Dragonbane general thread

[Wolfpack48]

The weird thing about Dragonbane is that it feels like old school D&D without actually being D&D. I feel confident running any D&D adventure using these rules with the major difference being a bit more thought before entering combat, which is kinda what it was in 1e.

 

[overgeeked]

One thing I want to avoid, though, is having the players afraid to engage ANY monster. There are reasons they will need to fight the big bads, so they need to feel confident enough that they can win even these battles at times.

Oh, sure. Not all monsters are created equal. Some are far deadlier than others. And there will be all kinds of story reasons to fight monsters. The players just need to be more engaged with the fiction than "Charge!" to do well against most of the nastier monsters.

Heroic abilities can be awarded at the GM's discretion, too, when characters do something, well, "heroic". In the published campaign I'm running, the PCs will encounter an important Macguffin four times. I plan on giving them an HA for each time after the first they deal with the Macguffin, and probably at the end of the campaign.

Another thing about the Skill Increases as well: they're not automatic. You get a chance to roll and see if you increase it every season if you assign it one of the points from the narrative checklist, or if you rolled a Crit (good or bad) for the skill during the session. You have to then roll over the existing Skill's value to see if you increase it (meaning odds are against you the higher the skill gets.)

A couple of my players noted the skill they considered their primary (Magic School skill or Healing, for example) haven't gone up since we started due to bad dice rolls.

The campaign looks fantastic. I normally shy away from modules but the Dragon Emperor campaign looks really well done.

 

[overgeeked]

The weird thing about Dragonbane is that it feels like old school D&D without actually being D&D. I feel confident running any D&D adventure using these rules with the major difference being a bit more thought before entering combat, which is kinda what it was in 1e.

Exactly. Which opens up so much content. Basically anything OSR is usable fairly easily. Now if only I could crack the monster code.

I also keep hearing a lot about WFRP and Dragonbane. Specifically The Enemy Within campaign. I think that would be interesting. Definitely want to look at eventually converting some of my WFRP stuff over.

 

[Sir Brennen]

Now if only I could crack the monster code.

I haven't purchased it yet, but the second issue of Dragonzine has a monster generator in it, as well as some new monsters:

DriveThruRPG

www.drivethrurpg.com

 

[Wolfpack48]

Oh, sure. Not all monsters are created equal. Some are far deadlier than others. And there will be all kinds of story reasons to fight monsters. The players just need to be more engaged with the fiction than "Charge!" to do well against most of the nastier monsters.

I remember running a Dragonlance game in 1e with a red dragon attack, and it definitely was an "oh crap" moment for the players. They really loved the sense of real danger, and that wasn't even a full battle, just a driveby.

 

[Wolfpack48]

I haven't purchased it yet, but the second issue of Dragonzine has a monster generator in it, as well as some new monsters:

DriveThruRPG

www.drivethrurpg.com

It's actually quite good, with tables to help generate stats and abilities and attacks. The example at the end is great. Both issues of that zine are excellent.

 

[overgeeked]

I haven't purchased it yet, but the second issue of Dragonzine has a monster generator in it, as well as some new monsters:

DriveThruRPG

www.drivethrurpg.com

Oh. That sounds awesome.

I remember running a Dragonlance game in 1e with a red dragon attack, and it definitely was an "oh crap" moment for the players. They really loved the sense of real danger, and that wasn't even a full battle, just a driveby.

In Dragonbane, with an adult dragon, that would likely drop most PCs with one hit. But yeah, that's why I moved to the OSR, and one reason I'm loving Dragonbane, a real sense of danger.

 

[Doctor Futurity]

I've been eager to run Dragonbane, my group has agreed to adopt it starting next week for the New Year, so very excited.

 

[Bill Zebub]

What’s the power curve like in Dragonbane? As in, how powerful are advanced characters compared to new ones? Are low level monsters still a threat to more advanced characters? How well can characters of mixed levels adventure together?

 

[Wolfpack48]

What’s the power curve like in Dragonbane? As in, how powerful are advanced characters compared to new ones? Are low level monsters still a threat to more advanced characters? How well can characters of mixed levels adventure together?

Power curve is definitely more horizontal than vertical. Skills increase over time and more Heroic Abilities are earned, but stats and HP/WP (Willpower Points) stay relatively flat. The HAs can be pretty powerful if used wisely so veteran characters will generally be more competent.

Any NPC can get in a shot (with 1s being crits and 20s fumbles), though players who play strategically will definitely have an edge. Monsters always hit but the effects vary; monsters always should be respected.