TRPG General Chat

Colin Gross

16:01

@Yuuki I've actually seen something akin to that. Where the clever use of a cycle based card trick ensured the result of the card pulled for a character could be predetermined.

I'd probably practice it a dozen times perfectly then bork it a runtime.

Ender Look

Can I ask a balancing question? (D&D 5e)
We are designing a homebrew race, inspired in Half-(High)Elf, (Protection)Aasimar and Avariel.
Basically, the race is a Half-Elf / Aasimar hybrid (parents of different races), or in other words: 1/2 human, 1/4 elf, 1/4 angel (2 human, 1 elf and 1 angel grandparents).

Traits:
Ability Score Increase. +2 CHA, +1 DEX, +1 at your choice.
Age. Up to 200 years.
Aligment. Tends towards their elf and angelical roots. Defy societies (chaotic) and do what they think its fine for everybody (good).
Size. Medium, human height.
Speed. 30 feet.
Darkvision. Blessed with a radiant soul and an elvish ancestry, your vision can easily cut through darkness. You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can't discern color in darkness, only shades of gray.

GreySage

It looks like someone ran google translate twice on my answer, and posted it again:

1

A: How can I tell if I am a problem player?

There is no general 'Issue Player' What may be an issue at my table may not be an issue at yours. The equivalent goes for various recreations, just as various frameworks (the normal play in DnD is altogether different than the normal play in Paranoia for instance). Consequently we can't spread ...

Colin Gross

@EnderLook Ability score increase total is 4. Charm advantage. Immune to sleep. Darkvision. Racial cantrip. Racial healing spells. Two extra languages. That's far better than the standard races by a considerable margin.

Yuuki

@EnderLook Completely unrelated quibble, but depending on the setting, aasimar may or may not be half-angel.

Aasimar are planetouched which means that outsiders interacted with their ancestors, but it's not always in a sexual manner.

Ender Look

Half-elf has +2 CHA and +1 in two abilities at your choice

@Yuuki Interesting, I'll have to take note of that

@ColinGross So, shall I change the ASI?

GreySage

16:10

@EnderLook If you lose the 2 healing spells it would be balanced

Carcer

it's basically the same as half-elves except that you've replaced skill versatility with the cantrips/free spells

and those free spells are definitely more valuable than skill versatility is

Yuuki

Lesser Restoration for sure.

Colin Gross

Do 1/2 elves get fey ancestry?

Carcer

yes.

dndbeyond.com/compendium/rules/basic-rules/races#HalfElf

Maiko Chikyu

I have a slight system advise question. Which system would be good for spacefaring traders that focus less on combat and more on personal interactions?

Ender Look

16:11

@ColinGross Yes, but not sure if 1/4 does

Colin Gross

They don't get the meditation thing

Carcer

half elves aren't described as trancing, no

but they still have resistance to charms and sleep

the rules have no concept of a 1/4 elf

Ender Look

@GreySage But my brother (the race is for him) wants healing.

Carcer

if a half-elf and a human have a child the result is mechanically either a human or a half-elf

GreySage

@EnderLook Then he should either play a class with healing spells, or you should take other stuff out of the race

Colin Gross

16:13

@EnderLook Healing for free is a hell of a thing. See if he'll take free limited wish or a +3 weapon as well /S

Ender Look

I will let my brother talk in the chat using my account:

So now you are talking with him

Colin Gross

@EnderLook Just buy potions. They're cheap and available.

@EnderLook OOoo... this will be like a split personality thing! No thanks.

Carcer

is there a reason you didn't just use the Healing Hands racial feature of the Aasimar?

MikeQ

@MaikoChikyu Depends, what kind of personal interactions do you have in mind?

Yuuki

@EnderLook How much healing does he/you want?

Do you envision yourself spending most of your time in combat healing your allies?

Colin Gross

16:14

@MaikoChikyu If you get a chance, ask @BESW your gaming system related questions. I think he's played ALL of them.

Yuuki

Or just a tiny bit of emergency healing just in case?

Maiko Chikyu

Like being friends with the shipyard owner in the star base they frequent or negotiating prices with the local governor.

Carcer

Prayer of Healing isn't an in-combat emergency option, btw

Maiko Chikyu

Things that will anchor them to the world.

Carcer

lesser restoration might be useful in a fight, but prayer of healing has a 10-minute cast

Colin Gross

16:15

@Yuuki In combat healing is rarely worth the trouble in the action economy.

Yuuki

@ColinGross But it's character fantasy for some players. I'm not concerned with combat optimization in this situation.

If you're homebrewing a race for someone, then you should be familiar with what they want, not what you think they should want or what's good for them.

GreySage

@EnderLook The Aasimar (protector) race from Volo's already has a small heal included, as well as necrotic/radiant resistance and a 1/LR fly ability

MikeQ

@MaikoChikyu There's some space-seafaring adventures for Fate, I think one is called "Sails Full of Stars", although I haven't played that myself

Colin Gross

@Yuuki My concerns about homebrew are usually about the other players and balancing the game so that one special snowflake doesn't outshine or step on other roles toes.

Ender Look

I will be a Favored Soul Sorcerer + Celestial Warlock. I was thinking between Half-High Elf and Aasmar. The problem was that 1º Aasimar has light cantrip, and Celestial Warlock too, 2º Aasimar can fly for a minute, and my DM don't want that, 3º Aasimar (protection) has +1 Wisdom.
So I ask if I could change the Wisdom for other thing like Dexterity or Constitution (because I have both of them at 15, instead of 14 like wisdom) and If ligh could be change for other cantrip which Celestial Warlock don't give me. My idea was to make a High Elf touched by a Angel, like a kind of Avarial (with no …

Yuuki

16:19

Favored Soul Sorcerer + Celestial Warlock gets plenty of class-based healing options to where you really shouldn't be concerned with having racials for it.

Carcer

that doesn't sound unreasonable - the exceptionable thing was the extra spells being added to the racial features yes

Ender Look

@GreySage Yes but it doesn't show the elf bloodline I want to have

Yuuki

Just use the Half-Elf race. Your aasimar-ness is well-represented via Favored Soul.

GreySage

@EnderLook Not everything has to be tied to your mechanical race. You can just BE a half-half-elf/half-aasimar

Yuuki

There's a whole to-do about tying character flavor into mechanical features but that's a discussion for another time.

GreySage

16:21

Or maybe use Half-Elf with Celesital resist. instead of Fey Ancestry

Carcer

yeah, the stuff that was pasted was basically the same as a normal half-elf except it had skill versatility replaced with extra spells, that was the troublesome bit

Yuuki

Favored Soul class fantasy is incredibly close to aasimar race fantasy, tbh.

Carcer

you could just play a half-elf and let your whole touched-by-celestials thing be represented by your classes, both of which are very thematically indicative of a special connection to the celestial

Yuuki

I would go so far to say that Favored Soul is basically aasimar in class form.

Rubiksmoose

@GreySage oh wow you are totally right. Flagged it.

Colin Gross

16:23

@Yuuki I'm with you on that count. I'm a fan of narrative reskinning existing mechanics.

GreySage

@Rubiksmoose I used a custom flag, was there something else I should have used?

Ender Look

I want to be a Avariel (the avariel name of race, not the race of SCA with has free fly).
Basically, a Protection Asimmar (high elft touched instead of human touched):
1º +1 Dex instead of Wis.
2º Fey Ancestry instead of Celestial Resistance.
3º A Cleric cantrip intead of Ligh Bearer (light) (like the additional mage cantrip of high elf, but instead of mage for a cleric) (because I have already ligh)
4º Elf life spam (age) insted of an improved human.

Carcer

no, custom flag is appropriate there

Yuuki

@ColinGross Well, my point is that there's a inherent flaw with trying to represent your character narrative through mechanical features.

Carcer

I flagged it too

GreySage

16:25

@EnderLook That seems fine to me

Carcer

@EnderLook I don't think there's anything horrendously unbalanced about those features that you have specifically proposed

again, the problem was that what was originally pasted to us had extra free spells at 3rd/5th level

and those were too much.

Yuuki

Side note, I wouldn't be so concerned about "wasting" a free cantrip. They're useful but not so much that you would consider homebrewing a race so you don't double-dip on the same free cantrip.

Ender Look

Excelent.
Maybe migh DM change the Radiant Soul with some type of spell progession, because he is not likely to allow me fly, even if it is only 1 minute per long rest.

Yuuki

Remind him that activating Radiant Soul requires a full action.

Colin Gross

@Yuuki Also depends on the cantrip. A utility one, sure. A direct damage cantrip for free steps on the toes of the feat that gives you a cantrip

Yuuki

16:29

I used to play a bunch of Protection Aasimar. I rarely used Radiant Soul in combat simply because my time was often better spent actually doing something every round.

About the only times I used Radiant Soul was so the party caster didn't have to prepare Levitate every day just in case there was something out of reach that Mage Hand couldn't help with.

Colin Gross

@Yuuki opening up with that is +3 damage per attack or spell for 10 rounds. That's not shabby. You're sac'ing a single action for it.... should pay off in three rounds?

GreySage

@Yuuki "I embrace my Celestial heritage, letting the light and glory of the heavens fill me and lift me up to... get something off the top shelf."

2

Rubiksmoose

Can people downvote/delete/flag this answer? It is plagiarizing GreySage.

Yuuki

@ColinGross I always had to either reposition to make sure my squishies didn't get bullrushed or slap an emergency heal on a squishy.

Rubiksmoose

@GreySage I don't think so. I also used a custom flag.

I'm super intrigued at what this is. Is it a bot?

Carcer

16:32

If you have any prep time, kicking off Radiant Soul immediately before you get into it doesn't seem bad

Yuuki

Or I needed spike damage right that moment to get the big dude's attention or kill them before they got to my squishies.

Carcer

like "the bad guys are behind this door, let's get ready to kick it in" angelic chorus begins

Mark Wells

Angelic chorus sings something by Disturbed, possibly.

Yuuki

@Carcer We typically either got ambushed in that campaign or there wasn't a "combat's about to happen in the next room, here's a door you can hide behind to prepare before you burst in".

There was a surprising amount of cave diving, where you don't find a lot of doors.

Carcer

ah well. Just saying, I can see it seeing use

it's an option for dealing with flying enemies, too

@MarkWells cherubim singing oo-ah-ah-ah-ah

Colin Gross

16:36

@Carcer I find the grapple the flying thing an entertaining way of dealing with them.

Yuuki

@EnderLook's DM seems very set against having flight so I wanted to explain that Radiant Soul is a very situational ability. They're no aarakocra, that's for sure.

Carcer

yes, fair enough

that rarest of mods has intervened, greysage!

w-w-white dia^W^Wcommunity diamond!

Ender Look

@Yuuki Ok, right now I'm the DM (not the player [brother]). I wasn't sure about allow him fly because I read that makes combat much easier, and weird. But you have right, I should let him

Yuuki

Flight is definitely a very advantageous power to have.

The importance is how much restriction is on that flight.

Carcer

so flying can be very powerful, if as a DM you design encounters and puzzles forgetting that characters have access to the ability to fly

Yuuki

16:43

Aarakocra, for example, have a nearly unrestricted ability to fly. They just can't wear heavy armor.

As a result they're banned in AL play.

Radiant Soul requires a full action to activate and only lasts 1 minute.

And you can only do it once a day.

GreySage

@Carcer Apparently we should have used spam. Pretty high quality spam, I must say.

Carcer

@GreySage makes sense. Oh well

Yuuki

So as long as your encounters don't center around keeping something out of reach for a short period of time, Radiant Soul shouldn't be unbalancing.

Carcer

hooray!

Yuuki

@GreySage IIRC, spam flags are community-validated. In that if you have enough spam flags, it'll be auto-deleted.

Ender Look

16:46

By the way, a High Elf touched by an Angel, how much years should be its lifespan? As a DM, I want to put him low lifespan (that is why I wanted to make a half-elf-angel and not elf-angel). As a player, he says: "If a human barely reach 100 years, and when touched by an Angel reach 160. If and Elf lives 750, an angel elf should live much longer, like 1.000 as the real Avariels, which lives exactly 1.000" So, what do you think?

Yuuki

How important would this be to the campaign?

GreySage

@EnderLook Why does it matter?

Rubiksmoose

@GreySage Spam for what I have no idea, but it sure was something. But yeah it was auto-deleted from flags. I still think the custom flag was a good choice as well.

Ender Look

I (DM) am afraid of what he could do in 1.000 years, a lot. He (player) is afraid of what little things can be done in only 1.000 years XD

Yuuki

Are you planning on spanning this campaign for a millennium?

Carcer

16:47

yeah, that's not really a balance question

Ender Look

@Yuuki He is afraid of having and "expiration" time which can't be reverted even with true resurrection!

Colin Gross

@EnderLook Rarely makes much of a difference. Especially for high level characters that have the means to seek out longevity should they desire it.

Ender Look

@Carcer I know, but I would like to ask anyway

Carcer

the rules already don't care whether a character will live to be 90 or 900

Yuuki

@EnderLook Here's a thought. I have never played a game where lifespan has mattered.

Carcer

16:48

so in this case I'd be a bit wary about how attached your brother might be getting to the character if he is upset by the idea of a natural death at a thousand years old

Colin Gross

@Yuuki It can be a narrative driving force for half-orcs and goliaths. I've had that come up as a character's motivation for doing things here an now.

Yuuki

If your character dies of old age, be that 100 or 1000, rather than a full party wipe, that's success /s.

Ender Look

A bit rare, but actualy he never player in any game without elfs, due elfs usually has the longest (if not endless) lifespan XD

Even in games where time doesn't exist

Like wesnoth

Yuuki

@ColinGross Narrative motivations sure, but I have never played a game where the actual mechanics behind lifespan mattered.

No "Oh, it's your 100th birthday, you're dead, Jim."

Carcer

okay

so

if this is really a concern

Colin Gross

16:51

@Yuuki Nor I in 3.5 edition and onward. Did hinder you in 2nd edition. Haste would age you and so would a number of monsters... which is one way to kill a human.

Ender Look

@Carcer I know it! He is sick!

Carcer

the DMG has a section in chapter 7 on epic boons, for giving to characters who have reached 20th level as a way of still getting some advancement...

one of which is the boon of immortality, which just says you stop aging naturally and will never die of old age.

Colin Gross

@Carcer Sounds like a curse.

Ender Look

@Carcer Nice!!!

Carcer

depends on your point of view

but anyway, the option is there in the published material for a character to last basically forever, if you assume he will reach 20th level and keep doing cool stuff

Ender Look

16:52

Ok, so his bond must be the search of an epic boon, great!

My family has call me to have lunch, I suppose I will give him a thousand

Yuuki

A half-blood with a fancy soul in search of immortality. Is your brother playing Lawful Good Voldemort?

Colin Gross

@Yuuki There are non-evil lich variants in Eberron.

Carcer

I think in FR, as well

or... some sort of intelligent non-evil undead, in FR

as is traditional for FR, they're a special kind of elf

Ender Look

Ah, before that, just a simple question for trying to balance a free fly from other guides is good this?
1) Duration a minute.
2) Speed 10 * PROF.
3) Uses as SCORE modifier per long rest.
4) Activation as an action with ten feet wide of space to deploy its wings and at least ten feet height to fly

@Yuuki I'll have to do research about that

Colin Gross

@EnderLook That's a lot of free flying.

Ender Look

16:55

@ColinGross I now... that was posted by my brother (player), not me

Yuuki

Score modifier per long rest is perhaps the biggest sticking point here.

Colin Gross

@EnderLook It's one user from my point of view

@Yuuki I concur

Yuuki

If we treat Radiant Soul as a balanced flight feature, this is a straight upgrade.

Colin Gross

@Yuuki Also, the speed eventually gets to free flying spell.

Faster if you're allowed to take the double proficiency afforded by the rogue or bard

Yuuki

Duration is the same, flight speed overtakes Radiant Soul past 5th-level, and can be used more often.

Colin Gross

16:58

"expertise" was the term I was looking for

Yuuki

If they want flight more than once per long rest, then then leave it at a flat 10 or 20 ft. flight speed.

Ender Look

And maybe PROF continuous rounds, and if you fly more time withou touch the ground you must make a DC 10 + 3 * fly extra rounds Constitution saving throw, or get 1 level of exaustation (all the exaustation gained with this ability is lose at the end of a short / long rest)

Yuuki

I really wouldn't bother with trying to homebrew a flying feature. It's too much work for too much possible backfire, especially when perfectly suitable features already exist.

Favored Soul Sorcerers get a flight spell, I think.

And there's magical items that provide flight.

Ender Look

I always says the same to my brother, but he don't like spend a spell slot with concentration XD

@Yuuki I didn't know that

GreySage

@EnderLook Then get a broom, or a carpet

Ender Look

17:04

Well, I've to have luch, talks later

Yuuki

To be honest, I'd just say "tough cookies" at this point.

Way too much of the power budget is being allocated into the race. As far as 5e intended design is concerned, you're a <CLASS> first and a <RACE> second.

Carcer

mm. Having a bit of a similar experience with my partner's younger brother, who has just gotten into D&D in a big way and has decided his first approach to it should be designing his own custom class and race to represent this existing character concept he had (who is super strong, but obviously only 1st level...)

there's been a lot of expectation tempering to try and do

Yuuki

The importance of this philosophy is that you can get better at being a <CLASS>, there's progression there. Whereas you can't really be a better <RACE>.

Unless you're me. I apparently could always be a better Asian by pursuing a medical degree.

@Carcer I think the issue that there's an out-sized importance placed on being unique. Players should be instructed that individuality doesn't come from having special mechanical features.

Mechanical features are what you can do, not what you are.

3

GreySage

@Yuuki Doctor who does differential equations for fun is the goal isn't it?

Rubiksmoose

17:36

Alright how would people rate the pun in this answer: How does Doppelganger shapeshift differ from Changeling shapeshift?? Awful or awful and funny?

goodguy5

just amazing

GreySage

Awful and painful and great

Mark Wells

@Rubiksmoose I took a point of psychic damage from that pun.

Rubiksmoose

excellent :) so it stays in then.

Yuuki

17:55

@Rubiksmoose I would appreciate any additions along the lines of sounds getting higher-pitched as the source gets closer.

But I would understand if you couldn't include it.

Rubiksmoose

@Yuuki hahahaha I'll mull it o ver

Why do I get the impression that nobody actually reads the meta on how to ask a good charop question even when told to do it multiple times?

Ender Look

@Yuuki Good phrase!

@Yuuki You are right

MikeQ

18:12

@Yuuki The real medical degree is the friends you made along the way

Xirema

@Rubiksmoose The Meta sites for the various stacks are daunting to visit for new users. They're seen more as "behind the curtain maintenance/grievances" type posts.

GreySage

18:26

@Xirema The airing of grievances...

Rubiksmoose

@Xirema oh for sure, I get that. But if someone tells you: read this thing and update your question based on it and you get completely ignored 99% of the time it starts to get on your nerves.

Yuuki

@GreySage Festivus is over, I thought?

Rubiksmoose

It isn't even one of the relatively arcane posts on stack philosophy/policy. It is a post that says: we need you answer X questions in your question for it to be well-writen and answerable.

GreySage

@Yuuki I know I didn't pin anyone

Rubiksmoose

I just wish I knew how to make it easier for all these charop posts to actually be made into and asnwerable form.

Yuuki

18:33

@GreySage Well yeah, you’re not a room owner.

Or you might be. Mobile chat isn’t very enlightening on this.

Ender Look

Just for curiosity.
Form the XGtE page 64 Childhood Memories table. How much friends are each description?

Colin Gross

19:16

@Rubiksmoose Few like meta gamers here.

nitsua60

@CrossbowEnthusiast I've got a spreadsheet it might be worth sharing with you in reference to your Ftr damage-optimization question.

TL;DR: I think the existing answer places far too much weight on the highest-level features, when you're likely to only spend, say, 5-10% of your character's career there. When I optimize for damage I do it on a time-averaged "career DPR" metric, rather than just what does the most damage during level 20.

GreySage

I generally try to optimize level 3-6, no real logic behind that decision, it's just what I do.

nitsua60

19:33

I generally don't optimize. But when I do, I time-average.

=)

Xirema

I build gigantic tables that span the breadth of levels 2-20 and cause my web browser to lag out when it tries to render the whole thing in Mathjax.

nitsua60

(I assume 2 sessions per level on levels 1-3, then 4 sessions per level the rest of the way. I also assume an average target AC that's something like 13+floor(level/3), IIRC.)

A_S00

Is that really the AC calculation to use? Not disagreeing, I haven't studied 5e enemies in depth, just surprised - 19 AC seems really low for end-game threats

PCs normally get AC well into the 20s at that level don't they?

nitsua60

@A_S00 Yeah... lemme go check what I actually use.

I do remember it being lower than I'd suspected it'd be. Because sometimes you can just whallop on stuff.

12+floor(level/2) looks like it, actually.

s/2/3, I guess =)

GreySage

Ancient dragons tend to be around 20-22, liches and krakens 17-18, Tiamat and Tarrasque are 25, but they're CR30

nitsua60

19:42

Yeah. Surprisingly, ACs just don't get that high.

(Well, I guess it shouldn't be too surprising. Bounded Accuracy and all....)

Xirema

20 is around the upper bound for most non-boss-tier creatures.

GreySage

I love programming. I just spend 2 days figuring out a complex solution to a problem, then while handling a small edge case I stumbled on a simple solution to the whole thing, and it took me 20 minutes to implement.

MikeQ

@nitsua60 Also remember that max HP increases very quickly for higher CR critters

Rubiksmoose

@GreySage But I'll bet it felt really great to find that simple solution eh? There is beauty in simple solutions to complex problems.

MikeQ

Even if the martial PCs have a >66% chance to hit, they're going to need to hit many times before the high-CR opponent falls

nitsua60

19:49

@MikeQ Yeah, when we're talking 300, 400 hp, that takes a while. But my L20 ftr should be doing 40 DPR, off the top of my head.

MikeQ

Also consider how much harm the high-CR baddie can cause during that time

GreySage

@Rubiksmoose Oh it did, it just felt a little bad to delete my big complex function that was now useless.

MikeQ

Even if the PCs collectively dish out >100 DPR, presumably they'd still need to survive long enough against the NPCs, whose combined offense should be comparable in theory

A_S00

@nitsua60 Do you assume any level of magical enhancement on gear when you're doing calculations like that?

Colin Gross

@GreySage My campaigns spend most of their time between L6 and L12.

@GreySage Deleting useless code feels great.

Rubiksmoose

20:05

Penny Arcade Announces Official 'Dungeons & Dragons' Manual

> Notably, Acquisitions Incorporated is billed as an "official" third-party book for Dungeons & Dragons.

What does this even mean?! Lol

A_S00

Prolly gonna be folded into D&D Beyond and backed/advertised by WotC, like the Critical Roll stuff, would be my guess?

As opposed to being just an independently published 3rd party thing

Rubiksmoose

That is kind of my guess as well, but it is nonsense that they keep saying something is official like it means something when it doesn't (or if it does, they aren't telling us what)

KorvinStarmast

20:22

Follow the money

Colin Gross

20:36

@KorvinStarmast Follow the Money. Divination. Level 6. Describe or name a transaction. Concentrating on your spreadsheets, you learn the direction and distance to the sources or destinations of the money within 10 miles, if any are present.

Components for the spell are an old cheque book and a few pages of spreadsheets.

goodguy5

20:52

how would a trap work that you can set things on, not not take things off of?

the indiana jones swap would work

Colin Gross

@goodguy5 glyph of warding with the trigger being object is removed from on top of the glyph.

MikeQ

How about a good ol' fashion pressure plate?

goodguy5

I wanted it to be mechanical, but not reason it couldn't be magical

@MikeQ No, putting things on it is safe.

MikeQ

Ok, so a more complex pressure plate, like the trigger mechanism in movie land mines?

Sir Cinnamon

@goodguy5 Reverse pressure plate. Think land mine. Once stepped on it's armed, then when the weight is removed it goes off

MikeQ

20:55

^ this is what I meant

goodguy5

hrm....

So, here is what I'm imagining

Colin Gross

Stored spell is Fergunsens' Ferocious Flatulence

goodguy5

There's a shrine with tribute. You can come in and put tribute on. As much as you want.

But removing any items with weight spring the trap

So, I guess the bouncing betty idea works well enough

Colin Gross

@SirCinnamon The pressure plate depresses or hooks an arming lever or switch. Like the bottom of the plate has a hook that decends and latches into a loop on the top of an alchemist fire vial. When the plate comes back up, it takes the top off the vial and kablooey

Sir Cinnamon

goodguy5

20:58

yes, but that removes all of the weight

Sir Cinnamon

ah i see

goodguy5

again, it's a dungeon. I guess I don't need to strictly understand how it works mechanically

Sir Cinnamon

so it's not about going below a minimum weight, just the weight ever decreasing?

Colin Gross

@goodguy5 You could if the puzzle is what to mechanically do to disarm or avoid it. Are your players into that sort of thing?

goodguy5

@ColinGross that's what I'm trying to figure out

Colin Gross

21:00

If so, they should probably come across an already triggered on that can be poked at or observed just to give them a fair shot.

goodguy5

@SirCinnamon right.

I'm also trying to think of clues for it being a trap

Xirema

WHELP. I did it.

0

A: Drawing as many cards as possible, what are the odds of drawing a beneficial order of cards from the Deck of Many Things?

Because there's no card replacement, this actually makes the math a little friendlier than it would otherwise be. First: Your "Good" runs There are ten different outcomes that are relevant to you: a run of size (2, 3, ..., 11) where (1, 2, 3, ..., 10) cards were good, and the last card was a "s...

Colin Gross

@goodguy5 "An ominous clicking noised is made as the plate descends slightly." "Roy the ranger may recognize the similarity with the sound that a hoof trap makes as it snaps into place."

MikeQ

@Xirema thank you math elemental

Colin Gross

@Xirema I'll head over to downvote you in a little bit. We're designing some traps currently.

goodguy5

21:02

@ColinGross ooh! nice. that's if they set something on it

Xirema

@ColinGross XD

MikeQ

@goodguy5 How about a big sign that says "NOT A TRAP" and a big arrow pointing to it

Rubiksmoose

@Xirema wow you are a madman!

Colin Gross

@goodguy5 What are the professions of the group? You could always give some clues specific to each character's expertise.

e.g. The jeweler notices fine machining marks similar to the inner faces of clock works or sliding adornments.

MikeQ

Or, less jokingly, a plaque or inscription saying that it's ok to give offerings but not to take, e.g. "those who steal from the god shall die"

Sir Cinnamon

21:05

Leave a penny. Don't take a penny.

goodguy5

A large throne sits along the north edge of the room, covered in various, valuable looking, tribute. Unlike the rest of the room, the base is constructed of smooth, black, obsidian and doesn't sit quite flush with the floor.

Colin Gross

@MikeQ Maybe in a nice riddle... nvm @SirCinnamon's nailed it.

@goodguy5 Probably leave the flush with the floor bit for when they inspect it closer.

goodguy5

fair

Colin Gross

Give them progress reward very early on for inspection. That should lead to subsequent inquiry about the thing

Rubiksmoose

@Xirema So I'm assuming you took care of all that conditional stuff in the java code?

goodguy5

21:10

I still don't understand how investigation is supposed to work

Xirema

@Rubiksmoose Yup.

GreySage

@goodguy5 It works if you believe it works.

goodguy5

Like, what does it do for traps? I've seen this talked about dozens of times and it always makes my head spin

Is there really supposed to be a situation that involves three checks?
1 to notice the trap
2 to understand how to disarm the trap
3 to actually do the disarming?

Sir Cinnamon

Actually disarming is sleight of hand for sure, or thieves tools

right?

Rubiksmoose

@Xirema very nice

MikeQ

21:13

@SirCinnamon I think it's a Dex check, +proficiency if you can use the tools

Sir Cinnamon

@MikeQ I suppose that makes sense

Rubiksmoose

@goodguy5 thats the way I would do it.

goodguy5

gross

2 checks tops

maybe I'll change my mind one day

MikeQ

@goodguy5 At least #1, possibly #2 and #3 depending on the setup and goals

Sir Cinnamon

I would probably cut out the middle unless the "understand how to disarm" involves something vastly different from the mechanical skill required to disarm

Rubiksmoose

21:15

hahaha though most probably I would just use passive perception and investigation if they meet the DC so no rolling needed.

Sir Cinnamon

i.e. an arcana check or something

MikeQ

If you want to reduce rolling, you could make studying the trap a non-roll, and instead let the players describe how they investigate it

Xirema

Passive Investigation checks, too.

Rubiksmoose

@goodguy5 That is definitely easy to do. Just make the DC of whichever aspect is least interesting to you lower than their passive skill of that choice and then just not have them roll. Easy peasy

goodguy5

alright, here are my notes:

A large throne sits along the north edge of the room, covered in various, valuable looking, tribute (an additional 500gp in fine jewelry, coins, chalaces, and the like). Unlike the rest of the room, the base is constructed of smooth, black, obsidian; if inspected, it clearly doesn't sit quite flush with the floor. TRAP - DC 12 Perception reveals a trap that will trigger if any weight is removed. A DC15 Dexterity check disables this device. If the trap is sprung, the throne explodes, destroying half the loot, and dealing 3d8 piercing damage to anyone within 20 fe…

Xirema

21:17

Tell players the things they would know just from their passive scores, and if they ask to investigate, let them make their full rolls.

MikeQ

^ this is reasonable and probably how i'd approach it

Sir Cinnamon

@goodguy5 DC 12 perception for the deduction seems low. I dont know the level of your group but i might split that to DC12 = it's trapped, DC 15 = this is how the trap works

MikeQ

it follows the "don't prompt a roll if failure is inconsequential" philosophy

Sir Cinnamon

shift DCs as you feel appropriate

goodguy5

@SirCinnamon perhaps. but also I haven't thrown many traps at them

MikeQ

21:18

also, if you're presenting it as a puzzle - i.e., the challenge is to figure out how the trap works - then making it roll-dependent kinda defeats the purpose

goodguy5

I can't think of any, offhand

@MikeQ true

Is there a guide for trap/puzzle dcs like in pathfinder?

MikeQ

Pretty sure it's in the DMG

Rubiksmoose

In XGE there is a section on making traps.

goodguy5

I'll check it out later

GreySage

@goodguy5 I would not require #2, but if someone wanted to make that check, and passed it, I would give advantage on #3.

goodguy5

21:21

@GreySage now that is the best idea I've ever seen regarding the three-check trap philosphy

Rubiksmoose

@goodguy5 Is it? Because then it just involves more dice rolling. I thought you wanted less?

I don't think it is a bad idea by any means, but I'm curious how it solves your issue with it. Maybe I am just misunderstanding what your issue is I guess.

goodguy5

I do, but if someone opts for it, then that gives the best of both sides.

I can avoid it and someone can "risk" it to benefit

(though, there's no inherent risk)

just if someone were to, independently, want to do an investigation check

Rubiksmoose

Ah I see.

GreySage

@goodguy5 I would require it to take some time, and hopefully time means something.

MikeQ

@goodguy5 if you did, what would be the consequence of failing the check?

Ender Look

21:26

Any tips for a solo player? My brother is a Sorcerer (Favored Soul) and plays alone. I wanted to convice him to have several characters instead of one, but he don't want, and I've enough with the enemies, so I can't (nor want) to also control his companions. So, any idea of how to increase the "survival" rate of a single person without making NPC friends?

goodguy5

@GreySage Time CAN be a resource. depending on their situation. If they do everything else in a dungeon, then there's no risk of taking your time. If they do it first, then it might be an issue.

MikeQ

@goodguy5 Good point - If there's a chance of wandering monsters to show up while the PCs are checking out the trap, then it may be worthwhile to include that check

goodguy5

@MikeQ for now, nothing. I'd have to see it play out first. If I start using traps and they keep throwing out failing investigation checks, I might be inclined to up the DC on the disarm? because they poked it around or something

GreySage

@goodguy5 Or they think they understand it, but actually it is completely different than their understanding

kviiri

@EnderLook I would honestly recommend switching systems at that point unless your brother is particularly interested in the 5e mechanics

MikeQ

21:29

@EnderLook Who's the DM for that game?

Ender Look

@MikeQ I, it's my first time! I'm "training" with him as player tester!

goodguy5

I agree with Mike

Though, playtesting.....

start them at level 3?

survivability goes way up at 3

MikeQ

@EnderLook Okay, if you have 1 player, then you should design challenges and content that can be handled for 1 player character

Ender Look

@MikeQ The problem is that even a single goblin is dangerous!

Xirema

@EnderLook Probably the biggest thing is keeping "Crowd Control" effects deployed by the enemy creatures to a minimum. As a sole player, their ability to dispel their own conditions is going to be nearly non-existent.

MikeQ

21:31

Agreed, if the only PC is 1st or 2nd level, then you're very limited in the types of challenges you can give them

Ender Look

@goodguy5 But if we start at level 3, basic adventures as kill a bunch of goblins change, right? I mean, the tier system, right?

Xirema

@EnderLook Pretty much any time a creature has "as an action, attempt to Charm*/*Frighten*/*Paralyze*/*etc., the DC for their saving throw is..." you'll have to pretend it doesn't exist.

Ender Look

@Xirema Well, he has feiry ancestor for something

Rubiksmoose

Yeah the PC now has the problem a DM usually has when they pit a group against one singular enemy.

MikeQ

@EnderLook They're referring to those control spells, the ones that don't really damage, but can effectively remove a PC from the battle

If there's only 1 PC, then they have 1 save or else it's instant game over

Ender Look

21:34

Oh

Rubiksmoose

And there unfortunately are a decent amount of those after a certain level.

Ender Look

At the moment, to help him, I added a single NPC (the bard he found in the tavern), but if possible I would like to dimiss him after the mission, and not make him a regular npc

MikeQ

Example: I'm a level 1 PC, you're the DM. The NPC casts Sleep and I fail the saving throw. Now I can't do anything, other than sit and watch the NPCs interact with each other.

Ender Look

Maybe I should increase the level... is fine 2 or it should be 3?

MikeQ

Generally I recommend 3 because that's when PCs are still weak-ish but have the basic features of their class

But it's more important that you design content appropriate for that level

And because of action economy, you should probably aim for 1, or maybe 2, but definitely no more than 3 enemies per encounter

Ender Look

21:38

Oh... well, my brother liked the idea of being level 3 :)

WrongOnTheInternet

For a single character, you could always homebrew up a defense mechanism against SoS type spells that lessens the effect.

Ender Look

@WrongOnTheInternet ... what means SoS?

WrongOnTheInternet

Save or Suck, like the aforementioned Sleep spell.

Basically, anything that would in one shot take him mostly or completely out of a fight.

MikeQ

Again, generally as DM you shouldn't take control away from all of the PCs at once

If there's only 1 PC, then a single-target SoS spell can do that

Ender Look

@WrongOnTheInternet mmm, I guess that isn't an official term, right?

@MikeQ Ok, no SoS spell

WrongOnTheInternet

21:41

No, it's a term that came up from players

MikeQ

@EnderLook Not official, but it's a term that's been used in the TTRPG community for a while

Ender Look

Ok

MikeQ

It could also be useful to look over their character sheet, see what spells he has, and consider it when designing challenges

Or, if you want to get really creative, you can design encounters where the PC can use the environment to get a big benefit

WrongOnTheInternet

SoS spells are fine when there's a whole party to absorb them; a single character will be dead in the water after one. It may be better to have your brother's character be more of a "party of one" sort, but that might require an amount of tweaking the rules that you're not comfortable with.

doppelgreener

@nitsua60 I just copy and paste it from my username. :)

Visiting my profile if need be

WrongOnTheInternet

21:46

♦

alt + 4

Rubiksmoose

@WrongOnTheInternet numpad4

WrongOnTheInternet

@Rubiksmoose Right. Alt + (numpad) 4

BESW

22:28

@MaikoChikyu Andromeda is about a human generation fleet arriving in a distant galaxy where they have to make alliances and negotiate with both human and alien factions.

Sails Full of Stars is a magipunk game about exploring planets and fighting pirates in an alchemy-powered ship.

Aether Sea is a fantasy spacefaring game about outcasts and outlaws trying to make ends meet by taking jobs with their magic spaceship without getting noticed by the authorities.

MikeQ

Sails Full of Stars and Aether Sea looked really similar. Is there a difference in setting, or just the players' roles in the narrative?

BESW

Sails Full of Stars is about swashbuckling in the middle of a clash between three expanding empires. Aether Sea is about heists and survival as the underdogs in an authoritarian state.

There's a lot of aesthetic and setting detail differences too. Sails is... Master and Commander in the Pirates of the Caribbean in space? While Aether is more like D&D does Firefly.

MikeQ

Ah okay, thanks for clarifying

BESW

Like, Sails Full of Stars is all "Some sailors say there are dragons that fly between the planets, but I think they're just telling stories" while Aether Sea is "Yeah, your ship's crew is trolls and goblins and the captain's an elf."

MikeQ

22:47

Have you played (or GMed) both?

BESW

I have not played either.

doppelgreener

23:17

#dnd tip to all gnome players out there: if you cast Reduce on yourself, you'll only weigh ~5 lb, so you can fly by grabbing yourself by the collar with Mage Hand. Great for dramatic getaways.

Tweeted by Optimushroom1 on January 16, 2019 at 11:51 PM

Miniman

11

Q: Can a gnome use Greater Mage Hand to fly?

Let's say I were to create a level 5 gnome sorcerer, and they happened to pick Greater Mage Hand as a spell. Since I get to set the weight of the character, let's say they're 35 pounds, and less than 50 with gear. The text of Greater Mage hand reads: Target: One object or creature weighing u...

4

Q: Can I use Mage Hand to fly by Polymorphing myself and picking myself up with the hand?

Could I first cast Mage Hand, then Polymorph into a Tiny creature less than 10 pounds then use the Mage Hand to pick myself up and fly at 30 Ft per turn? Polymorph says: The new form can be any beast ... The target's game statistics, including mental ability scores, are replaced by the sta...

dnd-5e spells polymorph flight cantrips

7

Q: Can I pick up a willing Tiny creature with Mage Hand Legerdemain?

I play an Arcane Trickster rogue, and I'm a Forest Gnome, so I'm already Small, weighing in at 55lbs with my gear. I'm wondering whether, if I cast enlarge/reduce on myself to make myself smaller, I would be able to pick myself up with my mage hand and essentially fly with it while the spell is a...

dnd-5e spells class-feature rogue

trogdor

23:33

Gnnnnnooooooooooomesssss

KorvinStarmast

23:48

@EnderLook there is a UA recently with side kicks. Have him look at that. solo play is swingier than group play.

♦ yeah love the gnome mage hand fly thing. Cracks me up.

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