TRPG General Chat

Shalvenay

12:00 AM

not a whole heck of a lot

@C.Ross what sort of campaign is it?

Miniman

It's the stack shutdown they warned us about - looks like chat is unaffected, though.

Shalvenay

hey there @NautArch

Karelzarath

Dang it! Right as I was about to ask a question, too!

Judging by the post time on their Twitter, they locked it down a minute before I hit the submit button. Talk about timing.

Ben

@Karelzarath They were waiting for it

@Miniman Lucky. I'm all caffeine up too... I would have gone crazy from the lack of activity

Karelzarath

"There's a lurker about to ask a question. Looks like he's done proofing. Ready... now!"

Miniman

12:10 AM

@Ben Only 20 minutes, anyway.

We're already halfway through the dark times.

Ben

@Karelzarath "HOOOLD...!"

@Miniman [Something about "not being able to make it" and "go on without me"]

SevenSidedDie

191

Q: Brief outage planned for Wed, May 3, 2017 at 8pm US/Eastern (00:00 UTC) (like a fire drill for computers)

MicroVersion: Planned service degradation: All Stack Overflow/Stack Exchange sites read-only for 20 minutes on Wed, May 3, 2017 shortly after 8PM US/Eastern (midnight UTC). If you blink, you'll miss it. Short version: There will be a service degradation for up to 20 minutes shortly after 8PM US...

Ben

@SevenSidedDie They misspelled "Outrage"

Miniman

@Ben 3/4 of the way there! Just hold on, I promise we'll get through this together!

Ben

@Miniman [gurgling noises]

Karelzarath

12:20 AM

flips the bitbucket WHARRGARBL!

Miniman

@Ben We made it! [checks pulse] Oh, no...not like this.

Karelzarath

Question posted. And now the "was this a dumb question" paranoia sets in.

Ben

@Miniman [blargh...]

@Karelzarath Better than the "What's the answer to this?" (Does some research to show I've done some research) "Oh. That's what the answer was..."

Karelzarath

@Ben Heh. That is true.

C. Ross

@Shalvenay Homebrew plot set in the 5e Forgotten Realms

Miniman

12:24 AM

@Karelzarath It's bad to answer questions in chat because it circumvents the normal process, etc, but I'm not going to join another site just to say: You might want to look at Alteryx. It aims to be SSIS for everything, if you see what I mean.

Shalvenay

@C.Ross ah.

Karelzarath

@Miniman Ooooh. I like the sound of that.

Shalvenay

@C.Ross what campaign style? (sandboxy, slash-and-hack, intrigue, something else?)

Karelzarath

checks price and dies

C. Ross

@Shalvenay I try to keep it balanced, but I tend towards intrigue, and heroic action

Shalvenay

12:27 AM

say...is it a bad thing if your backstory writing style de-emphasizes dramatic vectors/hooks, instead providing mostly explanation of how the character came to be?

Ben

@Shalvenay Can you give an example?

Karelzarath

@Shalvenay If you're going into mitosis and gene expression, yes.

Shalvenay

@C.Ross ah. I find myself leaning somewhat more sandboxy -- I personally like to go down roads less traveled, which often include policy-wonkish approaches to in-universe politics

C. Ross

@Shalvenay For which game and playstyle?

Miniman

@Karelzarath I'm not sure about their terms of use, but you might be able to use the free 14-day trial for your current need, at least.

C. Ross

12:29 AM

@Shalvenay I rarely have players who enjoy that sort of thing, and I can talk to myself anytime :-D

Shalvenay

@C.Ross D&D mostly these days, and usually a somewhat hack-and-slash or sandbox playstyle (I don't run into high-intrigue very often in the stuff I'm dealing with)

@Karelzarath no, I don't go that far :) it usually comes out as a highlight-reel of history, just without accessible hooks surrounding the PC

C. Ross

@Shalvenay That sounds fine for that play style. High drama and games like Fate need the hooks more.

@Shalvenay What's high intrigue?

Shalvenay

@Ben Jherala's backstory is a good example actually -- trying to put pressure on her family will fail miserably for an easy example

@C.Ross close to what you refer to by high-drama -- high-stakes, with serious consequences for actions

trogdor

@C.Ross that's like, very little combat or puzzle solving in favor of intrigue itself

Shalvenay

@trogdor yeah

trogdor

12:33 AM

social interactions, maybe political stuff

Shalvenay

@C.Ross yeah -- I tried the full Fate Core character creation workup once, but flopped around like a dead fish flailing at it

C. Ross

So I try to do intrigue with consequences and tension, but usually it drives into combat and adds flavor to it

Shalvenay

@C.Ross ah.

C. Ross

@Shalvenay Fate core creation is most fun in a group, riffing off each others ideas

Shalvenay

@C.Ross yeah -- my problem was with the formulation though

C. Ross

12:35 AM

@Shalvenay eh?

Shalvenay

@C.Ross I couldn't get started, no matter how much progress the rest of the group made

even though I had a char concept in mind IIRC, even

I just couldn't fit it into how Fate wanted the backstory done up

square peg, meet round hole.

trogdor

@C.Ross yeah, I would say this is the case as well

C. Ross

so it goes sometimes

Like me and Numenera, it's on my shelf, I want to love it, just haven't made it work

SevenSidedDie

@Shalvenay Yeah. Some games really want initial character concepts to be less rigid, and to be shaped by the character-creation minigame. Fate play begins during chargen, rather than after. (The Burning Wheel is explicit about this — it warns that your character will not be entirely who you planned them to be.)

BESW

My group's having a lot more success with guided aspect prompts, like Masters of Umdaar does it.

C. Ross

12:38 AM

Hi @SevenSidedDie, good to see you around

BESW

And Bubblegumshoe's chargen is hardcore "tying you into the world" play.

Shalvenay

@SevenSidedDie yeah -- I think it was more a matter of not being able to come up with anything that made sense for the prompts

C. Ross

@Shalvenay Depending on the Fate game that may not matter :-)

SevenSidedDie

@C.Ross *waves* Of course I gotta run; people coming over to play Seafall.

C. Ross

Yeah, time for me to wander off as well

Keep up the good work folks!

BESW

12:41 AM

ttfn

Ben

@Shalvenay In truth, I often let the backstory build after getting to know the character more. I often fail to play a character that, from the beginning, has certain personality characteristics. I tend to just play a character that reacts to things to begin with, then let the world build how they interact with things - other players, and how the world interacts with them helps build the character. And then from there, I build the backstory.

Shalvenay

@Ben yeah -- I think what happens with me is that the backstory is just as much shaped by justifying mechanics as it is justifying personality traits

@SevenSidedDie yeah -- this goes back all the way to Traveller xD

Shalvenay

1:04 AM

hey there @ShadowKras

ShadowKras

hey @Shalvenay

Shalvenay

how're things going?

ShadowKras

Pretty good, how about you?

Shalvenay

alright here. kind of in a lull these days, but I suppose that's not so much a bad thing?

@ShadowKras mind if I ask what systems you play/have experience with?

ShadowKras

The list is big

Shalvenay

1:15 AM

xD

Ben

@Shalvenay I deal with "lulls" with Minecraft

Shalvenay

@Ben haha :P

ShadowKras

i have a list somewhere on my profile, no clue how to find it though

Ben

@Shalvenay I have actually started building maps from my DnD games. It's really fun to see it all come to life

ShadowKras

ah, found it: rpg.stackexchange.com/users/21153/shadowkras?tab=profile

Shalvenay

1:17 AM

@ShadowKras ah. yeah -- part of me wants to try to play GURPS and/or Burning Wheel (as well as a suitably themed Savage WOrlds game perhaps, for that matter)

ShadowKras

though iv gm'ed many, my expertise lies only in a few of them.

Shalvenay

@Ben ...yeah, I have the problem that I tend to be pretty demanding as a map-user, more than probably 99% of most folks are

which makes me want to make maps that can meet that degree of demand, which rules out the whole "artistic cartography" thing from jump

@ShadowKras where would you say it lies?

also, with that broad of a system list -- are you more of a narrativist, a hack-and-slasher, or a sandbox gamer?

ShadowKras

d20 and shadowrun most likely.

i mix all 3 to be honest

Shalvenay

ah

ShadowKras

there are sessions i gm without a single roll for combat

Shalvenay

1:22 AM

I tend to swing sandboxy/wonky, which can be...interesting

ShadowKras

others where everything that happens is a reaction to the PCs actions.

Ben

@Shalvenay In truth, building entire maps are a bit out of reach - Cities and towns from my adventures would be huge, so I really only focus on the smaller, more iconic features, like the evil wizard's tower, or a dungeon, etc.

Shalvenay

which means that I don't have a problem with non-combat play, it just tends to swing sharply away from drama towards puzzle-solving when I'm running it, not just in the sense of conventional dungeon puzzles, but sorts of "social puzzles" if you will

ShadowKras

and others where they wont have 5 minutes of rest between fights and/or trying to survive.

last session was pretty much a dungeon crawl for the entire session.

the one before that... they had two social encounters where only a single dice was rolled on each, and one martial combat. Everything else was roleplay with npcs and between themselves.

And the one before that, two players were missing, so we played pathfinder: bureaucracy edition.

Shalvenay

@ShadowKras haha. that sounds like my style xD

ShadowKras

1:25 AM

They literally gained xp for playing the laws of a settlement

Shalvenay

@ShadowKras at least you didn't have to wrap your head around how to RP the work of an appeals court...

ShadowKras

one player was nearly sent to jail (and possibly turned into a slave) for casting Light inside a tavern (magic is strictly forbidden without permission).

Shalvenay

being someone who's view of Lawful hinges heavily on due process can make life...interesting.

ShadowKras

They had to obtain permits to practice their trades (downtime-related), and pay taxes for all kind of stuff they were doing while the others were away.

@Shalvenay the guy who cast Light had to appeal to a specific breach in the law so he could walk off with a fine instead of jail time.

Shalvenay

@ShadowKras heheh

@ShadowKras could be worse. could have someone walk into town, apply for said permit, and write "thermonuclear detonation: 1GT x12" on it where it asks what's to be cast. hahahahahaha.

ShadowKras

1:30 AM

This one time gm'ing iron kingdoms, the players were arrested for treason, charges they were mostly innocent. Some organization was trailing them and paid witnesses to change their version of facts. They had to find breaches in every argument used against them while they had no help from outside.

Shalvenay

@ShadowKras yeesh, I'd be going after evidence of the witness tampering itself at that point

ShadowKras

they couldnt get out though

so they had to solve everything while in jail or in court

Shalvenay

...yeah. that sounds messy to say the least.

ShadowKras

i kept notes of all their adventures since session 1, until 10-ish i think.

everything that i could subvert, i did

like, this one time they teamed with a necromancer apprentice that was trying to find a serial killer, that was actually a ghost-like creature that was murdering peasants.

Shalvenay

well, what I've been trying to think about is how to subvert the entire courtroom drama genre -- people don't realize just what can happen when the authors of the law naff it up :P

ShadowKras

1:32 AM

This organization found out about this girl after they had solved everything, they found out that she was a necromancer (a forbidden art), executed her and used her as evidence of them being friends with evildoers.

BESW

If a GM worked that hard to make all my character's positive and constructive actions turn out to be negative and destructive, I'd never trust that GM again.

ShadowKras

The organization was actually a branch of the army, they were soldiers of this very army, but answered to someone else.

@BESW in the end everything was okay, they managed to pull it off with only a single charge instead of six.

i purposedly left openings on the witnesses arguments that they could exploit

Shalvenay

everyone who does fictional courts seems to assume "the law is the law" and doesn't realize that the law itself can screw it up hardcore

ShadowKras

their issue was trying to remember everything they did for like...30 months of game time (about 10 sessions).

BESW

That's not what I mean; whether they got punished for the accusations doesn't change the fact that the GM actively told me that my actions don't matter.

ShadowKras

1:35 AM

But whenever they couldnt remember something i allowed an int check to give out hints.

Shalvenay

sloppy statutory drafting, or simple inattentiveness to the existing base of laws (up to and including constitution level)

ShadowKras

They had an artifact that this organization was after, it was part of the story.

BESW

"Oh, you thought you were doing a good deed? NOPE, you were aiding and abetting evil! Bwahahah your choices are irrelevant."

ShadowKras

in other words, they were framed

Have you played Chrono Trigger? Remember the court scene?

BESW

Of course I haven't; it's a 22-year-old console game in a genre I have no interest in.

trogdor

1:39 AM

not everyone has played Chrono Trigger, I realize a lot of people like it, but the assumption that everyone has played it is overboard

ShadowKras

it went something along those lines. Their actions were corrupted when spoken by witnesses, some stuff were really true, from a different point of view. They had to convince the court that the witness was wrong by presenting proper evidence (some of which, they had), or attempt to escape the charge somehow.

BESW

And yeah, reading back I can see where your pronouns might imply framing, but it wasn't clear and phrases like "everything that i could subvert, i did" sound like you (the GM) were subverting the players' choices.

ShadowKras

The only charge they couldnt get away was one of murder. Their actions indirectly killed a noble. They were supposed to guard one guy, and instead, they chased after a group of villains, leaving this guy unprotected.

Shalvenay

so yeah -- how would you put together a courtroom sequence based on issues of law, not issues of fact? (instead of the parties disagreeing about what happened, everybody involves knows what the facts are, but the parties disagree about what the black-letter law actually means when applied to the facts at hand)

ShadowKras

So the guy was shot, in front of his father, who was a high-ranked officer in the military.

BESW

1:41 AM

@Shalvenay See: Princes' Kingdom.

Shalvenay

@BESW not familiar with the work -- mind telling me more about it?

ShadowKras

@Shalvenay to be honest, my knowledge of law is very limited (law and order episodes and 3 classes on basic stuff)

So i tried to make things more fantastic than accurate

BESW

It's basically built around having a set of immutable but non-specific laws which the PCs are charged with interpreting and enforcing as a panel of itinerant combination investigators/juries/judges.

Shalvenay

@ShadowKras ah. I'm way too much of a criminal justice wonk for that style

ShadowKras

Oh, how well the court recieved their version of the stories was defined by skill checks.

BESW

1:43 AM

And the drama comes from the PCs disagreeing on interpretation and enforcement based on specific cases. The GM is encouraged to take their rulings and then later present new cases which cast those precedents into doubt.

ShadowKras

It wasnt simply my word versus your word.

Shalvenay

I'd argue that at most the murder charge should be negligent manslaughter -- there is no way that those facts could sustain premeditation against the noble without something else there to prove the party's mens rea if you ask me

@BESW xD

ShadowKras

@Shalvenay one player did take ranks in whatever was called the skill that governs laws in the system, but couldnt use it since the start of the campaign.

Shalvenay

@ShadowKras why's that?

@BESW it sounds like an interesting system...

ShadowKras

Because it was mostly a wilderness/exploration campaign for nearly 6 sessions.

They were soldiers with specific missions to find a certain object

The adventure started with them reaching a village that had this object (a mana crystal), and once they secured it, another soldier of higher rank came to this town and took the crystal from them, then started to murder everyone in the village so they wouldnt talk about it. The PCs decided to stand against that and managed to steal the crystal from him and escape.

BESW

1:47 AM

Arguments are resolved by rolling dice based on what's relephant to you AND to the argument ("I'm a prince" is almost always relephant), and then using the dice results in rounds of betting. You can gain more dice mid-scene by making new things relephant, but anything that's involved is put at risk.

ShadowKras

The next several sessions are them travelling back to the capital, solving problems on their way.

Shalvenay

@BESW you have any links re: the system?

ShadowKras

Once they finally got to the capital, they were arrested because of that guy from session 1.

@BESW nice.

BESW

You describe what you do to further your goals, and put forward two dice. The next person has to put forward enough dice to meet or beat the sum of your own dice; the more dice they need to use, the weaker their response is.

ShadowKras

@BESW have you seen the social combat system from A Song of Ice and Fire RPG?

BESW

1:48 AM

(If you can't meet the number on the table, you're out of the scene.)

I have not.

Shalvenay

@ShadowKras I've heard of it, but not seen it in action -- can you describe the mechanic to me briefly?

ShadowKras

Imagine the d20 combat system, a little more abstract, but with several maneuvers you can do in combat, feign, disarm, fight defensively, etc. Now take the exact same mechanics, apply to different stats and skills, have different names that define them in a social enviroment, and you have it.

BESW

Putting forward too many dice means you'll suffer "fallout" from the scene, which may involve any or all of the things that people have put at risk by involving in the scene. Often the easiest way to get more dice so you can stay in the scene is to escalate the kind of risks involved: as a general rule, the more risks a thing implies, the bigger the dice it grants you.

ShadowKras

So you have a score that is your social attack, another for your social defense, another for social "armor". And several maneuvers that mechanically work like combat, but apply to social combat instead.

Like, bluffing is an attack.

You can "Aid another" someone by gathering information about the target.

Shalvenay

...huh. that's...not something I'd have thought of

ShadowKras

1:53 AM

The more aggressive you are, easier it is to cause social damage on others, while also being more vulnerable.

Shalvenay

it'd probably not do very well in my hands, though because it's not congruent with how I operate

hey there @Papayaman1000

Papayaman1000

@Shalvenay hello

ShadowKras

Like, if you view the target with hostility, you will hardly be affected by their social attacks, but you also find it difficult to attack him since you will not open yourself easily.

Shalvenay

how're things going?

BESW

For example, if you're losing an argument (running out of dice) you could invoke your mentor and roll the dice you've invested in that relationship--at the risk of alienating your mentor or tarnishing his reputation, but the risks are still social because it's a social scene.

Or you could draw your sword and roll your sword dice--but now physical injury is a real risk for anyone involved. And if you'd already rolled your mentor dice, it could be your mentor who gets attacked as retaliation for your actions.

ShadowKras

1:54 AM

Now, if you view the target as BFF, both attacking and being attacked by the target will be easy.

Papayaman1000

Found a 2L of cherry vanilla Pepsi. Pretty good.

ShadowKras

So you can cheat easily, but if the target decides to cheat on you, he can do easily aswell.

Shalvenay

alright here

SPavel

@BESW THen you can slay your mentor and usurp his legacy and school

BESW

(Prince's Kingdom is a friendlier re-write of Dogs in the Vineyard.)

Shalvenay

1:57 AM

@BESW sounds useful -- where can I snag a copy?

BESW

@Shalvenay The Princes' Kingdom.

PCs are young princes who travel through the scattered distant islands of their father's kingdom. When the princes encounter an island where their father's benevolent but vague laws are not being followed, it's their responsibility to fix whatever's gone wrong.

Problems follow the ladder of
- injustice (caused by conceit)
- outlaws (caused by disobedience)
- loss of liberty (caused by unrest)
- rebellion (caused by a false leader)
- war and killing

If left unchecked, each leads into the next and the situation escalates.

@Shalvenay Here's the actual order page.

ShadowKras

oh wow, 9 years old

Shalvenay

hey there @RollingFeles

Ben

So: Situation.

RollingFeles

@Shalvenay hi!

Shalvenay

2:12 AM

how're things going?

@Ben shoot

Ben

I have a group of "mercs" that our party has chanced upon, but I have no interest (right now) to create any trouble. I've played up the whole "We don't want trouble if you don't", but I can't really just have them back off completely.

ShadowKras

@Ben are you a player or the GM?

Shalvenay

@Ben ...are they handing out business cards? xD

Ben

GM

@Shalvenay Not at the moment... They might, depending on how the PCs handle it XD

ShadowKras

Do you have any interest in engage those npcs with the PCs? Like chat, play games, hunt, hand out quests?

RollingFeles

2:15 AM

@Shalvenay on one hand i slept almost 8 hours. On the other I'm very sleepy. I'm spending evenings with Battle Brothers and tommorow is the last day before 18 days of leisure :)

Ben

They're chatting now. And by "chatting" they're having the "We won't attack if you don't" talk

BESW

What's the merc's goal and how do the PCs fit into it?

ShadowKras

Yeah, that can escalate quickly

BESW

Instead of thinking "How are the PCs in the way?" think "How will the mercs want to use the PCs to their advantage?"

ShadowKras

My players were in a similar situation two sessions ago. They had to deal with a bugbear.

Shalvenay

2:17 AM

@RollingFeles ah. did I ever get to toss at you a scene that I ran into when i was playing 1e, btw?

ShadowKras

After much discussion between themselves, they agreed to negotiate with this bugbear instead of killing him and calling it a day.

RollingFeles

@Shalvenay nope

BESW

"Have you seen [evidence of target] recently?"

"We're looking for [place] and got lost, do you know where it is?"

Shalvenay

@BESW yeah-- I can see swapping business cards with the mercs to be a nice double-ended hook -- the PCs have someone they can call on for help with bigger jobs, and the mercs might just find themselves in a pickle in the future and ask the PCs for help for that matter

BESW

"We could use some help with [task], because we came unprepared for [scenario], can you help?"

Shalvenay

2:18 AM

in the short term though, all of those are good

@RollingFeles wish to talk in the Not-a-Bar?

BESW

"Hey, you're my cousin's niece's in-law, we should swap embarrassing stories!"

"We ran into [quest] yesterday but didn't have the [time/resources] for it, maybe you'd like to take a look?"

RollingFeles

@Shalvenay yeah, but only if I can read it with interruptions: I'll be on my way to work soon.

Shalvenay

@RollingFeles ah

Ben

2:32 AM

@BESW Purely Random encounter

@BESW Oooh... didn't think of that

BESW

@Ben Sure, that's how you got them there. But now they're there, they have a reason to be there.

Ben

One of the hitches atm is that the PCs don't know where the BBEG is, and they're trying to track them down.

RollingFeles

@Ben when I switched thinking from "how to lay out everything around PCs" to "what goals my NPCs have" running the game became easier and it become more... alive :)

Ben

Perhaps the Mercs know something...

Shalvenay

@Ben perhaps the mercs are hunting the BBEG too?

Ben

2:36 AM

And they might be willing to give 'em some information... for a price

RollingFeles

Or they work for BBEG and doesn't realise that PCs are BBEG's enemies. Or doesn't care. Mercs (typicaly) only care about money and things they should do to get them.

Ben

My first thought is that these mercs have a problem that need to be solved. These two (the PCs) look like they're up to the job...

As for what the job is...

Shalvenay

@Ben subcontracting ;)

BESW

It could be a subcontract, or just some obstacle they need overcome on their way to or from a job...

Maybe not even combat; if there's something your group is good at other than mass murder, it might be fun to have the mercs give them a chance to show that off.

Shalvenay

@BESW yeah -- I know that there are things the merc I've played would take as a job as far as non-combat stuff goes

RollingFeles

2:39 AM

@Ben keep in mind that mercs do want to get more money for less effort. Typical mercs can seek some help, but won't hand over their contract to others.

Ben

Well... for the most part, the players aren't very good at running the story. And by that, I mean they react to basically everything.

RollingFeles

@BESW great idea! In most settings mercs have bad reputation among simple folks for their ruthlessness. PCs can help with something that mercs can't get.

Shalvenay

@RollingFeles ...yeah, that's definitely a common stereotype for sure.

Ben

@BESW So in relation to that idea, I do like it, but they have yet to show any sort of initiative, outside of combat.

[Puns]

BESW

"We're going to be blending into a circus to get close to our next target, and you're obviously recently escaped from one. Can you give us some carney tips?"

Ben

2:42 AM

@BESW "Lost person" warrant - last seen with the circus

BESW

@Ben Check their skills and see if there's something they've put points into but haven't used much.

Ben

The other idea I had was a mini-puzzle-dungeon...

And with no rogue in the party, it could prove interesting

For the most part, there has been a lot of RP-ing, very little puzzle solving, or investigation, and only a little combat.

BESW

Does the party seem frustrated by that?

Ben

@BESW Not particularly

I am probably the most annoyed out of everyone... But just because it's all just storytelling, and there is little else happening outside of "Oh, we go do this... and then that..."

I have one PC that "Rarely ever speaks" but has "persuasion" as a skill...

The other PC isn't overly charismatic, but loves doing inspirational speeches

Also religion...

There has definitely not been much of that

BESW

Maybe the mercs need help with a puzzle-shrine.

Ben

2:59 AM

Like some kind of Vault?

I have some ideas for puzzles... But how would religion work into it?

BESW

Not sure the reference. I'm thinking something kinda like Last Crusade, a temple that's been locked and trapped in ways which adherents to a particular faith would know how to avoid.

Mechanically it might manifest as using Religion skills instead of Trap skills.

Ben

a* Vault

Sorry

BESW

Jun 27 '16 at 21:16, by BESW

@nitsua60 I'm fond of "puzzle shrines." A room dedicated to a deity/concept important to the dungeon's occupant or original creator, which yields a reward (blessing, treasure) if you interact with it in a way that the devoted would know but other folks would probably not.

eg, I once had an intricately carved door that could only be unlocked by someone who knew the story the carvings told.

ShadowKras

Also, graven guardians: d20pfsrd.com/bestiary/monster-listings/constructs/…

BESW

I've also used more brute-force versions, like doors that can only be opened with a monk's ki strike or traps that can be disabled with a cleric's turn/rebuke ability.

Ben

3:06 AM

@BESW I did come across one like that before. A door that opened when hit with an elemental attack - like breath weapon

Although, currently there isn't anyone in the party like that. A Human Fighter and a High Elf Ranger

Oh! She's a moon elf

That could be something...

Ben

3:19 AM

Anyone know much about the Moon elf belief system (outside of the small description in the PHB)

nitsua60

@C.Ross Thanks!

RollingFeles

@nitsua60 hiya! Congrats =)

nitsua60

Thanks. Just got back from a brutal session of Kingdom Death: Monster. One lucky (last) roll away from a TPK.

RollingFeles

@nitsua60 325 bucks D:

but looks awesome

nitsua60

@RollingFeles Worth every penny of someone else's money =)

RollingFeles

3:27 AM

heh =)

nitsua60

I had a buddy who bought it, then wouldn't let himself open it until he dropped 40 pounds.

Yuuki

@nitsua60 Monster Hunter: The Tabletop RPG?

nitsua60

@Yuuki ??

Yuuki

@nitsua60 Monster Hunter is a popular video game series that revolves around hunting singular giant monsters.

It's like a game made entirely of boss rushes/battles.

RollingFeles

@nitsua60 M - Motivation.

nitsua60

3:31 AM

@Yuuki KD:M lives in this perfect grey-space between board game and RPG... and it's got the most successful interplay among design, art direction, theme, and story elements I can recall. An absolute must-play... on someone else's dime!

RollingFeles

@nitsua60 I do want it now :(

And I don't have buddies who are crazy enough to buy it. Looks like I would be such buddy for someone else... somewhen.

Joel Harmon

@nitsua60 I've found the line between RPG and board game depends a lot on what you like about your RPGs.

for example, the game Once Upon a Time is literally "collectively tell a story"

Ben

Ok. I have a bit of a resource on Elf Religion (or particularly moon elf religion)

forgottenrealms.wikia.com/wiki/Moon_elf#Magic_and_religion

Joel Harmon

as opposed to a number of board games that are more along the lines of "here's your character, there's the monsters". Map optional.

Ben

Any one interested in helping me build a themed shrine?

Joel Harmon

3:42 AM

Moon elf, eh? Place the magnetic moon at the right spot in the sky given the stars

Ben

@JoelHarmon Perhaps identify a constellation?

Joel Harmon

if they have a racial spell like prestidigitation, it could be casting that in some way

Ben

@JoelHarmon Nah. I don't think they have that... hang on

Joel Harmon

I didn't see anything on that page, but I don't even know what system you're in, so...

Ben

5e

@ShadowKras Apparently the PC is the equivalent of "Agnostic"... so that could work

Joel Harmon

3:49 AM

are moon elves in a supplement?

Ben

@JoelHarmon Not in this story

She's the only one, outside of their kingdom

Joel Harmon

ah

Ben

So, yes, there are others, but she has chosen to be apart from them

Joel Harmon

and I was looking for a rule book she was built from

Ben

@JoelHarmon D&D 5e PHB

High Elf subrace

Joel Harmon

3:51 AM

there we go

I was looking for a moon elf subrace and getting very confused

Ben

Oh. haha

Joel Harmon

You might go with the shrine being a magic item you can attune to, but is too big to move and requires you to worship some particular god

Ben

I think that's what the loot is - but the mercs want it for their bounty, so the PCs have to hand it over to get the information they need

Joel Harmon

well, you were saying "Any one interested in helping me build a themed shrine?"

a themed shrine could well be a large magic item that, say, has an extra dimensional space containing emergency funds or something

or maybe I'm muddled enough that I should give up and wander off

talk to you later.

Ben

@JoelHarmon Oh, no I meant as in a place of worship haha

Or... Like a shrine dedicated to a deity, holding a treasure, guarded against thieves

Ben

4:11 AM

I'm feeling something to do with moonbeams too...

Ben

4:21 AM

Blast it. Here's that "coffee break" period again...

doppelgreener

5:34 AM

@C.Ross thank you very much :)

And good morning folks!

Miniman

@doppelgreener Don't you mean "good morning, lesser beings"?

Ben

How are we feeling today Mr. @greener?

doppelgreener

@Miniman That would be bad PR with the lesser beings if I called them that.

Ben

Whelp. Looks like it's the first three letters

doppelgreener

@JoelHarmon Someone fixed that:

2

Q: ModColorFix for Chat

Just a very very simple userscript that changes moderator username in chat from blue to green. Requested by and built for @doppelgreener on becoming a mod. Link to Github Repo Link to install Any problems, ideas, etc, drop me a line here or at Github, and I'll see what I can do :)

script chat

2

@Ben Pretty good! I am up super early & heading to the gym and looking forward to it. 💪

Ben

5:39 AM

@doppelgreener Good to hear :)

Miniman

@doppelgreener Minions? Mooks? Slaves?

doppelgreener

@Miniman Mods are more like community minions though than the other way around, most of the time, so that just won't do. 🤔

Ben

@doppelgreener So... by that logic... "Good morning Overlords"?

Miniman

@doppelgreener I'll work on it.

Ben

What about a timed puzzle?

A moving room, and directional beams of (moon)light

Aim the light in a particular way, so the entrance/exit to the room is opened, but it also moves?

Miniman

5:46 AM

That's very much a classic videogame trope - how your players will respond to that you know better than anyone else.

doppelgreener

@Miniman Much obliged, citizen. Report in with your completed work later for debriefing and quarantine.

Ben

Hmm... Well it's the best I've got so far... so we'll see

Miniman

@Ben Wise words from a giantitp forum sig:

> Active Abilities are great because you - the player - are demonstrating your Dwarvenness or Elfishness. You're not passively a dwarf, you're actively dwarfing your way through obstacles.

4

Ben

@Miniman So Darkvision and Magic Affinity?

I think there's something about sleep in there too

Miniman

@Ben So, for moon elves, their only active ability is a free cantrip, right?

trogdor

5:50 AM

the elf sleep thing is definitely passive

Ben

Oh... right. duh

@Miniman Without looking at the phb...?

Miniman

@Ben Pretty sure.

Hmmm, that's sort of tricky, though.

Cos if you make a dungeon that needs a specific cantrip, it'll have to just happen to be the one your player picked.

doppelgreener

@Miniman that is great. I love their verbinating of those words

Miniman

@doppelgreener Yeah, it's one of the best things I've seen in a forum sig, well, ever.

Ben

Well, to set up the scene: It's a Moon Elf-themed mini dungeon. A band of mercs (bandits) have joined a Human and Elf (through in-universe conditioning, both of them have darkvision)

Miniman

5:57 AM

Here's a thought - test that they both have a cantrip and weapon training. It's a surprisingly rare combination outside of elves.

Ben

Human definitely not - The elf is the only one with that

Miniman

In fact, I don't think it can happen without multiclassing or feats.

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