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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Goonalan" data-source="post: 5344593" data-attributes="member: 16069">I don't know how to get my answers to sort of line up with your suggestions- I'm not that competent when it comes to computers.I do need to understand Dark Sun (and in particular character creation) in order to explain it others, at present I don't- as well as I would like to, also If I told my players they were coming round to roll up a character I know for certain that one of them wouldn't show, and yes he's all those things you are thinking- and a great guy too.You say the quick and easy fix with damage- tried it, (we were playing P1 and we just stopped because it was a push-over) I tried beefing up the encounters and that killed us with grind, then I tried the quick-and-easy fix with damage and the players mopped the floor with the bad guys, then I spent time and effort working through the rules as far as I could interpret them (with a little help from enworld) and it worked. So we're stopped on the Paragon path because I don't have time right now (until half-term) to do the stuff that works. To recap we've played four ways- three don't work the one that does takes time to do it right.The players have never made characters using the books, some of them have never made a character yet. They don't own, read, look at the books- they turn up and grab character sheets (we used to use pregens only) and play. They use CB at my place to level up, we only worked out the Tiefling's Infernal what-not had changed about a month ago. I didn't know that MM was an auto hit till approx. two weeks ago... (not having the time again). We make mistakes all the time- again that's not the problem, a bit of overload with new rules and changes (that I am left with fathoming is obviously a problem- for me).Group Character generation- as I say, Dave will not be there and there's a possibility he'd walk if he turned up and that's what we were doing. I know, I know... but we all like (love) Dave in game- he's golden (especially if he happens to be a grumpy Dwarven Fighter- people crying with laughter etc. and he's not even role-playing just being himself).We will forge on with the game, it's just... I'm a lecturer, I'm a fairly anally retentive so-and-so, if I don't get a thing I find a fix- if someone tells me something has changed, I have to figure it out- get it right in my head. I have to learn a thing- as I type now in my office I am surrounded by files, none of which I need to have but all of which I have to have (for me, for my job, and for my game). I have to read this book to talk about it, watch the film, I have to understand a thing to do it- particularly as I am the rule-keeper, the CB et al made this incredibly easy for me- and I know it's not the right way of doing things just with the time I have it was the only way.And at present it feels like the CB et al is the thing that I rely on (overly), since the CB came out and the Compendium then I don't have to carry books around with me- and I rely on public transport (which is also not great). I used to tote a (fullish) 90 litre ruck sack about with me- with game mats, tiles, dice, books, paper, my files and minis etc. When CB et al appeared I ditched the rucksack- and it was instantly a better game for it. I got creative again, and those moments of- I know that rule is... frantic flicking through pages, just disappeared.I would run the Dark Sun one-offs, that's what we were going to do anyway, I just don't feel confident enough to do so, nor have I had the time to read much of the book as of yet (work gets in the way). If the CB was upto date then I'd figure it in an evening (with the book in my hand).We're going to try and run a session this weekend, perhaps, we're mid way through the fourth or the fifth scenario in the Scales of War AP, and I've already scaled up the monsters- and I know that I needn't have (because they're only Heroic level) but I can't not- there's a thing in my head that says- that's not right they've changed the rules- Solos are this now, Elites are... Minions do different damage, a Soldier loses its... And I can't ignore it because I'm a bit of an anally retentive so-and-so- I may have mentioned this.I'm in this situation because I do all the leg-work (but that's been the case since Basic D&D), and I'm the guy that needs to know all the rules, and I'm me- without the updates (and the understanding) I feel a little (a lot) flumoxed by it all.We'll survive and all that, but I'm really not enjoying myself as much as I was- I get confused, and player A says- last week you said '...', and I have to shrug and just move on... And I don't like that.Its a culmination of things- a myriad little (and large, seemingly IMHO) changes that have left me at a loss as to what I need to concentrate my efforts on next. I know that with the updates on the CB and Compendium that I can get through all of this- in time.I'm on my knees praying that the new Essentials Monster book will contain the definitive revisions of the monsters because even when I'm using the ones that I have put together using the new rules I'm constantly aware that they may not be right, and that bugs the hell out of me.For the reasons stated above I've lost my mojo, I'll get through it- when I can get the time to get my head around the changes but until then... I'm a bit disappointed with myself for getting into what feels like a mess, and for Wizards beacuse foolishly I've come to rely on them.I know... I know... but that's how I am.Love</blockquote>

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