Recent content by Retreater

One of my beefs with it is the adage "keep the Bennies flowing." It's as if the system works only by the graces of its metacurrency. Character miss too much? Have you given enough Bennies? If they can't soak all their Wounds? Have you given enough Bennies? Are the characters roleplaying their...

Can't easily gang up when you lose the Initiative and are outnumbered and surrounded by Extras. And that's part of the issue - Savage gives you way too many Extras who are too hard to kill. But the Extras, it's easy for them to gang up because of their numbers. But they usually miss anyway, so...

During my days of addiction to RPG crowdfunding, I backed some premium releases of Savage Pathfinder and two campaigns (Rise of the Runelords & Curse of the Crimson Throne). I've GMed a one-shot of the adventure that came with the GM screen with my family when we were snowed-in one afternoon...

Not for me. For me there are clear divisions between 2nd from 3rd, 3rd from 4th, and 4th from 5th. You can't convert the material easily. The expectations of play are completely different. I can use B/X and BECMI. I can use 1E and 2E AD&D. I can use B/X, BECMI, 1E, and 2E with a little work...

The other side of the token is that I want more than a B/X derivative that has like a single chart for levels 1-10 with a maybe you get a +1 to hit or +2 HP. Shadowdark, OSE, etc., are too lean. So I want thieves that can get more backstab damage and increasing abilities. I want druids who can...

Yep. I'm still boycotting them. I won't play it. I won't buy it. I won't promote it. I won't watch content about it on YouTube to help algorithms. Goodman was allegedly paying Judges Guild royalties for years, despite telling fans that wasn't the case. Giving them a share of the Jenell Jaquays...

Awesome. That was fast! Looks like the Monk has the Ascending AC option built in.

Looking great! I like the addition of the Kits. Is there a chance we could get a bi-stat with positive AC in addition to the THAC0? (It's a big stumbling block for my players, even if I can convert it for them.)

Thank you for doing this! Can't wait to see what you come up with.

I've been thinking about this since making the original post over a year ago. Also, I was looking through my phone's photos recently and found where I took a picture of the three core "2024" books I had just purchased - it was dated June 29, 2025. I've had the new edition of D&D for almost a...

I've been hesitant because it's $15 for a 19-page PDF. That's a fairly premium product, especially when it doesn't add tons of new content. This one has more content, so I'm interested. The only downer about both of these products is that I run the game exclusively using my tablet and the...

I took the survey. I'm now running Daggerheart as my primary system, with two weekly campaigns with two different campaign frames. We've reached the end of Tier 3 with one of them, so we've seen much of the game. I am completely the opposite with Daggerheart than I am every other system I run...

The moment a designer puts a "Level" or "Challenge Rating" in a stat block, that line is crossed. They should at least try to follow their own rules. Right, but D&D isn't presenting itself as a "combat is the last resort and you get no XP for fighting" system. WTH is even the point with Shadowdark?

I'm sure there's a Venn diagram, but I've also found players that I've really enjoyed playing with in person, when we have to move online that the magic isn't there.

For me, these are people that I've met through other walks of life: my neighbors, friends I met at the neighborhood bar, family members, etc. It is difficult to just "cut them out." And when you're in a small town in the Bible belt with no college scene, nothing to attract professionals or...