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I started to respond to this post in the Magic Marts thread but I think this idea deserves its own topic. ProfCirno has nailed it here. The best campaigns I've played have had few, if any, magic items drawn from the core game. They were rare and most came from the DM's imagination. But I...

I've given skill challenges a good shake. I've run a lot of them, designed some goods ones and ultimately come to the conclusion that they are a poor idea. Actually, let me frank: Skill challenges are a black pimple on the ass of this game. Show me a "well run skill challenge" and I'll show...

I wasn't able to go to DDXP but I did get a chance to help playtest a little of the new Ashes of Athas campaign. Did anyone go and get a chance to play it. Likes? Dislikes? EDIT: Here's the campaign website: http://www.baldmangames.com/aoamain

I, for one, am disappointed to see the D&D Miniatures line cancelled. I'd like to pick your collective brains about the best alternative for me. Things I like (in priority order): for medieval fantasy RPGs 3D! I'm completely turned off by the cardboard discs that WotC is peddling now...

I know I'm getting dangerously close to an edition war but I've seen this point made in a couple different threads that many people accept and I don't agree with: "4e is a good game for new players" While I agree that we need this game to appeal to new players (especially younger players!)...

Does this sound familiar? "I prefer Pathfinder, but the majority of players in my group want to play 4e." "I really like some of the 4e game mechanics, but I feel like 4e characters are all the same." "Trailblazer was a good start, but I wish they'd done something about the complexity. It...

I posted this to my campaign mailing list today. Does it make you want to play or bore you? [WARNING: mild spoilers for the PF Kingmaker campaign.] :AMN: When a criminal really wants to get lost, she heads to the swamp. The ever changing terrain and dangerous wildlife means that even the...

Whether you started playing D&D last month or last century, all gamers have a collection of RPG Stuff [tm] that is filling a shelf or ten somewhere. My question is, of your entire horde what is the one item that you prize the most? My pinnacle: I have every print issue of Dungeon magazine. I...

One of my aims is to reduce the amount of dice rolling that a player does on their turn. A place where this comes up is making an area of effect attack (usually with a spell). One damage roll (as per 4e) is a good idea. I'd ideally like to make only one attack roll as well rather than a...

So, according to the OGL, I can freely copy and distribute material that is under that license. So, what happens if, for example, I take the Pathfinder ruleset (or any other OGL game) , copy all of the text into a document and resell that document as the "Wayfinder" rule system? (Important...

So, I'm considering the mechanics for poison in D&D 3.5. The current approach requires that players remember the secondary effects that kick in a minute later and, in my experience, this is often forgotten. The 4e approach of just making poison another type of damage seems weak to me and...

I've heard complaints in the past that the D&D 3.5 divination spells can ruin a campaign (or at least an adventure). While I certainly agree that detect evil and detect magic can spoil surprises are there other instances where a divination spell other than those two has harmed the story...or at...

If you're one of the majority of folks who think that the skill system in 3.5e has too many skills, I'd like your input on what changes you think are good ones to reduce the number of skills in the game. Thanks, :AMN:

A common issue with fantasy RPGs is remembering temporary bonuses and penalties. For example, having a "-2 to attacks, saves and skills for 4 rounds" is easy to say but, in practice, it's difficult for people to keep track. Some players have found semi-effective ways to deal with this. (The...

A number of solutions to the fact that minions are too easy to kill have been posted. Some solutions I've seen along with the chief argument against using them: 1. Double or triple the number of minions (problem: too many bad guys!) 2. Increase minion hp and require that you do at least...

When the print versions of Dungeon and Dragon magazine died, Paizo gave subscribers the option to subscribe to the Pathfinder Adventure Path, a monthly publication that comprises two story-arcs per year. This is *different* than the new 3.75e ruleset or the global Pathfinder campaign that uses...

One thing that was a tad disappointing about earlier editions was that Constitution was essential for just about every PC. I think that in 8 years of playing 3E and 3.5E about 1 in 50 PCs I saw had a Con of 10 or less. It was hard to play a "fragile" character. 4e did a great job of balancing...

Proposal: You no longer gain a bonus equal to half your level on defenses, attack rolls, skill checks, ability checks and initiative. Instead, every time you gain a new level you gain 6 "level points" that you can spend as follows: - 1 point = +1 level bonus to one defense (Fort, Reflex...

I didn't see a post on this yet. Forgive me if this is a rehash. The latest "Update" for the Player's Handbook (from July 2nd) includes this change: Here is the original passage in the PHB: I have a personal pet-peeve with people who use the acronym "RAW" as if it bears any weight. But if...

So, this may be a given to you folks already but I think this is worth spelling out explicitly: hit probability is a fundamental part of the game and the way 4e handles it has big and broad implications for play. Consider, if you will, a 1st level fighter. You give him an 18 strength. That...