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Actually, the DMG (1&2) are better resources for ad hoc monster design than the MMs (which have good examples, but don't really give explanations and formulas for how those examples were arrived at). My recommendation for a bare-bones 4e experience would be PHB1, DMG1 and a 1 months...

I'm not sure this is true, primarily because I'm not sure there is a "basic grind problem". Just from this thread, it seems that for many DMs grind is, at worst, an occasional problem based on individual circumstances (missing players, bad dice rolls, party composition) or individual player...

If a fight is interesting, I'm not sure there is a real world time limit on how long it should take. I think tolerance for RW timing will vary from group to group. I think the main real world time factor is how long players have to wait between taking turns. If a player is waiting more than 5...

I noticed in the other thread, the one this discussion was forked from, that someone was complaining about grindy combats in RPGA events. This doesn't surprise me at all, since most of the organized play events I've experienced with 4e have had a mix of people who have never played together...

I have also had that happen on occasion, but I try to plan a way to get around it for exactly this reason. For example, if the PCs foil an assassination attempt, the day doesn't end there. They might do a skill challenge to find more information, then go investigating in a dangerous part of town...

I think the biggest problem in the EWs is that people who dislike a game enough that they no longer play it continue to complain about it. When I played 3e, I complained about the things I didn't like and felt entitled to do so. As soon as I left 3e for other games, I didn't feel entitled to...

The only times I've encountered a problem with grind in 4e have been when 1) The players are new and aren't familiar with how to use their powers synergistically with each other; and 2) on the 5th or 6th encounter between extended rests when everyone has used their daily powers, most of their...

Definitely. The first or second encounter after an extended rest is often fun, but not particularly difficult for the PCs. The 3rd and subsequent encounters are often nail biters. If my players chose to only have one encounter between extended rests, the game would become very boring, very...

That's the wrong analogy. Shouting at the local pizza place management would be like writing nasty letters to the WotC designers and managers. It might not have a huge chance of success, but at least there's some constructive activity involved. Edition warring is like going to stand in the...

Here's another vote for Edition Wars having no redeeming qualities other than some occasionally entertaining interludes. If publishers are making design decisions based on some of the ridiculous hyperbole intrinsic to the EWs, the RPG industry is doomed, DOOMED I SAY!!!!!

If a PC has so much loot he needs a mule to carry it, then it seems to me that said PC isn't really at the point where he's "ekeing" out a living anymore. In fact, I officially dub this Ourph's Roleplaying Truism #1... "At the point where your PC needs a mule to haul his loot around, it becomes...

Yeah, because it would be absolutely impossible for someone to recreate the mechanical aspects of an out-of-print edition using the OGL as a starting point... *cough* OSRIC/Labyrinth Lord/Swords & Wizardry/BFRPG *cough*. :p

I'm also doing to suggest BFRPG at higher levels. Swords & Wizardry at higher levels might fit the bill too (ascending AC is optional). Both of those trade a little bit on the "PCs feel mechanically different" front. I would be wary of suggesting WFRP 2e. It's a great game, but it relies almost...

To be clear, the post I was responding to postulated a hypothetical situation in which the use of the word "videogamey" was intentionally used as an insult to people who play the game by the person using the term.

Well, as far as I'm concerned the rules already give me plenty of guidance for adjudicating a situation like that. That's one of the strengths of having a toolkit approach. It's difficult to make money selling magic items when you have to pay full price to create them and can only sell them at...

If I'm not mistaken, there are quite a few of those already around. A lot of Wondrous Items qualify in this respect. I'm sure we'll continue to see more and more of them as the game gets expanded. Here you're going beyond just including more items in the game, you're completely going against...

I think the problem that some people are having is that so many of the examples being given as "something we'd like to see" are either 1) already present in the rules (sailing ships) or 2) are easily approximated by just reducing the price of something already in the books (ex: Why can't a mule...

Your face is video-gamey. :p

It's not contrary to my point at all. Note that I said we shouldn't use our emotional responses to justify retaliation. However, the forum rules don't say "Ignore any insults directed your way. You should just force yourself to not have an emotional response to them." because that's not a...

Is there some reason you can't just use the stats and cost for a Riding Horse (in the PHB)? The main differences between a mule and a riding horse are 1) Mules are slightly shorter than horses, but weight for weight about as strong; 2) Mules aren't as fast as horses; 3) Mules will stop working...