Question for the DM's

[sithramir]

I like the potion belt ideas. I just see problems with falling and grappling. I think i'll send an email to remind my starting game to have everything's location known and point out the usefulness of a potion belt or scroll stash (and of course having a hewards handy haversack to save them some trouble).

 

[Rel]

Why anybody would keep something as valuable as a magical potion in something as fragile as a glass bottle is beyond me. I have a hard time imagining that even the characters that make them would do such a thing.

The only plausable answers that I can see would be that the potion itself was caustic enough to damage something besides glass (which doesn't make any sense because then it would tend to harm the drinker) or that a rusty metal flask could ruin the potion over the long term. For the most part, I assume that potion flasks are sturdy enough to withstand the rigors of adventuring.

 

[KnowTheToe]

Why anybody would keep something as valuable as a magical potion in something as fragile as a glass bottle is beyond me. I have a hard time imagining that even the characters that make them would do such a thing.

The only plausable answers that I can see would be that the potion itself was caustic enough to damage something besides glass (which doesn't make any sense because then it would tend to harm the drinker) or that a rusty metal flask could ruin the potion over the long term. For the most part, I assume that potion flasks are sturdy enough to withstand the rigors of adventuring.

Glass is easier and cheaper to work with for these items and is easy to seal.

 

[tburdett]

Maybe it's just me, but the level of detail some of you want to add to the game is ridiculous. Does it really add to the game to have to keep track of every nit-picky detail? If you are bothering with this, how about...

Do you force the players to track the calories that their characters consume and adjust player weight if the amount consumed is greater than the amount utilized by their body over an extended period of time? Would gaining too much weight cause a negative modifier to Cha? Would the character be forced to buy all new clothing because their old clothes no longer 'fit just right'?

What about toe nail growth? In can be mighty uncomfortable (maybe a move penalty?) if your toe nails are pushing up against your leather boots.

Worrying about every nit-picky detail doesn't add to the game, it's just being nit-picky.

 

[Gnarlo]

Pointlessly criticizing how other people play isn't adding to the game, it's just being nit-picky...

I have everyone keep track of where they carry stuff and generally how much they are carrying. My players and I came back to 3E after a long hiatus during which we played a lot of things like EQ, so having a limit to what one carries and seeing the effect of encumbrance on movement is second nature to us now. Plus, I use DM Familiar at the table with my computer (or Klooge when we are playing online) so it makes it easier to keep up with.

Just last week, the question of where something was came up as they were fighting a nest of dire rats and the group's ranger said "ok, I sheath my scimitar and hurl a flask of oil at the rats." After I asked him where he was carrying these flasks of oil (backpack with carrier built into top for familiar), how he was going to easily get to them (unslinging and opening pack was going to take time; if he walks around with pack open all the time for easy access, I was going to start rolling for stuff falling out ), and how much time this was going to take, he decided to keep fighting with his scimitar and after the battle the group sat down and did a lot of thinking of how to rearrange items....

I'm just worried that at the next game, all the characters are going to look like Rambo with crossed bandoleers of potion sashes with oil flasks in them

 

[haiiro]

I'm just worried that at the next game, all the characters are going to look like Rambo with crossed bandoleers of potion sashes with oil flasks in them

You're not coming at this from the right angle: potion sashes filled with lots of oil flasks, wrapped around every PC in the party -- that's an opportunity for mayhem, not a cause for concern.

 

[tburdett]

Just last week, the question of where something was came up as they were fighting a nest of dire rats and the group's ranger said "ok, I sheath my scimitar and hurl a flask of oil at the rats." After I asked him where he was carrying these flasks of oil (backpack with carrier built into top for familiar), how he was going to easily get to them (unslinging and opening pack was going to take time; if he walks around with pack open all the time for easy access, I was going to start rolling for stuff falling out ), and how much time this was going to take, he decided to keep fighting with his scimitar and after the battle the group sat down and did a lot of thinking of how to rearrange items....

This is a perfect example. Would it have been fun (that's the goal right?) for the player to take the action that he described? Was worrying about where the flask was and whether or not he could get to it more important than having fun? Ask your players whether they would like to play an 'inventory tracking' simulation or D&D. I think most players would pick D&D.

 

[BSF]

Personally, I want to know where people are carrying most things. Unnecessary detail? That depends on your game. Sometimes my players end up with the oddest stuff on their character sheets. Like the rogue that was carrying a great axe, a morningstar, several javelins, a mace, a short sword, a long sword, daggers, crossbow and a longbow, with ammunition for each. Mind you, he is strong, so he kept this under his weight limit. But, where do you have this stuff?

Or the above example of oil. I just recently saw this in a game I play in. The ranger decided to put away his bow, pull out his oil, pour it onto a mimic (mimicing a door), pull out his flint and steel and light it. All in the same round. OK, there is more wrong with this than just the location of the oil and the flint/steel, but it is indicative of the level of detail that some players think through beforehand.

As a player, I work hard to justify where my stuff is. IF I am the only person that decided to buy a potion belt, I want my free action to grab the potion while the other characters are fumbling through their packs. IF I made a Hewards Handy Haversack, I intend to use all of it's abilities and it irks me when somebody else doesn't need to hunt through their pack.

I like having a bit more detail in tracking things. If the DM doesn't want to enforce those types of things, fine. Please tell me in advance.

 

[haiiro]

This is a perfect example. Would it have been fun (that's the goal right?) for the player to take the action that he described? Was worrying about where the flask was and whether or not he could get to it more important than having fun?

For some folks -- myself included, depending on the game -- paying attention to this sort of detail adds to their enjoyment of the game. The next time that PC was in a similar situation, I'd wager that the player got more enjoyment out of it because his careful planning based on the last encounter was worthwhile.

Inventory management of some sort is a feature of most RPGs, tabletop or otherwise, and although it can be taken too far (like any other game element) it can also be enjoyable.

 

[clark411]

When people have 8 potions and 5 scrolls, its no problem.

When they've got 16 suits of Studded Leather, 32 Javelins, 16 Morning Stars, 20,000 silver, 1 dead companion, and 1 donkey that we start having issues. Ah... Goblins. =)