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Thanks for the judgment, Nifft. I'll have to read it again, but I consider that you'd want to use the city and/or crypts a win of sorts. Building cities and cultures is one of my favorite things to do.
As far as that the adventure punishes the players/PCs for going along with it, I disagree. But then as a player, I don't think of the DM as someone whose job it is to punish, so much as someone whose job it is to challenge. And that's the kind of DM I am too, or at least, that's what I aim to be. The 'punishment' is adventure. A story to tell, 'haha, Bard, remember when you were trapped in that battleaxe and Grug wanted to keep you that way? haha, don't look at me like that, we came in after you.'
As far as splitting up the party... I dunno... I don't think it's reasonable to expect PCs to live in eachother's pockets every moment. I do agree that the weakest part is the rescue of Jernin and submitting to the poison under questionable supervision. And for Fleeing the Feydream's skill challenge, all I can say is... I'd just finished the most recent Ratchet & Clank game.
Good on ya, Iron Sky! I really liked the dreaminess of your dreams. Particularly the poor shepherdess. Oh, and I thought the hooks into your adventure were particularly good. Good luck in Round 3!
EDIT: Oh, I forgot to address the soulrider's power - Maskim didn't want to lose the body, a PC's powers are WAY better than most NPCs/monsters. So he'd do pretty much anything not to have to flee the body. I could have made that clearer.
EDIT 2: Also, the Bard doesn't sit out, the session should alternate between stuff the Bard is doing and stuff the rest of the party is doing. Now, granted, some of it is RP, so not specifically encounters. I could have explained that better too.
Last edited by Sparky; 5th November 2009 at 09:17 PM..
As far as that the adventure punishes the players/PCs for going along with it, I disagree.
It's very true that different players will react very differently to loss of control over their PC. That's why I put that note in the Usability section (which counts for less than ingredient use). It's not necessarily a bad thing any more than requiring a Bard would be a bad thing -- but it is a restriction, in that it reduces the number of groups that can use the scenario.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Sparky
Thanks for the judgment, Nifft. I'll have to read it again, but I consider that you'd want to use the city and/or crypts a win of sorts. Building cities and cultures is one of my favorite things to do.
As a personal aside, I liked both entries this match better than the ones in round one. I do hope you'll be back for future competitions.
Thanks, -- N
__________________
Brevity is the soul of wit, so trim your sig or look dumb.
Thanks for judging Nifft. You nailed all of my ingredients that I was worried about being too weak. When I got my burst of inspiration it was the Artist's Studio + Dream Sequence + Wolf In Sheep's Clothing trio(with inspiration from Groundhog Day that you spotted) that was the lynch-pin and when I went back after a furious bit of brain-storm typing, I realized I had 3 more ingredients that needed to be tied in as well.
The poison became alcohol when I was trying to work in the VAT (value added tax) on the alcohol, but I forgot about it and was left with alcohol instead of poison for no especially good reason.
Sparky, I loved your city that you whipped up, especially since that's one of my weak areas - generating interesting cultures and kingdoms that are distinct and memorable on their own rather than just another background place to do the interesting stuff in. I might have to borrow Barrowdon.
Looking forward to the next match!
__________________ Robots, assassins, hobgoblins, the Ashen Tower, polite beholders, land pirates, gnome genocide, the Corpse Ramp, artifacts, exploding zombie dragons, flying islands, dying heroes, blood feuds, vanished races, the Black City: Rise of Felskein.
__________________ Current Campaign:The Shattered Isles Homebrew - Hammer (Minotaur Fighter 8), Kirra (Drow Rogue 8), Shedin (Dragonborn Paladin 8), Zahar (Half-Eladrin/Half Drow Bard 8), and Seahorse (Halfling Rogue 8). Currently the group is in the Feywild, trying to discover who is poisoning the drow.
Friday late afternoon works. I'm at work/meetings until about 3pm, my time(that would about 9pm according to the boards). Any time after that is good for me.
__________________ Robots, assassins, hobgoblins, the Ashen Tower, polite beholders, land pirates, gnome genocide, the Corpse Ramp, artifacts, exploding zombie dragons, flying islands, dying heroes, blood feuds, vanished races, the Black City: Rise of Felskein.
Last edited by Iron Sky; 6th November 2009 at 05:39 AM..
Well. Those ingredients are sure to cause an aneurysm. Thanks, Nifft.
__________________ Current Campaign:The Shattered Isles Homebrew - Hammer (Minotaur Fighter 8), Kirra (Drow Rogue 8), Shedin (Dragonborn Paladin 8), Zahar (Half-Eladrin/Half Drow Bard 8), and Seahorse (Halfling Rogue 8). Currently the group is in the Feywild, trying to discover who is poisoning the drow.
__________________ Robots, assassins, hobgoblins, the Ashen Tower, polite beholders, land pirates, gnome genocide, the Corpse Ramp, artifacts, exploding zombie dragons, flying islands, dying heroes, blood feuds, vanished races, the Black City: Rise of Felskein.
Wulf, have you ever played the 360 game called The Maw? That's the first thing I thought of when I saw your beholder's name. Also, I laughed out loud at 'before the opportunity "passes"'.
And Nifft, my brain is dribbling out one ear a little bit because of this list of ingredients...
__________________ Robots, assassins, hobgoblins, the Ashen Tower, polite beholders, land pirates, gnome genocide, the Corpse Ramp, artifacts, exploding zombie dragons, flying islands, dying heroes, blood feuds, vanished races, the Black City: Rise of Felskein.
I guess I need to concentrate on the job during the week, can't write then.
Glad to know everything is all right. You are not the first contestant to wither, and probably won't be the last. Lord knows it has happened to me. As I said early on (I think?), sometimes it's hard enough just crossing the finish line at all.
My usual process is to get the ingredients, write them on a Post-It note, and carry them around with me. Just roll them around and look for connections. Good ideas get written down-- one sentence fragment at a time, often in non-linear fashion with respect to the adventure. I build a list of "flavor bites" from the ingredients-- connections between two disparate ingredients that I want to highlight. The night before the due date, I start doing the serious thinking right before bed-- without notes-- and literally "sleep on it." In the shower, or on my work commute, I start connecting the flavor bites and "writing" in my head.
By the time I actually sit down to type up the entry, it's about an hour's worth of intense (and often hurried) work.
Come to think of it, my Iron DM process is eerily similar to my college writing process...
I guess I need to concentrate on the job during the week, can't write then.
Note to everyone: if this kind of thing happens, please let a judge know as early as you can.
Specifically to IVV: personally, I consider it a terrible shame to let a round 3 match end by default -- much worse than waiting an extra day, particularly if the other judges and your opponent are sport.
So, take a deep breath, let the coffee settle in, and write something today.
Best, -- N
__________________
Brevity is the soul of wit, so trim your sig or look dumb.
my judgement is [sblocked] so that Nifft and RG can write up their own ideas without undue influence. so if you all want to make comments on my judgment, keep them spoiler free till the other two get finished.
thanks.
this will be the setup for the last three matches.
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