Against the Giants 5e PBP (Full)

[Snarf Zagyg]

I've said it before in many-a-thread, but the main thing that they wanted out of backwards compatibility is to have their back catalogue of adventures to run smoothly, and for the game to "feel" essentially the same. I think that they achieved it. Also, I've found that it's pretty darn easy to just "use what you like" - if you don't like the new rule (whatever it is) just keep using the old one. As long as the table understands what you're up to, it really doesn't matter much. Heck, I personally don't think it matters all that much if you're even consistent with whether you use an old rule or a new one, but that opinion could be controversial.

For our purposes here, I'd like to try to use as much new as possible, but if we find too many grindy points, we can use the old rules to fill in the gaps.

I'd agree. I've only been poking around since yesterday, and I think that the following two statements can be true:

1. It can be very difficult to get the exact same concept you could with 5e14. Mostly because 5e14 had a lot of expansions in the last ten years that you could use.

2. The 5e24 rules let you do a lot of things with just the base rules that make it interesting to use. It's the same, but also different.

I am looing more at trying to match the gestalt at this point (reborn, Sheriff patron, uses gun as a pact weapon, etc.) than the specific numbers or rules, and that's fun! Doc 2.0: 2Doc 2Furious.

 

[Steve Gorak]

I would like them to be the same characters, but it's not strictly necessary. If you want to play someone other than Gimlak, that's okay - there's plenty of reason to believe that someone else might join up to help out during the time we skip. I'm also happy to give over any named NPCs to "graduate" to PC status - though if you want to play a spellcaster, we haven't introduced any of those as NPCs.

You could also swap out Gimlak's magic item for something that follows the new rules, or we could ignore that little inconsistency and just give him medium armor training. (I believe that the new rules have it so that you could theoretically have paid an NPC to teach you using downtime, which we can handwave as having happened somewhere during his lower level adventures).

Ok cool. I really like Gimlak as a character so I’ll stick with him, and I’ll highlight anything that needs special treatment like the armor thing.
Cool beans!
Cheers,

Sg

 

[Snarf Zagyg]

I'm going to share some notes on my rebuild (just completed, I think... may tinker with one thing)...

1. I ended up with fewer skills, but that may just be because some of my prior choices (Phantom Rogue, Hexblade) came with skills. I can't say that this is an accurate observation, but it seems like 5e24 has more of a premium on getting skills?

2. The origin feats are interesting, but limited and too few (IMO). I have the feeling that they will be expanding the list. I love that they have origin feats now, but I think that this is one area to watch- people are going to want more, and if they don't pay attention, this will lead to power creep quickly.

3. I kept to the subclasses offered in the PHB (swapped hexblade for fiend patron and phantom rogue for assassin rogue). I think that the following two things are true- first, that 5e24 is ... good. The reworking of the 5e chassis has improved a lot of things, and it is a lot cleaner- they saw what worked, and what didn't, and made good changes. However, 5e14 had 10 years of expansion material - from Tasha's to all the changes and options in various books, and 5e24 doesn't have that. Yet. Which means that there can be some frustrating gaps- but it's not fair to compare 5e24 to 5e14 with all materials. 5e24 is, IMO, much better than 5e14 PHB only.

 

[TaranTheWanderer]

Any thoughts on what I should do with Donnell?

Original character is level 2 rogue/4 fighter dragon herald

Feats:
shield Master
Dungeon Delver
Skillmaster (or whatever it's called) expertise athletics and a rank in Religion

It's a weird mix.
He's got shield master but it doesn't work well with the cunning action bonus action.
He's a theify rogue but is a herald with persuasion so, to me, he's going to be a leader one day.
He's supposed to be a skirmisher. Which was, likely, going to be my rogue archetype.

Not sure how to set him up, really. If I'm rebuilding, I may get rid of the trip and focus more on the skirmisher abilities. Besides, tripping doesn't work well with our ranged characters. I think we definitely need a rogue in the party????

5 levels of fighter and 5 levels of rogue is my thought for a rebuild.

 

[Snarf Zagyg]

I think we definitely need a rogue in the party????

5 levels of fighter and 5 levels of rogue is my thought for a rebuild.

HEY! I'm right here!

Ahem. For rogue, the PHB 5e24 archetypes are assassin, arcane trickster, soulknife, and thief. I think thief is probably the best of those for general purpose roguing.

As for the fighter? EK and Psi Warrior are already covered (trying to avoid too much spellcasting, and we already have psionics in the party). Which leaves BM and Champion. How complex do you want you Fighter to be?

(If that doesn't sound appealing, you can always look at Ranger/Paladin instead of fighter?)

 

[TaranTheWanderer]

HEY! I'm right here!

oh, yeah. oops, sorry!

Ahem. For rogue, the PHB 5e24 archetypes are assassin, arcane trickster, soulknife, and thief. I think thief is probably the best of those for general purpose roguing.

As for the fighter? EK and Psi Warrior are already covered (trying to avoid too much spellcasting, and we already have psionics in the party). Which leaves BM and Champion. How complex do you want you Fighter to be?

(If that doesn't sound appealing, you can always look at Ranger/Paladin instead of fighter?)

I love magic users but I don't see Donnell with magic. Which kind of rules out paladin and ranger....

Battle Master works and straight Rogue/thief could work too. If I'm going skirmisher, I can probably find some good Battle Master techniques (or whatever they're called) that allow extra movement and can disarm/trip (to keep the shield master tripping theme. Plus whatever the new weapon abilities are.

 

[FitzTheRuke]

oh, yeah. oops, sorry!

I love magic users but I don't see Donnell with magic. Which kind of rules out paladin and ranger....

Battle Master works and straight Rogue/thief could work too. If I'm going skirmisher, I can probably find some good Battle Master techniques (or whatever they're called) that allow extra movement and can disarm/trip (to keep the shield master tripping theme. Plus whatever the new weapon abilities are.

Yeah, I think definitely play up the light skirmisher - it's not so much that his skill "level" will match his mentors, but he's slim, wiry, and lucky.

 

[TaranTheWanderer]

Yeah, I think definitely play up the light skirmisher - it's not so much that his skill "level" will match his mentors, but he's slim, wiry, and lucky.

LUCKY???

I guess I know what feat to take.

 

[Kobold Stew]

I've been quiet and thinking about this, but it's the end of a busy week and I'm ready to engage.

A few questions and comments for Group 2 (and please be careful for spoilers for Group 1, who haven't finished yet).

1) I know you all want to keep going, which I love - but please can we take a break until, say January, so I can catch up on a few of my other games? I'd appreciate it.

Perfect

2) I'd like to use 2024 Rules when we start up again. You okay with that?

Yes but see my next post.

3) Level 11 is getting pretty high for PBP - adjudicating spells and such can take a lot of time. Can you try to keep your characters simple when you rebuild them, in particular when it comes to things that fit poorly with PBP like Reaction abilities and features with a lot of moving parts, if you get what I mean. It can be as complicated as you like on YOUR end, but do your best to go easy on me. The exception, IMO, is Conjured Creatures like the recent Elemental. They're actually not that bad, as long as they don't have Reactions (see where I'm going?)

Deal.

4) On a purely aesthetic level: Should we start whole new thread(s) or just keep going with the ones we have? Any Opinion?

I think a new thread would be appropriate.

 

[Kobold Stew]

I am happy to continue playing the Colonel, but there are two major obstacles to updating him to 2024: he is (1) an Air Genasi (2) Tempest Cleric. Both species and subclass haven't been updated, and so while could use the old ones, that doesn't fully enter the spirit of updating to 2024.

Colonel was conceived as a melee cleric without any weapons. The closest way I can do that in 2024 that I can see is with an Elements Monk 3 (5?) -- that gives lightning and pusing -- and perhaps Light Cleric 6 (8). That would allow lightning pushes, and he could become human or goliath without loss of identity. Element Monk 11 work smoother and lets him fly, and I could give him an Acolyte background -- but that means losing all the cleric spells. Certainly some of the definitive moments in my nind hae been the casting of Banishment, which Monk 11 wouldn't allow. I could convince myself he's the same guy with either of these.

The alternative would be for the Old Man to retire, which I am fully prepared for. He was given the commission to supervise Donnell, and that's been done. He could leave the earth elemental necklace with someone and ride off into the sunset. The build challenge was completed and was fun, but I'm not wedded to seeing it forward.

I've got lots of 2024 characters I'd like to play, and some of them don't even involve illusion spells, rogue levels, or both (though so many do...) . I am happy to consider an alternative character coming in "fresh", to allow the Colonel to ride off into NPCdom. It could be a Cleric/Druid/Ranger if we felt we wanted a healer, or something else.

I welcome thoughts on how to proceed: I think either (a) a radical re-envisioning with monk levels or (b) new character are preferable to (c) continuing with legacy species and subclass, and I think the Colonel is at a nice end. But I'd like to keep playing.