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I found D&D at a church garage sale. Moldvay Red Box. This would have been late 90s. My folks never had any problem with it. My friends and I even played at lunch at school. Ah, elementary school...

I expect the latter, simply due to logistics. It would take days and days to check every single Monster Manual that's being shipped out, especially if only a tiny fraction of them are affected. Although I guess most of the people who would nerd rage over it being late already own it...

I'm not sure where they said it, but the designers said the XP progression is deliberately not linear. The game puts up a few speedbumps at levels where the game dramatically changes once you pass them. Of course, as a DM, you're free to change that to suit your needs.

Yes. The bard in my game has this. She inflicts it on powerful enemies whenever she can. The fact that it has no initial save makes it very powerful. This is a must-have for any NPC caster who thinks they might get into combat. I'll add one or two of my own: Heroes' Feast: This spell now...

As one of the lucky MM owners, I can say that the salamander was one of my favorite pieces in the book. Ever since a 3rd Edition campaign which featured salamanders as a major villain, I've had a soft spot for those monsters. And you've hit just the right tone of regal menace and bestial fury...

I would rule the same way. For most intents and purposes, suppressing the magic achieves the desired effect of bypassing a challenge, but doesn't undo it forever. So if the PCs suppress the ward, then have to return later, they'd have to suppress it again. Counter-magic should be a viable...

"Because different sources of AC don't stack." That's where it ends. It's just as easy to explain it in 5th Edition. You and I like very different things in our gaming. You can have all the fiddly bits you want, I'm glad to be rid of them myself.

They don't have the types because none of them stack. It must have been a nightmare for 3.5 designers when they wanted to make a new feat or class that affected AC; they would have to go through everything with a fine-tooth comb to make sure it wouldn't break the game. And sometimes they'd...

Part of that has to do with lower AC values overall, which is hard to do if you can stack a dozen different bonuses. Any tools to help flesh out a character more are just fine in my books. Players who know what they're doing can just breeze on past backgrounds, while players who don't have a...

That sounds like an amazing session with some very imaginative play! Thanks for sharing the story!

Yes. I've been running two groups at high levels. The first group is a homebrew game. We've hit level 12. The PCs have been levelling at an increased pace so we can get through more levels and try things out. We have a bard in that one, and cutting words is a very effective power. Our...

Healing-rich party is definitely going to impact this. I've played in a couple of groups recently without any main healer, and this goes quite differently. As for the strategy, maybe the players just haven't seen the point yet? If they sneak up on a group, do they get a surprise round? If...

While playtesting, I had a brush between an angry purple worm and my 4th level party. The bard was restrained by roots, and the warlock stepped up beside him to help defend. The warlock cast Cause Fear! The worm rolled a 15, just enough to hit his save! The bard used cutting words, and the...

On the topic of Blingdenstone, I think it would be a great adventure with minimal tweaks. The suggestions up the thread are good; try the orcs at the recommended number and see if you need to add some or remove some. On another note, I'd strongly suggest taking a look at the updated Chapter 3...

I completely agree. The more I play 5th Edition, the more I appreciate the thought that went into things like 'bonus actions' and 'reactions. They way the action economy works really helps to prevent stacking things that would break the game, and to keep things moving at a good pace.

The ready action works a little different than it used to now. Notice that when you ready, you're spending your action. When the action triggers, you also spend your reaction. 5th Edition definitely wants to keep people from messing around with the initiative order too much. Well, except for...

I'm not a weapons expert, but I thought falchion was a big, heavy curved blade? It doesn't seem like the sort of weapon to be a finesse weapon.

Cannot XP, could someone get Thaumaturge for me? Great report. It's really interesting to see the breakdown like this. CON saves will be frequent from negative energy attacks, that is a certainty. But it also comes from poisons; there are lots of snakes, spiders, yuan-ti, etc in the second...

If there's no danger anywhere nearby, I'd just allow the PCs to eventually batter down the door. No roll required. Or maybe one roll to see 'how long it takes' (higher result means less time and noise). As the DM, you know what sort of creatures are nearby who might hear the noise and come to...

Am I the only one who thinks most of those miniatures are hideous? The poses are so bland, the detail is nowhere to be found, and the paint jobs are half-hearted at best... The only ones I'd even consider looking at would be the dragons, and I'll reserve judgement till I can see one up close...