Recent content by crash_beedo

Yes - half hit points for monsters, and monsters get a damage boost equal to their level. PC's don't change at all. It's definitely increased the "swing" in our game, as well. A fair amount of swing = tense excitement. There are consequences that subtly change how 4E runs... controllers that...

Keep an open mind, and approach it like a totally different game from old school D&D. I am not trying to imply anything edition-war related... I run a weekly game of Classic D&D with kids and dad's (we're rolling through StoneHell using the Moldvay/Cook rules and Labyrinth Lord). About 8:30pm...

I was the one that asked Mike about the house rule on his blog... I think the first reference I had heard to R&D using a half-hit-points house rule was in an old podcast from a con session - maybe DDXP 2009? We've used half hit points / increase damage by the monster's level for the past few...

I've been running a weekly 4E game since the beginning, but only have a limited time slot (9pm to midnight on Saturdays, after everyone's kids are asleep). I would also say my group of 40-year olds agonizes over every move, of every round. (Except the optimized artful dodger drow rogue, who...

This is absolutely scandalous. I'm shocked WOTC put up a blogger interviewer with a guy that does... all that unspeakable stuff. You know what I mean - the rolling of the dice, the smacking of the monsters, the exploring of the dark dungeons... "I hit it with my axe", nice euphemism. I guess...

Rodney, you're still reading this thread? Well, hopefully you've made it this far! We've been playing 4E since the beginning, we've gone from H1-through-P2 so far so I have a fair amount of experience running your H/P/E series of modules, and will reference them the most. Shorter Delves The...

So does this mean PHB 1, PBH 2, MM 1, MM2, DMG1, etc will all be allowed to lapse 'out of print' since the Essentials line will always stay in print?

Yes - exactly - money as a type of skill. Leaves the parcel system intact for adventurer wealth but lets one address mundane items, cost of living, and worldly possessions in an external system.

Thanks for the opinions - that thread on the Loudwater area and hexmap for 4E FR is really good. It would need to be redone as smaller subhexes (5 miles per hex or so) but it's a great starting point to look at. My basic idea came about from my frustration waiting for the 'Chaos Scar' series...

Nothing is "obviously broken" but there are opportunities for improving 4E... like Plane Sailing mentioned, just look at your own house rules. Combat Speed: We've gone with half hit point monsters (and a damage boost equal to the monster's level) and that's done the trick to speed up combat and...

My 4E crew has lately been expressing interest in doing an old-school wilderness exploration game in 4E - maybe it's a bit of burnout on the H/P/E series and the long modules. 4E and the huge lists of encounter groups that are published would make it a snap to build and populate a sprawling hex...

For the most part, I like 4E and the direction of the 'modern incarnation'. The starter sets are too limited (crippleware, I saw them called) and not true red boxes, so that needs to change. The idea of genre settings is interesting. Leveraging the D&D IP for board games seems fairly...

The 1980 basic rules (Moldvay edition) and Labyrinth Lord would be my recommendation for starting a new GM. My own son (8) spends a lot of time looking through the 4E Monster Manuals and their glossy pictures, but he's not interested in 4E (the character sheets are a bit much..>) I do run a...

Boot Hill. Then I could mush 4E, Gamma World, and Boot Hill into something like Stephen King's Dark Tower. Wahoo.

QFT! It seems like for the most part the minis line is trying to include bosses and key figures for the H/P/E series, but the synergy could be a little tighter - missed out on the Norkers, finished Pyramid of Shadows before the various Foulspawn were out there. Looks like Orcus will be...