#Epic Level Handbook

[theoutcastrogue]

Bounded Accuracy, why it was necessary, and why it doesn't have to apply to skills

"Why Bounded Accuracy?", by Justin Alexander

"Let’s start by talking about bounded accuracy. Endless ink has been spilt on this topic, but I think one of the clearest way to understand bounded accuracy — what it is, why it works the way it does, how it’s supposed to be used — is to look at the design lineage which created it.

To do that, we need to go back about twenty years to the development of the Epic Level Handbook for 3rd Edition. The concept was to extend play past 20th level, allowing players to continue leveling up their characters forever.

The big problem the designers faced was that different classes gained bonuses to core abilities — attacks, saving throws, etc. — at different rates, which meant that their values diverged over time. By 20th level, the highest and lowest bonuses had already diverged so much that the difference exceeded the range of the d20 roll. This meant that any AC or DC you set would either be an automatic success for some PCs or impossible for others.

The designers of the Epic Level Handbook tried jumping through a whole bunch of hoops to solve or ameliorate this problem, but largely failed. As a result, the Epic Level Handbook was a pretty flawed experience at a fundamental level (and its failure may have actually played a major role in Wizards of the Coast abandoning the OGL and the doom of 4th Edition, but that’s a tale for another time)."

[The Rogue notes: I think the big problem with 3.5 was that the breaking of the d20 roll (where the AC or DC you set could be auto-fail for some and auto-success for others) happened LONG before epic levels, if players made characters with different levels of optimisation. Which was sometimes a result of, well, studying, pouring through splatbooks and looking up combos on the internet, but other times it just happened, without any effort. Some classes had to jump through hoops to keep up with the rest, and that was bad.]

"On that note, fast forward to 4th Edition: The designers knew this was a problem. (Several of the designers had actually worked on the Epic Level Handbook.) They wanted to avoid this problem with the new edition.

Their solution was to level up everyone’s bonuses across the board: Classes would be strong at some things and weak at others, but the values wouldn’t diverge. This methodology was, furthermore, wedded to 4th Edition’s design ethos of “level up the whole world with the PCs” and more or less fundamental to its My Precious Encounter school of encounter design.

Fast forward again, this time to 5th Edition: The 4th Edition of the game had burned down, fell over, and then sank into the swamp, and 5th Edition’s mission was to win back the D&D players they had lost. The whole “level up the world” ethos was widely identified as one of the things people who hated 4th Edition hated about 4th Edition, so it had go.

Bounded accuracy was the solution. Importantly, bounded accuracy was about two things:

Controlling AC & DC so that the target numbers never become impossible for some of the PCs.

Controlling bonuses so that the results don’t become automatic successes for some of the PCs.

In other words, all of the results exist within that boundary. Hence, “bounded accuracy.”

If you go back to the original problem experienced in 3rd Edition (and which metastasized in the Epic Level Handbook), you can see how this solves the problem. It also avoids the 4th Edition problem where your numbers get bigger, but your results never actually improve because the numbers increase in lockstep: As long as the DCs remain consistently in bounds, the moderate increases to the PCs’ bonuses will see them succeed more often as they increase in level, resulting in high-level characters who feel (and are!) more effective than 1st level characters."

– Justin Alexander | The Alexandrian, September 2022

Commentary: Bounded Accuracy and Skills

This very well-written summary was part of an article roasting the 5e skill system, and specifically arguing that Expertise is bad because it breaks Bounded Accuracy, and Reliable Talent makes it worse. And with this, I disagree.

I think that Bounded Accuracy is excellent for combat's standard rolls: attack vs AC, and saving throw vs DC. That's when you need numbers that challenge the whole party: some characters may have a better chance than others, sure, but the d20 roll doesn't become irrelevant because this one is guaranteed to succeed and that one is doomed to fail.

But for otherwise interacting with the world, I actually don't think the numbers need to challenge the whole party. I think immersion and simulation (I like these!) are better served by making such challenges tricky. Occasionally they will be too easy for some, and/or too hard for others, depending on where the characters focused their training. And when that happens, it's up to the party to figure out ways to make up for it, to look for other, creative solutions rather than get stuck on a skill check that one or more of them are doomed to fail, and in the end to acknowledge that some tasks are suited for only some of them.

So maybe half the party auto-failing to scale that wall means they need to find another way in, or use their spells, or have the athletic ones climb up and throw down a knotted rope. That's good! It's a complication that requires a solution other than rolling a single check! Maybe only the Wizard (with 2024 rules) has a chance of making that extreme Arcana check about a long lost artifact. That's great! It makes sense and it's immersive, they should be the only one able to make it. And maybe, if your goal is to stealthily scout ahead, don't send forth the clanging armoured warriors, only send the sneaky rogues. That's fantastic! It's basic tactics! What's not to like?

I have BIG beefs with the 5e skill system, on account that it's half-baked (and 5.5 is somehow even less baked), and doesn't give details or DCs even for the most bog-standard skill uses that you expect to come up at every campaign. A generic DC table from very easy to nearly impossible is great as a guideline for niche cases, and crazy things the players came up with. But things like climbing walls and picking pockets should come with instructions and numbers. As is, the DM is either winging it every time and the players are in the dark, or the DM is doing the designers' work for them, and homebrewing DC tables for everything. But bounded accuracy is not the problem here, imo.

[thecreaturecodex]

Ha-naga

Image © Bad Moon Art Studio, accessed at their gallery here

[Sponsored by @justicegundam82, who's been having me convert monsters from both Epic Level Handbook and Serpent Kingdoms for a while. And this one is from both! I do find it interesting that the greatest of the nagas, rather than being neutral or being posited as an ancestor or patron to all nagas, is explicitly chaotic evil. I'm going to be working this into the Age of Monsters/Great Game stuff, believe me. Also, thanks to this excellent art, I gave my version both disintegrate and Still Spell]

Ha-Naga CR 20 CE Aberration This human-headed serpent is enormous, its head the size of an entire human, and its body as long as a caravel. Its scales shimmer in color but default to a pearlescent white.

Ha-nagas are the most powerful and magically gifted of the naga lineages. It is a shame, therefore, that they are universally evil. Every ha-naga is self-absorbed to the point of megalomania, and they respect nothing else besides the gods, and even those only grudgingly. Most ha-nagas like to view themselves as divine incarnations, extinction level events, civilization destroyers, and other over the top entities. They have the power to back these claims up on a practical level. Spirit nagas view ha-nagas with a combination of envy and awe, and most ha-nagas have one or more nests of spirit naga minions.

In combat, a ha-naga would rather avoid violence altogether with its mesmerizing gaze. Most ha-nagas have charmed victims to slow down dedicated enemies with, and they do not hesitate to allow said charmed victims to be slain in its stead. If a ha-naga’s mind-controlled allies turn on it, they merely become additional targets for its spells. Ha-nagas tend to like big flashy spells that deal damage over a wide area, and then focus fire on any healers or fellow casters left standing. If they are allowed the freedom of an open-air location for combat, they take to the skies, flying gracefully like a snake swimming through water. Their slam attack is a grasping loop of their coils, and their stings contain venom that causes flesh to decompose within seconds.

Ha-nagas are enormous, and as such require enormous lairs. Abandoned and ruined cities are a favorite, with the ha-naga nesting inside of a temple complex, coliseum or other monumental building. They are very tactile creatures, and often sleep on mounds of treasure in the way that dragons do. Dragons are the only creatures ha-nagas feel remotely threatened by, and some ha-nagas make a habit of eliminating all of the dragons within a comfortable radius of their lairs (and stealing their hoards) before settling down in a location for good.

A ha-naga is about 100 feet long. Their lifespans are best measured in centuries, and a ha-naga can survive two or three millennia if not slain in combat.

Ha-Naga CR 20 XP 307,200 CE Colossal aberration (evil) Init +12; Senses darkvision 60 ft., Perception +36, scent Defense AC 34, touch 14, flat-footed 22 (-8 size, +12 Dex, +20 natural) hp 372 (24d8+264) Fort +19, Ref +22, Will +23 DR 20/good; Immune charms, compulsion effects; SR 31 Weakness corrupted Offense Speed 60 ft., fly 120 ft. (perfect) Melee slam +22 (4d6+9 plus grab), sting +22 (2d8+9 plus poison), bite +22 (4d4+9) Space 30 ft.; Reach 20 ft. Special Attacks charming gaze, constrict (4d6+13) Spells CL 19th, concentration +30 9th (5/day)—meteor swarm (DC 30), wail of the banshee (DC 30) 8th (7/day)—fire storm (DC 29), horrid wilting (DC 29), power word stun 7th (8/day)—greater arcane sight, greater teleport, regenerate 6th (8/day)—disintegrate (DC 27), greater heroism, heal (DC 27) 5th (8/day)—baleful polymorph (DC 26), cone of cold (DC 26), nightmare (DC 26), wall of force (DC 26) 4th (8/day)—cure critical wounds (DC 25), divine power, freedom of movement, scrying (DC 25) 3rd (9/day)—dispel magic, displacement, lightning bolt (DC 24), slow (DC 24) 2nd (9/day)—alter self, mirror image, resist energy, scorching ray, spiritual weapon 1st (9/day)—cure light wounds (DC 22), identify, mage armor, magic missile, shield of faith 0th—bleed (DC 21), detect magic, ghost sound (DC 21), light, mage hand, message, read magic, stabilize, touch of fatigue (DC 21) Statistics Str 28, Dex 34, Con 32, Int 31, Wis 29, Cha 33 Base Atk +18; CMB +38 (+42 grapple); CMD 58 (cannot be tripped) Feats Agile Maneuvers, Arcane Strike, Combat Reflexes, Dodge, Empower Spell, Eschew Materials (B), Extend Spell, Flyby Attack, Lightning Reflexes, Quicken Spell, Skill Focus (Stealth), Still Spell, Weapon Finesse Skills Acrobatics +39 (+51 when jumping), Bluff +35, Diplomacy +35, Fly +39, Intimidate +38, Knowledge (arcana, dungeoneering, planes) +34, Knowledge (history) +37, Perception +36, Sense Motive +33, Spellcraft +37, Stealth +41, Survival +36; Racial Modifiers +12 Stealth Languages Abyssal, Aklo, Common, Draconic, Senzar, Undercommon SQ camouflage, compression, flight, metamagic mastery Ecology Environment any land or underground Organization solitary Treasure double standard Special Abilities Camouflage (Ex) A ha-naga gains a +12 racial bonus on Stealth checks. It does not need cover or concealment to make Stealth checks. Charming Gaze (Su) Range 60 ft.; effect charmed (as per charm monster) for 20 days; save Will DC 31. The save DC is Charisma based and includes a -2 racial penalty. Corrupted (Ex) A ha-naga is treated as an outsider with the evil subtype, as well as its actual type, for spells and abilities affected by creature type. Flight (Su) The fly speed of a ha-naga is a supernatural ability. Metamagic Mastery (Su) A ha-naga does not need to increase the casting time of a spontaneous spell in order to modify that spell with its metamagic feats. Poison (Ex) Sting—injury; save Fort DC 33; duration 1/round for 6 rounds; effect 1d8 Con damage; cure 2 consecutive saves. The save DC is Constitution based. Spells A ha-naga can cast spells as a 19th level sorcerer. It treats spells from the cleric spell list as being on the sorcerer/wizard list. It does not gain any of the other class abilities of a sorcerer, such as a bloodline.

[thegreateyeofsauron]

My favorite kind of D&D content is the stuff that even the small minority of players who run the sort of campaigns where that sort of thing could feasibly come into play are still extremely unlikely to encounter it.

The kind of thing that even players with decades long campaigns featuring level 40+ characters who use Elminster as a glorified punching bag and regularly take their pet tarrasques for walkies in the Far Realm are unlikely to ever encounter.

One example of this is the Epic Dragon. Back in 3rd edition there was a type of dragon called Epic Dragons (introduced in the Epic Level Handbook) who were to regular dragons as dragons were to most regular monsters. Even their wyrmlings could kick the shit out of most regular dragons and even newborn they had many of the powers other dragons wouldn’t get until later in life like fear auras and sorcerer spells.

Originally there were only two kinds of Epic Dragons, the Force Dragon, and the Prismatic Dragon. The Prismatic Dragon tops out at a staggering 66 CR while the Force Dragon barely reaches a pathetic 59 CR.

But both of these guys are chumps compared to the Time Dragon.

Introduced in an issue of Dragon Magazine, the Time Dragon can have a CR as high as 90. They are born immortal, can travel forward and backwards through time after some time preparing, and older Time Dragons have the ability to cast Time Stop at will every single round.

Time Dragons make their lairs at either the very beginning or the very end of time. They only hang out with gods and other immortals. One of them could solo the entire titular cast of Elder Evils at once. The time it takes for them to grow into the next age category is randomly determined for each dragon and can take anywhere from a few minutes to multiple centuries. They also love collecting clocks.

You can read about them here.

I'd be surprised if they ever appeared in a campaign for any reason besides the DM wanting to show off this cool dragon they found. (which is a pretty good reason to put a dragon in your campaign I'll admit).

[gaydragontournament]

ROUND 1: PART 1

Propaganda under cut

Prismatic Dragon

● Look at it. Rainbow dragon with bisexual lighting!

Imperialdramon

● Literally a fusion of two male presenting digimon and are partners with two humans who are a very popular gay ship in the digimon fandom. Imperialdramon has two modes: Fighter mode and DRAGON mode. Even in both forms they are still a part of the Dragon’s Roar field, so they’re a dragon regardless of mode.

In certain continuities they are the founder of a group of Digimon called the royal knights, whose job is to protect the digital world, and said members include: the very fruity LordKnightmon/Crusadermon, the he/she/they legend Alphamon, the bara hero Gankoomon, Examon who is too big to process on certain computers, and more.

[sneezypeasy]

The Lightning Scene, How Azula Targeted Katara (of All People), and the Doylist Reason Why That Matters

Mention Zuko's sacrifice for Katara in Sozin's Comet Part 3 as part of a pro-Zutara talking point, and invariably you'll get a Pavlovian response of:

"But Zuko would have taken the lightning for anyone."

(Not to be confused with the similar-sounding Pavlovan response, which is "Zuko's sacrifice ain't shit compared to a mouth-watering, strawberry-topped meringue dessert"*, which is actually the only valid counter-argument to how the lightning scene is a bona fide Zutara treasure, but I digress.)

Now, I've talked in depth about how the lightning scene is framed far more romantically than it had any right to be, regardless of how you might interpret the subject on paper; this is an argument which I still stand by 100%. That Zuko would have gotten barbecued for anyone, and that he was at the stage of his arc where his royal kebab-ness represented his final act of redemption, doesn't change the fact that the animators/soundtrack artists decided to pull out all the stops with making this scene hit romantic film tropes bingo by the time it played out on screen.

(I mean, we stan.)

There's also a deeper level to this conundrum, a layer which creeps up on you when you're standing in your kitchen at night, the fridge door open in front of you, your hungry, sleep-deprived brain trying to decide on what to grab for a midnight snack, and quite inexcusably you're struck with the question: Okay, Zuko may indeed have taken the lightning for just anyone, but would Azula have shot the lightning at just anyone?

But there's yet a deeper layer to this question, that I don't recall ever seeing anyone discuss (though if somebody has, mea culpa). And that is: would you have written Zuko taking the lightning for anyone else?

Or in other words, who Zuko would have taken the lightning for is the wrong question to be asking; the question we ought to be asking is who Zuko should have taken the lightning for, instead.

Get your pens out, your Doylist hats on, and turn to page 394. It's time to think like an author for a hot minute.

(If you don't know what I mean by Watsonian vs. Doylist analyses, and/or if you need a refresher course, go have a skim of the first section of this 'ere post and then scoot your ass back to this one.)

So. You're the author. You've written almost the entirety of an animated series (look at you!!) and now you're at the climax, which you've decided is going to be an epic, hero-villain showdown. Classic. Unlike previous battles between these two characters, your hero is going to have a significant advantage in this fight - partly due to his own development as a hero at the height of his strength and moral conviction, and partly because your villain has gone through a bit of a Britney Spears 2007 fiasco, and isn't quite at the top of her game here. If things keep going at this pace, your hero is going to win the fight fairly easily - actually, maybe even too easily. That's okay though, you're a talented writer and you know just what will raise the stakes and give the audience a well-timed "oh shit" moment: you're going to have the villain suddenly switch targets and aim for somebody else. The hero will be thrown off his groove, the villain will gain the upper hand, the turns will have indubitably tabled. Villains playing dirty is the number 1 rule in every villain handbook after all, and each of the last two times your hero's braved this sort of fight he's faced an opponent who ended up fighting dishonourably, so you've got a lovely Rule of Three perfectly lined up for the taking. Impeccable. The warm glow of triumph shines upon you, cherubs sing, your English teachers clap and shed tears of pride. (Except for that one teacher you had in year 8 who hated everybody, but she's a right bitch and we're not talking about her today.)

Now here's the thing: your hero is a hero. Maybe he wasn't always a hero, but he certainly is one now. If the villain goes after an innocent third party, there's basically no-one your hero wouldn't sacrifice himself for. He's a hero! Heroes do be like that, it's kind of their thing. The villain could shoot a bolt of lightning at Bildad the Shuhite, and the only thing that'd stop our boy Redeemed Paladin Bravesoul McGee from shielding his foxy ass is the fact that Bildad the Shuhite has the audacity to exist in a totally different show (disgusten.)

But. You're holding the writer's pen. Minus crossover shenanigans you don't have the licensing or time-travel technology to achieve, you have full control over how this scene plays out. You get to decide which character to target to deliver the greatest emotional impact, the juiciest angst, the most powerful cinematic suspense. You get to decide whose life you'll put at risk, to make this scene the most intense spine-chilling heart-stopper it can possibly be.

This is the climax we're talking about, after all - now is not the time to go easy on the drama.

So.

Do you make the villain target just anyone?

Or do you make the villain target someone the hero cares about?

Perhaps, someone he cares about... a lot?

Maybe even, someone he cares about... more than anybody else?

You are the author. You are the God of this universe. You get to choose.

What would deliver the strongest punch?

If you happen to make the inadvisable decision of browsing through these tropes on TV tropes, aside from wasting the rest of your afternoon (you're welcome), you'll find that the examples listed are littered with threatened and dead love interests, and, well, there's a reason for that. For better or worse, romantic love is often portrayed by authors, and perceived by audiences, as a "true" form of love (often even, "the" true form of love). Which is responsible for the other is a chicken/egg situation, one I'm not going to go into for this post - and while I'm certainly not here to defend this perspective as objectively good, I do think it's worth acknowledging that it not only exists but is culturally rather ubiquitous. (If you're playing the love interest in a story with a hero v. a villain, you might wanna watch your back, is what I'm saying.)

Regardless of whether the vibe you're aiming for is romantic or platonic however, one thing is for certain: if you want maximum oomph, the way to achieve that is by making the villain go after the player whose death would hit the hero the hardest.

And like I said, this doesn't have to be played romantically (although it so often is). There are platonic examples in those trope pages, though it's also important to note that many of the platonic ones do show up in stories where a love interest isn't depicted/available/there's a strong "bromance" element/the hero is low-key ace - and keep in mind too that going that route sometimes runs a related risk of falling into queer-bait territory *coughJohnLockcough*

That said, if there is a canon love-interest available, one who's confessed her love for the hero, one who has since been imprisoned by the villain, one who can easily be written as being at the villain's disposal, and who could quite conveniently be whipped out for a mid-battle surprise round - you might find you have some explaining to do if you choose to wield your authorly powers to have the villain go after... idk, some other sheila instead.

(The fact that this ends up taking the hero out of the fight, and the person he sacrifices himself for subsequently throws herself into the arena risking life and limb to defeat the villain and rescue her saviour, also means the most satisfying way this plays out, narratively speaking, is if both of these characters happen to be the most important person in each other's lives - at least, as of that moment, anyway - but I think this post has gone on long enough, lol)

This is, by and large, a rebuttal post more than anything else, but the tl;dr here is - regardless of whether you want to read the scene as shippy or not, to downplay Zuko's sacrifice for Katara specifically as "not that deep™" because "Zuko would have taken the lightning for anyone anyway", suggests either that a) nobody should be reading into the implications of Katara being chosen as the person nearest and dearest to Zuko, so that putting her life in jeopardy can deliver the most powerful impact possible for an audience you'd bloody well hope are on the edge of their seats during the climax of your story or b) the writers made the inexplicable decision of having the villain threaten the life of... literally who the fuck ever, and ultimately landed on someone who's actually not all that important to the hero in the grand scheme of things - which is a cardinal writing sin if I ever saw one (even disregarding the Choice to then season it with mood lighting and sad violin music, on top of it all), and altogether something I'd be legitimately pissed about if my Zuko-OTP ship paired him with Mai, Sokka, or just about anybody else 😂

Most importantly c) I'm hungry, and I want snacks.

*The Aussies in the fandom will get this one. Everyone else can suffer in united confusion.

[robotbeetle]

If you’re too lazy to read through a full article about the new players handbook for dnd, I’ve complied and paraphrased the notable stuff:

- more backgrounds and 3 new subclasses including a mystical viking barbarian

- specifically 16 backgrounds and 75 feats

- Some subclasses have been changed. Apparently way of the four elements monk has been entirely changed

- new core playable species: aasimar, goliath, orc

- Ability score modifiers now linked to background instead of species (less fantasy racism yayyy)

- calling races species now

- unspecified changes to current species like human

- you get one origin feat according to your background. Origin feat is a new type of feat typically only obtainable at character creation

- new types of feats unlockable at higher levels which are cooler/more powerful. Called epic boon feats

- weapons now have a mastery feature. So if you have mastery in a weapon you can use a move unique to that weapon like toppling with a maul. Bg3 has the same mechanic with proficiency for reference

- 100+ pages of spells 😭

- a more detailed equipment chapter

- all new art yayyy

- attempt to make it easier to understand and start out for new players

[wearesorcerer]

This could potentially be big. Screenshots from someone in a Facebook group providing his professionally-affected opinion:

Basically, if any of this is true, you could expect Paizo et al to sue WotC/Hasbro. I would love to see that happen, personally, but it all depends on how likely any of the above actually is to work. Like, if 5.5/6e turns out to be as crappy as 4e was, this will just be WotC shooting itself in the foot again (though probably not enough to kill it). So far, I've only heard good things mechanically and bad things for the playerbase, but they have all been vague suggestions with no concrete details.

A Concrete Example

The Hypertext d20 SRD was constructed under 3.5 as exactly what its name suggests: a self-interlinked reference document for everything in the system. Prior to its existence, the SRD was a collection of (possibly rich) text documents without page numbers or other means of easy reference. The Hypertext SRD included all OGL material from print sources it could find, so includes ~85% of the Player's Handbook, Dungeon Master's Guide, Monster Manual, Expanded Psionics Handbook, Epic Level Handbook, Arcana Unearthed, and some bits from Deities & Demigods. It has other useful tools, like an encounter calculator and spell search. For the longest time, it was the only thing like it. Other sites (DnD Tools, Forgotten Realms Helps) eventually sprang up with more content; DnD Tools has been taken down numerous times for violating the OGL, while Realms Helps has stayed under the radar for some reason.

At some point, the d20srd webmaster updated it to include Pathfinder (seemingly all, but arranged by book like how Paizo's PRD was, which is deeply unhelpful) and some 5e (limited entirely to the core three books). This was long after d20pfsrd launched; that site is modeled off of the 3.5 d20srd site in organization and is amazeballs.

Since this webmaster has published 5e material on this site and since the new OGL possibly interprets that as accepting its terms, if this new OGL were legal, he could be sued to take down his entire site (or at least the perennially helpful portions) because it is no longer valid. (Per the screenshots, this is only half hypothetical: I know WotC did do this when 4e came out to fanpages that had 3.5 and 4e material because they didn't want competition from their own product.) This would leave only unauthorized (DnD Tools) or status unclear (Forgotten Realms Helps) archives. We've already lost reams of 3.5 material because WotC deleted its 3rd ed. archives (they used to publish stuff online regularly).

[wanderingnork]

Githyanki Deep Dive: Aberrations and Antiheroes in 4th Edition D&D

So according to the githyanki poll I ran a few weeks ago, this was the third most popular option for a deep dive. (After this we'll be hitting up the original Fiend Folio and Forgotten Realms: Demon Stone.) It's also one close to my heart, because it's the edition where I first fell in love with the gith--and especially the githyanki.

In 4th Edition, the githyanki that were virtually unchanged from the Fiend Folio through 2nd and 3rd Editions suddenly switched gears. They were still vicious pirates and terrifying opponents, but also developed another side that has lasted through to the githyanki we know and love in Baldur's Gate 3.

4th Edition Primer

Before we get into the githyanki, though, I have to give a crash course in 4th Edition D&D. Since so many people started playing in 5th Edition or came into the hobby through the gateway of Critical Role or Baldur's Gate 3, you may not know just how...strange...4th Edition was in the context of the game as a whole. I speak from a place of love, because full disclosure I prefer 4E to 5E as DM and as player, but I acknowledge that it was weird.

4th Edition was partially developed as a response to the goings-on of 3.5 D&D. (Don't worry about 3rd Edition, that is a whole other post.) In 3.5, there was a serious problem with system bloat. From the three core books (Dungeon Master's Guide, Player's Handbook, Monster Manual), the game exploded. Five Monster Manuals. Two Player's Handbooks. Two Dungeon Master's Guides. The eight "Complete..." books. Campaign settings. The list goes on and on and on.

It added up fast. Players had vast suites of rules and mechanics that could easily lead to a single character requiring three or four books to run. A single monster could be an entire page and a half of rules and require a DM to have access to three or four books just to understand what a monster's feats could do (because yes, monsters had feats, and they could take class levels). To put it mildly...it was a mess.

So along comes 4th Edition, a well-intentioned new mess.

4E set out to streamline the problem. While it would eventually introduce its own mess of system bloat thanks to the sheer volume of books, its origin maintained some control over mechanical chaos. Instead of vast lists of feats and abilities, players had "powers" that defined exactly what a given ability could do and how often. The sprawling skill list of 3.5 was drastically pared down. Monsters went from an entire page or more of abilities and feats to single "stat blocks" that covered, even for the highest-level monsters, half a page. Movement in feet became movement in squares. Non-combat abilities were stripped down to a bare minimum.

You can spot a few things that 5th Edition kept when it was released. We still have the tight skill list from 4E (minus the "endurance" skill which still makes me grumpy). The idea of the "monster stat block" is retained. The feat list has dramatically shrunk and while 5E has put out many more feats since, it's really, really not at the level of 3.5.

4E also introduced the idea of "tiers" of play: levels 1-10 were the "heroic tier," 11-20 were the "paragon tier," and 21-30 were the "epic tier." Generally speaking, the heroic tier was about fighting your typical mundane monsters. The paragon tier would introduce higher-level mundane monsters and low-level extraplanar monsters. The epic tier almost always required players to leave the Material Plane behind and head onto another plane to find level-appropriate challenges. (Yes, this will be relevant to the githyanki later!)

While the mechanical changes hit hard, the changes to the lore and default world of D&D were just as drastic. The default world of Greyhawk from 3.5 shifted to the "Points of Light" setting. This setting established a background--that two great empires clashed some centuries ago then fell, leaving the world mostly a monster-infested disaster, studded with small points of safe civilization--then set players loose. It also crushed older D&D cosmology. Gone was the Great Wheel of planes and demiplanes. In its place were the Feywild, Shadowfell, Astral Sea, Elemental Chaos, and Far Realm. What Forgotten Realms had to do to make this new cosmology make sense...I don't wanna go into it, but it's a lot to unpack.

This streamlining of the cosmology also changed a lot of monster lore. Many "typical" monsters of the heroic tier (goblins, magical animals, elementals, and the like) stayed largely the same. It's on the other planes and at higher levels that things got weird. The tarrasque was reskinned as an abomination, the spawn of the war between the primordials and the gods. The shadar-kai changed from messed-up shadow fey to eerie servants of the Raven Queen. And so on, and so forth.

On the surface, the githyanki didn't change very much in comparison to other monsters. They still lived on the Astral Sea. They were still piratical. They still hated illithids and githzerai. But, thanks in large part to the cosmology changes at the base of 4E, they were about to take on an entirely new dimension.

The githyanki were about to save the universe.

Githyanki, Old and New

The githyanki make their 4E debut in the first Monster Manual, on page 128. The first line of their writeup sets the stage:

Born out of slavery, the githyanki are fierce psychic warriors that ply the Astral Sea and fight with silver swords.

Hell of an opening line, that. It hands us the key characteristics that 4E wants us to associate with the githyanki. Compare it to the first introduction of the githyanki in the first Monster Manual for 3.5 (p.127):

Githyanki are an ancient line of humanlike beings residing on the Astral Plane, filling their armories for their next skirmish, raid, or war.

Right off the bat, we're dealing with two completely different perspectives. 3.5 tells us the githyanki are ancient, tells us where they live, and informs us that they spend all their time in preparing for war and plunder. 4E's language, on the other hand, frames them in a more...adventurous light. Ferocity, plying the Astral Sea, fighting with silver swords, not much different than any extraplanar adventurer.

Most importantly, the first WORDS of their write-up in 4E tells us their history: they are a lineage of freed slaves. Whose slaves, how they got free, all that is on the next page. (It's the same in 3.5, The Lore is on the next page.) But there it is: if you don't read the "alignment" tag in the stat block and see that little word "evil," what you'll see is freed slaves who adventure in the Astral Sea.

The next change is the art style. The githyanki illustration in the 3.5 Monster Manual makes the warrior look totally skeletal. She's wearing gloriously alien armor, many-colored gems, and has her hair in a strange style. Her knees have those weird bulbous knobs and her feet don't look remotely human. In 4E, our first look at the githyanki is completely different. No more shrinkwrapping here: these are just some weird humans. Their silver armor is elaborate and set with rubies, but it's very much armor a mundane warrior would wear. (Indeed, it's about identical to BG3 armor.) They look away from the viewer, presumably at the same foe, psionic powers and swords at the ready. The githyanki of 3.5 is a monster standing alone. The githyanki of 4E are an adventuring party fighting together.

Sailing the Astral Sea

Cut to The Plane Above: Secrets of the Astral Sea. This supplement focused on all things Astral Sea. Here, 4E finally gets into the deep parts of githyanki lore. The first illustration in the book is a githyanki knight riding a red dragon. From there, they appear frequently. Pirates, tenuous allies, the center of a dramatic campaign arc. The Astral Sea is their home, and as soon as player characters arrive they're trespassing.

(Side note: here we will be setting aside the Scales of War adventure path from Dragon magazine. Even though it's a huge part of githyanki lore, it's acknowledged in "The Plane Above" that the adventure path is an alternate history. It's not a core part of the githyanki story in 4E.)

The shifted characterization of the githyanki continues into this book. On page 12, in discussion of githyanki pirates, we get the following: "few of the githyanki of the Astral Sea bother with kidnapping. It might turn out to be profitable, but it's clearly a criminal act rather than a military operation, and thus beneath them."

So...according to this book, they're still thieves and killers, but within the D&D ethical framework these are often forgivable traits. There's no mention of slavery or other depravity in this or any other section of the book about the githyanki. Other Astral denizens are mentioned keeping and trading in slaves--not the githyanki. The Manual of the Planes mentions githyanki slavers precisely once, on page 110; in all other references, they're simply raiders and plunderers. Dragon magazine #377, "Tu'narath: City of Death," QUITE clearly and thoroughly establishes that the githyanki take and keep slaves. However, many D&D players didn't read Dragon magazine. If they only read The Plane Above, Manual of the Planes, or the Monster Manual, they'd come away with a rather nobler view of the githyanki than 3.5 ever left.

If you are, for some reason, following along with the book itself--skip what you see on page 13. We're gonna come back to that.

The githyanki get a mention on what feels like every other page. But the most focused discussion of the githyanki in this book appears from pages 94-97, in a deep dive on their culture, and from 142-149 with the new stat blocks--including one for Vlaakith herself. Here, we discover that in 4E the githyanki have been broken into factions. There's mainstream githyanki society, the group that lives in Tu'narath and generally behaves as we expect githyanki to behave. Then there are the Far Travelers, a group of githyanki who never settled in Tu'narath. With Gith's blessing, they became true nomads. They don't have silver swords or benefit from the red dragon pact, but they do enjoy immense freedom.

And then there are the gul'othran. While mainstream githyanki society enjoys superiority to other people, pillaging and then departing, the gul'othran take it a step further. They conquer other worlds and rule over them. It's repeatedly mentioned that githyanki players encounter on the Material Plane are probably gul'othran. Not typical githyanki, but extremists. Githyanki bent on conquest, perfectly acceptable opponents for any adventuring party.

Gith's Three Stratagems

The githyanki story in The Plane Above starts with the story of their liberation. Here, the war on mind flayers is defined: not just a perpetual hatred, but an Eternal Crusade decreed by Gith herself. Zerthimon, as usual, objects and the githzerai depart for the Elemental Chaos. The githyanki, left homeless, desperate, and fractured, sail into the Astral Sea. Here, Gith establishes a plan for the future of her people, founded on three stratagems.

First, she wanted a fortified capital. After a long time--anywhere from a few decades to centuries--the githyanki arrived at the One in the Void and founded the city of Tu'narath there. First stratagem, check. Second, Gith sought an alliance with another power. With the first Vlaakith's support, Gith reached out to Tiamat. She sold herself for a pact with the red dragons, who would be allies and friends of the githyanki so long as the pact lasted. (In the 4E Draconomicon: Chromatic Dragons, we get to meet the "pact dragons," red dragons who've spent so long with the githyanki that they've taken on the magic of the Astral Sea.)

Finally, before leaving her people, Gith established the tradition of the silver swords. As has been true since the earliest githyanki lore, the silver swords are capable of cutting silver cords that hold Astral travelers to their material bodies. That makes them highly effective weapons against astral-projecting mind flayers and elder brains, which exist at once on the Astral Sea and the Material Plane. In a previous edition, there was even an incident in the mind flayer city of Ch'Chitl where a githyanki hunting party killed the Astral part of an elder brain.

But 4E takes this a step further. The greatest silver swords are forged to incorporate a tiny fragment of the Living Gate, a strange artifact that held back the Far Realm itself before it was destroyed. In the hands of a powerful githyanki, the swords are able to resonate with the Far Realm and aberrant beings. Fun fact: despite over a decade of separation from the publication of "The Plane Above," Baldur's Gate 3 retains this piece of lore. Talk to Lae'zel after she gets her silver sword. She'll tell you all about it.

What she doesn't tell you is just how important that really is.

4th Edition: It's All About the Far Realm

Throughout 4E, the setting steadily shifted gears and pointed toward the Far Realm as a sort of "ultimate evil." Why that happened is speculation for another post, but what matters here is that it did. The Monster Manual mostly presented your standard aberrant beings (mind flayers, aboleths, beholders, gibbering mouthers). They're mostly designed for paragon and epic tier heroes (levels 11-30), with the least powerful (carrion crawler, grick, and grell) being rated for level 7. Aberrations are high-level foes.

Then in comes the Monster Manual 2, with the fell taints (p. 102-105). These cute little blobs of tentacles and eyes, born from the contact of the Far Realm with reality, are rated for level 2. A low-level beholder, the gauth, is rated for level 5. Suddenly, aberrations and the Far Realm are acceptable foes for adventurers just starting out in their career. Ominously, this book also introduces the horrifying star spawn. They're the heralds of the aberrant stars, avatars in the mortal world. One of them, the Maw of Acamar, is literally A BLACK HOLE.

In the Underdark sourcebook, EXTENSIVE time is spent on mind flayers and their ancient destroyed empire of Nihilath. The gith only get a couple sidebar mentions, but for anyone who knows their lore they loom large. In that book, there's also a heavy focus on the aboleths and beholders, who have vast and bizarre realms in the Underdark. In the aboleth realm of Xarcorr, the stone itself flows like water and the laws of physics break down. A singularity somewhere in Xarcorr is even gradually devouring the substance of the Underdark. The Far Realm is tearing at the seams of reality.

And the Monster Manual 3 seals the deal. Cloakers, derro, more beholders, foulspawn, intellect devourers, krakens, PAGES of mind flayers with an elder brain. It all culminates in the star spawn, and what might be the ultimate creature to fight in all of 4E. You can take on Orcus, Tiamat, Lolth, Asmodeus, and that's cool...but this book offers the chance to fight Allabar, the Opener of the Way.

It's a star.

An entire fucking star covered in eyes and tentacles that wants to tear open reality and let the Far Realm devour everything.

Heroes and Villains

And this is what the githyanki are ultimately contending with. In 4E, their fight isn't just against the mind flayers. The Eternal Crusade the githyanki fight is against the Far Realm itself. The silver swords allow them to recognize the times when the Far Realm manages to seep into the Astral Sea. They marshal a "savage and decisive military response" that ends the threat immediately. Most people don't even realize how often this happens, because the githyanki are always ready.

The gul'othran, the faction that wants to conquer everyone? They do what they do because they want to deny the mind flayers a future empire by conquering everything first. It's horrifying extremism in the face of an apocalypse that could rip all of reality to shreds.

That "page 13" I said to ignore earlier is a description of a possible campaign arc where the githyanki finally go on a full offensive. They want to invade the Far Realm themselves and take the fight to their enemies. The players are tasked with stopping this invasion, because unzipping the Far Realm is a VERY bad idea in general, but in context of the rest of the 4E lore...well. Anyone who hears about Allabar, or experiences the trypophobia-inducing Hatchlands of the beholders, or bears witness to the ruins of the ancient mind flayer empire, might be tempted to let it happen. After all, even with all the horrible things they've done, the githyanki have the weapons, experience, and allies to hold the line. They've been holding the line for eons.

And everyone in the world of 4th Edition should pray to whatever god is listening that the githyanki keep doing that.

[y-rhywbeth2]

To be honest, my go-to when I think of Durge is the category of beings that 3.5e cheerily named 'Abominations.' Just one that happens to look more like a regular mortal and maybe was created on purpose (although maybe Bhaal made Durge totally by accident and just rolled with it). Also the fact that Bhaal appears to want them is a shift (gods (and everybody else in existence) want their abominations locked far, far away from everything and everyone).

'Abominations are mistakes - the unwanted, unforeseen offspring of misguided deific concourse. Abortions of spirit, abominations live on, nurtured by their quasi-deific powers and pure, undiluted hate of their forebears and all naturally formed creatures. [...] Abominations come in an overwhelming variety of forms, all terrible. [...] All abominations are born directly (or indirectly) from a god and some lesser creature (or idea [such as being built by the god rather than involving another parent])...' - Epic Level Handbook

They age so slowly it's borderline impossible to die of old age (sure they can die of old age but they'll be around to see the deaths of universes, so it's meaningless form the human perspective), and barely ever need to eat, sleep or breathe.

They heal fast, have innate spell-like abilities, and always have at least one or more abilities tied to their parent's portfolio.

It was specifically the atropals that brought me here:

'Atropal scions are clots of divine flesh given form and animation by bleak-hearted gods of death. When a stillborn godling rises spontaneously as an undead, a great abomination is born. If that abomination is defeated, but any fragment or cast-off bit of flesh remains, an atropal scion may yet arise from those fragments, lessened in power from its divine beginnings, but no less hateful for its stature.' - Libris Mortis: The Book of Undead

Durge is neither undead (alas) nor an evil god-zombie-foetus abomination, but the point that abominations may be born of a death god's discarded flesh remains the closest thing to an explanation of how the fuck their origin story makes sense I can find.

[ttrpg-smash-pass-vs]

It'll still be a few months, gotta finish this tournament after all, but I want time to prep. Monsters of the Multiverse is just Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes and Volo's Guide combined, usually even using the same art which is why they aren't there. Though I did scan them for differences, and will post both book's art on the rare occasion they differ. If something laser-focused like Fizban's Dragons or Bigby's Giants wins I'm swapping between it and something else. Maybe every other week, maybe a weekday/weekend scenario, but I don't want to do just one monster for a couple months. If this changes your vote but you clicked before you read, just let me know in a comment or ask and I'll change it after the poll ends. ...and yes, the PF2e Bestiary has more eligible creatures than that stat wise, but I can only use the creatures with a picture. Leaves out some elementals :/

[midnightactual]

while I'm going on about meta, I've noted before that nobody can detect Yoruichi except Kūkaku. there is one exception... in chapter 153:

Shunsui is able to notice Yoruichi is coming, although he can't tell that it's her specifically

this is notable given that Yamamoto(!), Retsu(!), Jūshirō(!), Byakuya(!), Soifon(!), Chōjirō(!), Nanao(!), Marechiyo, Isane, Sentarō, Kiyone, and Ichigo(!) don't notice her approaching (much like Jūshirō, Byakuya, etc. didn't before, and Aizen, Gin, Kaname, Askin, Yhwach, and so on won't later)

now, we know from CFYOW that flash steps are inherently not stealthy:

The high-speed movement possible through Fullbring enabled control over the reishi dormant in the ground and the power to increase the ability to move itself. Unlike shunpo, it would disturb the surrounding spiritual pressure to a minimal degree and could be said to be similar to sonido in that it was covert and allowed one to take an opponent by surprise.

we also know from Klub Outside that:

2024.10.14 Q685. 瞬歩や響転とはどういった点が違うのでしょうか？特に探査神経をすり抜ける特徴のある響転が気になります。 What are the differences between Shunpo and Sonído? I’m particularly curious about Sonído’s characteristic of bypassing sensory detection. A685. 主に肉体を鍛えて行うのが瞬歩、霊子操作能力を鍛えて行うのが飛廉脚、体内の霊子を「霊子ではないもの」に変換して行うのが響転です。 Shunpo mainly involves training the body, while Hirenkyaku focuses on improving reishi manipulation. Sonído, on the other hand, involves converting the reishi within the body into something "other than reishi."

basically flash steps are almost entirely physical, Hirenkyaku and Fullbringer movement involve manipulating ambient reishi, and Sonido involves manipulating the self

so first of all, you need to bow down and recognize how physically supreme Yoruichi is to be able to make something inherently unstealthy into something (almost) perfectly stealthy. just like you need to bow down and recognize the feat that is crafting and sustaining Shunkō (with no usage limit considerations, unlike Soifon) which is implied to have dire consequences if you mess it up, like DBZ's Kaioken making you explode

Yoruichi is like a 30th Level D&D 3.5 Edition multiclassed Monk with a bunch of ridiculousness out of the Epic Level Handbook

but also this tells you what a badass Shunsui is, to be able to do something nobody else present can do (likewise, what a badass Nanao is to escape his notice in CFYOW, and what a badass Tokinada is to notice her doing it when Shunsui doesn't)

so we should generally understand that Shunsui is something like the Qui-Gon Jinn of Bleach, which is exactly why he becomes Captain-Commander when Yamamoto dies, and why he's the one to lecture Lille on Reikaku in TYBW. among the currently serving Captains of the Gotei 13, and even among its greats like Yamamoto and Retsu, Shunsui had the keenest perception of reiatsu and the clearest mind during hectic situations

(Retsu, probably, has the keenest perception of physical senses given she was aware of something being off with Aizen's fake corpse)

this also more generally clues you into the fact that Bleach is much more rock paper scissors than most shōnen, which the novels go out of their way to emphasize again and again, first in SAFWY:

Shunsui KYÔRAKU is also present. KURUYASHIKI asks him if he could take down a vasto lorde. KYÔRAKU responds it depends on compatibility. He could win against a vasto lorde and lose against a gillian. You never know.

and then in CFYOW:

“Yes, that is exactly how it is. Although it’s only a fraction of them. Are you frightened?” Tokinada queried as though testing her, and Aura shook her head quietly. “No. Kisuke Urahara was, of course, frightening, but if he is considered a top class, powerful individual in the Thirteen Court Guard Companies, then I believe I should be able to deal with the rest.” “Don’t get too conceited now. Kisuke Urahara is certainly a man of infinite counterplans. However, the Seireitei is a den of thieves. Do not forget that even an ordinary soldier may hold a zanpaku-to with a power that would be most disadvantageous to you.” Though he was warning her, Aura could not miss the curiosity that tinted the back of his eyes. If that were to happen, this man would likely laugh about it. This noble who came to praise me for having nearly invincible power would surely sneer at me the moment I displayed shock at meeting a passing soldier who could easily destroy me.

[marvel-starwarsfangirl]

Ep. 14 "Flash Strike" Review

Wow this is way late. First off, I loved the animation and it looked genuinely real at times. TBB is to date the best looking animated show (not counting the "Tales" shorts). Those jungle shots were stunning. And the music! The music in the beginning was epic and it got my heart racing.

Spoilers below just in case

Rampart is just the gift that keeps on giving. Seriously, what was that scream? I was dying laughing 😂. He once again provides the comedy in these dire hours. However, his conversation with Crosshair was intense. I've already covered it, but basically: Rampart doesn't understand how some people can change. And ofc he was the one to mess everything up. Classic Rampart. Also, please Cross, you don't have to prove anything to Rampart. I get you're concerned that the man vanished, but the loser can take care of himself.

I did love watching the brothers fight side by side as usual. When Wrecker got thrown by the dryax, my heart melted when Cross and Hunter immediately went over to help him up. Also, y'all notice that the slice went all the way to Wrecker's skin? That was chilling. I hope Wrecker will be ok. I did love Crosshair's convo with Wrecker. Yes, he's scared and internally having several mental breakdowns, but he's doing it for Omega. He loves her more than anything. When he says he "owes her," it's his way of telling Wrecker that. Cross has never been one to be openly emotional about things. His actions show where his heart truly lies.

Omega was incredible this episode. Her "they found me... my brothers" just hit the spot. She knows that they will always come for her and will fight through hell and back for her. That's the level of love and trust she has with them. Also shoutout for her leadership skills and sneaking skills. Omega has grown so much and the impact of her brothers on her is so noticeable. You know the moment she sees the Zillo, she's got a plan cooking.

Hemlock isn't an idiot? Villain being competent? Well, that's both satisfying and scary.

ECHO!!!! Sweet Echo back at it, serving us with peak Arc Trooper content. Seriously, I love him so much! I also love how he now looks like Fives and the rest of his OG squad. The last Domino is carrying the banner with pride (he's fine relax 🙃). His convo with Emerie was golden. He's come so far since reciting the reg handbook back to his brothers word-by-word. There is so much meaning behind Echo telling Emerie that following orders blindly isn't the right thing to do. It might be Emerie's job, but it's putting the lives of others at stake. It's wrong. And having it be Echo who tells her that is so important. Crosshair fits better as Rampart's narrative foil due to the imperial past and prison sessions. But Echo being Emerie's narrative foil is incredible. Echo is such a beautiful person inside and out. He better make it out alive.

Anyways, I can't wait to cry with y'all on Wednesday. See you then!

[thecreaturecodex]

Anaxim

Image © Wizards of the Coast, by Wayne Reynolds

[Commissioned by @justicegundam82​​. The anaxim was one of the abominations in the D&D 3.0 Epic Level Handbook, and even in its initial appearance seemed like a strange fit. It doesn’t have an epic level CR, at CR 20, and it is the only non-evil abomination. 4e tried to reinvent them by moving them to the Forgotten Realms, and conflating them with a 2e monster family from Dragon Magazine, the sheen. Like most decisions involving the Realms in the 4e era, I hate this and am ignoring it.

My inspiration for the flavor text is as much from conversations with my followers as from any official source. Their first canon backstory is that they are the abandoned creations of a forge god who tried and failed to make an ultimate weapon. The commissioner suggested, in light of this and to give the anaxim something to do other than fight, that they be interested in “fixing” themselves. A conversation with @strawberry-crocodile​​ about one of her upcoming commissions got me thinking about how Pathfinder RPG treats Law vs. Chaos as the big reality-defining conflict as opposed to Good vs. Evil (more traditional fantasy settings) or Evil vs. Evil (the Blood War). And, because of where I am in my life, there’s definitely an element of queer symbolism in this entry as well. Feel free to play that up, or play that down, depending on how you want to use the anaxim in your game.]

Anaxim CR 17 N Outsider (extraplanar) This mechanical thing is approximately human shaped, but nearly twice as broad. Its body seems to be made entirely of weapons—it has spinning blades mounted on its back, multiple hooks and cleavers growing along its arms, and a face like a knight’s helmet.

In the war between the inevitables and proteans, there are casualties. Most of these are outright fatalities, but in some cases, an inevitable becomes irreversibly changed by the forces of chaos. When this happens, the inevitable transforms into an anaxim. No two anaxim look identical, but all resemble loosely humanoid metal figures covered in weapons. The primary goal of most anaxim is perfection: making themselves whole and complete in a way that is unique to each individual. Many anaxim would also like to figure out a way to reliably replicate, one that didn’t rely on freak chance and outside intervention. A few anaxim are instead filled with self-loathing and seek to lash out at the forces that made them—these are the most dangerous.

A single anaxim is the equivalent of an entire mortal army, and they are able to go toe-to-toe with all but the most powerful proteans or inevitables alike. As anaxims value their own lives very highly, they usually start a combat cautiously, from a distance or with hit and run attacks. The spinning blades that grow between their shoulders are, when spun fast enough, able to act as a wing, granting the creature remarkable maneuverability for its weight. In addition to their impressive physical weaponry, an anaxim can use a number of spells for defense, and a powerful blast of sonic energy for offense.

Anaxims are insane by the standards of the inevitables, which means that they are capable of respecting and understanding multiple viewpoints. Some maintain a balanced approach to achieving their goals, while others veer wildly between chaotic and lawful behavior. On some occasions anaxim will gather together into groups if their views of perfection overlap. If they do not, such groups rapidly fall apart due to infighting, with anaxim attempting to take control of their peers or simply blast them to pieces with their sonic cones.

Anaxim       CR 17 XP 104,200 N Medium outsider (chaotic, extraplanar, lawful) Init +7; Senses darkvision 60 ft., Perception +26, true seeing Defense AC 33, touch 18, flat-footed 25 (+7 Dex, +1 dodge, +15 natural) hp 270 (20d10+140 plus 20); fast healing 10 Fort +13, Ref +19, Will +17 DR 15/(adamantine and lawful) or (adamantine and chaotic); Immune construct traits; Resist cold 20, electricity 20, fire 20; SR 28 (35 vs. divinations) Defensive Abilities constructed Offense Speed 30 ft., fly 100 ft. (perfect) Melee 2 blade arms +31 (2d6+11/19-20), spinning blades +31 (4d6+11/19-20x3) Ranged 6 spikes +27 (1d8+11) Special Attacks control construct, rend (2 blade arms, 2d6+16), sonic cone Spell-like Abilities CL 20th, concentration +25 Constant—nondetection (self only), true seeing At will— chain lightning (DC 21), displacement, greater dispel magic 3/day—ethereal jaunt, quickened greater dispel magic, improved invisibility 1/day—summon (1 iron golem, 100%, 9th level) Statistics Str 33, Dex 25, Con 25, Int 20, Wis 20, Cha 20 Base Atk +20; CMB +31 (+35 sunder); CMD 49 (51 vs. sunder) Feats Cleave, Craft Construct (B), Deadly Aim, Dodge, Flyby Attack, Great Cleave, Greater Sunder, Improved Critical (spinning blades), Improved Sunder, Power Attack, Quicken SLA (greater dispel magic) Skills Acrobatics +28, Craft (clockwork) +24, Fly +24, Knowledge (arcana, dungeoneering) +21, Knowledge (engineering, planes) +24, Perception +26, Sense Motive +26, Stealth +28, Spellcraft +21 (+25 crafting constructs), Survival +26, Use Magic Device +26; Racial Modifiers +4 Spellcraft when crafting constructs Languages Celestial, Common, Modron, Protean, Utopian SQ armament, construct maker Ecology Environment any land or underground (Axis) Organization solitary, binary pair or squad (3-6 plus 0-12 miscellaneous constructs) Treasure standard Special Abilities Armament (Ex) An anaxim’s natural weapons overcome damage reduction as lawful, chaotic and magic weapons. Its blade arms are primary natural weapons that deal slashing and piercing damage, and threaten a critical hit on a roll of 19-20. Its spinning blades are a primary natural weapon that deals slashing damage, and deals x3 damage on a successful critical hit. Control Construct (Su) Three times per day as a standard action, an anaxim can attempt to take over a construct within 60 feet. The construct can attempt a DC 25 Will save; if it fails, it is totally under the control of the anaxim for 24 hours. Creatures with the constructed defensive ability, such as inevitables, modrons and other anaxim, are susceptible to this effect as well. The save DC is Charisma based. Constructed (Ex) Although anaxim are living outsiders, their bodies are constructed of physical components, and in many ways they function as constructs. For the purposes of effects targeting creatures by type (such as a ranger's favored enemy and bane weapons), anaxim count as both outsiders and constructs. They are immune to death effects, disease, mind-affecting effects, necromancy effects, paralysis, poison, sleep, stun, and any effect that requires a Fortitude save (unless the effect also works on objects, or is harmless). Anaxim are not subject to nonlethal damage, ability damage, ability drain, fatigue, exhaustion, or energy drain. They are not at risk of death from massive damage. They have bonus hit points as constructs of their size. Anaxim do not need to breathe. Construct Maker (Ex) An anaxim has Craft Construct as a bonus feat. It gains a +4 racial bonus on all Spellcraft checks used in the manufacture of a construct. Sonic Cone (Su) Once every 1d4 rounds as a standard action, an anaxim can create a 60 foot cone of deadly sonic energy. All creatures in the area take 20d6 points of sonic damage and are staggered for 1 round. A successful DC 25 Reflex save halves the damage and negates the staggered condition. The save DC is Charisma based. Spikes (Ex) As a standard action, an anaxim can fire up to six spikes. Each spike is treated as a ranged weapon with a range increment of 100 feet. Each spike deals 1d8 damage plus the anaxim’s Strength modifier. An anaxim never runs out of spikes.

[gaydragontournament]

List of battles, as chosen by wheel spin. Each round will last about a week, Starting next Monday.

Round 1, Part 1:

King Valerius (Dragon's Reign by Raythe Reign/X. Aratare) vs Nel (Fire Emblem)

Yang Xiao Long (RWBY) vs Falin Touden/Red Dragon (Dungeon Meshi)

Qibli (Wings of Fire) vs Dan Heng/Dan Feng (Honkai Star Rail)

Evaristo (The Las Leyendas movie franchise) vs Paarthurnax (The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim)

Prismatic dragon (Dungeons & Dragons (Epic Level Handbook, Dragons of Dragons of Faerûn) vs Imperialdramon (Digimon)

Whiptail lizard (Real Life) vs Shi An (After The Abyss Dragon Woke Up (深渊巨龙苏醒以后))

Sundew (Wings of Fire) vs Rex Igneous (The Dragon Prince)

Uncle Iroh (Avatar: The Last Airbender) vs Azhdaha/Retuo Longwang (Genshin Impact)

Round 1, Part 2:

Rei (Vainglorious Webcomic) vs Remy (Angels with Scaly Wings)

Soren (Fire Emblem:Path of Radiance + Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn) vs Wrathion (Warcraft Series)

Valax (Blades of Light and Shadow) vs Fiona (Flight Rising)

Kaido (One Piece) vs Velverosa (Mage & Demon Queen)

Lord Arum (The Penumbra Podcast: Second Citadel) vs Midgardsormr (Dragalia Lost)

Nimona (Nimona) vs Mateo (Poised in Either Eye by B. Pigeon and Fell A. Marsh)

Corrin (Fire Emblem: Fates) vs The Void Dragon (Aurora)

Anemone (Wings of Fire) vs Tillius the Paladin/Tilly Evans (She Kills Monsters)

Round 1, Part 3:

Unnamed Young Dragon (The Enchanted Forest Chronicles) vs Caden Bryce (Dragon's Reign by Raythe Reign/X. Aratare)

Veldora Tempest (That time I got reincarnated as a slime) vs Zuko (Avatar: The Last Airbender)

Draco quinquefasciatus (Thailand, Indonesia, and Malaysia) vs Umber (Wings of Fire)

Rhea (Fire Emblem) vs Xue Xian (Copper Coins (Tong Qian Kan Shi) (铜钱龛世))

Tamarin (Wings of Fire) vs Samol (Friends at the Table: Seasons of Hieron)

Robin (Fire Emblem: Awakening) vs Ansur (Baldur's Gate 3)

Moondragon/Heather Douglas (Marvel Comics: Guardians of the Galaxy) vs Chromie/Chronormu (Warcraft Series)

Smaug (Lord of The Rings/The Hobbit) vs Burnet (Wings of Fire)

Round 1, Part 4:

Rong Minh Thanh Thuan/Thuan (Dominion of the Fallen series by Aliette de Bodard) vs Ventuswill (Rune Factory 4)

J'mon Sa Ord/Devo'ssa (Critical Role) vs Zinnia (Super Lesbian Animal RPG)

Tohru (Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid) vs Alear ( Fire Emblem: Engage)

Alduin (The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim) vs Jae-ha (Yona of the Dawn)

Dragona Joestar (Jojo's Bizzare Adventure: The Jojolands) vs Zhongli (Genshin Impact)

Ayame (Fruits Basket) vs Alba-Lenatus the Abyss Dragon (Yu-Gi-Oh!)

Zephyr (Poised in Either Eye by B. Pigeon and Fell A. Marsh) vs Terezi Pyrope (Homestuck)

Kazuma Kiryu (Yakuza Series) vs Malleus Draconia (Twisted Wonderland)

[joshuasumter]

My latest epic poster for Across the Netflix-Verse: Joshua Sumter Meets She-Ra and the Princesses of Power that takes homage to the Spider-Man: No Way Home poster.

SYNOPSIS: When creative and autistic Joshua Sumter teams up with orphan-turned-heroine/warrior princess Adora, Etheria will never be the same! But together, they just might save the universe. Think you know the story of She-Ra and the Princesses of Power? Well, think again because Etheria (and the Netflix-Verse) will never be the same as Joshua Sumter stars (and returns) in his latest self-insert, Isekai-turned-multiversal, retelling epic that not only flips the script on the hit animated reboot from DreamWorks and Netflix by ND Stevenson to reimagine and change the events of the show...but also spans across the wild, the wacky, the scary, the magical, the mythical, and sometimes very mature worlds and universes of the Netflix-verse, a multiverse featuring your fan-favorite Netflix shows and movies. Based on the hit animated She-Ra and the Princesses of Power series and in the tradition of Space Jam (1996), it's an Isekai-turned-multiversal, dimension-spanning epic that reimagines the narrative of the show -- with the inclusion of Joshua Sumter as an unlikely, live-action hero who finds himself on a strange, animated world and beyond that is familiar but slightly changed.

Life was carefree for creative and autistic Joshua Sumter (That would be me) of Earth (Our universe, the real world) as he was enjoying another typical yet relaxing day and cozy life eating food, reading media tie-in books and comic books, and writing fanfics. Everything was perfectly normal...that is, until he lands smack-dab into the war-torn planet that is oddly familiar but yet slightly changed. It is the planet of Etheria, the world and universe of the hit animated reboot series from Netflix and DreamWorks She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, where an ongoing, full-blown war ensues and rages on between the princess-led Rebellion that wants to maintain peace and harmony for all of Etheria and the dreaded Horde that wants to conquer the planet in the name of its leader, Hordak.

At first, Joshua believes under the impression that everything going on is all just a dream of himself being in a reinterpretation of the rebooted TV series from the 80s as a full-fledged guest star, taking the first steps of his very own Isekai adventure when he bumps into Adora, Glimmer, and Bow, hangs out with them, and unknowingly accepting the full invitation to join in on the fray as a feature of his dream (all the way from Season 1 to the Battle of Bright Moon). But Joshua's enthusiasm falls flat when he quickly gets wrapped up in some very serious stuff during that experience, letting his newly found zany antics and madcap-style wits guide his ideas and actions enough to make Joshua fully consider the oddest possibility...that this ISN'T a dream after all.

Now forced into a whole, new universe and surrounded by characters he now considers his new Etherian pals and being completely aware that he's starring in his very own self-insert retelling of the animated show while helping Adora, Glimmer, Bow, and more allies like Perfuma, Mermista, Frosta, Sea Hawk, Spinnerella, and Netossa in the fight against the Horde, Joshua decides to flip the script on the She-Ra and the Princesses of Power series to make some changes around here his own way by reimaging and changing events of the show that'll help turn things around for the future of Etheria and Adora's destiny...sort of.

As Joshua continues to influence the characters with his twisted action makajalaka of awesomeness in the form of a hard-hitting baseball bat that acts as his holy-sword-like weapon, his sense of imagination, his Official Handbook-level knowledge and more while imagining his fights in the style of the Persona 4 Arena games, Adora and her friends can't help wonder about what they make of him and his bizarre, other-worldly perspective.

Along the way, Joshua later gets into numerous comedic adventures across the Netflix-Verse, a shared crossover multiverse of worlds and universes based on and inspired by your favorite Netflix shows and movies. But when things in Etheria got a little too serious and with the help of the corporeal, ethereal Emblem spirit of the previous She-Ra, Mara, along with the animated worlds of the Netflix-Verse, will Joshua be able to beat the odds by letting loose the looniness and wreaking some hilarious mayhem in the process to help his new Etherian pals Adora, Glimmer, Bow, the Princess Alliance, and the Rebellion out of a real jam by saving the world his own way from a much, bigger threat than the Horde?

Based on and inspired by the She-Ra and the Princesses of Power series by ND Stevenson and featuring the worlds of your favorite Netflix shows and movies such as The Cuphead Show, Green Eggs and Ham, The Dragon Prince, Tiger & Bunny, We Can Be Heroes, Lego Elves: Secrets of Elvendale, The Sea Beast, Maya and the Three, Nimona, Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous, Dragon Age: Absolution and much more, be prepared for a block-busting, hard-partying, mind-blowing, world-hopping, fourth-wall-breaking, live-action/animation mayhem in this self-inserting tale that spans both our world and theirs. DISCLAIMER: In the tradition and style of Space Jam (1996) meets Epic (2013), the Kingdom Hearts series, Gwenpool, and other Isekai tropes, Across the Netflix-Verse: Joshua Sumter Meets She-Ra and the Princesses of Power basically reimagines and changes the narrative of the show (Seasons 1-5), but with the inclusion of, yours truly, Joshua Sumter, and new twists and different outcomes inspired by some of the She-Ra and the Princess of Power fan fictions than the ones in the actual show for "anyone who wants to enjoy an entirely, different story with some few changes".

The Netflix-Verse, as the name implies, is a shared multiverse of worlds and universes that are mostly based on, inspired by, and from your favorite Netflix shows and movies in the tradition of Powerpuff Girls: Super Smash-Up!, Sonic Prime, Space Jam: A New Legacy, and the Kingdom Hearts series. The main hub of the Netflix-Verse is a vast expanse of space between that resembles Netflix's home menu, composed and surrounded by posters that served as gateways to these worlds. From the wild, the wacky, the scary to the magical, the mythical, the epic and sometimes very mature, it's a dimension-spanning epic into these Netflix-based worlds.

[fortunesfavours]

i come bearing time duplicate, an epic-level spell found in the depths of the epic level handbook for dnd 3.5e. this will now consume my waking thoughts for dunamancy/sg/oc purposes