Felon said:
... If magic--to use Monte's turn of phrase--"took something away" from the genre in D&D by making raising the dead and curing maladies routine matters, it still does the same in AU. The ante is just somewhat higher. ...
Originally stated by Monte Cook
... Arcana Unearthed has the means to raise the dead, but they are not as common or simple as in other games.
seems to me like you're both saying the same thing. he said it'll be harder, you said it is harder. what's the issue?
... Well, Neg, I don't think I'll ever understand how a thread can't go one page without someone tossing out the dog-eared rule zero line, when A) contrary to claims to the otherwise, rule zero doesn't alleviate every problem, and B) the truth is it's often pretty irrelevant to the topic at hand.
...
and you may be right about that in some, maybe even a lot of those cases. however, in this specific case, the rule-zero is very relevant and does alleviate the problem. and it's "dog-eared" for a reason: it's useful, and it works.
... First off, people buy supplements to have content they can actually use. They don't buy books to turn around and not use what's in'em, and I don't think it's all that hard to understand why it's frustrating and wasteful when exactly that happens. ...
you've got a point here too, however, the reason it's hard to understand is (at least for me), your comments seem imply that because you can't use this specific content, the book isn't useful. and that's just not the case. the book is
very useful. it's just that part of it doesn't fit your taste.
... I bought AU with the hope that it would offer some cool new options that I didn't have the time to make up myself, or the resources to playtest them. ...
and does it? does it offer cool new options? i'd say it does, and in spades. a lot of others would likly agree, yourself included, i'd wager.
... If I don't like what Monte says the cost for hiring spells should be, I'm left to my own devices to figure it out. Again, I think it's too hard to understand why this is disappointing. ...
i'm going to assume that you meant that you "
don't think it's too hard to understand". fair enough. you don't like it, and that's disappointing. in fact, i think they're too low as well. here's what i'd do with it. assume that those are the prices for spells in the largest trading city in the world. each time the population halves, double the cost. as soon as the cost for a spell exceeds what a town can afford on its own the spell isn't available. not terribly elegant i admit, but i just came up with that off the top of my head.
... And then there's the fact that AU just isn't consistent with everything Monte said in the afore-posted quote. ...
i think
for the most part that this is a matter of opinion. still, it isn't too hard to see how someone can have hopes for something and then find out that the logistics of getting it done weren't what they anticipated. lots of people have grand plans that never really go how they expect when confronted with reality.
now, i'm not saying that this is the case in ever instance, or that Monte doesn't know how to do the things he claims. nor am i being contradictory. i am simply offering a possible explanation that is other than "he lied to us" for the things that may genuinely not have been not realised. (which is no better or worse than the other explanations, simply alternate.) for the record, i disagree that there are as many shortcomings as most people who've been vocal about them say.
... I should also point out that the marvels of rule zero are totally dependent upon the irrate gamer being the GM. You can't rule-zero other folks' campaigns. ...
quite right, you can't. but the GM has the right to tell the story he wants to. he also has the obligation to work with players so that everyone's happy, or at least most people. but in the end, it's still his/her story.
Other than the abilities described in the text, the relevant info from the chart is a medium (i.e., cleric) BAB, and good Fort and Ref slaves, bad Will save.
