Recent content by Madfox

Personally I always found the term 'sandbox' somewhat ironic. A sandbox is always the same regardless what direction you look, and sandcastles are pretty easy to destroy. Not to mention that the sandboxed were usually pretty dirty thanks to some local cats ;) Then again, I have been known to...

Is it really that much of a hassle to join the RPGA, do a simple test and then order them through official channels? As for the feeling that the adventures lack some window dressing, that is mostly on purpose. The adventures are usually designed so that a DM can add his own touch to the...

It is an internet poll on a fan-based message board. What did you expect? ;) For the record: I did get here through Monte's Message Board, but I did vote Eberron. P.S. Funny, I rarely visit these boards, and I have not posted much in years. Still I beat that 100 post count ;)

Interested: yes. Friday 3 to 7 though is not an option... (and I rarely if ever visit these boards, I am surprised my account actually still works)

Part of any act of diplomacy is to guess the motives and emotions of the person with which you are talking. A person with a high diplomacy check might realize in advance whether the barbarian likes the sorcerers because he has a crush on her or for something else. Further then that a person with...

Would the character know how to spell a name? If the character would know, then I would tell the player, if not, then I leave it up to the players. In the end, I have one player who takes rather meticulous notes on treasure, but as far as names and events are concerned my players are not...

Which shows that it is better not to plan on reoccuring villains, but to let events in the campaign dictate it. The unexpacted villains tend to be the best remembered as well. In my current campaign I have a long list to pick from - without fudging I have a very good idea of when a creature...

There is a difference between hinting at how a character might feel and actually telling how the character actually reacts ;) Though I do agree, that I would word it differently for the same effect.

Doesn't the main problem stems from different opinions on what action belongs to what alignment? Several of the examples given in this thread are more neutral in my opinion then evil (e.g. the so-called lawful evil warlord whose name was cleared by his paladin buddy). Since there is little...

It all depends on how you describe saving throws and attack rolls. It might be easy to think that a low roll (but successfull) is a meager success, while a high roll shows the ease with which the creature made it. Personally, I am not too sure about it. Especially since combat also has that...

Sometimes it is just the wind ;) I tend to ask for detailed watch schedules, sketches of campsites or even of empty rooms just to set of the players. They never know when I ask for it, because it matters or because I feel like it. Joe in the above example would have been clobbered on the...

And if you have spring attack and the ability to see what happens outside the rock you move in and out to.

I have only seen a PC drown once since 3.0 is out and that was in the middle of the ocean where his companions where dealing with a couple of sharks as well (it did prompt my character to get a levitate spell in his spellbook). Most characters tend to be rescued easily within 10 to 18 rounds and...

I don't know about your players, but mine are certainly optimizing their PCs for saving throws and the cleric is more and more willing to have a neutralize poison and death ward up and running. In any event, if you are foolish enough to attack an arch-wizard without proper preperations...

Or one dagger less on your side... Have any of you ever read the Old Shatterhand westerns by Karl May? Unless absolutely nesecary, the heroes almost never killed their opponents (though they were prone to humilate them). More often then not this resulted in a new ally, only the rare real bad...