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I've found that players will want to use perception for everything that someone may think would be an investigation check. Unless of course they trained in investigation, and then they will want to use that instead of perception. I've simplified my life by removing the investigation skill and...

These things were looked at in the play test. Battlemasters (weaponmasters in the playtest) had 2 d6 superiority dice at level 3 and only had 3 maneuvers (no choices). They also got better maneuvers once they hit level 7. It looks like after feedback they decided to give a more/larger dice and...

I've tried to think of ways to make int more appealing as a stat as well. One of my house rules was to remove the investigation skill but let players use Int for their perception skill if they want. I've thought about letting the players use Int for their initiative bonus, but my players...

It could be a stand alone adventure for a higher level party. The original Ravenloft was made as a one session adventure played on Halloween. I was going to run the original Ravenloft for my home game before I found out about CoS. I would think the players should be level 8 or so before...

Why only compare damage? There are pros and cons to any subclass decision. Your Eldritch Knight is fine. Get the SCAG and get cantrips that you can actually use for your knight during combat.

I had not seen that thread, but I like the sound of it. I also wanted the tome to be more important than just having a page to read. I thought about randomizing some of the vampire powers and letting the tome tell you what vampire strengths/weaknesses Strahd has. If sunlight just made Strahd...

That's cool. As far as I know this is the first time they've done that. I'd like to have NPC cards for my CoS game.

That's a lot of re-rolling when you have multiple attacks with 2d6 damage. You can do what you want at your table, but trying to balance style damage based on using a longsword in two hands for great weapon fighting style sounds like a bad idea for trying to balance the weapon styles. If you...

Defensive style works with every other fighting style because it's not dependent on weapon types or a shield. It's not a bad idea to start with that and figure out what you want for a weapon style later. The defensive style is rather boring however. One good thing about great weapon fighting...

I'd agree with that. The dueling style would probably not get picked very often unless it's at a table that enforced the 'free hand to cast' rule for spells that have somatic and material component requirements. +2 to damage and -2 to AC (or more if you have a magic shield) is not very...

Ok, now I see what you are saying. I would agree that someone trained in the dueling style and the great weapon fighter style should keep a longsword in one handed fighting and should go with actual two handed weapons when they want to maximize damage over protection. Each fighting style has...

Why does that not make sense? Someone trained as a duelist who can do more damage when using the weapon as they are trained to use it should make sense. A rogue does more damage with a dagger than they do with a maul, and that makes sense in the game as well. Unless you are a small race you...

I don't like fights that are just for the sake of fighting. My games tend to be more story oriented and less combat focused. I like your idea of having a 'random' encounter be more of a mini-dungeon like a guarded bridge or coming across a small tower while traveling. That gives us a chance to...

I don't want my players to pick the 'correct' race to go with their class. At character creation I let my players move one stat point from a racial bonus to another stat (that does not already have a racial bonus). I figure that any character that becomes a class that is not 'optimal' for their...

There must be a 'how to exploit the rules with immovable rods' that this guy read. As people have mentioned: enforce the 'action to activate' rule. It could be that it's not just pressing a button at the correct time while swinging the rod around as a weapon. It could take careful placement or...

I'm not a fan of STR bows. Thrown weapons are what STR characters use. Just like how dex based weapon users can not use certain weapons, STR based weapon users have some weapons they are better suited for. Weapons are balanced by different criteria. It's part of the class balance of the game...

When I first read the text on dueling style I thought it meant no weapon on shield in the off hand. I could see DMs that think it's too powerful saying that the off hand must be empty. Of course, then it would suck compared to two weapon fighting style that can add about 4-9 more points of...

Dueling style makes fighting with one one-handed weapon not suck. Great Weapon Fighting style makes a damaging weapon more damaging for those can use fighting styles. I'm not sure why you want to compare using a longsword with both styles to determine what does more damage. Great Weapon...

As far as 'fun', you could think about your background story and how it can tie into the campaign. I'm playing with just two players, so one of my players is taking the place of an important NPC in the story and is looking for her mentor. My other player is the reincarnation of a historical...

I was thinking about this too. With such a small number of drinkable people (Strahd does not drink from those who have no souls), I would think he would be very protective of his herd. I would also think he would not be likely to let many vampire spawn live so he has no competition. I also...