Recent content by ThoughtBubble

So uh - I think we might be able to help a little more if we know some more about your player. What's he like? What does he want to accomplish in game? What are his goals in the group? Like, if your player is all about gaining power - have the NPC help or provide a direction in that step -...

I tend to keep the people playing by having as much crazy fun as possible. And if people don't want to come, they don't want to come. I don't sweat it, I don't stress it, and I'll usually play without them (as long as the other people there are ok). Last second cancellations suck, no doubt...

One of the things I've really enjoyed about this Story Hour has been in the character's reaction to the module. It's a very understated sort of tongue in cheek humor, not about your game, but about D&D. You can feel the points where the party stops for a beat. They look at each other, then the...

I totally agree! Win or lose, the game should be fun. It's not about PC death though. Everything should be fun. Failing a saving throw shouldn't be a ticket to a ruined evening (see: sleep, hold, Save or Die). Getting injured? Should be a blast. Sure, maybe not as much fun as WINNING, but each...

I definitely know what you mean. I love D&D 3, I think it's a nicely designed system and it really fires on all 4 cylinders. I ended up drifting over to M&M (for crazy high power and signature moves), and then Burning Wheel (for all my fantasy needs). Burning Wheel in particular fills that need...

Oh, then this should be a lot of fun. I'll talk about what I did for my last game (which shared a similar theme). Let's come up with the face of the forces of evil. He/she/it should be maniacal and powerful, but with some pretty understandable motivations alongside his main goal (money...

Fenix is the best example. It's not that he took a couple of levels in dragoon. It's that he totally got killed to heck and put in an energy-ball shooting machine to continue the fight. I don't think that he could just get out of the suit and go back to using his zelot abilities. Jim was...

It kinda depends on who all is making the product. If it's from people who've already made systems I love, then I'll take a look. Otherwise, you know, I can probably do better myself. I control the constraints of my campaign, so it's much easier for me to say "Ok, you're all totally awesome. So...

So, do you know who the players (and PCs) are and what they want? If you have that, it should be pretty easy from there to hook in the important things to them and drag them along by the teeth. Younger sisters, family honor, national pride, bloodsworn vengence, grabbing any one of them can...

And you know, I see where you're coming from. Uncontrolled randomness can act as a springboard for creativity and more interesting play. I got 13 int on my fighter? Maybe I should take Expertise. It's just that your statement: sounds suspiciously like you're stating it as a universal truth...

Uh.... so is this a yes, or a no? How about an "almost, but only if you change 'spike' to 'a series of especially high or low rolls'"? I'd be more than happy to discuss your points on system design, and DM role and such, but it's only something I can do after I can get a little closer to your...

So, with this average issue, the only real option is to give exactly half the dice's value in HP. Wizards then get 2.5 hp/level, fighters 5.5, etc. This prevents the wizard from gaining any extra due to the coarse nature of rounding over time, but it also prevents him from losing any. Now, the...

So, to summerize: Fudging is useful to counteract spikes in the randomness of a series of dice rolls. Is this a valid statement of your overall feelings, or just the one point against Buzz?

I think Kahuna nailed it. I'd prefer an up front "Hm. You know, 1750 damage seems a little too high. Anyone mind if I tone this down?" to a quick change for whatever reason. In one campaign, my character risked life and limb to rescue her friends. She failed. She should have been dead. She...

So, I played a wizard with 9 con (I had a 6, a 7 and a 9 to get rid of) and rolled 1s for my hitpoints for 4 consecutive levels (followed swiftly by a 2). Even with the +2 con necklace I worked so hard to make and the +1 to con, it was still pretty close to 1 hit, 1 kill on me. I very quickly...