Jezred's page

I discovered the Neverwinter about a month ago. Since it is free-to-play, I gave it a go. I really like it overall. I can see how it used Star Trek and other MMOs as inspiration for this engine. I like that you only have a limited number of powers active at a time. The controls took some getting used to, but I find it intuitive. The targeting reticle is a fresh change from tab targeting, though it does make targeting at range a little tricky. I got a character maxed out to level 60 without spending a dime.

I am not a huge fan of the crafting system. While it is easy to use and easy to get materials, I find I “out-level” the gear I can make. I.e. by the time I can make level 15 gear, I am close to level 30. The end-game stuff is a touch confusing at first, but I am not a big end-game player. I am just not into repetitive grinding and long instances. I wish we had more control over our companions. It would be nice to send the tank companion into combat before I start attacking so I don’t get aggro. I think the Star Wars: The Old Republic MMO did all of these things better.

Overall, IMO for a F2P game, it is really good. For an MMO game, it is average to above average.

Does anyone else play?

Looking for players or a group for any RPG. I really like the new Star Wars RPG(s) from Fantasy Flight Games, fantasy, and Pathfinder. Willing to play about anything.

Some background: I picked up Dominion earlier this year. I really love the game and the expansions I have played. I wanted to get a second deck-building game, one with a fantasy theme and flavor.

After reading reviews on several different ones, I went with Ascension. My LGS didn't have the first set, Chronicle of the Godslayer, so I picked up Rise of Vigil. I really like the game. It is simple enough to play, but has the flavor I am looking for.

I am looking to expand beyond this set. Out of all the Ascension sets, which one should I get next? Should I pick up Chronicle next, or should I go with one of the other expansions?

I am making a 3rd level character for a new campaign. I wanted to make a 'classic' fighter-mage. As I want to make a character with only the materials I own (Core + APG), I will steer away from a magus for now.

I am thinking of an elf ftr-1/wiz-2. With a 20-point stat buy:

Str 16
Dex 13+2
Con 12-2
Int 14+2
Wis 10
Cha 10

Favored class will be Wizard. Primary weapon will be a longsword so he can have one hand free as needed to cast spells. He will also make his sword his bonded item.

My two areas of concern are school specialization and feats. For school, here are my thoughts:

Universal: No spell penalties. Throw his weapon 6/day.

Enhancement (Transmutation): Physical enhancement. Augment. Perfection of self. +1 transmutation spell per spell level.

Enhancement seems to be a likely choice, though throwing his weapon at short range (and not being limited in spell selection) does have its perks. Anyone have recommendations?

For feat selection, obtaining Arcane Armor Training is a no brainer for higher levels. For now, he has 2 feats plus 1 bonus fighter feat. My thoughts are:

Weapon Focus (Longsword)
Combat Casting
Dodge

As his HP will be low, anything that increases avoidance is a plus. Can anyone recommend different feats?

Related to feats are traits. While these will be primary based role-playing preferences, does anyone have traits to suggest?

Got an e-mail concerning a broadcast from the D&D Insider Community...

On November 16, Wizards of the Coast will launch a brand new web-based version of the D&D Insider Character Builder.

Hopes: Perhaps runs smoother. Will include Essentials/Dark Sun.

Fears: No subscription = no character builder. I suppose you can use the current application, but it doesn't look like it will be supported after the 16th.

Thoughts?

Answering my own question:

Good stuff.

My past thread.

There are some other good threads out there too. I guess I am still requesting links to some good info others have used.

I have been playing RPGs and such for over 20 years. Looking for a group that meets on a regular basis. I have played all editions of D&D plus about 25 or so other systems. Willing to DM if needed. Please contact me if you have an opening.

I think there are multiple reasons I like Keep on the Shadowfell, but I may have stumbled onto the main reason today. It is a homage/re-imagining/ripoff of the Dungeon #82 adventure called Evil Unearthed, the very first 3E adventure I ever ran.

SPOILER ALERT...

Similarities:

* Friends of the party disappear--check
* Kobolds are involved--check
* Kobolds are working for evil cleric--check
* Evil cleric has a mole in town--check
* Evil cleric trying to unearth something evil-check
* Evil located under a ruined castle--check
* Catacombs under evil castle--check
* Filled with undead--check
* Mining involved--check

I could go on, but the number of similarities is staggering. Anyone else catch this?

I was converting an old adventure, UK7 Dark Clouds Gather, for use in my 4E game. It is based on characters of roughly 7th level. I noticed that towards the end, giants began to feature prominently in the encounters.

Now, giants are normally paragon-level standard monsters. However, a party of 7th level characters would get decimated by a paragon-level monster. So I looked at the encounter again, which only called for one giant. This seems to work well. Then I remembered this quote from the DM tips:

I'm starting this thread a place for 4E dms to post tips for other 4E dms based on their experience running 4E. ... Monster Stat Blocks Monster stat blocks should be considered as being relative to the party... Example 1: In heroic tier gaming you might have the stat the local militia of a town as level 3 skirmishers or soldiers. This is a good reflection of their capabilities relative to a heroic tier party. However, as the heroes advance this stat block becomes obsolete, so when they are at paragon tier if you had need of the town militia again, you might consider restating them as higher level minions...

So I figured I could convert the giants into heroic-tier solo monsters. This is an example of the above in reverse: paragon-tier standard monsters could be converted into heroic-tier elite or solo monsters.

I wish to post my work to both show examples of what I am talking about as well as to get feedback on my work. Let me know what you think.

Example One called for a frost giant and a winter wolf. I designed this encounter as a young adult frost giant hunting with his winter wolf pup.

Frost Giant Hunter Level 7 Solo Brute
Large elemental humanoid (cold, giant) XP 1500
Initiative +5 Senses Perception + 6
HP 392; Bloodied 196
AC 21; Fortitude 21, Reflex 17, Will 19
Resist 10 cold
Saving Throws +5
Speed 8 (icewalk)
Action Points 2
m Icy Greataxe (standard; at-will) * Cold, Weapon
Reach 2; +14 vs. AC; 2d8 + 5 damage plus 1d6 cold damage (crit: 2d8 + 21 damage plus 1d6 cold damage).
M Frenzied Slash (standard; at-will) * Cold, Weapon
The giant makes two icy greataxe attacks against a single target.
M Dying Swipe (when the giant is reduced to 0 hit points)
The giant makes an icy greataxe attack.
M Icy Whirlwind (standard; recharge 5+) * Cold, Weapon
Close burst 2; +12 vs. Reflex; 3d6 + 5 cold damage and the target is knocked prone..
r Icy Handaxe (standard; at-will) * Cold, Weapon
Range 5/10; +13 vs. AC; 1d8 + 5 cold damage.
R Twin Hurl (standard; at-will) * Cold, Weapon
The giant makes two icy handaxe attacks.
Icebound Footing
When an effect pulls, pushes, or slides the frost giant, the frost giant moves 2 squares less than the effect specifies. Also, a frost giant can make a saving throw to avoid being knocked prone.
Alignment Evil Languages Common, Giant
Skills Athletics +13
Str 20 (+8) Dex 14 (+5) Wis 17 (+6)
Con 18 (+7) Int 10 (+3) Cha 10 (+3)
Equipment: Hide armor, greataxe, 4 handaxes

Winter Wolf Pup Level 6 Skirmisher
Medium natural magical beast XP 250
Initiative +8 Senses Perception + 5; low-light vision
HP 72; Bloodied 36
AC 20; Fortitude 19, Reflex 18, Will 16
Resist 10 cold
Speed 8 (ice walk)
m Bite (standard; at-will) * Cold
+11 vs. AC; 1d6 + 4 damage plus 1d6 cold damage, or 2d6 + 4 damage plus 1d6 cold damage vs. a prone target.
Combat Advantage
If the winter wolf pup has combat advantage against the target, the target is also knocked prone on a hit.
B Freezing Breath (standard; recharge when bloodied) * Cold
Close blast 3; +9 vs. Reflex; 1d10 + 4 cold damage. Miss: half.
Alignment Evil Languages Common, Giant
Str 18 (+7) Dex 17 (+6) Wis 14 (+5)
Con 16 (+6) Int 7 (+1) Cha 9 (+2)

Example Two is a hill giant.

Hill Giant Marauder Level 6 Solo Brute
Large elemental humanoid (giant) XP 1250
Initiative +2 Senses Perception + 4
HP 352; Bloodied 176
AC 20; Fortitude 20, Reflex 16, Will 18
Saving Throws +5
Speed 8
Action Points 2
m Greatclub (standard; at-will) * Weapon
Reach 2; +11 vs. AC; 2d10 + 5 damage.
m Meaty Fist (minor; at-will)
Reach 2; +11 vs. AC; 2d6 + 5 damage.
B Club Sweep (standard; recharge 5+) * Weapon
Close burst 2; +11 vs. AC; 2d10 + 5 damage and the target is pushed 2 squares and knocked prone.
R Rock Hurl (standard; at-will)
Ranged: 8/16; +11 vs. AC; 2d6 + 5 damage.
Alignment Chaotic Evil Languages Common, Giant
Skills Athletics +13
Str 20 (+8) Dex 8 (+2) Wis 12 (+4)
Con 18 (+7) Int 7 (+1) Cha 9 (+2)
Equipment: Hide armor, greatclub, rocks

Thoughts?

I am sure with the Star Trek movie coming out, some Trek RPGs are being started or getting resumed after a long hiatus. My question: What system(s) are people using for their Star Trek RPG games?

Decipher?
Last Unicorn Games?
FASA?
Other? (I used FUDGE for a Trek one-shot)

Never mind. Detail canceled at last minute.

I am getting detailed to Dallas TX this coming week. I am looking for a group I can game with while I am down there (approx. 7 weeks) or a cool gaming store at which to play.

I plan on bringing my D&D 4E books, but I am game for about anything really. If given enough notice I can bring other books as well.

One of my favorite Dungeon adventures, perhaps the favorite, is Ex Libris (Dungeon #29, Vol. V Issue 5). I have ran it in 2E and 3.xE, so I thought I'd add it into my 4E campaign.

Like many adventures designed in previous editions, the main problem I am having is designing encounters. In the module, most of the combat is against a solo book guardian or a small group of corrupted priests or NPCs. The corrupted priests, originally huecuva, will probably be replaced with wights or phantom soldiers/priests. I don't see a problem there.

The real problem is dealing with the book guardians. These were almost exclusively solo fights. I really don't want to slog through nearly a dozen Solo (as in a 4E Solo) fights to make the adventure work. Solo fights are fine every once in a while, but multiple solo fights together make for a boring and tedious dungeon crawl. So the question remains: what would be guarding those books?

I am having some writer's block, so any ideas are welcome.

I have finished converting the module to 4E. I made several considerations when doing the work.

1. I kept the encounters at full strength instead of toning them down. While the seelie court with provide some help along the way, the players will be forewarned that the short time frame of the adventure will prevent extended rests. Thus they will have to make due with the resources at hand.

2. I simplified many of the aspects of the module. For example, since ice mephits aren't in the MM, I replaced the one in the module with something else, a young white dragon carved out of ice. The Modern Engineering Machines have the same stats except for how they attack (area vs. one target).

3. Since there isn't much treasure placed in the module itself, I will add some at the end (probably as rewards from both the town and the seelie court) depending out the adventure outcome. I will also add quest rewards depending on the outcome as well.

If you are interested in what I have, I can post more here.

I absolutely love the Pathfinder Chronicles: Campaign Setting. I plan on coverting it and several Pathfinder adventures to 4E. I see in the archives some others planning on doing the same. Has anyone started work on this? Is there a website or discussion group on the topic?

I would like to take the various kingdoms/regions in Golarion and giving them regional benefits ala Living FR. Some are fairly obvious, based on the feats given for regions. Others might take some thinking. Anyway, any discussion on this is welcome.

Wow. What a difference a day or two makes. I wish to recind my review posted above.

After thoroughly reading over the APG, I have determined that this product was not play-tested, is horribly inconsistent and unbalanced, and was perhaps rushed to get to print to make a buck before WotC's Player's Handbook II came out. That is the short version of my revised review. The long version requires a lot of swearing.

A couple of examples that come to mind.

* Many of the troubadour's melee attacks target defenses other than AC. Even the melee Strikers, Defenders and other Leaders generally target AC with their weapon-based powers, as being proficient with a weapon grants a bonus to the attack. This makes the troubadour's attacks generally more accurate than even the rogue, ranger, fighter or warlord.

* One of nature priest's Level 1 Encounter Powers is a Close Blast 6 that pushes the targets 6 squares and knocks them prone (as well as having the effect of a -4 penalty to ranged attacks until the start of your next turn). This is way over-powered compared to the wizard's powers of Thunder Wave, Burning Hands, and Color Spray. A fight on a cliffside could be over with one use of this uber-power.

Being the UBER-nerd that I am, and wanting to play a bard NOW rather than in March 09, I am revising the Troubadour class to make some better sense and be in line with the other two Leader classes (i.e. the warlord and the cleric). The Inspiring Warlord beats the Troubadour as written hands down. My version will be more balanced while not being a clone of the other two classes. As I am using the AGP as a starting point, I will not share or sell my work (as much as I'd like something for my efforts).

So save your money folks and either pass on this one or get the PDF. A more balanced version of the classes will be coming soon enough. (The races within the book appear balanced enough to play, but they alone aren't worth the purchase.)

I hope future 3PP releases are of much better quality than this one.

http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/drfe/20080924

I really was happy about Dragonkin being in the new edition, as I am a huge draconophile. But after reading about the gnolls who are in tune with their hyena nature... I think gnolls have a new place in my list of D&D favorites.

Gnoll Rangers, Gnoll Rogues, Gnoll Fighters, Gnoll Warlocks... heck, gnoll anything has some great potential. Still not as cool as dragonkin, but a close second to be sure.