D&d We Have Became Too Nice

[Shard O'Glase]

When 3e 1st came out I was the member f the group most up on the rules so I ran the games. Considering how amny people died, I don't think 3e is any less lethal. (1st&2nd level any stray shot can kill anyone on the team) Higher levels well crits are brutal now, that lame forge of fury encounte killed 2 in my game(though the monk klled himself..your in a fast moving underground river geting pullrd closer to the tentacled sharp touthed monster,..I use my escape artist to break free, uh yeah but your under water and have a one str right now are you sure you want to do this, ..yes ), dragons ar nasty, save or dies still proliferate the game, your held, next round since no one has stepped up to protect you make a fort save or die, the lsit just goes on and on.

Dms may be wussie but the rules aren't. Not to get into a play by the dice debate, but you better let the dice fall where they may, and not baby your players if you want it to be deadly. If you always uncrit the crits well yeah its less lethal. What I think has hapened is this less lethal, throw the players a bone so they don't get smoked by a crit mentality has become more accepted. Not saying this is bad or good, just that the encounters are still just as deadly, but that maybe DMs feel more free to let the players slide when the roll good now.

 

[muhcashin]

What 'bout Sunless Citadel

In response to 3e modules being nicer, and in response to those who mentionned Heart of Nightfang Spire, Lord of the Iron Fortress, and Bastion of Broken Souls.

My first 3E adventure was Sunless Citadel. We all had brand characters. Well, the dungeon was hellishly difficult. The first pit trap nearly killed 2 of us. I don't 3e is nicer. In the last year I've lost 2 characters. Both killed in published modules. One was Pool of Radiance: Attack on Myth Drannor and Speaker in Dreams. Well, Speaker wasn't hard, but nonetheless I lost character.

First of all, like many others have already said, the difficulty depends on the DM. No matter what the module says, the DM can make it a hell lot more difficult, as he can make it ridiculously easy. We've beaten a hulk in 3 rounds without losing a single hit point, because the DM for some reason forgot to 'confuse' us. We were level 4, mind you.

Secondly, this is to all the DMs out there. How many of you actually check the ELs and CRs? Or do you just say, "hmmm, this monsters looks badass, but the players have reasonable chance of defeating it."?