God help me, thinking of joining a local group doing D&D 5e. I haven't RPG'd in 27-something years.
Do it and then bitch about the lack of descending armor class, to hit tables, simplified saving throws, and the lack of the brilliant 2e THAC0 system.
I've DM'd my daughter and some friends for almost a year now with 5e. It's pretty simple stuff and really enjoyable.
They seem like a good group of guys, all about my age, and we're going to meet at a local gaming shop. One of them, strangely enough, I might know in a roundabout way through my older theater days a few years back.
Anyway...I got some readin' to do. I was thinking of a Monk. Always wanted to play something simple without armor and HtH ability. Seemed like a challenge. And an awesome character if they can get high enough level.
In all seriousness, 5e is the best edition of D&D post TSR. As MD stated, the system overall is very simple. The monk is probably one of the more "complicated" classes, but it's not too bad once you understand how ki power works.
One of my favorite characters from the olden days was my monk. It took several attempts at playing monk characters before I go one over level 3. However, D&D 5e. is really favorable toward not killing player characters.
Now I HAVE to buy some dice!
I mean, I probably have some somewhere around here, but thpfft, who cares? DICE.
Hehe. I love dice. They may very well be my ultimate nerd fetish.
Looking on Amazon I can get six sets of freakin' polyhedrals for eleven bucks.
A far cry from my first set of dice...those things were six bucks for one set back in the day.
Umm...who makes them?
Quote from: Bison on January 17, 2017, 08:23:03 PM
Umm...who makes them?
Outee? Never heard of them but they're 4.5 stars out of five on Amazon for this product.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01I5MS7KE/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
The bad reviews say they're cheap pieces of crap and unbalanced, but the positive ones (majority) say they seem well balanced and are good. We'll see I suppose.
I never seen them in person. I'm sure that they would work well enough. Or for $24 you could get 18 sets of dice! 18!
https://www.amazon.com/Skull-Splitter-Polyhedral-Complete-Included/dp/B01FRQI6CA/ref=lp_13543780011_1_1?srs=13543780011&ie=UTF8&qid=1484703042&sr=8-1
I'd also just poke into the FLGS and check out what they have there too. I'd bet Chessex. Chesses really does make a good dice even if I complain about them sometimes mostly due to my poor rolls. :) They have some really cool colors.
I always wanted to do that scoop o' dice thing I saw at the conventions...when I was going to them.
18 sounds grand, but I'm pushing it with 6...LOL. I can't wait. I've not played D&D since 1990 but I did play a lot of Fantasy HERO back in 1991/92, before I met my wife.
Coincidence? Why, yes. Yes, indeed.
I actually liked the HERO system a lot. 5e should be interesting.
You'll be buying more dice at some point. It's an inevitable outcome of joining a rpg group.
Did you pick up your copy of the Players Handbook yet?
Quote from: Bison on January 17, 2017, 08:42:16 PM
You'll be buying more dice at some point. It's an inevitable outcome of joining a rpg group.
I ALMOST joined a Shadowrun group a month or so ago, but I opted out in the frenzy of signups. I kind of like it but I'd rather play something a bit more familiar paper-and-pencil-wise.
And f*ck that ASMR shite on YouTube. I watched about 15 seconds of one of the dice ones and was annoyed as hell. Don't get me wrong - there's something EMINENTLY satisfying about hearing dice getting juggled and clinked and rolled, especially on a soft surface. I grew up with my grandparents teaching me Backgammon and I still like the sound of dice inside the lined leather cups in that game. But damn, I can't sit there and listen to someone doing it on purpose. Strange.
Quote from: Bison on January 17, 2017, 08:45:04 PM
Did you pick up your copy of the Players Handbook yet?
I have a big collection of PDFs but went ahead and ordered it off of Amazon tonight along with those dice. Should be here next week sometime. I'm going to be in a training class on the other side of town all week next week and at a hotel in the evenings, so I'm not going to be home when it arrives. :(
I can still read the PDFs, but it's not the same thing.
I hate pdfs for role playing games. Having a digital device at the table just annoys me to no end. Perhaps even more than whispering...
Yeah, me too. Honestly I'd much rather sit down with a big thick DnD book and something nice to drink and an hour or more to kill instead of an iPad.
When I got back in to D&D, I dropped a hundy on the PHB and DMG. Verrrrrrrrry satisfying having that great, thick book to read and reference. Now all I need is the MM and I am set.
I didn't know you don't have a Monster Manual. What are you using for creature stat blocks? The beginners box?
Yeah. We are just coming down the home stretch. Wave Echo Cave awaits!
Ah ha! Epic! I'd look on the DM Guild. There are a number of free supplements you can download that have monster stat blocks, if you need more.
Another rabbit hole I'd like to go down is the Star Wars RPG. Had fun with that back with the original game a long time ago.
And Paranoia. Man, Paranoia with the right group was epic.
Quote from: Banzai_Cat on January 17, 2017, 09:08:24 PM
Another rabbit hole I'd like to go down is the Star Wars RPG. Had fun with that back with the original game a long time ago.
And Paranoia. Man, Paranoia with the right group was epic.
And this is how it all begins....
Baby steps.
We all say that and the next thing you know you have a folder on your computer full of free or on sale pdfs and a bookshelf full of books.
I still have all my old RPG books for Paranoia (including adventures and sourcebooks) and the first edition Star Wars stuff.
I also have Tales From The Floating Vagabond. That was a fun one, too. Didn't get that to the table often enough but it was all comedy gold.
Quote from: Banzai_Cat on January 17, 2017, 08:26:27 PM
Quote from: Bison on January 17, 2017, 08:23:03 PM
Umm...who makes them?
Outee? Never heard of them but they're 4.5 stars out of five on Amazon for this product.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01I5MS7KE/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
The bad reviews say they're cheap pieces of crap and unbalanced, but the positive ones (majority) say they seem well balanced and are good. We'll see I suppose.
The pics on the store page are displaying the exact same Wiz Dice I picked up awhile back.
The big ass bag of Wiz Dice I got had those, plus numerous other colors. But those are
definitely pics of the exact same dice as Wiz Dice. Or they're using the exact same molds/casting.
The 100-pack I got for $18:
http://www.amazon.com/Wiz-Dice-Random-Polyhedral-Multiple/dp/B009R6J8RY
The numbers weren't
all filled in absolutely perfectly. A few of the digits weren't as thick as others. But, overall, it was a buttload of dice, in many differently colored full sets, at a bargain price. The dice pictured in your link are the exact same make.
I have played a couple of d&d 5e games recently (one as a player, and one "assisting" my daughter as the DM). I like the new rules, though I understand there is some criticism of the classes and abilities, etc. It is interesting that one of the posts mentions "...good at not killing the players..." as we experienced quite the opposite. In both games, we had to HEAVILY "adjust" the dice rolls in first combat encounter "goblin arrows", as our party of four adventurers would been whacked after three combat rounds, mostly due to their ability to take a second "hide" action.
Having said all that, I was a bit nostalgic for the encyclopedic lists of weapons and armour and gear from the original AD&D.
What was the party composition? The rules are really very forgiving in terms of healing available to clerics, short rest use hd to recover hp, long rest recover full hit points, etc...sure dice rolls favoring monster attacks can still wipe out a party, but compared to AD&D/D&D there really isn't a comparison in terms of 1st level character survival. Long gone are the days of save or die against basically everything. 1st level starts at max hit points + constitution bonus. No more 1 hp magic users or thieves.
(https://scontent.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/15976931_1324680177595479_1988775082304115805_n.jpg?oh=f6786b853cce8b8b4951735eaaf381ee&oe=58D72446)
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.tribality.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2014%2F11%2Fdungeons-and-dragons.jpg&hash=3c32b9e90c43d6b0f1945f92262fc59498106c57)
34 years ago...sigh
Quote from: bayonetbrant on January 18, 2017, 06:20:45 AM
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Our bi-monthly D&D group has all n00bs. When we were setting up and rolling characters, one of my friends decided he wanted to be a Bard. In typical fashion, he named his character, Bard.
The guy running the group said to roll 4d6 three times, dropping the lowest d6 result with each roll. This is what I came up with:
First roll: 17, 17, 15, 12, 11, 10 (82 total)
Second roll: 13, 13, 12, 9, 8, 8 (63)
Third roll: 17, 16, 15, 15, 12, 10 (85)
I like the first and third rolls...the first one is of course three total points lower, but two 17s is pretty cool. Still, the third roll is a much better overall character, I think.
Since I'm leaning towards a monk, I'm a bit overwhelmed with the races. Right now these are the ones I'm looking at:
Dragonborn - A badass. +2 Strength and +1 Charisma, plus breath weapons, among other things?
Forest Gnome - the +1 Dexterity is compelling.
Dark Elf - +1 to Charisma, but that's not important. Dark Elf, man.
Half-Elf - +2 to Charisma and +1 to any other two stats? That's very compelling.
Tiefling - unusual and interesting character type.
Personally, I enjoy playing characters that have a tendency/background of evil, but have turned good (in Star Wars I liked playing the turned Imperial Officer character, for example). The Tiefling and Dark Elf, and maybe Dragonborn, are all highly interesting in this capacity.
Wisdom and dexterity for the monk.
The third roll is better honestly.
I'm thinking that, too.
Third roll.
17 for Dex, 16 for Wis.
Leaning more towards a Tiefling character.
The group looks like two Dwarves and one Half-Orc. One guy posted in response:
QuoteCool! Two stumpies, a lizard-lips, and SATAN!
;D
What are stat bonuses for tiefling?
Quote from: Bison on January 18, 2017, 12:00:45 PM
What are stat bonuses for tiefling?
Intelligence +1, Charisma +2.
I'd put the 15s in strength and constitution.
Quote from: Bison on January 18, 2017, 01:02:40 AM
What was the party composition?
for my game - 1 fighter, 1 ranger, 1 cleric and 1 wizard
for my daughter's game: 1 fighter, 1 cleric, 1 rogue and can't remember the fourth player.
Really, the encounter came down to a bunch of very bad rolls for the party. The goblin archers rolled hits, the party rolled misses. Nothing more complicated than that. In retrospect, I think the mistake was to not rush the archers.
I assume you are talking about the road encounter in Lost Mines of Phandelver. That can be a tough encounter if the party lets the goblins used the woods to trigger there hide ability.
I gotta now figure a plausible backstory for a world I know little about.
From what I'm seeing online, the Forgotten Realms are 5e's digs, right?
No idea where a Tiefling Monk would come from, but I have a few ideas.
Not necessarily. But it is the most likely campaign setting, if the DM is not using a homebrew world. 5e Forgotten Realms setting is basically limited right now to the Sword Coast as far as published materials from WotC.
Quote from: Bison on January 18, 2017, 08:22:22 PM
Not necessarily. But it is the most likely campaign setting, if the DM is not using a homebrew world. 5e Forgotten Realms setting is basically limited right now to the Sword Coast as far as published materials from WotC.
I still have the 3E Forgotten Realms hardback. That thing was so jammed full of Realms info, it constantly requested biscuits for jam containment.
If I were playing 5E, I'd hope that they provided such a big all-in-one splatbook for it again. But ya never know...
Does the 5e DM's Guide not have source-ish world material in it?
There is some source material for Forgotten Realms in the DMG, but the Sword Coast Adventure's Guide is the only 5e published material that deals exclusively with the Forgotten Realms. As the title suggests, its focus is the Sword Coast which is the best know section of the Forgotten Realms campaign setting. The published adventures also provide Forgotten Realms material, because other than the Curse of Strahd (Ravenloft) they all take place in the Forgotten Realms.
PH and bunch'o dice arrived just a bit ago. :)
Nice! That was a quick delivery.
Had my first game last night. My impressions:
- Great group of guys in this group (one DM and three other players, all guys my age-ish)
- 5e is somewhat complicated (for me) but once I got into it, it was simple enough to wrap my mind around the concepts. One guy had a rules cheat sheet (2 pages) that he shared with us, which goes over actions you can take, what actions do, and other important things (a real lifesaver for a noob like me).
- My Tiefling Monk, even at 1st level, is an ass-kicker.
- The campaign began last week, but because I was out of town for work I missed it. So, coming in last night, the DM made it so my character was part of another party that had been sent to get the MacGuffin (I forget, I think it was a dragon orb), and were captured. These guys came in not knowing that, and found me as a prisoner of Kobolds and the other NPCs from my party all dead...I was to be next. Their Halfling Bard cut me loose and I turned around and put my Tiefling Monk's fist through the head of the Kobold that was about to cut me, then sprinted over and in my next turn, did the same thing to another Kobold. This Monk-type is a flippin' warrior, man. Of course, these WERE Kobolds, not exactly all that challenging, but definitely so for 1st-level characters.
- Later, we ran into a Drake, which was flying around the rafters of this big room. All I could do is dance in the corner (Dodge actions twice in a row). This particular one breathes fire, and Tieflings are fire-resistant, so I only took a couple of points of damage from it. Finally the damn thing landed to go after our Rogue, and I went up behind him and punched him in two different turns probably for close to 30 points of damage (one of my rolls was a critical 20).
- Before this Drake fight, we'd leveled up to 2nd and I immediately got my Ki points (PINNNNG, lol). For that fight I used both my Ki points for 'Flurry of Blows,' which of course gave me a total of three attacks. With my DEX bonus as damage I really whittled the hell out of that thing.
- The Drake didn't like that my first three attacks did 15 points of damage to it (lol), so he turned on me and bit me for a few points. (DM rolled a 19 and my Armor Class is a very respectable 16.)
- It was great fun. This Monk is going to be a killer if he lives long enough to level up further.
The next game for me won't be next week because I'll be gone, but the following week I'll be there. We ended the game right after the Drake fight, to be continued. Looking forward to trying it.
I just need to find a Tiefling Monk mini figure; the DM used a graph mat to write out the dungeon, which was pretty awesome. One of the guys at the game looked it up and found a figure that would work for me. I just gotta figure how I'm going to get this past the spousal unit. :)
Quote from: Banzai_Cat on January 31, 2017, 07:53:08 AM
- 5e is somewhat complicated (for me) but once I got into it, it was simple enough to wrap my mind around the concepts. One guy had a rules cheat sheet (2 pages) that he shared with us, which goes over actions you can take, what actions do, and other important things (a real lifesaver for a noob like me).
"Cheat sheets" like that are essential for every RPG IMO.
So few of them have all the player options, and summaries of them, condensed into a few pages. They really need it. Having such a thing at the back of a rulebook, for instance, would certainly make it easier to print off. Should be a staple in every rulebook.
Think I've seen such a thing on one or two RPGs. But most have some on their (separately sold) GM screens, which only provide it on the GM side, and many don't have the player stuff in one place at all. :knuppel2:
All seven of my players are n00bs. I did a lot of printing off of cheat sheets for the group before we ever got started. I agree there should be some central place for them in the rulebooks. Would definitely make things much easier.
I'm fortunate in that these guys know their stuff.
A couple of them had an app for their iPads...they said it was $30 (), but it was basically everything you needed for characterization, inventory, stats, everything. Sounds a little steep to me. I can't remember what it's called now.
I think you'll find very difficult to find a tiefling monk miniature. I'm not sure there has been one ever made but I have seen some rogue and warlock ones.
One of the guys in the group found a decent figure I might order.
http://www.miniaturemarket.com/ddmm2-035.html
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fcdn.miniaturemarket.com%2Fmedia%2Fcatalog%2Fproduct%2Fcache%2F1%2Fimage%2F9df78eab33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95%2Fd%2Fd%2Fddmm2-035.jpg&hash=059c2512e6fffa157c790b5befdd619286933770)
It's a Tiefling Warlock, but those hands just scream FISTS OF FURY! ;)
I've seem the figure and it's ok. It'll certainly do the job.
Actually, it looks more like jazz hands...
But beggars cannot be choosers.
Though what's funny is I could get a 'normal' Monk figure for about 1/3 the cost from that site.
Easily could get a Reaper mini for less than $5 for sure. I know they have some monks but I've never really looked at any of the sculpts.
FWIW, you can get all kinds of shit at Origins, dirt cheap O0
I bought about 15 boxes of Mage Knight minis one year for about $20, and then just shaved them off the click-bases and glued them to either pennies or some GW bases.
the ears don't match, but this might work for you
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fdgsgames.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2014%2F11%2FDGS106002.jpg&hash=f97668a37dfb8addc80b98e006b0065be1e49847)
Possibly, thanks.
I was wondering just now actually if it were possible to get a cool Monk figure and just alter it to look like a Tiefling. Even if that means getting a Tiefling figure and chopping the tail off, and gluing it back on the Monk. ;)
And sorry, I can't justify spending hundreds to go to Origins in the off chance I can spend $20 on a box of minis. :-\
I'd look that the Reaper ones. You might just need to alter the mini by cutting off a sword or something. The key to the tiefling is the tail and horns. :D
Hey Bison!
https://ideas.lego.com/projects/165437
Hey Brant!
http://grogheads.com/forums/index.php?topic=7868.msg503592#msg503592 (http://grogheads.com/forums/index.php?topic=7868.msg503592#msg503592)
Quote from: mirth on February 17, 2017, 10:02:59 AM
Hey Brant!
http://grogheads.com/forums/index.php?topic=7868.msg503592#msg503592 (http://grogheads.com/forums/index.php?topic=7868.msg503592#msg503592)
dammit... ninja'ed :-[
That is pretty epic.
http://www.polygon.com/2017/2/20/14669102/dungeons-dragons-best-new-sourcebook-is-free
http://chicagoist.com/2017/03/07/sue_the_t-rex_is_running_a_dd_game.php
Tales from the Yawning Portal is the next scheduled release. It's a collection of modules from the history of D&D. I think approved LGS will be able to start selling next week with the general public release on 4 April. I've got mixed feelings about the content, but some of the adventures included are classics that I'm really happy a new generation of gamers will get to experience.
http://multiverse.world/blog/2017/03/11/sunken-treasure-cairn-skeleton-king/
Goodman Games is pleased to announce a partnership with Dungeons & Dragons to publish deluxe collector's editions of classic D&D adventure modules! These commemorative editions will appeal to fans of Dungeons & Dragons across multiple editions. Each volume will include digitally restored, high-quality scans of the original 1970's-era adventure modules, presented in their original published form.
http://dnd.wizards.com/products/tabletop-games/rpg-products/adventure-modules
This is pretty cool. I love seeing the old classics reprinted. Depending on the price point for these collectors editions, I may very well snag a copy. Of course, I do have an original Keep on the Borderlands in my box o' stuff down in the basement.
The iPad app for complete character management probably is Hero Lab by Lone Wolf.
Hero Lab is also available on PC and your character portfolios are interchangable between the mobile and desktop version.
DMs can also use the app to manage encounters.
Lone Wolf is also the developer of Realm Works; a comprehensive campaign manager suite and world builder. I have both applications and can recommend them both. O0
Two new products for 5e were announced a couple of weeks ago.
Tomb of Annihilation This is another campaign book set in Chult. This could be an interesting deviation from the last few set in the Sword Coast.
http://dnd.wizards.com/products/tabletop-games/rpg-products/tomb-annihilation
And the one I'm most excited about is Xanathar's Guide to Everything
http://dnd.wizards.com/products/tabletop-games/rpg-products/xanathars-guide-everything
This one looks like an Unearthed Arcana sort of book. 20 new sub-classes and new feats, spells, and backgrounds. Good stuff.
The group I left a few months back posted that they were looking for new players recently, so I think I'm going to re-join the campaign.
I didn't really feel the Tiefling Monk, so I'm probably going to go with a Half-Orc Barbarian. I think I want to role-play a character that doesn't want to be burdened by armor, like the Monk, and also I think a Half-Orc will be a challenge to role-play.
Quote from: BanzaiCat on July 10, 2017, 06:49:03 PMI think a Half-Orc will be a challenge to role-play.
just put in some imaginary tusks and try to talk like Mirth, but in grunts.
So...mirth on a day that ends in "-day"?
http://comicbook.com/gaming/2018/03/27/dungeons-and-dragons-beholders/
Beholders are one of the monsters that WotC withheld from the OGL.