TRPG General Chat

V2Blast

00:00

and then there's utility ritual spells like Comprehend Languages and Detect Magic

and stuff like Charm Person and Disguise Self

Faerie Fire is also good for giving your damage-dealers advantage against enemies (if they fail the save), especially if the enemies are grouped up

HenryWLee1066

Yeah, I've been super useful at making the others shine. I just have to get used to not being the one doing the fighting.

V2Blast

Yeah, basically. College of Valor is a PHB subclass if you end up not liking the non-martial thing

HenryWLee1066

I've got another level to consider it, but I really want Spiritual Guardians at level 6. I love the idea of that spell.

I'm a Harry Potter fan (Hufflepuff), and it reminds me of a Patronus.

Isaac Reefman

@Shalvenay hi! I’m dropping in and out a lot because I’ve been hanging out with my 2yo (and therefore away from screens) a fair bit last couple of days.

KorvinStarmast

@V2Blast If I may offer a hearty "Amen!" to the Tasha's point. MikeQ applied a very timely Tasha's last week that took a scary monster out of the fight. When it works, it works very well.

V2Blast

00:10

Spirit Guardians is excellent at battlefield control

Isaac Reefman

@HenryWLee1066 Probably a common thing: I’ve had a lot more time with the rules etc then with actually playing the game, so I’ve only played a barbarian and (basically) a rogue, but bard is high on the list for next class! Definitely keeping an eye on the advice you’re getting for inspo!

V2Blast

plus, as long as you can see your allies, you can exempt them from the effect

Bard is one of the few "known casters" that I haven't played yet (maybe the only one?). though I did play the equivalent in Hyperlanes

PHB classes I haven't played yet: bard, cleric, druid, paladin, wizard. (also the PHB ranger, I guess; I've only played the revised ranger)

HenryWLee1066

@IsaacReefman I've read so many damned optimization guides that I always feel shortchanged if I'm not dipping two levels in Hexblade Warlock. I forget it's not a competition - but rather it's a team game.

Isaac Reefman

Right!? It’s so easy to head down that path. I feel like 5e (compared to 3.5e) is actively trying to limit the appeal of optimisation by limiting its scope while leaving lots of room for flavour, though I haven’t played 3.5e, so that may be a misunderstanding.

V2Blast

Haha. I always try to make the most of my class, but I've never multiclassed for optimization reasons :P

I don't think 5e's trying to limit the appeal of optimization, but rather to keep it balanced so that there aren't "trap" builds and flatly superior builds like in previous editions

Shalvenay

00:21

@V2Blast yeah, I'm with you here

V2Blast

so you can multiclass and be effective, or single-class and be effective, but you can't combine features and traits in a way that wildly outclasses everything else

KorvinStarmast

@V2Blast What do you mean by battlefield control in re Spirit Guardians? PS: no trap builds besides 4 elements monk. ;)

V2Blast

I mean, you force creatures to either take damage when they get close to you, or stay out of your area

Isaac Reefman

I actually like the idea of using spirit guardians to control who gets away from you/increase damage for a melee beast, or alternatively control who is likely to try to come up and hit you if you’re more of a glass cannon. That’s how I understood it, too; discourage certain things, effect how others on the battlefield are likely to behave.

V2Blast

so you control the way in which enemies can safely move around the battlefield (in terms of getting close to you, anyway)

KorvinStarmast

00:24

@V2Blast My only problem with it was that at the level where I used it the monsters did not have much problem hitting me. Keeping the darned thing up was a challenge.

Isaac Reefman

Ranged attacks would still be a problem too, though cutting words could help if you’re using it as a bard.

I actually love the bardic spells/abilities that basically shame creatures into missing or (even better) taking damage. Vicious mockery probably rarely ends up being the killing blow, but when it does...

KorvinStarmast

As to MC, my nephew did a neat MC: one level of monk, the rest cleric, dex/wis build. That unarmored defense feature was sorta nice, no encumbrance problems, and early levels a quarterstaff plus bonus attack made for decent fighting when called for.

Isaac Reefman

@KorvinStarmast that’s cool - also from a flavour POV; monks in DnD seem to often lean towards “Shaolin monk” sort of thing, whereas that feels more like a western religious monk with some badass background to me.

KorvinStarmast

@IsaacReefman I wish that campaign had not gone dormant, we were having good fun.

Shalvenay

@KorvinStarmast that'd work pretty well for replicating my Gnoll monk/cleric in 5e I reckon?

KorvinStarmast

00:30

Yes, I think it would.

Isaac Reefman

Ok, here’s one; any actual game-running dos and donts type tips for me first-time DMing a game for first time role playing?

I’m either going to run the first chapter of LMoP or a premade 1st level one shot adventure, though if we go over and need a second session that’s fine.

KorvinStarmast

Uh, don't forget to have fun. Don't forget to keep pace of play moving. err in favor of the players.

Isaac Reefman

Especially on keeping the pace of play moving, do you have any tips on how to achieve that or what pitfalls to avoid?

KorvinStarmast

Make sure each person gets a turn in the spotlight; make sure each person is listened to. it's a social setting, your social skills are a big factor ...

@IsaacReefman Have you had a session zero yet?

@IsaacReefman have they already created characters?

Isaac Reefman

No, I think I may have to have individual phone calls instead of a session 0, as time is something of an issue.

some have created characters, others not.

I’m giving the option of either creating one from scratch with as much help as they want, or picking one of the premade ones from WotC’s website.

Or option 2 with some customisation. Sticking to the PHB unless someone discovers something else they really want to try, which is unlikely considering none of them really have other resources - they’d have to do some online digging even to find anything.

Also, I’ve never had a session 0... may need to look up exactly what that entails rather than guessing based on context.

im driving now so I’ll be out for 90 mins or so...

KorvinStarmast

00:42

Oh, dear, company has arrive, Sorry I must go!

V2Blast

@IsaacReefman: make sure they know where to look if they look online, lest they return with something from dandwiki

but yeah, session 0 is a good thing to have

a list of things that may be useful to cover (you don't have to cover them all, but this gives a pretty comprehensive set of things you could cover): reddit.com/r/dndnext/comments/601awb/…

BESW

01:18

Sep 7 '14 at 12:44, by BESW

Here's my cardinal rule of gaming, for players and GMs alike: Make sure everyone is safe and happy, in that order, and talk with the group about what will help keep them safe and happy.

Sep 7 '14 at 12:48, by BESW

If you can get a group dynamic where players feel free to give input on the experience, and you listen to it, then your mistakes will be forgiven and your triumphs will belong to the group. That will make a memorable experience.

Isaac Reefman