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Is anyone else disturbed that a coup de grace only does max weapon damage? I understand, from a game balance issue why this is the case. I even think it's reasonable in the context of a battle. But outside a combat a sleeping enemy should just be put down, no rolls. BTW - sleeping oozes...

Conceptually, I don’t see the problem with heavily/powerfully armed merchants travelling from PoL to PoL. In fact, it’s a great adventure hook. Merchants are interested in money, not doing good, which makes the world a dark place for more than one reason – not only are there monsters, cultists...

No where did I say 'a failure of any sailing roll will lead to utter ship annihilation and TPK' this is absurd. Can you really not see that other possibilities might exist here?

Whatever the situation in which the DM would like the PCs to be involved and for which he thinks sailing is a relevant skill. Ship to ship combat comes to mind but there could be others especially in a sailing-themed campaign. Suppose the PCs want to bring a ship in close to the shore yet the...

Allocating precious system resources to an HR skill is exactly what I am NOT suggesting. Exactly.

Yes, cutting players out of the game is not desirable, that's not what I am suggesting. If sailing plays a major part in the campaign, as the OP suggested, then all of the characters should be able to participate one would think. However, if sailing is only a minor part of the game, one or two...

The OP concern was that if he had a campaign based on sailing and he needed a system to make sure characters could: keep the ship on course in a storm, tie down battered wrigging, navigate to the lost isle, etc. and how to separate characters who can from those who can't. DM has to be careful...

I don't really see that as a potential problem, it's a bit of a straw man IMO. If I did decide to game with bunch of munchkins, I'd simply say 'no, if your father was a ninja master, then that's good justification for taking the sneak skill - the background driven sytem is meant to address...

I would imagine that the core rulebooks will address ‘ad hoc’ skills. If it were my game, I’d determine if each PC had ‘sailing merit’ based on the background information of his character. If he did, he would be able to use his STR, DEX, CON et al. vs. the DC of a sailing related challenge...

IMO The name Winterhaven originated literally – the farmers would gather in the lee of its walls each winter. Now that the area is more established, not everyone shelters there each winter (it’s far too populated now) but the walls are maintained as a defense against a major catastrophe. The...

From: Medieval Demographics http://www.io.com/~sjohn/demog.htm Population density for an agrarian society vaguely modeled on Medieval Europe would range from 30 to 120 people per square mile. Assuming Winterhaven falls somewhere in between that, the population listed roughly covers about...

Just as the default fighter was a man in armour and shield with a sword, but there certainly was never a stipulation that one had to play them that way. I hope and think it's going to be the same way in 4e.

Laser beams out of an arse would be silly, if that were the power description. Fortunately it's not; instead a cleric uses radiant energy which might take the form of sunlight, dark mist, blue-greenish waves, purple haze or pies. I think I understand your point – that clerics look just like...

Encumberance isn’t the most fun part of the game; in fact it ranks right up there with tracking arrows, cp and cleaning up the Taco Bell at the end of the night. However, I think it’s a necessary evil – it rewards players who plan well and prevents others from taking advantage of the system...

Don't forget the most important step: 5.a Success leads to X Failure leads to Y I find it helpful to have a clear idea of what the end result of the challenges are before I begin. If I can't clearly define a reward (or more commonly a penalty for failure) then I don't think it's...

\ True that. I read the whole page - I've got a soft spot in this chest cavity for the old school so I really enjoyed it, especially the bit about the (lack of) skills mechanics. When I was a kid I remember thinking D&D was sooo cool because my character could do anything to accomplish his...

There is no necessity in creating special rules for solo encounters. In fact, because of the high capability of a 1st level 4e character, it is EXCEPTIONALLY unnecessary to have to suppliment their ablilities. Perhaps give the PC use of an adventure appropriate (i.e. not random) magic item or...

This is good fluff, hope something like this is in the MM and their extistence as Epic-Level threats is justified by more than just numbers. The problem of flufflessness seems to be persistent which may be a good sign- they are simply showing us how the monsters work mechanically and saving the...

Completely agree. Also (This is my speculation -I'm sorry if this has been mentioned before on the thread) but there are going to be at least 8 power sources, and if trends prevail about 2.75 classes per source. Meaning that by the time all of the power sources are revealed there might be at...

Good Thread Couldn't agree more. IMO D&D is following in the footsteps of the Star Trek films franchise, roughly every other one being crap. I Hope 4e continues the trend. One of the things I love about 4e is that it appears monsters will be more viable choices at at a wider range of...