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Please, someone explain to me: Is this 90+ page thread STILL carrying on debate over 1-2 posters' intractable and INSANE presumption that a SINGLE vignette from a SINGLE splatbook is somehow now the one, true portrayal of Halflingness?

The only answer I can come up with is "Yes." And also "none of the above". I make widely variable settings. And a major "city" might actually be anything from a full-on futuristic Space Station with magitech fantasy elements, to the classic medieval walled city, to a bunch of mud huts, to a...

Seems a fairly simple matter just to introduce some special high-power, magically resistant poison; something that might also even be part curse or spell or magic item. Particularly considering that rulers of fantasy kingdoms might be normally expected to have poison-curing magic around. One...

I've run a number of games where PCs became undead and/or immortal. The thing is, mortality is such a huge and canonical drive and characteristic of sentient experience that I sort of think it's...bad roleplaying... not to include some downside to losing it. Powerwise, it's the equivalent of...

I generally restrict flying races in low level games for balance reasons. And kender because it's tailor-made for griefing and I don't want to have to deal with intra-party conflict. I might alter something like Yuan-ti, which I think has a notable powerjump over other PC races. Otherwise...

It's fruitless, frankly, to speculate on some universal truth of how genetics work in D&D. The answer is entirely dependent on the setting or game world developer(s).

Seems fine to me. Concentration is a pretty big limitation if the Char either 1) plans on continuing as a wizard, and or 2) intends to use said cantrip in melee. Looking at some similar spells: Guidance, by comparison, applies to a much wider variety of rolls even if it only applies once; and...

I would tend to say: Don't worry too much about specific numbers of foes. Improvise a few swarm-type stat blocks that represent different numbers of enemies. If you want it super-quick - use only one "swarm" creature and up or downgrade it based on the number of creatures that can reach the...

Of course, the original wizard class back from AD&D - the Magic-User - was deliberately intended to encompass the conceptual space of "witch". Given that several spellcasters (very particularly the warlock) continue to appeal to the archetype, I maintain that it would be better to find ways to...

Some homebrew spells I use in my games that might be tangentially appropriate: Rend - Bard, Cleric, Druid, Sorcerer, Warlock, Wizard Transmutation cantrip (Note: gets around Eldritch Knight school restrictions because it isn't a leveled spell) Casting time: 1 action Range: Normal weapon reach...

What makes a spellcaster "witchy" is their motivation, methodology, and personal style. Not their base skillset. What differentiates an hunter or soldier from a villain in a slasher movie is their choice of prey...plus maybe some scarring, deformity, and history of inbreeding. You have all...

It is quite easily possible to make a warlock that doesn't use Elrdritch Blast - making use of cantrips like Toll the Dead or Infestation for example. Or making melee attacks with a pact weapon (possibly in the form of talons). They will inflict less damage than other casters, sure, but...

Frankly, ALL the primary casting classes work just fine for evoking the witch fantasy archetype (bard maybe a little less so than the others IMO).

Hags IMO have traditionally been creature types that do NOT want to fight the PCs directly in combat. They tend to have powers of illusion and trickery - they'll try to corrupt or kill the PCs through deceit. For example, appearing as an injured peasant and trying to send the PCs off into...

I regularly include monsters or encounters that are highly lethal if not unwinnable. I feel that this enhances backstory, immersion, drama, and range of challenges. My general rule of design is as follows: 1) Information that the PCs are outmatched should be reasonably available (i.e. clues...

Categorically awful. Poorly written, poorly organized, poorly thought out, poorly implemented. Toxic for AL membership. Organization: Information spread over multiple documents, requires referencing multiple tables, expects PCs to be able to access books such as the DMG that were not...

I like the imagery, personally, of a fire-breathing cat or bird. And from a balance perspective there's not a hugely significant trade-off between letting a familiar use it and letting an animated corpse or tiny servant use it. From a DM perspective of course, I think it's entirely fair and...

Presuming you're DM? As written? Seems incredibly powerful for the right character. And limited...so works just fine. Maybe add in a fishy aftertaste, a craving for olives, and/or rippling forearms if you feel the need to egg.

So...just something to keep in mind: At level 6, the max skill bonus a non-rogue or bard will likely have is +7. If the DC is consistently 15, then the chance of failing is 35%. Which means that MORE THAN HALF THE TIME, with maximum skills, your party will get the 3 fails before they succeed...

One way to present magical bloodline transformation would be to start introducing bits of lore about "blood magic". An evil caster the PCs defeat might have a treatise on it; other works might be found in an ancient library or treasure trove. The PCs might encounter a mage headed or giving a...