@doppelgreener danke

I can't remember and I can't check right now - is the D&D5e net 1-handed or 2-handed?

@Miniman 1

fun fact. You will always have disadvantage attacking with a net....unless you have a feat that patches that.

it's normal range is 5', but it's a ranged weapon.

and we already have a question about it. woo

^

not much makes me happier than going to ask a question, only to find that it's already here

I'm printing this and putting it somewhere easy to reach: walkingmind.evilhat.com/2014/10/01/part-of-my-non-screen

Nice! Thanks very much.

that blog is linked in the feed in the main room, he's had some awesome insights into 5e

Oh thanks. I was reading the Sorc post... is he right to say this though: "Extended spell lets you double the duration of a spell for 1 SP, and you can spend as many as you like to a maximum of 24 hours."

that's not my reading of ES, though would love it to be so....

yes I think that's a correct reading

whoa

time to revisit MMagic selection

I thought you could only spend 1 point per casting

at Least I think so

"When you cast a spell that has a duration of 1 minute or longer, you can spend 1 sorcery point to double its duration, to a maximum duration of 24 hours."

yeah I'm reading it. I'd read it the same way he did. Not 100% sure though

it's iffy enough that I wouldn't abuse it

fair enough

the interpretation does make sense though, since no sorc spell has a duration of 12 hours

so, the only way to hit the maximum would be if allowed to spend more than 1 sp

or a spell from a different class...but yes, I'd definitely argue in favor of stacking that metamagic effect. If someone wants to spend 12 sorcery points to extend a 1 minute effect for a day, I say let them.

which do you think are the strongest Metamagic? It's a tricky because Empower and Heighten are the only ones that can increase damage per casting, but Subtle can be extremely useful (esp. if you like RPing, or when impaired in some way), and Twinned is basically a 'free' slot

Heck, Twinned lets you trade a 5th level slot for a 7th level one...

And Quicken needs no praise, I think

twinned is pretty darn good, but expensive. empower and heighten are great, specially when used together. Quicken is a must

well, it's expensive, but given how scarce high-level slots are

those are the four I'd take. I'd start with quicken and twinned. Take heighten next, then empower

seems like a really good deal

ah, gotcha

Single target battles, quicken all day. multi target, twinned

hahahahahaha

basically quicken just lets you cast a cantrip and a spell that turn. Which is pretty dang awesome specially late game

i was a bit disappointed by empower though... unlike previous incarnations of the feat(ure), there's a chance you might get a paltry damage increase

it's cheap, SP-wise

yeah, quicken is so good

meh, rerolling damage dice is nice enough, specially when you're rolling a bucket of them. Empower that meteor swarm

but you only get to reroll ≤5

when rolling 40d6, rerolling 5 seems a bit underwhelming

@Khashir true

(not being a jerk, just playing devil's advocate

)

(trying to squeeze the true value of the feature)

no, definitely critically looking at this stuff is good

:)

and worst case scenario, you could end up rolling 1s again

which is why the 1.5 multiplier in 3e was a bit nicer... you had a feature that would guarantee increased damage

(sorry, hard to resist going back to the olden days... )

understandable

well, how much does it impact. Let's look at say Fireball.

yayyyy

number crunching!

<3

rolls 8d6

Let's assume we reroll 1s and 2s on the first 4 dice that come up 1 or 2.

right. you have +4 Cha mod (max) when you get FB

so, you can reroll half

right. you have +4 Cha mod (max) when you get FB

which translates into a 0-24 damage increase

0-30 once you get your 2nd stat increase

one problem I'm beginning to see is that it doesn't scale

so, the potential damage increase you get for FB is the same you would get for Meteor Swarm... because they have the same damage dice

trying to figure out the odds of need to reroll more than 4 dice when rerolling 1s and 2s. Becuase if those odds are low, we can simply count them as al rerolled on 1s and 2s

@Khashir yes, this

and there are very few spells that have higher damage dice (the main ones I'm seeing are cantrips/L1 spells cast at higher levels... i.e., Witch Bolt is 1d12 per level)

so, my math-fu is rusty, but

only 9% of the time will you have more than 4 1s and 2s.

@Khashir yeah, 6s are used most of the time

ah, lovely. you beat me to it

thanks.

anydice :)

still haven't taken a moment to figure out how to use it

8)

its worth your time if you like puzzles like this :)

anyway, that's one side of the problem (indeed!)

OK, so let's count 7 dice as rerolling 1s and 2s and one die normal, because...we're being safe.

sure

wait, isn't that going to yield a more favourable view of the feature?

so that's 7 * ((2 / 3) * 4.5 + (1/3) * 3.5) + 1 * 3.5 = 32.667 vs 28

hmm... so, ~5 dmg increase?

yep

assuming you get really bad rolls

@Khashir what we know though is that the odds of rolling <3 on all 8 dice is abysmally low. We know needing a reroll on more than 4 is really low. So we're assuming you need a reroll on up to 5. And we're counting the other 3 as definitely being higher than 2.

because we get to select when we reroll

right. what i mean is, when you need it the most (i.e., when you get those really bad rolls)

the damage increase is not so hot

nope :(

ok, I hearby withdraw my statement that this was a good meta magic power. don't pick it

(the only reason it's worthwhile is because you can use it in combo with others)

in which case, I lean towards Subtle Spell, which lets me cast while Stunned or Paralyzed

huh? don't both of those things incapacitate you?

nope

oh wait

yes

my bad

grrr

ok, so, realistically, Subtle basically allows you to cast while gagged/handcuffed (and similar), and without giving away your position

via hearing

yep

(though if you attack, you give up your position anyways...because attack)

(and by attack you mean any offensive spell?)

yep

actually...not sure on that

ok. one thing I meant to ask a long time ago was the interaction between Greater Invisibility, Subtle Spell, and Stealth checks/perception

maybe I should move my lazy ass

casting a spell alone does not break hidden. So since fireball isn't an attack it doesn't reveal your location

sweet

:D

so greater invis + hidden + subtle fireball is go

but greater invis + hidden + subtle firebolt your position is known

hmm... to hide when invis, do you just roll stealth with adv vs. their per?

I think it's straight stealth, but not sure

and vs passive perception

i've found that confusing, re-read a few times

if you're already invis... why do you have to hide?

8)

the only benefit dif is knowledge of position

if you don't know someone's position, you have to guess

and then, if you give away your position (via firebolt, for example), once you move stealthily (say, half speed), they should no longer know your position

right?

no, you have to make a new check to hide

the assumption is that if they are not making an effort to be hidden (making a stealth check), their position is known

fair enough

hmm, so, the mechanical cleverness would be

greater invis + hide + spell attack (rolls with adv, increasing chance to crit)

move + stealth check

and hope for the best?

(or stick to hiding with subtle non-attack spells... which grants a 'passive' defensive boon)

anyway... i have to head out. thanks for the crunching

please let me know if you uncover anything new :)

@Khashir no need to hide, you have adv by being invis

@waxeagle Right---but without hiding, the enemy can attack you on its turn

might as well use that Stealth check for something 8)

@Khashir provided you have the actions to do so

cuz hiding costs an action

grr, have to tear my ipad back apart. touch screen doesn't work now :(

@waxeagle - Are you starting the Hoard of the Dragon Queen campaign tomorrow evening?

no. We've still got at least a week left of Wave Echo Cave yet. But no game this week

roger

after we finish, I'll probably take a few weeks off, and then get a group together for HOTDQ

understood, thanks

Looking at nets last night, I realised that you can Sneak Attack with them. That just does not seem right.