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If by forcing you mean "hand inspiration like candy to those who do well" I'm not sure it is going to fall apart. I have people who took an 8 sanity stat to delve deeply into this before I even mentioned inspiration. Once I mentioned inspiration some of the others decided to stay at least +1...

CR is perfect against a team of my friends less than 1 year into D&D who have no tactical sense and are constantly getting each other killed. They have magical weapons and get upset like kids sometimes because they want to do something F'd up that would TPK the entire group and I won't let them...

That is the job of the DM. If someone mentions they are uncomfortable then you retcon what is offensive and remove it from the game with an apology. We had an instance where one player wanted the group to be named the ADHD group because they kept loosing focus on side quests. One firl...

I tried group initiative with 8 players yesterday. CHAOS! I explained the way I outline above and they said it was preferred. Lo and behold we end up on Quaggoth Beach with 8 Quaggoths flexing at each other (We're in SoCal so think Muscle Beach in Venice). Since there was only one NPC type we...

For a slow moving campaign how often does your DM have you in a thrilling chase scene? If not often then I'd dump the ritual spells. Without knowing your roll in the party this is also hard. I've picked what I feel would have the most wide-spread usefulness in the day of an adventuring wizard...

I suppose the question is if they'll remember who the bad guys are and what great achievements they performed. It does look like quite an endeavor on your part to keep them on track!

Holy Political Correctness Batman. Lets get off our high horses for a moment and realize this is a game that emulates many aspects of real life. To imply we are playing madness and insanity without any connection to real life is madness itself. Without analyzing every single thing in the DMG...

Very true on those points. For each madness we chose it was something quirky and fun. We give them a specific example such as the OCD card which gives examples for like "when you roll the dice snap 3 times or flap your arms etc.. For your last point it really comes down to knowing your...

Sentinel increases AO options which increases attacks and thereby damage. Monsters charge you more than they run away so it is a solid damage increase. Each opportunity has a chance to crit. If you are going to pigeon hole yourself to the most bland and featureless class in 5e be prepared to...

Madness is a new stat and I think one of the harder things to deal with for new DMs (myself included). I'm posting what I'm experiencing in the hopes to hear from others. What Works: Players seem keen on this mechanic. I missed the first row when the prisoners were forced to watch the Drow skin...

I guess that isn't quite true. In truth they got to level 2. I had several reasons for starting OotA @ level 3 (1 & 2 for a few). Since we were playing Harried I needed a transition to OotA. I ambushed them with a CR 8 drow Priestess and all the Elites in a tavern at the Stop. It was supposed...

Does anyone flip flop between the two? I imagine there is a place for each. One thing I've tried is "clumping" initiatives. Example: 22: Player 21: Player 17: NPC 16: Player 2: Player 1: NPC Translates to: 4: Player + Player 3: NPC Type I 2: Player + Player 1: NPC Type II This hasn't...

Stoneskin isn't the ultimate buff but it still helps with most minions. I would say it retains a very useful space for survival during those O:):):):):) moments.

I don't know how to mark spoilers so I am going to be vague in Day 1, but DMs will know what I mean. I have a large party so we aren't using NPCs in combat. Therefore I feel all my encounters should involve an NPC interaction or two. Since I can't know how the dice will fall (who may die) I...

This looks cool. Would subscribe if it wasn't so easy make people take shots on crit fails. 20 rolls = 1 shot. That's 1 shot every 4 rounds of battle with 4 players and 1 NPC at 1st level. Pure Debauchery after 5th.

I could have stated this better: I'm running at average max+1 for the adventure since it is during Encounters and we always have a shortage of DMs. In my group therefore, I see it as OP Pre-chapter 7. I do see myself adjusting the encounter for later however. I'm not saying it's bad to have...

I like this. Reading the method feels like the "gun shot" at the start of a race. I think I will try the first round as normal (to account for surprise and special abilities) then I and 1 player do a 2nd initiative roll to see the group initiative. Being a superstitious bunch the team will...

I've been doing group initiative for the NPCs because combat moves much faster when I blow through all the moves. I did "Round Robin Left/Right based on highest/2nd highest" but the players didn't like it and I agree it is pretty weak. I'm thinking about doing the group initiative as well. My...

A tablet with an excel sheet or a laptop if you want a screen will be just fine. The nice thing about individual screens is the art presented to the players since it helps boost the imagination in regard to the setting.

I gave a +1 longsword to my group after finishing Harried in Hillsfar before the Drow railed them and took all their gear. Will he get it back? Depends if searches the chest in area -censored-. I plan on using lots of magic items but many of them will be consumable. Dawnbringer is too buff in...