D&D 5E Dark Souls 5e Copy in Hand… Q&A

[overgeeked]

What I can’t get my head round is that the temporary position seems to heal you at the end of combat if you hold on to them.

Let’s say I have 30 base position and I’m injured out of combat (for instance with a trap) down to 10 position. When we enter combat I roll my temp position and get 30 putting me on 40 in total. As long as I hold on to them - say by not engaging in melee or using position coating skills - at the end of combat I then drop down to current position or base position which in this case would be higher than I went in with.

Then again if you go into combat on 10 position then there is a good chance you’ll die if you don’t go first!

I foresee lots of cheesing that in future. Someone's down a lot, the group engages, and that PC just stands as far away as possible. Gaining all that temp position as healing.

 

[Tales and Chronicles]

Yeah, it seems like a good idea on paper, but I feel that specific mechanic will be a little clunky at the table. Cant wait to see how it actually plays.

 

[TheSword]

Yeah, it seems like a good idea on paper, but I feel that specific mechanic will be a little clunky at the table. Cant wait to see how it actually plays.

It’s not easily ported to 5e either as it’s rooted in the class system that is incompatible… well it is if you want to use subclasses.

 

[Charlaquin]

It is more. base position is equivalent to hp. The temporary position is on top of this.

Makes sense, since I imagine you’ll be spending a lot of it on attacks and spells and such. You essentially get an extra HP bar at the start of combat to spend on your abilities, plus the option to dip into your “real” HP if need be,

 

[Weiley31]

In your opinion, what do you think of the way the Attunement slots are done for magic in this. Capable of being ported over or what not?

 

[Charlaquin]

What I can’t get my head round is that the temporary position seems to heal you at the end of combat if you hold on to them.

Let’s say I have 30 base position and I’m injured out of combat (for instance with a trap) down to 10 position. When we enter combat I roll my temp position and get 30 putting me on 40 in total. As long as I hold on to them - say by not engaging in melee or using position coating skills - at the end of combat I then drop down to current position or base position which in this case would be higher than I went in with.

Then again if you go into combat on 10 position then there is a good chance you’ll die if you don’t go first!

I mean, yeah you can get healed for 10, but then that’s 10 position you didn’t get to spend on extra damage or spells or whatever. In a sense, you can think of “Base Position” as Health and “Temporary Position” as a mix of Stamina and FP. Makes sense to me that restoring your base position would be something you could “spend” your temp position on.

 

[Charlaquin]

You mention that class determines weapon and armor proficiencies, but the preview material said there were no weapon and armor proficiencies and anyone could equip any weapons and armor as long as they met the Strength requirement. Is that not the case in the finalized book?

 

[TheSword]

In your opinion, what do you think of the way the Attunement slots are done for magic in this. Capable of being ported over or what not?

I mean you could. They are pretty straightforward and the spell system is what it is.

Though you really don’t get many. 12 slots at 20th level and some spells use more than one.

It would be an immense undertaking to assign attunement slots to D&d spells and I’m not even sure it would work with utility spells.

The only way it works here is because Arcane Magic is basically damaging. Clerical is slightly more balanced.

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

What I find interesting is that while they mostly went with DS3 for inspiration, they used the magic system from DS1. Which I supposed makes sense if you want something very different - DS3 would essentially just be spell points.

Magic: No spells slots. You have attunement slots based on level that let you equip spells that can each be cast a set number of times. You find the spells as treasure or buy them (just as in the game). Spells can cost position. They can also take multiple rounds to cast (though spellcasters get abilities to speed this up) All the spells in the first game are in the book (and just those spells)

I asked the co-creator this very question at Gary Con. The intention (whether it's communicated in the book or not, I cannot yet say) is that when you finish combat, your position drops down to either what it was before you rolled position if it is higher at the end of combat, or stays where it currently is, if it is lower than what it was before you rolled position.

What I can’t get my head round is that the temporary position seems to heal you at the end of combat if you hold on to them.

Let’s say I have 30 base position and I’m injured out of combat (for instance with a trap) down to 10 position. When we enter combat I roll my temp position and get 30 putting me on 40 in total. As long as I hold on to them - say by not engaging in melee or using position coating skills - at the end of combat I then drop down to current position or base position which in this case would be higher than I went in with.

Then again if you go into combat on 10 position then there is a good chance you’ll die if you don’t go first!

 

[Weiley31]

You mention that class determines weapon and armor proficiencies, but the preview material said there were no weapon and armor proficiencies and anyone could equip any weapons and armor as long as they met the Strength requirement. Is that not the case in the finalized book?

Could possibly be a relic of the spelling errors and what not that was mentioned appearing before, but not in Dark Souls as a whole, like the Healing Kits and Paladin.

 

[Charlaquin]

I asked the co-creator this very question at Gary Con. The intention (whether it's communicated in the book or not, I cannot yet say) is that when you finish combat, your position drops down to either what it was before you rolled position if it is higher at the end of combat, or stays where it currently is, if it is lower than what it was before you rolled position.

Oh, so it’s just temp HP that lasts until the end of combat. Simple enough.

 

[ephatman]

Possibly a silly question, but how is the binding? Is it perfect bound or sewn? (If sewn, you should be able to see the string in the middle between certain pages.) Wondering because of the cost of the book (especially the collector's edition).

 

[not-so-newguy]

Possibly a silly question, but how is the binding? Is it perfect bound or sewn? (If sewn, you should be able to see the string in the middle between certain pages.) Wondering because of the cost of the book (especially the collector's edition).

Good question, especially if you plan to use it at the table

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

In essence, yes. Though of course, you can spend it on things, too. I had a War Cry ability that for three points of Position, forces an enemy to make a save or be stunned for their next turn.

Oh, so it’s just temp HP that lasts until the end of combat. Simple enough.

 

[Charlaquin]

In essence, yes. Though of course, you can spend it on things, too. I had a War Cry ability that for three points of Position, forces an enemy to make a save or be stunned for their next turn.

Right, as I understand that’s a general feature of Position and applies to both “permanent” and temporary Position.

 

[TheSword]

Right, as I understand that’s a general feature of Position and applies to both “permanent” and temporary Position.

So abilities that use position don’t consume it out of combat.

So if you have the great chaos fireball spell that normally consumes 3 position. If you use it to break down a door out of combat it still uses up charges of the spell but not the position cost.

 

[Morrus]

The last page has the WOC Open Game Licence.

It is then followed by a copyright notice for Steamforged Games Ltd stating that no part of this product may be reproduced without specific permission.

Except, presumably, the Open Gaming Content?

 

[TheSword]

Except, presumably, the Open Gaming Content?

Presumably, otherwise that would take some cojones.

I suspect they never would have got the thing approved for the license if producing it meant opening it out to 3pp/DMGuild.

Unlike Level Up that has taken a more ethical stand (but also has the freedom to do so unlike Steamforged)

 

[TheSword]

Interestingly, what this isn’t is D&D hardcore mode.

• Position is nice but fundamentally no worse than hp, and in some cases will lead to more hp equivalents and healing than 5e.
• Bloodied is a nice mechanic and boosts monsters but it also boosts PCs so not harder.
• Classes aren’t weaker - they just lack the variance of subclass (with the exception of casters who are nerfed to hell - as befits a dark souls game) So not really harder, just different
• Initiative rolls are interesting but it’s really still an initiative roll off, it just means the monsters is fixed. Plus PCs can act in whatever order they like so actually easier.
• Limited equipment - weapons actually do more. Quite a bit more as standard. So not harder.

What actually makes the game harder is tougher monsters such as those in the back… which we can do in 5e as we stand now.

So all in all, my quest for a 5e hardcore mode continues…

 

[Steampunkette]

I would like to ask:

What midnight twist of unspeakable evil lead men to adapt a videogame based on overwhelming difficulty to 5e D&D which is designed to be fairly simple and balanced...

... When Hackmaster is -right there-?!