Combats in 3.5/4E vs older editions

[Thanee]

Dunno, we had a combat with over 300 participants in 3.5 with three PCs at about 10th level also and it took only one game session with zero preparation involved.

Bye
Thanee

 

[Nikosandros]

It is a Fighter-only perk (as in, Paladins and Rangers don't get it.)

No. Paladins and rangers have that benefit, as do cavaliers and barbarians if you use Unearthed Arcana.

 

[Tewligan]

No. Paladins and rangers have that benefit, as do cavaliers and barbarians if you use Unearthed Arcana.

They do? Huh, I always thought it was just fighters also. Wouldja happen to have a book/page reference on that? The paladin in my 1e game will be happy to hear about this if that's correct...

 

[Nikosandros]

They do? Huh, I always thought it was just fighters also. Wouldja happen to have a book/page reference on that? The paladin in my 1e game will be happy to hear about this if that's correct...

The text at the bottom of the table on page 25 of the PHB only mentions fighters, but it's clear from the context that it means to include the subclasses. This usage is the same in the manual when it talks about exceptional strength and HP bonuses from high constitution. The text on page 22 of Unearthed Arcana is even more explicit.

 

[Staffan]

The text at the bottom of the table on page 25 of the PHB only mentions fighters, but it's clear from the context that it means to include the subclasses.

One of the good things about 2e was that it straightened out the class organization. Instead of having "fighter" as one class, and "paladin" and "ranger" as subclasses of "fighter", you had the broader category of "warrior" which had the distinct classes of "fighter", "paladin", and "ranger." That reduces confusion when you're talking about what a "fighter" can do - does it only apply to the specific fighter class, or to all three?

 

[Herobizkit]

(4) Use a random number generator to get a page full of numbers from 1-20 and go through them sequentially. This cuts out a lot of the time-consuming die rolling on your (the DM's) part.

I'd like to chime in here and support this time saver 100%. My solo player and I both roll up about 50 or so d20 rolls before we start every game, and it saves a WHACK of time when dealing with multiple NPCs and creatures. You could even go one further and add a line of numbers for every die type (especially d6, d8 and d10s) to quickly calculate damage/percentile as well.

 

[Nikosandros]

One of the good things about 2e was that it straightened out the class organization. Instead of having "fighter" as one class, and "paladin" and "ranger" as subclasses of "fighter", you had the broader category of "warrior" which had the distinct classes of "fighter", "paladin", and "ranger." That reduces confusion when you're talking about what a "fighter" can do - does it only apply to the specific fighter class, or to all three?

Very true. In general, 2e rules are much clearer and better organized.