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Results for tag: design
Posted by:
babyj
on May 21, 2013 at 04:32:39 AM
The Glaring IssueIf they won't fix it, I will.[spoiler=It's broken] The glaring issue with the action system in Next and other editions is that it's broken. No really: some basic actions give you free actions. And as a result, D&D Next (like other editions) has an action economy that is easily exploited and inherently flawed. This is not a new problem or anything, but I've seen no moves to fix the underlying issues with the combat action system. Instead, I have seen it be buried under aesthetics like feats. If they won't fix it, I will; at least at my own table. Here is one way I plan to fix Next's action system. If it becomes too difficult to implement with Next, I will write a whole game myself that will support a simple Two Action system. For now it seems... 
Posted by:
The_Jester
on Mar 23, 2013 at 09:23:50 AM
The fifth playtest package for 5th Edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons (or 6th Edition Basic Dungeons & Dragons depending on how you look at it or who you ask) came out a few days ago. While I haven’t had a chance to playtest this yet, I hope to have a chance in a few weeks. But let’s do a little review and feedback based on a readthrough. SkillsTying skills descriptions to ability checks makes some sense, in that they’re not separate skills but bonuses to ability checks when performing certain deeds. This package emphasises this a little more than previous packages but has some other slight problems. It could be done a little better. Instead of referring to the "bluff skill" or "spot skill" it could be phrased "you gain skill at bluffing" or "skilled at spot". Flipping ...
Posted by:
The_Jester
on Dec 26, 2012 at 06:50:40 PM
It's review time. I refer of course to the end of December surprise of one last playtest package before the end of the year. This would be our fourth real package, excluding the small updates with added an extra class or two to the mix. This time we have the full 1-20 level range of for five classes. It seems like as good a time as any to really look at the playtest package and the playtest process in general. Poking FeedbackWizards of the Coast has been managing this public playtest for roughly seven months, since the first package was released ...
Posted by:
TheSleepingGod
on Nov 30, 2012 at 11:26:09 PM
I've been punching through it a bit, and trying to work out how effective the characters can be. I've come to the conclusion that a party of four could effectively and quickly be torn apart by a reasonably well run group of goblins. I'm going to put this to the test tomorrow night (I hope) and see if a group of 4 archer minions are too much for my party.
Which leaves me with a problem. How do I get the party up to level 2 without killing them? I don't want to make this too easy, and I don't want to dumb down my opponents for the sake of a good time. Levels should be earned. Well, I think I've come up with a solution: The first encounter is the goblin guards at a cave (the backstory is a complex and irrelevant at the moment). In theory, a party of 5 should be able to handle 1 Hex Hurler, 2 Cutthroats,...
Posted by:
TheSleepingGod
on Nov 21, 2012 at 06:38:46 PM
Well, it did take a while to get organized, but we managed some roleplay on Saturday night, with another Dad whose son seemed to quite enjoy the whole experience, even though his character died.
Posted by:
TheSleepingGod
on Oct 27, 2012 at 11:54:23 AM
One of the advantages of a session being cancelled is that you get more time to "polish" a story or set of encounters to go with it. This week's session being put off has meant that I have been able to expand on my previous plans and create (potentially) four, poissibly five, weeks of material from what would have been maybe one or two sessions.
I don't like to labour a point, and if this isn't flowing well in game terms I can probably drop back to the original outline without losing much from my story arc. However, one of these sessions would have been based around a sideline quest. So, I do wonder, how much time is suitable to devote to a sideline quest? One of the pieces of advice I remember from previous versions of D&D, when it came to campaign/story design, was to avoid monolithic evil.... 
Posted by:
LordArchaon
on Aug 23, 2012 at 09:03:23 AM
The Sorcerer. My favorite class since the very first time I saw it in a manual, I always seen in it way more potential than what the rules (and consequently the designers) actually put into it.
As I explained here, I envision the Sorcerer not only as a magic user whose talent is innate, as opposed to the learned wizards and the bargaining warlock. But I see (or wish I could see) the Sorcerer as a wielder of a more fundamental type of magic. The neglected, once-fabled Elemental Power Source, basically. But in what I could explain as a transition between Elemental and Arcane, Sorcery should actually be "raw magic". A dangerous, chaotic, roiling energy that only very few individuals can "see", let alone use. Key Concept: Raw Magic The Sorcerer as I envision it could have been born with this ... 
Posted by:
wrecan
on Aug 18, 2012 at 12:25:19 PM
For those of you who have been following my articles on the formatting for monster stat blocks an adventure blocks (read them here:
   ), you know that stat block formatting is something I have some definite opinions about. There is some exciting news out of GenCon, which you can hear with your own ears at this podcast, thanks to the good folks at the Tome Show.They recorded a GenCon panel called "D&D Next Panel: Monsters, Magic Items, and DM Mischief". The panelists were Jeremy Crawford, Mike Mearls, Chris Perkins, and James Wyatt. The panel discussed many things, as one can see from the panel's title, and it's well worth the listen. But buried in the middle there was the following exchange about stat blocks, which you can hear beginning at 22:55 through 25:05 in the... 
Posted by:
Tevish_Szat
on Jul 22, 2012 at 02:17:27 PM
“You stride forth from the blood-soaked battlefield, bruised and beaten, but unlike all others involved, alive. The balefire and steel that slew hundreds of others, friend and foe alike, you shrugged off, a true champion. Scores of lesser men fell beneath your blade, ending with the general of the enemy. A worthy foe, if there was such a thing for you. Victorious but, thanks to your lord’s death on the field, unemployed, you resolve to cure the world of its problems the way you know best to: by the blade.” “You marched to war as one of your lord’s men at arms, for the only thought more frightening than fighting the enemy was what should happen if they won. Battle came, and you stood, and you cut, time and time again, finding combat ...
Posted by:
wrecan
on Jul 21, 2012 at 03:00:36 AM
This is my fourth blog article discussing what makes a good stat block. First I discussed Fourth Edition power blocks. About a month ago, I discussed the formatting of stat blocks for creatures. Two weeks ago I asked you to choose from amongst a variety of new and old stat blocks for use in a Monster Manual, a format I will call "monster blocks". In this article, I discuss the formatting of what has become known as "adventure blocks". James Wyatt, I believe, coined the term "adventure block" in this article from 2006. An adventure block is a stat block built to be used in the midst of a published adventure, rather than in a book dedicated to full-length explanations of monsters. An adventure block should, ideally, be much shorter than the corresponding ... |
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