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Tremors posted:I'm playing my first ever campaign. Everybody including the DM is new to dnd. One thing I'm a bit confused about are material components with gold cost. From what I've read if the spell doesn't specifically say it consumes them then you keep them. That's fine and makes sense, but what I'm trying to get a feel for is how most DMs treat these components with stated value. Is the description itself more for flavor and you deduct the cost from your wallet or do they really expect you to find a shopkeep that sells "a gilded flower worth at least 300 gp"? I know there's no clear cut answer to this but I'm curious how other players handle this. I’ve had the same DM do things both ways depending on the situation, campaign, or what spell you are trying to use. If it’s something that takes like 10GP of material per use, the DM might just have you deduct the money directly instead of having you carry around 50GP worth of lizard scrotums, so you can cast it five times. The 500GP diamond for Raise Dead is a good way to keep the party from using it very often, beyond the gold cost. If you level up in the middle of some big dungeon, and there’s a spell you like, feel free to discuss it with your DM. Even if they don’t want to let you spend straight gold on a spell, they are likely to have those materials pop up in a nearby room.
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May 21, 2020 23:52
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| # ? Jun 6, 2024 15:55 |
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https://clips.twitch.tv/HealthyTrappedCurlewCharlieBitMe Mike Mearls is back on D&D full-time, according to a wizards staffer whose likely about to get pulled into a room.
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May 22, 2020 00:25
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mehall posted:https://clips.twitch.tv/HealthyTrappedCurlewCharlieBitMe  Working on computer games, eh? That’s what we’re calling it?
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May 22, 2020 00:27
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mehall posted:according to a wizards staffer whose likely about to get pulled into a room. "A Wizards staffer"... You mean the new Team Lead for D&D who just put together his new 5E team and deliberately picked Mearls to be on it? Yeah, I don't think he's getting pulled into any rooms.
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May 22, 2020 00:36
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so my friends have convinced me to GM a 5e game next week. I own zero of the rules, and have never played/read any 5e, and have only pathfinder experience. Its fine if I wing it, right? I know about the advantage/disadvantage mechanic, what else could I possibly need?
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May 22, 2020 00:40
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Fashionable Jorts posted:so my friends have convinced me to GM a 5e game next week. I own zero of the rules, and have never played/read any 5e, and have only pathfinder experience. the game plays very strongly differently from pathfinder in how it approaches a lot of things, while it should seem familiar, the design philosophy of the two are basically at odds with each other.
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May 22, 2020 00:42
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Fashionable Jorts posted:so my friends have convinced me to GM a 5e game next week. I own zero of the rules, and have never played/read any 5e, and have only pathfinder experience. did you know that the rules for pathfinder 2e and also old-school essentials are available online for free and both are going to be much easier to learn/more fun to run for you and your players instead of pretending you know 5e
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May 22, 2020 00:43
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Fashionable Jorts posted:so my friends have convinced me to GM a 5e game next week. I own zero of the rules, and have never played/read any 5e, and have only pathfinder experience. At least read the basic rules? They’re free. https://media.wizards.com/2018/dnd/downloads/DnD_BasicRules_2018.pdf Have your players played 5e before?
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May 22, 2020 00:44
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Kaysette posted:At least read the basic rules? They’re free. Oh cool, didn't know they had free stuff, thanks. Yeah, i think 3 of them are 5e regulars.
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May 22, 2020 00:45
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quote:I’ve had the same DM do things both ways depending on the situation, campaign, or what spell you are trying to use. If it’s something that takes like 10GP of material per use, the DM might just have you deduct the money directly instead of having you carry around 50GP worth of lizard scrotums, so you can cast it five times. A few things going on here. 1) There's a good argument to be made to not allow wizards to deduct gold on the spot, but note that if you don't, it immediately sets boundaries on how the DM can pace the game. If the wizard wants to stop after every dungeon or whatever to get bat guano, they're going to try to do it every time. If you frequently don't let them, or place tedious impediments to finding the guano in a store, you just told everyone at the table that none of these spells are really worth taking and may be setting up a pretty negative experience for a player. 2) Making people buy ahead of time isn't the worst thing in the world, but equipment marting isn't actually fun and it's certainly not rewarding in terms of accomplishment. The litmus test of "did you remember to tell me you bought the components again?" is lame. The litmus test of "did I allow you to find it?" can also get bad. I've seen games get derailed by long, disinteresting forays in shopping in which none of the other players are doing anything but waiting for the DM to make the player feel like they "earned" it. (Did they not learn this spell? Would they not prepare components even before they mastered it enough to cast it?) Gold is gold, it has a million one-time uses in this game and if they used it to fund some important gadget spells, cool. 3) For classes with limited numbers of spells known, taking one is an opportunity cost in that you didn't learn something else. Using the slot is also a cost. When you learn a resurrection spell it already represents a cost. 4) Going "haha you need a diamond" and then surreptitiously putting diamonds in treasure hoards is more or less an inconvenience on DM bookkeeping and nothing else material. 500 GP is already a lot of money at almost any level and again a huge opportunity cost to getting something else. 5) If there were an interesting, real mechanic to procuring spell components that wasn't "ask your DM," great. But players generally avoid abilities that rely on the DM allowing them to work like the plague, because they want the agency that their character sheet and their level says they earned. In general I come down on the side of reducing bookkeeping, letting the game proceed at the DM's pace without always faffing about before diving into the actual meat and potatoes of the game (dungeons and/or dragons), skipping "find the spell component" subplots that are often exercises in tedium, and not placing arbitrary impediments on player choices that can serve to gently caress them over. Name Change fucked around with this message at 22:02 on Jun 5, 2020 |
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May 22, 2020 00:49
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I like the flavor of wizards going through their pouch of weird poo poo to find what they need to cast a spell, but ive lost multiple sessions to magic shopping and yeah its boring as hell even if you end up with something cool.
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May 22, 2020 03:05
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Shopping in general just works so much better as a downtime activity that is handled by email or whatever.
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May 22, 2020 03:07
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Yeah, in our group it's mostly like "OK, you go shopping for components. What are you looking for? OK, you can buy as many Find Familiar components as you want at 10GP apiece, there's 2 diamonds worth 500GP, yadda yadda figure out how much you spend and update your inventory."
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May 22, 2020 03:11
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Toshimo posted:"A Wizards staffer"... poo poo,t hats really terrible. I had no idea who he was, I was shared the clip without too much context.
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May 22, 2020 08:03
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My party of level 7 players has 8 months of downtime before the next main plot quest kicks off, what activities should I offer in the meantime? I've already said that they can take a free feat if they spend that time training, and our wizard wants to craft things, but some fun sidequests would be good too. So far I've offered that if the paladin helps out by training some goblin soldiers, he can get squires/backup troops in the final battle, but other suggestions would be great.
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May 22, 2020 19:17
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If they have a lot of money they could buy/comission a keep and start building a village around it.
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May 22, 2020 20:19
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nelson posted:If they have a lot of money they could buy/comission a keep and start building a village around it. The last side quest they did gave them 3k and a half-acre plot of land each in fantasy Sweden, that's a possibility...
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May 22, 2020 20:43
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change my name posted:My party of level 7 players has 8 months of downtime before the next main plot quest kicks off, what activities should I offer in the meantime? I've already said that they can take a free feat if they spend that time training, and our wizard wants to craft things, but some fun sidequests would be good too. So far I've offered that if the paladin helps out by training some goblin soldiers, he can get squires/backup troops in the final battle, but other suggestions would be great. It seems obvious, but have you asked your players what activities they want their characters to pursue in the downtime? Are there any personal quests they want to pursue or advance? For example, if they're looking for someone, they could spend time asking around and if they roll high enough investigations, they might get some leads pop up which could be pursued at a future date. Did they select a background or pre-adventuring profession, and if so, is that something they could pursue during the downtime? For example, I'm planning on giving my Warlock the Outlander (Bounty Hunter) background, so in the downtime, he might take on a couple bounties, and split any rewards with party members who want to join in and help. That could be a side-quest thing, or just a "you complete 3 bounties and receive a total of 400 gp" - it depends on deep you want to go. Stabbey_the_Clown fucked around with this message at 22:34 on May 22, 2020 |
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May 22, 2020 20:48
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change my name posted:My party of level 7 players has 8 months of downtime before the next main plot quest kicks off, what activities should I offer in the meantime? I've already said that they can take a free feat if they spend that time training, and our wizard wants to craft things, but some fun sidequests would be good too. So far I've offered that if the paladin helps out by training some goblin soldiers, he can get squires/backup troops in the final battle, but other suggestions would be great. Every game of mine has a portrait studio where they will pay you to pose for a portrait. (I.e, if you make art of your character I pay you in-game currency). Downtime is as good a time as any to offer it up. It's also fun to roleplay out some tropes every now and then, like, oh, this is the hot springs episode, everyone engage in lightly bawdy shenanigans. I also believe that road movies are an excellent 'vacation' side quest, if you can figure out some reason a couple of them need to go somewhere that are different environs than the main quest for a while.
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May 22, 2020 20:51
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New skill/language/tool proficiencies, crafting, collecting on favours, securing alliances are all things that would be cool/fun to do. Maybe they can visit some culture/village they've helped in the past and they hold a celebration that gives that player some cool story benefit or piece of gear. The 5e LOTR books have some neat ideas in this vein regarding downtime, since that system kinda formalizes it as what you do in between adventuring seasons. So like if you helped some elves in the past, you go visit them and they officially title you Elf-Friend, and you get to call on their help in the future using a new elven trinket or something.
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May 22, 2020 20:55
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change my name posted:My party of level 7 players has 8 months of downtime before the next main plot quest kicks off, what activities should I offer in the meantime? I've already said that they can take a free feat if they spend that time training, and our wizard wants to craft things, but some fun sidequests would be good too. So far I've offered that if the paladin helps out by training some goblin soldiers, he can get squires/backup troops in the final battle, but other suggestions would be great. this is your time for slice of life. the game is really good at depicting how heroes handle conflict, but it is seldom that the game dwells on moments of peace. make the most of it; let this downtime really show the party what they are fighting for.
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May 22, 2020 21:16
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I want someone who can directly turn gold pieces into power for combat. I don't care if it's a spellcaster using gold coins as components, or a ranged person throwing the coins real hard. But they have to throw the coins hard enough that the coins explode and you can't use them after.
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May 23, 2020 00:52
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Stabbey_the_Clown posted:It seems obvious, but have you asked your players what activities they want their characters to pursue in the downtime? Are there any personal quests they want to pursue or advance? For example, if they're looking for someone, they could spend time asking around and if they roll high enough investigations, they might get some leads pop up which could be pursued at a future date. I asked, everyone said they'd think about it but one person asked for specific options they could take.
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May 23, 2020 01:06
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Gharbad the Weak posted:I want someone who can directly turn gold pieces into power for combat. I don't care if it's a spellcaster using gold coins as components, or a ranged person throwing the coins real hard. But they have to throw the coins hard enough that the coins explode and you can't use them after. Mistborn RPG?
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May 23, 2020 01:32
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change my name posted:I asked, everyone said they'd think about it but one person asked for specific options they could take. What are they playing? It should be something related to something about their character whether it’s race/class/background it would be good to personalize the options. Like even if they randomly rolled/picked a background, you could do something like an entertainer going on tour, or a soldier or sailor getting drafted for a one off mission. Or work backwards from a reward. Have they been looking for cool weapons or gear? You mention the Pally getting backup for the final battle, is there other stuff they could get to help if they know the big fight is coming up? Some sort of spy mission for intel or a mcguffin that would help (something to target to bad guys weakness)?
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May 23, 2020 03:52
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Anyone have a TV model or premade box that would allow me to use a face-up TV as a battle map? I can't do woodworking for poo poo so I am looking for either a tv with a nice flat back or some pre-built TTRPG box thing.
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May 23, 2020 04:14
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You can buy premade things on Etsy, for example. Assuming you're not willing to outlay several hundred dollars for something that doesn't actually include the TV, you can make your own with your minimal woodworking skills, it just won't look as nice:
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May 23, 2020 04:41
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https://www.etsy.com/shop/VolosWorkshop?ref=nla_listing_details also seems to make those, but is out of stock now.TooMuchAbstraction posted:You can buy premade things on Etsy, for example. Assuming you're not willing to outlay several hundred dollars for something that doesn't actually include the TV, you can make your own with your minimal woodworking skills, it just won't look as nice: You know, I've thought about doing this but that photo makes me really think about how the minis are going to look against a backlit screen and now I'm less convinced. Cool Dad fucked around with this message at 04:52 on May 23, 2020 |
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May 23, 2020 04:46
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Syrinxx posted:Anyone have a TV model or premade box that would allow me to use a face-up TV as a battle map? I can't do woodworking for poo poo so I am looking for either a tv with a nice flat back or some pre-built TTRPG box thing. I just used the TV I had around, but honestly, you could get a cheap one like this (https://slickdeals.net/f/14053574-43-sceptre-u435cv-u-4k-uhd-hdr-60hz-led-hdtv-160-free-shipping?src=catpagev2). For the most part, modern TVs are flat on the back to support wall hanging but you can check the pictures on the website. I just went to the local hardware store and got them to cut a piece of plexiglass to go over the from to prevent scratching it up, and it was like $15.
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May 23, 2020 04:51
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Enola Gay-For-Pay posted:https://www.etsy.com/shop/VolosWorkshop?ref=nla_listing_details also seems to make those, but is out of stock now. yeah, unless you spend a lot of money on a really nice tv, it's not going to look amazing. But it definitely looks nicer than most scribbles on dry erase boards, or using the same premade map a dozen times.
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May 23, 2020 05:34
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Having a tv table and a tablet for the DM is a lot of fun. My friends made one that even has dice troughs, cup holders, and power outlets for phone chargers. Maybe you can get your group to help a little. Just having someone there might help alleviate any anxiety about the project.
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May 23, 2020 09:31
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The bigger issue with using a TV as the battle map is actually having graphics that make sense from every seat at the table. Which means you'll have to use/buy pre-made battle maps or make them yourself. If your implementation isn't any different than a whiteboard with grid markers you should probably just stick with that.
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May 23, 2020 11:46
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Figured I'd post a trip report for the first couple sessions for the game I'm playing in with my paladin. I'm really enjoying the class, and it's the first time I've ever played a paladin. Still trying to get a real handle on the character itself in terms of how she'd speak/react/etc but that's just gonna come with time. I also typically get into character more easily when actions/speaking are all done via text rather than speaking it out like we're doing with conference call software. My wife gives me a hard time for always playing tank-style characters but it's just an archetype I like. I love being a character that stands up front and trades blows with enemies - especially like in the first session when nothing could hit me. And in the second session, I got a couple cool moments like flipping up from prone, obliterating hobgoblin with an attack, and yelling "YOU'RE NEXT, VILLAIN!" at the remaining one. (I used Compelled Duel on it cuz I wanted it to stop beating our monk to death but I wasn't paying attention to turn order and forgot it was nearly dead anyway so it got immediately bonked to death by said monk). I also scared 30-50 feral hogs with Thunderous Smite, which felt cool as heck. anyway I am enjoying playing rather than running a game and almost forgot how much fun it can be sitting on the other side of the table again.
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May 23, 2020 13:34
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What race and level is your Paladin? I have a level 3 Dragonborn that I’ve been playing these last few weeks in my first online game. I’m having a harder time getting into character over chat as opposed to being able to see the other players. I’m used to letting someone else be the tank and party face, but here I’m doing both. Paladin is easily my favorite class. You get to be a sweet knight with a handful of spells to help in combat, and a pool of points reserved for healing. Plus, you get a free mount at level 5. Anyone ever play a medium Paladin, and use Find Steed to summon a dog? Not for use as a mount, but just to have a little friend you can have follow you around.
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May 23, 2020 15:41
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Open Marriage Night posted:What race and level is your Paladin? I have a level 3 Dragonborn that I’ve been playing these last few weeks in my first online game. I’m having a harder time getting into character over chat as opposed to being able to see the other players. I’m used to letting someone else be the tank and party face, but here I’m doing both. We're just level 2, but I think we'll be hitting 3 next session. I chose Wood Elf for race. I proooobably should've done Half Elf but tbh I forgot about them during chargen, and Wood Elf let me dump Dex but use the +2 bonus to come up to 10 so I had no negative modifiers. Maybe that's not the optimal way to do it, but I hate having negatives so 
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May 23, 2020 17:12
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Open Marriage Night posted:What race and level is your Paladin? I have a level 3 Dragonborn that I’ve been playing these last few weeks in my first online game. I’m having a harder time getting into character over chat as opposed to being able to see the other players. I’m used to letting someone else be the tank and party face, but here I’m doing both. I do this when my party enters dungeons and stuff. Also recently we had to cross a glacier with a dog sled, so I had my mount turn into a husky to help.
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May 23, 2020 18:00
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Skypie posted:We're just level 2, but I think we'll be hitting 3 next session. I chose Wood Elf for race. I proooobably should've done Half Elf but tbh I forgot about them during chargen, and Wood Elf let me dump Dex but use the +2 bonus to come up to 10 so I had no negative modifiers. Maybe that's not the optimal way to do it, but I hate having negatives so Unless I'm mistaken, using point buy it's better to use your race bonuses on your highest stats, since they're applied after point buy and you don't have to spend the extra points it costs to get your highest stats if that makes any sense. e: at least that's how dnd beyond seems to do it.
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May 24, 2020 23:45
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Flea Bargain posted:Unless I'm mistaken, using point buy it's better to use your race bonuses on your highest stats, since they're applied after point buy and you don't have to spend the extra points it costs to get your highest stats if that makes any sense. With point buy, the cost of increasing an ability score in character creation is equal to your current ability modifier, with a minimum cost of 1, which is why it costs an extra point to go from 14 to 15. You couldn't have known this, though, because 5e also caps base attribute scores at 15 for both point buy and arrays, but if it didn't, it would cost a total of 4 points to go from 14 to 16, and 6 points to go from 16 to 18. But yeah, you're right about saving an extra point buy. Since base ability scores are capped to 15 and there's limited benefit to odd scores, you can save a couple points by leaving your best attribute at 14. That said, an odd ability score makes half-feats that give a +1 to a stat a lot more appealing, and one of the main draws of being an elf is taking Elven Accuracy, so an odd DEX score of 17 can get bumped to 18, so you're basically trading 2 point buy for a feat.
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May 25, 2020 01:08
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A take on buying spell components - basically do it like an insurance scheme, charge them a level dependent/partially spell informed amount each time they hit town to stock up on spell ingredients. They can however pay more or less than this. In game give them enough to cast every one of their spells at least once, the more they pay the more leeway is given to how much components they have. If they choose to skimp then spells at critical times might require a roll to determine if they have enough to use. Best bit is that it lets you easily tailor it to narrative purposes on the fly, hands you a tool to stop abuse of spells or them instasolving a difficulty plus simulates the cost of components. Also component storage should be a minor thing maybe? So that components can be damaged or rendered unusable by conditions if it suits narrative purposes. But yeah, for the most part I'd just assume they have enough of whatever they need to cast most basic spells at least and keeping track of it exactly is likely to be more of a pain in the rear end than it is worth unless that's something that genuinely adds to a particular groups fun.
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May 25, 2020 11:35
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Gharbad the Weak posted:I want someone who can directly turn gold pieces into power for combat. I don't care if it's a spellcaster using gold coins as components, or a ranged person throwing the coins real hard. But they have to throw the coins hard enough that the coins explode and you can't use them after. Necromancer wizard spending their money to arm their skeletons. Outfit them with longbows and armor and poo poo, buy weapon poison for when you really need to nova. Or just hire peasant archers, which is probably the most powerful thing you can do in the land of bounded accuracy short of being a necromancer.
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May 25, 2020 19:55
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