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Jack B Nimble posted:Does anyone see any glaring omissions in the following taxonomy for a traditional D&D style game? Is there anything that you feel isn’t answered or that needs to be further explanined? Your description and how it sounds like you're positioning them makes me think that all of these various species were created by biome spirits (like goblins were created in the deep woods by the forest spirit to protect itself from humans clear cutting. Trolls by the mountain spirit from strip mining dwarfs. etc..). Not sure if you were already intending that or what kind of world building you were/are doing but that's just how they read to me and actually make for a nice category distinction.
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Apr 26, 2024 19:41
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Dameius posted:Your description and how it sounds like you're positioning them makes me think that all of these various species were created by biome spirits (like goblins were created in the deep woods by the forest spirit to protect itself from humans clear cutting. Trolls by the mountain spirit from strip mining dwarfs. etc..). Not sure if you were already intending that or what kind of world building you were/are doing but that's just how they read to me and actually make for a nice category distinction. *Furious scribbling behind DM screen, followed by a blank poker face with a single bead of sweat.* That may well be, who can say.
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Apr 26, 2024 19:45
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Morrow posted:It's my turn to DM in a few months and I'm trying to do an actual mystery: the Werewolf of Monte Cristo. The format is rather than having a long-running campaign we reset and do something different for the better part of a year, which lets us shuffle around schedules and rosters a little. I think it's probably important to gauge if your players want to really do the deducing or do they like mystery as a vibe.
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Apr 26, 2024 19:49
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The other downside of mysteries in DND is spells. The Pathfinder book of entry has a long section on how various spells can be subverted for the purposes of mysteries. If you’re running a game just to run a mystery, you can just tell the players those spells don’t exist in the world.
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Apr 26, 2024 19:54
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Jack B Nimble posted:*Furious scribbling behind DM screen, followed by a blank poker face with a single bead of sweat.* Seeing as how you were so clever to come up with that idea, I bet I'm right in guessing that many of the fae in the world were brought into the material realm by these species as basically heros/champions/heavy artillery. For example Spriggans and Ents could be the summoned fae champions of the goblins initially and still are closely allied with them. But over the centuries of existing in the material realm, they have gained their own agency and agenda.
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Apr 26, 2024 20:01
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I'll read through all those helpful resources. Ive explicitly sounded out that they're interested in a more involved game. We are losing the most hack and slash player for this session. While she's gone I figure I might as well try a mystery. Golden Bee posted:The other downside of mysteries in DND is spells. The Pathfinder book of entry has a long section on how various spells can be subverted for the purposes of mysteries. If you’re running a game just to run a mystery, you can just tell the players those spells don’t exist in the world. I'm probably going to curate a level range/class choices that precludes a lot of that. I'm vibing like a 4-8 range but need to check through spells available.
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Apr 26, 2024 20:29
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Morrow posted:I'll read through all those helpful resources. The Pathfinder book Ultimate Intrigue has a handy writeup of what spells at what levels might affect investigations / spywork, organized by level. It starts on page 154. Obviously written for Pathfinder 1e but generally applicable to DnD settings.
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Apr 26, 2024 20:34
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Dameius posted:Seeing as how you were so clever to come up with that idea, I bet I'm right in guessing that many of the fae in the world were brought into the material realm by these species as basically heros/champions/heavy artillery. For example Spriggans and Ents could be the summoned fae champions of the goblins initially and still are closely allied with them. But over the centuries of existing in the material realm, they have gained their own agency and agenda. I was going to respond that I had my own ideas about where Fae exist in relationship to the game setting, that they're demons who long ago secured permanent purchase on the material world, giving up some of their power in exchange for a corporeal nature (and escaping the ephemera all demons are bound to, which essentially a kind of hell). However, I realized this sort of wrinkle is exactly what I should be layering into the game to give it depth, so thank you!
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Apr 26, 2024 20:41
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The Monster Overhaul belongs in every DMs shelf, regardless of what version of Fantasy Adventuring Role Playing Games they prefer. It's so good.
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Apr 27, 2024 16:25
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My players yelled at the poor planetary governor for not deploying a good infantry regiment stationed in the capital to fight the ork invasion. The general is holding that regiment in the capital to launch his coup against the governor. Poor guy is getting it coming and going.
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Apr 28, 2024 22:35
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Arglebargle III posted:My players yelled at the poor planetary governor for not deploying a good infantry regiment stationed in the capital to fight the ork invasion. The general is holding that regiment in the capital to launch his coup against the governor. Poor guy is getting it coming and going. Orks need to grisly murder him to seal the trifecta. Which has interesting implications if there is a coup going on at the same time.
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Apr 28, 2024 23:10
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The governor was trying to hire the players to fight the ork invasion, and they were so rabid about killing orks that they didn't even consider that he was afraid they might leave. They were sure he was trying to hire them for ulterior reasons and the RT player got pretty aggressive, enough that the other players felt they had to intervene. He's not a very dominant personality so they literally interrupted him when he was trying to provide favorable terms to stay and defend the planet and got even more aggressive when he got flustered and defensive. It was a very "this is a game" logic moment, where they're already so committed to the main quest that they didn't consider that the NPCs aren't sure whether they're going to stay and do the quest. I distinctly remember playing D&D as a teenager and the party having a similar wildly inappropriate reaction to a random shopkeeper, who we had convinced ourselves was somehow up to no good. Actually this is a good opportunity to start portraying the NPCs around the Rogue Trader as being on guard for his outbursts of temper and massaging their reports to try to avoid his wrath. Arglebargle III fucked around with this message at 03:59 on Apr 29, 2024 |
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Apr 29, 2024 03:36
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Obviously hind sight is 20/20 and a lot of this sounds like just the GM and the players being a little out of sync in the moment, but it seems like rumours and information gathering could be a good way to express sentiments in a way that's not tied to a particular suspect NPCs. Like, if the players had encountered a general rumor among the population that there's concern that foreign assets with the means to leave, like Mechanicus ships and Rogue Trader Vessels, might be considering abandoning the planet, that gives the attempted hiring legitimacy that doesn't come from tbe mouth of the NPC.
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Apr 29, 2024 14:37
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Yeah one player suggested using their existing PR contacts to spy on the city and I'm giving him a temporary fate point because that's a great way to get him exposition. However I'm not mad at the rogue trader; accosting Imperial governors and generally being insufferable belligerent rich bastards is extremely in character. And the governor was being evasive, because he was embarrassed that he didn't actually know anything about military deployments. This debacle does actually provide good opportunities for deepening the role playing because Kapak is antagonized but is still going to need their help. So there will be a greater role for minor NPCs and the missionary of the party as Kapak is wary of going straight to the face of the party. Also Lady Orleans has a more interesting role to play if they are antagonistic with governor Kapak, since she's an advocate for keeping him around.
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Apr 29, 2024 17:04
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Hey so Im thinking I'd module bash Hidden Shrine of Tamoachan and a 5e conversion of Isle of Dread. Thought on just ignoring the entire temple part of Isle of Dread because it's boring.
Hollismason fucked around with this message at 19:08 on Apr 29, 2024 |
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Apr 29, 2024 19:00
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Tamochan is arguably the best module ever written so i support this. Make sure the players can read the ancient text and speak the languages, it is a lot more fun that way
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Apr 29, 2024 20:20
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sebmojo posted:Tamochan is arguably the best module ever written so i support this. Make sure the players can read the ancient text and speak the languages, it is a lot more fun that way I'm changing the villagers in Isle of Dread to Sea Elves so I'll just make it ancient Elvish. Thanks for suggestion.
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Apr 29, 2024 20:23
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sebmojo posted:Tamochan is arguably the best module ever written so i support this. Make sure the players can read the ancient text and speak the languages, it is a lot more fun that way This is Expedition to the Barrier Peaks erasure. Why, no, I won't be answering questions about why my level 6 half-elf rogue has a disintegration pistol.
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Apr 29, 2024 20:24
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I'll be honest I can't snatch up fifth edition versions of classic modules fast enough.
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Apr 29, 2024 20:42
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Oh also the party completely whiffed their first mission against the orks, ended up blowing up the installation they were supposed to rescue.
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Apr 29, 2024 22:23
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Arglebargle III posted:Oh also the party completely whiffed their first mission against the orks, ended up blowing up the installation they were supposed to rescue. it's called 'winning, in reverse,' Governor! Look it up!
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Apr 29, 2024 22:44
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Admiralty Flag posted:This is Expedition to the Barrier Peaks erasure. Vegepygmies of alien spaceships unite! Goddamn I loved that module. Just bonkers from beginning to end.
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Apr 30, 2024 06:11
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Arglebargle III posted:Oh also the party completely whiffed their first mission against the orks, ended up blowing up the installation they were supposed to rescue. So you're saying they successfully prevented the Orks from capturing the installation? Sounds like a great success!
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Apr 30, 2024 09:35
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They hadn't really thought through what a bunch of air dropped kommandos might be trying to do with an early warning radar bunker. Piling up explosives to blow it up was what they were trying to do. That didn't mix well with the missionary's flamethrower. I mean, is blindly shooting flaming fuel through a bunker door generally a good strategy? Yes. Has it been working for him? Also yes. Was it a good idea to bring against orks? Definitely. But you might have considered why the orks were here in the first place, or taken a clue from all the other orks seeing the flamethrower and the bunker door, putting two and two together*, and legging it for the gates or even climbing over the walls OUT of the bunker complex INTO the player's troops. *two and two makes lots
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Apr 30, 2024 13:19
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Arglebargle III posted:They hadn't really thought through what a bunch of air dropped kommandos might be trying to do with an early warning radar bunker. Piling up explosives to blow it up was what they were trying to do. That didn't mix well with the missionary's flamethrower. that's hilarious
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Apr 30, 2024 13:24
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The Orks simply desired the secret to man's red flower. Also sounds like they failed successfully.
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Apr 30, 2024 13:30
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Expedition to Barrier Peak is getting a adaptation in July something Infinite Staircase.
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Apr 30, 2024 13:56
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Your rogue traders have been playing too much Helldivers
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Apr 30, 2024 14:16
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Cantorsdust posted:Your rogue traders have been playing too much Helldivers "For Theocracy!" Does make a suitable 40k war cry.
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Apr 30, 2024 14:34
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Jack B Nimble posted:"For Theocracy!" Does make a suitable 40k war cry. I mean the Imperium is basically a Managed Theocracy
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Apr 30, 2024 15:22
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Unmanageable Theocracy
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Apr 30, 2024 15:25
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Cantorsdust posted:Your rogue traders have been playing too much Helldivers 
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Apr 30, 2024 21:48
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We just had a big boss fight that would have been the level capstone, the party was thoroughly trouncing him as the wizard kept him in check for 4 rounds with a spell that really happened to work in their favour, until the wizard player realized he'd missed a limitation and could not have cast that spell at all. We decided to roll back all the way to the previous room, and I made up some stuff on the fly about "a vision of one possible future". It happens. We meet again tomorrow. I'm happy with them just redoing the fight or picking a different route, not like I can pull the knowledge from their heads. Here's the question, though. What caused the party to have a vision of the future out of the blue like that?
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Apr 30, 2024 22:18
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Why did you decide to roll it back in the first place instead of just letting it play out as a rule of cool and a reminder to better track stats and a mental note to double check people for a bit to make sure the habit is sticking?
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Apr 30, 2024 22:27
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It was the evil boss trying to mesmerize them!
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Apr 30, 2024 22:29
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Dameius posted:Why did you decide to roll it back in the first place instead of just letting it play out as a rule of cool and a reminder to better track stats and a mental note to double check people for a bit to make sure the habit is sticking? My Lovely Horse fucked around with this message at 22:39 on Apr 30, 2024 |
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Apr 30, 2024 22:35
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An ally of the big bad really needs him for their scheme, and tried to trap the players in an illusion spell of easy victory. They'll pop in at the last second to rescue the big bad like a jerk.
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Apr 30, 2024 22:43
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My Lovely Horse posted:man we just did and it works better for us than that, I dunno why The wizard who fessed up should get some kind of low key benny for it, that's extremely honourable
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Apr 30, 2024 22:49
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My Lovely Horse posted:man we just did and it works better for us than that, I dunno why Fair enough, you know your table better than anyone here. I was kinda hoping I could gleam some inspiration to your op from the response. What's the magic/deity situation like? Is there someone in the setting that'd want to mess with their head to give them false sense of bravado? Great way to slip in a surprise mechanic to retool the fight if you want.
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Apr 30, 2024 22:51
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It's an Edge of Tomorrow-style deal where the villain can keep rolling back time after he loses because of a MacGuffin, so after the players beat him for real they suddenly reset to right outside the room but now they know something is very wrong. A friendly magical NPC shows up and tells them that he's protecting their memories, and in this fight they need to make sure they get it off his body before he feels like he is losing.
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Apr 30, 2024 22:53
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