NOW LIVE! Today's the day you meet your new best friend. You don’t have to leave Wolfy behind... In 'Pets & Sidekicks' your companions level up with you!

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Message: <blockquote data-quote="I'm A Banana" data-source="post: 6242319" data-attributes="member: 2067">Plus, they're more fun for those who aren't that interested in having characters that are combatasauri. In my ongoing LotR comparison, if we have Samwise as a D&D character who is in a dragon's fight, it might make sense for him to have a "basic contribution" that is some sort of healing or defensive effect ("Don't you give up on me, Mr. Frodo!" could trigger another character's Second Wind, or grant someone an extra one!). But since Samwise's player is choosing to be someone who sucks at combat, that's not going to be how they want to contribute to the challenge. Compared to a D&D-style combat cleric, for instance, his pep talk is mild (equal to the difference between the rogue's 1d8 damage from a bow and the fighter's 3d8+1d6 damage from his super greatsword, or whatever). What WOULD be fun for Samwise's player (assuming that he's a guy who's aiming to be great at Interaction) would be to to break the effects of fear, to win the dragon over with his simple charm and courage (and maybe a grilled coney), to convince the dragon to leave him and his friends alone. The moment Gimli and Legolas and Aragorn (and the D&D Combat Cleric) start filling the thing full of holes, that becomes an untenable approach....unless there are parts of the fight (if it must last an hour) where the warriors aren't able to contribute as much. Perhaps at the start, when the Dragon's fear is crippling without a little Interaction pep-talk, and toward the midpoint when the dragon realizes these characters are a real threat and perches on a ledge out of reach to dialogue, and maybe near the end when the final blow is being considered, perhaps Sam can convince it to go out without losing its life. I think that's a viable thing for the outlying critters that some folks might want to spend half a session or so fighting. It's something the rules can support perhaps a little like 4e tried to support solos vs. standards vs. minions: just as there are some monsters who are an entire encounter in and of themselves, there are also some monsters who are entire adventures in and of themselves, and like any adventure, they'll need a mix of Interaction, Exploration, and Combat to overcome. Well, that's not true. It seems like you don't quite understand the ramifications of the three pillars for game design or the potential of a quick and easy rule-set to facilitate judgement calls. I can help elucidate you, if you'd like to understand.</blockquote>

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