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I really enjoy the 13th Age method. The beauty of it is that it's managed by the group. When you make your case for how your background applies, the other players (including DM) will either all nod their heads or roll their eyes. It's socially regulated. And it's fun. I remember, in a 13th Age...

Smart, cautious players should have no trouble with HotDQ.

I like the notion/precedent. Not every synonym for "weapon" needs its own stat block. No need for "falchion", "falcata", "lucerne hammer", and so on and so on. The implication being that if you're enough of a weapons nerd to know about the more obscure weapons, the game trusts you enough to...

Go old school, and encourage the players to hire henchmen. Noncombatants (unless forced) who can tend to wounds after the battle. This works especially well if one of the PCs has the Noble background: one of the retainers can be an acolyte with herbalism skill and minor clerical powers (spare...

Necessary? No. All you really need is the PHB (or Basic/Starter), as that book contains the core mechanics. What dice do, how to make attacks, how skills work, etc. The other books are optional. Personally, I hardly ever reference the DMG. I started with 1st edition ("Basic" and "Expert" D&D...

What you're suggesting is essentially a static "save vs attack." One of my many homebrew systems explored that option; I wanted high level fighters to be harder to hit than low level fighters. For combat skill to have an impact on defense, in other words. Trying to model the whole clifftop duel...

Different folks have different experiences. :) I'm SCA, I've slept in chainmail (too tired to take it off). But again: other folks certainly have had different experiences. And you should totally try it some day. That's what's so great about this modern era: chain is readily available on the...

I think it'd be cool if the traps, undead, and other monsters were put in place by the active temple's ancestors. This lost temple was sealed and deliberately lost, and never intended to be found. Those obstacles were put there not only to keep intruders out, but to keep something in. So, as...

I'm surprised by this observation! I too like martial characters, and I'm loving 5e. Give another long look at Fighting Styles, and to multiclassing. Some fun stuff to be had by adding a dash of barbarian or rogue to a fighter. Or a dash of fighter to a barbarian or rogue. For example, try...

I'm playing in a twice-monthly Horde of the Dragon Queen game, and a twice-monthly 5E reskin of White Plume Mountain. So far, White Plume has been a cakewalk. We're all 30+ year D&D veterans--we scout with Familiars, probe floors with 10' poles, search EVERYTHING for traps, etc.--but I suspect...

I think that's the biggest advantage of this format. Make the KINGDOM the PC, not the individual characters. When (not if) that Paladin dies, advance the timeline by X years and keep going. That's what I was getting at in my initial post in this thread. Make the game about more than individual...

Makes sense to me, Kobold Stew. I like the simplicity. This doesn't need its own subsystem, any more than there needs to be a cooking check. :) In actual practice, I bet most games treat this issue the same they treat ammunition. It doesn't really matter, until it does. And when it does matter...

I hear you. I think we're talking about different scale, though. At army-level scale (in terms of both size/number of individuals, and timeframe/weeks on campaign trail) then I totally agree with you: sleeping in plate armor isn't feasible. However, on adventuring-party scale--2 or 3 people...

Actually, Sacrosanct, Half Orc is a pretty solid Druid build. Relentless Endurance is an amazing combo with Wild Shape. :p More to the point, though: I think what he disagreed with was the OP asked for an effective build, and your initial comment kind of pooh-poohed min/maxing by painting a...

Our barbarian accepted the challenge. But lost initiative, and was chopped down in the first round (crit, then regular hit). If he could have raged, that would have helped. But that's why the init roll is so important. The rest of the party rushed out and healed him. And the defeat made the...

You need to read more Tolkien. :) His elves are portrayed as master smiths, healers, artisans, composers and builders. Their civilization is the height of craftsmanship, learning and enlightenment. Tolkien elves are loremasters without peer. An elf forged the Rings of Power. An argument can be...

I'd look at history for inspiration. Plenty of examples of medieval conflict where the combatants are, if not Good, not overtly Evil. How about a nation where the king dies, with no wife, no siblings, and no heir. The rules of succession are vague. The king's two uncles both want the throne...

If you take a reaction, you can't take another until the start of your next turn. PHB p190. So, you stab the first kobold, then the others get through. Just another example of 5E's clever mechanics. I really appreciate the thought put into this game.

EDIT: Double post

Talk to some service members, and ask them if they've ever slept in their body armor. :) Of course it's not ideal. Plate, in particular, is uncomfortable when prone (depending on construction). But it's certainly possible to sleep in plate armor, for a short stretch of time (a night or two)...