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Ken_of_Ghastria

Ken Hart

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Ken_of_Ghastria My 5-year-old asked me to run "real" D&D for her this weekend. Geek parenting achievement: Unlocked.

Mood: thankful

October 4, 2012 at 9:12pm
Ken_of_Ghastria Went to park with daughter, seeing the Spider-Man movie tonight, and running a 4E D&D game at home t

Mood: thankful

July 21, 2012 at 5:30pm
Ken_of_Ghastria Got invited to a virtual 1E D&D game tonight. Damn, would love that, but bad night. ;-(

Mood: happy

June 3, 2012 at 8:12pm
Ken_of_Ghastria Diving into bloodsucking lore. Catch you in the daytime hours.

Mood: tired

May 29, 2012 at 9:26pm
Ken_of_Ghastria Feeling pretty good about writing right now.

Mood: satisfied

May 29, 2012 at 9:26pm
GMChris voted in the poll, "Magic properties 2".

May 27, 2012 at 12:41pm

1 person likes this poll.
Ken_of_Ghastria added a comment to WotC_Trevor's blog post on the DnD Next group.

Wizard with a License to Kill
Some of Rob’s latest blogs have described a possible approach to D&D...

May 4, 2012 at 11:45am
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2 / 61

Avric_Tholomyes

I have mixed feelings about Backgrounds and themes... I feel that they are miles ahead of what D&D has done in the past. But then, I think back to what other systems do:
The system Mutants & Masterminds, a Point-buy d20 based Superhero system, has a source-book for using it in a Fantasy setting. I don't particularly like using it for that, since it just wasn't really built for that scale, but one thing that the sourcebook did impart to me is that it made me begin to question why...

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June 25, 2012 11:51 PM PDT

Rablin

I've never liked the mechanic of multiclassing but the theme / background sounds like a better fit for simulation than suddenly learning to cast spells or wield divine power. A more subtle way to customise a character than change its direction completely.

July 9, 2012 11:50 AM PDT

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GMChris voted in the poll, "Feat Choice".

May 3, 2012 at 4:04pm
Ken_of_Ghastria added a comment to WotC_Trevor's blog post on the DnD Next group.

Paladin Versus Cleric: FIGHT!
Okay, so you’re not likely to see a paladin and a (good) cleric throw...

April 24, 2012 at 9:29pm
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2 / 270

ulrikbb

I feel that a character needs to have abilities that are consistent. Mounted combat won't be viable always - in fact, in my campaigns, characters have hardly bothered to explore it at all since you can't bring a horse 50% of the places you go.
Also, by letting abilities depend on alignment, you make the game a whole lot less interesting when evil can be distinguished so easily from good as in previous editions. There should be no detect evil since such an ability means that I as a DM will...

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August 7, 2012 1:47 AM PDT

The_MeatShield

It would be awesome if a paladin had martial dice to use but instead of straight damage they could be used to provide effects based on deity choice. For example: I follow the edicts of a god of healing and as an option I can spend a martial die on a hit allowing the party member with the lowest HP to gain HP equal to a given modifier.

February 24, 2013 9:35 AM PST

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GMChris voted in the poll, "Even more crazy or new stuff (elaborate in the comments)".

April 24, 2012 at 9:20pm

1 person likes this poll.
GMChris voted in the poll, "Gain noncombat bonuses in the pursuit of evil or the protection of others ".

April 24, 2012 at 9:20pm

1 person likes this poll.
GMChris voted in the poll, "Resist damage from evil foes ".

April 24, 2012 at 9:20pm

1 person likes this poll.
GMChris voted in the poll, "Smite evil foes ".

April 24, 2012 at 9:20pm

1 person likes this poll.
GMChris voted in the poll, "Protect his or her allies ".

April 24, 2012 at 9:20pm

1 person likes this poll.
GMChris voted in the poll, "Be an expert at mounted combat ".

April 24, 2012 at 9:20pm

1 person likes this poll.
Ken_of_Ghastria added a comment to WotC_GregB's blog post on the DnD Next group.

The Cleric, the Paladin, and Multisysteming
In a previous post, we discussed the iconic cleric. A majority of poll...

March 29, 2012 at 9:25pm
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2 / 167

Rablin

I like the idea of crossing boundaries of class as you level up but I never liked multiclassing. Sacrificing spell abilities to learn advanced fighting techniques is a great way of player choice to customise their character. It does make balancing a bit harder but if you want a warrior Mage he won't be as good as either pure class and maybe slightly weaker overall for the level but that is the choice you make. As I said in a previous post having unique game mechanics for each class is a great...

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June 30, 2012 3:39 AM PDT

EvanK

I like the idea of giving the Fighter some distinct sub-systems. As others have mentioned, I don't feel like basic combat actions should ever be exclusive to the fighter (disarming, tripping, charging, etc).. but truly spectacular shows of martial talent should be exclusive to the Fighter and its derivations. Stuff like tearing off the giant's arm, or executing complex attack sequences. The idea of being able to swap extra attacks for maneuvers is a particularly exciting one to me.
My only...

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July 8, 2012 5:06 AM PDT

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Ken_of_Ghastria posted to TheLyons' forum thread on the DnD Next group.

Forum Topic: Poll: What campaign settings do you want to see printed in D&D Next?

March 27, 2012 at 10:12pm
Ken_of_Ghastria added a comment to WotC_GregB's blog post on the DnD Next group.

Complexity vs. Ease of Play
The great thing about 4th Edition is that the character choices provide...

March 26, 2012 at 8:56pm
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2 / 257

Righel

I like varying complexities and mechanics between character classes. That's what makes it fun. A wizard doesn't have healing powers, sword-skills, armor, or an affinity for stealth and shadow. In being a wizard you have chosen that you want to be a spellcaster, one who fights with his magic. In being a rogue, you have forgone spellbooks and claymores for sneak attacks and lock-picking. Maybe the NUMBER of traits doesn't add up, but those traits are also in varying areas of that character, and...

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August 5, 2012 9:52 PM PDT

GMChris

Just joined and grinding through previous posts. I wanted to agree with Blackdrazon. I believe it is very important to have classes that are both simpler and more complicated than the median (yes, that will happen by definition, buy you know what I mean). There need to be novice-friendly classes to introduce new players, and more complex classes for those who like to juggle options.
The simple option is especially important. I run a youth D&D game and I've watched them run through...

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March 19, 2013 7:38 AM PDT

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GMChris voted in the poll, "Ease vs. Complexity".

March 26, 2012 at 8:46pm

1 person likes this poll.
Ken_of_Ghastria shared an article.

These Are Not the Rules You're Looking For www.wizards.com

March 26, 2012 at 8:44pm
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2 / 205

Shamanstarr

You've just described BECMI D&D

April 9, 2012 5:27 PM PDT

professordaddy

I'm going to say that the PHB and DMG *should not* have "advice" sections on how to play, construct, or adjudicate adventures.
Such material is useful precisely once, ever, in the life of any player or DM. Once. But unfortunately, in every edition of D&D, that crap has been strewn throughout the book, wedged between the actual tables used in play or character or adventure construction. It's not just wasting space, it's making the actual information more difficult to access.
If...

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February 26, 2013 2:03 PM PST

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