(warning: I'll try to avoid them, but some spoilers for the adventure Lost Mine of Phandelver may follow; feel free not to read if this might upset you.)
So hearing concerns I've seen about what is and isn't in the Basic pdf, I turned to the Starter Set to look at how encounters are built. Not in terms of XP/CR thresholds (with this week's L&L, that's being discussed elsewhere), but other things.
There's a bunch of general awesomeness, that I think the designers deserve credit for (DM advice for playing random NPCs, simple tweaks to make common monsters completely terrifying and new, some encounters that can't be overcome with combat, etc.). On top of these, though, two things stood out for me that suggest this is the game I want to play:
1. Random Encounters. A great table rolled once every 12 hours for wandering monsters in the wilderness. Simple, basic, and (as I take it) just enough to interrupt a long rest (but not a short rest). Indoors, it's whenever the DM wants (but whenever the characters spend a long time in a given area). I take that to be if they attempt a short rest. It doesn't mean that they will necessarily be interrupted, but the possibility exists.
2. Group skill checks. There's a sidebar concerning group skill checks, using the example of the whole party trying to disguise themselves. If the characters work as a group, it's each of their Charisma (Deception) against Wisdom (Insight), and they pass if any one makes it. That seems to me to be a fairly low threshold, but it's certainly fun. (The sidebar also suggest giving advantage for good role-play -- that seems a brilliant way to give the players an edge as well.). The players won't know that it's comparatively easy, of course, and so the threat of failure is real. I just really liked the way the adventure anticipates non-combat solutions.)
I just found these things really exciting -- it gives me a clear idea of what's to come (which is what the Starter Set should be doing!).
So hearing concerns I've seen about what is and isn't in the Basic pdf, I turned to the Starter Set to look at how encounters are built. Not in terms of XP/CR thresholds (with this week's L&L, that's being discussed elsewhere), but other things.
There's a bunch of general awesomeness, that I think the designers deserve credit for (DM advice for playing random NPCs, simple tweaks to make common monsters completely terrifying and new, some encounters that can't be overcome with combat, etc.). On top of these, though, two things stood out for me that suggest this is the game I want to play:
1. Random Encounters. A great table rolled once every 12 hours for wandering monsters in the wilderness. Simple, basic, and (as I take it) just enough to interrupt a long rest (but not a short rest). Indoors, it's whenever the DM wants (but whenever the characters spend a long time in a given area). I take that to be if they attempt a short rest. It doesn't mean that they will necessarily be interrupted, but the possibility exists.
2. Group skill checks. There's a sidebar concerning group skill checks, using the example of the whole party trying to disguise themselves. If the characters work as a group, it's each of their Charisma (Deception) against Wisdom (Insight), and they pass if any one makes it. That seems to me to be a fairly low threshold, but it's certainly fun. (The sidebar also suggest giving advantage for good role-play -- that seems a brilliant way to give the players an edge as well.). The players won't know that it's comparatively easy, of course, and so the threat of failure is real. I just really liked the way the adventure anticipates non-combat solutions.)
I just found these things really exciting -- it gives me a clear idea of what's to come (which is what the Starter Set should be doing!).
