tdewitt274's page

UndeadDan wrote:

In every Pathfinder pdf I have the "A"s in the section titles are missing. Any clue why that would be?

In other news, I am very excited about the C V LIER and the OR CLE.

Maybe the A's are on strike. Are they union letters?

Linking to GM Reference

Multiple Map reference questions/clarifications

In the next week or so, we're expecting to ship the next volume of your subscription.

As always, link back if you find something relevent.

I set my campaign in Greyhawk and I do fine using only the Greyhawk Gazetteer and the online resources (realizing that online info may be campaign specific). Cauldron is in the Amedio, of course, and I found it important to pick a spot in the timeline as well. Our game is set about one year after the use of the Crook of Rao.

Gazateer is always a good choice for the Gods.

Erik Mona wrote:

The 32-pagers are a surprise. WotC abandoned that format almost a decade ago, so dipping back into suggests something. Not sure what yet.

Cost cutting, I'd imagine.

In addition, they seem to be putting out a hardcover "super adventure" each year (Revenge of the Giants, Tomb of Horrors).

Also, they may be finding that the Delve format is a waste of space. Having the same stat block for a goblin 5 times in an adventure is a bit much. They may be going to a "page XX of the [Book] or on DDI" format. I see a 32 page adventure being an extention of this.

The other thing is that they said there will be little support for a setting (1 adventure, 1 CS, 1 PG). I think they said that the MM for that year will integrate monsters for the CS (could be wrong on that).

WotC's big thing with 3e is to skimp on the adventures because they didn't bring in as much money (1-2 people per game group as opposed to the player related guides).

Thirteenth Warrior
Any Star Wars movie

Aaron Highcolor wrote:

Yeah, any idea on the ETA?

Probably another week or so.

doppelganger wrote:

I'm confused about the controversy over race books. Paizo has the Elves of Golarion, Dwarves of Golarion, and Gnomes of Golarion. Why shouldn't WotC also have race books?

We were only worried about it before we found out they were 32 pages and $10. Wizards may not have the best history with race books, but for $10 I'm willing to give them benefit of the doubt.

With a $10 book, they can focus specifically on the race and the people will buy what they want. Using this approach, they can see what the number of books being sold is and focus on that race, or bring another race up to that level in a PH expansion.

Sometimes you just have to test the waters. I think it's a marketing gimmick to see how it would do. If it runs well, they can do a "class flavor/optimization" book for the same low price. It may even bring in the people that only buy the core books due to a tight budget. Or, based on the before mentioned "cool" description, a younger crowd.

New race "Alves" or "Alfs"

(edited)
I'm unsure now that I have understood correctly what you're looking for?
However I have an idea that James Jacobs has commented in chats and other places that Novel Writing for Publication and Adventure Writing for Publication are two very different beasts.
If you're looking for advice about writing an Adventure for Publication, I don't know that advice about writing a novel will carry over very well....
Even as an amateur I'm reasonably confident stringing together stories (silly or otherwise) in the novel/fiction sense, but my attempts to respond to Pathfinder Society Open Calls or RPG Superstar have frankly sucked beyond belief, and I simply ignore the open calls now because I recognise how out of my depth I am with the format. The two formats are looking for completely different things. I wish I could remember James Jacobs' exact description of the differences between the writing requirements, because I think it might be helpful here, and would be much clearer than any attempts I could make to explain them...
If you're looking for suggestions/help coming up with a publishable adventure to run under Pathfinder or some other RPG I think you might be best starting a thread specifically for it, rather than looking for novel-writing help.

Edit:
Possibly James Jacobs may have commented on...

While my intents aren't for publication, mostly to entertain a group with a good adventure, it makes sense that the two aren't the same. The whole "coming up with an idea" is pretty much where I get stuck.

If there's something out there with archetypes (kidnapping, murder, overtrow the government, etc) for stories with suggestions on how to twist them so they aren't the same story, I'd pick it up in a second!

...then stick them all in a tavern, toss a random event such as someone being assassinated at the next table into it, and see what happens from there...

I'm the kind of person that makes things a reality, a "doer". I don't come up with my own ideas, that's usually someone else or I find a need for something. I don't say "I'm going to make a widget that someone wants", I say ""I'm going to make a widget that someone needs".

Not trying to get this somewhat back on track or anything ; )

I'm not much of a writer. Never have been. However, it intrigues me. I can come up with character ideas, but I can't come up with a story idea if it came up and slapped me upside the head with a wrecking ball.

Is there something out there that has ideas for plots (probably the wrong word for it). To clarify, whole "this is why you're doing it" thing. The expansion of "Man vs Man", "Man vs Nature", etc. A "man abducts woman for a handsom bounty and will kill anyone that gets in the way of his profit." Maybe that wasn't clear, but if I at least could get some kind of idea, maybe then I could write an adventure...

Now, I'll say I didn't read up on the links, but I wonder how this would work in a programming/coding nature? I can code until my heart's content, but for each 10 "words" of code, I probably will end up with 5 "words" of actual content. Dang bugs and errors ; )

tdewitt274 wrote:

Pricing and Store

I don't have FG2, but I do have FG. It wasn't difficult to set up. I just didn't care too much for the interface, but some of the features were nice. Besides, the pricing at that time was rediculous.

Hmm yes the price does seem a little iffy.
I may try using just a forum, if i can get my hands on some dice rolling code :)

Sounds like they have some support from 2e, 3.5e (default), 3.P, and 4e, as well as GURPS, SWSE, WoD, and more (all fan supported). Still no audio chat support.

The tutorials are pretty good. I watched them a couple of times and then dove into transcribing a 4e adventure. Works pretty slick. Unfortunately for 3.5, 4e has superior combat management. Maybe they'll "import" the functionality?

Hey all, how much does fantasygrounds cost?
Also how tricky is it to set up etc?

I don't have FG2, but I do have FG. It wasn't difficult to set up. I just didn't care too much for the interface, but some of the features were nice. Besides, the pricing at that time was rediculous.

I have some d3 dice, i.e. a normal d6, with the numbers 1, 2, and 3, twice each. However what I cannot find is the same as a d2, i.e. with the numbers 1 and 2 three times each.

I know I could make them myself with blank dice and a sharpie, but I'm sure they'd look crappy, and I'd like something professional.

Does anyone know if somebody manufactures these and if so where they can be obtained?

1d20 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4

1d6 + 2 ⇒ (5) + 2 = 7

Sorry, haven't tried the dice tag yet.

There was a game company that gave out d2s at their booth back in the GenCon Milwaukee days. Sadly, I lost mine to the local economy, as I'm sure many others did as well.

Impressive - what do one of these table thingy's cost?

Third and Fourth are pretty much the same game at the core. Combat, Feats, and Skills work the same in both systems. The difference is Basic Attacks, Powers and Feats.

3e Feats were more powerful than 4e Feats. 3e "Basic Attacks" (anytime you used a regular attack) was made more colorful with 4e Powers (really, kind of like an attack with a 3e Feat all the time). The combat systems are near identical. Pathfinder is more 3e with tweaks, as noted above.

Regarding the playing with 2 players, D&D has never really been a "solo" game. You either need to play with 4 characters (by 4 players or with 2 each). 4e is a bit easier on prep time, IMHO, and is more "math" based. 3e is a bit vague on how to match up monsters with characters, more "feel" than "math" based. Both can be scaled, but are still evaluated for 4-5 characters.

If you're looking for something more scalable, Hero System (Hero Games) and GURPS (Steve Jackson Games) can handle any number of people. However, GURPS has a lower learning curve and costs less than Hero (6e is going to cost about $70 for the books, $50 for the PDFs). Both are more realistic, Hero is more math based.

Another option would be RuneQuest (Mongoose Publishing), Basic RolePlaying (BRP, Chaosium), and Fudge (Hero System light, free). I'm sure there is more, but this is what I can think of off hand.

Hmm. Well, we definitely don't want to email thousands of people because the delivery date of a map pack moved from Monday to Tuesday... but perhaps we could find a good way to at least note that the product schedule has been updated, ideally in a way that you could subscribe to with an RSS reader...

Mosaic wrote:

How will these be different from their regular coins? What will be specifically Golarion about them?

bump

Skullbone wrote:

Can we get an avatar of the two copper piece for when we need to add our opinion to a thread?

Genius sir !

Linking

The Bastards of Erebus (GM Reference)

Linking

The sewers are only 5' wide? Need to squeeze?

James Jacobs
The scale on the sewer maps should be 1 square = 10 feet.

Page 35.
A bard can cast bard spells while wearing light
armor and use a shield without incurring the normal
arcane spell failure chance

So reading the RAW I say Zurai might be correct. UMD + Sroll cast by a Bard, Cleric, Druid, Paladin or Ranger = No ASF.

Here's a nice nugget, p 35 "A multiclass bard still incurs the normal arcane spell failure chance for arcane spells received from other classes." With this in mind and p 150, I'd say any Arcane Spell with a Somatic component has ASF.

Of course, it should have a clarification from The Powers That Be.

As for fighter. They don't cast spells. Should they be treated as a wizard/sorcerer or as Bard, Cleric, Druid, Paladin or Ranger? I don't know.

I think the rules also suggest the class is the gatekeeper to ASF. Meaning this "suffer no ASF" class doesn't have ASF when they cast arcane spells on their list. But other classes casting a scroll created by them would suffer ASF when they cast it (if it was on their class spell list.)

The question of a Fighter using UMD to cast the scroll is less clear to me. I still would consider the "no ASF" a class feature with no listed Level Adjustment, and as such can not be "put" into the Scroll (so the scroll would be identical to a scroll created by a Wizard.)

Of course, the Use Magic Device can be used to substitute for casting Class.

OK, I had a ton of arguments for the whole "No hand waving", but page 458 "Spell Completion" threw me into the "If it has Somatic Components for the type of spell and the spell," it requires a free hand.

Scrolls do require Somatic components if the original spell for the caster type has Somatic components ("Spell Completion" on p 458). Divine or Arcane.

Arcane spell failure is only for Arcane spells (p 39, lack of reference in "Weapon and Armor Proficiency", p 78 specific stating in same section for Wizard, p 150 "Arcane spellcasters face the possibility of arcane spell failure if they're wearing armor." and the "Casting an Arcane Spell in Armor" subsection).

Divine Spells on scrolls follow the same rules fore deciphering and writing (p 221 and reference to 218).

Everything I've read says that there's Arcane Spell Failure for a scroll of an "arcane" type spell (p 490, bullet 1) as you need to be able to cast Divine spells to cast a Divine scroll.

No change from 3.5, if I remember correctly.

All things considered, the caster must have the scroll within range to read it. So, if it's "tacked to the back of a Rogue" or laying on a table, or even in the hand of a shield arm (raised high in the air and negating the shield bonus while taking the AoO from the casting, and taking a move action to re-adjust your shield), anything is fair game.

However, it's still a move action to retrieve the scroll. I'd say a free action to "unroll" it by letting go of the bottom drop or part of the Move action.

IMHO of course ; )

[Edit: Updated the "Everything I've read says " paragraph for clarity]

There's a few of us out here. Sioux Falls myself. Currently in 2 games.

Dragon's Den (Comics, games, Magic and mini tournements, I think a bulletin board) is fine, the only real game store we have. There's also a HobbyTown (hobbies, games, Warhammer support). Best selection is Barnes & Noble (I usually bump into someone by the book stands). Rainbow Sports Cards doesn't really carry anything, but they do sell D&D minis and support HeroClix.

As far as Cons, MageCon North crumbled a long time ago. They do have some Game Days, used to be monthly but I don't know now. MageCon South (Sioux City) is still around. Check the "Chapters" page as well as the front page.

VerminCon (USD) is still going (last I heard) in Vermillion, SD.

I don't think that Brookings (SDSU) has a Con, but they do have Game Days. The store, Brost's (the aquarium shop, not the clothing one; games) up there is pretty good with their selection.

I think that DSU has something going on as well.

As far as demographics, I'm not sure what everyone is playing. I mentioned PFRPG to HobbyTown and they sounded interested.

There is also a section in the chapter on campaigns about cost of living. This can give you a guideline. For 1,000 GP a month you live like Donald Trump. For 100 GP a month you can have a set of rooms and great food at a high class inn every day.

So if they get a couple of hundred gold peices from one monster that can cover the basic room and board for a couple of years if they are content with the game world version of an apartment and fast food. Not many real world jobs can cover rent and food for two years off of one days worth of work.

At 3 GP a night, that would be $300 a night and $3K a month. I think we should have paid $300 a night for a Staybridge suite in Indy during GenCon (2 singles, a double, and a hide-a-bed for 2 rooms, a living room, and a kitchenette) and a real breakfast. So, I think that's pretty much on par.

If that's the case, I've been overtipping my bar wenches! ::visions of Euro Trip's nickel scene dancing in my head::

tdewitt274 wrote:

"I'll give you one last chance to knock it off." From a PC to a commoner before the commoner rolls a natural 20 and drops the PC Bard to 0 HP.

Yes, that's why in most D&D sessions, it pays to swing your sword first and try diplomacy later.

tdewitt274 wrote:

Edit: Almost forgot. For a taste of home, try Hog's Breath Cafe. They have US lisence plates on the walls.

You TOURIST! :P

Now, if he was in Cairnes, I'd suggest Dundee's and get the Kangaroo, Emu, shark, and croc platter. Or to go into the open air strip mall just off the ocean (you know the one, by the swimming pool) and order a kangaroo steak.

"I'll give you one last chance to knock it off." From a PC to a commoner before the commoner rolls a natural 20 and drops the PC Bard to 0 HP.

"Any man can walk through s4!t, but it takes a God to rise above it," wizard casting levitate in a sewer.

"I don't want to die alone. I wake up Todd," from the guy on watch that notices a bodak. My character died the next round.

Hopefully you have an extra day or two to enjoy. I know I'd take a quick jaunt up to Cairnes for a little diving. Deep See Diver's Den has some nice day trips : )

Edit: Almost forgot. For a taste of home, try Hog's Breath Cafe. They have US lisence plates on the walls.

BRISBANEPh: (07) 3236 4200
Fax: (07) 3236 4300
Email: hbbrisy@hogsbreath.com.au
Address
5 Petrie Terrace
Paddington QLD 4064
Trading Hours:
Open for Lunch 11:30am - 2:30pm Mon-Thurs and Dinner 5:00pm - Late Mon-Thurs / 11:30am - Late Fri-Sun

Or post in the "Customer Service" forum.

tdewitt274 wrote:

Oooh! Peanuts and foam to keep my books safe! THANKS!!!!

Thyew meanth thosth fwern't candthy?

Seriously, I'm glad they packed it with the foam. Pretty much everything I get is manhandled. Recently UPS decided to drop the a $35 book on it's bottom edge (same thing happened to my 5ER Hero). Fortunately, the issue is usually a slightly dinged corner that can be weighted to conform.

Arinsen wrote:

Hey....

Im kinda worried....

Has anyone heard from Lisa and the rest of the Paizo crew? Did they survive the weekend?

Cheers

We survived the weekend, but it was back down to the dungeon today. The end is in sight. I believe that there is a good chance that all the books will be out the door tomorrow, as scheduled. It hasn't been fun or easy, but at least it is almost done.

-Lisa

Sounds very interesting. Is there any specific area you could use a hand with? While I'm sure you could handle everything yourself, I wouldn't mind seeing this done as quickly as possible. I've not used MySQL much, but I learn fairly quickly, and I'm sure I could help with some of the back end PHP stuff, if you want the help, but I've never yet used Apache, so I'd be of limited use there.

Honestly, the most useful would be the HTML/CSS/JavaScript side. The appearance of an application is always important, and this is my weakest area (I prefer function over pretty). A forum is pretty cut and paste from other forums. It's just how everything puts into the db and displays on the screen. That's not to say that the PHP code isn't important.

MySQL is basically a db. If you know SQL, you're golden. If you don't know SQL, a good resource is Teach Yourself SQL in 21 days. I keep that book within arms reach, just in case.

Apache server is more of an engine for the whole system. Also, websites don't usually let you mess with the server.

If you're interested in the AMP platform, check out XAMPP. This is essentially a WAMP (Windows, Apache, MySQL, PHP, phpMyAdmin) server that's all ready to go.

Frogboy wrote:

Hey, be thankful you didn't preorder a Pandora. Those poor souls have been waiting almost a year for the company to finish the product and ship it out...and they're still not done yet!

Pandora, don't remember that one... what company? Links? Name alone sounds interesting.

How does BAB work, and are there multiple options. I didn't read the Beta, but looked briefly at the Alpha.

Also, how does armor work?

These were my main issue with 3.5.

Keep Them Secret, Keep Them Safe Cookies
With just a hint of banana, people will be clamoring for more!
As per instructions on Toll House 36 oz Chocolate Chip package except half package of chips per batch.
+ 1 banana, sliced, when creaming the butter and sugars.
+ 1 large box of vanilla pudding to the flour mixture.

This looks very interesting. Ambitious, certainly, and I'd be very interested to see if it could be pulled off. Might I assume you're using php? If so, while it's been quite a while since I last used php regularly I wouldn't mind lending a hand where needed.

The plan is to focus on d20 systems (3.0, 3.5, PFRPG, and 4e) to get the basic systems down. These are pretty much "action, reaction, and benefit" engines and use the same types of math and combat systems. All four systems are pretty much made for computer games.

The trick would be to make it generic enough. Technically, you're essentially adding flavor to "I roll a NdS and add/subtract X to reach Y." So long as the tables are set up right, the database will do most of the work.

The more complex things would be like Feats and Powers, but those are essentially stacking other pieces together. Ex, Helpless would be reducing DEX to 0 and -4 to Melee AC in 3.5 and granting Combat Advantage in 4e.

OK, enough rambling ; )

hida_jiremi wrote:

Won't be getting my hardcopy until 10:01am this coming Thursday. That is to say: one minute after the dealers' room opens at GenCon. =P

But congratulations to everyone who's getting their book early!

Jeremy Puckett

Guess who will be elbowing Jeremy Puckett in the face so he can get his at 10:00 and 30 seconds?

tdewitt274 wrote:

Besides, a 567 page book is about 5 times the size of a normal PFAP (which was 19 and 23.5 MB each).

So, the PFRPG is approx 45-117 MB. Don't forget, there's two files that you'll have the opportunity to download. The APs already slow down the site. Now, think about 5x the download!

Thought I saw a post from Vic elsewhere on the boards that he "guessed" the file would be ~70-80MB.

AJC

Of course, the APs look like they have more graphics per 100 pages than the PFRPG (based on the flip through video). So, 70-80 sounds about right.

Besides, a 567 page book is about 5 times the size of a normal PFAP (which was 19 and 23.5 MB each).

So, the PFRPG is approx 45-117 MB. Don't forget, there's two files that you'll have the opportunity to download. The APs already slow down the site. Now, think about 5x the download!

I think that they know what they're doing ; )

USPS usually takes 9 days for delivery to Sioux Falls, SD, and that's a pretty reliable date range. They said somewhere that they are shipping based on the time that the Post Office says it normally takes (even though they said in the email that it was going out on Tuesday). This in mind, they may have already shipped it.

Any way you look at it, it'll be here in one form or another on the 13th.

I wanted to ensure that this hits the appropriate audience.

Play By Post Forum Project

Posted in the Gamer Life section, as that's more appropriate. If you have suggestions or ideas, please post there.

Reposted from ENWorld

Feel free to post here as well.

I've been toying with the idea of creating a Play by Post Forum for some time. However, not being a regular player, I only have a faint idea of what to include. I'm looking for ideas of what to include and will work on this in my spare time.

So, here's what I'm looking for: A central location that will allow gamemasters and players a rich user experience capable of handling content and fun for the purpose of system specific and generic Play by Post internet games.

The forum is more focused on adding more game specific information into the experience. Some features include:

• Multiple characters per user account.
  
• Multiple aliases per character
  
• Generalized posting area with an "Action" area that will show actions taken by the user
  
• Stored die rolls
  
• Time based tracking
  
• Open posting and Initiative based posting
  
• Personalized Avatars
  
• Online maps with the ability to "map out" actions
  
• Ability to use different fantasy languages
  
• Character status and conditions
  
• Turn notifications
  

I'm interested in hearing what other people would like to see out of this. Any ideas or suggestions are welcome, including your takes on the items above (described below).

If there is enough of a need for this, I'd be interested in spending additional time to make this become a reality.

Thanks in advance, and enjoy!

=========================================================

A more detailed rundown of the above items.

Multiple characters per user account - A person signs up for an account and can create multiple characters. When submitting a post, they are able to choose the name of the character. There will be a restriction that the character must be involved in the game to be used for posting.

Multiple aliases per character - GMs and players can post as different character names for whatever purpose. For example, a villain is masquerading as a beggar. The beggar's name will show instead of the villain. Anything that happens to the beggar also happens to the villain.

Generalized posting area with an "Action" area that will show actions taken by the user - Forums have an area for posting descriptions of what is happening. This area would have supplemental information that relates game terms to those viewing. As an example, in the d20 system, an attack action would look something like "[Player 1] attacks [Villain] [roll] and hits for [XX] damage. The normal posting area is not affected by this section.

Stored die rolls - Upon submission of a post, the die rolls are saved. The results are randomly generated. This frees up the GM and Players from having to post results.

Time based tracking - GMs are responsible for updating the time in the game. When a game is set up, a date and time is determined by the GM. The GM can progress the time in seconds, minutes, hours, days, months, or years with a simple action. When in combat, the system would automatically adjust time as needed. Actions of players may also add to the time (ex, taking 20 on a search, brewing a potion, etc).

Open posting and Initiative based posting - The GM can control how posting is processed. In times where there isn't an emphasis on "time" ("open posting"), posting can be done at any time by anyone. If there is a need to keep track of who goes, "initiative-based" posting takes over. The current and next characters in the initiative will be visible in the post title and on the page. A person cannot post out of turn in "initiative-based" posting. The GM can institute a "time limit" that will skip over people that do not post within the time frame (ex, 5 seconds, 3 days, or even 2 years). Depending on the option used, the player may be able to post as if he was using a "held action".

Personalized Avatars - Each alias has a picture available for viewing. This way the Beggar and Villain don't have the same visage.

Online maps with the ability to "map out" actions - Map fields with a background of the area are scaled for players to map out their actions.

Ability to use different fantasy languages - If a language is posted that a character doesn't understand, the post will reflect in the same way (random characters). Those that have the language will read it as normal.

Character status and conditions - As with normal forums, there is usually a location below the poster's name that has information about the posting person. This area will be used to show the character's statuses and conditions (ex, HP, Bloodied, Prone, etc).

Turn notifications - As described above, users can see who's turn it is with a quick glance at the thread.

Yeah, come on people! City and State if you're going to gloat!

"In the next week or so, we're expecting to ship the next volume of your subscription."

Here's to the first AP of the PFRPG!

You know the drill!

ericthecleric wrote:

This film is on BBC3 later tonight. Is it worth watching?

Yes. Absolutely.