel in packs of 300 or more

also they deal 400 damage and always piece armor. perfectly balanced, as all things should be

[sleek cloud]

I cast counterkoose

[idle oar]

Sounds like #homebrew (and crazy overpowered lol)

[spiral girder]

a surprise round and a lot a LOT of AOE

[primal estuary]

my bad for wrong channel

[idle oar]

No worries! Tis a big server (check #channel-guide to see our many channels for specific topics)

[primal estuary]

the one weakness of keese! counterkeese! they all turn into shoes. only right shoes tho

[sleek cloud]

glad my quick thinking could save the day

[strong wave]

Gnomey dontcha know me

[lofty thunder]

Man i wanna dm a crooked moon campaign but i’ve never dm’d before so I’m super nervous

[knotty vine]

I’ve done it 30 ac

[stiff rock]

DMing is definitely daunting to start but it isn't too bad when you get used to it. I personally have started to prefer DMing over playing as of late. You can find help in #dm-discussion or the free rules/dmg

[knotty vine]

Now the Tarrasque itself would need to roll an 11 to hit me

With disadvantage cause of dodge

[rough basalt]

I tpkd my party

[strong wave]

Why

[rough basalt]

That makes 3(4)

[knotty vine]

Yeah!

[rough basalt]

My mind flayer kept recharging mind blast

[knotty vine]

throws confetti at Sora

[rough basalt]

He only failed one recharge while players were alive.

[quaint tangle]

Does D&D Beyond have a desktop app?

[knotty vine]

Do I really need 30 ac…

[knotty vine]

I don’t think so

[rough basalt]

Mind Blast spamming

[quaint tangle]

Okay. Makes sense. I was just curious.

[strong wave]

Does DND beyond have a phone app

[knotty vine]

Now I can do 1d12+15 plus another 2d10 force damage

Just hope that nothing is resistant or immune to force

[onyx haven]

At AC 30, every enemy is getting graze from now on 😈

[rough basalt]

God i feel so bad

I shouldve used the cancelled players PC but i usually dont lol

[quaint tangle]

What's Wizards of the Coast?

[lavish flame]

just the website for computer. Mobile has an app tho