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Message: <blockquote data-quote="(un)reason" data-source="post: 6273364" data-attributes="member: 27780">Best of Dragon Magazine 3part 5/6The druid and the DM: Bizarrely enough, people tended to underestimate the druid in the old days, thinking that they were only useful outdoors, not for dungeoneering. This is not the case at all, even before many supplements expanded their spell list and corresponding flexibility, as they had both shapeshifting and a high charisma to take advantage of. In hindsight, this article has some irritatingly niggly specifics, but that comes with the old school territory. It also feels a little outdated as it's from before Gary added on the Hierophant levels, and all the cool wider scale stuff that came with them. I certainly don't feel the need to use all the little optional rules here, but the general advice is still good to see. Don't forget, they got called CoDzilla for a very good reason once the CharOp people got a good look at them. It's not easy being good: Sigh. Given how many times they had to pontificate about paladin morality, I knew I wasn't getting out of here without at least one more reiteration of it. Yes, they can have a sense of humour. Yes, they can have sex and indulge a little in their off-hours, but if they do naughty things in the pursuit of it, they have to face the consequences. Yes, they can kill neutral things, especially if it's them or you and there's no better options to hand. No, they shouldn't be arrogant pricks to people of lower classes, or slaughter everything that pings evil. No, they don't have to kill themselves in the pursuit of impossible goals, as that would result in less long-term good being done. They're supposed to have a wisdom prerequisite, use it, for god's sake. How many times do we have to repeat it for it to stick? I suppose all it takes is a small minority to perpetuate the stupid stereotypes. In any case, I am so very very VERY tired of this, and look forward to leaving it behind for good. He's got a lot to kick about: At first glance, Monks look overpowered, since they have a pretty long list of special powers, and no equipment requirements, unlike most classes. However, this is not borne out by actual play, as they only have a few tricks while spellcasters have loads and can swap them out day-to-day, and their social limitations in 1e were pretty onerous. So while this is still an unequivocal upgrade compared to the PHB version, it feels more welcome this time, giving them more room to grow before they have to get into the challenge business, and giving them exactly one new trick per level, which means there's no dead levels and you get to discover and get used to their powers gradually. Plus of course, saying there's more than one monk order, so there isn't only one grandmaster of flowers in the entire world, and having to deal with the big question of how that order communicates worldwide with D&D technology. While this doesn't solve all their problems, it is an improvement, and so it is welcome in hindsight. Singing a new tune: Bards also proved problematic, particularly after Gary got through with them, and this redesign into a less roguish and more positively aligned order is pretty interesting. Unlike the Monk one, it isn't so much an upgrade as simply an alternative, as it sacrifices some things for others, and the different versions are capable of co-existing and each having their own niche. (and quite possibly having cross-order conflicts about the true way, which is always fun. ) It's still fairly powerful and versatile, but hey, it's in good company. Better everyone be cool than no-one. Cantrips: minor magic: Three quarters of the way through the issue, and this is our first contribution from Gary. That really does rub in just how much he let go of the reins when he went off to LA to do the D&D cartoon. Still, the ones he has remain pretty influential, given how cantrips became incredibly handy in 2e and ubiquitous in 3e. There is something to be said for your wizard always being able to pull off minor tricks that don't really do any damage, but simply make things more convenient and help you maintain a suitably mysterious reputation, while still only having a few big guns to unleash per day. This definitely feels like a positive addition to the game, all these years later.</blockquote>

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