at the same time though its the logical and successful goal of a highly technical and trained fighting force to require less soldiers and also require professional soldiers vs. draftees
To be fair I think heinlein wrote all his books as thought experiments and objects for discussion or to start a discussion vs. a reaction to current events or how he thinks the world will eventually become
@JoshuaAslanSmith Well, that's kinda what I'm talking about. There's a flaw in his thought-experiment solution, which his that putting soldiers up on a pedestal or making them the sole true citizens is probably just as destructive as casting them away.
soldiers arent better people taken as a whole, but they do tend to actually vote etc. at a higher rate then the general population which in my book counts for something
Part of Forever Peace is that being a soldier actually does give you a number of social benefits, and it's kind of a one-week-a-month thing because they're basically "telecommuniting," but it doesn't make the burden any easier. Because Haldeman's picture of it is that the bad stuff is stuff you can't share with either civilians or very easily share it with each other.
In many ways Heinlein is cheating by having them shooting bugs.
Another way of looking at it is that I think a book about future-kinda-America fighting a kind-of-losing war against the Zerg is less germane to our political situation than a book about future-America fighting a deeply unequal war to maintain its economic supremacy over the "third world."
So I have a level 8 character lvl 4gunslinger lvl 4 marksman. He hits at about +20. Via feats and class abilities after he levels up once more he will get an auto +14 damage on every hit at lvl 9. He also hits touch AC and shoots 5 times in one turn when using rapid shot.
Should I tone back my damage a bit or is that normal damage for a lvl 8 character?
@ProfessorCaptainLokiCaprion Step back from the stats a bit and ask yourself this: do I like and want to continue playing this character as a fictional character?
@ProfessorCaptainLokiCaprion lol, I've been half wishing my 4e character would just die already. been playing him for a few years and I kind of want a change.
most of the dislike is the mechanics, not the actual character though
@ProfessorCaptainLokiCaprion Talk to the GM about reshuffling the abilities to make him more combat-worthy. If it's your first PF character, I think it's understandable.
I picked a Carnivalist, but my pet is largely useless. Plus, apparently, I can't keep stealth while scouting ahead of the group! As soon as enemies appear, everyone rolls initiative, meaning I rarely get to sneak attack.
@ProfessorCaptainLokiCaprion yea you can sneak around and if you are not seen you don't even have to fight. If you have sneak attack damage that is important as well so point that out to your dm.
He shows up in Doctor Who questions and leaves comments about notions that aren't explicitly contradicted on-screen, but which are far, far, more complicated and less justified than the answers he's commenting on.
"simplest is mostly true you say? screw you! I'll prove it to youby making up some unfalsifiable shit and use that as evidence"
which is funny for me because that's exactly when the razor works best. - i.e. when you can't prove or disprove, but have to assume something. might as well believe in what's most likely to be true (i.e. fewest assumptions etc) rather than - anything.
One of my favourites is "But New Who never mentioned that simple justification by name (despite referring to it obliquely a half-dozen times) so we must come up with something TWELVE TIMES AS DUMB. Which is going to be hard, because Old Who was really good at being dumb."
Lyra Harpsdotter was going places in life as a closet witch in the big city before she bit off more than she could chew. Talented at blackmail, Lyra tried to coerce a city councilman only to find out that he was in the employ of an extraordinarily unhappy salamander sorcerer. The initial torture, once she was captured, was almost just an introduction; the real punishment was the serpentine curse, dredged from the lips of ancient demons.
Now she works for the salamander to pay off her debt of dishonor in the vain hope that he'll put her hair back to the way it was.
It's not my fault that you're giving out insufficient information. The hell do you even mean by "an in-game explanation"? Do you have any idea how often shit happens in 3.PF just because?
I gotta tell you, you're putting way too much effort asking how or why this should or should not be done. I mean, disguise self to try and represent something that's a native part of the character?
The snakes won't be doing anything you haven't already purchased up-front
anything that makes sense goes even if it's against the balance if that makes any sense
I don't know your games! :D
I don't know mine either really... I only ran one module 3 times with 3 groups of random friends that never played before - all these things didn't come up at all
because they had pregenerated characters, no experience and little time
@Julix My advice? If someone has a cool idea, just let it happen. Don't give it any more mechanical power than it's actually got and let them do cool stuff with the fluff. It's like...okay, this character I'm playing now, Krystal
however people would try to interact with the environment a lot - and I remember doing that in my very first game. I wanted to skin an owlbear - my DM wouldn't even be bothered with it cause it would be just be fluff anyways...
She's got a masterwork tool for Bluff, Diplomacy, Gather Information, and Intimidate. It's a pack of glass cigarettes (you read that right) that doesn't run out.
If there's not a number or a reserved word (like paralyze) on the statement, you can get away with just about anything as long as it makes internal sense.
Like with Brianna - she didn't use ice or water spells.
@Julix Not fluff as you want, but rather fluff as appropriate for the setting. If the DM tells me that this world has no, say, fey creatures, right? I might take a template whose by-the-book origins are fey and instead make it relate to celestials. But it wouldn't be appropriate for me to say that my sorcerer gets her powers from a fey ancestor
@Julix Maybe, but in this specific example, right? Eladrins are a lot like fey, but they're not really fey. A Sorcerer with such heritage might favor their chaotic side and manifest fey-like powers.
And since the world has no fey sages etc would recognize Eladrin magic
I'd be torn in this case. One side of me agrees with Gareth, I want that fluff and this shouldn't mess with which mechanics can be used. But those mechanics are tied to that fluff in my mind. Like people shifting as a minor action in D&D 4e smells kobolds from a mile.
@Zachiel Women are allowed to speak with men as equals, the world is polytheistic, both men and women wield political power, serfs can travel and own weapons, and gold is the currency standard.
The average priest or village witch can keep food from ever spoiling, which means that the salt trade which defined thousands of years of international trade is gone.
Oh, you two know what I'm talking about. Cities built with spells, food provided by spells, fortifications and mundane defenses rendered pretty useless and so on.
@Lord_Gareth and that should be the same for what is possible and what is not. To me (and I repeat, to me) some fluff is tied to the usual convention, and it goes towards the player's expectations
@Julix The Tippyverse, created by Emperor Tippy, is a setting based around the logical consequences of full-9 spellcasters existing, and most specifically the changes caused by the existence of the teleport circle spell.
@Lord_Gareth Interesting. Yeah I imagine there would be intense consequences for that kind of stuff existing... - in the original D&D setting higher levels were reached much less often is that right?
Now, I know that we're far away from bringing the Tippyverse upon our games with a little refluffing... but I'd be trying not to break many expectations, and that's why I usually default to the official fluff. The one people see when they read the manuals and the one they fantasize about.
@Julix Depends on what you consider 'original'. Blackmoor? Couldn't tell you. Grayhawk had more than its share of powerful and imposing sorcerers, including names like Mordenkeinan, Tenser, Bigby, and Iggwilv
Forgotten Realms is defined by its reams of high-level jerks
Iggwilv, incidentally, chats with gods and has this habit of kidnapping demon princes so she can date rape them
@BESW depending on the personality of that wizard... if he's the build a tower hide and keep studying to become more powerful type you might never hear from him :D
@Julix Now we're getting back into "identifying a narrow and unusual set of circumstances in which a thing could be true" when there are many more likely scenarios.
From my end of things, their own characters are the only parts of the campaign world that my players have absolute agency over. My job, in part, is to help them fulfill their cool concepts and to encourage them to contribute to my campaign world.
@Julix In this context, it means that you've interested me or convinced me to do or accept something. As in, "You've sold me on this homebrew PrC," meaning that I'd allow it.
So back to the snakes for a bit just to help me chose which way of doing it I ultimately fly with: I was thinking there was a hugely powerful Medusa witch who terrorized the lands a while back. Heroes were sent to deal with her - it's been quiet for say a decade, but the heroes were never seen agai
My ugly goblin lady gets kicked out for being interested in stuff, reading etc. - she's lucky she escaped with her life
she hears about that and has this really strange hair so she wants to make it become like snakes
and fool everyone into giving her everything she desires
@Julix One example is a complete sharing of memories and experiences, such that each being's personal identity is annihilated and each becomes a new being with all the memories of both.
This goblin of yours is exiled from the tribe and goes seeking power. She finds an old, tired medusa who is sick of being hunted and hated, sick of being hideous. A bargain is struck on an ancient pact-stone in the monster's possession
The goblin gives up her youth and beauty in exchange for the Medusa's sorcery
It is a strict law that bids us to dance. It is a strict law that bids us to distribute our property among our friends and neighbors. It is a good law.
