ibayboy's page

Whoa! New Zealand is in the FUTURE?!

Quick, send me all the lottery numbers and stock picks you can get your hands on!!!

NARRATOR: And once again, Quibblemuch fails to understand the concept of time zones and will be disappointed...

Can't talk, our robot overlords are listening.

Happy New Year from NEW ZEALAND

All hail Triune!

Although depending on how our Iron Gods game goes, Casandalee may not be an aspect of Triune in our home games ;-)

You're too late my friend. We totally installed her in our game last year, sorry bout that.

All hail Triune.

Awesome podcast. My group already finished Giantslayer and it is surprisingly entertaining to listen to another group as they go through the AP.

I've also run my group through Giantslayer. And i have just finished bingeing on GCP, to the detriment of all my regular TV. Congrats guys.

This is awesome guys! I'm bingeing away, up to Ep81 so far. I've run this AP, so it's very interesting to hear your play.

Well guys, you must have piqued some interest here, because I got a couple of emails from OAD members last night asking if SS is next. :)

Thematically, we've faced more than our share of evil outsiders over the years, while the "serpent/jungle campaign" has eluded us on several occasions. As GM, I have a real desire to see what we could do with mythic rules, especially with some data tracking in reference to the rocket tag that might result. For the players, they loved Cult of the Reptile God enough to play it a couple of times, and that module was the attempted launch of a serpent campaign that always led to TPK or petered out. Playing Serpent's Skull would give the players a chance to redeem themselves and at the same time see the serpent/jungle theme through. What's the general feeling about the difficulty of SS compared to other APs? Has anyone played both Serpent's Skull and SA?

I hope everyone will like the data we've compiled throughout Strange Aeons, it's probably twice as much as during The Giantslayer Endeavor, and will be released with the final blog report of The Strange Aeons Experiment.

We are just a few weeks away from finishing Strange Aeons and entering a short lull where we'll be able to complete Sins of the Saviors and move our RotR campaign to near-conclusion. There's been some stirring in the Order in regard to what will come after RotR in our "side campaign" slot, with the previous lead contender being Shattered Star.

I ran SS and have just started SA, we are 2 sessions in. I think Strange Aeons will be much harder, that might be a result of my GMing getting better. My feeling is that the AP's have been getting more challenging, but we've not played them all, or even really read the modules, untill we pick a GM. I have run CotCT, SS, RoW, GS, Emerald Spire,and SA. I've played in Savage Tide, Age of Worms, RotR, KM, S&S, WotW, and IG.

gustavo iglesias wrote:

I'd be more interested in SS than in Second Darkness or WotR, to be honest

Firm agreement. WoTR has an excellent opening and there's much to like in the first half. By the back half, though, the Mythic rules really turn it into rocket tag -- and if the players are competent, then it's rocket tag that they're always going to win.

Doug M.

Yeah WotR was a cake walk, my paladin was one-shotting nearly everything.

ibayboy wrote:

Aerick Lim wrote:

Hello all! Last weekend we took a break in the middle of Marathon 5 to do an interview with our friends from Nerd Podcast Radio. Please listen to the non-spoiler portion and/or the spoiler portion at your discretion.

Highlights from What Grows Within coming soon to the Paizo Blog!

Just listened to both, great stuff. I've been following your order for RoW and Emerald Spire, having run both, your notes have been a great help and inspiration, so thanks.

I started running Strange Aeons 2 sessions ago and we are loving it, I think In Search of Sanity is Paizo's best book since Souls for Smuggler's Shiv.

Thank you, and I'm glad our work has helped (and inspired)! That interview was a great time, and it was fun to finally tell the story of where the Amber Die came from--not that we really know. :)

It's interesting that you mention Souls for Smuggler's Shiv, since as GM I am constantly tearing through published material trying to figure out where we'll go next. I stopped immediately when I hit Jacobs's adventure, and read the entirety in one night. I've been considering Serpent's Skull as a fun throwback for a while now after being so inspired by PF37; you may have just helped me sell the group on it, since we all loved In Search of Sanity, as evidenced here. Thanks again!

No problem at all. My group really enjoyed Serpent's Skull, however book 3 needs a lot of work, its very hard to run as written. It is really just a sandbox framework, which might not suit your groups style of playing as written. In hindsight a campaign combining SS and Skull and Shackles could be awesome. Get rescued from the island by pirates, gain fame and fortune by finding the lost city, then take on the pirate hierarchy.

Hello all! Last weekend we took a break in the middle of Marathon 5 to do an interview with our friends from Nerd Podcast Radio. Please listen to the non-spoiler portion and/or the spoiler portion at your discretion.

Highlights from What Grows Within coming soon to the Paizo Blog!

Just listened to both, great stuff. I've been following your order for RoW and Emerald Spire, having run both, your notes have been a great help and inspiration, so thanks.

Well we just completed Iron Gods. Time to hang up the EMP rifle. I'll be running Strange Aeons next weekend, and the sacrifices have been submitted.

Male, Human, Fighter (Cad) GMPC
Female, Dusk Elf, Universalist Wizard
Female, Human, Cleric of Desna (Roaming Exorcist)
Female, Emberkin Aasimar, Investigator (Empiricist)

No names, no gear, no memory, no hope...

My very un-optimized, ranger/rogue/gunslinger, in our Iron Gods game, has improved Vital strike. Mainly for the surprise round. Her construct bane EMP rifle is ending some encounters before the rest of the party even see the room.

Awesome, thank you so much.

Hi Paizo, happy new year! I was checking on my order, which was placed in early November, as it hadn't arrived. I see that it's pending because one item is unavailable. Can this item be removed so the rest can proceed?
Thanks

You guys have flying cars yet?

The machines won't let us have them.

Its that time again, Happy New Year 2016 from...New Zealand

The rogue's Favored Terrain talent and the Ultimate Combat talent Terrain Mastery seem very similar as well.

Were these intentional?

I was wondering about this too...

Taumata-whaka-tangihanga-koauau-o-Tamatea-turi-pukaka-pikimaunga-horonuku-p okai-whenua-kitana-tahu, is the longest place name in the world. It is in Hawkes Bay, New Zealand, and means ‘The hilltop where Tamatea with big knees, conqueror of mountains, eater of land, traveller over land and sea, played his koauau to his beloved.’

NobodysHome wrote:

Now you're just depressing me. I remember when the "You must have been born after this date" alcohol birth date passed my high school graduation date (happens when you're 39, people).

I finished my Ph.D. in the 1990's. Talking about 1990's kids is just mean.

My 21st birthday had its 21st birthday a while ago.

Mine too!!!

...I'm so old...

Norman Reedus has a titanium eye-socket, as a result of a car accident in 2005.

And it was his 46th birthday last Tuesday.

Its that time again, i'll start.

Happy New Year from Wellington, New Zealand.

Great stories!
The group I'm running through RoW have had their issues with cursed items too. The Bard currently has a ring he can't remove, it'll probably be on till the end, they are a third the way through book 6.

Review and pics are up, sorry it took so long. The lads are already up to pt3.

In the last 2 years, China used more concrete than the USA did in the entire 20th century.

I also agree Souls for Smugglers Shiv is one of the best parts to an AP. It can make a great alternative start to Skull & Shackles too.

How bout Ironman and his armor, synthesist summoner maybe?

Jeez there's some big minis in this set! Reminds me of Serpents Skull.

Wahoo!! Thanks Todd. I'll post photos and a review when they're assembled.

ibayboy wrote:

You could probably play Mummy's Mask without trapfinding, as long as your Barb has enough HP!

I am very dissapointed to hear that.

Paizo has shown us in shattered star that interesteing traps/puzzles can be made.

and...

@ibayboy - if the Mummy's Mask traps can all be solved with sufficient HP then those are pretty disappointing traps.

sorry guys, it was an old joke about using the barb as a trap-triggerer. I haven't even read Mummy's Mask, I would expect an AP on that theme to have some of the tricksy-est traps out there.

Hello Again,

I was listing to the audio book of At the Mountains of Madness and in it it says "the migo or the abominable snowmen" so does this mean that the migo are the abominable snowmen or was that a list of monsters.

Also while I am on the topic of that book. Do you thing it is possible that the professor was mad and his story is not as it seems? He seems to know just a little to much about everything related the eldar things for a short trip into there city.

Hi James, related to the above question, have you listened to any Lovecraft audio books? I like David McCallum reading Rats in the Walls. I almost crapped my pants listening to The Dunwich Horror on headphones in the middle of the night (when I was younger).

I agree with the idea to hold off on some ranks. In later books, learning new languages should be viable on the second level gained in each book. I am just about to GM book 6, and the bard in the party has been doing just this.

I third Row and SS. They're both choc full of wierdos.

You could probably play Mummy's Mask without trapfinding, as long as your Barb has enough HP!

Gah! I saw the new set and thought for a minute it was RoW pt6, sigh!
This looks cool though.

I started running this yesterday, as a filler, while we wait for the last set of paper minis for my RoW campaign. We just played it with the four pregens, and have found it quite challenging so far. Something we noticed was that there seems to be no way to identify magic items. The investigator and bloodrager have spellcraft but not detect magic, and the warpriest has read magic but no spellcraft. The investigator can do potions and poisons, but they're all scared to play with any other magic stuff they find.
Conclusion next week!

Name: Nissa Lightstep

Race: Sylph
Classes/levels: Bard/Rogue 14
Adventure: Reign of Winter - Rasputin must die!
Location: Prison camp

The Gory Details: Hit for 180 points of damage by a Destruction spell from the man himself. Left in ashes.

I think you'll find destruction doesn't even leave ashes, just a pile of your gear. ;)

What, too soon?

I was running The Harrowing and a player told me he was preparing a Dwarf Paladin for it.

He arrived with a Human fighter/cleric, who had the 'Raised by another race' trait, and insisted, despite all evidence to the contrary that he he was A. a Paladin, and B. a Dwarf.

He wasn't running a scam, his character really believed he was a Dwarf Paladin, to the great concern of the rest of the party.

DBH

I called it Corporal Carrot syndrome!

Sorry for the delay. Life got in the way this summer. But I promise if it's not done before Gen Con, it'll be done after Gen Con. ...Wait, that doesn't help. It'll be done in mid-August. Yeah, that's what I meant.

Erk! looks like we will have to make a start on WotR while we wait. Time to roll up a paladin. There is no question of carrying on without your minis, have fun at Gen Con.

ibayboy wrote:

DBH wrote:

DBH wrote nice things...

Thanks!

From the various SS threads it's clear that it's an AP that can easily fall flat.

I've read a lot of complaints where it's easy to see the GM didn't do the prep work, so you earned it.

DBH

versatile performance (Oratory/Diplomacy): 1d20 + 22 ⇒ (2) + 22 = 24

I know a certain sylph bard that won't be dying on Saturday!

edit: although, that dice roll was low!

Hi Liz and Todd! Do we have an eta on the final set of minis for RoW? Rasputin is nearly dead over here. Thanks, keep up the great work.

DBH wrote nice things...

Thanks!

To me the only furniture that seems a bit out is in C5, and C5c belongs to a large creature anyway. I think 10ft squares are just fine, you'll need them for the large creature fights as it is.

ibayboy your numerical ratings don't match your explanations.

I thought they did, maybe they're more like observations though?

Played this all the way through as GM...

1) GM Ease of Play: 6 Needed a lot of work, especially book 3. Also, books 5 and 6 can get a bit 'samey' with extra work to liven them at times.

2) Synthesis of the Story: 8 Good clear story running right through, plenty of clues and hints to drive PC's on. Except book 2, total railroad!

3) Role-play Friendly: 10 Book 1 has built in roleplay and works well, as does book 3 with a lot of work.

4) Combat Design: 8 Encounters are well written. Shadow demon in book 2 is dangerous, and again book 3 needs work to tie areas together. Books 5 and 6 suffer from being a bit 'samey', but I used this to my advantage, running enemies as coordinated, militaristic and adaptive.

5) Fun factor: 7 Book 1 was fantastic. Books 5 and 6 dragged a little. On the whole, I think my players enjoyed the campaign.

Played this all the way through as a player...

1) GM Ease of Play: 8 It seemed to be easy to run. GM needed to be prepared for PC's going anywhere. I don't think he changed to much out of the box. Our GM also ran the kingdom in the background after a concensus from players.

2) Synthesis of the Story: 8 Great storyline running through, although the final chapter seemed a bit tacked on, the lead-up somewhat obscured in earlier chapters.

3) Role-play Friendly: 7 Lots of opportunity for role-playing, a group running the kingdom building rules would have even more.

4) Combat Design: 6 Varied encounters, some hard with the wrong roll on random encounter table, or wrong direction in the sandbox. Suffered from 10 min adventuring day in most places. Our group weren't fans of the mass combat system.

5) Fun factor: 8 Really liked the hex-ploration system.

Nice, I like this one!

but...

sympathetic to her fighting style, tipped her off to an underground fighting ring in a seedy part of the city.

The first rule of Fight Club is: you do not talk about Fight Club.

I have a personal spell compendium, which is up to date, with all Golarian spells included. Also all class lists except Magus. PM me and I can get a copy to you.

That, folks, is how you write a backstory!

Witches also have access to the Age Resistance spells.

DM says: You can't see the bottom of the pool from your hiding place by the door, there might be treasure...

DM means:

I played a witch, with 2 bard levels early on, all the way through S&S. She became the Hurricane Queen, and was the most fun character I've played, except for my first ever character 25 odd years ago. Yes Slumber felt boring, and as a result I didn't use it much, but that was my choice. Never took Ice Tomb hex. Misfotrune/ill omen were great and didn't seem to ruin the game for us. The rest of the party/crew was more worried about her constant use of blood transcription.

Hey everybody! It looks like we have a deserving top 16! Congratulations!

About things on my end:
I had an ill-timed business trip, so I didn't get to spend as much time as I would have liked on the entire map making process. I was already too invested in the map by the time I realized I was getting too visually detailed with not enough meat. It would have riled people's sensitivities to have a weird mix of artistic and crude, so I just kept going on the path I found myself on to make things look as good as possible.

I'm pretty relieved though. I'm still on my trip, and I would probably would not have had the time or resources to make a proper monster.

So thus ends the saga of Chris as an RPGSS contestant! I'll stick around and participate in discussion, but I'm going to try taking my time and designing well thought out content on my own from now on.

I have limited internet while I'm here, so I'll check back in on the 24th when I get back. I expect some good monsters! Good luck and fight on! :)

Aaaannd submitted. Jeebus, that was close.

It is autumn somewhere in southern Avistan. An excavation team has uncovered the ruins of an ancient well beneath a hill on the roadside. Tools and carts dot the excavation area, seemingly abandoned. Dirt piles and the slope up from the excavation site to the hill are difficult terrain.

I hate maps.

I hate maps, and anyone who has ever made or looked a map.

... sorry for being MIA. >:(

Thanks for the feedback everybody (especially Arianwen, great points!).

Here's a rewrite. Wow! Holy saved wordcount!

And some notes on the item's creation:

Neil, no slacking! We need some more juicy taunts to help us last for the next... 17.5 hours!

I accept your apology... IF you agree to have the judges post vague taunting jibes about the top 32 for the next 22 hours. :3

Concise and awesome. :)

I think that for me personally this has been the most enjoyable season yet. You're all great to talk to and worry with.

Folks in the culled group: Do not fret. Please stick around, enjoy the contest, and learn for next year!

Those who survived: Right now we are all schrödinger's cat. At this moment, we've all both supped the sweet air of victory and eaten bitter humble pie. Both are equally likely at this point, so remember how they taste. :)

This year, I am pretty streamlined:
1) Read the title and description block, ignore everything else.
2) Is it both easy to understand and evocative? Or instead am I getting inexplicably frustrated and having to re-read it several times? Is it a cool idea? Is it easy for the player and GM to implement in-game? Go with my gut.
3) If it's a tie, use the stuff I ignored earlier as a tie-breaker.

Point being:
You can teach the formatting and finer details. It's harder to find cool ideas, clear yet evocative writing, and solid mechanical understanding.

Still alive...

Come on my dear, deeply flawed, helpless little item. Let your charm shine through and keep on running towards that light!

Yes, item. Feast on the remains of your fallen brethren. Grow big and fat and strong... >:3

Hah! I had a "feel it in me bones" sort of thing going on yesterday, but was puzzled when no cull was announced.

But dem bones never lie! :D

I regret going to a different place for lunch today, because they had...

...no croquettes.

Okay, I'm going to post my first snark:

Designers, stop saying that your item "appears" to look like what it is. It seriously weakens the impact you are trying to create. Instead of "This blade appears to be slimy" say "A glistening ooze sloughs thickly from the surface of this blade".

Furthermore, stop relying on visual description alone! We have at least four other senses to titillate that most items barely cover. A tactile or auditory description can be really powerful.

Phew! Still haven't seen my item, but it looks like it's still rolling around in there.

How many culls are they doing in total? Worry worry... -_-;

I regret not proposing to the love of my life... Nora Gretzky.

Phew! Survived after all. The roller coaster never gets easier, folks!

The snark is strong this year. You people are drunk with power! Drunk, I say!

Don't see mine. Argh! :p

20 minutes later:

AHHH! IT'S THERE! I WAS SO WORRIED.

Caber Twig
Aura faint transmutation; CL 5th
Slot none; Price 200 gp; Weight 2 lbs.
Description
Exquisitely carved from the very finest dark mahogany and polished to a smooth sheen, this 4-inch stick feels surprisingly heavy for its size when hefted in the palm. Three notches divide the twig into four 1-inch segments. Snapping the twig at any notch is a swift action that creates smaller twigs of appropriate sizes.

When tossed into the air with a flick of the wrist, a length of twig suddenly releases a deafening crack as it transforms into a massive log at the apex of its flight. For every segment of twig used, this log measures 5 feet and weighs 300 lbs. No matter the length of the log, it is always 2 feet in diameter, and only one can be thrown at a time.

The thrower may toss a twig at any creature, object, or space within 30 feet, and the resulting log always lands tip-first. The target must succeed at a DC 16 Reflex save and be forced into an adjacent space, or otherwise suffer 2d6 bludgeoning damage per twig segment used.

Upon striking its primary target, the log tilts and crashes down in a direction of the thrower’s choosing. All creatures within a line the length of the log from the space of impact must succeed at a DC 13 Reflex save or else suffer 1d6 bludgeoning damage per twig segment used. Medium or smaller creatures receiving this secondary damage fall prone and suffer the pinned condition.

Creatures pinned under a log must succeed at an Athletics or Escape Artist check to escape. The DC of the check equals 10 plus 2 per twig segment used.

Created logs remain indefinitely.

Construction
Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, plant growth; Cost 100 gp

Either that, or I'll resubmit the beardforge now that the cruel judges can't blatantly ignore the overwhelming will of the people.

Ah Beardforge. Seriously one of my favorite items ever. You were robbed, Garrett!

I guess I'm in an unusual place for this, and I've thought about it a lot.

I have sort of been riding that wave of "good enough to get into the top 32 each year, but not quite able to reach the top 8 and be disqualified". It's fun to look forward to the competition each year, and I might be a little addicted to it. However, I am starting to feel somewhat guilty for taking up space when someone new could be up there and experiencing it for the first time.

I think if top eight contestants were allowed back in each year, they would consistently make it back into the competition. It would be really discouraging to the new entrants, and things would get pretty stale with seeing the same folks each and every year.

Hi friends!

I'm working on a project. Basically, wouldn't it be great to see what has been made in the competition already? To sort that list by year, author, item type, or spell level? To search for key words in descriptions? I'm sure some folks have done it before for themselves (or maybe online and I didn't notice), but here's one for everybody!

Stop in, click an item link, and get fillin'! Once we're done, you'll be able to just download it as an Excel Spreadsheet and filter and sort to your heart's content. :)

I've locked the ITEM, AUTHOR, and YEAR/SEASON columns because they are done.

Suggestions for improvement are welcome.

Note: For small, slotless, rocky/crystally/charmish/not-really-categorizeable items, I am using the item type "bauble".

Current Ideas
- Column for full item text in one line for keyword search purposes.
- Column for how far the author got in the competition that year.

Now that I think of it, no one here has ever seen any of my scenario or campaign ideas, since I never got that far in the competition.

I pledge that, whether or not I place in the top 8 or higher this year, that I will start striking out on my own to professionally create content.

This is largely because I finally settled into a career. :p

What is this warm, fuzzy feeling I'm experiencing? :3

Thank you for your encouraging words and overall coolness, Ms. Firedove. I'll be sure to fix this critter up a bit for you now that I am free from my other design obligations. ;)

And my other entries too. I'm pretty much done redrawing Treant's Crossing, and I have some ideas for the item I made. Also some stuff from previous years I want to fix. I'll just release a pdf here on the boards.

I'm also working on... new stuff. ;)

Twitch. Squirm. Groan. Hold breath. Gasp. Spin in chair. Roll on floor. Eat cookies. Close door and yell. Open door. Sit down. Stand up. Sit down. Inspect tongue in window reflection. Put head on table. Sing 'Needing, Getting' under breath. Twitch. Squirm.

That's great news! I hope he takes his time and recovers speedily. If that's possible. :)

I occasionally +1 your posts just so you know that someone is! :)

Chris Shaeffer wrote:

FINE. I'll go this year. :p

What is that, a 45 minute drive for you?

A 30 minute drive or 1 hour by public transportation. :3

--

Good luck to your father. Heart stuff can be scary, but at least it's something you're all aware of instead of it sneaking up on you. My dad head a heart attack (100% arterial blockage) a few years back and recovered just fine. Fingers crossed!

FINE. I'll go this year. :p

It was then that I realized, staring into the abyss between waking and dreaming... that I was the monster all along.

Wide eyes brimming with both curiosity and suspicion peek out from beneath the large, spiraling horn that protrudes from the brow of this miniature albino dragon.

Wimblewyrm CR 5
XP 1,600
N Tiny Dragon (earth)
Init +6; Senses dragon senses; Perception +10
----- Defense -----
AC 19, touch 14, flat-footed 17 (+2 Dex, +5 natural, +2 size)
hp 45 (6d12+6)
Fort +5, Ref +6, Will +5
Immune acid, paralysis, sleep
Weaknesses light blindness
----- Offense -----
Speed 30 ft., burrow 20 ft., fly 60 ft. (average), caustic burrowing
Melee Gore +8 (1d4 plus 1d4 acid), 2 claws +8 (1d4)
Space 2-1/2 ft.; Reach 0 ft. (5 ft. with gore)
Special Attacks jumble stone
----- Statistics -----
Str 11, Dex 15, Con 12, Int 17, Wis 12, Cha 10
Base Atk +6; CMB +6 (+10 vs. opponent in rocky, difficult terrain); CMD 16 (20 vs. trip)
Feats Improved Initiative, Stone Read, Undermining Exploit
Skills Appraise +12, Bluff +9, Fly +15, Knowledge (dungeoneering) +12, Perception +10 (+12 in mountainous or underground environments), Sense Motive +10, Sleight of Hand (+8), Stealth +19, Swim +9
Languages Aklo, Draconic, Duergar, Undercommon
----- Ecology -----
Environment any underground
Organization solitary, pair, or crew (3-6)
Treasure double
----- Special Abilities -----
Caustic Burrowing (Ex) A wimblewyrm burrows through stone, dirt, or almost any other sort of earth other than metal with ease. It may choose to have its acid create a dense stone shell where it passes, leaving in its wake a permanent tunnel 2-1/2 feet in diameter. The wimblewyrm also uses this ability to ignore the effects of difficult terrain caused by stones.
Jumble Stone (Ex) Once per day as a standard action, a wimblewyrm can cause the surface of any 5 foot areas of stone it burrows through on the same turn to crack and dislodge. If a surface is a floor, it becomes difficult terrain and any creatures standing on top of it must succeed at a DC 15 Reflex save or fall prone as the wimblewyrm passes underneath. If a surface is instead a wall or ceiling, then stones fall to the space most directly below it. In situations where there are multiple spaces to which the stones could fall, the wimblewyrm chooses a single space. The floor becomes difficult terrain and any creatures standing in the space must succeed at a DC 15 Reflex save or take 2d6 bludgeoning damage.

Notorious liars and thieves, wimblewyrms are greedy even by dragon standards. When not burrowing through the bedrock of Nar-Voth seeking precious gems, a wimblewyrm will spend its time quietly stalking intelligent creatures through dark tunnels, hoping that it might seize valuable goods or precious secrets. If discovered, a lone wimblewyrm will usually make a single attempt to nab the object it most desires before disappearing into a nearby cavern wall. Larger groups become increasingly more daring, however, and will coordinate their jumble stone ability to distract and disable their opponents. They are also a vengeful species, and have been known to create miles-long tunnels simply to flood the homes of creatures that displease them.

Unlike their larger cousins, wimblewyrms are eager traders of the gems, unusual objects, and information they have acquired, and often create extensive subterranean networks of commerce amongst themselves.

An adult wimblewyrm measures roughly 2 feet long from tail to snout, and sports a single heavy horn extending another foot directly forward. The spiral grooves of the dragon’s horn drip with a powerful acid which it uses to bore holes and fend off larger predators. The creatures pale yellow eyes and scales match the appearance of their eggs.

Ah, the dread zumba! That was a fearsome horror.

Dread Zumba CR 7

Sweaty limbs protrude at erratic intervals as this panting tangle of flesh slides along to a rhythm of grunts and funky fresh beats. It devours all in its path, leaving a slippery trail of grease in its wake.

My brother and I had a conversation that went something like:

"You should make a monster that's made of the stitched up remains of other bodies."

"That exists. It's a flesh golem."

"Okay, how about a stalactite that's actually an ambush predator that falls on you?"

"That's a piercer."

"Uh, a stalagmite then?"

"Roper."

"Well. I'm out of ideas."

Hey everyone. I don't want to be overstepping my bounds in posting this, but time is short and I don't want folks lagging behind if there's even a slim chance of it happening.

Leviathan's End maker Jason Keeley posted that he cannot continue the contest. If you think you might have been close to getting in the top 16, then be prepared for the possibility that you might get bumped up!

Thanks Mikko! It's really cool of you and Adam to provide all this free advice, and I think the competition will be better for it.

And I need the help, frankly. D:

The group I run at the university uses the whiteboard projector in our conference room. :)

Hey all, has anyone heard about Chainmail co-creator Jeff Perren needing help? His daughter is trying to raise money for a stair lift so that he can live at her home. Read more by clicking on the link below. You can go to the GoFundMe page by clicking on the thread title.

http://www.reddit.com/r/rpg/comments/2uf2tu/gofundme_jeff_perren_chainmail_ coauthor_in_need/

P.S. - Looks like our team lost at sportsball. :/

Chris, you forgot to roll for it's gender ;-)

Flip a coin? :p

Or if you want a less heteronormative view, roll d1000 and consult the table below...

I haven't started making my monster yet, but I'm practicing by randomly rolling its main aspects and seeing what it inspires me to make. I made some random tables for you all to play along!

The goal, try to make the monster concept work no matter what you have to work with. Remember that this is just a creative tool though, so tweak or ignore whenever it suits your tastes.

Here's the Monster Creation Rules, Creature Types and Subtypes, and Universal Monster Rules to help you out. You can also find the other monster creation stuff on the left toolbar. Good luck! ;)

I rolled a CR 8 CE Small Undead with telepathy and lifesense. Ooh~ I like it.

EDIT: CR 7 N Fine Dragon with blindsight and undersized weapons... This is problematic.

EDIT 2: My brother rolled a CR 10 CN Gargantuan Monstrous Humanoid with poison and undead traits.

EDIT 3: Okay, one more. CR 7 LE Large Aberration with web and light blindness. Hmm... Looks like I rolled a drider by mistake.

EDIT 4: I changed step five to just be roll d100 twice (instead of 1d3+1 times).

Speaking of football, I'll be staying in Seattle for 2 weeks in May, and I was wondering if there will be any matches that might be worth seeing. I know little about the sport, but it looks interesting. :) Or UFC, maybe???

I'm not a diehard sports fan, so I'm not sure. There might be some baseball going on in that time frame though!

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My take on posting during this period is that chatting about the contest and life is totally okay! Real conversations are great, and if the chance to be funny comes up, I'll take it!

I have a set of ground rules for myself though:

1) I read comments on my entry, but that's it. I don't post on my entry or +1 any of the comments on it. After votes are locked in, I thank people, share some insight on the design process, and maybe even post a revision if I have time.

2) I read the other entries and +1 the ones I really like, but I don't comment. If I really want to give the contestant some feedback (praise, or maybe some very light constructive commentary if we get into a conversation), I just send them a PM.

3) Besides my goofy youtube post, I don't participate in the exit polls.

4) I've been avoiding debates like the one about the top 100 list. Too easy to set off people's nerves. I do read them and +1 some posts I think made good points.

5) I think showing excitement and good will is great! But there's a very early point of diminishing returns with back-patting and general praise-giving, and it soon adds nothing to the dialogue and clutters the boards. Talking too much can come off as nervousness, or worse, showing off.

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I'd love to have chats about good resources for inspiration and advice for the technical aspects of upcoming rounds. We can talk about our general creative processes and what we think will be challenging without actually talking about the entries themselves. I think the voters would enjoy reading that sort of thing.

Also, monsters were what killed me my first year, so I need all the help I can get. :p

It's a tradition dating back to the very first year.

I'll just leave this here.

Ahem.

Thanks Owen. I'll restrain my enthusiasm. (Going silent now. Good luck everyone!)

Way to crash the site again everybody! :p

The maps are fantastic! I can't wait to get home and look at them in detail.

Whatever happens, I want you all to know I love you. :'|

I was repeatedly woken up last night by dreams about the map reveal and finding that I had come up way short of expectations. :/

One of the greatest feelings is someone saying "I'm going to use this for my character / in my campaign." :)

Okay recruits! Great job getting your maps in on time, being super supportive of each other, and making this competition altogether worthwhile!

Now restrain yourselves.

Every year I think we get lured into a false sense of "it's okay to talk about everything!", due to the seeming immediacy of being allowed to respond to comments on our items.

From this point forward, think before you post. Don't talk about why you did your map a certain way or what you would have done if you had more time. And when the entries go live and those urges to respond to comments on your entries arise, stomp on them like a pissed off elephant on a sneaky little snake.

In the past few years, we've basically decided that even a "thank you, vote for me!" type of comment is pushing it. The best option is to just hunker down and work on the next round.

Even so, every year there's someone who gets a little too glib and pushes the envelope. Don't be that person.

I tell you this because I care. Now get out there and make some monsters! RAWR!