200 Pieces of advice for "Winning" the game (Winning = #90)

[Sir Thugsalot]

266. Always search the ashes of any campfire you find on the trail.

267. When the trail transforms into a ledge, prep for flying monsters.

268. The more easily found the item, the more likely it is cursed.

[Buri]

Re: familiars and witches, get a familiar stone. 500 levels of spells you can put in your bag of holding for when you need to replace your kitty.

[strayshift]

269. Shapechangers will always appear innocent.

[lucky7]

270. Read up on monsters from classic mythology and know their strengths and weaknesses. They have a nasty habit of showing up in these kinds of games.

271. Identify your Dm's tastes. (Favorite bands,books, etc.) Similar encounters, characters, and themes may crop up.

272. Even your INT 7 Barbarian needs a few ranks in Common Sense.

[Ascalaphus]

I like the mention of "positive" things: paying attention to the GM's world.

273. Many old-school GMs are frustrated with the Perception->Disable Device paragigm. They'd rather you use clever questions and equipment to find and bypass traps, than just high skills and dice rolls. Study your GM to find out if this is the case.

274. If you're a wizard, consider if you really need to look the part. If you're a sturdy monk, consider dressing up as a wizard. It'll make it harder for the enemy to pick the right targets.

275. Starting early, figure out how the GM responds to you using illusions to misdirect NPC tactics. If he's sporting about it, invest in more illusion spells. Otherwise, take up a different specialty.

276. Figure out how willing the GM is to let you use Charm/Dominate/Diplomancy. Don't over-invest if the GM obviously hates it.

277. Even if you can pluck the information directly from an NPC's memory or mind-rape him into placid submission, consider just talking to them and paying a (to your level, insignificant) bribe or fee. Buy them a drink. GMs really like it if you treat their (named) NPCs like people rather than sheep.

278. Don't go out of your way to escape the plot hook du jour. You're not helping anyone. If you feel the hook doesn't apply to your character, take a moment to figure out a reason why it might, after all. Bargain for a different/more appropriate reward.

279. If the GM has clued in and starts using intelligent NPC tactics, think about how to deal with those. Don't complain, get smarter. There's more of you than of him; together you can outthink him. Fighting smart opponents may turn out to be more interesting than fighting really big dumb enemies.

280. PF is like normal warfare. Consider how a modern army might deal with enemy artillery, scouts, fortifications, minefields, and see if some of those solutions translate to your game.

[Lincoln Hills]

281. If you use an overly-effective spell, rules exploit, trick, or "inescapable" tactic, you're teaching the GM a new trick... and probably shouldn't complain when he uses it right back.

[Corvino]

282. If you have an absolutely infallible trick requiring 4 feats, a few highly specific enchants and a couple of obscure traits to make work, you will only get to perform it once. Fool your GM once, shame on you. Fool them twice, shame on them...

[Lincoln Hills]

283. Whenever your latest scheme starts to remind you of something you saw Wile E. Coyote do in one of his cartoons, ask yourself how well it worked out for him.

[Sir Thugsalot]

284. A bag of holding will get your mount past many obstacles (Reduce Animal may be necessary). Hit yourself with a ten-minute duration spell before doing so, as it'll be your alarm-clock lest you forget to remove the poor thing before it asphyxiates.

[PhoenyxStar]

illyume wrote:

I found this one out the hard way:

264. When offered food and drink at a shady tavern, always make sure a party member casts detect poison on it before you all dig in.

264a. Keep in mind that alcohol is listed as a poison. When in doubt, skip the brandy.

[Boram Manylives]

Sent this through to my Group. They absolutely loved it. Our Gm had a few he made sure we paid attention to. As fairly new live gamers this was very very helpful.

[GreyFox776]

285. All sea voyages will involve attack by a Kraken

[The Crusader]

286. An enemy with 1 HP still does as much damage as he did when he had full HP. Don't hesitate to kill him a lot.

[Mystically Inclined]

This list is awesome. Well done, sir!

[Gregory Connolly]

264b. Purify Food and Drink is something you want to cast before every meal, the one time you forget is the time you get poisoned or diseased.

[Snow_Tiger]

287. Build a mutual loyalty with the important npc's.
288. You can make a nameless npc important. Use 287 to your advantage.

[Lincoln Hills]

289. Human bones are generally a GM's way of letting you know you should start worrying.

[Silent Saturn]

264c. If the plot says your food is poisoned, then even if you do cast Purify or Detect Poison, you're getting poisoned. If this happens, keep in mind that Plot Poison is only ever lethal to NPC's. To you, it's basically a way of fast-forwarding the story to the next major interesting part.

[Asmo]

Most exellent!

[Mykull]

I write in-game broadsheets on 8.5" X 14" paper for my players.
The front is full of articles about what's going on in the world and the characters' exploits (when they warrant).
The back side is full of useful information about the world (names of the weeks, map of the region, monetary system, etcetera).

This is going on the back of the next four issues in blocks of fifty.
Thanks a bunch!

[Jaelithe]

290. A DM employing the phrase "loved ones" plans to either harm them, or put them in peril.

[strayshift]

291. Players seeking to have "loved ones" in their 'lives' should be aware of post 290.
292. DM's will read your character background as closely as a private detective would in the search for 'loved ones'.

[ParagonDireRaccoon]

293. Be wary of inheriting anything from a distant relative (who you only now found out about). It's a great plot hook, but will end in tears for you.

[tony gent]

I have both followed and ignored most of this advice at one time or another

[The Human Diversion]

294. Your most precious resource is your turn. Things that let you do more on a turn (haste, quicken spell, an intelligent item, a familiar) are more than worth it, especially at later levels.

[Jaelithe]

295. Any significant other you haven't known since childhood is likely to have "baggage" of the supernatural, royal or criminal sort.

[Lincoln Hills]

296. The urge to avoid trouble is reasonable for your character, but remember, to you - the player - 'trouble' usually means 'fun'.

[Chris Marsh]

I haven't looked at this thread in a LONG time. Thanks for all the updates. I need to clean it, edit it, add to it, and make it more in line with Pathfinder.

You guys added some awesome stuff.

I also noticed a lot of it CLEARLY came from my 8th grader mentality. I'll fix that too.

[ShadeKyubi]

297: Just because you can fly doesn't mean you can't take fall damage

[Xexyz]

Yes! Been looking for this list for a long time!

[Sir Thugsalot]

297. When you're running for your life in an urban setting, close a door behind you and jam it with a piton. (This will give your character a breather while the pursuers are breaking through, and you-the-player a breather to weigh your options while the GM is looking up the door's hardness and HP, which he has forgotten.)

298. Short-legged and need a lift? "Mount" the party's barbarian as a move action, then "ready" to dismount at some point during his move. (He charges 80' and you drop off at 70' or whatever, leaving him "unsqueezed".)

299. The RP uses of a bag of pepper are limited only by your imagination, dexterity, and nerve.

300. A 10gp bribe is cheaper than a 50gp potion of Cure Light Wounds.