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[DnD 4E Discussion] 2010 the year of the Dark Sun begins!
Aegeri
Tiny wee bacteriumsPlateau of LengRegistered User regular
Tiny wee bacteriumsPlateau of LengRegistered User regular
It's giftmas time of year now! Come boys and girls and sit in Santa Chuuls lap! If you're been good you might get a present! If you've been bad you might get hit with both claw attacks and grabbed, then a secondary attack to be immobilized and then lunch begins! How do you know if you've been naughty or nice? Only Santa Chuul knows and he's a lobster from the plane of madness!
And now his friend the Illithid is stealing Lolthmas, the fiend:
ITT people try to tell you the way you like to pretend playing as a fantasy elf or dwarf is wrong. Plus you're probably a jerk. Why are you such a jerk?
Here is a Dungeon:
Here is a Dragon:
Hence the name. Also, as a bonus picture here is Bane.
He's so dreamy
And no, he's not going anywhere from the OP. He wants you to love his manly pectoral muscles, his huge thigh muscles and bulging tip of the long hard shaft of his spear. Wizards even has a wallpaper of him, clearly showing they do seem to understand the joke at work here.
Speaking of before we go any further here, want to get the perfect way of starting 4E? Don't know where to go though? Try Wizards generously offering both a revised and improved version of Keep on the Shadowfell and the Quickstart rules? What will this cost you?
Absolutely nothing as it's completely free. Download them here.
Dungeons and Dragons is a pretty old game, originally being created by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson in 1974, both of whom have passed way now. Since then it's had various iterations and editions, with the latest edition being 4th edition, published by Wizards of the Coast. The basic rules consist of three books:
As the name suggests, this is for players and also details the games core rules like combat.
This book details the various monsters and other things that populate the worlds of most DnD worlds.
This is for the DM and contains useful things like how much experience you have to make an encounter, treasure tables and rules for creating your own monsters.
If you want to play DnD, you usually only need the players hand book. Running a game requires those base three books.
Some stuff shamelessly stolen from the original post about the races and classes you can play as in the Players Hand Book, with some additions about the PHB2 races and classes by Terrendos.
First off, races now provide only benefits and no negatives.
Here are the PHB I races:The Dragonborn:
Not those pussies from 3E's draconomicon, these guys are badasses with a racial breath weapon. They make excellent Warlords, Paladins, and Fighters.
The Dwarves:
They're wise and tough as nails, pretty much the best categorization of the tough dwarf I've seen in tabletop roleplaying games. They make great Paladins, Clerics, and Fighters.
The Eladrin:
The "Elves" of last edition were split into two different races this time. The eladrin live in ridiculously magical feywild cities and make good wizards, warlords, and rangers. They can also teleport as a racial ability. Sweet sorcery, bro.
also Elves Elves lol.
The Elves:
The other half of the elves from last time, they're forest living guys who are really accurate. They make good rangers, rogues, and clerics. See what I mean by Elves lol?
The Half-Elves:
Proof that humans will screw anything. They're pretty tough and personable, and make excellent multiclassers. They make good warlords, paladins, and warlocks.
The Halflings:
Short, fat... actually no, these are about as far from tolkien's halflings as a fat american on his couch eating potato chips is from a bush tribesman in africa. Except they both speak english. Halflings continue their tradition of being really lucky and quick, as well as make excellent rogues, rangers, and warlocks.
The Humans:
Look in the Mirror. They're good at everything again and are the most adaptable, again. They make good anythings.
The Tieflings:
Their ancestors made pacts with devils and we're not half-breeds anymore, also we fought a war against Dragons. We get angry really well as a racial ability. We're also merciless, etc. We make good Warlocks, Warlords, or Rogues.
Also they really AREN'T the same tieflings we've had for 20 years.
We also have a bunch of new races now since PHB II came outDeva: Former spirits under the service of good gods fighting an unending war against darkness. Must remain tirelessly good lest they be reborn into Rakshasa. Good avengers, clerics, invokers, and wizards.
Gnome: Small Feywild natives who learned trickery during slavery to fomorians. Curious, stealthy, and small, these short Elflike creatures make excellent bards, sorcerers, warlocks, and wizards.
Goliath: Mountain-dwelling nomads, covered in pebble-like bone growths that make them extra tough. Tall, massive, and strong, goliaths revere primal spirits and make excellent barbarians, fighters, and wardens.
Half-Orc: Channelling the strength of orcblood and the decisive, resourceful nature of humans, some say these warriors were hand-made by Kord himself. Others consider them an abomination. They don't much care, so long as they've got food and battle. Half-Orcs are excellent barbarians, rangers, and rogues.
Shifters: Descended from lycanthrope ancestors, these animal-like men see nearly everything in terms of hunter and prey. Able to draw on their ancestor's instincts, they are excellent druids, fighters, rangers, wardens, and surprisingly good clerics.
And now DDI is adding a few more to the game as well.Revenant: These guys have come back from the dead or were prevented from dying by some other force (the Raven queen in the default cosmology). They're unique because they actually have the undead subtype and can take feats that make them fully undead. Fun with a cleric in the party that's for certain! They make for decent assassins (another new class coming out in DDI), rogues and warlock.
And if that wasn't exciting enough, we have PHB 3 races on top of that! We're just getting absolutely spoiled now:Githzerai: They are a planar race formerly enslaved by the Illithids whom have curbed their more war like tendencies. They spend their time stabilizing parts of the elemental chaos through the sheer force of their will and practicing being awesome monks. Apparently they make great "seekers" as well as monks, the seeker being a new PHB III class. It's also NOT a psionic class.
Minotaur: The horrible monster of labyrinths and killing people is now... a playable race. Possibly because the 2010 campaign setting could very well by Dragonlance, which has more sociable minotaurs than other settings. Minotaurs presumably will be strength/con; making great Fighters and Barbarians in particular.
Wilden: A new race with all kinds of potential in the world. They were born to fight intrusion by monsters from the Far Plane and are basically plant people.
Then there are the races from the campaign setting books. First Forgotten Realms:Drow: Classic villains turned into PC races by the popularity of Drizzt, essentially another kind of elf with some different powers. I will say they make amazing rogues because of their darkfire and cloud of darkness racial powers.
Genasi: Half-elemental planars who join the ranks of the Deva and Tiefling as being plane touched PC races. They make good wizards and depending on your elemental type they can suit a wide range of classes. They also make good swordmages.
And the Eberron players guide added a bunch of them as well.Changelings: These guys, when you want to be derogative that is are classically known as "Dopplegangers" but most people to be polite call them Changelings. Like the name suggests, they can change how they appear and they make terrific rogues or wizards (they get a choice of stat boost!).
Kalashtar: These are a humanoid race who have bound themselves to dream spirits called Quori. They have some racial psionic talent (communication by telepathy for example) and should obviously fit in well with the Psion and other psionic classes.
Warforged: People usually refer to them as robots but these guys are more of a metal and plant "cyborg" than a robot. They have pretty strong racial abilities and make fantastic fighters and especially barbarians.
Introducing the Classes:
Every class now has a "Role" within the party, and a party is recommended to have every role represented to succeed, though it need not have to. It is considered "pro" to have proper party balance.The Cleric:
Is classified as a Leader.
He's the priest of a god with some pretty wicked spells to heal his allies and disable his enemies. Usually at the same time. Rarely will the cleric spend entire turns casting Cure Light Wounds.
The Fighter:
Is classified as a Defender.
He's a badass with a sword and board or a Two handed weapon, his job on the battlefield is to keep the enemies from stomping his friends, and he can do so with a variety of weapons, which all behave differently depending on how you choose your powers.
The Paladin:
Is classified as a Defender.
This guy is the champion of a deity, who uses some pretty powerful melee spells to lay waste to the enemy. He does alot of glowing holy magical energy damage, too. He also uses either a sword and shield or two handed weapon. His crappy spellcasting from previous editions has been replaced by a whole host of wicked awesome prayers that can heal his allies and smite his enemies.
The Ranger:
Is classified as a Striker.
This guy can use either a bow or two one handed weapons to mercilessly mutilate his enemies. He can also designate specific enemies as his quarry, this includes a giant glowing red arrow above their head.
The Rogue:
Is classified as a Striker.
Is only good for picking locks and disarming traps, not really though. Sneak attack has been toned down a bit, but the rogue's huge damage boost makes up for it, because he really tears shit up with some pretty awesome powers.
The Warlock:
Is classified as a Striker.
Makes soul selling pacts with either Fey, Demons, or Cthulhu. Fires blasts of eldritch energy and murders people. Also, curses people so that he deals even more damage. Strikers are nuts.
The Warlord:
Is classified as a Leader.
This is the new class focused on tactics and inspiring your fellows. He's pretty cool and can actually replace a cleric in your party very effectively, and he brings a different playstyle to the table too. Cleric Inc. hates him for breaking its monopoly on this role.
The Wizard:
Is the only Controller.
The wizard is good at killing lots of enemies, very fast. He's not as amazingly and unstoppably powerful as he used to be, but still is pretty cool.
The Swordmage:
Is classified as a Defender.
The Swordmage was released in the Forgotten Realms Player's Guide. He combines arcana and swords to make wonderful stabby magic. But probably not swordchucks.
We also have some new PHB II classes just to add to the excitement and the EPG has the artificer!Class: Avenger
Classification: Striker
Power Source: Divine
Primary Abilities: Wisdom, Intelligence, Dexterity
"My god has words for you. This blade will show you to him."
Avengers are excellent at isolating and eliminating single targets. Other followers do what should be done. You do what must be done. Pro: roll two attacks under certain circumstances. Con: Reliant on enemies for static damage boosts.
Class: Barbarian
Classification: Striker
Power Source: Primal
Primary Abilities: Strength, Constitution, Charisma
"My strength lies in the fury of the wild."
Barbarians are savage warriors, channeling primal energy through themselves and their massive weapons. Darting back and forth across the battle, your fierce shouts make the enemy quake in fear. Pro: Big damage dice, lots of damage potential. Can fly into mighty rages. Con: Rages are daily powers, so don't expect to use them a lot. Also low defenses that get lowered during certain attacks.
Class: Bard
Classification: Leader
Power Source: Arcane
Primary Abilities: Charisma, Intelligence, Constitution
"I play the song of my ally's victory over your corpse."
Bards are artists, channeling magic through unbelievable skill with music, drama, or poetry. Your skill with blade, book, and hymn are the stuff of fables. Pro: lots of fancy rituals to help in conversation. Can take as many multiclass feats as she wants. Con: Comparatively less healing than clerics, and less effective hazing abilities.
Class: Druid
Classification: Controller
Power Source: Primal
Primary Abilities: Wisdom, Constitution, Dexterity
"I am the seeker. I am the stalker. I am the storm."
Druids are the most effective and purist channelers of primal fury and embody all aspects of nature, from the calm of the still leaf to the fury of the thunderbolt. Pro: Alternates between caster form and wild shape for effectiveness in every situation. Con: Too many At-Will choices, fewer burst options than Wizard/Invoker.
Class: Invoker
Classification: Controller
Power Source: Divine
Primary Abilities: Wisdom, Constitution, Intelligence
"Mighty Pelor! I beseech ye! Smite these wicked foes with your unending light!"
Invokers are invested with a pure spark of their chosen god, rather than being merely ordained by corrupt priests and weak rituals. They are the purest of their god's mortal agents. Pro: Arguably a better controller than Wizard, plus gains access to the sweet Channel Divinity stuff. Con: Less overall damage potential, less powerful rituals, and lacking the utility spells that make wizards such good generalists. Also I'm not that fond of the PP choices.
Class: Shaman
Classification: Leader
Power Source: Primal
Primary Abilities: Wisdom, Constitution, Intelligence
"The spirits surround me, guiding my movements and obeying my commands."
Blessed with a mighty spirit companion that aids his allies, the Shaman is a primal, spiritual force. His mighty companion serves as both a focus for his attacks and as a shield to protect both him and his allies. Pro: Protector spirit makes an excellent backup Defender or Striker. Con: You have to give up your actions to command it.
Class: Sorcerer
Classification: Striker
Power Source: Arcane
Primary Abilities: Charisma, Dexterity, Strength
"The difference between you and me? You wield magic. Magic wields me."
Sorcerers are natural founts of arcane power, resulting from either a history of dragon's blood or a product of mysterious, chaotic forces. Either way, you practically bristle with barely-contained magic, parcelling it out as needed in battle. Pro: Potential for very high damage and lots of cool effects. Con: Those effects are typically random, some of which can hit your allies.
Class: Warden
Classification: Defender
Power Source: Primal
Primary Abilities: Strength, Wisdom, Constitution
"Get past me? You might as well try to push the mountain aside."
Wardens are protectors of the earth, drawing on primal spirits to protect their allies from harm, and the natural world from the encroachment of those who would corrupt it. Pro: You are a brick wall, but harder to hit and probably more resilient. Con: You're not supposed to wear heavy armor, and marking all adjacent enemies means you're going to need all that toughness.
and the EPG Artificer
Class: Artificer
Classification: Leader
Power Source: Arcane
Primary Abilities: Intelligence, Constitution and Wisdom
"Let me just help you with your wounds in a minute, right after I finish making this...."
The Artificer is a really solid leader, capable of taking other characters healing surges and making his healing powers out of them. This helps to spread around the parties healing surges so everyone can keep fighting longer. They can use a variety of weapons and fighting styles (ranged, melee and binding constructs like a summoner wizard), making them pretty flexible in general.
finally last but not least is the new DDI exclusive class, the AssassinClass: Assassin
Classification: Striker
Power Source: Shadow
Primary Abilities: Dexterity, Constitution and Charisma
"Please don't mind while I stab you with my Fullblade here - oh you were expecting a dagger? Well that can be arranged after I'm done disemboweling you..."
The Assassin is the first "exclusive" DDI class to be published and is pretty interesting. They can apply "shrouds" to enemies that they can use when attacking to inflict greater damage on their enemies. They also have a wide variety of weapon proficiencies and can teleport between creatures at-will. It's a pretty solid class for a DDI exclusive effort, with the only real flaw being they don't have their Ki-focus elements out just yet.
DM/Player Tools and Helpful Links
- A spreadsheet with all the magic items from the PHB, organized by Item Level and Body Slot (and subtype, in the case of Weapons, Armor and Implements) (Credit DVG)
- RPTools: Pretty useful for playing D&D over the internet. Get Maptool HERE
- Ability Generator from WotC
- Wizards' main site for D&D
- Enworld resource site for tabletop games
- Myth-Weavers Forum's character sheet tool. Has sheets for many games, including 4e
- H1 Keep on the Shadowfell for maptools
- Rescue at Rivenroar
- Asmor.com's Monster Maker makes a cool looking statblock, similar to the MM ones (thanks, Hexmage)
D&D Insider Subscriptions
D&D Insider has gone into subscription beta mode. What that means is, for three preset payment structures, you can access all of the online content Wizards is producing exclusively for Insider members without restriction. There are currently demos available for all the previously released content, listed below:
- D&D Compendium from WotC
- Dragon and Dungen magazines also from WotC
- Encounter Tool from WotC
More and more exclusive content will be added each month. Also, Insider subscribers will be included along with those who signed up at D&D Convention events in the closed beta testing for the new Character Builder application, the next tool on the slate to be released for the Insider. So, what are the prices, you ask?
- $71.40 for 12 months - $5.95 per month
- $23.85 for 3 months - $7.95 per month
- $9.95 for month
To subscribe to the D&D Insider service, click here. Prices went up in July, seems about a dollar an issue for a 12 month subscription.
You can find screenshots of the Character builder here.
Thanks Goose and Terrendos!
Aegeri on
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Posts
I sing songs directly into your brain. And all I sing is Journey.
"The [Great] Wheel in the sky keeps on turnin'..."
What happens to a creature from the Astral Sea who worships a god when it dies? So this angel from Celestia comes to the prime material... gets killed... then is returned to Celestia? That kinda makes it immortal, doesn't it? (Okay, angels are immortal, but you get what I'm saying here...) Does it just never die until its patron god can't or chooses not to reclaim its soul from The Raven Queen?
In a nutshell, the search for the other half of the inscribed amulet has lead the three-character party to the home of a wizard. Upon entering, they are begrudgingly beckoned by an unseen voice to sit sitting down in an otherwise empty dining room, at a large table with six full place settings and a piping-hot banquet, complete with roast turkey.
They hardly get a chance to sit and start explaining themselves when this encounter breaks out:
Small natural animate XP 150
Initiative +10 Senses Perception +1; darkvision
HP 43; Bloodied 21
AC 15; Fortitude 16; Reflex 16; Will 15
Immune poison; disease
Speed 6 , Fly 6
Meat Slam (standard; at-will)
+8 vs AC; 1d6 + 5 damage, and the target takes ongoing 2 damage, or ongoing 5 damage if the animated turkey is bloodied (save ends)
Flyby Attack (standard; at-will)
The Animated Turkey flies 6 squares and makes a Meat Slam attack at any point during that movement. The Animated Turkey doesn’t provoke opportunity attacks when moving away from the target
Alignment Unaligned Languages —
Str 11 (+1) Dex 18 (+5) Wis 11 (+1)
Con 11 (+1) Int 4 (–2) Cha 4 (–2)
Animated Chair (x6) Level 4 Minion Brute
Medium natural animate XP 44
Initiative +2 Senses Perception +0; darkvision
HP 1; a missed attack never damages a minion.
AC 16; Fortitude 17; Reflex 15; Will 15
Immune disease; poison
Speed 6
Bash (standard; at-will)
+7 vs AC; 6 damage
Guard Area (free; at-will)
At the start of the Animated Chair's turn, when an enemy is in the guarded area, the Animated Chair shifts 1 square.
Self-Destructive Charge (standard; at-will)
As part of a charge attack,; +5 vs Fortitude; 9 damage. On a hit, the Animated Chair is destroyed and the target is pushed 1 square.
Alignment Unaligned Languages —
Str 16 (+5) Dex 10 (+2) Wis 6 (+0)
Con 16 (+5) Int 6 (+0) Cha 6 (+0)
Animated Feast Level 2 Artillery
Medium natural animate XP 125
Initiative +3 Senses Perception +1; darkvision
HP 30; Bloodied 15
AC 14; Fortitude 14; Reflex 15; Will 14
Immune poison; disease; Resist half damage from melee and ranged attacks; Vulnerable 10 damage from close and area attacks.
Speed 6
Sour Grapes (standard; at-will)
Melee 5; +9 vs AC; 1d10 + 3 damage.
Throw Plate (standard; at-will)
Ranged 5/10; +9 vs AC; 1d10 + 3 damage, and the target is knocked prone.
Hot Gravy (minor; recharge 4 5 6)
Ranged 3/6; +7 vs Reflex; 1d6 + 3 damage, and the target grants combat advantage (save ends).
Set Table (move; at-will)
The Animated Feast shifts 2 squares.
Alignment Unaligned Languages —
Str 11 (+1) Dex 14 (+3) Wis 11 (+1)
Con 11 (+1) Int 6 (–1) Cha 6 (–1)
And it only got more ridiculous. Hightlight had to have been kicking the wizard out of the painting.
Welp. Guess I don't have to be concerned about my party killing a young mithral dragon.
(That shit looks like so much fun to run as a DM. Teleport 10!)
I think it's gonna need an ability to attack more than one PC at once, because I quickly see the ranger readying an action to murder any cytoplasm that gets on someone - so its not gonna do that much real damage to anyone.
Really it depends on the player composition and the blob's allies. You could consider making the blob do ongoing damage from the start, and giving the creature APs when they get destroyed.
One of my favorites is Gloamnull; I don't care much for the overly grimdark name, but it is basically what you'd get if you transported Innsmouth from New England to the Elemental Chaos. I also like the Pillars of Chaos, particular the one that is basically a tornado you can climb.
I'm kinda disappointed in the monster selection, though. For one I was hoping for more than just one primordial (and a more interesting one, at that). Second, I was hoping for conversions of elementals from previous editions like magmin or belkers.
There's one monster in particular that I do like a lot, though. I can't recall its name off-hand, but one of its powers is sort of a petrification-variant that basically grabs a PC and forces it to meld inside a rock. If the PC fails his saving throws he must rely on the other party members to chip him out.
Rats. I was planning on using a slightly downlevelled version (9) against a level 7 party (4 members) alone. Maybe I should switch to steel, but mithral fits the story better (I think).
E.g. When it first gets hit by an attack that targets his reflex, Kraj's reflex gets a +2 bonus until the end of his next turn. But if he gets hit by an attack that targets his AC, he loses the +2 bonus to reflex, but is replaced with a +2 bonus to AC until end of turn instead.
Also: Awesome monster. You should try doing Momir Vig next to complete the Simic Team.
I get to try my hand as a DM (well heavily scripted) and they get to see what this is all about. I think this may be worth it a learning experience for all.
Pity the content isn't in the CB yet though.
Nintendo Network ID: AzraelRose
DropBox invite link - get 500MB extra free.
I just wish they'd hurry up; not just Assassins that use Ki Focuses now...
Nintendo Network ID: AzraelRose
DropBox invite link - get 500MB extra free.
3DS FCode: 1993-7512-8991
Have mephits been added to 4e yet? Still missing an MM2.
Four is considered a minimum (having each player focus on a specific role), while 6 is considered at most bearable one can go before the game slows down to a crawl.
I guess if we run some practice battles before we play, and figure out how we all best compliment each other, running into battles in the actual game will be much smoother.
3DS FCode: 1993-7512-8991
We've got 4 players, two leaders and two defenders. That starts to drag a little.
They tried to bury us. They didn't know that we were seeds. 2018 Midterms. Get your shit together.
If the guy that was playing the Ranger doesn't miss everything this time.
3DS FCode: 1993-7512-8991
Problem with that is you had two Strikers that are Controller secondaries. So in truth you had a well balanced party.
A wisadin (focus on lay on hands, damage reduction, temp hitpoints)
Barabarian
Avenger with censure of Unity
Dualwielding Fighter
Sorc
Bard
the bard is worried that he will not have enough healing to keep us up, and i'm wondering if the pally's self sufficieny will be enough to cover it?
how do you make a healtastic bard?
Nah, just knock them out and capture them with a good elite brute +lurker/skirmisher. If they can't tell what's causing them to incapacitate so often and wont take your advice, you gotta demonstrate it harder. don't *make* them pick new PCs, just make them grasp the issue so they'll devise their own solution.
There was a Dragon article in which you could select a mephit as a familiar. They're Small sized now, though, which is actually what I always thought they were until I noticed recently that they were Medium in 3E.
Ah, I didn't realise that Ranger was controllerish in their secondary focus. He was a Bow ranger, if that made any difference.
This time around, we've got this party makeup:
Ranger (Greatweapon/Beastmaster spec)
Rogue (Acrobatic/no use out of combat other than Thievery spec)
Warlord (MC Warlock, Inspiring build with mobility/teleport Warlock powers)
Warden (I have no idea how these work, but he seems to be controller secondary with AoE difficult terrain powers)
Invoker (See above, lots of AoE debuff nukes according to the player)
More balanced, less balanced? I'm worried that healing people may be a problem, though the Warden has the Heal proficiency and MC Paladin with the status-effect heal.
3DS FCode: 1993-7512-8991
I can't help it; I love those guys.
Let's say a player is fighting on his mount. The mount has a fly speed but doesn't have hover, so it's got to move at least two squares every turn or it crashes and burns.
The player and his mount start their turn a couple squares off the ground but still adjacent (or within threatening reach) of a Large or Huge monster. The player attacks the monster, and the monster responds with an interrupt that dazes the player.
What the hell happens next? Do the player and his mount immediately crash because the player can no longer use his move to command the mount to move? Can the mount still use the remaining turn's worth of actions to move itself since it's not dazed?
Realistically (haha) you'd expect the mount to still be able to move itself since it obviously doesn't want to crash, but I honestly have no idea.
Assuming the mount doesn't get its own actions. I've used riding horses twice before without being 100% sure of how the actions combine; I just count the rider as having the horse's move and let the horse attack on the same initiative.
(As a GM, I'd rule that the mount would act in self-preservation, either moving around and attacking if it was inclined, or leaving combat if it was less of a war-trained critter.)
3DS FCode: 1993-7512-8991