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icarusthelunarguard · 3 months ago

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This Week’s Horrible-Scopes

It’s time for this week’s Horrible-Scopes! So for those of you that know your Astrological Signs, cool! If not, just pick one, roll a D12, or just make it up as you go along. It really doesn’t matter. Better yet! Check out “Heart of the Game, Fredonia” - they can sell you those D12’s with the symbols on them! Get in contact with them on Facebook, shipping to the U.S. only, and tell them “Shujin Tribble” sentcha. “Hail, Hail, Fredonia!” Home of the Blue Devil!

After some unexpected computer glitching and last-minute editing we’re finally getting THESE ‘Scopes out On Time for you all. So kick back and relax as we explain how The End Of Summer will go for you.

Aries

How about One Last Fishing Boat Trip before the season’s over? You paid for your fishing license, might as well get your money’s worth out of it. That and the gift card you were given for 7-11 so you can get a Vat-’o-Coffee on the way to wake up with. So This Week… Make sure the fishing boat company you normally use is still in business and make a reservation. The LAST thing you want to do is be stuck fishing on the pier while watching the boat head out without you.

Taurus

You missed out on Field Day this year, but that doesn’t mean you need to miss out again. For those of you wondering what that is, it’s a Ham Radio “Thing” - a big Everyone Contact Everyone Else Contest! It’s all kinds of fun using every type of radio communications system possible from Morse Code to Fast-Scan Television! So This Week… If you want to REALLY screw up some people’s minds, make sure there’s a Full Moon on the next Field Day so you can bounce your signal off it! (Yeah, that’s actually a THING!)

Gemini

How’s about a Rain-Or-Shine, After Sundown, End Of Summer tradition for you? Just remember that you might need a little extra battery power for it. NO, you pervs! Stop It! We’re having you go out to a Drive-In Movie for a Double-Feature! Usually it’ll be an “A” movie paired with a “B” movie… so “The Horror of Party Beach” paired with “The Curse of the Living Corpse”. So This Week… Make sure you get your car battery checked before the movie. It’ll be a good test to see if it’s ready for the harsh winter conditions to come. See? Preventative Maintenance for the WIN!

Cancer Moon-Child

You hated reading Shakespear’s plays for a reason back in high school. But now you don’t need to do that because you’re forced to - so you can do it for fun. (*PAUSE*) Yeah, we don’t think it’s fun either, but you can tackle it on YOUR terms, not Mr. Billello’s. So This Week… There’s plenty of variations on the Romeo and Juliet story you can choose from. We suggest either West Side Story or The Bride of Frankenstein.

Leo

Hungry? Got an old Yellow Pages phone book? GOOD! Tear out a bunch of pages from the restaurant section and throw darts at them until you find a place to eat at you’ve never been to before. Bonus Points if the place is a smaller family-owned joint that doesn’t get enough attention. So This Week… If you REALLY want to know GREAT eateries, get a CB Radio and listen to the truckers talking about a Greasy Spoon or Choke ‘N Puke. If ANYONE knows where to eat, THEY do!

Virgo

Your End Of Summer ritual works out to be both fun and educational. Take a camping trip out into the middle of nowhere - as far as cities are concerned. Get away from all the light pollution and look up at the stars. Be sure to bring a red flashlight and a planisphere so you can identify all the brightest stars, because there will be So Many you’ll get lost in the constellations. So This Week… ALSO be sure to figure out if you’ll be able to see the International Space Station. With enough luck you might even be able to photograph it!

Libra

School Supplies are still all the rage, but how about something you haven’t thought about in a LONG time? Take a swing over to Staples (or Office Max, it’s all the same company), and get yourself a proper Caligraphy Pen. You learned how to do this back in middle school, you’ll be able to do it all over again. So This Week… With all the YouTube instructional videos out there, you’ll be looking like a pro in NO time. And when you are, you can say, proudly, “HEY! Mrs. Tarresanko? SUCK IT!”

Scorpio

Two Words for you: ICE CREAM! If you can find somewhere that serves actually House-Made Stuff, Check ‘em out! Get whatever their signature flavour is and go back for more. Make your own ice cream sandwiches with it and go nuts! So This Week… Oh, come ON! Stop looking up Cold Stone Creamery! Go to some place, like, Antoinette’s Desserts on Transit Road in Depew, New York and get the Greek Mint Sunday. We DARE you to finish it in one sitting!

Sagittarius

Nothing says you have to have kids to go out School Supply Shopping! So take a swing through SEARS and look for classy button-up… Oh, right. Well, how about pencils and pens at K-Mart’s office supply… Oops. Yeah, sorry. Forgot. Ok, look! We know TARGET is still in business, right? OK! GOOD! So This Week… There’s almost always a liquor store in the same plaza as TARGET. Buy an assortment of sampler bottles and hand them out to the beleaguered parents. You know they need some help too.

Capricorn

We’re making this one real simple for you: Go clothes shopping at a second-hand place. It’ll be SUPER cheap and who only knows what you’ll find to try on? It could be literally anything from the current fashion trends to 1970’s-era polyester. So This Week… If you DO get a Butterfly Collared, Mother of Pearl Buttoned, Plaid-Painted shirt from 1973, Keep It Away From Open Flame! It’ll be passively exuding toxic fumes and will ignite at ANY provocation! Do NOT tempt The Fates!

Aquarius

Instead of going out, how about bringing the outside to you? You can get a plant starter set or just get an already-started spice plant that you can get in your window. Yeah, it’s later in the season than the plant would really like, but if you keep it indoors you’ll be able to give it all the sunlight and water it needs. So This Week… If you have a cat, Don’t Try This! They WILL knock it off the shelf and then you’ll need to sweep it up.

Pisces

Your loves of Bucking The System, Weekend TV Binging, and D.I.Y Technology need to come together in one fun system! Build a home media server to play pirated shows on your TV, and automate the whole collection system while you’re at it! So This Week… There’s plenty of well-established programming and scripting languages; you don’t need to revert to COBOL! Stop making it harder than it needs to be.

And THOSE are your Horrible-Scopes for this week! Remember if you liked what you got, we’re obviously not working hard enough at these. BUT! If you want a better or nastier one for your own sign or someone else’s, all you need to do to bribe me is just Let Me Know - or check out the Ko-Fi page ( https://ko-fi.com/icarusthelunarguard )! These will be posted online at the end of each week via Tumblr, Twitter, Facebook, Discord, and BLUESKY.

#parody #horrorscope #funny #horoscope #humor #comedy #summer #heart of the game fredonia

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randomitemdrop · 3 years ago

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Table of Minor Curses

All effects are permanent until the curse is lifted. (Note: please don’t curse your players with real-world disabilities or medical problems that people get made fun of for having, that’s not cool.) A few of these might have gone all the way to Moderately Inconvenient, fight me

Gravity affects you at a slight angle

Nobody can remember your name

Everyone knows your name, identity, and backstory

There is a widespread belief that rubbing your belly is good luck

There is a widespread belief that you are high-level royalty slumming it in disguise

There is a widespread belief that you are an actor playing a role hired by the party

You believe you are an actor playing a role hired by the party

Resting Berserker face

Athlete’s foot

Acid reflux

Inability to tell the difference between Orcs and horses

Inability to tell the difference between rocks and bread

Inability to tell the difference between leaves and money

Inability to tell the difference between Undead and non-Undead

You sprout an extra finger on each hand and an extra toe on each foot

Every time you sneeze, a random object in your square or an adjacent square catches fire

(Non-Halflings only) under the light of a full moon you become a Halfling. If a Halfling character rolls this curse they become a Were-Human

Hiccups

Animals are scared of you

Aberrations are convinced you’re an old pal

Immune to potions

Orbs give you sinus discharge

Armor gives you hives

You compulsively narrate your every action

Voice is twice as loud

Voice is half as loud

Voice and mannerisms of (roll d12) 1. Christopher Walken, 2. Betty Boop, 3. Elmo, 4. Homestar Runner, 5. DM’s choice of Disney Classic characters or whatever you call the shared Mickey/Donald/Goofy/&c. series, 6. DM’s choice of Looney Tunes, 7. Grindcore vocalist, 8. Bad 4Kidz anime dub protagonist, 9. One of those steampunk rappers from the early 2010s, 10. Hulk, 11. Surly mid-century gangster, 12. Macho Man Randy Savage

All music causes Irresistible Dance

DM chooses a word or phrase that now has the effect of Vicious Mockery on you every time you hear or read it

DM chooses a word or phrase that now has the effect of Hideous Laughter on you every time you hear or read it

DM chooses a smell or taste that now ignites Berserker Rage on you every time you smell or taste it

DM chooses a type of creature or object that Turns you every time you are near one

Perpetually under the effects of the spell Grease

You drop every item you attempt to hold

The curse conjures a single immortal (roll d10) whose only goal in life is to irritate and frustrate you (physical pain is incidental): 1. Horsefly, 2. Rat, 3. Crab, 4. Disembodied voice, 5. Gelatinous Cube, three inches across, Hastened, 6. Fire Elemental, size class Tiny (all stats one-fourth of standard Fire Elemental), 7. Lurker, 8. Mimic, 9. Halfling Bard, 10. Exact duplicate of you

You physically resemble a famous outlaw

You physically resemble a famous enemy general

You physically resemble a famous actor or musician

Unable to speak verbs

Face is upside down

Uncontrollable bioluminescence

Uncontrollable jazz hands

Feelings of antagonism cause you to compulsively snap your fingers like in West Side Story

The next non-living organic substance you touch will stick to you as if coated in Sovereign Glue

If viewed by magical means, you appear to contain vast magical power as if some powerful magical item is hidden inside you

Hair and fingernails grow at a hundred times the usual speed

Your body odor becomes significantly more powerful and smells like delicious meat

You leave clearly visible tracks wherever you go, regardless of terrain

You sweat ink

When making a list you are perpetually unable to think of the last item

#tables #curses #cursed items

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prizmpaws · 1 year ago

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hi everyone. my little guy is winning but not by a lot and i hope to fix that. so heres why you should vote for him!

theyre a tiefling. tieflings are rad

he comes from a dnd campaign in an urban fantasy setting. who doesnt love a good modern high school setting for dnd

theyre lowkey my dm insert and already get all sorts of favoritism from me, i dont know if he knows how to cope with a loss like this

theyre genderfluid and everytime the party sees them i roll a d12 to decide their pronouns for the day

he has eds and uses compression gear and occasionally a cane! i dont see enough explicit rep so i made my own >:3 they also absolutely use the cane as an improvised weapon in combat

THIS SECTION GETS INTO SPOILERS, SOME OF WHICH ARE FOR A HUGE PLOT TWIST THATS HAPPENING WAY DOWN THE LINE IN THE CAMPAIGN. IF YOURE ONE OF MY PLAYERS, PLEASE STOP READING HERE

he has his own little adventuring party! them and their friends are in a group they call the sidequesters! they dont have any big quest or journey theyre going on but they take odd jobs and internships and do chores for people around the school. they have homemade matching jackets that say "the sidequesters" on the back

said group consists of: a semiverbal blue dragonborn fighter named eva who is his roommate and seems very stern and cold but is actually chill as hell and has a fun rapport with him; a (as of now unnamed) purple tiefling werewolf sorcerer who uses minor illusion all the time for visual gags; and a goblin ranger named cheese (leading to lots of mac and cheese jokes)

theyre lying to the party. about everything. technically speaking, machkiel doesnt even exist. theyre actually a changeling named baax who takes the form of mac

mac is meant to be their ideal self, they person who they feel they need to be in order to fit in and be liked and make friends. baax is very quiet and reserved, while mac is much more loud and energetic.

the player characters work for an organization that travels through different dimensions to help people in need across the multiverse. when baax' manipulative adoptive mother, an air genasi warlock named alizee, finds out about this, she tells them that the group is corrupt and shouldnt be stepping in to play god in others' problems, and gives them their own transportation crystal. they start going on all of the party's quests with them, taking up different forms each time to antagonize them and attempt to stop their quest. in truth, the organization is corrupt, and these moral questions are raised in the story, but alizee is motivated more by a personal grudge she has against the party's mentor, a tabaxi rogue named ash.

baax' dad is actually a tiefling! mac is loosely based on him, as he was also a bit of a wild punk rocker in his teenage years-early twenties

because of their tiefling blood, they have little stubby horns and tail!

PINK TOURNAMENT ROUND 1

CHIKA, 200ISH, HE/HIM. A UNICORN INHABITING A HUMAN FORM, SHY AND EASY TO STARTLE, CREATED BY @to-beloved

MACHKIEL 'MAC’ SILVERTONGUE, 16, FLUID PRONOUNS (DEFAULTS TO HE/THEY). A PINK TIEFLING WILD MAGE WITH A PUNK AESTHETIC, CREATED BY @prizmpaws

#i definitely still have more things to say about him #but hopefully this is enough of an introduction

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justalittlebluetiefling · 4 years ago

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You all made me want to talk about how I sort my dice. So...top left purple bag has all my d100s in it. It also has pockets inside though, so most of my metal sets are in there, too. The top right galaxy-pattern bag has all the dice I don’t really use that I should probably give away, but they are in consideration in case the ones in the main bag start to act up.

Then the big CR dice bag has all my regulars. I’ve got a pocket that I keep my giant d20s in and then another pocket that I keep a few specialty sets sorted out in. I also have two separate boxes that have my gemstone dice in them. They get considered every game. The opalite CR dice rolls especially well. So does the copper one I got from the Search for Grog live show, actually. The Vox Machina dice will always be regulars, but they haven’t been out as often lately.

Now, I pre-roll every dice in the main bag before each d&d session. I start with the d4s and move up through the highest iteration that I’ll use. I’ve still never had to roll a d12 and I’m upset by that.

Anyway. I take all d4s that roll a 4. All d6s that roll a 5 or 6 have a chance of staying out. For d8s, it’s 6+. For d10s, it’s 8+. For d20s, it’s 14+.

So... I started limited how many dice I allow myself since I got the wyrmwood tiles. Any d20s that roll a 20 stay out. Anything else gets a second chance at rolling and I’ll usually give it a 2 out of 3 or 3 out of 5. It has to roll above a 10. If they roll a 1, they automatically go into dice jail instead of in the bag so they can think about what they’ve done for the whole game and watch everyone else have fun. Sometimes, I’ll let a really pretty one or brand new one stay out even if it doesn’t roll well. SOMETIMES. If I start to run out of space, I’ll pick from the ones that rolled the best based off how I feel that day. The others go back into the bag with a very sincere apology from me.

#that's it #i want to start a dice set series and show you pictures of my favorite dice #that seems lame though #erin plays d&d #dice

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platonic-prompts · 4 years ago

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Types of Dice

Ever needed to have a character play a roleplaying game like dnd? Or more likely you need a way to show they play something like that without outright saying “A’s a big dnd nerd” or “A’s a DM”. Or you know, if your character is like me and is a dice hoarding goblin who likes the click clack math rocks. Anyway there aren’t very many different types that I’m going to cover (only the ones used in DnD)

4 sided die (d4)

aka the devil’s die that can go die in a fire because stepping on one of these is not fun guys

Anyway the d4 has 4 sides and the way in which it is read can vary. The dice I use have the number you use at the top (like in the one shown above) but some have it in the middle of the side (the number you would use would be upright in between of where the 3 and 1 are on this die)

6 sided die (d6)

aka a cube

More likely than not, you’ve seen one of these. the opposite sides add up to seven. these are the easiest dice to get ahold of and theres nothing saying you can’t use the dotted ones for games, I just like the numbered ones better

8 sided die (d8)

as far as i can tell there isn’t really a set pattern for the numbers on this thing though 6 and 1 tend to be on the same side (er the facets above and under each other like the 8 and 5 above)

10 sided die (d8)

This die actually comes in two forms for dnd and it also happens to be one of the dice that isn’t a Platonic Solid (solids whose faces are regular polygons, though when I saw the name I was like yes I must do this now). The first picture is of the regular d10 while the second is the percentile. Now let me do a little thing for people who don’t play dnd

On the regular d10

1= 1 2=2 3=3

4=4 5=5. 6=6

7=7 8=8 9=9

0=10

Pretty simple, now things get a bit wonky when you need to roll a percentile using the d10s.

Unless you roll 00 0 (which is 100%) you treat the 0s as a zero in the tens place of the percent ex. rolling 00 and 9 would be 9% or in the ones place ex. 90 and 0 would be 90%

Twelve sided die (d12)

the opposite sides add up to 13. Oh and something I forgot to note in the d10 one is that the 6 and 9 are usually marked with a dot or line on the bottom to show how they’re to be read.

Twenty sided die (d20)

The d20 is pretty much the most recognizable symbol of dnd and they are also super fun to roll and rattle in your hands. Like I said, dice gremlin. Opposite sides add up to 21. This is the die used for most rolls in dnd, from rolling to hit to rolling ability checks and saving throws and god forbid you see your DM pulling out TWENTY of these things...and then rolling 10 of them for the damage the monster’s health he just rolled did to the entire party.

One hundred sided die (d100)

Most people only have one of these, and honestly I see why. its like 11 dollars for one of them. More depending on what its made of. And really you only need one. Unless you’re planning on killing everyone or something.

Or if you’re like me and my cousins who would’ve lost it twenty times if theirs wasn’t glow in the dark. this is that other none platonic solid btw.

That’s it for this part. I’ll get one put together on the different materials dice are made from in a bit. Hope you enjoyed

#info post #i don't own any of those pictures btw #not a prompt #if you really want me to tell you what the dice are for specifically i will #to the best of my ability anyway #remember you guys can request for me to make posts like this #you might want to get those in before college starts back up tbh #jhgkgkgk #me suggesting i have time management #but srsly you can

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boazpriestly · 4 years ago

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How I Play D&D with Preschoolers (Ages 3-6)

I am not a D&D/Tabletop RPG expert at all, but as a preschool teacher I love fun, engaging ways to teach my kids practical skills.

D&D is perfect to teach them critical thinking skills, how to share and take turns, number recognition skill, probability skills, storytelling skills, and sequencing skills. Because my kids get so engaged in the story and pretending to be their characters, they don't really realize they they're learning all of these things, but I've seen them utilize these skills in other areas during the day, so I know it works.

This current game I'm running with my class is my first time trying this, so I know I'm going to learn new things along the way and update how I do this for future games. But for now, I wanted to share the way I'm running this campaign in case anyone with little ones who are preschool age would like to try this out.

First I want to state that while it probably is possible to teach preschoolers the traditional D&D, that is not the approach I'm taking. Mainly because I legit do not know how to play traditional D&D (and I also have no interest in high fantasy games), but also because most preschoolers I've taught have an attention span that tends to max out at 30-45 minutes for something that they're highly engaged in (i.e. they need a break around that time). So the way I created my current game is to get the most story told with an abundance of chances for roll checks, giving everyone a chance to utilize their characters withing that 30-45 minute window.

So with that said, this is how I’ve chosen to run my game.

Characters There are no real restrictions when the kids create their characters. But since my class' community expectations (class rules) are to be safe and kind, no character can have weapons or intentionally harm anyone. Once that's been established, the kids have to come up a name for their character and a bio that includes what kind of character they are (human, alien, monster, animal, etc.), where they're from, and what is something they like to do/how will they help the team. Then I have the kids decide if their character is best at being strong (Strength), using their imagination (Creativity), or working in a team (Teamwork), so they can think about which situations their characters will excel at and which would be best for other characters.

Game Rules While most D&D/Tabletop RPGs have a lot of rules to follow and remember, for my preschoolers we have only 5.

We have to listen to each other, especially the GM, so we know what is happening in the story.

We have to roll the dice for every action that will help advance the story.

When roll checks do not go as planned, we have to be encouraging of each other.

We have to take turns in the decision making.

If we don't agree with each other on a decision we have to use our words to talk to each other and find a new solution.

Roll Checks For roll checks I use a D12 for a very basic pass/fail system. numbers 1-5 are a fail and numbers 6-12 are a pass.

I may change to a D20 later, but for now the D12 works well.

Gameplay To get my kids interested in the game, and have them wanting to continue playing, I had them vote on the general setting/starting point and the overall goal of the game. For instance, our current game's setting was our school's playground and they decided that their goal was to get to our local zoo.

I did not plan the initial story beyond those two things, so what I've been doing to keep their interest is that I've been basing our game in real world things that my kids interact with and/or know a lot about so that they want to share their expertise with everyone.

For example, one of my kids had a Gnome phase last year where he did nothing but talk about gnomes for like six months, so my kids were warned by a giant that they were going to meet gnomes along their journey. One of my kids is really good at finding toys we thought we'd lost so his character has the ability to see invisible things that the others on the team can't, which has helped several times. From where our school is, the only was to get to the zoo is by transit train, and all of the kids have rode it at some point, so their characters are currently on that train, except it's magical and they're stoked to figure out how the magic works on the train.

So far, for my current class, it's been a super fun experience because they love stories and storytelling. They want to play non-stop and I'm here for it.

I really hope to continue doing this for my future classes, if they want to. Because it's a really rewarding experience.

#dnd with preschoolers #dnd #tabletop rpg

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applesforhela · 4 years ago

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Adventures in Writing- Character Studies

So I’ve never played DnD myself, not so much for lack of interest or curiosity or willingness to play, but it just never happened. I love the wealth of writing inspiration I can find with character mechanics and the breakdown of stats and how they add depth in neat ways to characters. I have a whole world and then some of characters of my own, and sometimes grabbing some dice and rolling a few numbers can help get the words to start flowing onto paper.

The current example is a couple characters of mine, coming to me by nameless proxies to better develop a point in time I’m already familiar with in their story. By this I mean, story seeds often grow when I’m sleeping, and sometimes the names don’t make it to the dreams. So I’m writing bits of this story of <X> and <Y> with names to be filled in later. It goes well to a point, then gets a bit stagnant. Doesn’t help that these guys tend to keep their thoughts and emotions bottled up or at least pretty close to their chests. Time for dice.

One thing I found a while ago was a sort of roll-a-character thing. D20 for race, D12 for class, D10 for alignment (ignoring the 0), and two D20 for a couple personality traits. With this we get:

<Y> Yuang-Ti Bard, Chaotic Evil, Know-It-All and Apathetic

<X> Triton Fighter, Lawful Evil, Nervous and Organized

Here we go. Now I can see who I’m dealing with. I get their names out of them, and they give me some lovely bits about what they rolled, specifically about their alignments.

<Y> is Chaotic Evil. Chaotic- Right or wrong is subjective at the best of times. Laws are guidelines, and rules are meant to be broken if you can find the right loopholes and technicalities to exploit. Evil- If it comes down to me or you, I’ll choose me. I don’t lose much sleep over making it out alive while others die. It’s a cruel world, and I’m going to get what I can out of it.

<X> is Lawful Evil. Lawful- We need rules or the world devolves into chaos. The rules we have are in place for reasons. You can’t just escape the rules, and you can’t just escape the consequences of breaking the rules. You have to work with the system you’re in or find a new system to blend into. Evil- You can’t please everyone. You can’t even please most people if we’re being honest. So don’t try. Fuck what anyone else says and do what you need to do even if it means stepping on toes or ruffling feathers. What, you didn’t expect your rules to allow for me to do this, to exist like this? Tell me what rule I broke. I dare you.

Good stuff. And fun tidbit about these two regarding that theme about rules and loopholes. They get married in such a way that takes advantage of loopholes, technicalities, and language barriers across three or four countries/cultures to such an extent that the legality can’t be contested in any of them, and it is astounding that they managed to get away with it.

#writing #dnd #character buildng #adventures in writing #character alignment

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creativerogues · 5 years ago

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Campaign Diary: The Heist!

I said I’d do it, so here it is!

So, a few days ago we played D&D, and then played a sesson right after, and now we’re probably gonna play D&D Tonight too, a rare opportunity but one I gladly accept.

I asked Tumblr to come up with Characters and Thieves for this Human Druid and Tortle Wizard to hire.

If you need context for this Campaign Diary, you can find it here.

So, we begin this session after the Party had recruited the Team, since they requested to do that between sessions rather than spend the night searching for Hirelings.

And the Team consisted of: Kenzo the Wood Elf Rogue, who helped the two assemble the Team, Talon the Human Wizard, Joey the Tabaxi Bard, Sunna the Human Sorcerer, Mars the Fire Genasi Pugilist and Jamkas Moonshadow, the Drow Rogue.

Now, they did have aid in a Wizard called Allister, but on the request of the Tumblr Person that made them, they were intended to be an NPC, and so I played them as an NPC...

Now, I didn’t intend for this to happen, but the Players ended up actually playing the Thieves, and let me tell you, DMing a Group of this kind of size isn’t easy, but oh boy was it fun.

So of course I gave the crafty Players the Wizards, the Leader-Type Player got Kenzo (The Leader of the Group), the Player that likes Combat got the Pugilist, the Players that like Roleplaying got the Rogue and the Bard. You see where I was going with this...

Part 1: Spreading Rumours

I’m gonna just break this session down into parts, because this session was about 7 hours long and I’m tired just writing it all down...

So as the session began, Kenzo the Wood Elf Mastermind Rogue (and Leader of her own little Thieves Guild, did ya know?) decides to sows rumours in the Capitol City to lead the Guards and Mages away from the Library during the time of the Heist.

So after running through the DMG to find the Rules for it, Kenzo’s Player rolled 6d6 for the amount of Days it would take for the rumours to take hold, and rolled horribly, getting 32 and meaning that the rest of the Group now had 32 Days of Downtime to fill before the Heist.

On the bright side though, Kenzo’s Player ROCKED her Charisma Check, rolling a Natural 19.

Plus, 32 Days of Downtime means even more time to prepare, which actually turned out to be VITAL!

But while this is happening, Talon the Wizard (also known as Roland) is inscribing a Spell Scroll of Teleportation Circle to gift to Hard Hat the Tortle Necromancer (don’t ask about his Name, it’s a long story...) as part of the Heist Group’s “Escape Plan”.

I will admit, the first maybe 3 hours of the session was just talking and planning, but honestly I didn’t mind it, since this “Phase” of the Heist is the Planning Phase, so of course they’re going to talk about how they get in, how they’re gonna get out, and what precautions need to be made to stop anything horrible from happening mid-heist.

Now back to the Scroll Writing!

To scribe this Scroll of this kind should take 4 Workweeks and 5,000GP, at least according to Xanathar’s Guide.

So where did Talon get 5,000 Gold from? Well he just asked Hard Hat the Tortle to get it for him.

And as it turns out, Hard Hat does not have 5,000 Gold Pieces on his person. Actually, he has no Gold at all.

So what does he do to get the Money?

Well to get the 5,000GP to cover the Cost of making the Scroll, Hard Hat uses a combination of Enthrall, Suggestion and Charm Person to con a bunch of townsfolk into handing over a bunch of their money.

Now this definitely deserves an Alignment change from Hard Hat to Neutral Evil, at least for a while, and I’ll tell you why...

The reason I’m ruling this as a “temporary” alignment change is because the actual Player's literal justification for these acts is: “Well the ends justify the means, we're hurting people to help people...”

And his alignment was partly Neutral already, so a shift that steps him towards the Evil Side for this Section of the Adventure definitely seems appropriate after this...

I’ve actually talked about this already, and you can read that Post about how I deal with Alignment VS Player Actions right here, but let’s continue...

Part 2: The Exit Plan...

It was weird that they started making an Exit Plan before they made an Entrance Plan, which kinds told me how the Players were expecting this to go just fine...

Their Exit Plan was this: A Series of Horse Drawn Carriages, with each carriage having a pair of Thieves in it. And when they reach the outside of the City, they all meet up at a predetermined location and teleport back from the Capitol City to the Eastern City of Fostin.

They planned for the Carriages to each go in different directions, just in case...

Part 3: The Pre-Heist

And so with their Plan, which they called “Pretty Much Okay”, Talon handed off the finished Spell Scroll of Teleportation Circle to Hard Hat the Tortle and the Group made their way on the several day journey to the Capitol City.

I had the Party roll for random Encounters on the Road. The way it works for me is if the Players roll an 11 or 12 on a d12, they have an Encounter. An 11 is a Hard Encounter, and a 12 is a Deadly Encounter.

But luckily they never had an Encounter, because they rolled horribly every day of travel, great for them I guess?

And as they enter the Capitol City through the Gates, the “Official” Pre-Heist began, and the Puzzle Pieces began to fall into place.

Part 4: The Actual Plan...

The Actual Plan was to disguise themselves as Construction Workers aiding in the restoration of the Library after the recent fire that destroyed the Edhel Halls West Wing.

Mr. Moonshadow used a combination of ridiculously good charisma checks and a great disguise kit to disguise himself as “Not a Drow”...

The others used a combination of disguise kits, disguise self and a hell of a lot of illusions to get into the site.

And from there... They got to work...

First they gained a Map of the Library thanks to their undercover work as Construction Workers, then they started to talk to the Guards around the area, and through observation they learned what kind of Armour the Guards wore, what Weapons they had on them, and realised that each Guard had a specific Patrol and had Signal Whistles around their necks.

And since they were actually working 9 to 5 as Construction Workers to aid in their Undercover Work, they soon gained the trust of the actual Construction Workers that were there to rebuild the Library.

The actual Construction Workers quickly learned the (disguised) faces of the Group and thanks to a few drinks after work and a few pretty darn amazing Charisma Checks (I'm serious, I'm pretty sure Moonshadow's Player didn't roll below a 15 all night), the actual Construction Workers found them trustworthy.

Part 5: Pensive Allister is the Most Helpful NPC...

Pensive Allister (remember him?) was the NPC Team Member and a pretty darn amazing Divination Wizard.

Every day during the “Scouting” Phase, Allister would remain in one of the Carts that brought the Group to and from the Construction Site, and then used a combination of Spells that slowly blew my mind at how useful they were together.

Those Spells were Rary’s Telepathic Bond, and Arcane Eye.

Rary’s Telepathic Bond allowed Allister to communicate wordlessly through telepathy to every other Member of the Heist Team, and the best part was the Spell didn’t require concentration and lasted for a whole hour.

Combine that with Arcane Eye, and this meant that Pensive could scout out the entire building and communicate it through telepathy to the rest of the Group without even getting out of the Cart.

And every now and then, the Group would need to crack open a window or a door to let Allister’s Arcane Eye through, but through scouting, Allister and the Group discovered that the basement was full of fog and strange symbols, but eventually, through Undercover Work, the Heist Team did in fact find the walls and walls of old scrolls.

Part 6: The Heist! (Finally!)

And so the day comes, the Heist is here, and they chose rather weirdly to do it during daylight!

The Players, one by one, sneak away into the deeper parts of the Library, with a lot of them just turning invisible and walking straight from the Cart into the Basement, the others creating the cover story of them being called to oversee and aid in another construction job happening to a tavern down the street.

So now they’re in the Library’s Basement and have about 8 hours to go through the Library (which thanks to Pensive made it incredibly easily to avoid the web-filled stairways) but they still had to deal with the Fog, the Stinking Clouds, and all the Arcane Locks that filled every door and entrance.

How did they deal with it? With Magic of Course!

Sunna the Sorcerer came especially useful here, using a combination of Silence and Knock (and a few Sorcery Points) to silently open every arcane lock and door.

They deal with the Fog by literally blowing it away, which I found to be a hilariously simply solution...

The Stinking Clouds however proved to be much more difficult, and caused Sunna to cast Gust of Wind after her Gust Cantrip did diddly-squat to get rid of the giant fart clouds in the Library...

But, finally, they made it to the Wall of Scrolls, and again, thanks to Allister and his Arcane Eye, they quickly located the Spell Scroll they needed, pocketed it, and then decided to be a bit cocky...

They stayed. They had the Spell Scroll literally in-hand, but in order to make it look like they weren’t Thieves, they stayed and did their work as Construction Workers, mostly because the Group wanted to be cocky and show off, but also to keep up the facade of actually doing Construction...

Part 7: The Getaway

And so as the evening came, the three carts they hired arrived at the site, and to everyone except the Party themselves, it appeared as though the Workers from out of town were just getting a cart back home, with those that snuck in invisibly having to roll Stealth Checks, which again, they succeeded because of course they did at this point...

So each Cart drives down a different street, and as soon as they reach the outskirts the city, Joey the Bard casts Sending to Hard Hat and tells him he has 10 Minutes to start inscribing his teleportation circle using the Spell Scroll Roland had given him almost two months ago at this point...

And then the group executes their Real Exit Plan, with everyone using Dimension Door (which is why they saved their Spell Slots!) to teleport just outside the forests near the Capitol.

Joey then casts Leomund's Tiny Hut with everyone standing inside and Sunna and Joey both up-cast Invisibility to hide the Group while Roland the Wizard begins inscribing his Teleportation Circle inside the Tiny Hut.

And so, with the entire Group Invisible and standing within the camoflaged Tiny Hut and standing on the Teleportation Circle, the Group teleports from their Teleportation Circle to the one Hard Hat had just inscribed in Fostin, and they return with the Spell Scroll of Sequester in hand.

Part 8?: Where Are The Other Two?

Meanwhile, the other two, Hard Hat the Tortle Wizard and his Human Druid Friend Nemo are chilling in their Tavern until Hard Hat hears Joey’s Sending message giving him the 10 Minute Warning to get somewhere private and start casting the Teleportation Circle.

So naturally, rather than sneak away somewhere private, Hard Hat casts Phantom Steed, jumps upon his ghostly horse, and gallops out from his bedroom, on a magical horse, down the stairs, out of the tavern and out into the wilderness near Fostin.

Nemorith (Nemo for short) realises what the heck is happening, turns into a Panther, and also runs out of the tavern...

Weird day for the Barkeep, am I right?

So they get out into the wilderness, Hard Hat uses his Scroll, and with a bright flash of blue light, the group appears standing within the circle, Stolen Spell Scroll in hand...

Part 9: My Thoughts

First off: Fate was on their side. No one rolled less than maybe a 10 all night.

Second: They planned way more than I thought they would. I expected them to overthink it but still be unprepared.

Third: DAMN THIS HEIST WAS FUN!

This was the first time I had ever run a Heist as anything more than “Sneak In, Kill Guys, Get the Thing, Get Out.”

So running a whole 6+ Hours of a Heist was definitely jumping into the Panic Zone, but honestly, I maybe said a couple of pages of text, and the rest was the Players roleplaying through their Planning, Scouting, and the actual Heist.

Overall... I kinda loved it. And I wouldn’t mind doing it again sometime....

#dnd #heist #campaign diary #DnD 5e #creativerogues

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royalguard377-blog · 5 years ago

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Hello! My name is Chris and for my Teach Something Project, I will be showing/telling you how to play Dungeons&Dragons 5th. For the purpose of this conversation, I will not be referencing other books like Volo’s Guide to Monsters, Xnathar’s Guide to Everything, etc. I will only be discussing the Player’s Handbook (Picture 1) The Monster Manual (Picture 2) and the Dungeon Master’s Guide (Picture 3).

Okay, so what is D&D? D&D is a role playing game where you and your friends sit down at a table together or online and embark on epic quests and reach the end of the journey. The game itself can be the DM’s own creation, a written module from the game developers, or one found online by other D&D fans. You can be either the good guys or the bad guys depending how you want to play it. Now you want to play the game, first we need to make a character sheet.

As you can see in picture 4 (sorry for the bad quality this is what the sheet will look like and your first task is to fill it out with the proper skills, feats, abilities of your race and class. When it comes to the 6 main stats: Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Wisdom, Intelligence, and Charisma you can either go standard array which you can find in the handbook or roll themselves. I’d roll 4d6 and subtract the lowest number from the 4 and that’s what one of yours stats is, rinse and repeat 5 more times. Now you pick your race, It’s not too important but your race can grant you some special traits other races cannot. Like the tiefling that due to their infernal bloodline gain resistance to fire, as they level up can naturally cast certain spells, and can see in the dark. Other races may not get those abilities so each race is special in their own way. Then you have your class. There are 12 in the book each with their own special roles, powers, etc. Fighter is the primary melee class, taking lots of damage and dealing lots of damage. Wizard casts spells from the back dealing lots of damage and helps the party solve complicated puzzles. the Cleric heals the party and grants buff to keep them fighting hard.

(Picture 5) This is a picture I found online shows a Fighter, Bard, Paladin, and a Wizard. Each character has their own role in and out of combat and it’s up to you to decide how that character will act.

Well that should cover the basics. The only thing left to say is that the game operates by rolling dice, 7 actually. A d4, d6, d8, d10, d12, d20, and a d100. Primarily you will be using the d20 the majority of the game as it will determine whether you succeed or fail. Rolling a Nat 1 is the worst thing that can possibly happen to you as it results in a critical failure. You don’t just fail, you fail so miserably something very bad might happen. Opposite goes for the Nat 20 which causes everyone to lose their minds when they roll one. I hope you’re a lucky person cause it will come in handy when you need RNJesus at your side.

That’s all I got for now, if anyone has any questions feel free to ask. Have fun and may the dice be in your favor.

#dnd

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hellyeahheroes · 5 years ago

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Building Virgil Hawkins in D&D

I need to distract myself from this X-Men melodrama shit so I’m doing another D&D build. This time how about we try to build one of Dwayne’s McDuffie’s greatest creation, electric nerd from Dakota, who may be known to you as Static or

youtube

First, let us consider the goals of this build. We need to accurately reflect Virgil’s wide array of powers, including electric and magnetic abilities, some sort of healing and resistance to mind control and telepaths and few of Static’s iconic moves. And second, we need to get him his floating disc.

For Abilities, we will be using standard point array (15, 14, 13, 12, 10, 8). As always I follow some of the guidelines from Tulok the Barbarian who inspired the creation of these builds. If you want or your DM tells you to roll or use point buy, go ahead and use this is a guideline. Remember that even numbers are better. We will prioritize Intelligence, Virgil is a textbook superhero with a textbook in each hand. Constitution will follow as de facto one of the most important stats in the game, then Dexterity and Wisdom, our lowest stats being Charisma and Strength. The base should look like this STR: 8 CON: 14 DEX: 13 INT: 15 WIS: 12 CHA: 10

Now for D&D outdated term for species, Race. As a Boom Baby Virgil is a Human of the Variant kind. Variant Human gets +1 to two Ability scores, I suggest rounding up numbers for Intelligence and Dexterity. You also get a bonus skill, choose Acrobatics

Variant Humans also get a feat. We will pick Magic Initiate, letting us grab two Cantrips and one 1st level spell from Cleric spell list - we can cast Cantrips as much as we want but we can cast 1st level spell only once per long lest and only on the lowest level.

Sacred Flame forces a single target to make a Dexterity saving throw or take 1d8 radiant damage - this scales with your total level to 2d8 at 5th, 3d8 at 11th and 4d8 at 17th level - you can easily say it is one of Static’s bolts of electricity since radiant damage is basically light and light is s form of energy.

Speaking of which, our second Cantrip will be Light. Upon touching an object, not larger than 10 feet in any dimension, you make it emanate bright light in a 20-foot radius and dim light in the next 20 feet. It lasts for one hour, until you cast it again or take an action to dismiss it.

For 1st level spell, we will pick Cure Wounds, which allows us to regain 1d8+ your wisdom modifier of hit points. This is one way to give Static his, admittingly minor, healing powers.

For the Background, we will customize one. Pick up two skills - Perception and Athletics. The former is one of the most important skills in the game and the latter is only skill tied to Strength - meaning that if your DM asks to have you roll a Strength save or check you can likely argue it should be Athletics check instead. Take proficiency with Herbalism Kit to make yourself healing potions and a free language of your choice, pick something campaign relevant. And Watcher’s Eye feature from City Watch’s background, which allows you to recognize easier secret hideouts of local law enforcement and criminal organizations.

Now for the Class. While he received his powers through a freak accident, Virgil is known from his creative and intelligent approach to his abilities, he clearly studied them and related physics to do what he can do. As such, we will make him a Wizard. Besides, this is an RPG nerd, I bet you he played enough D&D to know Wizard is Tier 1 class across the editions.

We get proficiencies with daggers, darts, slings, light crossbows and quarterstaffs (which is close to a weapon Static used in one of the incarnations but useless for the build), Intelligence and Wisdom saving throws and two skills, pick Investigation and Arcana, which is closest D&D fantasy setting has to science.

Wizard’s main powers are spells. You get a spellbook to which you copy spells, each new spell copied takes 2 hours and costs 50 gp. Each day during long rest you choose which spells to prepare for next day, equal in number and level to the numbers show in Spell Slots Per Day part of Wizard table plus your Intelligence modifier. They cannot be of a higher level than that of which you have available spell slots. I see it as Virgil having a notebook to which he writes down his new ideas how to use his powers and keeping notes on how they work.

If a spell asks you to make an attack roll it is with your proficiency modifier + your Intelligence modifier. If it asks for a saving throw, the difficulty of the save is those two modifiers plus eight.

First, we learn Cantrips, small spells that Static can cas as many times as he wants. We start with 3 of them and my suggestions are:

Lightning Lure - the target must make a Strength saving throw of be pulled 10 feet towards you and take lightning damage - which scales up with your total level just like Sacred Flame above - if it ends 5 feet or less away from you.

Prestidigitation - just a number of minor utility effects that are fun to have and can easily be portrayed as you using your electric powers to make them happen.

Shocking Grasp - you make a melee attack, with an advantage if the target is wearing metal armor, on a hit you deal 18d lightning damage (see the mentions of scaling above, same deal here) and cannot take reactions until the start of its next turn. Virgil has a different name for it, obviously

We also start having six 1st-level spells in the Spellbook. I’ll list my suggestions and then will list spells for higher levels whenever you get new spell slots for it but remember, you can add any number of spells you come across as long as you have the money for it so if you see something that feels especially Static-like or just good to have, go ahead and get it.

Shield is cast as a reaction to upcoming attack or an enemy casting Magic Missle, it lasts one round and gives you +5 to Armor Class and protects from Magic Missle

Absorb Elements is also a reaction spell letting you gain resistance to upcoming damage of any elemental type, and then deliver 1d6 damage of that type to the first person who hits you. I see it as some of Static’s resistance to other electric powers.

Witch Bolt deals the target 1d12 lightning damage AND you can then stay and concentrate for up to one minute, to make it take another 1d12 damage on each turn as long as you won’t do anything else, target doesn’t move from the area or won’t hide behind a cover, making you lose the sight of it. And it scales if you cast it from a higher spell slot, adding extra d12 for a level.

Feather Fall lets you slow the fall of up to five targets for one minute, if they land in this time they take no damage and land on their feet. Explain it as Virgil using some of his magnetic powers.

Chromatic Orb is another offensive spell, it allows you to make a ranged spell attack for 3d8 (+1d8 for each additonal level of a slot from which you cast it) damage of chosen type. Since this is Static you’ll be likely choosing lightning or thunder or maybe fire (as with any spell dealing fire damage I’ll bring up, just say the target got burned by lightning) as lighting ball, but acid, cold and poison are also available in a pinch.

Mage Armor increases your armor class to 13 + your Dexterity modifier, which may go a long way since you do not wear armor. Write it off as Static wrapping his body in a protective magnetic forcefield. Also, it stacks with Shield since it changes how your AC functions and Shield is a bonus to your AC, just saying for incoming conflict with the DM.

EXTRA: Tenser's Floating Disk lets you create a disc that can follow you and carry up to 500 pounds of weight but you cannot ride it as it has no power to move on its own. It is a poor substitute for Static’s disc but if you have a generous DM you might talk about it and work something out, maybe agree to combine it with your flying spells. If not, ignore this bullet point

Finally, you get Arcane Recovery, allowing you to regain some of your expended spell slots every short rest. These spell slots cannot be of level higher than 6th and their combined level cannot be higher than half of your wizard level rounded up.

On 2nd level Wizard gets to choose Arcane Tradition and we’ll pick School of Theurgy. it allows us to choose one of the Cleric domains and gain a limited number of benefits from it. We will explain it as Virgil trying to study nature of his powers from all angles, both Arcane and the Divine since we’re treating magic as replacement science for this build. We will choose Tempest Domain. From now on you whenever you can advance in levels you can replace one of the spells in your spellbook with Cleric Domain spell of a level you have spell slots for. If one of the spells I suggested isn’t working out for you or you picked a spare spell to replace (or just stumbled across it because it is also a Wizard spell), grab Thunderwave - it forces every creature in 15-feet radius from you to make a Constitution saving throw or take 2d8 thunder damage and be pushed 10 feet away from you.

You also get Channel Arcana, allowing you to copy effects of Cleric Channel Divinity feature, you can do it once per short or long rest (twice from 6th level and three times from 18th) and choose one of two options. Destructive Wrath lets you not roll damage on a spell dealing lightning or thunder damage - you just declare it deals maximum damage. Divine Arcana lets you add +2 to an attack roll or saving throw difficulty of a next spell you cast if it requires one.

The third option is Turn Undead, which basically frightens undead creatures that see you - everyone must make a Wisdom saving throw at your spell save difficulty or be turned for 1 minute or until it takes damage. It forces them to spend its turn moving away from you, makes them unable to willingly move closer than 30 feet towards you and is prevented all actions or reactions other than dash to get out of what doesn’t let it move or dodge if it cannot move. I guess we all know now why Static wasn’t in Blackest Night as he would make Nekron and all Black Lanterns run back where they came from.

And 3rd level you get 2 2nd level spell slots so I think it’s time we get you your Static Cling. We will need two spells for it. Spider Climb is a concentration spell that allows you to walk on walls up for one hour. Hold Person forces a Wisdom Saving throw to a forced target, making it paralyzed as long as you maintain concentration, up to one minute, with additional saving throws at the end of each of its turns. If cast from a higher-level spell slot it can affect an extra target for each level.

On 4th level, you get an ability score improvement, boost your Intelligence. For your next 3rd level spell pick Levitate, it lets you make yourself or another target float in the air and control on what height it is. Living creatures can move with speed as if they were climbing. If your DM is generous, convince them to let you combine it into one spell with Tenser’s Floating Disc. If not, cas it at a metal disc tied to your feet and move with your other leg like a skateboard or just try other tricks to get that effect, something may get past the DM.

You also learn a new Cantrip, Booming Blade lets you make a weapon melee attack. On a hit, the target is coated energy until your next turn and if it willingly moves, it will take 1d8 Thunder Damage, scaling to 2d8 once you reach 5th level, 3d8 on 11th and 4d8 on 17th, from 5th level the attack itself also deals extra 1d8 lightning damage and an additional 1d8 from levels 11th and 17th

5th level Wizard learns two 3rd level spells and you get a 3rd one on 6th level.

Protection from Energy grants you or someone else up to 1 hour of resistance to the chosen type of damage and lighting and thunder are both on the list of options

Lightning Bolt lets you deal to each creatures in 100 feet long and 5 feet wide line 8d6 lightning damage (+1d6 for each additional level from which you cast the spell) and a half on a Dexterity saving throw.

Fly lets you give a target a flying speed of 60 feet for the duration but it is a concentration spell so be careful. Also, unlike Levitate if you are still in the air when it ends you fall on your face.

On 6th level, you also get your Arcane Tradition Feature. Arcane Acolyte lets you grab Tempest Cleric’s Wrath of the Storm, which you can use as a reaction when hit by a melee attack from a creature you can see to deal 2d8 lightning or thunder damage to it or half on a successful Dexterity saving throw.

On 7th and 8th Level you gain 1 4th level spell each.

Elemental Bane lets you remove resistance from a target that fails its constitution save and take additional 2d6 damage each time it is dealt damage of chosen type. It is sadly concentration so you may need to cooperate with someone else on it. Consider it for a Black Lightning team-up.

Storm Sphere creates a 20-foot radius sphere of whirring air that forces creatures inside to make a Strength saving throw or take 2d6 bludgeoning damage, turns area inside into difficult terrain and allows you to, while maintaining concentration on it, on each turn take a bonus action to make a ranged spell attack with an advantage against a target inside for 4d6 lightning damage.

On 8th level, you get an ability score improvement, but we will take a feat. Elemental Adept lets you ignore resistance to lightning damage and whenever you roll damage for them, you treat any 1 on the dice as a 2.

9th Level Wizard gets 5th level spells

We will grab one from Tempest Domain - Call Lightning. It works only outside and creates storm clouds above you in 60-foot radius, then choose a spot and made it hit by lightning, dealing 3d10 lightning damage to all creatures within 5 feet from that point, half on a successful DEX save. You can maintain concentration up to 10 minutes to make this continue and make another lighting strike on each of your turns. It deals extra 1d10 damage when cast from a higher level and an extra 1d10 if there was already stormy weather when you cast it. I’m sure there is a scientific explanation on Virgil suddenly stepping on Storm’s territory but I sucked at physics.

We also get an extra 4th Level Spell. Fire Shield surrounds your body in thin flames for 10 minutes, no concentration, that provide you light and either a) resistance to cold damage and 2d8 fire damage to a creature that hit you or b) resistance to fire damage and 2d8 cold damage. Explain it as Virgil using electricity and it burning whoever touched him.

10th Level wizard gets a new Cantrip and a new 5th Level Spell

Our Cantrip will be Mage Hand, it creates an invisible hand that can do minor things for you up to 30 feet away. It cannot attack or activate magic items or carry more than 10 pounds but it is a good way to show Virgil’s magnetic powers performing minor tasks.

Our 5th Level Spell is gonna be Wall of Force, it summons a, maintained by concentration up to 10 minutes, invisible wall through which nothing can pass, be it enemies, projectiles, spells or even ghosts (no, seriously) and it cannot be dispelled by Dispel Magic. The only way to destroy it is a Disintegrate spell.

On 10th level we get a new Arcane Tradition feature and School of Theurgy grants us Thunderous Strike from a Tempest Domain. Thunderous strike lets you push a Large or smaller creature up to 10 feet away from you whenever you deal it thunder or lightning damage.

11th Level Wizard opens for us 6th Level Spells. Chain Lighting hits a single target and then up to 3 other targets (+1 extra if you cast it from higher levels) within 30 feet from it and deals them 10d8 Lightning Damage, half on a successful Dexterity saving throw.

12th level wizard gets an Ability Score Improvement, cap your Intelligence as your most important stat.

13th Level Wizard gets 7th Level Spells. Forcecage traps creatures within 20 feet radius inside an invisible force-field that they cannot leave through nonmagical means, can’t be dispelled by Dispel Magic and traps even ghosts. It lasts up to 1 hour. Attempts at teleporting out of it are successful on Charisma saving throw so it’s a good thing we just maxed out our Save Difficulty.

14th Level gives us our last School of Theurgy Arcane Feature, Tempest Cleric’s Stormborn. You now have a flying speed equal your walking speed as long as you’re outside. Honestly, at this point, you can forgo other flying means and grab a disc and just say you use it to surf in the air, DM should understand.

15th Level means 8th Level Spells. Mind Blank for 24 hours, no concentration needed, gives immunity to psychic damage, sensing emotions, reading thoughts, frightened and charmed conditions through magical means and divination spells, even up to including freaking Wish. Cast one on you each morning to never fear you may get kidnapped and exposed to Anti-Life Equation

16th Level Wizard gets Ability Score Improvement, I suggest adding +2 to Constitution - many of your spells are concentration so you don’t want to blow that check and extra hit points (and remember, upgrading your Constitution grants you extra his points retroactively as well).

17th Level allows us to pick a 9th level spell. We will reach our last gift from Tempest Cleric - Destructive Wave. This spell deals every creature within a 30-foot radius from you 5d6 thunder damage and 5d6 radiant or necrotic damage or half of it on successful Dexterity saving throw. Amusingly enough it is a paladin spell that Cleric only gets as a bonus from Tempest Domain and we got it on a Wizard due to School of Theurgy. No one can say Virgil hasn’t studied his powers thoughtfully.

18th level grants us Spell Mastery, allowing us to pick a single 1st level spell and a single 2nd level spell. From now on when Virgil has them prepared he can cast them as Cantrips, as many times as he wants without spending a spell slot, but only at their lowest level, higher ones still require a spent spell slot. Don’t worry about your picks, if they don’t work changing them costs you only 8 hours of study.

We also get a 5th level spell slot and my recommendation is Hold Monster - it basically works like Hold Person but is not limited in who can it be used against. See it as Virgil improving his Static Cling power.

19th Level Wizard gets the last Ability Score Improvement but we will once again take a feat. Even better we will take the same feat as before - Elemental Adept, now granting its bonuses to another type of damage we’re dealing, thunder.

We get a new spell slot for 6th level spells. Globe of Invulnerability surrounds you with a 10-foot radius force field that can be upheld with Concentration up to 1 minute. No 5th level spell cast outside the globe can affect the area within it and vice-versa and this effect blocks one additional level of spells for each level of spell slot above 6th that you cast it from.

20th Level Wizard allows us to choose 3 3rd-level spells as Signature Spells. It basically works like Spell Mastery described above plus these spells are always prepared and do not count against our limit of spells prepared. They don’t even have to be spells we were discussing here, as that level has some fan-favorite utility spells like Counterspell, Dispel Magic or Haste.

We also get a new 7th level spell slot. Reverse Gravity causes everyone in a 50-foot radius to fly upwards for 100 feet and if they hit something on their way they take damage as if they feel on the ground from above.

And so we have it, Static as a 20th level Wizard. How playable it is? I mean, it’s a 20th level wizard, so a very much. You have several means to fly, can dish out a lot of damage and overcome resistance and have enough means to protect yourself and control the battlefield. On the downside you’re squishy and if Power Word: Kill won’t get you instantly, one or two hits should likely bring you down within the range. We didn’t cap Constitution which is means concentration is not as good as it should be, lack of armor and low Dexterity means we’re easy to hit and forces us to rely on all these protective spells and stay away from the first line. Finally, even with Elemental Adept Lightning and Thunder are things a lot of enemies will be resistant or even immune to. But unlike his comic book, D&D is a team effort so join forces with someone more durable, who can take a hit. And in a pinch remember you can pick up more spells than the ones I listed. Say what you want about him, but Static has shown he can think on his feet.

You have any suggestions or criticism about the build? Be sure to share them, And check out my previous Cassandra Cain and Nico Minoru builds.

- Admin

#Static #Static Shock #Virgil Hawkins #Milestone Media #Dungeons & Dragons #DC

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colony22games · 5 years ago

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A Few More Updates Before the Games Begin!

WELCOME TO GAMES DAY, NERDS!!!

So pumped! Before we get started, there’s just a few more things I wanted to mention!

Firstly, for the most part, every scenario presented will be totally original, we’ve pre-written templates of about 6 or 7 or each type (offensive, defensive, tactical)—however, there’s a small chance that if enough people lean in the direction of one of the scenario types, we’ll have to reuse some, in which case, I just wanted everyone to know that if you ever see a reused or very similar scenario type, your results will always be different, as we’ve prewritten several different results for each scenario. So don’t let any previous results sway you, as yours will always be unique!

Also just a little bit of info for you guys concerning how it works behind the scenes—so that there’s no chance of even subconscious bias, and so that it’s more realistic, everything will be determined by die rolls. The scenario received for each round will be determined by a D6 roll, and all results will be determined by a D12 roll according to the character’s listed odds. This is true of the ‘Attack’ choices, where it’s just a win/loss result, as well as narrated results for other choices, as we’ve prewritten several results for every choice, each with different point values. So everything starts with a roll, and from there, Lottie and I will be tweaking each to suit the character, etc.

Additionally, there are a few places where we took a few liberties that could be interpreted as very minor God Modding. By participating in LivePlay, this is something that I’m sure you’ve all assumed and/or expected to happen anyway, but I just wanted to mention it because this year, to allow for a bit more playful/creative scenarios, which will be more fun and interesting to read, we’ve been maybe slightly more roomy with this in our narration style (small amounts of dialogue, suggestions of emotion etc). So if there is any narration anywhere, or suggestion of dialogue that feels wrong for your character, feel free to adapt/alter/ignore those things for your headcanons or any threads you might be writing after the event is over. So long as all the main action stays the same, as it’s considered canon once posted here!

However, if you have any questions or concerns about this, or anything you see posted here regarding your character(s), by all means approach Lottie and I about it after the games are over and we will obviously help work it out!

And finally, just a little in-verse detail—all citizens will be reporting down to the gaming grounds 1hr before the Games begin (and you’ll get a better idea of the in-verse time when you see the first official Games 003 intro post), though some people may arrive early obviously, especially any Elites who were involved in the organizing, etc.

When everyone is accounted for, the game concept and rules will be explained/provided to all citizens (much like the intro post you’ll be seeing soon), and then teams will have approximately 40 minutes to head to the training locker rooms to get changed, and quickly & privately talk strategy with their teams. (Teams are sometimes house-determined, other times not, depending on if it’s an alliance-play game like last year—again, this you’ll know for sure when you see the upcoming post!)

Alright, I think that’s all I’ve got for you for now, so WITHOUT FURTHER ADIEU....

xxMod!Ro

#col22games #literate rp #original rp #mature rp

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icarusthelunarguard · 4 months ago

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This Week’s Horrible-Scopes

It’s time for this week’s Horrible-Scopes! So for those of you that know your Astrological Signs, cool! If not, just pick one, roll a D12, or just make it up as you go along. It really doesn’t matter. Better yet! Check out “Heart of the Game, Fredonia” and see if they can sell you those D12’s with the symbols on them. Tell them “Shujin Tribble” sentcha. And “Hail, Hail, Fredonia!” Home of the Blue Devil!

Normally there’s a common theme running through the Horrible-Scopes, but not THIS time! Nope! The intention this week is to get as random as possible and still make sense. What makes that different from every other week’s listing? We’re not sure, but we’re willing to go out on a limb and say, “The Man of La Mancha.”

Aries

You’re a “Straight Ahead Jazz” personality in an ABACAB world. You want to carve your own path while nearly everything around you is following identifiable patterns. You’re the one going for the High-Score in Frogger while trying to find exploitable timings and pixel hit-boxes. So This Week… There are plenty of companies that refurbish and sell arcade game cabinets from the 80’s. Just buy one and be done with it.

Taurus

No matter what you might think, there really ARE women’s shoes called “Kitten Heels”. And no, Catwoman never wore a set. If you want to learn how to wear heels but afraid that you’ll break your ankles the first time you try to walk in them, these are the shoes for you! So This Week… GUYS! If you wear a Size 10, go with a Women’s Size 12 - maybe in a wide version. Spirit Halloween Stores are being readied as we speak. Get Used To Your Costume’s Footwear Now!

Gemini

The biggest problem for you getting a new computer is realizing how little money you have to work with. Don’t think spending less for a Pre-Built model is a good value all the time. With just a little coaching you can set up a damned good computer on a budget with only minimal amounts of corner cutting. So This Week… Do not watercool your computer yourself. There’s only so many corners you can successfully cut - and heat management isn’t one of them to screw around with.

Cancer Moon-Child

We understand that you want to please everyone around you, but you have to take time out for yourself. It’s not being selfish, it’s being concerned for the person that’s helping all those other people. So This Week… Get your sleep. Stay Hydrated. And for crying out loud! Learn how to make a Long Island Egg Sandwich Breakfast! It’s LOADS better than anything BK or Micky-Dees will put out.

Leo

While the summer months are still here we’re going to suggest you consider and then disregard a very specific new hobby - Model Rocketry! Sure, it’s fun to play Kerbal Space Program in real life. But only until you start learning the math and realize you’ve just made a rocket with an acceleration of about 50g’s. So This Week… If a Kerbonaut weighs 30kg on Kerbin, putting them in a rocket pulling 50g’s would make them weigh “Chunky Salsa”. PLUS the ground is too dry - you’re gunna set off a wildfire. Don’t Do It!

Virgo

Speaking of it being Summerime, there’s a good way to pass the time in air conditioned goodness while not spending the money on the electricity; go out and watch a movie for a change. You haven’t been to see one in a couple years, but this is your big opportunity. And if you’re really lucky you’ll get to see upcoming trailers for movies like “Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice.” So This Week… How wild would it be for the star “Betelgeuse” to finally go Supernova the same week that the movie comes out! That’d be pretty amazing, right? Maybe place a bet on it happening?

Libra

Remember the “G.I. Joe” toys from the 1980’s? Originally there was never supposed to be a villain group, but the Marvel Comics stories written by Larry Hama created them. Eventually Cobra toys sold 40% of all the Joe toy sales. And since each medium to feature G.I. Joe has had its own continuity, not unlike the Marvel Multiverse, the origin and portrayal of Cobra has differed in each of them. And do you know what "C.O.B.R.A." is an acronym for? Time for you to learn! So This Week… MOST people think it stands for "COnversion by Blackmail, Revolution and Anarchy". Trouble is, the guy who wrote the original comics vehemently denies this. So what’s it gunna be? Reality or Fun?

Scorpio

Back in 1979 there was a TV series, “Buck Rogers in the 25th Century”. And just like the original “Battlestar Galactica” the pilot episode was turned into a motion picture release in theatres. If ever you wanted to learn what “Plot Armor” is all about, watch it! This single-person shuttle, Ranger 3, is shot at by laser guns from a Draconian Fighter and all it does is singe the outside a little. So This Week… If you get HURT but not HARMED in your day-to-day life, it means you’re The Special! The fourth wall is out there for you to look through. Use It!

Sagittarius

We've got some really important life advice for you, so listen closely. DON’T. BE. A. DICK. No, seriously - just don’t. If you go into a store, looking for something to buy, and for some reason it doesn’t have a price tag and the staff shows you WHERE the tag WAS and the obvious scrape-off residue… Do NOT pitch a fit because they won’t sell it to you!! So This Week… Grow a pair and apologize to the people you treated like crap! Because if you don’t SOMEONE’S going to notice and have you pay for it later, somehow….

Capricorn

There are reasons to drink, and what the drink is will determine the timeframe. For Instance; Coffee? Fresh ground and brewed, flaming hot? First Thing In The Morning. Dry Red Wine? The First Hour At An All-You-Can-Eat Meat Buffet Like Texas De Brazil. See? It’s simple! So This Week… Don’t you EVER consider INSTANT FREEZE-DRIED DECAF COFFEE! We WILL disown you!

Aquarius

Not much time left in the summer so you better get a little splurge time in. We’ve suggested taking a drive for a day trip a couple times before… but how about a twist on it? Rent A Supercar! It’ll be a little more expensive than renting a Ford Fusion or a Nissan Leaf, but imagine all the people staring at you as you drive by in a McLaren Artura Spider! So This Week… You might not be able to afford renting one, but you can at least SIT in one. See if you can do that. It’ll be worth it.

Pisces

Do you have any idea how cared about you are? We didn’t think so. You are so tough to convince, but we’re never going to stop trying. You are special and valid and don’t need to try so hard. As hard as it’ll be for you to do, slow down just a little bit. That sore muscle is your Yellow Card; it’s a warning. Pay attention to it. So This Week… Yellow Cards are used in European Futball and Letterkenny Business Pitch Meetings. Go binge on some Letterkenny episodes this week.

#parody #horrorscope #funny #horoscope #humor #comedy #hollywood squares #george gobel #true or false drinking five martinis a day can destroy your brain #i would have to say that the answer is The Man of La Mancha

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forgottenrealmsrp · 6 years ago

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Hello, I am very new to DnD and I would really like some tips on how to play and roll for certain things (Im not too good with examples) etc. etc.

Howdy! Mod Nate here coming at you with some Tips for Beginners. There’s a hell of a lot to cover that I cannot fit into one post (because, let’s be honest, that would be a nightmare), but I will try my best. So, without further ado, hold onto your butts.

The Three R’s

I find there are three main aspects to remember (and master!) when starting off in DnD or other such TTRPG’s. You can sort them into three categories:

Rules,

Rol(l/e)s, and

Roleplaying

Of course there are heaps of other things to consider in game, but for a beginner, it can get overwhelming very quickly, so we’ll just stick to the Three R’s for now.

Rules

What better thing for a game than rules! The first thing you hopefully would have done if you were gearing up for your first game is to get your hands on a Player’s Handbook (For DnD 5e), or your RPG’s respective rulebook. Hobby stores, book stores, libraries, even video game shops might stock a physical copy of our favourite WotC volumes, but you can also secure them online wherever you may find them.

Once you have your grubby little goblin hands on a handbook, give it to a friend, and have them read it to you. If that gets too boring, have them explain the rules in detail - you’ll need a pen and a notebook! If that is too time-consuming or - more likely - you don’t actually have any friends, you’ll have to settle for a hurried and often last-minute explanation of the core mechanics of the game, the finer details of which will be left unaddressed until you get your creative spirit crushed by your mean Dungeon Master, or local rules lawyer.

(Remember kids, if you aren’t sure of where to locate one of these “rules lawyers”, simply talk out loud about your homebrew weapon or Pathfinder game, and they will be sure to find you!)

In this fabled Player’s Handbook you will find a fun breakdown and walkthrough of the game’s races, classes, and backgrounds, all of which you will need to read through several times and then immediately forget. Only after you have asked yourself “Which Bard School is going to make Sildaar Hallwinter not a steaming pile of crap?” for the fifth time in 10 minutes, can you move on to “equipment” and “rules”. Make sure to read these thoroughly, because you’ll learn them pretty quickly after your party’s Paladin once again forgets how many d10s to roll. It’s two, Derek. You asked the exact same question last round.

Idiot.

Rol(l/e)s

Once you manage to wrap your head around the rules, you get to the meat of the sandwich - rol(l/e)s. Whoever came up with this idiotic word hybrid (me) needs to report to their editor (also me) and get his ass whooped (still me).

Now, I know you’ve gotten this far and thought “Wait, Nate, that may have rhymed but you haven’t actually given any tips yet?!??!?!?!!/1!?!?!?!?1?!???????????”. To that, I say yes (or no?), I have(n’t?) given you tips for how to play and roll for certain things, because the biggest tip I have for you is coming right up.

Wait for it.

You cannot build a dragon’s tower without strong foundations.

Meaning: Only once you have “mastered” the rules and basics of roleplaying (and rolling!) will you be able to spread your beautiful dragon wings and soar as a damn good DnD player. This doesn’t necessarily mean that you will have to learn and remember every single mechanic or rule in the book! Because that would be a nightmare and if you can do it, you will be God. No questions asked. But hey! People make mistakes, or remember things wrong, or guess incorrectly, or even make it up as they go along. Having the handbook or Dungeon Master’s Guide on hand for these occasions will save everyone’s sanity at least once, but knowing when to draw the line between fairness and fun will make everyone’s play a whole lot better.

So! Now that you’ve become God, rolling and role-ing (not a word) are your new best friends. And you know who makes the best friends? DICE! Just google it and have fun, kids, but remember that you have to eat and sleep somewhere warm and cozy tonight, so try not to build your hoard of shiny forbidden snacks too quickly, now. All you will need for starters is your standard 7-dice set: d4, d6, d8, d10*, d12, and d20.

*The d10 often comes in pairs to act as a percentile dice. The die with the ten’s (00, 10, 20, 30, etc.) will act as the ten’s place, and the other die will act as the one’s place. So, if you roll a 60 and a 9, you get a really funny number. If you roll a 00 and a 0, that’s 100! If you roll a 00 and a 1, however, that’s a 1. You die in game and you die in real life. Goodbye.

The handbook will tell you all the dice you will need to roll in order to both run the game, and make your character! That’s right! Maths begins even before the game does. Even Death themself cannot escape the point-buy system. Just submit.

Stats are fun.

What do they mean? What do they do? Who even knows what Constitution does?! I certainly don’t! But that’s where you’re in luck, bucko.

This post is already long enough without getting to the good stuff, so I’ll keep it simple.

Strength - a measure of how well you can do stuff with your muscles. Skills like Athletics (aaaaaaand nope just athletics, huh, really? No fish-lifting skill? Huh? Cowards) will benefit from having some damn good muscles. Also you can stab stuff real good.

Dexterity - a measure of how deft, nimble, and stealthy one can be. Contributes to skills like Acrobatics and Stealth, unsurprisingly. If you can move good, you can groove good. I’d add a skill for dancing if I were you, WotC.

Constitution - I lied before when I said I had no idea what constitution does, but it was only partly a joke. Constitution contributes to skills like not dying, staying alive, and stopping being dead. Sometimes it determines how much health you have. Sometimes it means you can drink an entire frog. Don’t ask.

Intelligence - Are you a smart cookie? Can you learn languages fluently in a short span of time? Can you destroy scores of defenceless troops with a single pillar of flame? Can you read? Are you kept awake at night by their screams? Intelligence makes you good (or not) at skills like History, Religion, Arcana, and being a nerd. Oh wait. No one is good at being a nerd. Sorry nerdlord. Also, if your intelligence is under 10, you can’t read! Just like me.

Wisdom - Not the smartest cookie in the shed? Like to eat leaves? You and me both, kid! Wisdom is a measure of your STREET SMARTS! so you can throw those nasty pervert kobolds off their rhythm. Unfortunately, starting equipment does not include a money clip. It makes you good at eating dirt and walking through forests and stuff. Also I think you can pet dogs really well?

Charisma - If you’ve ever played a bard, you would know what this is. If you haven’t played a bard, it’s not too late! Quick! Choose a Warlock or a Cleric if you want a Charisma based build! Choose the entertainer background if you must! -sigh- but if you insist, charisma is a measure of how easily you can quite literally charm the pants off a dragon. Also, sometimes you can roast people really well?

Having high skills is all fine and dandy, but the next tier of DnD player character power is owning your low skills. Have low constitution? Your tiefling is sickly or has a weak stomach! Low intelligence? Your character can’t read or write! Low charisma? You cause every single npc interaction to end with you being punched in the face. There is colour and interest in every aspect of your character, so make sure to let your character sheet represent your character as well as you can!

But how do you determine these stats?

Looking in your class description, you will see under the ‘Quick Build’ section the recommended stat scores, backgrounds and/or spells for that character. These are NOT mandatory, but I find them to be a helpful guideline for how to keep your character functional and, well, alive. Stat scores themselves can be determined a few different ways: Point-buy (I have no idea how this works but it looks like a lot of maths and that’s homophobic, so); Cascading, and rolling.

Cascading (or at least that’s my name for it, I have no other way to describe it) is where you take the values 15, 14, 13, 12, 10, and 8 and assign each to one of your stats. For example, before adding racial stat modifiers, I could assign my barbarian’s stats as follows:

STR: 15, DEX: 13, CON: 14, INT: 8, WIS: 10, CHA: 12.

I may have a character-based reason for assigning my barbarian a relatively adequate Charisma score. Maybe he was a particularly intimidating character, or perhaps his iron-will makes his Constitution a 14. Maybe he likes to dance. You could have a particularly burly mage with a strength score of 15, just because you feel like it. Maybe your cleric is part of team sweet-flips? Or your monk could study tomes night and day to get her Intelligence to a lofty 17 points post-modifiers. Balancing stat scores so that you don’t die is awesome, but having a change to shout “YOU DO NOT SEE GROG!” and win 9 times out of 10? Priceless.

Rolling your stats is perhaps the most widely-used way to determine stats, but to be safe, ask your DM (or get crafty if you’re the DM!) about their preferred method. It’s pretty simple: roll 4d6 (the six-sided dice four times), noting down each individual roll. After four rolls, you cross out the lowest roll, and add the remaining three. Repeat five more times and you have some good good stats, bro! Don’t forget to add your racial stat modifiers before you assign your stat scores!

Modifiers seem pretty confusing as a newbie, but there is a handy table in the PHB to help you keep track. Alternatively, you could subtract 10 from your score, and then half what you have left, making sure to round down! A score of 19 would have a modifier of +4 (19 - 10 = 9/2 = 4.5 ≈ 4, rounding down). A score of 8 would have a modifier of -1 (8 - 10 = -2/2 = -1). Pretty simple, right?

So now I think I can finally address whatever the F*$# I mean by ‘Roles’. What the heck is a role? Do you mean roleplaying? No, dear reader, I do not. A ‘role’ is what I like to call your position in the party. Because yes, on the unlikely occasion that you do manage to wrangle a group of people willing (or able) to play DnD with you, you still have to play with other kids, Derek. That means that the typical balancing applies. You cannot just have a 7-person party filled entirely by bards. Or bees. Though I would prefer the bees. Who would want 7 bards? That sounds like the start of a bad joke.

A good rule of thumb is to make sure you have enough bases covered in the traditional party makeup that you won’t die immediately, but you also don’t have to deal with 7 goddamn bards, Derek, I swear to God-

You’ll want someone to hit stuff, someone to get hit, someone to help those who get hit, and someone to hit things when you don’t want to get hit. This could be solved any number of ways. Get creative, go hog wild. But not buck wild, Derek. I will not have the “Seven Buskateers” at my table again, do you hear me?!

This brings us to the finale. I’ve been writing this post for half an hour, and we’re finally getting to the good stuff. Thanks for stick with me so far. How about dropping your favourite stardew valley bachelor/ette down in the replies if you’ve read this far? Mine’s Elliot, because he’s beautiful and I love him, just like I love you. :3

Roleplaying!

It’s in the title! The very mechanics of the game! So, the question you’re asking me is: “Nate, how the Flippity Doo Daa do you roleplay?????????”

And I reply, “How are you making those noises with your mouth? Where am I?! Who are you? Why can I hear each individual question mark even though they shouldn’t have a place in the mortal coil? What are you?!”

And then I tell you about my favourite thing to tell my own players.

The easiest character to play is one that exists. So? What does that mean???

It means that YOU, my dead, dear nerd, can’t just pull a self-insert every single dang game, Damn it Derek! No one LIKES YOU! GO HOME! You have this opportunity to think of a fun, unique concept, and roll with it. So, how can you create the next Taako, or Nott, or Yashee’rak or Caduceus?

If you have a concept to work from, that’s great! If not, start from the ground up. Who is your character? What are their likes, dislikes, loves, hates, loyalties, vendettas? I often like to establish both a backstory and a goal for them to accomplish, the simpler the better, to get you on the right track. Perhaps a Neverwinter begger wishes to open their own tea shop in Ba Sing Se? A cursed child of an angel and a demon takes it upon themself to avenge their brother’s death? A simple farm girl falls in love and follows her princess Buttercup across Faerûn? You name it!

Some good questions to ask yourself about your characters personality could also include:

What would they kill for?

What would they die for?

What would they watch someone else die for?

What are some rumours your party members would have heard about your character?

What would they think of your favourite meme?

How do they treat their mum? How would they treat your mum?

Do they have any recurring nightmares? Why?

Etc. Etc. Think of them as a real being, with thoughts and feelings and hopes and dreams and fears! The more detailed you can get in theory might help in the long run. If you find yourself deviating from these details, however, don’t sweat! That’s a character’s natural development and progression as a character! In fact, if things don’t change as you play, you might have to have a look at your play style. Loosen up. No one is one emotion their entire lives. Characters lie! They hide things and change details and cheat and steal! But they also act kindly, even randomly, and change and grow. Encourage that. Let them grow. They (and your party members!) will thank you for it!

I think that’s all I have in me for now, and oh man there are so many more things I could mention. DMing in itself will have to wait for another day, of course, but I hope this helped! I’m going to die now.

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gamerszone2019-blog · 5 years ago

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How to Start Playing Dungeons & Dragons

New Post has been published on https://gamerszone.tn/how-to-start-playing-dungeons-dragons/

How to Start Playing Dungeons & Dragons

Having just celebrated its 5-year anniversary, Dungeons & Dragons finds itself being more popular than it has in decades. From DnD’s inspiration for Stranger Things and countless video games to being the basis of one of the most-backed Kickstarters of all time, there’s never been a better time to jump into the hobby than now.Well… maybe a few years ago. But this is definitely the second-best time, for sure. Regardless, here’s everything you need to get started in the world’s most popular tabletop role-playing game, and our recommendation for the best DnD starter set on the market.

What You Need to Play D&D

While there are a ton of great books, tools, and toys out there that all help take a DnD game to the next level, you don’t actually need a whole lot to get started. What you will need is:

1. The Rules

You can find the full ruleset for D&D 5E in the Player’s Handbook, or you can get the short version of the rules if you download the DnD Basic Rules for free. If you want to expand your tool kit, you can also pick up the Dungeon Master’s Guide, which has tips for running the game as well as additional, optional and variant rules that you can use.

Our Pick

D&D 5e Player’s Handbook

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2. Some Dice

You’ll also need at least one set of polyhedral dice, though I recommend every player have at least one (and maybe get a few spares for the table). A full set of D&D dice contains (at least):

1 d20

1 d12

1 d10

1 d8

1 d6

1 d4

You can find RPG dice in almost any color or material you might want online – or you can probably get them by the scoopful at your local hobby shop! You can also use digital dice rollers online, though there’s nothing quite like the feel and sound of actual dice hitting an actual table.

3. Some People to Play With

Whether you want to run the game yourself, or if you’ve hoodwinked a friend into doing it for you, you can’t have a game of D&D with just one person. You can play with just two, now that they’ve released the “two-player rules” with the new D&D Essentials Kit, though (in our experience) the best group is a DM (“Dungeon Master”, or often “Game Master” in games that don’t have Dungeon in the title), who adjudicates the rules and helps guide the story, and 3 to 5 players to make up an adventuring party.

You can, of course, have a group full of as many people as you like, though too many players at a table can make things exceptionally complicated – doubly so if you’re all new to the game. If you’re having trouble getting a group together on your own, there are some great resources out there for finding party members. You can join the official D&D Adventurer’s League, which often hosts games at local hobby and game stores and helps link people up online (though they do maintain strict adherence to the rules as written, so no homemade content/rules can be used), or find groups through sites like Reddit, D&D Beyond, Roll20 and more.

That’s it! If you want to add some tactical complexity to your games, you can pick up some miniatures and battle maps, but really the only thing you need is your imagination!

And some dice. And that other stuff we said earlier.

The Best D&D 5E Starter Sets

If you’re looking for a quick and easy way to get into Dungeons and Dragons, Wizards of the Coast has released a few versions of the “introductory experience” for DnD 5e.

The D&D Essentials Kit

The most recent starter set for D&D is the Dungeons and Dragons Essentials Kit, and in my opinion, it’s currently the best option for players who are just starting their D&D adventure.

This box, currently exclusive to Target but available at more retailers starting in September, contains six pre-generated character sheets, a DM screen (with helpful info on the DM’s side and artwork on the player side), perforated player handout cards for quests, conditions and magic items, plus one of the best “starter” dice sets out there (with 2d20, 1d12, 2d10, 1d8, 4d6, and 1d4).

Our Pick

D&D Essentials Kit

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It also contains a unique rulebook that sits somewhere between the free Basic Rules and the full Player’s Handbook, as well as the The Dragon of Icespire Peak encounter book, which can be run as individual encounters or strung together into a full campaign for characters of first to sixth level.

2014 Dungeons & Dragons Starter Set

Then, of course, there’s the classic Dungeons and Dragons Fifth Edition Starter Set. This box, currently retails (officially) for $20 – but can usually be found on sale – comes with a copy of the basic ruleset, a set of 6 RPG dice (one of each), five pre-generated characters for your players to choose from, and the introductory adventure The Lost Mine of Phandelver.

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D&D Starter Set

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This is a great adventure to start new players off on, as it introduces them not only to the mechanics of exploration and combat, but also eases them into role-playing in various situations. As a set, it isn’t the most robust offering out there, but the Phandelver adventure is a great place to start and leads handily into the Tyranny of Dragons storyline should your group choose to continue playing.

Stranger Things D&D Starter Set

If you want to try Dungeons and Dragons but think you aren’t ready to go full High Fantasy Nerd™ just yet, why not give the Stranger Things-themed starter set a shot?

Our Pick

Stranger Things D&D Starter Set

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It’s a sparse set, with a 6-piece dice set, character sheets and an adventure based on the boys’ D&D game in the show and a pair of miniature Demogorgons (Stranger Things’, not D&D’s; the D&D Demogorgon is a giant tentacle-monkey-lizard demon lord).

Dungeons & Dragons Core Rulebooks

If you know you’re going to be diving deep into the D&D world, your real best bet is to pick up a full set of core rulebooks. It doesn’t come with any pre-made character sheets or published adventures, but the Player’s Handbook covers character creation in-depth and the Dungeon Master’s Guide and Monster Manual have more than enough helpful tips and information to get you on the way to writing your own adventure.

Our Pick

Dungeons & Dragons Core Rulebooks Gift Set

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You can purchase each book on its own, or pick up the D&D Core Rulebooks Gift Set, which comes with one copy of each plus a DM screen and storage case. There’s also the Limited Edition D&D Rulebooks Set with beautiful alternate covers and a unique DM screen, though the price tag on that is considerably higher.

Your First Session

When you’re ready to actually get down to the business of dungeoning up some dragons, there’s always a few first-time hiccups. It could be questions that always pop up, like Do we build characters together or should I come with one already made? Will we just pick from a pile of pre-rolled characters instead of making our own? Is someone actually going to play a healer or are we just going to be a group of DPS murderhobos?! Or there might be players who are surprised when they find they’re expected to talk to an NPC, or a DM caught off guard when a player decides to do something they hadn’t anticipated.

Ultimately, there’s no way to avoid a few bumps along the road, but the most important thing you can do – whether you’re running the game or playing a character – is to make sure that your group talks to one another about these things. Some groups like to make these discussions a session all their own, a “Session 0,” to create characters and set expectations, before you actually start playing. Not only is it helpful for working out logistics like “how are we going to create characters,” but it’s also important that your group have the chance to talk about what type of D&D campaign you’re all looking to participate in.

How much roleplay (speaking in-character to other players or NPCs) is desired in the game? Is your campaign more combat-focused or exploration-based? Are there topics or subject matter that the group wants to avoid dealing with? Or maybe something that you especially want to see? Do you want to play a long, overarching story, or a series of short one-or-two-session adventures? All of these are important questions for a D&D group to answer, and the best way to ensure everyone at the table is having a good time is to ask them early on. Communication is key.

Because, really, that’s what Dungeons & Dragons is all about: having fun with your friends and making new friends – if you’re in a party of random people you found on the internet. Either way, once you get to your first session, the most important thing to remember is that everyone is there for a good time. You’ll probably want to introduce your characters, let your DM explain the setting a bit, and then you’re on your way! The most important thing to remember is to dive in with an open mind and an adventurous spirit.

Also, healing potions.

Of course, there’s plenty more to Dungeons & Dragons once you do manage to get started – check out these cool accessories, or actor Matthew Lillard’s crazy-detailed premium D&D boxed set. If you don’t think D&D isn’t the game for you, why not see our suggestions for what tabletop RPG might be a better fit.

JR is a Senior Editor at IGN and really really hopes you give D&D a shot. Follow him on Twitter and let him know if you do.

*In my weekly game, I recently planted a few magic beans that we expected to bloom into helpful items or something. I almost got our entire party killed with just two of them. Even the best-laid plans can (and often, will) go awry.

Source : IGN

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