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The_Jester wrote:

The best way would be ARs that are printed and handed-out post-game but also virtual ARs on the website. When the event is reported the DM checks off what favours you have.
If you lose your ARs you can print them.
If you're traveling you can just take print-out copies or go online.
They might even have a "resize" option so you can only include text that applies to you (favours you have, item access you got) and print the sheet out half-size on a 8.5x11 sheet allowing you to have 2 ARs per page. 4 if you double-side.

You can imagine the benefits of quartering your stack of ARs.

I have a hard time getting people to reliably report the games I play in now when it's comparatively simple to do. Even a slight complexity bump seems to pose most people an impossible roadblock - I think about half the Xen'drik tables I've played in have had reporting problems.

If it weren't for the fact that it won't work, your idea is great.

It will admittedly quarter your stack of ARs, since you'll be missing so many of them.

The_Jester wrote:

Yeah, that's why I said "like" in italics.
It might work if certs were non-transferable. And if there were always 6 items per table and everyone got one.
But not every mod would have certs and not every table would work with people getting certs. But this might be offset by gold. Take the cert and get a discounted item or ignore and get more gold.

But probably wouldn't work in practice.

If everyone gets one - why have certs at all (as seperate from the AR).

The_Jester wrote:

Yeah that is a problem, but mostly with local DMs. Just need to encourage people to report and remind them of the Reward points and such.
But with a hard copy after the game it removes this problem, the online would be a back-up.

And the system could be easy (it'd have to be simple and graphics lite for WotC to do it). Just a series of check boxes. This favour, check. Not this favour, blank. Mods could come with a record sheet at the back for DMs to record who got what.

Nice and simple. If you can order a pizza online you can report a mod.

I don't know if you've ever reported a Xen'drik Expeditions event, but those aren't that complex. I certainly have never had any trouble accurately reporting XE events I've run... played in is another matter entirely.

The thing of it is, an online backup is only good if it's an actual backup. If it's known to be unreliable, then that's a cascading problem. If nobody ever relies on it then people are going to care less about reporting quality, which means the system will be unreliable, and...

The only way to get it even close to quality would be to actually have consequences for conventions that screw up or don't post results in a timely manner. And that seems vanishingly unlikely.

tombollis wrote:

I want to see access to core features and items as open as possible, with restrictions only appkied to new stuff introduced via modules, or to expansion material that might not be appropriate to the campaign. Let treasure be gold and resalable items (at full price, or close to it), with standard items, and ones accessed via modules, freely buyable. Let restrictions on gold available be the limit on what can be purchased.

Even rings should be buyavle at low level - they just won't function if the character's level is too low.

There should be little need for tracking. items and access.

Interesting treasure would be roleplaying items - named weapons and items with histories, favors, well bred mounts, etc., not unusually powerful items. The player should be able to freely develop character concewpts; modules should reward with items that link the PC to his adventure history and supply him with the wealth to advance his PC in the direction of the player's choice.

Tom Bollis

Yeah, this would work well. As a few of the Admins have pointed out, the more it can be "read the Core books" the better. The only things I see as needing special access are those that need adjudication. Say some special access (not sure what is going to replace PClasses) that needs you to have "Done a grand service to the elves." You've gotta document that somewhere before you can run around gaining the benefits of Ruathar (for instance).

If someone were cracked enough to offer access to a moonblade to an elf, this would be another example needing very careful adjudication. Don't won't the player "accidentally" transfering access to the moonblade from his human cleric of Bahamut to his elven fighter who just happens to be from the correct family.