D&D 5E D&D Beyond vs Print Books

[Reynard]

A lot of people are way too precious about that status of "official" content and worry way too much about "balance". PCs in 5E are so wildly overtuned compared to the monsters they're supposed to be facing that you can throw double or triple deadly encounters at even unoptimized PCs and have the PCs handily win. And as Morrus said, gamers won't die because the DM home-brewed a monster. At worst the combat goes bad and the group resets. If the players are so sensitive that they cannot handle even the possibility of losing a fight and that puts them off the game or gaming, well...not much of a loss.

What are you guys cooking with that you think you can kill someone with mushy pasta or burnt potatoes?

Anyway, it's about creating a terrible, unfun experience because you have no idea how you are supposed to use a list of numbers. You can't hurt someone but you can sure put them off RPGs forever.

I absolutely stand by saying it is terrible advice for newcomers.

 

[overgeeked]

You can't poison someone with a poorly made meal given non poisonous ingredients, either, but you sure can put them off your cooking.

What are you guys cooking with that you think you can kill someone with mushy pasta or burnt potatoes?

Uh...under-cooked meat. Under-cooked eggs. Under-cooked anything that can't be eaten raw. Food poisoning is a real thing. It comes from poorly made food, improperly stored ingredients, improperly cleaned utensils, pots, pans, etc.

 

[overgeeked]

Anyway, it's about creating a terrible, unfun experience because you have no idea how you are supposed to use a list of numbers.

An official list of numbers offers no more advice than an unofficial list of numbers, so your complaint applies equally to the Monster Manual as it does that blog post.

You can't hurt someone but you can sure put them off RPGs forever.

Again, if their idea of RPGs is that everything is a cake walk and must be absolutely pitch perfect every second of every game then the hobby is better off without them. There will be bad games, bad players, bad DMs, bad sessions, bad encounters, etc. If someone cannot handle that there are other, less difficult hobbies to pursue.

I absolutely stand by saying it is terrible advice for newcomers.

Good thing the people who created the hobby didn't think so.

 

[Reynard]

An official list of numbers offers no more advice than an unofficial list of numbers, so your complaint applies equally to the Monster Manual as it does that blog post.

Again, if their idea of RPGs is that everything is a cake walk and must be absolutely pitch perfect every second of every game then the hobby is better off without them. There will be bad games, bad players, bad DMs, bad sessions, bad encounters, etc. If someone cannot handle that there are other, less difficult hobbies to pursue.

Good thing the people who created the hobby didn't think so.

I don't even know what position you are arguing from. Your post i disagreed with was that everything that wasn't hit points, ac, and saves was wasted ink and all you had to do was hand the brand new GM a spreadsheet. No edition of D&D did that. Even OD&D which had a table still "wasted ink" on explanations for the creatures and their behavior and special abilities. I didn't say anything about homebrew content either.

 

[Reynard]

Uh...under-cooked meat. Under-cooked eggs. Under-cooked anything that can't be eaten raw. Food poisoning is a real thing. It comes from poorly made food, improperly stored ingredients, improperly cleaned utensils, pots, pans, etc.

That's a really weird hill to choose to die on, but I commend your dedication to thoroughly cooked poultry products.

 

[MNblockhead]

What are you guys cooking with that you think you can kill someone with mushy pasta or burnt potatoes?

Anyway, it's about creating a terrible, unfun experience because you have no idea how you are supposed to use a list of numbers. You can't hurt someone but you can sure put them off RPGs forever.

I absolutely stand by saying it is terrible advice for newcomers.

Well, when I eat mushy pasta, I feel like I die a little inside.

But burnt potatoes? Yum.