D&D 3E/3.5 Converting Old 3E to New 3E standard problems
bolie
First Post
Intelligent Conversions
Given that this is a game and everyone doing the conversions is doing it for fun and the people who are downloading them are downloading them to play a game with them, I'd rather see conversions done intelligently. This is probably more fun to do and definitely more useful for me.
I'd rather the conversion already be balanced and playable as a baseline that I can modify as I see fit. Of course a block-headed CR adjusting conversion that pays no attention to the scenario and the role-play aspects of the adventure is just as bad as a block-headed copy-and-paste job.
I found the conversions I have downloaded to be useless because I do have the MM and the original module and can do the looking up myself. Having a document with stat blocks doesn't help because I usually end up with the MM open anyway.
Bolie IV
Given that this is a game and everyone doing the conversions is doing it for fun and the people who are downloading them are downloading them to play a game with them, I'd rather see conversions done intelligently. This is probably more fun to do and definitely more useful for me.
I'd rather the conversion already be balanced and playable as a baseline that I can modify as I see fit. Of course a block-headed CR adjusting conversion that pays no attention to the scenario and the role-play aspects of the adventure is just as bad as a block-headed copy-and-paste job.
I found the conversions I have downloaded to be useless because I do have the MM and the original module and can do the looking up myself. Having a document with stat blocks doesn't help because I usually end up with the MM open anyway.
Bolie IV
Leopold, aren't these conversions you're downloading done for free by fans? Why the violent indignation that their free, voluntary work isn't done the way you like? Nobody's forcing you to use it and you aren't paying for it. Seems pretty damn ungrateful.
On the larger point, what do you gain by using a conversion instead of just pulling out the old module and converting it on the fly while you play? You gain where there are complicated parts that don't translate well to 3E. Certainly one of those places should be strange encounters or encounters which are wildly off from what's appropriate for the new version of the module. And if you, as the person using the conversion, doesn't like what it was converted to, well, it's probably easier (and certainly no harder) to change the 3E version than the 1E version.
I agree the converter should be limited in what they can do. Things should only be changed where they just won't work in 3E, not because they don't fit the converter's taste or campaign.
Anyway, it seems to be a moot point; legally nobody can post anything that saves more than 15 minutes of work anyway....
On the larger point, what do you gain by using a conversion instead of just pulling out the old module and converting it on the fly while you play? You gain where there are complicated parts that don't translate well to 3E. Certainly one of those places should be strange encounters or encounters which are wildly off from what's appropriate for the new version of the module. And if you, as the person using the conversion, doesn't like what it was converted to, well, it's probably easier (and certainly no harder) to change the 3E version than the 1E version.
I agree the converter should be limited in what they can do. Things should only be changed where they just won't work in 3E, not because they don't fit the converter's taste or campaign.
Anyway, it seems to be a moot point; legally nobody can post anything that saves more than 15 minutes of work anyway....
Leopold
NKL4LYFE
yeah right...try doing the Night below book and telling me it takes 15 minutes to do. try spitting out a 15/8 Cl/Ro kuo toa and equip him with everything in under 15 min...
Now i can see the point that most make in the conversion process where the goods are not play balanced or the modules critters are not equipped. on that i totally agree OUGHT to be done, but NOT in the main body of the text...
look after reading this over and seeing it in play (my players waxed a poorly equipped uberbaddy so easily) i can see how playbalancing and equipping is important to the overall fun of the module. BUT! put it in a place where it can be used and seen but not in the body of the text itself.
here's what I will be doing now that i have seen the error in some of my statements.
1. Convert said module like normal.
2. Attempt to equip and balance the critters with items beffiting of their level.
3. Put all playbalancing in the BOTTOM of the work and make it clearly usable for all to see.
IN doing such i can eliminate the headaches that have arisen from uber baddies with a sword+1 and not tons of other loot beffitting them. I see everyone's point but still am a firm believer in keeping it the way it was written and providing additional modification work for people to either cut and paste or hints on which things to change. A nice "If you want to make it balanced do X,Y, and Z" but keep it out of the main body of the text. I for one LIKE The hardness and difficulty of the 1E modules, but I will NOT put out work that reduces their levels or alters the overall module to a shadow of it's former self. Leave that for the individual DM for some notes at the bottom similar to what DUNGEON does.
this is my opinion on the matter...do what you feel you must do but this is the way i will do my conversions...
Leopold
NKL4LYFE
rangerjohn said:
sure but you can't put anything more than what the SRD gives you period. Unless you create your own creature from scratch and name it something else. CrO instead of Orc.
I do 2 things:
1. Stat block the critters out
2. Use a copy of what the critters base SA's and so forth are for them as normal.
This way you get your pumped up creature and you get what the creature's base abilities are.
