4e A different type of disconnect??

[LostSoul]

Try any of that at a RPGA sanctioned event. What works in one's home game doesn't work at RPGA games nor would I expect at online DDI games. The whole point of 4e should be one set of rules that everyone can agree on.

I kind of agree...

The whole point of 4e should be a fun play experience.

I would not expect to do that sort of thing in an RPGA game. That's cool, because I've bought into what the RPGA is selling.

In a DDI game, I would want to talk to the DM about this sort of thing. Does he like it? Do I buy into what he likes? If not, that's cool, I'll play with someone else.

Same deal in a home game. Do I like what the other players like? Do we all want the same thing out of the game? If not, can we compromise? If not, that's cool, I'll play with someone else.

 

[theNater]

Tumbling once per encounter is a failure of 4e. So is not being able to trip someone until 18th-level.

I'm confused by the second part of this. Fighters can take a trip power at level 1, rogues and clerics each have one available at level 3, and rangers at level 7. Characters do not acquire powers at 18th level.

Can you clarify, please?

 

[garyh]

Love to hear some suggestions from other DMs on how they keep track of damage to a particular creature when they are using a mini with no number designation in a large scale combat. I know I get lost sometimes. It hasn't had a huge effect on the game, but it is a bit frustrating to have to keep careful track of all the movement when the minis look the same for multiple creatures. When I used numbers on a grid map, keeping track was much, much easier.

I started painting the bases different colors, and tried to vary the weapons. Warhammer legion packs are great for this, as they give you torsos, arms, heads, and legs you can assemble yourself to create lots of different orcs, for example, then you can paint them in varied schemes, including different color bases. "I'm attacking the orc with the axe and shield, yellow base." Very helpful in both 3.x and 4e for me and my group.

 

[racoffin]

And sometimes it doesn't help that minis are being used for battle. Minis have no numbers, so myself and the other DM sometimes make mistakes on who has been damaged and who hasn't in large combats because we don't recall what number a particular mini is.

Love to hear some suggestions from other DMs on how they keep track of damage to a particular creature when they are using a mini with no number designation in a large scale combat. I know I get lost sometimes. It hasn't had a huge effect on the game, but it is a bit frustrating to have to keep careful track of all the movement when the minis look the same for multiple creatures. When I used numbers on a grid map, keeping track was much, much easier.

We've used numbered chits or slips of paper slipped under the base of the mini or between its legs to keep track of them. Depending on the number of minis, we've also experimented with small colored glass beads (like those put in planters, some people use them as life counters in Magic, I believe) to indicate which mini is which. Poker chips of various colours can work as well, not only for keeping track of who is who, but also what effect/power/buff/etc that the individual is under the influence of. I believe at least one company, if not more, make something like this as well; poker chips are cheeper in large quantities, tho, and you can make your own colours.

If nothing else, you could always use a paint pen to put a number of the bottom of the mini's base, although some people may not want to mark up their minis like that. Hope this helps

 

[ProfessorCirno]

Celtavian - starting to see what I meant whenever I said "4e is just as complicated as 3.5, if not more so. It's just in different places" now? ;P

 

[Ginnel]

Running 4th seems to be easier for our group, its easier to tell since we're playing 2x 3.5 games and a 4th edition game at the moment (one 3rd ed and the 4th ed we're both at 2nd level and the other 3rd ed is 11-13th level)

4th edition low level is running as quick as 3rd edition low level, except in 4th there are more monsters about and players have more options.

Unfortunately I can't comment on high end play but the 3rd edition game we played had a 2 hour combat with 4 rounds in it the other day.

In terms of speeding up play and marking, hooped coloured paperclips have been a godsend (loop em round a figure for curse/mark) and players are responsible for keeping check of their own marks and any ongoing effects/damage they are taking (if the monsters take ongoing effects/damage the DM rights it on his paper next to its hit points). We have a large supply of minis so its generally not too bad differentiating, not sure how our current DM does it but our 3.5 DM has used dice or numbered post-it notes (small cut up ones ) to tell the difference between minis which look the same.

 

[Steely Dan]

1.) Each round is like being bookkeeper for some fast moving business that buys and sells every few seconds. I have to keep track of every marked target. I have to keep track of every spell that lasts more than one round. I have to keep track of temporary hit points, modifiers to each creature, temporary damage on multiple creatures, temporary effects on multiple creatures, when certain things are bloodied, recharge checks each round for a monster with a recharge power, whether or not the monster used his recharge or encounter power, action point expenditure, ammo expenditure, on top of the usual hit points.



2.) Whoever said running 4E is easier than 3.5 wasn't speaking from experience.

1.) Your players should be helping/keeping track of a lot of that as well.



2.) Please don't say that, your personal experience is not how it is, I have mass experience – been DMing (every edition) since 1987, and 4th Ed is easier to run than 3rd Ed, in my experience…see how that works?

But I do have a yearning to run a Basic, 1st or 2nd Ed campaign alongside my 4th Ed.

 

[Obryn]

Love to hear some suggestions from other DMs on how they keep track of damage to a particular creature when they are using a mini with no number designation in a large scale combat. I know I get lost sometimes. It hasn't had a huge effect on the game, but it is a bit frustrating to have to keep careful track of all the movement when the minis look the same for multiple creatures. When I used numbers on a grid map, keeping track was much, much easier.

I solve this by not using minis for monsters. For Keep on the Shadowfell, I am using the counters Fiery Dragon provided, free of charge. I printed them out on cardstock, using work's color laser printer, and cut them apart with my wife's scrapbooking paper cutter. I just write numbers in the circles provided.

For games after KotS, I expect I'll do the same stuff I did for 3.5, and the same stuff I do in WFRP2, SWSE, and all the other games I run - I'll cut out circles of paper (I have 1", 2", and 3" diameter craft hole punches that do this quickly & easily) and write numbers on them. It's not as visually cool, but I've found that having actual minis of creatures is more of a hassle than it's worth for all the reasons you mentioned.

-O

 

[Steely Dan]

It's not as visually cool, but I've found that having actual minis of creatures is more of a hassle than it's worth for all the reasons you mentioned.

While we always use some type of marker (lead/pewter minis, plastic crack or fruit etc), sometimes I find having miniatures can hinder the player's imagination, focusing on the piece of plastic/lead, so sometimes it can be even better to use a little square of card-board or something, give a juicy description of the monster, and the player's minds can fill in the rest.

And sometimes no mini in the world can do justice to your BBEG.

 

[Gentlegamer]

Personally I wouldn't let it work at all. Medieval lamp oil didn't burn anything like as well as petrol (I dislike how effective it is in 1e too, turning the game into Mazes & Molotovs)

Greek Fire most certainly could burn like that. But it wasn't lamp oil.