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evenworse username posted:It's also entirely plausible for a pragmatic minded villain to be very active in fighting against particular threats. Like, Dr. Doom would probably help stop Galactus eating the planet. Of course, he's gonna try to leverage it into ending up with cosmic power, but in the short term ... Not even "probably"! In the original Infinity Gauntlet comic, Dr. Doom teamed up with the heroes to stop Thanos from taking control of the universe. He also didn't try to grab it afterward, presumably because Nebula wearing it showed exactly what would happen if a being without such extreme power as Thanos tried to grant themselves total control of the universe.
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Jun 27, 2019 20:49
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Where do people go to find players? I'm extremely tired of not having a DND/13th age/Shadowrun/Lancer game going.
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Jun 28, 2019 01:11
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I mostly gather people from various Discord communities I participate in. I know this isn't especially useful as advice, but on the other hand I really don't like recruiting total strangers and any suggestions for where to recruit that could be broadly generalized would have to involve recruiting strangers.
Tuxedo Catfish fucked around with this message at 01:20 on Jun 28, 2019 |
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Jun 28, 2019 01:17
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Ask your current group to invite guest players, repeat until you have a two dozen deep roster and your collective group has four active games. From zero? ... hobby shop and hope?
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Jun 28, 2019 02:51
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Turtlicious posted:Where do people go to find players? I'm extremely tired of not having a DND/13th age/Shadowrun/Lancer game going. My current group was thrown together after 6 months of hearing 1 or 2 people from various friend groups that missed playing, lashing them all together, and finding 4 that stuck.
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Jun 28, 2019 14:29
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My current group formed over time as I got to know people at my LGS. I'm the DM so I get final say on who joins, too, so that's nice
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Jun 28, 2019 17:12
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Hops's new IRL wife is guest-starring in a single session of my World of Ruin Catering game. She's not familiar with the system, so i'm going to give her a Freelancer Striker and see how well it works out for her. She picked out a wizardly-looking woman from my miniatures, and i've painted it up for her. I was thinking it might be cute to do an adventure based on Stardust. So I'd start with the guest - she wakes up in a big crater, confused and disoriented. She'd have a few minutes to poke around and get a feel for how the system works before the World of Ruin Catering Company would show up looking for the fallen star. They've been contracted to locate the star, bring it back to Macadamia and cook it for some affluent client. So presumably they decide not to cook her once they find out she is a woman (the only thing you can't eat in this society is someone that has asked you nicely not to eat them) and they'd have to figure out some way to see her back up into the sky. I'm trying to figure out what sort of nonsense would accomplish that, and what sort of opposition should be trying to stop them. Maybe they need to bring her to the world's largest corn kernel and pop her into the stratosphere? Maybe they need to contract a siege engineer to build the grandest trebuchet the world has ever seen? Maybe they need to find an on-ramp to the mythical Star Road? Maybe they need to wish upon her, in some bizarrely-specific set of circumstances like maybe they need to find an innocent child whose birthday is coming up? If they are able to bring her back to the sky safely I think I will reward them with a sachet of Star Dust, a flavorless-yet-infinitely-spicy powder.
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Jun 28, 2019 22:14
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I love the last idea. Very Gaiman to put the fate of the supernatural in a seemingly random but good-natured child in a seemingly-normal-but-actually-magical circumstance. Bonus points if the kid can see auras or ghosts or travels though a portal or something. Try the airships/other dead ends to see if they know a way to go higher than the sky? Time magic that causes everyone to forget (Except for that transtemporal hint) but keeps her from falling? General acceptance of this new phase of life (to keep the character going/in-party if she is enjoying herself)?
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Jun 28, 2019 22:50
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Glory to Italia!
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Sadly they're moving away in about a month, and this is the only session she will be able to attend. That's why i'm trying to resolve her story in one.
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Jun 28, 2019 23:06
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Wasn't it love that did it last time? Since this is food based, what about her experiencing the ultimate flavor, a closely guarded relic held by the venerable monks of far-away-land.
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Jun 29, 2019 19:21
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I guess I'll lead with this: one of the links in the OP has expired and now leads to malware, the masterplan one. Maybe there's more, I don't fancy checking. And to stay on topic, I've picked up a copy of the Acquisitions Incorporated book, and I love the theme. I'm planning to run my first campaign as DM with a few regular members, and maybe a few drop-in/outs as interns. While I've played before, none of the players have, and I'm wondering what to give them in the way of materials. I can either print off a few copies of the player rules or just let people use phones, laptops, tablets etc, but I only have the one physical copy of Acq Inc. I'm thinking I get around this by doing the first session as character building only and just passing the book as needed. Other than dice, pencils and paper, are there any components I'll need that are less obvious? I guess my main question is what should I be buying/printing physical copies of, and what's best left as links.
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Jun 29, 2019 21:16
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The Huge Manatee posted:I guess I'll lead with this: one of the links in the OP has expired and now leads to malware, the masterplan one. Maybe there's more, I don't fancy checking. Removed the link. Serves me right for being horribly negligent about maintaining this thread!
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Jun 29, 2019 21:53
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On the off chance, Group C don't read this. I'm looking for some ways to spice up my games next session. The party just finished a big multi-session attack on a lighthouse being used as a base by a criminal organization who were using a druid and the strange ruins beneath the lighthouse to run a very drastic protection racket. The party emerged victorious after an extremely close fight. They discovered proof during this assault that the corrupt lord of the nearby city was accepting payment and SuperDrugs as payment to look the other way. Normally they would turn this evidence over to their contact, who works for the state and wanted this kind of proof and gently caress off back home, job done. However due to the party letting people escape in a previous encounter, the lord found out about the parties activities, is preparing to flee town as soon as he can confirm the jig is up, and has taken the party's airship pilot/ride home hostage. So they have resolved to break into the manor at first light and rescue their pilot before its too late. Now, they'll probably be (trying) to sneak in because they happened to learn about the sewers beneath the nobles quarter used by thieves in an earlier escapade. I like the idea of the lord using the hush money to outfit his home with gaudy defenses, like complicated automatons and maybe a giant shark bowl ooze in an aquarium in his office? Maybe some of the gangsters that fled earlier are recuperating in the basement. Naturally there are guards who have sequestered all the help and the hostage in the kitchen. Am I missing any obvious cool ideas? This is sort of intended to be a denoument to their adventures in this town, not quite as fraught as the lighthouse assault.
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Jun 30, 2019 02:14
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Farg posted:On the off chance, Group C don't read this. Maybe some animated mannequins dressed up as his ancestors in one of the mansion's wings that attack intruders? Think Disney's hall of presidents, but dedicated to his personal vanity. Just use stats from whatever low-level golem-type enemy feels appropriate.
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Jun 30, 2019 02:21
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Keeshhound posted:Maybe some animated mannequins dressed up as his ancestors in one of the mansion's wings that attack intruders? Think Disney's hall of presidents, but dedicated to his personal vanity. Just use stats from whatever low-level golem-type enemy feels appropriate. I like this idea! Or like, animated armors/nimblewrights being used to bolster his guard that creep out his living guardsmen. Maybe the ornate rug in his office could be a rug of smothering to add some spice to the giant shark bowl ooze encounter. What if the hostage and/or staff are being held in a room lined with dangerous constructs, but have been given very specific instructions? Like, they don't attack when the party enters because they were told to attack if someone tries to leave through the door or show aggression. Then it's a puzzle on how to exploit the literal interpretation of the instructions (that the hostages overheard) to get all the civvies out without chaos breaking out. Also if it helps this is in Eberron (level 5 party of 5) Farg fucked around with this message at 02:39 on Jun 30, 2019 |
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Jun 30, 2019 02:37
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So the book I'm running out of, Rappan Athuk, leaves quite a bit open to allow you to come up with your own ideas for things. On top of this I'm leaning towards if a level of a dungeon isn't mostly explored, things can move in where the vacuum of the former occupants is. Thing is CR is a bit jank for 5th Edition, and I've already had to make on the fly alterations for some things out of the book. Maxing, or even doubling health. Giving Legendary Actions to things which are single-enemy encounters that sort of thing. The giffyglyph monster maker has been a lot of help in that regard if I feel I need to plan one ahead. They might be going back to a mostly empty temple room on the first floor of a dungeon they've not touched in a very long time. If they decide to retread old ground, the way they went last time, it should lead to them running right into this room. Previously there were two 10ftx10ft solid bronze braziers/fire pits with green fire and they encountered a simple giant poisonous snake in there, but it was immune to fire. This is by the book. With the influx of NPC adventurers coming into the region, I want to leave a few bodies in the room. Relatively fresh, a week at most. Scorch marks where they lay, that sort of thing. The intent being to lure them in close to the braziers. (They do have loot on them, of course!) What I'm trying to put together is a two-headed(think like an Amphisbaena) elemental snake which attacks from the two braziers. Going by the giffyglyph formula, this thing needs about 300 HP to actually be a challenge for the party. But the intent is to have it split off into two separate serpents at 50% HP, giving them 75 each. Overall I think it feels balanced since the damage isn't out of control on the thing, it's AC is really low(it's Huge) and going off the giffyglpyh stuff the DC for its constrict and short range flame breath should be manageable for a Level 5 party. Any thoughts? I know the HP seems high, but these guys blow through 150 very quickly as it is so it seemed right for a way to trigger a "phase" of the fight.
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Jun 30, 2019 06:37
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Anyone know of mechanics for an open seas navigation challenge that I could drop in my game as a minigame? The idea is to find a specific ship on the open sea. It generally avoids harbors and shipping routes but can be observed normally. The party druid already had the idea to ask the seagulls, and can talk directly to them a limited number of times, which I imagine could translate to the sort of minigame where you have the regular mechanics and a limited number of hints or similar.
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Jun 30, 2019 11:42
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The Huge Manatee posted:I'm thinking I get around this by doing the first session as character building only and just passing the book as needed. The way I'd do it is you hold onto the book and have each player complete each character creation at once. As in, you discuss stats, show them the stats block on the sheet, and then help them all come up with stats. Then races, classes, etc. (Or whatever order it is). You could still talk in terms of character concepts before; if they've never played before it'll likely be a lot of just blatant copies of characters from fiction, which is ok. My Lovely Horse posted:Anyone know of mechanics for an open seas navigation challenge that I could drop in my game as a minigame? The idea is to find a specific ship on the open sea. It generally avoids harbors and shipping routes but can be observed normally. Maybe have the gulls hint that the ship was reachable after they themselves were thrown around by a terrible storm, like the gulls got tempest tossed and whoops once they were hopelessly lost there is the ship. So the players realize them need to seek out and go into such a storm; the mini game for that basically writes itself, and the failure state is finding the ship while clinging to wreckage so it all works out. Jack B Nimble fucked around with this message at 13:47 on Jun 30, 2019 |
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Jun 30, 2019 13:41
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Hey thread, I have a bunch of Amazon gift card money and I'm in the mood to buy some rulebooks. I've run / played Dread, D&D 4-5e, Shadow of the Demon Lord, FFG Star Wars, Deathwatch, Deadlands, Call of Cthulhu, and I own rulebooks for WHFRP, MouseGuard, and Blades in the Dark. I generally like games that have interesting narrative / investigation mechanics. I'm always down for low fantasy or horror themed games, but more pulpy / optimistic games are welcome too. Any recommendations for something that will be fun and intuitive for my party to try out?
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Jun 30, 2019 18:57
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Nights dark agents and the Zalozhny Quartet, mainly because it's the amazing gareth hanrahan.
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Jun 30, 2019 20:06
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Hey, what is a good Telegram dicebot to have? We won't play with it, but it'd be handy for my local group if we need to roll something between sessions.
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Jun 30, 2019 23:14
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My Lovely Horse posted:Anyone know of mechanics for an open seas navigation challenge that I could drop in my game as a minigame? The idea is to find a specific ship on the open sea. It generally avoids harbors and shipping routes but can be observed normally. My first thoughts were to wind waker (grid exploration, small islands and fortresses with maps, and communion with fishes) and the board game xia: legend of a drift system. In that, you can scout beyond the edge of the map or move directly out of it. Either way a new hex goes down, but the move-explore puts you at risk for an auto encounter/catastrophe.
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Jul 2, 2019 21:15
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Does anyone have any resources or advice for running a fancy ball as a session? My idea is that there is an "esprit de corps" award given to the most sociable, charming, and well-dressed guest. The player characters are trying to win it because the winner gets to ask the host for a favor that cannot be refused and they need a very specific thing from this person. Not surprisingly, googling "tabletop ball" or "tabletop rpg ball" gives absolutely unhelpful results.
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Jul 3, 2019 14:59
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My suggestions are: Make sure there's at least one rival npc who will be the most annoying fucker possible to tempt them to cause a scene. Have the thing they need be held in a vault/treasure room in the same structure as the ball (don't let them know until they're already at the party) so they can decide if they want to play along or try for an impromptu heist. Have the award decided at least in part by a vote at the end, that way they can trade favors/sabotage other parties. Make sure you have a few front runners and think about what they want, and what they're willing to do to get it. Also, consider making it a masquerade, because those are fun and add an air of mystery. Keeshhound fucked around with this message at 15:16 on Jul 3, 2019 |
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Jul 3, 2019 15:06
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Do that one Firefly episode.
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Jul 3, 2019 15:39
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The award is decided on by a panel of judges. Say, three or five or so. Enough that the players can manipulate and blackmail them, or just figure out what each judge's particular preferences are. Another party of adventurers is also there with pretty much the same plan as the PCs -- they need to sabotage / not get sabotaged by their rivals. Someone trying to escape an arranged marriage tries to trick one of the PCs into eloping with them or getting into a duel with their fiancé or something like that. If your plot has an antagonist, or if there's someone who the PCs would really, really like to kill, they're there and under the host's protection.
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Jul 3, 2019 17:26
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Here are some ideas I've used in similar "polite social contest" type sessions: 1. Gift giving. Each person/group attending the party should bring a gift for the hosts that shows off both the guest's talents/resources, and insight into the host they are giving a gift to. 2. Performances. Write songs/dances/poetry, etc to entertain the hosts and guests. Illusion magic would be fantastic for this in D&D. 3. Faux pas. Tricking/trapping the other guests/rivals into making mistakes that make them seem rude or boorish or party-poopers. If you can make the rivals pick a fight, storm off, or overtly insult the PCs (or hosts) without looking like you were jerks first, you can tilt the judges to your side. 4. Influence peddling. Some of the judges can probably be persuaded directly by exchanging favors, if you can find out what they want (which everyone will also be trying to do).
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Jul 3, 2019 18:56
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Exactly what I was looking for. Thanks all. I'm trying to give a "win" to the diplomat of the party who had a really lovely time fighting a froghemoth last session. She was a hair's breadth away from death and was really feeling inadequate as a fighter. Which is appropriate, because she's a flimsy bird-boned socialite, but now I want to show her the strengths of her character choices.
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Jul 3, 2019 19:50
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I did a party mission for my alternate universe 1955 game, where the PCs had to intercept a briefcase exchange without causing a scene. I was expecting it to let them showcase their non-combat skills and gave them some spy gear to aid in it. It was going to progress similar to a Hitman level where the activity progressed on a timetable regardless of what the PCs were doing. Unfortunately they very badly misinterpreted a social situation about 10 or 20 minutes in. One thing led to another and it ended with the mansion burnt down, a gunfight in the hall, dozens dead, and the whole group fleeing to Mexico in a bullet-riddled car.
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Jul 3, 2019 19:56
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That sounds like an unqualified success to me.
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Jul 3, 2019 20:11
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I want to try and have a rival group of adventurers rob my dnd 5e players while they're sleeping, but I don't just want to use DM prerogative to make it happen because where's the fun in that? They have a warlock and an elf that always take watch in shifts. The warlock can be put to sleep but the elf is immune to being charmed and, from what I can tell based on RAW, is still awake and somewhat aware of what's going on even while they're resting because of their trance thing. What can I put on an NPC to attempt to incapacitate the elf without alerting the party?
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Jul 4, 2019 22:26
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have you considered just having the rival group fail, since your players both made a build choice that protects from this kind of thing and two of them expressed through rolepaying their attempts to stop exactly this kind of thing from happening?
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Jul 4, 2019 22:35
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Does it need to be while they're sleeping? Also, what are you planning on having stolen from them? Could they be pickpockets/conned out of it? To build on what Tuxedo catfish said, what is your ultimate outcome from this event?
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Jul 4, 2019 22:35
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It's just a filler event while they trek to their next destination, because they spent the entire last session telling every NPC they could about the map they've found that supposedly leads to a lost dwarven forge potentially full of valuable loot. My plan was to have them meet a caravan on the road to said forge where I fully expect them to continue blabbing about the map, and then it turns out said caravan would quite like to get their hands on the map themselves and so they make a play for it that night after the party set up camp. I want it to be an attempt so if they pull it off the party has something else to fill their time by tracking them down and trying to get their map back, and if they don't pull it off then the party foil the ambush and get to feel like a bunch of clever heroes although there's either way hopefully still a non-metagamed lesson there about not telling everyone in the world about the fancy things you're carrying around with you.
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Jul 4, 2019 22:45
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tell everyone they have really weird dreams that night describe them one by one, do the elf last when you get to the elf, keep talking, giving no outward indication that this is any different from what you were doing for the rest of the party, and describe some really weird and colorful characters sneaking into their campsite as soon as the elf's player objects that elves don't sleep, or just as the weirdoes would do something with actual long-term consequences, acknowledge that elves don't sleep and that all of this is actually happening then turn over control to the players and see what happens
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Jul 4, 2019 22:57
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That's actually brilliant, I think I'm gonna do it
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Jul 4, 2019 23:17
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The elf doesn't have to be put to sleep, the other party just has to have one super stealthy dude who can sneak past the party on watch.
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Jul 4, 2019 23:56
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Or a potion of invisibility. Which has the added benefit of dovetailing into the "dream". "You hear a noise in the direction of where [the fighter] is sleeping, and as you turn you see his backpack levitate into the air, open itself, and quietly divulge it's contents one by one onto the ground. Keeshhound fucked around with this message at 01:41 on Jul 5, 2019 |
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Jul 5, 2019 01:38
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I'm working on a reward/unique feat for one of my players, who is a arcane trickster rogue with a mark of storm (eberron game) The gist is I want to give them something that can get stronger over time and let's them mix their windy powers with gun slinging (crossbow expert reflavored for pistols). My current idea is giving them a pool of points equal to their proficiency bonus that they can spend to apply different effects to their next shot. Using one of these effects would cost their reaction. The points would come back on a long rest. They are level 6 currently so they'd have a pool of 3. I want to give them 2 options to start and give them opportunities to develop different techniques as the game progresses/they choose the greater mark feat. Currently I want to give them the ability to grant advantage on their next shot for 1 point, and the ability to increase their AC and grant damage reduction equal to their prof bonus, also for one point. Does this seem like it would be interesting/powerful enough without being broken? I want to make it cost their reaction because it comes with the trade-off of no Uncanny Dodge, and their bonus action is already taken up by cunning action or a second attack, so I don't want to crowd that space. Maybe instead of the AC/DR option they could propel themselves forward/backwards along the direction of their shot with a burst of air?
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Jul 5, 2019 04:39
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I'd look out how it is flavored and see what mechanical benefits you think you can get from it, i.e.: A) The winds begin to blow and pushes all projectiles and blades away from your character. This starts out as a -2, then goes to -5, and then goes to disadvantage as they level or spend points (I.e. you give the 1 point per level and it costs 1 point per level). B) Same thing but the winds blow in your favor, giving you +2, +5, advantage. C) A gust of wind thunders forth at your direction, attempting to push the target back. Save DC and distance back set by number of points spent. D) Lightning strikes as you fire/swing your weapon, drawing lightning after it and jumping to 1/2/X within range on q hit based on points spent. You control the power based on the points you give them and how fast they recharge, if the weather is stormy the cost is reduced, they start with more or it recharges x amount per round. Tune to power level of your game.
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Jul 5, 2019 06:30
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