Search results

Games are supposed to tell you what way to play. If you didn’t want to change the way you were playing, why would you need different rules?

“Leader” probably isn’t the best word, but the intentions for the role are clear if you interpret the term with even the slightest bit of charity. Saying “a leader role class must be bossing around other players” is a choice, and not anchored in trying to meet a game where it is.

Warders from the Wheel of Time immediately come to mind. I mean, mixing up the "martial bodyguard of a physically weak mage" trope and the "trained witch hunter" trope makes tons of sense for any D&D-type setting with factions of mages. Making it a paladin subclass is just D&Ding the concept...

Changeling, Half-Elf, Halfling.

Aesthetic preferences are what they are, of course. But speaking just for myself, those moments of collaboration, where everyone is invested and participating in the fate of one character, are some of my favorite aspects of play. But, even in trad games like D&D, I've realized over the years...

So when you say "writer's room-y", do you mean it was the collaborative nature of the resolution that was problematic, as opposed to leaving the result of the narration up to just the impacted player and the GM? I've seen the same criticism of cooperative games like Pandemic, where everyone's...

There's a big difference between giving agency towards what kind of scene will be presented versus how the scene will be resolved. Many games and playstyles give the former, far less the latter.

<raises hand> I love 4e, and I'm ride-or-die for Skills and Powers 2e.

On top of spaghetti, all covered with cheese.

Looks pretty awesome. I’m on board with turning it into an isekai-type situation.

Yep. Dissatisfaction with Vancian casting was pretty rampant in 3e’s heyday in the mid-00s. It’s why you saw so much experimentation with casting mechanics in 3.5 supplements. The warlock, the spirit shaman, and the beguiler were all examples of the designers to see how far the boundaries of...

I’d like to introduce you to my friend Spherical Cow.

I'm talking about the 1989 PHB, the one with the fighter charging with the orange-y background. I don't have it handy, but I remember it having like at least 8-10 different full page color art work. I think this one is the most famous.

The real flaw with the "Dex save as a quick dodge" narration is that doesn't also cause a reposition if you're playing on a grid.

Yea, I think we’re just diametrically opposed on this. My first RPG book was the 2e PHB; when I read the 1e PHB a few years later I found the black-and-white sketches actively offputting.

OK @dave2008 those are fighting words! 2e PHB art is the best of D&D!

Not to distract from the thread, but the easiest way to do this is simply decouple the idea of the stats representing a unified system of measuring capacity between individuals of vastly different species. Basically, a Str 14 human and a Str 14 giant wouldn't be equally strong. They simply...

Like: D&D has continually evolved towards delivering its desired form: a game about empowering players to build detailed, specific fantasy heroes and then demonstrate their competence in planned story arcs. Dislike: The game has continually changed how it wishes to frame encounters and...

It's like you read my mind.