Impressions from KotS

[Lizard]

Unlike the detailed armor sundering rules in 3e, 2e, 1e...

Hey, they're the ones that can't make flavor text match mechanics, not me.

Heh. I didn't know that. I assume that's only in combat, though -- out of combat, long term helplessness leads to, um, even longer term helplessness. I hope.

Unconscious==-5 to all defenses.
Defenses all have a bonus of +1/2 level.

So if Joe the 20th level fighter and his brother Jim the first level fighter are sleeping side by side, it's much harder to hit Joe. Even though they're both asleep.

Acronym soup! What?

DOT=Damage Over Time. Ongoing damage.

They're all at +2 to everything except the things you want them to be good at -- those are +6, assuming it's John Q Yokel. Was that so hard?

No, but it is boring. Does this apply to the non-statted 3rd level Warlord in the town?

"It's Magic" is more than sufficient for me
Isn't objective, scientific magic one of the things people like to rail about?

Not if they like playing D&D.

 

[Wormwood]

If I drink the Kool-Aid, it's because I like the flavor, not because I'm mentally deficient. 4th Edition is Purplesaurus Rex flavored. I think we can all agree this is the best flavor of Kool-Aid ever produced.

Please. Purplesaurus is for hyperactive children and anime kids.

Grognard Grape? Now that's a drink that'll put hair on your chest. Just browse the thirty pages of instructions, consult the index, and stir. It's the Bitter Beverage that Builds Character™!

 

[Lizard]

Except it is defined in KotS, in the same section as "immune" and "vulnerable." It does, in fact, work like DR.

Cool. What page? It's not near "conditions" that I can see.

Ah, I found grab/escape...with the zombies.

(Line of sight/effect are on page 49???)

But I'm still not seeing immune/vulnerable/resistance. Clearly, I'm dim.

EDIT:Never mind, found them, in the breakdown of the stat block that doesn't actually include them. (P6)

 

[Halivar]

Unconscious==-5 to all defenses.
Defenses all have a bonus of +1/2 level.

So if Joe the 20th level fighter and his brother Jim the first level fighter are sleeping side by side, it's much harder to hit Joe. Even though they're both asleep.

"Harder to hurt," not "harder to hit." Joe's comatose body takes a beating better than Jim's. Do you narrate every missed attack roll as "swing and a miss?" Does full-plate make your players super dexterous all of a sudden? If not, then just say the level bonus is natural, accrued toughness (i.e. natural armor). It's John McClane armor.

EDIT: I understand that this entire post is abomination to simulationists. I don't believe there is an argument to persuade a simulationist that 4E is his game. It's blatantly cinematic: it prefers movie physics over real-world physics because it's cooler that way.

 

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

Please. Purplesaurus is for hyperactive children and anime kids.

Grognard Grape? Now that's a drink that'll put hair on your chest. Just browse the thirty pages of instructions, consult the index, and stir. It's the Bitter Beverage that Builds Character™!

You're cracking me up...

But remember:

It's all fun and games until someone loses an eye.

 

[Halivar]

Please. Purplesaurus is for hyperactive children and anime kids.

My mother used to make me "bug juice," a mixture of Purplesaurus Rex and lemonaidandohmygoshtransformersjustcameonusanetworkandineedtomakeapeanutbutterandjellysandwichandjumponthebedwhileiwatchandgooutsideandrunaroundfiftymilltiontimes and... and....

Whoah. I think I had a sugar crash.

 

[Simplicity]

My mother used to make me "bug juice," a mixture of Purplesaurus Rex and lemonaidandohmygoshtransformersjustcameonusanetworkandineedtomakeapeanutbutterandjellysandwichandjumponthebedwhileiwatchandgooutsideandrunaroundfiftymilltiontimes and... and....

Whoah. I think I had a sugar crash.

I am a connoisseur of Kool-Aid. Having worn out every flavor of Kool-Aid, I have long since moved on to drinking only Kool-Aid flavor combinations (halvsies and thirdsies). I even draw Kool-Aid men on my pitchers. My Kool-Aid men have ranged from "Oh yeah!" to "Oh really?" to "Help! I'm drowning!".

Purplesaurus Rex is not only the most incredible Kool-Aid flavor ever made. It is an excellent mixer as well. In fact, mixed Purplesaurus Rex was the beverage of choice in my old school D&D parties.

This Kool-Aid sommelier says you clearly have your head screwed on straight.

On topic though, I have searched everywhere for KotS, and no one has it! Grrrrr!!!

 

[Celebrim]

Celebrim- thank you so much for your opinions.

The best part is your comment on the rogue, because I can't tell if its a slam on 3e, a slam on 4e, both, or a completely meaningless comment filled with buzzwords.

See, now you make me have to explain myself. This is what I had in mind when I wrote it.

1) It's a slam on 1st/2nd edition, where the only reason you'd play a rogue was role play because the class was nigh useless after about 9th level - even with being 2-3 levels ahead of the other classes. It would help if you knew that I almost always played thieves in 1st edition.
2) It's a slam on 3rd edition, because while the game got more balanced, you still had to power game extensively to make a rogue playable beyond 13th level, and even then you were often nigh unto useless (no traps, surrounded by undead and constructs).
3) It's a slam on 4th edition, in as much as they've decided that the solution to balance is make every character munchkiny right from the start.
4) It's a slam on those role playing snobs in the gaming community that claim that look down there noses at 'gamist' players because its so elitist.
5) It's a slam on powergamers because they tend to be missing out on half the fun and making life difficult for everyone else by continually trying to beat the game.
6) Last but not least, it's a slam on myself, in as much as I'm complaining about the state of the game no matter what it is so clearly I'm never going to be happy.

 

[rob626]

Halivar- You made me choke on my guffaws in order to avoid the Wrath of Coworkers.

 

[Wolfspider]

I find it particularly interesting that

[sblock]there is a fully statted-out power description--The Wrath of Orcus--detailing what happens when Kalalel is defeated and fails his demon master instead of just a fluff description of the shadow tentacles pulling him into the darkness.[/sblock]

I'm not sure exactly why the authors of the adventure chose to approach this event in this particular way. It seems to be a waste of space that could have been used on something else, like descriptions of rituals or something.