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So, I don't know if anyone will ever see this (I'm replying to a fifteen-year-old blog post about a limited edition product that hasn't been sold since) but I was cleaning out some old gaming stuff today and I found an unpainted set of Writhing Stranglers! (#79 of 500) Thinking back, my gaming group bought me these as a gift while I was running the Age of Worms; I think they arrived right around the time that we finished our campaign and since I didn't have any experience painting minis, I put them in a box for the eventual day when I would paint them (and then use them in another AoW campaign? I hadn't thought that far ahead).

Anyway, coincidentally, I've finally started to get into painting minis (the current Covid-19 quarantine has given me lots of free time) so I just might finally get around to it!

Now I'm curious about etiquette... is it better to bump a three-month-old post, or to just make a new thread?

Hello, Paizo!

I'm the host of a tabletop gaming podcast called Inter-Party Conflict. We discuss listener-submitted question about D&D and other tabletop games, and try to have a fun time doing it. Since our format is almost entirely based on submissions, I'm here to get some questions from you!

Do you have any issues with a player at your gaming table? Maybe a rules dispute you'd like another opinion on? Want some suggestions for your next character or campaign concept?

Let us know! Either reply here, message me, or e-mail me at InterPartyConflict@gmail.com. We'd love to help you have the best tabletop gaming experience possible.

I don't follow your show, so I don't know if any of these have been covered, but a few difficult player types that I've encountered, and would enjoy hearing your take on how to handle:

The extremely passive player, the kind that just blends into the background and will let the party make all of the choices without contributing input. Doesn't take an active role in plot, but insists they care and want to play.

Players who can't make a good first impression to save their (character's) life. The sort who inevitably annoy the rest if the party right out of the gate. Ok, so I see these well armed types in the tavern? I'm going to sneak up by the Paladin and try to steal his jewel encrusted holy symbol. Why are you getting angry, I'm just playing my character!

Finally, the self-destructor. The player who will always push the shiny red button, even if there's a sign above it saying "push this and blow up the world". (This may sound like hyperbole, but I've had this situation occur in a game.) This player will almost always choose the most destructive, chaos causing, or disruptive course of action, although not maliciously.

Hey! I think we answered one of your questions a while back. The questions you've posted now have sort of been answered at some point or another (we've talked about specific types of problem players, as well as doing something "because it's what my character would do") but there's no reason we can't go over them again in an upcoming episode!

Hello! I'm one of the hosts of Inter-Party Conflict, a podcast where we discuss listener-submitted questions about tabletop games like D&D. We answer questions about gaming etiquette, how to get the most out of your game, ideas for character builds, and so on.

So, do any of you have any questions or topics you'd like us to discuss on the podcast? Have you had any rules disputes you want someone else to weigh in on? Is there a player that keeps butting heads with the DM and you want to know how to deal with them? Do you have a really cool idea for a character or campaign but just not quite sure how to work it in? We discuss questions for players and DMs alike, and try to help everyone have the best game they can.

Pass your problems on to us, and we'll have some fun sorting them out! Either reply here with any questions you want us to discuss, or e-mail us at InterPartyConflict@gmail.com.

Thanks, and happy gaming!

Hello! I host a podcast called Inter-Party Conflict where we discuss listener-submitted questions about D&D and other tabletop games. We answer questions about gaming etiquette, build ideas, rules judgments, and anything related to being a better player or DM. As you might expect, we're always in need of questions! Questions can be long, short, funny, serious, specific, or general. We love anything that generates some good discussion about what makes a game fun or how to get the most out of your tabletop games. We also have a fun segment called the Dragon's Hoard, where every episode we discuss a unique magic item (usually a homebrew item submitted by a listener- a couple of them have been RPG Superstar entries, actually!) and talk about interesting uses for it, how we might introduce it into a campaign, and so on. Of all of our reviews people really seem to like that segment.

So please, if you have any questions or homebrew items you'd like for us to discuss on-air, either reply here or e-mail us at InterPartyConflict@gmail.com!

Thanks, and happy gaming!

How about the items from RPG Superstar? The first round is always create a magic item.

Link to RPG Superstar

I enjoy your podcast. I hope you guys continue with it!

Thanks! I hadn't thought to check out the RPG Superstar entries (there's other resources for custom items too, I'm trying more to get items specifically submitted by listeners) but since I haven't gotten a ton of submissions this is definitely a better resource than, say, the DMG. So thanks again!

I'm going to bump this a bit. I still need items!

Hey, guys!

A few weeks ago I posted about Inter-Party Conflict, an advice podcast I was starting where my co-host and I answer listener-submitted questions about tabletop gaming. Well, we still need questions from you guys (we always need questions), but recently we started a new segment that we call: The Dragon's Hoard.

Each episode we talk about one interesting magic item- preferably a homebrew item submitted by a listener- and come up with fun, clever ways to use it and maybe poke some fun at the rules in the process. (I'm a total sucker for unique magic items.) So, of course, we need some interesting magic items from you guys!

If any of you have any you'd like to submit, please send them (or any questions you'd like discussed) to InterPartyConflict@gmail.com!

Thanks, and happy gaming!

Episode 3 has just launched, and we can still use new questions! So anyone who has any gaming-related questions, message or email me at InterPartyConflict@gmail.com so we can discuss them on the air.

The second episode has just hit the shelves. Check it out, and submit some questions of your own!

Inter-Party Conflict Episode 2: Lawyers, Rule

Inter-Party Conflict is an advice podcast for the tabletop gamer. We discuss listener-submitted questions about topics like gamer etiquette, house rules, and character/campaign creation, and hopefully have a fun time doing it. If that sounds like something you'd be interested in, give it a listen! We're on iTunes, Stitcher, and probably some other places too.

And if you feel like submitting questions to be discussed on-air, please feel free! Any kind of questions are fair game- silly ones, serious ones, specific ones, general ones, whatever. If it's a question you want answered by two guys with a lot of varied tabletop experience, then it's a great question for the podcast. Send any questions to InterPartyConflict@gmail.com!

Alright, everyone! The first episode of Inter-Party Conflict is live on Soundcloud!

https://soundcloud.com/user-263378595

Hopefully it'll be approved by iTunes within the next day or so. Give it a listen and I think you'll have a good time!

(Oh, and what's the etiquette here about making a new thread? I was planning on doing that but figured I'd check first.)

Just wanted to let everybody know- we recorded the first episode today! I'm hoping to have it up for download/streaming by the end of the week, if not sooner. Thanks for your submissions, and feel free to submit more!

InterPartyConflict@gmail.com

Are there any RAW rules that should be banned?

Magispitt- any way you can narrow that down for me? Or just any rules we can think of?

Does the paladin fall?

What do I do if another player drinks the host's milk without permission?

If a druid grapples a succubus, can the succubus administer a kiss automatically?

Is it Cosmo's fault?

Is it always okay to s#!+post inside joke questions on someone else's thread, or is that a "sometimes food"?

** spoiler omitted **

Thanks for the questions, Kobold Cleaver! (The serious ones especially. :-P) Do you mind if I use your name on the podcast?

Also, Baron von Heshvaun- I'm not sure if you wanted an answer here or not, but if the podcast is going to have a catch phrase I haven't come up with it yet. But I do love me some catch phrases, so I'll see what I can do!

1.- Should we make our questions here or send them by email.

I'd prefer by email, but so far everyone has just replied here and on the other sites I've posted on. Hopefully sometime soon I can get an actual site set up with some kind of a form for people to fill out.

Your other questions are good ones! I just wanted to clarify #2- are you trying to figure out how to keep track of multiple abilities on a monster/NPC, or are you asking about how to best use an enemy that has lots of combat options?

Also, do you (both MuertoXSky and Scythia) mind if I use your usernames on the podcast?

Pros and cons of various Star Wars systems? (WEG, d20, SAGA, whatever it is now if you like)

Hmm, I have extremely little experience with the Star Wars systems. Looks like I'll be doing some research!

* Should a GM enforce racism against drow in-setting if a player is honestly wanting to play a heroic drow?

* Should a GM alter the setting heavily to make it more palatable to players who have issues with some, or even many, elements?

* At what point do house rules become excessive?

* Should the GM keep a tight rein on the setting, or should the GM allow the players some room to add details?

* Can a gnome be house trained?

Just wanted to make sure, MagusJanus- do you mind if I use your username on the podcast? (Or is there a name you'd prefer?)

What was the first table top role playing game you played?

Who was your best DM, please name one thing that blew your mind?

What is your favorite gaming snack?

Great questions! I'll definitely fit these into either the first or second episode. Do you mind if I use your username on the podcast? (Or is there a name you'd prefer?)

First for clarification, will this be for Dungeons and Dragons or Pathfinder?

Great question- it'll actually be for ALL tabletop roleplaying games, though the majority of my experience is with both D&D and Pathfinder. If a question is about a non-d20 system and it's particularly rules-heavy, I might do some research to give an educated response but preface it with the acknowledgment that I don't have any personal experience with it. But D&D, Pathfinder, general tabletop and so on- it's all good.

* Can a gnome be house trained?

Oh come now, we all know the answer to that. No, but they can be burrow-trained.

Hello Paizo! As the title suggests, I'm starting a podcast in January called Inter-Party Conflict, dedicated to answering questions and giving advice to tabletop roleplayers. The show will consist of my co-host and myself answering questions that gamers face every week at the gaming table, like:

* How to deal with a rules dispute at the table?

* Should I use a character voice and/or props during the game?

* How often should a DM use a DMPC? (Spoiler: Almost never)

The tone will be light-hearted and with a healthy dose of reminiscing over past games and editions, so I think it's something anybody interested in the hobby can enjoy.

So, my fellow gamers, I need some questions! Anything you've ever wanted answered about playing a roleplaying game- serious questions, goofy questions, questions about builds, campaign structure, house rules, questions from a player, questions from a DM- anything you can think of. Be as specific or as broad as you want- just be sure to include the name/edition of the ruleset you're using, and whether or not you'd us to use your name in the podcast.

Direct any questions for the show to InterPartyConflict@gmail.com, and if you feel like generating some discussion, come and join me on Reddit (though there isn't much to see there at the moment)!

So come on down, and let's all have a great game!

I especially love the concept of putting magic and warfare under a single deity. I like seeing some stuff that isn't the fantasy standard. Especially when it isn't connected to a need to make sure nothing is a fantasy standard.

I didn't go super out of my way to do it, but I've been trying to make everything about this campaign setting (and the novel it's based on) non-standard, except when it's lampshading the stereotypes of the standard.

Of course, if your the GM you could just throw out the alignment rules entirely and if you felt you had to have a deity for every cleric then you would have to make a deity for every domain and subdomain out there. Might be easier to find a middle ground.

Having to base it around alignment would be anti-narrative imo. Much less attaching alignment to a god when sometimes their own ideals might fit several.

I happen to be one of the (minority?) that likes the alignment system (though I don't use alignment as a restraint- your actions are what they are, your alignment is just how you justify your actions). I also like the idea of one god per alignment (possibly plus some extras), because in the world I'm building, the gods are defined by their myths, so in a way it's like they're personifications of how the people view their ideals. So it makes perfect sense, to me, for there to be a Lawful Good god (who exemplifies that alignment) and a Neutral Evil god, and so on.

Hello, Paizo!

I'm in the process of creating a homebrew campaign setting, based in the world of a novel I'm writing. When working out the world details, I came to the topic of deities. At first, I had five or six, but I decided to try and fill it out a little more (using alignments as a guide).

Right now, I've got nine major deities (one for each of the Lawful-Chaotic-Good-Evil alignments) and two minor deities (both true neutral). I feel like I should add a couple more, to fill in some niches that I didn't quite fill with the main nine, but what do you all think?

What do you think is a good number of deities?

(Also, I'd be happy to provide short write-ups for the deities I've come up with so far if anyone would be interested in reading them.)

Hello, all!

I'm going to be starting a new game once I move in a couple months, and I'm looking at DnD Next to see if it's the system I should use. (The other choices would be 4e, Pathfinder, or possibly 3.5, which I'm much more familiar with.)

To those of you who have been keeping up with the playtest, what do you think of it? I got the first playtest packet, and tried it out, but it just didn't strike a chord with me (although the description of the developers' end goal seemed interesting). I haven't kept up since then, and I'm sure it's changed quite a bit. So here are some specific questions:

1. How much of the playtest have you played? (Some of it, all of it, only the beginning, only the end, etc.)

2. What edition/s did you play before this?

3. Would you say Next seems more fun, as fun, or less fun than the other edition/s you played?

4. How well would you say they've accomplished their goal of trying to blend the early-edition experience and the later-edition experience?
Would you say that DnD Next seems to encourage roleplaying more than combat (on par with, say, 3rd edition) or combat more than roleplaying (like 4th edition)?

I guess that last question is the most important of them. 4e is my favorite edition, since I very very much enjoy the combat system, but in my opinion, it made it difficult to encourage roleplay (since so much of the game was based around combat, and out-of-combat abilities were either costly, useless, or non-existent). And in this campaign I'm going to be running, I very much want to encourage roleplaying.

So let me know what you think! I am getting kind of excited about learning a new edition (despite my misgivings at first), but I really want some opinions before going through the trouble.

Thanks!

Oh, holy crap, that would explain it. I guess I should have searched my own posts before asking. Nevermind!

Hello, Paizo!

Several years ago (five or more) I found a post somewhere here where a poster wrote a D&D-themed folk tale called "The Bloodless Battle of the 1000 Demon Brothers". I don't know if this was an original work or not, but I saved it in a text file at the time, and having come across it on my computer recently, I wanted to find the person who originally posted it here.

The problem is, I can't find any record of it anywhere. The search function turns up nothing, and even google searches turn up nothing of that name.

Does anyone remember this? It was a great little story (only a few paragraphs) that one of my friends described as "part eastern parable, part D&D". I can repost it if anyone is interested, but I'd really like to find the guy who wrote it.

Thanks in advance!

I'm afraid I don't have much to add at the moment, but as a fan of D&D and Dark Souls I think this sounds AWESOME. I would play this campaign in a second.

So for example when you summon a celestial squid, it has to land in water.

Arguable for a squid, since they have a land speed.

It's silly that every hippo you run across has the same hit points.

I have to ask, though- are the players even going to notice? Maybe your players pay more attention than mine, but is one of them sitting here with a calculator saying, "Wait a minute- that goblin took 24 damage, and it's still standing, but that one we fought yesterday went down after 21. Interesting." Conversely, did you ever have players say, "Don't worry, these orcs have exactly 16 hit points each, so no need to waste something that does more damage than that."

I mean, I just don't see the need. At the end of the day, what difference is it going to make?

Will do. Thanks, guys!

Another Eidolon question here. Eidolons gain HD as the Summoner advances in level, and those HD are d10s. My question is: do you roll those d10s to determine Hit Points, or is there some sort of other way to determine HP (max, average, etc.)? If you roll them, do you roll its Hit Die at first level, or does it receive max? (I would certainly hate to be the guy whose Eidolon had 1 HP max...)

I know a guy who pronounces it pee-ah-zo. Like, as if it's spelled Piazo.com.

Gotcha. Thanks!

Quick question. If I have a bipedal Eidolon with two claws, if I take the Reach evolution, do both claws have reach, or just one?

Chapter 22 is up!

Finally! Chapter 21 is finished. Hopefully the story is starting to make some sense! Check it out at Last of the King's Men.

I'll definitely be following this one. Keep it up! :-)

Chapter 20 is up! Whew! Three chapters in one week. I'm definitely not going to keep up that pace, but it was nice while it lasted.

Ha HA! Chapter 19 is up. I was on a roll today. I'm going to see if I can get chapter 20 up tomorrow. That'll be some sort of a record for me.

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone!

Last of the King's Men

Whew! It's been an entire year since I started this thing. Is that crazy or what? It's flown by.

Anyway, to commemorate the occasion I've just posted chapter 18. I know what you're thinking- "But UltimaGabe, it hasn't been six months since your last post!" Yes, I know. I know. Your snarkiness is noted. I will appreciate less sarcasm next time.

Anyway, have a great day!

Latest chapter is now up, if anyone is still following.

Yes, thank you. :-) Way too long of a break between chapters, but oh well. I've made it a New Year's Resolution to write at least one chapter a month. I know that isn't off to the best start, but I'll keep doing what I can.

Alright! I meant to post this yesterday, but I got the 9'' Lenovo tablet! It ended up being way easier than I had expected- my wife realized that Office Depot started selling both computers we wanted on their website Thursday morning. So, with no difficulty whatsoever, we ordered them online- they won't be here for a few days, but it was certainly easier than sitting out in the cold for hours in the hopes of possibly getting them. I'm super excited!

Once again, thanks for the valuable input! It seems you've substantiated my fears- you mentioned earlier that when you get a tablet for cheap, they're usually skimping somewhere- I know that it's not THAT much cheaper than the Lenovo, but you're spot-on with the resolution issue (which I'm sure I could get used to, but it would always be nagging in the back of my head) and an older processor doesn't sound like a good idea. It would have been nice to get a tablet for (effectively) half the price of the Lenovo, but at this point I think my mind is set. Now here's to hoping that they even have the darn thing. :-/

I've got another question for you tablet owners, then. What sort of physical add-ons do you recommend? I don't want to spend much money beyond my initial purchase, but how important is, say, a screen protector? Can you/should you use a stylus with a tablet? I've seen attachable keyboards you can buy for tablets (which I have little interest in- if I need to do some heavy typing, I'd rather lug around my laptop than lug around a $40 peripheral that turns my tablet into a laptop)- is there anything of that sort that's a must-have?

I'm getting really excited about this! Thanks for all of the input, everyone!

Alright, my wife realized last night that Kohl's has an even better deal on a tablet coming up as well. Here's the ad:
http://blackfriday.com/stores/kohls/flyers/black-friday/page-22

And here's the Kohl's page with the specifics on the tablet:

http://www.kohls.com/upgrade/webstore/product_page.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id= 845524893039404&pfx=pfx_shopcompare&cid=shopping3&src=k32998&am p;clickid=0004cf0334ef12f60aec6ecc14002520

According to the ad, it's a 10.1'' Polaroid Tablet with Android 4.0 and dual cameras (the two things that I'm looking for), $149.99, regularly $249.99 (plus, at Kohl's, you get back $15 in store credit for every $50 you spend, so I'd be spending $150 and getting $45 back). No HDMI port, which is disappointing, but oh well.

Is there anything I'm missing about that tablet, or is it just a much better deal all around?

Once again, Brian, thanks for the input! At the moment, it looks like I'm pretty set on getting the 9'' Lenovo (assuming, of course, that the store even has any left by the time I get there). This is cemented by the fact that it has an HDMI port, which is a trait I've been wanting for some time. (We're also getting an HDTV on Black Friday to put in our bedroom, which means we'll be able to watch videos from our computer on it.)

That leads me back to my original post, though. What are some cool things you can do with a tablet that you can't do with a laptop? What sort of apps do you guys have on yours? I'm looking for apps that let you draw, apps that let you edit pictures/video/audio, apps that help with gaming, apps that help with everyday things, whatever you can think of that made you think, "Wow, I sure am glad I bought a tablet."

Brian Harris- thanks for the input! Let me clarify a little bit with some specifics. Both can be viewed here: http://blackfriday.com/stores/office-depot/flyers/black-friday

There are two tablets I'm looking at, both from Office Depot. The first is a 7'', 8GB Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 running Android 4.0. It has a MicroSD reader, dual cameras, and an IR emitter (or something- the ad's picture is really small). It's on sale for $179.99, normally $249.99.

The next is a 9'' 16GB Lenovo Ideatab A2, Android 4.0, dual cameras, microSD reader, Micro USB and Micro HDMI ports (something I hadn't noticed before this posting). On sale for $199.99, normally $299.99.

Of those two, which would you recommend? My main thing is I'm trying to decide between the 7'' and the 9''. I like the idea of having a big screen (my current netbook has a 9'' screen and browsing the web is difficult enough on that, I think I'd hate to have a smaller screen) but portability would be awesome, especially for reading PDFs and such on the go. (But then again, I won't have internet access on the go, as I mentioned, and I've learned never to trust the battery life claims in ads.) In your opinion, is the extra 2'' that big of a deal? The price is close enough ($20 difference) that it's a non-issue, but I still need to make that decision.

Thanks a ton!

Yes you need some type of phone plan if you intend to navigate on the WWW when a Wifi connection is not avialable. This is also required so they can send you a bill.

See, that's what I'm curious about. I have no intention of using this tablet when a wifi connection is not available- I plan on only using the internet when I'm at home or somewhere with wifi. Do I still need a phone plan for it?