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D&D mega-campaign with all the options turned on?
- Thread starter SJE
- Start date
That's how the group I play with back home runs things, if it gets out of hand the players usually realize it and often offer to tone things down before the DM asks. I think that has only happened once and it involved third-party material and a custom-made item.
Overall, if you trust your players and everyone is working to have a good time, if something comes up that will disturb that, it should resolve if your players are decent about it.
Overall, if you trust your players and everyone is working to have a good time, if something comes up that will disturb that, it should resolve if your players are decent about it.
LoneWolf23
First Post
To be honest, I have often considered something very much like this.. Including a really high-power setting with steampunk levels of technology, using rules from Legends and Lairs' Sorcery and Steam book and the Sword and Sorcery Dragonmech setting, along with other things, such as the Magi-tech devices from Perpetrated Press' Arsenal and Factory books.
The setting would be pretty epic, high-magic and tech-friendly.. Very much like a Final Fantasy world. I'd also include a ton of various races all over the world, including a lot of anthro (or anthro-inspired) races, like the Lupin, the Catfolk, the Kenku, etc, along with classical races like Elves, Dwarves, etc.
The setting would be pretty epic, high-magic and tech-friendly.. Very much like a Final Fantasy world. I'd also include a ton of various races all over the world, including a lot of anthro (or anthro-inspired) races, like the Lupin, the Catfolk, the Kenku, etc, along with classical races like Elves, Dwarves, etc.
Do keep in mind that if you have any munchkins or rules lawyers, you may be toast. Take a gander over to the Character Optimization board on the WotC site. http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?t=160415
Using just two or three books, you can create a character with -infinite- (literally) for all his stats at level 5. Look for "Pun-Pun" the kobold
Or how about a cleric with Divine Metamagic getting a free Persistent wraithstrike every day?
Similar broken things can happen. Incarnum, for one, splashes well with -anything-, increasing its power level.
Using just two or three books, you can create a character with -infinite- (literally) for all his stats at level 5. Look for "Pun-Pun" the kobold
Or how about a cleric with Divine Metamagic getting a free Persistent wraithstrike every day?
Similar broken things can happen. Incarnum, for one, splashes well with -anything-, increasing its power level.
Odhanan
Adventurer
Cool! I'm in!
Honestly, that's pretty much my line of thought when I DM my homebrew D&D/AE campaign. It's in the D&D, AE (expanded, with other AE publishers) or Malhavoc brands? It's in. There are setting specificities of course (like elves being changelings, fey-touched born from humans), but nothing really limitating. Even other sources are acceptable with possible discussions about how to adapt them to the game. I never had a problem in a year and a half of campaign. I don't feel the need to cross my fingers on this one.
Last edited:
Stormborn
Explorer
The only question I would ask up front is: Do the players want a game with all the options turned on?
My group doesn't. I have run games where they could be and do whatever they wanted. I wound up with a few feats from the Complete books in use, but mostly they all played the same basic kinds of characters they have played before. The only time I can get people really branching out is to say "I think you would really like it if you played this specific thing." or "This feat/spell/option would be good for your character."
I, and maybe one other player, are the only ones who want to explore all the options. So, it all depends on your group.
However, if you have a group that embraces the options, and you feel you can keep a handle on it. Then I say go for it.
EDIT: Ok, one other thing I would add is that you might want to limit yourself to publishers. Even if you just say all WotC then you are going to get a ton of options, but ones that generally are balanced against each other. Then you could allow other things on a case by case basis. There are things out there that are broken or bad and you should retain the DM perogative of vetoing anything.
My group doesn't. I have run games where they could be and do whatever they wanted. I wound up with a few feats from the Complete books in use, but mostly they all played the same basic kinds of characters they have played before. The only time I can get people really branching out is to say "I think you would really like it if you played this specific thing." or "This feat/spell/option would be good for your character."
I, and maybe one other player, are the only ones who want to explore all the options. So, it all depends on your group.
However, if you have a group that embraces the options, and you feel you can keep a handle on it. Then I say go for it.
EDIT: Ok, one other thing I would add is that you might want to limit yourself to publishers. Even if you just say all WotC then you are going to get a ton of options, but ones that generally are balanced against each other. Then you could allow other things on a case by case basis. There are things out there that are broken or bad and you should retain the DM perogative of vetoing anything.
AntiStateQuixote
Enemy of the State
I'm currently running an "all options almost on" game using the Drow War campaign (which kicks ass!).
Books allowed:
Books considered:
So far, so good . . . but the party is 3rd/4th level right now . . . no absolute craziness yet.
I think I do a good job of monitoring what's going on and if any single PC starts to outshine everyone else I will bring him/her down a peg or two or push everyone else up a bit. I have specifically told the players to work out a character build that will be powerful by the mid-teen levels because I plan to do the same with the bad guys. Most of the players aren't great min-maxers, so I'm helping some of them out.
Anyhow, as to your question: Yes, this method of play will lead to absolute munchkin madness if you don't monitor what's going on. It's fairly easy using only the 3.5 books to have extremely unbalanced PCs by 10th level. I think the trick is to make sure all of the PCs are equally unbalanced. Then you can match challenges to what they're capable of doing.
Example: if the 10th level fighter/mage is dishing out 50 points of damage per strike using Wraithstrike, Power Attack and Haste for 150 hp damage/round, you better make sure that the rogue can use his sneak attack to advantage and gets a chance to do some amazing open locks/disable device stuff and that the wizard can get access to lots of cool spells so that he can shine and the cleric . . . well, he'll be OK no matter what if the player knows just a little bit about making a powerful cleric.
I guess my point is, don't let one PC min-max to the detriment of the game. If EVERYONE is min-maxed that's cool because you can do the same with NPCs and hit the players with their own medicine. If just one or two PCs is min-maxed the game quickly becomes un-fun for the suboptimal PCs.
Books allowed:
- Player's Handbook
- Complete Series (with approval)
- Miniatures Handbook (with approval)
- Races series (with approval)
Books considered:
- Book of Exalted Deeds
- Book of Vile Darkness
- Anything else the player presents . . . I generally allow it
So far, so good . . . but the party is 3rd/4th level right now . . . no absolute craziness yet.
I think I do a good job of monitoring what's going on and if any single PC starts to outshine everyone else I will bring him/her down a peg or two or push everyone else up a bit. I have specifically told the players to work out a character build that will be powerful by the mid-teen levels because I plan to do the same with the bad guys. Most of the players aren't great min-maxers, so I'm helping some of them out.
Anyhow, as to your question: Yes, this method of play will lead to absolute munchkin madness if you don't monitor what's going on. It's fairly easy using only the 3.5 books to have extremely unbalanced PCs by 10th level. I think the trick is to make sure all of the PCs are equally unbalanced. Then you can match challenges to what they're capable of doing.
Example: if the 10th level fighter/mage is dishing out 50 points of damage per strike using Wraithstrike, Power Attack and Haste for 150 hp damage/round, you better make sure that the rogue can use his sneak attack to advantage and gets a chance to do some amazing open locks/disable device stuff and that the wizard can get access to lots of cool spells so that he can shine and the cleric . . . well, he'll be OK no matter what if the player knows just a little bit about making a powerful cleric.
I guess my point is, don't let one PC min-max to the detriment of the game. If EVERYONE is min-maxed that's cool because you can do the same with NPCs and hit the players with their own medicine. If just one or two PCs is min-maxed the game quickly becomes un-fun for the suboptimal PCs.
DungeonmasterCal
First Post
The offer is out there for my players to go nuts in an all WotC 3.5 game with options from Malhavoc Press, Dragon Magazine and Ronin Arts thrown in. Aside from some of the "Complete Books" classes, they tend to choose a fairly vanilla way of playing.
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