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[Roleplaying Games] Thank God I Finally Have A Table For Cannabis Potency.

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Posts

  • DevoutlyApatheticDevoutlyApathetic Registered User regular
    Drascin wrote: »
    Solar wrote: »
    5th edition skills are relatively simple and you are slightly to notably better at the ones you choose to be slightly to notably better at

    It's a decent enough way of making a non-skill based game work

    Honestly, the way that what the die shows is way more important than how good you are at a skill has been bothering us a bit. Up to here (we're level 4), the paladin with no proficiency and -1 int has succeeded in more Investigation rolls than the wizard with +3 int and honestly it feels kind of silly at times.

    That should go away as you gain levels and proficiency/ability skews even more heavily towards the wizard. It's already a bit of absurd luck but rng lol and all that.

    Nod. Get treat. PSN: Quippish
  • italianranmaitalianranma Registered User regular
    edited August 2018
    Or you could look at a dice pool system which trades that perceived randomness for a solid bell curve of predictable results... at the cost of increased complexity for your rolls. Also I don't know any dice pool games that are straight equivalents for the D&D experience.

    italianranma on
    飛べねぇ豚はただの豚だ。
  • DevoutlyApatheticDevoutlyApathetic Registered User regular
    The answer to the single die in d20 games skewing things is pretty much always "Play a better game" but that's not really a helpful answer.

    Nod. Get treat. PSN: Quippish
  • SleepSleep Registered User regular
    Or you could look at a dice pool system which trades that perceived randomness for a solid bell curve of predictable results... at the cost of increased complexity for your rolls. Also I don't know any dice pool games that are straight equivalents for the D&D experience.

    Technically 5e comes with a bell curve option.

    Its one of the variants listed in the DMG.

    Its rolled proficiency, basically take your proficiency double it and use that size die so you start with a d4 and eventually move to a d12 at 20th level. Straight replace the proficiency column from a static bonus to dice.

    You're going to have to makea few choices with it. Some rulings I've made for this variant:

    -Monsters and NPCs do not use the variant (this is for ease, I don't want to need to read every entry and redo all the math to tease out proficiency bonuses and then roll them)

    - yes expertise means roll 2 dice. You are supposed to be an expert i don't care if that means you can ostensibly get a +8 to your roll from proficiency at level 1, you're specifically here to be the guy that gets that shit done. my players keep picking weird shit to be experts at, 1 guy has expertise in cooks utensils... dude can't fail to make hashbrowns.

    - proficiency is not rerolled with dis/advantage.

    - clarification Save DCs are in fact variable, 8+[MOD]+die roll.

    In my personal opinion this is actually the best way to run the system... like static bonuses make sense as the default for simplicity. Teaching folks to play with rolled proficiency is harder, I know, I've had to do it a bunch. However I think this implementation is one of the reasons I don't run into as many hard edges while running the system.

  • jdarksunjdarksun Struggler VARegistered User regular
    Anybody got any advice for running Star Trek Adventures for the first time? Gonna do the intro scenario next weekend. My DMing experience is all 3.5 and 5e D&D.
    Are you familiar with Star Trek? That helps fluffing out the pseudoscience gobbledegook.

    In my experience, it was more Story Game than Tabletop Battle Simulator. The game really shines when it's a handful of people looking to recreate that Star Trek feel - to boldly go, meet new life and new civilizations, all that jazz. The ground combat left me shrugging, but the ship to ship stuff was OK.

    How did you run 5e?
    The answer to the single die in d20 games skewing things is pretty much always "Play a better game" but that's not really a helpful answer.
    The d20 in d20 games could be replaced by a coin flip by design. Heads, you hit, tails, you miss. Big ol' meh.

  • SteelhawkSteelhawk Registered User regular
    edited August 2018
    It seems like we're jumping through a lot of hoops then when the real issue is that the wizard has shit dice and the paladin has hot dice.

    The simple solution is for the wizard player to shop rolling for shit. :)

    Steelhawk on
  • Endless_SerpentsEndless_Serpents Registered User regular
    Dungeons and Dragons really is a random number generator. For all the history and seriousness of the product’s writing style in actual play it’s just amicable madness. All rust monsters, bags of holding and half-orc barbarians failing grappling checks against elderly commoners.

    The only way to off-set this (I think) would be for the DM to make a list of things each character is good at and just give them a free pass on those things. High investigation wizard? Before they even roll they find something out, the roll is just for more, or hidden stuff.

  • descdesc Goretexing to death Registered User regular
    I can enjoy the swinginess for that mood of dungeon wackiness but all things being equal, like

    Bell curve best curve

    I just like the idea in the back of my head that I more or less have a sense of how good I am going to be in applied practice

    I know this is a perception borne of the randomness being applied in a small number of rolls per session — in something that skews toward scene resolution, you roll a 3, a 4, and then a 5 , say, in Apocalypse World and it’s potentially the arc of a few hours of real time where you’re RPing around your character apparently being bad at everything they’re supposedly proficient at.

    I was really aware of it in M&M 2 and 3 where I couldn’t shake the feeling: I’m playing D&D. I’m supposed to be a superhero but I threw a d20 and rolled a 7, then the next round I rolled a 9. Classic D&D.

  • descdesc Goretexing to death Registered User regular
    Steelhawk wrote: »
    It seems like we're jumping through a lot of hoops then when the real issue is that the wizard has shit dice and the paladin has got dice.

    The simple solution is for the wizard player to shop rolling for shit. :)

    Maybe they should cast Bigby’s Bootstraps once per day instead of crying about it, etc

  • JustTeeJustTee Registered User regular
    desc wrote: »
    I can enjoy the swinginess for that mood of dungeon wackiness but all things being equal, like

    Bell curve best curve

    I just like the idea in the back of my head that I more or less have a sense of how good I am going to be in applied practice

    I know this is a perception borne of the randomness being applied in a small number of rolls per session — in something that skews toward scene resolution, you roll a 3, a 4, and then a 5 , say, in Apocalypse World and it’s potentially the arc of a few hours of real time where you’re RPing around your character apparently being bad at everything they’re supposedly proficient at.

    I was really aware of it in M&M 2 and 3 where I couldn’t shake the feeling: I’m playing D&D. I’m supposed to be a superhero but I threw a d20 and rolled a 7, then the next round I rolled a 9. Classic D&D.

    I've been reading through Stars Without Numbers lately, and I really like how their system is set up. It's OSR, but I never played any of the original D&D rule sets (first one was 5E), so I don't know how much comes from SWN and how much comes from old school D&D, but I'm honestly considering hacking it into 5E:

    Attack rolls: d20 + ability mod + skill mod > target AC - generally, the ability mods / skill mods are much lower than in 5E, so this is the typical *extremely swingy bullshit*, which makes sense, as SWN is also super lethal in combat. Level 1 PCs have ~8 HP, and even a lowly laser pistol could potentially 1 shot.

    Skill Checks: 2d6 + skill mod > target DC. This feels much more like Dungeon World, but instead of static results (failure, partial success, full success), the GM sets a difficulty target. The difficulty scale here also lets small modifiers make a big variable difference. I do like that it allows for some granularity in obstacles, but that might just be because I'm not a great Dungeon World DM. I felt like, while playing DW, it was difficult to challenge any player who wanted to do things their character was good at, especially once they were getting to add 2s and 3s to the rolls. It was crazy how fast my players got to the +3 stage, at which point, the only way they actually fail anything they're good at is with double snake eyes. And more than half the time, they just do the thing they wanted to do. I liked that SWN lets you say "You need a 10 just to do this thing".

    Plus, if you are untrained, you get -1 in attempting stuff. First level of training brings you to 0, and it goes up to +4 for the best person in the star system at that task. But adding +4 to 2d6 changes the results curve WAY more than adding +4 to a d20 roll. So the difference between trained and untrained is enormous, even in the early levels.

    Diagnosed with AML on 6/1/12. Read about it: www.effleukemia.com
  • Hahnsoo1Hahnsoo1 Make Ready. We Hunt.Registered User regular
    desc wrote: »
    Steelhawk wrote: »
    It seems like we're jumping through a lot of hoops then when the real issue is that the wizard has shit dice and the paladin has got dice.

    The simple solution is for the wizard player to shop rolling for shit. :)

    Maybe they should cast Bigby’s Bootstraps once per day instead of crying about it, etc
    You could always vote with your wallet. Bigby’s Invisible Hand of Market Forces.

    8i1dt37buh2m.png
  • Hahnsoo1Hahnsoo1 Make Ready. We Hunt.Registered User regular
    Anybody got any advice for running Star Trek Adventures for the first time? Gonna do the intro scenario next weekend. My DMing experience is all 3.5 and 5e D&D.
    @Mongrel Idiot

    @Jacobkosh has a wiki file cheatsheet thingy for this for GMing that you may find useful, I think.

    Star Trek Adventures is significantly different than DnD. The most important difference is the tempo of play. The game has three separate narrative currencies (with two of the narrative currencies being identical, except that one is for you the GM and the other is for the players), and much of the mechanics revolve around manipulating these pools. The tempo of play should be "Build Momentum with small actions > Take Big Actions by burning Momentum".

    You know all of those useless Perception checks and other innocuous rolls that clutter up gameplay in Dungeons and Dragons? This game leans into that by rewarding Momentum! Always encourage your players to take seemingly useless actions and contribute, because this allows them to build Momentum points. For me, as a GM, an action isn't truly resolved until everyone in the scene has had some sort of input, even if it's just the Betazoid rolling Empathy uselessly.

    This also allows you to tie your A-story and B-story together if the characters are separated. Unlike other RPGs, I would encourage party separation! There's a LOT of things a character can do to support their teammates, both metagame (narrative currency) and in-game (ship's computer, navigation, sensor sweeps, Science!, etc.). The guy sitting in the shuttle? He can fire phasers or run a sensor sweep or use the ship's computer to analyze something or replicate gear, even when he's not there. Simultaneously, non-combat actions can be VERY useful in combat simply by building Momentum (to be used by the more combat-oriented characters).

    Always encourage your players to burn through their Momentum, and when they run out, encourage them to give you Threat points for extra dice when they are in a bind. This gives an escalating sense of danger as the scenario progresses.

    Don't forget to subtract one Momentum point every time you change scenes (end a combat, move to a new location, etc.). This will also encourage a "use it or lose it" attitude.

    I would write your adventures with an A-story and B-story. Figure out a simple main plot, and then write a few sub-plots that players can pursue on the side. Try not to have more threads than this, since Star Trek is well-known for the A-story/B-story format and going beyond that may harsh the "feel" of the game.

    I'd accelerate the reward schedule faster than what is listed in the Core book in terms of XP and Leveling, at least at the beginning. This will give players a sense of progression that they may be used to in other games.

    I'd also streamline their Research and Extended task systems, but that may be personal preference, since I loathe rolling multiple times for a single task. Usually, I let people roll once and extrapolate how long a task would take based on that roll, or something. Or just let them burn Momentum to complete a task instead.

    One of the things I really like about STA is their "Redshirt" system. Encourage your players to come up with random and wacky Redshirt NPCs to accompany them on missions. Not only does this allow your players to cover up some holes in their expertise (which will happen), but it will allow them to build their crew like a family, which is a major theme of Star Trek.

    8i1dt37buh2m.png
  • Mongrel IdiotMongrel Idiot Registered User regular
    Hahnsoo1 wrote: »
    Anybody got any advice for running Star Trek Adventures for the first time? Gonna do the intro scenario next weekend. My DMing experience is all 3.5 and 5e D&D.
    @Mongrel Idiot

    @Jacobkosh has a wiki file cheatsheet thingy for this for GMing that you may find useful, I think.

    Star Trek Adventures is significantly different than DnD. The most important difference is the tempo of play. The game has three separate narrative currencies (with two of the narrative currencies being identical, except that one is for you the GM and the other is for the players), and much of the mechanics revolve around manipulating these pools. The tempo of play should be "Build Momentum with small actions > Take Big Actions by burning Momentum".

    You know all of those useless Perception checks and other innocuous rolls that clutter up gameplay in Dungeons and Dragons? This game leans into that by rewarding Momentum! Always encourage your players to take seemingly useless actions and contribute, because this allows them to build Momentum points. For me, as a GM, an action isn't truly resolved until everyone in the scene has had some sort of input, even if it's just the Betazoid rolling Empathy uselessly.

    This also allows you to tie your A-story and B-story together if the characters are separated. Unlike other RPGs, I would encourage party separation! There's a LOT of things a character can do to support their teammates, both metagame (narrative currency) and in-game (ship's computer, navigation, sensor sweeps, Science!, etc.). The guy sitting in the shuttle? He can fire phasers or run a sensor sweep or use the ship's computer to analyze something or replicate gear, even when he's not there. Simultaneously, non-combat actions can be VERY useful in combat simply by building Momentum (to be used by the more combat-oriented characters).

    Always encourage your players to burn through their Momentum, and when they run out, encourage them to give you Threat points for extra dice when they are in a bind. This gives an escalating sense of danger as the scenario progresses.

    Don't forget to subtract one Momentum point every time you change scenes (end a combat, move to a new location, etc.). This will also encourage a "use it or lose it" attitude.

    I would write your adventures with an A-story and B-story. Figure out a simple main plot, and then write a few sub-plots that players can pursue on the side. Try not to have more threads than this, since Star Trek is well-known for the A-story/B-story format and going beyond that may harsh the "feel" of the game.

    I'd accelerate the reward schedule faster than what is listed in the Core book in terms of XP and Leveling, at least at the beginning. This will give players a sense of progression that they may be used to in other games.

    I'd also streamline their Research and Extended task systems, but that may be personal preference, since I loathe rolling multiple times for a single task. Usually, I let people roll once and extrapolate how long a task would take based on that roll, or something. Or just let them burn Momentum to complete a task instead.

    One of the things I really like about STA is their "Redshirt" system. Encourage your players to come up with random and wacky Redshirt NPCs to accompany them on missions. Not only does this allow your players to cover up some holes in their expertise (which will happen), but it will allow them to build their crew like a family, which is a major theme of Star Trek.
    Awesome stuff; thanks! I'm planning to run the little intro scenario that comes with the core rulebook, since I don't have time to write something between now and then. But I'll definitely prod them to roll a bunch of stuff to build their momentum pool. The group is pretty excited to give it a go. :)

  • CarnarvonCarnarvon Registered User regular
    JustTee wrote: »
    desc wrote: »
    I can enjoy the swinginess for that mood of dungeon wackiness but all things being equal, like

    Bell curve best curve

    I just like the idea in the back of my head that I more or less have a sense of how good I am going to be in applied practice

    I know this is a perception borne of the randomness being applied in a small number of rolls per session — in something that skews toward scene resolution, you roll a 3, a 4, and then a 5 , say, in Apocalypse World and it’s potentially the arc of a few hours of real time where you’re RPing around your character apparently being bad at everything they’re supposedly proficient at.

    I was really aware of it in M&M 2 and 3 where I couldn’t shake the feeling: I’m playing D&D. I’m supposed to be a superhero but I threw a d20 and rolled a 7, then the next round I rolled a 9. Classic D&D.

    I've been reading through Stars Without Numbers lately, and I really like how their system is set up. It's OSR, but I never played any of the original D&D rule sets (first one was 5E), so I don't know how much comes from SWN and how much comes from old school D&D, but I'm honestly considering hacking it into 5E:

    Attack rolls: d20 + ability mod + skill mod > target AC - generally, the ability mods / skill mods are much lower than in 5E, so this is the typical *extremely swingy bullshit*, which makes sense, as SWN is also super lethal in combat. Level 1 PCs have ~8 HP, and even a lowly laser pistol could potentially 1 shot.

    Skill Checks: 2d6 + skill mod > target DC. This feels much more like Dungeon World, but instead of static results (failure, partial success, full success), the GM sets a difficulty target. The difficulty scale here also lets small modifiers make a big variable difference. I do like that it allows for some granularity in obstacles, but that might just be because I'm not a great Dungeon World DM. I felt like, while playing DW, it was difficult to challenge any player who wanted to do things their character was good at, especially once they were getting to add 2s and 3s to the rolls. It was crazy how fast my players got to the +3 stage, at which point, the only way they actually fail anything they're good at is with double snake eyes. And more than half the time, they just do the thing they wanted to do. I liked that SWN lets you say "You need a 10 just to do this thing".

    Plus, if you are untrained, you get -1 in attempting stuff. First level of training brings you to 0, and it goes up to +4 for the best person in the star system at that task. But adding +4 to 2d6 changes the results curve WAY more than adding +4 to a d20 roll. So the difference between trained and untrained is enormous, even in the early levels.

    The thing with SWN is that it has much more realistic combat. Your average desk clerk has an AC of 9 and 1hp, while a character with SWAT gear and training is rolling 2d20+6 to hit and 3d12 for damage. That goes for pretty much everything else in that system, too; a trained and geared [professional] will demolish anything related to [profession], but they're not necessarily good at anything else. I had a party of 5 with three combat oriented characters, and holy shit could they mow things down, I had to throw a carnifexnon-trademarked-and-original-space-monster at them to get them to calm the fuck down.

    The big problem with that game is that it becomes difficult to challenge players in their preferred profession almost immediately after they hit level 2. There's an incredible amount of focus you can throw into any skill and you can get to rolling 4d6d1 (twice, take better) before you even add in gear.

  • Mongrel IdiotMongrel Idiot Registered User regular
    jdarksun wrote: »
    Anybody got any advice for running Star Trek Adventures for the first time? Gonna do the intro scenario next weekend. My DMing experience is all 3.5 and 5e D&D.
    Are you familiar with Star Trek? That helps fluffing out the pseudoscience gobbledegook.

    In my experience, it was more Story Game than Tabletop Battle Simulator. The game really shines when it's a handful of people looking to recreate that Star Trek feel - to boldly go, meet new life and new civilizations, all that jazz. The ground combat left me shrugging, but the ship to ship stuff was OK.

    How did you run 5e?
    Straight out of the box, more or less. I've mostly been doing prewritten campaigns lately due to time constraints.

  • captainkcaptaink TexasRegistered User regular
    For Star Trek Adventures, I'd encourage your players to not double up on roles with their main characters. The science officer will be good at science, and the medical officer can back them up if necessary. Having a Science and deputy science officer is just going to sideline one, unless you divide the party up liberally. On the same token, I'd make my backup characters different departments than my main, so you can get some variety.

    Fitness is kind of a bad stat; punching people is tied to Daring for some reason. Also make sure your focuses somewhat correspond to your Disciplines, so that you can get some benefit from them.

    Definitely agree with building and spending Momentum like crazy. Threat too, when you get into situations that merit it. Buying an extra d20 for 1 momentum is almost always worth it.

  • Hahnsoo1Hahnsoo1 Make Ready. We Hunt.Registered User regular
    captaink wrote: »
    For Star Trek Adventures, I'd encourage your players to not double up on roles with their main characters. The science officer will be good at science, and the medical officer can back them up if necessary. Having a Science and deputy science officer is just going to sideline one, unless you divide the party up liberally. On the same token, I'd make my backup characters different departments than my main, so you can get some variety.

    Fitness is kind of a bad stat; punching people is tied to Daring for some reason. Also make sure your focuses somewhat correspond to your Disciplines, so that you can get some benefit from them.

    Definitely agree with building and spending Momentum like crazy. Threat too, when you get into situations that merit it. Buying an extra d20 for 1 momentum is almost always worth it.
    The only double up that I would recommend is having a Tactical Officer and a Security Officer. In our game, this meant that the Tactical Officer was pretty good at fighting, but great at starship combat and the Security Officer was great at fighting, but pretty good at starship combat. It's useful because you can have someone on phasers AND Torpedoes on most ships, and having two people good at hand-to-hand combat is useful when, say, invaders transport to the bridge.

    I don't know what you are talking about in terms of backup characters (full-fleshed second characters to play or Redshirts?), but the Redshirt system does allow people to continue to play on Away Teams using the substitute characters even when their primary role does not dictate it (the Captain or Medical Officer, for example). We usually made Redshirts up on the fly (using the given rules for them).

    8i1dt37buh2m.png
  • AuralynxAuralynx Darkness is a perspective Watching the ego workRegistered User regular
    Hahnsoo1 wrote: »
    captaink wrote: »
    For Star Trek Adventures, I'd encourage your players to not double up on roles with their main characters. The science officer will be good at science, and the medical officer can back them up if necessary. Having a Science and deputy science officer is just going to sideline one, unless you divide the party up liberally. On the same token, I'd make my backup characters different departments than my main, so you can get some variety.

    Fitness is kind of a bad stat; punching people is tied to Daring for some reason. Also make sure your focuses somewhat correspond to your Disciplines, so that you can get some benefit from them.

    Definitely agree with building and spending Momentum like crazy. Threat too, when you get into situations that merit it. Buying an extra d20 for 1 momentum is almost always worth it.
    The only double up that I would recommend is having a Tactical Officer and a Security Officer. In our game, this meant that the Tactical Officer was pretty good at fighting, but great at starship combat and the Security Officer was great at fighting, but pretty good at starship combat. It's useful because you can have someone on phasers AND Torpedoes on most ships, and having two people good at hand-to-hand combat is useful when, say, invaders transport to the bridge.

    I don't know what you are talking about in terms of backup characters (full-fleshed second characters to play or Redshirts?), but the Redshirt system does allow people to continue to play on Away Teams using the substitute characters even when their primary role does not dictate it (the Captain or Medical Officer, for example). We usually made Redshirts up on the fly (using the given rules for them).

    My Science Officer in @Farangu 's game is a borderline-sociopath whose skills all relate to staying on the ship; our first redshirt was another science guy who, like, not only wants to go on but is actually useful during away missions already.

    kshu0oba7xnr.png

  • captainkcaptaink TexasRegistered User regular
    Hahnsoo1 wrote: »
    captaink wrote: »
    For Star Trek Adventures, I'd encourage your players to not double up on roles with their main characters. The science officer will be good at science, and the medical officer can back them up if necessary. Having a Science and deputy science officer is just going to sideline one, unless you divide the party up liberally. On the same token, I'd make my backup characters different departments than my main, so you can get some variety.

    Fitness is kind of a bad stat; punching people is tied to Daring for some reason. Also make sure your focuses somewhat correspond to your Disciplines, so that you can get some benefit from them.

    Definitely agree with building and spending Momentum like crazy. Threat too, when you get into situations that merit it. Buying an extra d20 for 1 momentum is almost always worth it.
    The only double up that I would recommend is having a Tactical Officer and a Security Officer. In our game, this meant that the Tactical Officer was pretty good at fighting, but great at starship combat and the Security Officer was great at fighting, but pretty good at starship combat. It's useful because you can have someone on phasers AND Torpedoes on most ships, and having two people good at hand-to-hand combat is useful when, say, invaders transport to the bridge.

    I don't know what you are talking about in terms of backup characters (full-fleshed second characters to play or Redshirts?), but the Redshirt system does allow people to continue to play on Away Teams using the substitute characters even when their primary role does not dictate it (the Captain or Medical Officer, for example). We usually made Redshirts up on the fly (using the given rules for them).

    In my game, our support characters belonged to a certain player. I think the book says you can share but for whatever reason we didn't. So everyone ended up with like Captain/Deputy Engineer, or XO/Science Ensign.

    I guess the more important thing is to make sure that if the action splits into ship/away mission, make sure you have a character doing both so you're not just sitting during one or the other.

  • Hahnsoo1Hahnsoo1 Make Ready. We Hunt.Registered User regular
    One of the most refreshing things about Star Trek Adventures is the relative lack of loot. When it comes to possessions or gear, you can just replicate what you need. There are Momentum costs for the more "expensive" stuff to take on missions, and you can use this as a guideline for unusual requests from the players to replicate, but in general, I had no problems with the PC team simply replicating a bunch of things that they think they would require on a mission. Because you are running a setting based on a post-scarcity society, the challenges are more about planning, negotiation, and initiative than logistical or gear-check in nature.

    8i1dt37buh2m.png
  • italianranmaitalianranma Registered User regular
    edited August 2018
    So I think I'm going to abandon my current group. We tried changing up the pace from 5E to playing Edge of the Empire, but I still wasn't that satisfied playing with them. Also I want to play Blades in the Dark next and if I change systems on them one more time I think they'll revolt anyway. I haven't played online with my brother and his friends in a while, so I'm thinking of starting a small Blades in the Dark group with them. Does anyone have a recommended program to use? Also, what do you think of a special rule concerning firearms where each use of a firearm during a score takes one load but offers increased effect? Based on the level of technology I really like the idea of when firearms come out that means shit is about to get serious.

    italianranma on
    飛べねぇ豚はただの豚だ。
  • KadokenKadoken Giving Ends to my Friends and it Feels Stupendous Registered User regular
    I like Roll20. To be fair I only played DH on it and a little bit of DnD. I don’t know the Blades system enough to make a reccomendation about Roll20’s fit with Blades nor the gun thing.

  • admanbadmanb unionize your workplace Seattle, WARegistered User regular
    The Blades character sheet on Roll20 is super good.

    As far as the firearms thing that sounds alright to me. Depending on how you run the dials of effect (what does tier 0 vs tier 2 mean, for example) +1 effect can be really powerful or just a slight motivation of a significant problem.

    Thinking about it gun-armed enemies are actually pretty rare in my Blades game. With the exception of officers Bluecoats only got them when they completed their Militarization clock.

  • italianranmaitalianranma Registered User regular
    Speaking of weapons, I know that BitD isn't super detailed about the difference between a battle-axe and a longsword say, but what's the mechanical difference between a regular weapon (1 load) and a large weapon (2 load)? For items that have 0 load like a Spiritbane charm for anyone or a vial of slumber essence for the Spider, what prevents the PCs from having an infinite amount of those on hand?

    This book is super dense, I feel like I'm going to need to make a flow chart or two for the first few sessions.

    飛べねぇ豚はただの豚だ。
  • DevoutlyApatheticDevoutlyApathetic Registered User regular
    I'm fairly sure you can only grab a specific entry of an item off your list once. It's why the Leech has two entries for their bandoleer o Alchemical McGuffin-ery.

    Nod. Get treat. PSN: Quippish
  • admanbadmanb unionize your workplace Seattle, WARegistered User regular
    Speaking of weapons, I know that BitD isn't super detailed about the difference between a battle-axe and a longsword say, but what's the mechanical difference between a regular weapon (1 load) and a large weapon (2 load)? For items that have 0 load like a Spiritbane charm for anyone or a vial of slumber essence for the Spider, what prevents the PCs from having an infinite amount of those on hand?

    This book is super dense, I feel like I'm going to need to make a flow chart or two for the first few sessions.

    The large weapon is LARGE.

    Ultimately what effect that has is up to you and is in large part based on what the PC decides the weapon is. In general I would expect some amount of improved position, effect, or versatility. A polearm would improve position against people with swords, a battle axe would improve effect against people in armor, a heavy weighted net would allow for easier non-lethal rolls, etc.

    DevoutlyApathetic is right about items with no weight.

  • Havelock2.0Havelock2.0 Sufficiently Chill The Chill ZoneRegistered User regular
    Kadoken wrote: »
    “This world (other)Q sent us to seems to be an amalgam of 19th century gothic literature. Number one, make a call to the bridge crew, get them to send a shuttle right away.”

    A covered peasant takes off his hood and smiles.

    “They won’t do you any good down here, captain. Welcome to Barovia”

    *pounds fist on table*

    Yesssssss

    I've seen things you people wouldn't believe
  • KadokenKadoken Giving Ends to my Friends and it Feels Stupendous Registered User regular
    Appropriate avi

  • Mostlyjoe13Mostlyjoe13 Evil, Evil, Jump for joy! Registered User regular
    edited August 2018
    As much as I appreciate the Cypher System core book. The fact that Monte didn't give it a full year? Since his last kickstarter of cool sub setting books to start ANOTHER for a revised version of the core is a ...f'k you no.

    Monte, slow down binky. You suck at support resource management, I know darling. But stop showing us that in your books okay?

    Mostlyjoe13 on
    PSN ID - Mostlyjoe Steam ID -TheNotoriusRNG
  • DarkPrimusDarkPrimus Registered User regular
    As much as I appreciate the Cypher System core book. The fact that Monte didn't give it a full year? Since his last kickstarter of cool sub setting books to start ANOTHER for a revised version of the core is a ...f'k you no.

    Monte, slow down binky. You suck at support resource management, I know darling. But stop showing us that in your books okay?

    I've heard of trap feats, but a trap tabletop role-playing kickstarter?

  • Hahnsoo1Hahnsoo1 Make Ready. We Hunt.Registered User regular
    https://www.humblebundle.com/books/lord-of-the-rings-rpg-books

    All of "The One Ring" books are up at Humble Bundle. You can get all of "The One Ring" for 15 bucks! This is one of my favorite RPGs.

    8i1dt37buh2m.png
  • JacobkoshJacobkosh Gamble a stamp. I can show you how to be a real man!Moderator mod
    edited August 2018
    Oh hell yes.

    Jacobkosh on
    rRwz9.gif
  • FuselageFuselage Oosik Jumpship LoungeRegistered User regular
    Grabbed them up in a heartbeat. I have the core book on my shelf but still haven't gotten it to the table, like the majority of my collection. It's my curse that I'm surrounded by willing and capable Dungeon Masters so I don't have to lift a finger most of the time.

    o4n72w5h9b5y.png
  • SolarSolar Registered User regular
    Extremely well, relatively simple but satisfying and thematic combat, lots of focus on party cohesion and personal motivation, very good at evoking that Tolkien fantasy Anglo-Saxon feel. It's a great system and a beautifully realised series of books, a real labour of love.

  • KadokenKadoken Giving Ends to my Friends and it Feels Stupendous Registered User regular
    edited August 2018
    I seem to have a one-track mind when it comes to making investigative modules.

    “What bad people want? Gun”
    “Players ask: what gun? where gun? why gun? how stop gun?”
    “Twist: this time, aliem gun”

    The last three modules that were stand-alone or lead into longer campaigns included antagonists stealing weapons or making weapons deals.

    Though gun as like the resource bad people want is easy to understand and clear-cut.

    This time, the local mafia ganger types want tau gun because one of their number joined the main antagonist group. This guy gets funding and supplies from the bad group which holds a lot of influence and resources. Bad group also gave guy a relic which gives him basically a non-sapient version of The Darkness. Furthermore, he has been putting so many other gangs under his control that their size is starting to rival the mafia type group. So mafia type group reaches out to the big black market cartels to find kroot selling tau plasma weaponry to get an edge. Why not just get better Imperial weapons? Due to the last adventures, that stuff has been getting locked up tight or put under more vigilant watch by Imperial authorities. Especially since those stolen guns were used in two separate assassination attempts against the planet aristocracy, so now their lazy decadent asses are doing things to prevent that.

    Acolytes go to gangfight aftermath, investigate, ask around, interrogate gangsters, find the connect, find the kroot band, and kill them or convince them to go away.

    This is probably the most straightforward adventure I’ve ever made. No big antagonists coming in, no red herrings, and ties into overall campaign but will not pull them into a whole multi-adventure thing.

    Also the kroot band is A Tribe Called Kwest.

    Kadoken on
  • InquisitorInquisitor Registered User regular
    jdarksun wrote: »
    How does the One Ring RPG play?

    @Jacobkosh has you covered:
    Jacobkosh wrote: »
    Hey guys! For the next two weeks, the Humble Bundle has all of The One Ring - the entire gameline, supplements and maps and adventures and all - for $15.

    This is, as far as I'm concerned, one of the five or ten very best RPGs ever made and possibly the best RPG adaptation of a fictional property. Every page drips with theme. If you play this and aren't bodily transported to a world of hairy feet and adventure I'll give you your money back.

  • descdesc Goretexing to death Registered User regular
    I have the core book on my shelf but still haven't gotten it to the table, like the majority of my collection.

    2 real 4 me ;_;

  • Hahnsoo1Hahnsoo1 Make Ready. We Hunt.Registered User regular
    edited August 2018
    jdarksun wrote: »
    How does the One Ring RPG play?
    @jdarksun

    The main dice roll is a 1d12 + Xd6, but the 11 and 12 are replaced with a Rune of Gandalf and an Eye of Sauron. This means that it's a spread of 1-10 + Xd6, and the Rune of Gandalf and Eye of Sauron indicate critical success/failure respectively (there's a house rule that they recommend where you can use the Eye of Sauron for critical success for enemies instead), versus a sliding target number (typically 12-16). The 1d6 rolls also represent a sliding scale of success, because every 6 (Tengwar rune) that you roll on those dice represents a bonus.

    Characters are created on a lifepath system, where you choose aspects based on how your character grew up. There are 3 main attributes (Body, Heart, and Wits) and each attribute is linked to 6 skills. The skills are set up in a sort of table with 6 broad skill groups (say, "Custom", which is how your character interacts with NPCs in negotiation or greeting... it's "custom" as in tradition, not as in bespoke), and each attribute has a skill in that group (Body is linked to Song, Heart is linked to Courtesy, and Wits is linked to Riddle, and all three of those are "Custom" skills).

    This typically means that each character may have something to contribute in a given skill challenge, because they will probably lean on different attributes and therefore different approaches. For example, you walk into an inn out of the cold and damp. As a GM, you ask the players to greet the innkeeper and patrons. Someone who has high Heart and Courtesy may be the person to step up to order drinks and a room. Maybe someone with a high Body and Song will entertain the patrons with an improvised tale of how the party has arrived in this situation. Someone with a high Wits and Riddle can distract and entertain the room while the rest of the party finds a quiet corner to sit, undisturbed.

    "Leveling" is split into raising either Valor or Wisdom. This means there are two separate tiers that the character can choose to level up in, each with their own benefits (I think one affects gaining new feats and the other gives you better gear. It's been a while.). Some characters won't interact with your PC unless you have enough Valor or Wisdom, so both are useful for all characters.

    Combat is tactical, but zone-based rather than map-based. You choose a "stance" (forward, open, rearward, etc.) which determines where you are generally in the fray (and thus, your "zone"), and the GM assigns enemies to engage you based on those stances. Initiative is strictly based on your stance compared to the enemies, with Wits as a tiebreaker (I think). There are a number of combat options that you can use, although many of these will be restricted by your weapon and stance. In practice, it can be a bit repetitive because there are a few effective options for most generic combats, so as a GM, I would encourage throwing in some obstacles or improvisation to spice it up. The combat is fairly quick to resolve, thankfully.

    One of the aspects that The One Ring emphasizes that most fantasy RPGs gloss over is Travel. There are many detailed maps with mechanical aspects to them (Tainted areas, for example, are touched by dark forces and may slowly corrupt your characters if you pass through them), and the game itself has a resolution system for determining fatigue from travel and hazards that you run into from travelling. If you think of the typical multi-act setpiece "dungeon" in most fantasy games, you should plan on devoting one or two setpieces/"rooms" to the travel aspect. You can forgo this, of course, but it loses some of the feel of the setting (which involves a LOT of traveling... the vast majority of both The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings is a big-ass road trip). It helps that it has a very intuitive and mechanics-light way of determining both encumbrance and fatigue.

    The final aspect that I really enjoy in The One Ring is the Hope mechanic. Hope is the narrative currency, and can be used to do extraordinary feats. However, it is extremely slow to regenerate and can be worn away by various aspects of the game (the Shadow influence, etc.). Hope does not restore to full in between sessions. This means on an extended campaign, you can find your character slowly losing Hope as they progress into deeper, darker, and more difficult challenges. This can lead a character going down the road of Boromir or even Gollum. It's quite thematic for the setting!

    Hahnsoo1 on
    8i1dt37buh2m.png
  • Mongrel IdiotMongrel Idiot Registered User regular
    Hahnsoo1 wrote: »
    jdarksun wrote: »
    How does the One Ring RPG play?
    @jdarksun

    The main dice roll is a 1d12 + Xd6, but the 11 and 12 are replaced with a Rune of Gandalf and an Eye of Sauron. This means that it's a spread of 1-10 + Xd6, and the Rune of Gandalf and Eye of Sauron indicate critical success/failure respectively (there's a house rule that they recommend where you can use the Eye of Sauron for critical success for enemies instead), versus a sliding target number (typically 12-16). The 1d6 rolls also represent a sliding scale of success, because every 6 (Tengwar rune) that you roll on those dice represents a bonus.

    Characters are created on a lifepath system, where you choose aspects based on how your character grew up. There are 3 main attributes (Body, Heart, and Wits) and each attribute is linked to 6 skills. The skills are set up in a sort of table with 6 broad skill groups (say, "Custom", which is how your character interacts with NPCs in negotiation or greeting), and each attribute has a skill in that group (Body is linked to Song, Heart is linked to Courtesy, and Wits is linked to Riddle).

    This typically means that each character may have something to contribute in a given skill challenge, because they will probably lean on different attributes and therefore different approaches. For example, you walk into an inn out of the cold and damp. As a GM, you ask the players to greet the innkeeper and patrons. Someone who has high Heart and Courtesy may be the person to step up to order drinks and a room. Maybe someone with a high Body and Song will entertain the patrons with an improvised tale of how the party has arrived in this situation. Someone with a high Wits and Riddle can distract and entertain the room while the rest of the party finds a quiet corner to sit, undisturbed.

    "Leveling" is split into raising either Valor or Wisdom. This means there are two separate tiers that the character can choose to level up in, each with their own benefits (I think one affects gaining new feats and the other gives you better gear. It's been a while.). Some characters won't interact with your PC unless you have enough Valor or Wisdom, so both are useful for all characters.

    Combat is tactical, but zone-based rather than map-based. You choose a "stance" (forward, open, rearward, etc.) which determines where you are generally in the fray (and thus, your "zone"), and the GM assigns enemies to engage you based on those stances. Initiative is strictly based on your stance compared to the enemies, with Wits as a tiebreaker (I think). There are a number of combat options that you can use, although many of these will be restricted by your weapon and stance. In practice, it can be a bit repetitive because there are a few effective options for most generic combats, so as a GM, I would encourage throwing in some obstacles or improvisation to spice it up. The combat is fairly quick to resolve, thankfully.

    One of the aspects that The One Ring emphasizes that most fantasy RPGs gloss over is Travel. There are many detailed maps with mechanical aspects to them (Tainted areas, for example, are touched by dark forces and may slowly corrupt your characters if you pass through them), and the game itself has a resolution system for determining fatigue from travel and hazards that you run into from travelling. If you think of the typical multi-act setpiece "dungeon" in most fantasy games, you should plan on devoting one or two setpieces/"rooms" to the travel aspect. You can forgo this, of course, but it loses some of the feel of the setting (which involves a LOT of traveling... the vast majority of both The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings is a big-ass road trip). It helps that it has a very intuitive and mechanics-light way of determining both encumbrance and fatigue.

    The final aspect that I really enjoy in The One Ring is the Hope mechanic. Hope is the narrative currency, and can be used to do extraordinary feats. However, it is extremely slow to regenerate and can be worn away by various aspects of the game (the Shadow influence, etc.). Hope does not restore to full in between sessions. This means on an extended campaign, you can find your character slowly losing Hope as they progress into deeper, darker, and more difficult challenges. This can lead a character going down the road of Boromir or even Gollum. It's quite thematic for the setting!
    Well, you sold me on that bundle. This sounds badass.

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