D&D 5E D&D Beyond Releases 2023 Character Creation Data

Zardnaar · Jan 28, 2024

EzekielRaiden said:
I mean, I wouldn't expect "anything goes." Dandwiki exists and is objectively awful 99.99% of the time.

But with literally every 5e campaign I've applied for--not even just ones I've joined--the attitude has more been "nothing goes." If it's 3PP, it's forbidden, either outright and aggressively up-front, or delayed with a "I'll check it out" only to subsequently say no.

Sure. I've literally never seen anyone use it. And, perhaps more importantly, such stuff isn't actually written in the DMG as far as I can tell. In fact, the long and short of the DMG's words on the use of such things (which it calls "story-based advancement"; "milestones" refers to something else, still tied to using XP) are: "When you let the story of the campaign drive advancements you award levels when adventurers accomplish significant goals in the campaign." Which doesn't even rise to the level of advice. It's literally just a description of what happens!

I don't use the DMG or encounter guidelines at all.

Generally eyeball it. Generally.

1 Mook per PC, lieutenant, elite/boss.

How strong that is depends on level. For a 5 person party lvl 1.

4 mooks easy.
Add a lieutenant medium
Add boss hard.

Basically CR 1/8, 1/4 and 1/2.

Level 2 would be double the mooks or cr 1/4, 1/12 and 1 something like that or single CR 2 eg an ogre.

I'll design stinky encounters level 5+. Eg adult blue dragon in sand filled lair with healing caves under the sand.

Demetrios1453 · Jan 28, 2024

EzekielRaiden said:
Which, to me, begs the question why we have levels 1 and 2 if they are a speed bump for getting to real fun.

I love levels 1 and 2. I find the thrill of actual real danger in each combat to be quite exciting.

ECMO3 · Jan 28, 2024

Oofta said:
The Shocking Grasp missed. But ... more later.

You said in your initial post it hit for 2 damage, but even if it missed she needs to back away from a Frightened Troll. Take one AOO is a lot better than taking 3 attacks.

EzekielRaiden · Jan 28, 2024

Demetrios1453 said:
I love levels 1 and 2. I find the thrill of actual real danger in each combat to be quite exciting.

And I find it at best anxiety-inducing. At worst, it's just a dull story that ends long before anything actually cool happens because probability ensures that, eventually, you get crit and die.

I get enough of "the odds inevitably fall against you" in my daily life.

EzekielRaiden · Jan 28, 2024

Zardnaar said:
I don't use the DMG or encounter guidelines at all.

Generally eyeball it. Generally.

1 Mook per PC, lieutenant, elite/boss.

How strong that is depends on level. For a 5 person party lvl 1.

4 mooks easy.
Add a lieutenant medium
Add boss hard.

Basically CR 1/8, 1/4 and 1/2.

Level 2 would be double the mooks or cr 1/4, 1/12 and 1 something like that or single CR 2 eg an ogre.

I'll design stinky encounters level 5+. Eg adult blue dragon in sand filled lair with healing caves under the sand.

I'm not really sure what this has to do with what I posted. And I'm assuming "stinky encounters" was meant to be something else and autocorrect betrayed you, but it's a funny phrase.

Zardnaar · Jan 28, 2024

EzekielRaiden said:
I'm not really sure what this has to do with what I posted. And I'm assuming "stinky encounters" was meant to be something else and autocorrect betrayed you, but it's a funny phrase.

Stink is kiwi slang.

Basisically means doh, rats, crap. S word.

Dannyalcatraz · Jan 28, 2024

Mod Note:

I’ve been alerted to some…less than civil rhetoric in some postings in this thread. They’re a ways back, so I’m not acting on them. But I have noted that some lingering acrimony remains, manifesting in continued snark.

So, howzabout those considering posting in an agitated state take a 10-breath break from their keyboards before doing so?

ECMO3 · Jan 28, 2024

Clint_L said:
I'm a bit stumped on coming up with a party of 4 to beat a troll, in a neutral environment. Maybe barbarian with sentinel, life cleric, ummm...light cleric maybe? For backup heals and backup fire? Oh, and first aid feat plus medicine kit for when heals run out - everything depends on keeping my tank up. Then the wizard, to start the bonfire and then spam firebolt, stepping in closer with burning hands in a pinch. But that is pretty dicey. It feels like one critical hit or one made save from the troll and it goes south fast.

This is a job for ECMO3.

Edit: the troll has 84 HP, and I figure that combo can keep the barbarian in the fight for 5 rounds. So we have to do a total DPR of 17, if we can keep it from regenerating.

Barbarian DPR 7, cleric DPR 4.5 x 2, wizard DPR 2 from bonfire, + 3 from firebolt after first round. So we should be able to do it if we get lucky - there's some wiggle room with being able to use the burning hands at the end if the barbarian is KOed and things are spinning out of control.

This is a lot more difficult than the other example. The other example was really set up for this with 4 characters having fire or chill touch to kill regeneration and having Cause Fear and Dissonant Whispers which are a really great combo on an enemy with a -1 Wisdom save.

Going with what you started with Wizard, Cleric, Barbarian (what is the 4th PC?). Bonfire is the key here, and you want the Troll to be kept in it. The play is for the Barbarian to grapple the Troll and hold him on the Bonfire and try to live until it is dead.

I also think the Cleric should use Shield of Faith and Sanctuary on the Barbarian, and the Barbarian should dodge after the first turn.

So something like this:
Round 1: Barbarian goes into Rage and Grapples (if he loses this grapple the fight is probably lost). Cleric casts sanctuary the first turn (assuming he is after the Barb). Wizard casts bonfire. Round 2+ Barbarian dodges and Wizard uses Firebolt or damaging spells, Cleric casts SOF. Note if the Barb goes without getting hit at all in a round he loses Rage and only gets to restart it once on his next turn.

If Sanctuary drops for some reason (like the Troll breaks the grapple and needs to do it again), then he changes tactics. He still dodges and moves the grappled troll out of the fire and back into the fire on his turn, effectively doubling the bonfire damage.

I don't think this is likely to succeed, but it could if the Barbarian can keep the grapple in place. Sanctuary+SOF+Dodge is going to be difficult for the Troll to break through.

If I get a chance I will pick a 4th PC (probably a Rogue?) and monte carlo it tomorrow.

Hussar · Jan 28, 2024

Welp, time to put my money where my mouth is, I guess.

I don't have time to run it right now, so, please bear with me. I banged out 5 1st level casters on my Fantasy Grounds, and picked a map. The map I picked was this one:

Now in the interests of openness, the reason I picked this particular map is that it was on the top of my feed on /r Battlemaps on Reddit. It's a gorgeous battlemap, IMO, and I'm very much going to use this in my game. I figured the set up is the 5 new adventurers have found a ruined town and are exploring. The troll hears the adventurers and comes to investigate. I'll plunk the encounter down somewhere near the center of that ruin, as the troll emerges from one of the ruined buildings and confronts the party, some 50 feet away.

The five characters I picked were mostly created using Tasha's Lineages, so, they do have feats.

Note, that human warlock is wrong, I used a custom lineage and made him a drow warlock. Why? Just because. All characters are made with standard arrays. The reason they have 18's in stats is because of feats from custom lineages. The dwarf cleric was specified earlier in the thread and does speak giant. I don't think a dwarf (forge priest, because, well, I played one of those a few years back) speaking giant is too much of a stretch. Starting equipment is the standard stuff and backgrounds were mostly chosen more or less at random, whatever caught my eye.

Is this an acceptable set up to folks before I go ahead and try to run this?

Crimson Longinus · Jan 28, 2024

I did some math in my head yesterday, and six barbarians just straight up pummelling the roll in melee have a somewhat reasonable chance of taking it down before they are all killed. With five it would be tougher, but they still could win with some luck. Not saying this is any way optimal.

Point of it being bad encounter is not that it is unwinnable. It is that it can super easily swing to TPK if key spells fail, the troll hits well in the early rounds etc. To most people very high chance of that happening (especially as this probably is not some pivotal end boss as we are at the first level) just isn't fun.

Also, with casters we are using their meagre first level spell selection to optimise them for this one encounter; one should hope this would give them some edge, as it means they will be suboptimal against many other encounters!

D&D 5E D&D Beyond Releases 2023 Character Creation Data

Darryl Mott

Zardnaar

Legend

Demetrios1453

Hero

ECMO3

Hero

EzekielRaiden

Follower of the Way

EzekielRaiden

Follower of the Way

Zardnaar

Legend

Dannyalcatraz

Schmoderator

ECMO3

Hero

Hussar

Legend

Crimson Longinus

Legend

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