My opinion is also that basing paladins so strongly on alignment alone makes them a metagame disaster that actively discourages character complexity in NPCs and PCs alike.
I'll say it every time, 5e has the best paladins of any edition. Moving alignment restrictions to an Oath restriction is much more fun, varied, and flavorful.
Outside warlock (which is a special caster), no there is not and there is a lot of interest in Gishes. Something like an arcane Paladin is very highly desired from what I've read.
The other thing I would like to see is something like an Oracle using the warlock as the base (or sorcerer but as 5e matures I feel sorcerer is by far the weakest class).
I have been kicking combat houserules and stuff around for a long time, but I’ve put my notes all together into an OGL complaint replacement chapter for Chapter 9 in the Player’s Handbook.
A brief overview of the changes:
Expanded options for player actions, taking the existing elements of a round and making a larger standardized move-set to fit common situations my games have encountered and that I have heard of.
Modified weapon reach rules, giving three bands of reach with weapons and placing more distinction between weapons by making reach a larger part of combat.
Additional effects on hit. Instead of weighing a Shove against raw damage, you now try and win advantages in combat to apply an extra effect on a hit to make combat more tactical and dynamic. Combine with expanded options for players, you can also attempt to win defensive effects with new reactions.
A streamlined injury tracking system combined with not falling unconscious at 0 hit points to give more dramatic possibilities at low hit points. It also prevents akwardness around being knocked unconscious 4-5 times in an encounter.
Somebasic advice for running a combat with zone style maps instead of the default maples and tactical map options.
They should have just abandoned the D&D style stats entirely and made similar ability scores - like combat/ athleticism/ mechanics/ science /arcana/ leadership something thematic. It's not like 1 to 1 conversion is easy anyways and in the setting there are wider divisions in mental paths. At least this way the three combat stats are evenly split in two and the mental could carry new weights - and it is more intuitive.
I know this whole idea makes no sense to many here, just saying it spreads it the commonly referenced expertise. Then suddenly perception is combat instead of wisdom (a soldier's senses) along with all attack rolls and damage modifiers, sense motive is leadership along with persuasion and culture knowledge, magic lore and will saves are arcana, AC stamina modifier and encumberance along with piloting is athletics, and your engineering and science stuff is all obvious and intuitive. Not perfect, but the idea is just that there are attributes that make sense in space that spread better than the legacy attributes of D&D, service the game mechanics not older systems.
Male Human Cleric 6 26/26 HP | 14 XP | Bless, Sanctuary, Speak With Dead | -2 cast a spell, 2 hold (spend 2 to make camp, 5 to escape labyrinth), blessed
Unfortunately, IRL has taken a turn that means I need to drop out of my games on here. It was an amazing run, and I hate it has to end for me.
Wizard 2 (1/9 XP) | HP 17/17 | S+0, D+1, C+1, I+2, W+0, C-1 | -1 ongoing (cast a spell)
Bond: Tera, I think ours might be the best to resolve - we had a fun scene in the Magee's tower and I think it can mature from there well.
Alignment: I think finding this necromantic activity is a good one, and I am still wearing Tera's belt of flying I believe (did I give that back? I don't remember). They are both magical mysteries.
+3 for the questions would put me at 9 XP and I can level at camp.
New bonds:
The world between civilizations is unyielding and cruel, I need some of Gorn's wild spirit to survive.
Level up:
+1 intelligence
I can't decide the best moves, these are really good. Being most honest to the inspiration I will choose Summon Monster, and eventually need to pick up Dark Past
Male Human Cleric 6 26/26 HP | 14 XP | Bless, Sanctuary, Speak With Dead | -2 cast a spell, 2 hold (spend 2 to make camp, 5 to escape labyrinth), blessed
This has easily been the best PbP I've been in, and I've been around for a bit.
Wizard 2 (1/9 XP) | HP 17/17 | S+0, D+1, C+1, I+2, W+0, C-1 | -1 ongoing (cast a spell)
Defy Danger(CON):2d6 + 1 ⇒ (3, 4) + 1 = 8
Varis can't get over this sick feeling in his stomach, causing quite the griping in his guts. Forced to avoid physical action Varis reaches out with his mind to the creature.
Stealthy is terrific, but I don't like that a good number of these are things I would allow without feats in my games. I mean it's good for DMs that don't allow intimidate to draw attention or cause fear or performance to distract others, but for me it is providing rules that are "baked in" to the system for me that are now feat exclusive.
HOWEVER, a +1 stat with expertise or gaining the skill is outstanding without the extra benefit. Waaaay better than skilled.
Wizard 2 (1/9 XP) | HP 17/17 | S+0, D+1, C+1, I+2, W+0, C-1 | -1 ongoing (cast a spell)
Aid(Vanadin):2d6 + 1 ⇒ (4, 2) + 1 = 7
Varis, head still spinning from the poison, fails to hear Tera but sees Vanadin's predicament and thinking of Zadrian's predictions attempts to push him clear from the massive claws of the beast.
Male Human Cleric 6 26/26 HP | 14 XP | Bless, Sanctuary, Speak With Dead | -2 cast a spell, 2 hold (spend 2 to make camp, 5 to escape labyrinth), blessed
Singular? T' your people perhaps, but the world is wide and the path of Iisac sends his followers far. The plague is dangerous only through shame, ignorance, and lack of widespread treatment. The treatment of early infections is trivial and diagnosis extremely easy when you know what t' look for, it's only a lack of treatment that poses a danger.
Within hours of infection you can coax a "red tear" from the patient with an eyedrop made from the extracted juice of the Omar weed, though it's not native t' this land. The parasite feeds on the liquid and will come t' the eyes turning them red in the corners and causing temporary blindness. After about a week, the parasite takes root in the body and you can see the formation of Sanguine's Fistula - a small and foul smelling hole that forms in the skin and weeps a reddish brown. It is like a boil that drains continuously. It's not painful, and frequently ignored. It's just a matter of having your body searched daily for the mark, a mark that frequently appears in sensitive areas or your armpits.
Once the fistula appears, any application of eyedrops will risk permanent blindness. Fortunately, my companions and I have enough Omar root t' ensure we are not infected nearly instantaneously - but for the citizenry, including the court, I must suggest medical inspection daily followed by quarantine.
The best way t' avoid infection is simply avoiding the infected who are safe until the final stages of the parasite's course. Good hygine will go a long way, and stick t' alcoholic beverages and very hot foods like soup or stew.
I realize it's a bitter pill for many fans to swallow, but 5e needs to lean in on loosey-goosey narrative minded abilities (like backgrounds and ribbons) and use the tools they created for streamling the rules (proficiency, etc.), and stop dipping into 3.5 crutches like static bonuses or inventing additional resources. It's what differentiates it from the rest.
Good Lord, calling 5e rules light is more than a little hyperbolic.
Pathfinder is literally the single most rules heavy game you can play, the only really difference between it's difficulty to manage and GURPs is GURPs isn't part of an OGL allowing an SRD. There are maybe a handful of games as complicated. If I wanted a better set of rules than Pathfinder for that in-depth of a fantasy adventure game I would play Mythras with the Classic Fantasy expansion which has more customization, leagues better map-based combat, and simply plays smoother as a GM.
5e is not a lightweight game. There are a lot of rules, but you are just used to them. I think what must be getting confused is rules light versus streamlined, because as a DM for 5e I can keep things moving extremely quickly and use the basic mechanics for the vast majority of situations. That alone doesn't make 5e rules light, because the exact same thing can be said for Mythras because the resolution mechanics are easier to grasp.
EDIT
Also, I use homebrew for reaching 0HP. I use the injury rules in the DMG, and I don't have players fall unconscious at 0HP unless they choose to on their turn to stabilize. You do have disadvantage on everything but death saving throws at 0HP (and move at half speed).
Male Human Cleric 6 26/26 HP | 14 XP | Bless, Sanctuary, Speak With Dead | -2 cast a spell, 2 hold (spend 2 to make camp, 5 to escape labyrinth), blessed
~~~ Back in Ghostmoor ~~~
Tom names the fallen to the best of his ability, ... but really Ron knows this better than I. Since he owes you that sword I'll have him stop by. Thank ye for returning this for us, I am uncomfortable traveling with it, it is certainly not mine t' take. I just hope it gives a final chapter t' the man's story.
~~~ Now ~~~
Something bugs Tom as Belym speaks to the dwarves suddenly Tom slams his fist against his forehead and exclaims, Aw crap! Ron, I was supposed t' tell you Thaddeus wanted that sealed back and write a clear record of the dead from that battle. I did the best I could from memory, but you're sort of the guy for that. I feel a ripe a*%$#&@.
Male Human Cleric 6 26/26 HP | 14 XP | Bless, Sanctuary, Speak With Dead | -2 cast a spell, 2 hold (spend 2 to make camp, 5 to escape labyrinth), blessed
Did the fire sword shatter?
Not everyone sees the sylph, but they certainly hear the exclaimation, TEN THOUSAND F!$~ING GOLD!?
Spoiler:
I always found sanguine to be an odd choice of words since it means blood-red but "blood-red blood disease" is kind of a silly name, however using the other use for sanguine it becomes the "positive/optimistic blood disease" which sounds hilarious.
On that note, I think that the disease spreads quietly because the first phase of the sickness is known as "submission" where the disease actually encourages the host to live a very healthy lifestyle slowly over months and months going from an overweight drunk to a trim and fit family man with a steady job. Because it plays into the hope people have for their loved ones to improve it can spread through drinking water unseen until it covers a wide region by the time it is too late.
And when is it too late? Well most don't know that sanguine blood malady is actually a parasitic ooze that slowly replaces the blood supply of the body with its own amorphous gloop. When the transition is nearing completion, the victim is noticeably either cherry-cheeked if they have a light complexion or noticeable paler if they have darker skin (again subtle enough to avoid detection) and they suddenly seek to copulate with their preferred mates to spread the disease. Their tastes become teenage again, and they start to cheat on spouses and make bad decisions in the effort. At this point survival is probably impossible - but there is a faint hope.
By the time the ooze has truly taken the entirety of a person they are a raving madman with no coherent ability to speak. It begins as a verbal tick or dazing off into the distance for seconds or minutes before snapping back like nothing happened. They behave in a depraved manor, and their intelligence drops. As the ooze eats their flesh they begin to try and spread the disease any way possible - vomiting in water supplies, spitting in people's faces, doing horrible things to sheep. Whatever they need. It's also the stage that it become noticed when dozens suddenly behave like this. These people are already dead.
The final stage is when the body gives out and the ooze spills in an explosion of viscera. The ooze is psychically connected to all the host bodies it infected and seeks to join into a mass of flesh and ooze creating a horrifying shambling mound of flesh and bone and blood-red goop. In a small town that is unprepared this ooze can eradicate every living creature in the town and become the size of a house. There are myths of these things becoming the size of mountains or hills.
The ooze seeks to grow as large as possible, but eventually it becomes coated in debris and the bodies it consumes are kept on the outside. Eventually it is too large and its skin is too stiff to move and it dies by dividing into millions and millions of amoebas that sink into the ground to be consumed. If humanity is unlucky they will make it to a river or well and spread for hundreds of miles even if only a handful will survive long enough to take a host. If humanity is lucky they die in the sea, where the salt kills the tiny oozes. When an ooze dies the smell is famous.
Large oozes are extraordinarily rare, most are caught when they have taken the host over nearly completely making the person a violent, impossibly strong and tough human, and when they take damage the ooze can com out to attack or launch psychic assaults. Even when they do form into an ooze, there is usually other oozes they compete with and it never gets larger than a horse - the average event would be a dozen oozes that never get bigger than a large dog.
Their psychic abilities are the only real danger they have besides infection or using a host to fight for them. Obviously the bigger they are the stronger they are and more elaborate their abilities become... and the harder it is to bring down.
Male Human Cleric 6 26/26 HP | 14 XP | Bless, Sanctuary, Speak With Dead | -2 cast a spell, 2 hold (spend 2 to make camp, 5 to escape labyrinth), blessed
Tom spends his time treated the injured, and bandaging the party even with protests of their minor injuries not needing it. He does what he can with the injured soldiers and even the human cultists.
Everyone heals 10HP.
~~~At some point~~~
Tom responds to Ron's inquiry over Larune's future, The universe has laws and structure that are unknowable, and whatever her path is the existing pantheon will adjust their structures t' harmonize with it. It was the same as Hebron's sons when they reached the age to attain their godhoods.
You need t' think about why you chose here, and you must have faith - you are her first disciple, her only representative in this plane. You have as much influence on her as she has on the world through your deeds, and your actions will have great weight and consequence now. Even if you don't consider yourself her acolyte, she will still be watching from above much like Einora kept her eye on us.. but a much friendlier companion. He grins.
Male Human Cleric 6 26/26 HP | 14 XP | Bless, Sanctuary, Speak With Dead | -2 cast a spell, 2 hold (spend 2 to make camp, 5 to escape labyrinth), blessed
Yes, a new god is born
We killed the old god
I have a sacred shield
I think all my bonds get resolved this time.
@Ron: Yeah with all the gambit spent on me about training in use of a shield and sword I think it makes sense to resolve.
I need new bonds:
Maybe Conwall is just a pedant, maybe I need to be more flexible
Roshan has a deathwish, and I won't always be there to mend her wounds
Ron lacks faith, but has good judgement - maybe he doesn't have to shoot first though
Male Human Cleric 6 26/26 HP | 14 XP | Bless, Sanctuary, Speak With Dead | -2 cast a spell, 2 hold (spend 2 to make camp, 5 to escape labyrinth), blessed
What boqeuqese word or phrase has entered your lexicon; what does it mean; who taught it to you?
It's funny that Belym mentions their relation to the dwarves, because the sailors of the region were very proud of their facial hair. They'd say "beware the women with beards and the men without."
Then again, they enjoy efficient language and while sailors are rougher than average the country is keen to say "honey tastes bitter to the sore mouth" and quickly point out unnecessary flattery.
I got to thinking how I would do a Magus in 5e with the great options for gishes available, but I couldn't think of a good way to translate it into a Fighter archetype but it just didn't work. There is a clear desire for something between Bladesinger and Eldritch Knight that really is only met by muliclassing warlock right now - so I made a Magus based on the Warlock structure.
Looking at my first pass, it could be massaged into a Patron but it would be really pushing it. It's more akin to an alternate class from Pathfinder than anything.
It's not perfect and the archetypes (called Elements) are severely lacking, and it needs a spell list (I plan on mixing the wizard with warlock and a little paladin to add rituals and use some appropriate combat spells for the class).
First and foremost, here is a link to the campaign for review. The party just finished Episode 1 where the Cult of the Dragon attacked the town of Greenest looting what they could with the help of a Blue Dragon. The party fought day and night to capture or kill the leaders of the raid, and minimizing the damage from the surprise attack saving dozens and dozens of citizens that otherwise would have been killed.
The remaining party is a Totem Warrior (Bear) Barbarian named Amber Strakeln, and a Champion Fighter using two weapons. So far they have been aggressively taking on challenges head on and been successful, so keep in mind that the game has a lot of combat. They are currently joined with two NPCs, monks studying under a member of the Harpers named Leosin Erlanthar. Leosin was knocked out and then captured by the cult in the final skirmish of the raid, and the party is currently resting and leveling to 4th level.
Here are the creation rules:
You must make a 4th level character using point buy or standard array.
Any published source is fair game, same with UAs. I will approve third party, villainous characters, or homebrew character options case by case.
Normal starting equipment with an additional 150 gold worth of equipment.
This campaign uses milestone leveling.
My Homebrew this Campaign:
Feat Modification (homebrew) - see the feats below:
Dual Wielder (Modified)
You master fighting with two weapons, gaining the following benefits:[list]
You gain a +1 bonus to AC while you are wielding a separate melee weapon in each hand.
You can use two-weapon fighting even when the one handed melee weapons you are wielding aren't light.
You can draw or stow two one-handed weapons when you would normally be able to draw or stow only one.
When you hit a creature with a melee weapon attack using the weapon held in your main hand, your offhand weapon attack deals a bonus +1d10 damage.
Man-at-arms (New)
Your experience on the field of battle has developed a keen sense of danger and opportunity with a variety of weapons. You gain the following benefits:[list]
You gain a +1 bonus to AC while you are not wielding a heavy weapon.
When another creature misses you with an attack, you can use your reaction to move up to half your movement speed without provoking opportunity attacks.
Before you make a melee attack with an unarmed strike or with a weapon that does not have the heavy property, you can choose to take a -4 penalty to the attack roll. If the attack hits, you add +8 to the attack's damage. You must be proficient with the weapon used to make the attack to receive this benefit.
Grappler
Prerequisite: Strength 13 or higher
You've developed the skills necessary to hold your own in close-quarters grappling. You gain the following benefits:[list]
You have advantage on attack rolls against a creature you are grappling.
You can use your action to try to pin a creature grappled by you.
To do so, make another grapple check. If you succeed, you and the creature are both restrained until the grapple ends.
You can grapple creatures up to two sizes larger than you within your reach.
Tavern Brawler
Accustomed to rough-and-tumble fighting using whatever weapons happen to be at hand, you gain the following benefits:[list]
Increase your Strength or Constitution score by 1, to a maximum of 20.
You are proficient with improvised weapons and improvised weapons and your unarmed strikes count as light weapons.
Your unarmed strike uses a d4 for damage.
When you hit a creature with an unarmed strike or an improvised weapon on your turn, you can use a bonus action to attempt to grapple the target.
I'm going to keep this open for submission for a while I'm not sure what response it will get, and I have a few people that may get priority for participating in my other games.
Refining the mass combat rules... I really like their approach int he first UA and this looks like a bit of a streamlining. I think I like When Armies Clash more than this, though this would certainly move faster.
This would be excellent for players being stuck inside a larger battle, while the former is very much the players taking part in a decisive massive battle.
This UA is for Helm's Deep, while When Armies Clash is one a final battles in the LotR trilogy of films.
Male Human Cleric 6 26/26 HP | 14 XP | Bless, Sanctuary, Speak With Dead | -2 cast a spell, 2 hold (spend 2 to make camp, 5 to escape labyrinth), blessed
Tom takes the pommel of his sword and shatters the thin veneer of stone left on the holy shield, exposing it to the magic hurtling towards Roshan and him. The shield gleams with a bright light causing Tom to look away briefly as the magic clashes with the shield in a bright flare. It appears as if the explosion collapses in on itself and the shield sucks it inside the gleaming surface. It goes uncomfortably hot on Tom's skin, glowing runes appears on its surface and in the air around the shield briefly before it cools.
Spend 1 hold to nullify her magic.
Toms blinks his eyes more than once surprised he is even standing. There is a cone of unscorched earth behind him as the explosive magic has burned everything else it came close to.
Male Human Cleric 6 26/26 HP | 14 XP | Bless, Sanctuary, Speak With Dead | -2 cast a spell, 2 hold (spend 2 to make camp, 5 to escape labyrinth), blessed
Forgive me if I gave that impression, would you think I would expose my back so readily t' you if I thought you would betray your own interest so readily? I am just saying that if there is any aspect of your domain that could change this would be the opportunity t' do so. After all, you know the Father and Sons better than I will ever...
Male Human Cleric 6 26/26 HP | 14 XP | Bless, Sanctuary, Speak With Dead | -2 cast a spell, 2 hold (spend 2 to make camp, 5 to escape labyrinth), blessed
I'll be damned, we'll have t' go dig that woman out of the swamp! This is an incredible boon t' us, Tom says arming himself with the shield, Belym, can you cover the front with a thin layer of rock t' hide its appearance? We need to make it back t' Einora before she realizes we have this thing. I think I can use it t' hold off her magic.
Tom turns to Ishvar, Sometimes there are better paths than the one we were destined t' forge. I know the very fiber of your being is beyond my mortal wisdom, but in times of chaos and usurping the darkness and problems have at their heart an opportunity. The greater the chaos, the more powerful that opportunity is - but it can only present itself once. As someone with a single life in this mortal coil, I simply ask you t' do what you think is best like a true man and not simply what comes naturally like a simple machine.
He waits for Belym's appraisal and then heads back to the heart of the fray.
Male Human Cleric 6 26/26 HP | 14 XP | Bless, Sanctuary, Speak With Dead | -2 cast a spell, 2 hold (spend 2 to make camp, 5 to escape labyrinth), blessed
I would argue the MM is much worse than the DMG, I have had to tweak stat blocks quite a bit. I could choose a stat block at random and it doesn't follow the DMG. It really points to how rushed the final tweaks were on the books. I use the UA for skirmishes, and always think about what the day will look like between long rests. I also have played with my group long enough to know their tactics, which is always the most important component to encounter design. Outside 4e, I can't think of a D&D edition with good encounter building rules.
Some key tips for 5e not listed well:
Misc MM NPCs need racial bonuses or other MM entries applied to them to work right.
Feats bork the encounter math entirely. Give NPCs 1 feat for every 4 CR.
Resistances are a huge part of the CR calculation. Consider doubling HP of a creature of its resistance is easily bypassed for important encounters - alternatively increase AC, DCs, and attack bonuses by 1 as well as giving them the Brute creature ability.
5 very easy
10 easy
15 typical challenge
20 hard
25 very hard
30 virtually impossible
You only ask for a dice roll when there is a chance for failure that you (as DM) can define, ideally with an answer to a conversation that begins with:
Yes, and something beneficial happens
Yes, but something bad happens
No, but something beneficial happens
No, and something unexpected happens
If you can only think of "yes" there should be no roll (success is guaranteed), and if you can only think of "no" there should be no roll (the task cannot happen without something changing). The exception being when you are in initiative and you want to cycle quickly with a yes/no to an action to keep the action moving.
I agree 5e does this basic explaination terribly, but the advice in most popular systems is godawful.
Wizard 2 (1/9 XP) | HP 17/17 | S+0, D+1, C+1, I+2, W+0, C-1 | -1 ongoing (cast a spell)
DM Volsung wrote:
Olyn gasps, not a genuine gasp, but the kind that one makes because one is expected to. Dear me, no, I hadn't heard anything about the Cataviir estate. what has happened to it? she asks, the statement apparently genuine.
I fear there is not many messengers left to expose the tyranny of the church, Varis says, The vulgarians at the state are using their recent political gains to target the cultures they deem heretical. I was able to escape with Grelick's help, he's with the larger caravan.
DM Volsung wrote:
at your next remark, she snaps her fingers, and a pair of green robed figures, the girl and a male half elf somewhat younger than her, come forth bearing trays of pastries and a carafe of tea. Oh, dear she says after taking a bite of a raspberry turnover is this fare acceptable for our other guest, or would he prefer something else? we do keep a hunter on retainer, to feed our menagerie. would he prefer meat? she asks.
Please do not fret, it will spoil your pleasantly manicured countenance. We have been on the road in less than ideal circumstances, anything is a great improvement for us.
DM Volsung wrote:
I apologize for the girl, I don't know what we are going to do with her. She studied magic in her own village, under the tutelage of some swamp-witch or something like that. useless, I can't say I'm surprised the village was overrun. we took her in, but we can't seem to get her to do things properly. we put her in the alchemy lab, and she tried to put whole plants in, where only essence was necessary, we tried to train her as a ritual adept, but she couldn't intone properly, that damn swamp-village speech, you understand. eventualy, we just put her on clairvoyance duty, have her searching for more ritual sites. Olyn says scoffing
Ah! Witches do have a talent in that regard, even if it is enforced with misandry and paranoia. It's unfortunate when someone with some talent has so much trouble overcoming that mother-know-best hand-me-down magic. I wish you luck in undoing the conditioning she has, but sometimes you can bring the horse to water and all that, Varis says plainly, She still relies on mundane instruments of war!
He turns to Tera, Tera here has been learning a bit about the world, but his mind is a curious sponge and his culture has such an innate knowledge of the border fantastic in these woods. It's a shame when the same border between magic and mundane drives people to act so irrationally.
DM Volsung wrote:
Meanwhile, Feyrith sizes up Tera before saying Actually, I think I may have a task for you and Varis, if you think you’re up for it. How do you feel about mercenary work? she asks, then immediately continues I ask because there is a site of occult significance a few miles west of this village. We would like to study it, but it is occupied by a nasty bunch of Fey. Neither I, nor my protege’s can spare the time and magic to clean it out, we are already overtaxed between the church’s incursions, and the undead.
Varis laughs a bit saying, Mercenary? Me? I am nothing of the sort, however I am interested in such study. Our caravan is quite capable and I will approach the subject with them, and we can make a contract - however be aware that I will require 'dibs' on studying the site while we are there. I will submit my findings to you, and naturally will join the primary joint credit in the results of your study when you submit your findings to the various councils. It is only proper for mages like us.
I'm inspired by bookrat to post my experiences from my real life Curse of Strahd campaign. We've been playing since the Summer and things are starting to get messy in a pretty wonderful way.
I'll start with the characters that entered the campaign, and their first session. I'll also give some immediate spoilers for the behind the scenes sausage making stuff in spoilers tags. So to be clear: there will be plot spoilers in plain text, the spoilers tags are for GM secrets the players do not know. This thread has a ton of spoilers all over the place, not just in tags.
My Barovia:
The first challenge I had was establishing why Ravenloft is like this and not as defined as it was when I used to play. Reading through the module I got an idea inspired by Cabin in the Woods.
Some long-forgotten cult or something slowly gained power in a scenic valley with little resources. The power takes all the bad stuff across planes and seals them into amber where the cult both learns what magic they can from them and uses them as a place of worship. The symbiotic relationship required continued sacrifice to feed the dark souls trapped inside with what essentially amounts to the Madoka Magica entropy of magic and wishes, but in the open.
Two metallic dragons who were great friends came to the valley; a gold dragon named Malakamasheet, and a silver dragon named Argynvost. They defeated the red dragon and wizard Slaghaaren and reclaimed the valley, and disintegrated his body to ensure he did not return. Argynvost roosted there and Malakamasheet visited regularly.
Slaghaaren was preserved in amber, and began to collect power eventually convincing a loyal follower to bring in otherworldly beings to strike Argynvost. Malakamasheet was paranoid, and durign one trip investigated the temple as this upstart Strahd has begun to prove his martial power to the world in the name of his father, the Bandit King Barov.
Malakamasheet first struck down Strahd who was healed by local gypsies, and then took on the temple where he was caught in a trap and slain - but not before making a promise to a dark power he did not realize was Slaghaaren who arranged the trap to steal the draconic body he needed to bring himself back to life. The two souls in conflict, Malakamasheet and Slaghaaren rage uncontrollably. The hybrid red and gold dragon was eventually stopped by Argynvost who suffered a terrible injury in the fight. Even so, Argynvost used the holy power that guarded the Amber Temple to give the hybrid new life.
Strahd's army moved very quickly after that, and the conflict led to the intro in Curse of Strahd where he killed Argynvost and his paladins and took the Valley for himself eventually gaining the power of a vampire.
In the same timeline, Mother Night, a minor deity along with the Morning Lord in the area, fell in love with Strahd and gave as much of her life as she could to be the catalyst that made him a vampire as revolt threatened to kill him and his kingdom. This exchange gave the dark powers a deific power as a nearly mindless colelction of dark beings and greater gods attempted to seal them permanently somewhere in the planes. The dark powers of Revneloft were strong enough to continue their rituals gaining more and more power removed from time and space.
As such, the ritual was born. The fate of five are foretold, and whatever desire they had was crushed by the pawn Strahd and the difference in power between the fledgling hero and the great hero slain by Strahd got absorbed into the dark powers as their souls got pushed into the plane to be reborn.
Now for the characters and their secrets! We started at level 3 and they are levels 5-7 now.
Hailing from the Forgotten Realms:
Leon Galanodel is a half-elven paladin who has sworn an oath of vengeance after a man-made monster raged through his homeland and killed his wife and child in a botched attempt to guide the creature out of town without causing more harm. The creature was a particularly large and nasty flesh golem. The monster and its creator seemed to have completely vanished without any trace, and he has spend year adventuring to uncover the trail again. Sword and board, new player, likes to tank things and has gotten very good at it.
Leon and Ravenloft:
The subjects of Leon's revenge are in Ravenloft. The golem is in St Markovia's Abby, and Dr. Havengul lives in Barovia serving as a doctor in town.
If Leon dies in Ravenloft he becomes a revenant (from the UA), unless he has gotten his revenge on Havengul or falls in love with another. So far his greatest love seems to be ice cream.
Azrael is a red dragonborn sorcerer who is obsessed with becoming a true dragon. Surprising no one, he has the Dragonic Blooded origin and is a swole dude despite only caring about his studies. Evoker and debuffer.
Azrael in Ravenloft:
So if you read the first spoiler, you might have guessed that Azrael is the hybrid creature between an ancient gold dragon and an ancient red dragon. He has to choose a path of good or evil which mostly revolves around how he handles Argynvostholt.
Conrad is a halfling arcane trickster that has the lucky feat. He is obsessed with finding an ancient artifact known as the Hand of Thieves which was directly inspired by the infinity gauntlet. He is a pretty standard sneaky, stabby, cheating, lying rogue with a heart of gold and he keeps hitting on human women.
Conrad in Ravenloft:
So Strahd's father had the hand of thieves, the cursed object was very powerful but came at a cost. While he used it to become a king he broke it into parts and handed them down to his children Strahd, Rahadin, Sergei, Elisabeth (Durst), and to his wife. His wife gave hers to Strahd and he used her love to create the Heart of Darkness, and Strahd has his in the pommel of his sword. Sergei hid his in the gazebo by the pond with restorative properties in Krezk, and Rahadin wears his. Elisabeth marries Gustav Durst who used it to bring himself to Ravenloft in order to access the Amber Temple, bringing the Death House and Old Bonegrinder with him.
From the feywild:
Alka'laure is a eladrin pact of the undying light. He is a child adopted into the Summer Court and doesn't really understand how old he actually is.
Alka'laure in Ravenloft:
Alka'laure is the beacon of Argynvostholt. It's not his patron, he is the light made into humanoid form. The hope of the people left the land and has to be brought back.
From my homebrew setting:
Nadryfa is a half-drow member of a elite "suicide squad" in the now legendary military of Cuona named the Broken Arrows. They dive the deepest into the dangerous jungles, take on missions where anyone else would fail, and take heavy casualties in the name of protecting the land. Nadryfa is the son of two living legends, and is proud of the military tradition he continues bearing disfiguring scars proudly.
Nadryfa in Ravenloft:
Nadryfa has no ties to Ravenloft, but after fighting werewolves capturing humans from other planes to bring to Ravenloft broke the system following a vistani werewolf through the mist.
However, several of the broken arrows are now werewolves themselves and while previously more symbiotic with the land Kiril is screwing it all up and Emil (a broken arrow) has been imprisoned. If he can displace Kiril then Emil won't attack Cuona anymore.
I agree with that but I'd characterise it differently than power. I think this is due to the fact that 5E significantly reduces the value of specialisation (and correspondingly increases the utility of a generalist approach) compared to PF.
The 5E rogue never gets to the "I can open any lock with no chance of failure" level, whereas the PF rogue can. That's what I meant by power. It's more obvious in combat though - a horde of commoners can trouble a twentieth level fighter in...
Rogue is probably a bad example, because by mid teens a rogue picking a lock rolls between a 22 and a 33. They literally have no trouble whatsoever with picking locks since a DC of 25 is considered in the realm of the finest locks across all planes of existence.
The AC example is much more accurate, where 100 commoners versus 1 champion is rough on the champion. If you use the suggestions in the DMG the fighter can slaughter the narrative horde though. Using mob rules AC 22 requires 20 commoners to lay a finger on the champion, and mid teens a champion probably has that even with a greatsword. Meanwhile it requires critical hits to land a normal blow in Pathfinder. Now if it was a character built for hordes it's incredibly one-sided.
The funny thing is the 5e example probably ends the fight sooner, but with a badly wounded fighter; while the Pathfinder example is much longer with a much less injured fighter. There's also less ability for a nonmagical player to damage many units at once because there is a lack of optional rules to handle mobs of that size.
It's also why I mentioned swingy-ness, because damage absolutely outpaces HP in Pathfinder and there are a lot of ways to end fights beyond worrying about HP. So while 100 commoners isn't a big threat, appropriate creatures can be instantly deadly easily and characters can mow through them with relative ease depending on the initiative roll. Now that is absolutely not true in 5e where fights get really long at high levels and 1 on 1 encounters are easier to design. At that point it's really just personal preference.
If you want extreme granularity, more specific (intended) roles, higher specialization, and an unmatched volume of content then Pathfinder is better. Some people also prefer much swingy-er mechanics, which is also a feature in Pathfinder/3.5.
Steve Geddes wrote:
High-powered campaigns are modelled better by Pathfinder, I think. Given Bounded Accuracy, it's very hard in 5E to create a character who can effortlessly and unfailingly defeat any mundane lock in the world. Or a combatant who can literally wade through armies unscathed. There's a common assumption that xth level PF = xth level 5E character, however I think the 3-20 level range in 5E is more akin to the 1-12 level range in Pathfinder (with a few corner case exceptions).
I feel it is the opposite, bounded accuracy only limits your ability to overcome the most legendary of challenges in the 25-30 DC range while in Pathfinder they are still trivial - but at the same time the huge range of modifiers means that the majority of your skills/abilities are far behind achieving even a basic functionality.
A rogue can pick a lock created by a deity in the mid teens (with a +13ish modifier and ignoring any roll less than 9), while a fighter that grew up on the streets would reasonably have a +6 and be able to take his time to overcome even fine locks. In Pathfinder the statement about the Rogue is still true, but the Fighter could either only pick a lock or have no shot whatsoever to pick the lock without some very strategic character massaging.
Wizard 2 (1/9 XP) | HP 17/17 | S+0, D+1, C+1, I+2, W+0, C-1 | -1 ongoing (cast a spell)
I will say that there are three relative talents in town; Olyn is an enchanter which generally means she's a deviant, and the one naemd Feyrith has enough power to protect the area. They are led by a little fella with a big head named Eolore who likes to think being the big fish in a very little pond grants him some sort of status.
A favor... what if she modifies Eolore's memory for her own reasons, and it requires some specific reagents that she can't just buy as a known enchanter. So she had me go buy them while she was out of town given two degrees of separation between her and the mage's typical supply chains. I wouldn't know (or care) what she uses those supplies for, but I know it's not above board.
This is not great, Moq mutters. He slaps his chest with his palms, releasing his rage and the fury of the storm. He races forward to the curator and attempts to pierce the marble with his sword.
Male Human Cleric 6 26/26 HP | 14 XP | Bless, Sanctuary, Speak With Dead | -2 cast a spell, 2 hold (spend 2 to make camp, 5 to escape labyrinth), blessed
Well we all know that now, but I like a bit of misinformation in legends.
Male Human Cleric 6 26/26 HP | 14 XP | Bless, Sanctuary, Speak With Dead | -2 cast a spell, 2 hold (spend 2 to make camp, 5 to escape labyrinth), blessed
That's right!! The Epic of Anselm, beacon of Mersiel, felled in the battle of no survivors... well I guess that means there was at least one, Tom turns to Belym, F%+% me if I find myself wishing Sheridan was here. He probably would have been able t' piece this together from the scraps of ocean lore better than me.
Hitting his fist into his palm signifying remembering something Tom continues, The sl- uh spice traders in the southern seas have a slang term for when a deal is in a deadlock máodùn. From what I understand it means shield-spear, as in when the strongest man with the strongest shield is struck by a man of equal strength with a spear of the same quality. But they only use this slang when the deal is about t' end violently right at the end - on the day of the actual trade something changes, and both sides are gripping weapons but don't want t' walk away either. A moment of contradiction frozen in time, where no one breathes and no one dares act.
Shockingly they spoke about this most dealing with the merfolk, we had amicable relations with their... erm... business.
Tom looks at blank faces for a moment, Well it must mean that the Godslayer Jeslei had slain Anselm, and survived that confrontation despite the bards. Anselm, the Southern Cross, the herald to Mersiel, possessed a shield forged by the Gods. If the Godslayer's complete sword struck it it might have caused the disturbance you saw, and broken both. There is no way a woman that covetous leaves the shield be with the body of Anselm.
I went a bit off book there, hopefully I didn't step on any toes. Do I know anything about Jeslei's sword before it broke? How long ago was all this?
