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First off, thank you. I wrote it in a spirit of good faith, and I'm gratified it has been received that way. I hope we can keep that tone. By no means do I think you have to completely divorce yourself from the fiction until the very end, just as I would not ignore mechanics in determining...

The story arises when we see what happens, but there is more than one way to go about that process. Namely, both the means and the effects contribute. Determining which of these is "logically prior" to the other when resolving actions with respect to the fiction makes a key difference, I...

Part two of Colin's Complete Book of Elves apology. Main points: the first apology (and to a lesser extent this one) was supposed to be a parody of the self-important designer that can't take criticism, as a young designer he had more enthusiasm than knowledge, and he promises never to write it...

Given the highly contentious nature of the paladin's code (in the abstract, in a given campaign, between different characters, as interpreted by different players/DM) and the strongly differing opinions about whether following such a code should entail greater mechanical abilities or not, I feel...

The current version of Cure Wounds already embraces the notion of casting in higher level slots for more healing. Would giving the spell touch range and building "distance spell" right into the spell for +1 or +2 levels be an acceptable compromise? Or perhaps it is the one that leaves neither...

Thanks! I feel like there is room with some of these systems (basically any of them with a decent recharge method) to find a good compromise on global vs. fighter-only maneuvers, especially common ones like disarm, etc. One of the complaints WotC wanted to address in the latest packet is some...

How about a mix of new and old? Call the dice "Combat Rhythm" or something, and let the fighter risk some (or none, or all) of them on maneuvers each round. (I see it as a mix of fatigue and inspiration/momentum.) If the maneuver is successful the die or dice are retained for the next round...

I just logged in anyway and it is there. 032013 Edit: It's OK Rune, I was ninja'd by an entire thread! :)

For a class name I like Champion the best of all those I've heard so far. To champion a cause, and take an oath to that effect. Suggests heroic (as in "powerful") capacity, but not necessarily heroic (as in "good") intent or means. I made a 3.5 homebrew class called the Partisan, a name I...

The usage that seems most natural to me is a resource that refreshes every encounter, but the degree to which it refreshes can be indicative of "daily" abilities. In the context of the OP, after one runs a marathon one's burstiness in a later encounter is reduced compared to the start of the...

A potentially novel twist on these kinds of systems entered my head earlier this week. Rather than define fixed quantities of fatigue or wound points that can be lost, let this abstract damage accumulate until either the attacker or defender wants to try and turn a particular attack into a...

For those put off about the insincere nature of the apology, it may help to know it is listed as "Colin's Apology (Part 1)" in the actual Kickstarter update. I suspect you may get something a bit less snarky before too long. In fact, we have this post from McComb at RPG Codex (you know, the...

Huh? The target demographic for this game is precisely those CRPGers who know what Planescape: Torment is, and therefore necessarily know about Planescape. That is practically the pitch. (And as the Kickstarter project that has reached a million dollars fastest, apparently a very successful...

I definitely agree. It's simple, formally puts duration into the player's control, but should also help to keep the incentives of player and character largely in sync. It also seems like a nice mechanical theme for a larger collection of rages. I mean, various rages could be written that last...

I could quibble with the numbers, but I think the basic separation into known spells, prepared spells, and spell "slots" is a great compromise between traditional Vancian and D&D-style spontaneous casting. It's not because I think any particular balance of preparation and spontaneity is...

By preparing and casting it every day, like any other spell? I mean, why are devils only able to cast it once per year? Just about the only thing everyone agrees on is that unlimited wishes are a bad idea, but the details of the restrictions are pretty much arbitrary, leaving DMs free to...

OK, the 12/17 playtest has our first glimpse at 5e Wish, the tricky spell par excellence. The devs are clearly trying a new way through this thicket by introducing a new approach to disincentivizing its use by preventing further spell-casting and reducing strength while also leaving the...

TL;DR: I try to express the heart of the opportunistic/improvisational rogue by introducing two new resources: wits (tactical, rounds to minutes) and schemes (strategic, hours to days and up). The rogue may maintain a limited number of both, and may introduce new ones as soon as old ones are...

What about some variation on the following simple rule? AC - "Armor Class", what an attack must roll to damagingly (to the wearer) hit armor. RC - "Resist Class", what an attack must roll to ignore armor resistance. Hits below RC do half damage. Example: Joe the Fighter has AC 15 and RC 18...

I don't have much to add to the Beyond the Stars discussion, but I will say that "virtually incomprehensible" can be much more terrifying than incomprehensible. Almost incomprehensible can be the horror equivalent of having a word on the tip of your tongue and failing to find it. It is the...