I'm going to DM for the first time and man, i'm so nervous. I've prepared. I've studied. Watched videos. Now all that's left are the inevitable mistakes. I just hope i don't make too many

>>98391625
CRAWFORD, LOOK OUT!

>>98391656
Players are generally pretty forgiving. You're taking the butt boy role which a lot of people don't want. I love DMing because it's so active. You don't sit around twiddling your thumbs at any point. I love designing dungeons and adventures too. Half my monsters are custom made.

>>98391677
That's the thing, its the only role i want, or at least i think so. I don't like being a player at all, but i always admired the DMs from the few times i've played, so i'm trying being one for once.

let's see if we can't make this thread last two weeks this time

>>98391625
>TQ
not at the moment, i've not played enough of 5e to be bored of it. if they're going to do anything, make it even less like 4e because that shit sucked donkey ass

File: AISelect_20260722_212410_(...).jpg (542 KB, 1063x1499)

542 KB JPG

>Evoker Archmage
>Knows up to 4th level spells

Has DEI affected the arcane institutions? I feel like knowing a 8-9th level spell is the minimum prerequisite to being considered an ARCHmage

>>98391984
Evokers have notoriously low standards. If you can throw a fireball, you've already reached the peak of the school.

>>98391984
Looks to me like someone who spent all his time perfecting the basics. His cantrip deals an absurd amount of damage at a crazy distance. The evocation barrage shoots two 3-4 level spells which can be sculpted. He might not have high level spells but the spells he does know have been perfected. He also doesn't even need spell slots. He can use his barrage on average every 18 seconds. That's pretty crazy for any mage.

File: IMG20260723010432.jpg (2 MB, 4096x3072)

2 MB JPG

working on token art, elves and the monsters they become

top left fella is getting scrapped

>>98391984
>archmage, have you learned another spell yet?
>Shoots you with advanced eldritch blast 4 times

>>98391625
This is too sexy for modern D&D

>>98391625
Any advice for how to make my players be less wimpy? they literally just left a dungeon rather than fight the one (1) serious monster in there. four level five players

>>98392449
have 'em fight a few weaker monster groups so they get confidence to play their characters and stomp enemies.

like roll up easy combat difficulties

>>98392449
teleport them back in there and lock the fucking doors until something is dead

>>98392449
Tell them that while they're free to play their characters in a way that makes sense, the game is about overcoming challenges and D&D characters are generally capable of doing so. Ask them what they're afraid of and suggest that experiencing risk and uncertainty is the point.

File: 1784153055702739.gif (1.97 MB, 400x382)

1.97 MB GIF

>>98392449
>DM describes monster as being super powerful
>Players with weak characters don't want to suicide against a powerful monster
>They make the logical choice to leave the dungeon if they're in no real danger of doing so
>They can comeback and kick the dungeon monster later

Idk man. Your players seem to have made a reasonable choice. Maybe structure the dungeon better. Have the monster chase them out and force the fight.

>>98392537
>They can comeback and kick the dungeon monster later
If my players tried that the monster would have become even more powerful and killed people the PCs care about in the meantime.

>>98392449
What's their motivation? What's the story? If you don't give them a reason to actually want to kill a monster why would they bother?

>>98391625
>Would you welcome a new edition of D&D? What would you like them to do with a new edition?
Bring back incarnum, dragon shaman, dragonfire adept, and duskblade (eldritch knight is cool but it isn't the same).

Played dnd tonight over roll20 and it is so much more awkward over a discord call. Everyone either keeps speaking over each other or just goes silent for long gaps. It's weird. And much slower.

>>98392857
can't spoil anything because a few of my players are part time fa/tg/uys and I don't want to spoil the mystery for them. basically, they have been brought in by the local lord governor of a county on the border between civilization and the wilds to investigate an outbreak of the undead, which has been ongoing for a few months. Some of these undead have been simply grabbing people from their homes, and taking them to an unknown location. A local miscreant the party befriended has told them that there are way, way more missing persons than recorded, the disappearances started earlier, and nobody seems to realize anything happened
This session, the party went to investigate one of his friends who had been in jail for over 3 months for cattle tipping, when the maximum penalty is 1 month. Whenever miscreant has tried to ask about this, the guardsmen/city officials eyes seem to glaze over and they can't engage with the question.
Party arrives at the local jail. In miscreant's buddy's cell is a stack of plates and rotting food. The guards tell them they sure he was there, and thought they remembered him being there. they become increasingly distressed, seeing that there are more than a dozen cells where there are rotting plates of food but no prisoners. Players interrogate the prisoners, who reveal a man had been coming in, telling the prisoners he could take them to a place that goes on in every direction, they could spend their whole lives down there. He would take a prisoner, and walk out through the front gate without the guards even noticing.
Players talk to the crazy guy in solitary, who rejected the man's offer. He has become obsessed with "the hole" and carved a spiral (symbol used elsewhere in the campaign) into the cell wall, while claiming he can hear his sister's voice in the drain. He tells the players the voice let him see through the mysterious man's eyes, and gets them to the start of some tracks they follow to a cave.
1/2

File: Capture.png (11 KB, 510x602)

11 KB PNG

>>98393051
Outside the cave, two sets of footprints enter. Two sets leave, one with a dragging gait. They walk through the narrow entrance to the cave, which is streaked with blood and strips of rotting skin. On the other side is a mess of wider tunnels. They can hear sound from within, like dozens of people running with wet feet beside a pool. One of them stealths down one of the tunnels in a different direction, and they see around the corner a pool of churning green liquid, six men with symbols carved into their backs surround it, breathing heavily. There's a table with some beakers and such, a manmade corridor off of the chamber to another one out of sight, and a thin line of chalk on the ground between them and the men. They say fuck this and go back to the entrance.
Meanwhile, the other two go to look at the noise, see a man, sticking sideways past one of the walls of the tunnels, five feet off the ground like picture. One of them detects thoughts, gets "if intruder kill, destroy intruder. hungry if intruder stop intruder. kill intruder". After reading its mind in more detail it runs down the hallway, towards they entrance. they use invisibility to hoof it back to the entrance, the party sneaks out single file, as the creature is too large to fit through. they do not see it again.
Their current plan is to stake out the prison (last sighting of the man was a few months ago, just before the undead crisis started), and ask the county's guardsmen to watch the cave for them

>>98393071
they know the big creature is a bunch of zombies melded together. stuff I didn't include in this writeup should make it clear that they found a necromancer's lab but they just ran from it. I think the local lord will just get pissed off that the people he hired specifically to investigate and solve this problem have not done it. the guards are already spread thin and getting rekt by regular zombies daily, so they won't want to do it

>>98393077
Please understand. You hired us to solve this problem, but it seemed kind of risky, so we decided we weren't going to try and that you should take care of it after all.

Would you allow an ioun stone to be used as an arcane focus? They count as worn items and they are generally (small) crystal items in the shapes of various prisms, rhomboids, and the like.

Or would you say it had to be something you actually are holding?

>>98393112
would it be any different than a component pouch strapped to their balls?

provided they have a free hand to manipulate and touch their head instead of their ballsack, does it matter?

>>98393077
>>98393104
Oh, we still think you should pay us, though.

>>98391656
>>98391698
No one except you knows what happens behind the DM screen. You can build on mistakes and make them into parts of the campaign or you can choose to ignore them completely. Don’t worry too much about what you’ve planned out, because players are unpredictable and will inevitably catch you off guard. You’ll find that the story will come together in the direction you wanted, but perhaps not in the way you had expected it to. Remember to have fun, at the end of the day it’s just a game, anon.

>>98393051
>>98393071
The impression I get is that they didn't have any urgency. Instead, they've discovered what looks like the enemy's base and they went
>Excellent, we've located it. Let's report this and put the authorities
They investigated and found the situation but decided not to keep going. I guess that's fine but it is a bit pathetic for a party.

I've found this in a few parties. I solve it at session 0 where I tell them explicity
>Your characters need to be intrinsically motivated to deal with X issue/Y enemy etc
Then that issue is the one that defines the campaign or the enemy is the BBEG. If they are motivated by more than just "we were hired lol" then they'll have more reason to go into something dangerous. You want it to be more motivation than a contractual obligation. My hope would be with your party they'd want to stop an undead menace but it seems they're more of a neutral party than a good one.

>>98392449
did they make wimpy characters? if the premise is that they're just problem solvers for hire, you should've insisted they make characters that will be proactive in that role, or give them a stronger connection even if its just personal necessity

File: file.png (1.16 MB, 1404x1061)

1.16 MB PNG

Wait a second, I just realized something...
> Level 5 Human Farmer Life Cleric
>Ability Scores: STR 15, DEX 10, CON 13 (+1), INT 10, WIS 15 (+2 +1 from War Caster), CHA 8
Does this mean that if I take Magic Initiate to get True Strike, I can dump Strength and prioritize Dexterity or Constitution instead?
(I'm building a frontline Life Cleric in 2024 5e.)

>>98394054
Potentially, though depending on your other choices it may have tradeoffs.
If you're picking Protector for heavy armor, then you would still need at least some Strength in order to not be slowed down. You could go for medium armor and move the points to Dex, but that does come with a slightly lower AC in the long run.

Heavy weapons could also be a factor, though if you're planning on using a shield it's a non-issue.

>>98391625
>Would you welcome a new edition of D&D?
I don't see a point when Hasbro makes the bare minimum for products. 6e would be no different than 5.5e

>>98394163
>If you're picking Protector for heavy armor, then you would still need at least some Strength in order to not be slowed down
Oh yeah, I forgot about the Strength requirement for armors.
In that case, I'll stick with those ability scores
Level 5 Human Farmer Life Cleric
Ability Scores: STR 15, DEX 10, CON 13 (+1), INT 10, WIS 15 (+2, +1 from War Caster), CHA 8
AC: 15
HP: 48
Feats/Features: War Caster, Magic Initiate (Wizard)
Magic Initiate Spells: Shield and True Strike

My strategy would be:
Use Spirit Guardians in important fights.
Otherwise, just use True Strike with my mace and shield.
If I'm not in a position to fight in melee, then I'll just cast Bless and use damage cantrips from the backline

>>98393544
I play with my friends from other stuff, none of them really engage with the setting or have a backstory beyond the traits they find for their background in the books. Its kind of disappointing, I don't get much to work with sometimes. The villain is going to become more proactive and seek out conflict with the heroes in the next session

>>98394195
A few things I'd note here.
First is that Protector for Cleric also gives you martial weapon proficiency, so you'd probably want a Warhammer or a Morningstar over a Mace
Second is that with a Shield and Chainmail, your AC should be 18, assuming it isn't higher from any better armor the DM allows you to start with.
Lastly is that Magic Initiate gets you two cantrips, so you get another one alongside True Strike. That could let you pick out a different ranged cantrip than Sacred Flame, but otherwise just lets you grab some extra utility.

>>98394258
>First is that Protector for Cleric also gives you martial weapon proficiency, so you'd probably want a Warhammer or a Morningstar over a Mace
Yeah, but this GM doesn't allow buying equipment during the first session. I'll keep it in mind once I have the gold and for future sessions.
>Second is that with a Shield and Chainmail, your AC should be 18, assuming it isn't higher from any better armor the DM allows you to start with.
I start with a chain shirt (AC 13 + Dex modifier) and a shield.
The only downside is that I have low Dexterity, but I don't think it's that big of a drawback, especially since I can buy better equipment later on.

>>98394381
Starting the party at level 5 but restricting them to the basic gear listed for each class is certainly a choice. Though I suppose that also might mean the DM is planning to start you off captured/stranded without your gear and simply doesn't want to have you go through the trouble of buying specifics only to lose it.


That said, unlikely to be an issue either way. If you aren't able to find some half-decent weapons and armor within a session or two you've got much bigger problems.

File: 3086708643.png (1.42 MB, 1024x1024)

1.42 MB PNG

>party warlock did not appreciate being turned into a buxom witch-woman through a cursed magical ring that gave him +1 to spell DC/attack rolls
sigh . . .

>>98395033
>If you aren't able to find some half-decent weapons and armor within a session or two you've got much bigger problems.

You guys actually get magic items in your games!?

File: 1784139761854329m.jpg (91 KB, 1024x1024)

91 KB JPG

>>98395090
I feel like porn games seem cool in theory then you're just in a room with 3 other guys describing how hot the tavern wench is. Gayest shit imaginable.

I would kill for a free +1 spell DC for no attunement slots tho

>>98395091
Well, yes. Because I'm the DM giving them out.
But I'm more specifically referring to getting your hands on some chainmail or splint armor as a level 5 character, or being able to find a basic longsword or battleaxe on a dead enemy.

I recently started playing with my daughters.

One of them made a rogue (thief) with artisan (cartographer) background. She took the Keen Mind feat and she's really going for the cartographer aspect of her character.

What would be cool ways to incorporate this in the game?
I'm doing a mix of adventures from Candlekeep Mysteries and Keys from the Golden Vault.

I thought that, when going to a known location, I could give her a rough map of the area, through her Guild connections.

In unknown area, I thought of giving a rough map as soon as they finish exploring a building story or general area to reflect the cartography and perfect memory.

File: 32997429.png (1.41 MB, 1024x663)

1.41 MB PNG

>>98395185
>I feel like porn games seem cool in theory then you're just in a room with 3 other guys describing how hot the tavern wench is. Gayest shit imaginable.
not even a porn game!! (though i do sometimes run those). all the players have the most sexless characters imaginable. just an old man, a disfigured woman in rags, and a chubby otter blacksmith.

that last one might have had a chance but when i presented him a woman NPC to woo he chickened out OOC so i had her head blown off during combat. the most 'action' they see is a titillating character portrait for one of the NPC tokens.

>I would kill for a free +1 spell DC for no attunement slots tho
at this point i don't even use attunement, just magic item slots for head/hands/chest/ring/feet/etc.

>>98395310
Maybe they just want to play DnD and not have sexual stuff pushed into their game?

>>98395278
Xanathars has some ideas on Tool Proficiencies, if you wanted to look it up.

Basic stuff would include various guilds or political interests paying well for accurate maps. Maybe this could be a springboard for a military scouting mission or searching for a safe trade route through a wilderness.

Throw in some hidden clues that only a trained cartographer would recognise -
>Secret messages hidden on a map
>Discovering 'errors' on a map that are actually tricks to mislead the unwary
>Realising an abstract pattern on a wall painting/rug/etc is actually a kind of map in itself.

File: 1782235544859573.gif (1.71 MB, 480x360)

1.71 MB GIF

>>98395517
>not have sexual stuff pushed into their game
This is exactly what's wrong with this generation

>>98395278
How old are your daughters?

>>98395517
They're free to be soft cunts at a different table.

>>98395278
If she has a mentor, have the mentor give her an assignment to map out a place or have some sage ask her to update old maps. Give her some graph paper and watch her go.

File: 1781724646620604.gif (117 KB, 198x216)

117 KB GIF

>>98395310
Hey man, it's your game.
>Maybe they made sexless characters for a reason though.
I do think calling it a cursed ring is a bit much. That ring is clearly a blessing by Mystra herself. Clearly the two giant orbs a sorceress would gain is to anchor them to the weave. The warlock seems a bit ungrateful.

No attunement slots seem cool too. Your table seems fun.

>>98395278
A doll that provides advantage on intelligence checks 3 times per day and spits out a lore fact about the area when used.

https://media.wizards.com/downloads/dnd/StarterSet_Characters.pdf

How do you make these characters memorable without contradicting anything that is on the character sheets, ideally yes-anding what is already there?
Could one, for example, make the first one a "Make Phandalin Great Again" parody?

>>98395553
>>98395840
Those are some pretty good ideas, I like the idea of having her draw maps and selling them to the Guild. The more detailed, the higher the price.

>>98395703
13.

>>98396010
the paladin is begging to be played like a stereotypical ojou but male
giving two characters the 'big words to fake being smart' gimmick is a weird choice

File: 13260bcc4f44761f87787e0f2(...).jpg (104 KB, 750x1330)

104 KB JPG

>>98395517
>Maybe they just want to play DnD and not have sexual stuff pushed into their game?
girdles of femininity/masculinity have been a thing since early editions. besides, roleplaying is more than just talking to barkeeps and guards . . .

>>98395874
>Maybe they made sexless characters for a reason though.
maybe. but these are close friends, so from my experience playing with them it's more likely that they just aren't really that intentional in how they build their PCs. their characters are a bit one dimensional.

>>98391625
Okay. I've been building 100 miscellaneous magic items for easy loot bags that don't just recycle potions and uncommons. I just need 6 more and I'm tapped. Someone help me out here.

Examples for balancing standards:
>Hiding ring: While this ring is worn, anything held by the wearer in their ring hand is invisible, provided they’re able to close their palm around the entire object.
>Armreach Oil: One use. When applied to the body, it can reach through a nonmagical surface as far as the oil is applied. It is only enough to cover one limb for a Medium creature, or a head and part of the shoulders.The oil lasts ten minutes once applied.
>Dwarf Whistle: A short whistle. When blown into, it makes a sound only detectable by humanoid creatures 5ft and under.

File: MV5BY2Y1Yjk2MzEtMWFlNC00M(...).jpg (15 KB, 388x218)

15 KB JPG

>>98395185
Agreed, I don't want to be in a table where a bunch of men doing their impression of a woman getting railed.

>>98396010
Backstories

File: fa82b242-ebbd-4c54-8556-6(...).png (451 KB, 640x1138)

451 KB PNG

>>98391625
When will they create the "John the Adventurer" fighter subclass?

>>98392123
Keep him. Make him into a half-elf bastard of the local elven lord. He's already 40 years old and still hasn't had a job!

>>98396835
>Handguards of the Mole: While wearing these clawed gauntlets, you can activate their magic, granting you a Burrow speed of 10 for 1 hour. You leave a 2-foot-diameter tunnel in your wake that collapses after 1 minute. You can use this feature again at Next Dawn.

>>98396835
>Gem of the Lamp: This gently glowing gemstone can be thrown onto any surface within 30 feet. On impact, it explodes, creating a shadow of light that lasts for 3 days, emitting bright light in a 60 foot radius and dim light for another 60 feet after.
>Cloak of Mourning: A dark cloak, light to the touch, that has the ability to cover the wearer’s entire body comfortably. When the wearer dies or is slain, it gives them the effect of the gentle repose spell for 10 days, where the wearer is protected from decay and can't become undead.
>Buju Beads: This bag has nine wooden beads, each sparkling faintly when exposed to light. As an action, the wearer can crush one of these beads to summon a twig blight to their aide. The twig blight acts on its own, but will follow simple directions. It lasts for one hour before disintegrating.

>>98396965
It was officially printed in 2014

File: IMG_0015.gif (1.34 MB, 480x270)

1.34 MB GIF

>>98396965
They actually did, College of Adventurers for Bard. It allows you to ape certain class features from the other classes, and excels specifically in underground dungeons.

It's gay as fuck, but if you're desperately trying to play an Isekai adventurer, you're already a flaming faggot anyway.

File: IMG20260723171945.jpg (2.47 MB, 4096x3072)

2.47 MB JPG

>>98392123

So i'm running a human-only setting. What can i do to make character creation a bit spicier? I don't want to go full /pol/ and give traits to human subraces, much as it would be kind of funny. Searching around the most common answer to this is to take other species like Elves and Dwarves and basically use them as subraces for your humans

>>98397100
The free Planeshift Innistrad pdf they put out a while back basically made it so all of the provinces of that setting were pre-selected variant humans. Locking them into specific ability scores, feat, and skill selection, basically.

Pick someone from the woodland region and they've got their +1s in Dex/Wis, the Survival Skill, and all the features of the Mobile feat, as an easy example. It's something you could build with a variant human normally, but enough to serve as a sort of second background.
If you're running 2024, you could adapt that by letting a player pick a variant human with an Origin feat as normal, but building those pre-selected templates with access to more specialized feats in exchange for restricting the scores and skills. Either origin feats from other books, or some of the weaker level 4 feats if you're feeling daring.

You could also do something like curating a list of Common magic items for the players to pick through to give them some unique flourish that way.

>>98397174
Oh the planeshifted innistrad thing is perfect, thanks anon, i'll definetly look into mixing that with the 2024 rules in some way

>>98391625
>Would you welcome a new edition of D&D?

With how pozzed 5.5 was? Fuck no. Wait until none of the people who worked on that are there anymore, then try again.
D&D needs people with cock and balls handling it.

File: 1660075313482789.jpg (365 KB, 1275x2000)

365 KB JPG

Looking for some feed back on options to use for reworked Druid.

Looking at Complete Divine the Wild Feats are basically akin to the Aspect of the Crucible spells from Elden Ring which is fine because the Crucible Knights are a major inspiration for how I'd want to design the Warden Primal Order.

In either case, I'm thinking of chopping up the Moon Druid and doing one of the following:

1. Warden Druid would get the buffed Wild Shape Moon Druid offers.
2. Wild Shape remains the same but you can use your uses of Wild Shape to activate something akin to the aspect spells and, as you level, you can stack them by spending your use of Wild Shape to activate the ones you have access to.

Would it be too much to make a Warden Druid a half-caster like Paladin?

>>98397232
Character options should not take away something that is shown in the base class progression table.

File: XkkItXZ.jpg (586 KB, 1920x1344)

586 KB JPG

>>98397291
My initial thinking was to replace those caster levels with options of equal strength but now I see that is not only overly ambitious but unnecessarily complicated as I havn't fully thought out how that would work for the other class features as is.

File: Iron heroes traits.png (140 KB, 759x748)

140 KB PNG

>>98397100
Check out Iron Heroes. It's a human only setting that uses traits to define your race/cultural background. You can find it on google by just searching iron heroes pdf.

I ran a full campaign of it back in the 3.5 days. A strange system that's both very mechanically complex and narrative focused.

File: Screenshot 2026-07-24 021721.png (285 KB, 749x784)

285 KB PNG

need help, i'm a noob that's trying to modify pic related, cr6 ruinant, into cr4, can a wise eye cast a look over these stats? intention is to put it up solo against a team of 4 lvl3 players

AC 14
+3 initiation
+2 prof.bonus
80 hit points

str 14 (mod+2,save+2)
dex 18 (mod+4,save+4)
con 15 (mod+2,save+2)
int 13 (mod+1,save+1)
wis 18 (mod+4,save+4)
cha 15 (mod+2,save+2)

souls at fight start:2

lethe is the same except doesn't give advantage
removed the soul devourer

multiattack 3xclaws
claw,+6 to hit
1d12+4 necrotic
hit target cant take reactions

salt wound reduced to 1d10 necrotic

corrupt healing the same

File: Click the buttons lmao.png (181 KB, 563x900)

181 KB PNG

>>98397336

>>98397345
I have to be honest, I dismissed that as untrustworthy, do you think its reliable?

File: Ruinant Table.png (3.11 MB, 1275x1650)

3.11 MB PNG

>>98397354
It's on the high end for a CR4 but fine. If you really wanted to you could if you reduce the HP a little and take off a d6 from the necrotic damage it's probably fine.

The big problem with a solo monster is the action economy. Might need some legendary or lair actions as well.

>>98397365
i'm gonna stay away from legendary actions for now because this is my first dungeon and I want to keep things simple, thanks for the advice, that chart is excellent

File: IMG20260724024756.jpg (2.22 MB, 4096x3072)

2.22 MB JPG

>>98397093
couple of troglodytes and then the elven baelnorn-styled living armour

>>98397393
The table is explained more here
https://emberdm.tumblr.com/post/176253644876/dd-5e-monster-creation-table-version-2-heres-a

File: Untitled-n2.jpg (868 KB, 1850x1850)

868 KB JPG

>>98397336
>+3 initiation
it would be +4 because of +4 dex mod
>souls at fight start:2
without devouring maybe start at 3+? if you want to use the abilities, that is.
>removed the soul devourer
that's what i would do.
>multiattack 3xclaws
maybe 2x multiattack? 1d6+4 w/ 2d4 rider
>salt wound reduced to 1d10 necrotic
i would change it to 2d8 instead, since it costs his action + resource.

otherwise i think the other changes make sense.

So I'm running a campaing where there's an important NPC that accompanies the party and fights alongside them. He is an Aberrant Mind Sorcerer. I've looked around and people generally give the advice that you shouldn't build character sheets for NPCs because it adds too much needless complexity, but how do i go about using a statblock? I could search around the web to see if anyone made an aberrant sorcerer statblock or even create one of my own, but how do i make it so their power grows along with the party's?

>>98397652
Alright so i think i answered my own question after looking around a bit - I'm going to use a custom Aberrant Sorcerer enemy statblock and add the Sidekick rules to it from Tasha's Cauldron of Everything. Does this seem like a good compromise?

>>98397652
>>98397768
>So I'm running a campaing where there's an important NPC that accompanies the party and fights alongside them.
So a DMPC? Don't use DMPCs, they're shit.

So this one player is always suggesting PCs get carried through the air by PCs or other creatures capable of flight as a solution to exploration and navigation challenges.
Sometimes it makes sense (e.g. crossing a 20-foot river) but with more substantial distances it often feels like a boring too-easy solution and rubs me the wrong way, like my gut tells me it shouldn't be as simple as the player assumes it would be, particularly when the creatures are the same size.
Is there any advice or rules guidance (ideally official) I could work from to adjudicate this sort of thing?

>>98397890
wind / rain / storms

archers

things that will knock them into the hole

pipebomb

First time DM here, once again asking for help - i want to build a digital DM screen, i'm going to be using a laptop. What do you guys recommend?

>>98398006
I can only speak for myself but I find the following helpful
>List of weapons/armor and their stats
>List of skills
>Probability table of advantage/disadvantage

Other than that I have the 5e tools pages for spells and monsters open.

>>98397965
I don't mean challenges or complications to throw in – I'm asking if people have thoughts or know of existing rulings on how feasible this would be in the first place.
Like suggesting yes but you'd be encumbered and have to make a Con check with increasing DC or frequency to avoid exhaustion and/or dropping the passenger

>>98398119
movespeed from the grapple would reduce their speed, encumbrance should be used for carrying people, as they can be heavy - could be mitigated by a high strength character,

>>98398200
That makes sense, but being encumbered and spending double movement aren't great issues in the absence of some active threat or pressing deadline. So do you agree with this player that it's pretty easy for one medium creature with a flying speed to ferry a second medium creature through the air, just probably more slowly than they could fly by themselves?

File: IMG_2575.jpg (167 KB, 750x738)

167 KB JPG

Is there any good free character builders similar to DnD beyond? I want to try some classes that’s not free before any purchase

>>98398471
WoTC killed them all to force people to use their shitty one.

>>98398471
roll20 and a plethora of mobile apps

File: ogre.png (6 KB, 418x53)

6 KB PNG

Old school dungeons hit different.

>>98395033
>Starting the party at level 5 but restricting them to the basic gear listed for each class is certainly a choice
Hmm, I might talk to my GM. Maybe I can convince him to let my cleric start with chain mail.
>Yeah. My Chauntea cleric defended a village from bandits, and eventually got a suit of chain mail from one of them."

>>98395090
I'd be pretty annoyed if my buff as hell, action-hero orc ended up getting turned into a green bimbo, not gonna lie.

File: wizards.jpg (562 KB, 1800x1200)

562 KB JPG

Would you allow a party to have multiple Wizards, knowing that they will almost certainly coordinate level-up spells and copy them from each other during downtime?

>>98399121
Another player and I joked about doing this when we realised we were both playing wizards. Then we didn't because we're not munchkins.

>>98391625
Got invited to a 5.5e game. At first I had the thought of embodying a WWE wrestler and suplex everything, but desu grappling rules seem kind of dumb and unsupportive of that kind of thing. Now I'm thinking about doing a dex-focused sword and dagger piratey kind of character, but I'm not sure what class to be. Fighter is generic enough, but none of the subclasses are really standing out to me. Monk seemed like it could be an interesting choice, but the heavy focus on unarmed attacks and the lack of a fighting style choice is giving me pause. Is there anything out there that would help support throwing said dagger if I were to get one with returning on it while still keeping melee as the core focus?

Advice?

>>98399127
That's not being a munchkin, that's playing low-int wizards

>>98399121
If they do that, you just make them poor and/or constantly introduce hazards to their spellbooks.

>>98399121
Would I allow my players a source of motivation, a reason to have downtime, and something to actually spend all their gold on? Fuck yes I would.

>>98399134
Ranger, Hunter's Mark, two-weapon fighting, become the blender of sharp pointy things. Take the Dual Wielder feat at 4th level if your DEX is odd. Focus your spells on rituals and concentrationless buffs. Jump is spectacular for mobility.

>>98399134
Swashbuckler rogue is the exact archetype you're looking for

>>98395693
>>98395808
>>98396805
I'm here to play a game, not talk dirty to the, more than likely male, DM.

>>98399351
I'm sure you could find a lady DM (male) without much effort these days

>>98399121
>Would you allow your players to work together as a team? Allow them to roleplay being friends that share each other's knowledge?

What kind of question is that?

>>98399121
You know, it's almost like being able to do that is a core mechanic of the class and if you don't want them to do it, then you as the DM could probably do something like control the amount of resources and downtime they have access to in order to make it more difficult.

This is like asking "would you let your fighter buy a +1 longsword?"

File: 1528136718293.jpg (105 KB, 890x1066)

105 KB JPG

>>98399351
>I'm here to play a game, not talk dirty to the, more than likely male, DM.
curious that your mind immediately goes to 'dirty talk' the moment something remotely tangential to human sexuality is brought up . . .

>>98397652
I'd see how the party feel about having a character like this. They will either be used as a cheat code or immediately shine because you (The DM) are using them and inherently know the best solution to any problem.

>>98398630
Is there a way to use the roll20 for the other stuff in PHB? Looks like everything is locked except the same stuff in dnd beyond

>>98399930
Yes. You just type it in or copy+paste.

Am retarded. If I am dual wielding, do both weapons need to have the nick mastery in order to attack with both weapons without using a bonus action? Does only the primary or secondary weapon need nick, and which one needs it?

>>98399806
That's because it has happen to me before and it was super awkward.

>>98400028
It doesn't specify "when you attack with this weapon" or words to that effect, so I guess you just need the mastery to gain the benefit.

When I ran a dual-wielding Fighter, I would usually start with a shortsword for Vex, then follow up with a scimitar with Nick. It would also work the other way round.

I think that as long as one of the weapons you're using has Nick mastery, you can benefit from it.

>>98396010
>I use long words in an attempt to sound smarter
>It's no good pretending to be something I'm not

>>98398276
Hell nah, a flying creature presumably shouldn't even be able to take off at all most of time if they're more than lightly encumbered. Best case is the party would need to strip naked, and then get carried one by one, and then do separate trips for equipment, and then on top of that I'd say it would be fair to give them 1 level of exhaustion (or a CON save against it guess). Could probably be alleviated by drinking potion of /casting Enlarge Person though.
If you want any kind of a reasonable guidance on this subject, you must go back to 3.pf, particularly the Movement section in the SRD.

>>98400028
>>98400121
I think the Nick property in particular is just worded poorly. All of the mastery properties apply specifically to attacks with the weapon that has that mastery, it seems pretty clear to me that the intention is that the weapon with the nick property is meant to be the one you're using for the extra attack as part of the attack action, especially because thematically it makes the most sense since all the Nick weapons are smaller things you'd expect to be used as an off-hand weapon like daggers and light hammers.

Also while it doesn't look like the wording made it into the actual rules in the PHB, there's this post outlining how masteries work that does specify in general that you use the mastery when you make an attack with that weapon
https://www.dndbeyond.com/posts/1742-your-guide-to-weapon-mastery-in-the-2024-players

>In a group for a few years as a player
>Tabletop club I'm in says they like my GMing and offers me a GM spot in the westmarches game but I'd have to leave aforementioned group campaign to do it
What do? I wouldn't have to leave my regular group entirely, we run two campaigns so I'd just be leaving one, I'd still play with my friends in the other. I'd feel bad for leaving, but I think it would be good to try something new too.

>>98400324
Ask your friends if they'd be ok with that. Doesnt cost you a thing and if they all say yes, there'll be no drama.

https://www.enworld.org/threads/dungeons-dragons%E2%80%99-next-major-product-announcement-leaks-and-its-world-of-warcraft.720017/

WoW crossover incoming

File: 21348.png (1.99 MB, 1263x1500)

1.99 MB PNG

The best D&D crossover

>>98400660
That's pretty cool. But, I don't know any thing about modern Warcraft.
>Ashbringer
>A'tiesh

I could be excited for the bare minimum.

I printed my world map on a sheet of A0 paper and it looks so cool

>>98400660
God is dead

>>98399121
I just want players to make characters without consulting each other. Every new game my group gathers to mete out party roles, who's the healer, who's the ranged attacker, who's the skill monkey, who's the tank, etc. Inevitably every party resembles each other, soldier, striker, skirmisher, magic user, healer etc. Where's the spice, where's the variety?

>>98400775
That's how you end up with the fucking Rogue/Monk/Fighter/Paladin party in my home game. Hell's fucking fuck. They can punch and stab and that's about it. Jesus focking's Christ.

>>98400775
>I just want players to make characters without consulting each other.
my players do this and it's kinda shit. gives me more work to consider their strengths/weaknesses in combat, and less ability to be creative in the story hooks/magic items/puzzles i give to them. plus less opportunities for them to work in tandem to solve problems. give me fighter/magic user/cleric instead of rogue/monk/warlock or something similarly scuffed.

>>98400775
I love it when my players make a seemingly well-rounded party with an accidental secret weakness. The high-level adventure with the heavily armoured and perpetually concentrating Gnome Fighter 1/Wizard X, the Eladrin Bard/Warlock with a permanent summon for every situation, the Half-Orc Barbarian/Fighter crit machine, and the creative, out-of-the-box thinking Halfling Swashbuckler was a steamroll until they all had to make the same Wisdom save against the same area effect.

>>98400324
If GMing and playing is equally fun to you, I wouldn't go for it. As the saying goes, a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.
On the other hand I am personally a GMing fiend and would do anything to be the GM, so that I can fulfill my sickening fantasies. Last time I joined a new IRL group it took me about 5 sessions to oust the then-current GM and take over.

>>98400904
Do you like online play? I really want to play some dnd even if it's online. You could be the GM.

>>98400919
IRL is better just for the visceral feeling, though online makes up for it with many convenient gimmicks. Anyway, nowadays I'm playing online, but my group is full and I don't have enough time to run a second game.

You should maybe just look for a game on roll20 or reddit. I literally advertised my group on roll20 LFG roughly a year ago because back then we had vacancies.

>>98400904
I mostly play online and I've been finding it increasingly hard to concentrate as a player. Zoning out, doomscrolling, etc. Entirely my fault and I realise it's shitty behaviour, but I can actually concentrate as a GM. These games would be in-person, which is nice. The other flipside is due to a complete separate clash I'd have to stop going to the club if I don't GM, so it's damned if I do damned if I don't really.

on the topic of online vs IRL play, I'm in a campaign right now that's run westmarches style with primarily IRL sessions, but frequent online smaller interactions with individual players or smaller groups to fill time between. Works pretty well, anyone else done a similar setup before?

File: PLME039-hero-thumbnail-ar(...).jpg (316 KB, 1700x1100)

316 KB JPG

>Fuck your wheelbarrow!

>>98401380
Try doing that to a differently abled adventurer's wheelchair.

>>98401380
Is he exhausting spell slots on decaying a random tree?

>>98401450
daily jaunt out to the countryside to harass locals, no biggie

File: IMG_20260724_203800.jpg (2.52 MB, 3072x4096)

2.52 MB JPG

>>98397460

>>98400660
I’d steal the races and some monsters.
Nothing else unless it’s amazing, but we know deep down that it’s going to be mediocre.

>>98401450
Gotta do something with them before a long rest.

>>98400660
Wouldn't be the first time, we had a whole edition that was a WoW cross over 4e

>>98399121
Oh no! My players know more spells!!!!! OP OP OP OP OP

Literally doesn't mean shit, they still have the same spell slots.

>>98402132
4e players ecstatic because they might get the 4e mechanics that they crave in 5e.

they gunna get a fighter subclass, and theyre going to like it

File: warcraft-the-roleplaying-(...).jpg (71 KB, 633x822)

71 KB JPG

>>98402132
And a d20 supplement.

File: Witch_Hat_Atelier_Qifrey_GIF.gif (2.63 MB, 374x281)

2.63 MB GIF

>>98391625
>Artificer Initiate
>Origin Feat
>You gain the following benefits.
>Artisan Magic. You learn one cantrip and a Level 1 spell of your choice from the Artificer spell list. You always have these spell prepared. You can cast the level 1 spell once without a spell slot, and you regain the ability to cast it in that way when you finish a Long Rest. You can also cast the spell using any spell slots you have. Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma is your spellcasting ability for this feat's spells (choose when you select this feat).
>Spell Change. Whenever you gain a new level, you can replace one of the spells you chose for this feat with a different spell of the same level from the chosen spell list.
>Tool Caster. You gain proficiency with one type of Artisan's Tool of your choice, and you can use that type of tool as a Spellcasting Focus and as a Somatic component for any spell you cast that uses this feat's spellcasting ability.

Since they didn't reprint this in the Eberron Book, I guess you could just make it like this as an Origin feat. You can play a Wizard who uses Calligrapher's Supplies, a Bard who uses Painter's supplies or a Cleric who uses Cook's Utensils for all of their magic! 95% of spells in the games have Somatic components so you could use this with a ton of stuff.

I've never actually played in a D&D campaign with a wizard. Almost every tough fight, though, someone eventually says, "Damn, I wish we had a wizard so they could just Fireball everything and save us time."
>>98400775
My GM says that's not really an issue. His philosophy is basically, "
>Play whatever you want, it doesn't matter."
As a player, though, I don't completely agree with that.

Last thread i was talking about how i'm planning a campaign where Sorcerers are really important to the setting, and are supposed to be very powerful. After thinking a bit, i think i've had a few ideas to accomplish this in gameplay:

>Just give every Sorcerer a flat bonus to spell save DC (lazy but works)
>Adjust metamagic to make it stronger
>Have a system where magic has a chance to inflict fear on enemies (in this setting magic is rare)

I'm also thinking about making them have a gameplay drawback where they're plagued by visions and sometimes other side effects. Maybe something like every time you use metamagic you gain a point to a madness counter and then you have to roll on some sort of madness table? What do you guys think?

>>98402475
I remember 3rd edition had rules for a Sanity subsystem in Unearthed Arcana, also the d20 adaptation of Wheel of Time had a Madness system specifically built to work around channeling (i.e. using magic). Looking at those might provide some ideas, although the numbers they use probably won't translate well to 5e.

>>98402475
Insanity from accumulated exposure to magic is always cool.
But thematic physical corruption is also neat.

I think different archetypes of magic should have their own miscast and environmental corruption effects.

A fire spell gone wrong might just explode, or suck all the heat out of the local area and concentrate it on a point, or leave a man with the permanent smell of smoke and brimstone, or burns that never heal.

Mind affecting magic seems the most likely to result in derangement, hallucinations, and general confusion, like magically induced Alzheimers.

>>98402316
>retards screech about 4e being MUH MMO edition
>the WoW and Everquest adaptations were both 3E

Samurai, Battle Master, or Swashbuckler for a dex-based frontline skirmisher? I feel like Battle Master and Swashbuckler provide way more utility than Samurai, but Samurai seems to have more survivability baked in.

>>98402741
my friend, it isn't about stealing concepts and porting it into d&d, its reworking d&d into those games

>>98402812
swashbuckler w/ the cunning actions and strikes would be good

>>98402812
Swashbuckler works really well and is also just fun to play if you do it right, that'd be my choice.

Battle Master is good and fun, but I like it better for brawlers personally. Where's the fun in a wiggly dex-based bastard if you're running high AC?

>>98398276
>>98397890
Unless the gap is enormous enough you have to be in the air for more than like an hour I assume its a reasonable strategy. If its a distance you could carry another person your back, it's a distance you could fly them.

>>98400660
The two most mismanaged IP's linked up? YABA DABA DOOOOO!

>tfw can't have a returning trident to yeet harpies out of the sky through the topple mastery effect
Guess I'll have to settle on yanking them out of the air once I get telekinesis on my psi warrior...

>>98403352
The MtG crossover already happened.

>>98400660
Frankly I'm more surprised that it didn't happen already.

>Summon [x] spell requires 300 gold material
>Entire party doesn't have 300 gold in total between them
>Entire party doesn't even have enough gold for me to copy a spell scroll to my spellbook
Why must I pay for the crimes of other wizards

>>98402741
The WoW rpg felt more like it was just a dnd game set in the warcraft setting rather than literally playing an MMO. The 4e game felt like playing an MMO with nonsense like cooldowns etc. It felt truer to WoW mechanically.

It was a shame about the murder suicide.

>>98392571
>people the PCs care about
Huh?

File: crossskelly.jpg (859 KB, 1146x1524)

859 KB JPG

When it comes to being a fighter, how crippled are you with no armor? I am petrified of the party going to bed and us getting ambushed. Only because apparently fighters have to sleep with their armor off in order to recover properly. So in event of an ambush, what would be ideal if you are a fighter? It apparently takes something like 10+ minutes to put on plate armor which is what I have. So if we get ambushed, I'd be fucked I think. I also don't have a dexterity modifier because my dex stat is too low. So I'd be a sitting duck for things to stab me. Is this one of those old school rules that most people look over now or is being ambushed as a fighter actually scary as fuck because you most likely won't have your armor on?

File: file.png (345 KB, 345x850)

345 KB PNG

>Hey dude, can I play a Fairy Wild Magic Sorcerer?
Well? What's your answer?

>>98404914
yeah sure whatever, you planning on multiclassing into paladin or warlock?

>>98404940
no, just sorcerer
I don't really like the idea of multiclassing for a few reasons.

>>98404963
ok cool, next session is saturday at 4

>>98404771
Sleeping in armor only has a variant rule from Xanathar's Guide to Everything. And the downside is relatively minor, since you simply recover fewer hit dice and don't recover exhaustion. If you didn't have exhaustion anyway and weren't low on hit dice, it's not an issue.
Notably this only applies to medium/heavy armor, so even assuming your DM is using this rule, you could potentially get some studded leather to sleep in instead just so you're slightly less poor off. Take an action to put on a shield and you're suddenly at 14 AC, which while isn't great, also isn't too terrible.
If your DM is using their own houserule for it though, mileage there may vary.

That aside, you're also not that badly off provided that whatever night-time ambush is going on isn't super-deadly. Keep in mind that most other classes rely on armor, spells, or other resources that they'll similarly be short on during a night-time ambush.

>>98404985
Awesome, my group only has a game every four months, hahaha.

What feat would you recommend a 4th level shadow sorcerer

>>98405179
Is your charisma 20 yet?

If not, just bump charisma up.

>>98405220
It's point buy, so I'm sitting at 17 right now
No reason not to get a half feat

>>98405179
>>98405262
Thematically, Shadow Touched.

>>98405179
Shadow Touched, of course.

Since I played on roll20 the other day I had to make a digital character sheet. I went through and added all the items in my inventory and armor and my character is just a rogue but I'm carrying nearly 100 lbs! And that's without like any real treasure. We've only mostly began the story.
Does anyone actually track weight when you play? The first time I played my DM gave me a bag of holding and everyone oohed and ahhed at it. I thought it was neat at the time, but now I can just hold infinite amount of items and no one brings it up. As long as I'm not carrying something really big it's never questioned.

>>98405354
A lot of tables don't track it, largely because the default rules are extremely generous. 15 x Strength score is the number of pounds you can carry without penalty, and so even an 8 Strength character can lug around 120 pounds.

There are variant rules where it's reduced to 5 x Strength score before you start getting penalties, although in the cases where I've seen the DM actually try to use those rules, it usually ends up where someone gets a race/class feature to circumvent it, or one of the players gets fed up enough to spend 8 gp on a mule.

>>98405179
>>98405262
2024 D&D?
War Caster is fantastic to help maintain concentration.
Telekinetic isn't bad if you want to shove allies around.
Fairy Trickster is great for imposing Disadvantage on saves.

I'd suggest Shadow Touched like the others for flavor reasons- but I can't really see why you'd get that when you already have access to Invisibility and the not so powerful Illusion/Necromancy 1st level spells. Instead I'd suggest reflavoring something more useful like Fairy Trickster into a Shadowfell like feature.

>>98405486
There's a hidden cost connected to the mule (food, pack saddle, a hireling to care for the mule and keep and eye on the treasure or even a guard, cost off living for the hirelings etc.), although you could save a lot of money by skipping on hirelings if you made regular trips back to town and never spend more than a day or two inside the dungeon (keeping in mind that a short rest is 1 hour and a long rest 8). Assuming you are exploring the Sunless Citadel and sell in Oakhurst that would mean a four hour trip whenever you decide to cash out, risking one encounter on your way back.

Mule 8 gp
Pack Saddle 5 gp
Feed /month 1.5 gp
= 14.5 gp
+
Hireling (untrained) /day 6 sp
Cost of living for the hireling (poor) /day 6 sp

Even with everything considered its still pretty inconsequential for a group of four adventurers.

>>98405875
1.5 gp per month on food is negligible. 5 gp for a pack saddle is slightly more notable, along with the 4 gp saddlebags, though those aren't very well defined in terms of what they actually do.
Even so, like you said, it's in the ballpark of 20 gp or less even if the DM insists that the mule cannot carry anything without that specific gear, but it still isn't a significant sum beyond anything but the lowest levels.

The mule just serves as the easy example because basically any character can do that. If you really want to bypass it, you either play a Strength-based Goliath, or pick Artificer and use an infusion for a Bag of Holding

File: joshua-raphael-10.jpg (1.31 MB, 1785x2310)

1.31 MB JPG

Everyone's a tough guy until a giant flying pig rises from the lower planes to kick their ass.

Its always kind of frustrating when your players come to you asking to play X character or Y class before session zero. You don't know anything about the world dude calm down. And you're always treated like an asshole for saying no.

File: FsYFGBNaIAEu7TT.jpg (35 KB, 524x524)

35 KB JPG

>>98405354
>Does anyone actually track weight when you play?
i do, but that's because i play on the foundry vtt which will automatically sum the weight off all things in a player's inventory and compare it to their carryweight.

the vast, vast majority of tables (outside of a vtt that autocalcs) will handwave carryweight unless the DM specifically notes something would be too heavy/bulky to travel with.

>>98406004
What's really frustrating is when they ask that, you work with them to make something that will work, and then they show up with a different character.

File: Linkstuff.png (1.35 MB, 751x1063)

1.35 MB PNG

>>98405354
I do, usually to the effect of insuring whatever I'm hauling fits in a backpack. I usually assume its cast off during fights, which sometimes results in odd situations where its never answered when exactly I went back for my stuff (for instance if we flee a scene right after combat) but overall it doesn't raise any questions. It does arise my autism when people carry huge weights around and its not explained HOW they're carrying it though. A hundred pounds in a big chest you lug around seems incovenient, but at least it makes sense. If you're hauling a sword, two halberds, a crossbow and a musket I definitely want to see the character art of that shit attached to your body.

Note this is not strictly a complaint, it can result in some cool designs for how precisely you ARE carrying all that.

>>98406201
Page 20 of the new 5.5e PHB
>Carrying Objects: You can usually carry your gear and treasure without worrying about the weight of those objects. If you try to haul an unusually heavy object or a massive number of lighter objects, the DM might require you to abide by the rules for carrying capacity in the rules glossary.
Generally people don't pay attention to it. I just give most parties a bag of holding so they don't have to worry about it too much.

>>98391625
>TQ
I expect sixth edition will come out in the next 5 years. I don't think it'll be any time soon. WoTC seem happy to rest on their laurels at the moment. I think what they really want is another Baldur's Gate. The video game gave them a huge uptick in players and popularity since it's essentially house ruled 5e. Good fucking luck to anyone making Baldur's Gate 4 the expectations will be through the roof. We all know they'll make some woke disaster like Veilguard.

>>98406004
My favorite is:
>I had a really cool character in my last campaign, can I just bring my old character sheet
What? He's probably not even the same level. And you don't know if he'll fit the campaign or party. What the fuck, is this a thing in other groups?!

I'm really disappointed that psi warrior doesn't let me telekinetically slap people with my sword at range. Is Boon of Looming Shadows the only thing that kind of lets me do that?

>>98406528
>3.5 psi warrior
>Gets its own class
>You can choose all the powers you want depending on your discipline and character
>5e psi warrior
>Subclass of fighter
>Set list of skills
>Literally every psi warrior has the same psychic powers
WoTC are so fucking lazy it's unbelievable.

>>98406542
I hate it, but desu I want to fill in sort of a support role in my party.

The ability to slap higher AC and dex saves onto my whole group for every encounter, and the potential to knock anything regardless of size prone just seems really nice.

>>98406542
WotC insists on being weird about Psi and acting like Psi is this thing that's difficult to build a Class around

>>98406856
>>98406542
Literally just copy/paste Battle Master, but with psychic maneuvers instead of physical stuff.

>>98406856
psi was never originally a class anyways, just an addon to a character

>>98406900
You are a fucking retard. That won’t be a psi warrior you stupid nigger that would be a battlemaster

>>98406856
The thing is wotc, and the playerbase as a whole, insists on the retarded thought of "NOOOO PSIONICS AREN'T MAGIC THEY'RE SUUUPER SPECIAL SPACE MAGIC IT'S DIFFERENT"

And WOTC are hacks that can't give interesting features to anything that isn't magic

>>98406986
>insists on the retarded thought of "NOOOO PSIONICS AREN'T MAGIC
Thing is, if psionics are magic, there isn't any reason to write separate material for them. You already have Eldritch Knight, so just use that.

>Everyone acting like using power points isn’t an easy solution to making psionics feel different
We’ve had a very simple solution for over 20 years. The hacks at WoTC are so fucking stupid and blind.

Fun melee class that is able to do more than smash, preferably some degree of party support or skill monkey? I do not want to be the party face

WotC really should have added optional prices to the bastion rooms. They have generally made some absolutely baffling design decisions with a very promising system.
>you get the bastion for free at level 5 instead of being able to buy it whenever you like
>all rooms added to the bastion are free as well, but adding rooms to your bastion is tied to your character level
>but furnishing a room? that cost money all the sudden, not special rooms like laboratories or an observatory of course; just the living room and kitchen
>hirelings are always loyal, except when they aren't (loyalty is only affected by random events), this one is ok I guess
>when a bastion is conquered you don't actually lose the bastion, you only lose the ability to use one room for 14 days, repairing that room is also free
>to add a tavern you have to be level 17!!!! for some reason; a circle of teleportation for comparison requires only level 9
>that however is not an actual circle of teleportation, just some special door for some hobo wizard to break into your house
Wtf!

>>98407608
Artificer?

>>98407696
For some reason I was thinking Artificer was just plan bad. Armorer seems like a neat subclass that won't melt immediately when something thinks angry thoughts.

>>98407760
Armorer is pretty boring. I've enjoyed Battlesmith though. You get two attacks so do decently in melee. You get shield as a bonus spell and could take something like the Plate of Knight's Fellowship for armor. Having the iron defender also adds a lot of HP to tank in melee.

>>98407764
Battle Smith is the way to go if you want to stack AC in 5e.

>>98405354
I always have my players track weight strictly, and make bags of holding more rare and valuable. I don't really go out of my way to murder their pack mules at least, and every party always cheers when they finally get their hands on their first bag of holding.

Last campaign I tried an alternate system: beyond the stuff you have directly equipped on yourself at the moment, you can only carry 1 extra item per 1 STR score, with some exceptions such as 5 torches/scrolls/potions count as 1 item, and so does a bag of 500 coins. It was fairly interesting, I guess. Thoroughly fucked over people dumping STR, as intended, at least until they got bags of holding.

>>98406986
Psionics have to be something "not" magic otherwise it's just magic
It's WotC insisting on pretending things are complicated when they're not and then going "Sorry, we tried ;:("

File: 3.8r.gif (198 KB, 220x109)

198 KB GIF

>>98407760
it's a B-tier class

>>98407922
If all the classes are like a basketball roster, who are your starting five, who are the second unit, and who only get garbage time?

I'm torn.
>15 Psi Warrior/4 "class with Feather Fall" built to go fast, anime slice things, run really high up to slice big things out of the sky (with FF to not die afterwards), and buff party with half-cover
>19 Rune Knight to grow big, swing big weapons, and wrestle big stuff into submission
Might be able to just go straight Psi Warrior, as the party might have a wizard to hit me with feather fall if I need to get high, but desu I'm not sure what I'd do with the telekinesis at 18

>>98408051
Rune Knight can grapple things out of the sky. RAW, vertical standing reach is 1.5x your height, your vertical jump relates directly to your STR modifier, and those numbers really add up when you're strong and tall.

>>98408032
Is this a new video, or the one from last week, or the one from the week before that?

>>98408080
Mentally ill?

sunday gameday bump

>>98400696
>470 canadian loonies
i'll pass

I just did my first session ever as a DM and it went great, great session zero, everyone liked the setting and they made very cool characters. But like i'm already freaking out because its a setting where there's Faction A and Faction B, and they're rival factions, and the campaing is set in a neutral zone between them. And my players decided to be half on Faction A and half on Faction B so now i have one week to figure out how the fuck i make them work together as a party

File: 1784069741817002.jpg (25 KB, 228x221)

25 KB JPG

>>98410442
No party splitting. Kill the characters on one faction and when they make new characters tell them they have to go with the other faction.

>>98410460
I mean i'm not splitting the party, that seems unfeasible. But now i'm trying to reconcile a way for them to work together. I guess i need to introduce a third, bigger bad for them to work together, or maybe a splinter faction within one of their own factions. Its a bit overwhelming as a first time DM and we haven't even had the first session yet.

>>98410442
>>98410466
Well, IMO session zero is where the players should have figured out why their characters are sticking with each other (IMO specific instructions to them to collectively pick a side may have been a good idea). If they come out it as half red roses and half white roses then things didn't go all that well. So time for session 0.5; sorting out the shit you missed. Now whether that means those on the "wrong" team switch, or if there's some external reason to work together... talk to your players about it. (Perhaps preferably before the next session, have a chat room or something, so you don't need to improvise the Bigger Bad completely at the start of the next session if they like the sound of it) Especially since you're new, people should adjust their expectations and play along to help keep things from disintegrating.

>>98410496
They're not 100% opposing, here's my current situation:
>Player 1 is a noble for Faction A
>Player 2 is a knight defending player 1
>Player 3 is a knight, also from Faction A
>Player 4 is a soldier, from faction B

Players 1 and 2 are somewhat disilusioned with the way their own faction works, they were just born into it. Player 3 just wants money basically, but he's loyal to his noble master. Player four on the other hand is a career soldier for Faction B. So i think players 1, 2 and 4 could work together, player 3 is where it gets tricky. I tried to figure out a reason for why they are travelling together but they said i should figure out a way to unite them in the first session as a GM. I think it might be a bit too much to expect from a newbie like me. I really didn't want to make one of them have to swap sides though, i'll just keep racking my head and see if i cant figure something out, but you're right, maybe i should talk to them and ask them to make my life a bit easier.

>>98410513
No, demand they figure out some kind of buy in to put them together, even if it's as simple as one group defecting to the other for some reason.

They can do some of the legwork for you, especially regarding their own damn characters.

>>98399121
This isn't even munchkinery in 5.X.
In 5.X, wizards can easily get access to spells. A library might have them, or any wizard will trade (assuming they can trust each other even a little).

All the "game balance" about spells is this:
1- You can only prepare a spell that YOU copied into YOUR spellbook.
2- This copy has a fixed cost: 50 gp per level. It also takes 2 hours per level.

That's the actual cost of adding a spell. Anyone in the whole world who has a spellbook written by literally anyone can rent you that spellbook for almost nothing and the real cost is you copying it.

In older versions where you could loot a spellbook and then learn to cast stuff out of THAT spellbook, this was totally different. In that world, the spellbook itself had a lot of value because you could skip the gold cost if you had it.

>>98410667
I sometimes still add spellbooks as loot. But I've changed it so all classes have a spellbook.

>>98410513
Player from faction B has a reason to believe (either inside first session or even before) that there is a betrayer on his faction, there might even be a reason to believe someone from faction A is behind this(breaking their principles) and thus it's on everyone's best interest to work together until something is found, by them you can argue that they working together has made a "third faction" everyone is looking up to

>>98410513
Here's what I tell the group in every session 0
>There will not be any PvP. You can do stuff like slapstick but not dealing damage or actively working against each other. It's not fun and I'll end the campaign if it happens.

>>98410677
Oh I still drop spellbooks as loot, I just assume that they are worth maybe 5 gp / spell level inside or so. A spell book is like a large sunk cost for whomever wrote into it, whereas its just a reference document for everyone else.

Also like, you should basically never copy a scroll into a spellbook unless you're going to be far away from civilization for awhile, or its specifically a spell you know you can't get via a normal method. The costs for scrolls ramp up really fast, past about 4th level it is a bad call and at high levels its pretty much unthinkable.

I guess a DM could run a world so different that no one will ever give you a spellbook or you're the only guy playing by spellbook rules so there's never any around, but like... that's just spiteful, it would be like building a world without metal weapons or something.

>>98410667
It's not munchkinry in any edition frankly.

The two guys that have been taking turns Dming for our group are getting tired of it and I've agreed to be DM for our next campaign. I already have a setting in mind and a rough plot, but my biggest gripe with how we play is how little progress we make. We only get to play twice a month and in the 4-5 hour session we often barely get through a few rooms in one dungeon. It drives me crazy but I'm not the dm and I just like hanging out, but I want it to be different when I do it else I'll go insane.

My initial ideas are too instead of stating we're going to each individual room and rolling checks I just have the party all roll for the entire floor and describe it from there instead of us going around with our movement.

I'm not sure how I could compress combat though. I think part of the problem is they try and make every combat worthwhile, but with 6 players that means more enemies and the only combat of a session being killing 6 zombies and that taking a hour doesn't feel great.

of course I don't want to do to much and make it suck but theres gotta be a way to not be stuck in the same dungeon for 3 months

>>98410513
>they said i should figure out a way to unite them in the first session as a GM.
Oh, they're asking for it? Try the old oldschool railroad device of "wizard slaps them with a geas/slow acting poison/magical parasite and blackmails them into working together for him."

>>98410838
I mean it kinda multiplies your spells in second edition, or nearly so. The case discussed- where four wizards collaborate- basically means all the good spells will be known for free.

3rd edition provides two ways to use a captured or shared spellbook; you can copy it into your spellbook (which is expensive), or you can prepare it directly, a feature 5e lacks. To prepare it directly is a spellcraft check of DC 15+level (if you fail you can't prepare it that day, but you can try again the next day). Since wizards pump their spellcraft normally, by 5th level this will be something like +12, so it's pretty reliable. By 10th level it will be like +18, so you will always be able to borrow level 1-3 spells and 85%+ of the time you'll be able to do max level stuff. The borrowing bit totally skips the gold cost to copy.

Anyway AD&D wizards are supposed to have to buy or loot spellbooks, 3.X wizards are supposed to have to rent spellbooks and pay the expensive scribe fee or loot them and only mostly be able to use them unless they pay the scribe fee, and 5e wizards just can't do anything without the scribe fee.

So having four or five wizards collabing did provide all this for free in editions before 5e.

Why are wizards so broken but so boring

>>98397093
Good stuff man but what's the context?

File: IMG20260725172253.jpg (2.79 MB, 4096x3072)

2.79 MB JPG

>>98410968
Im making a oneshot, when it's done I'll post it all here so wise anons can suggest fixes

File: IMG20260726180648.jpg (2.37 MB, 4096x3072)

2.37 MB JPG

>>98410968
Im making a oneshot, when it's done I'll post it all here so wise anons can suggest fixes

>>98410975
Right on. Good luck with the work.

>>98410943
In AD&D it's only good for first level spells since wizards don't automatically get new ones on leveling up. A useful strategy but hardly overpowered. Any scrolls or spellbooks that the party finds subsequently can be referenced by each wizard in the party anyway.

If there is a scenario where I'd say players can leverage more power out of the strategy, it would be splatbook spells in 3e and 5e. Even if DMs allow non-core spells in their game, if they neglect them in loot then the only meaningful way players can access said spells is choosing them when leveling up.

How old is Ivan Dilisniya supposed to be?

All the art makes him look like he’s a geezer, but a lot of the lore implies he’s pretty young, with a sister who was going to be sent to boarding school by their parents. I feel like he’s meant to be the same age as his cousin Ivana Boritsi but I can’t tell.

Our DM generously placed in front of our level 5 party a Dragon Hoard.
>It contains 2,000 pp 16,000 gp 60,000 sp 500 gems (50gp/e), 160 jewelry pieces (3gp/e), several handfuls of potions, 100 silver plates (10gp/e), 200 bronze plates (5gp/e), some minor magic stuff, mundane gear, and some useless trash.
A decent chunk of stuff.
The problem is we can't carry it all. We are on an island and there are pirates after us (50~), so we can't take too long. We have no bag of holding and no spells to help.
After much deliberation the other players have suggested grabbing the lightest loot (the gems, platinum, and magic stuff) and getting away.
But my greedy ass wants to take all of the valuable stuff. This feels like a monkey jar trap

not asking for advice, I just want anons to appreciate this

Anyone know if this is a good challenge rating calculator? https://www.challengerated.com/

I know no calculator is perfect, but i'm a newbie GM and i'm looking for a calculator that allows for adding allied NPCs to the battle like this one does

>>98411190
Also, while I’m thinking about Ravenloft, what’s up with Richemulot? Outside of the Dishonored Rat Plague going on, it says that the cities have too many buildings even if the population wasn’t dying.

This also seems to be a thing in original Ravenloft, so, what the fuck? What a weird detail.

>>98411527
Challenge rating is a lie.
You just have to learn how to eyeball things and understand the value of features when you read them

Is a scimitar the best finesse weapon when not dual wielding if I think rapiers are gay?

>>98411715
Short sword has Vex. Also rapier is only gay when used without a shield.

Centaur girl with a climb speed

>>98411871
Get that girl some horseshoes of spider climbing.
Also let my halfling mount her.

Anyone got a list of curses/hexes to use?

Game cancelled this week. First time for a while. But I was really looking forward to it. The only high point in my pathetic life.

>>98412235
I like fuck personally

>>98410849
dungeon combats are supposed to be enemies whittling down your party's resources, not epic combats every room. Rolling initiative and figuring out the player and monster order also takes time so have initiative be your marching order and just have players go then monsters go.

>>98410513
> I tried to figure out a reason for why they are travelling together but they said i should figure out a way to unite them in the first session as a GM

Here's your answer/reason: "Do you want to play D&D or not?"

>Him? He's a Bard. He uses Charisma to cast spells such as Vicious Mockery
>Him? He's a bard. He can tap into the Weave that manifests from music and connection to cast spells such as Vicious Mockery
>Him? He's a spell slinging sort despite the appearance. You ever hear of those magic blokes that shout at people and they wince like it actually hurts? One of them.
On a scale of literally a LitRPG to not even naming the spells or classes how do you prefer your setting?

>>98412955
I prefer a mix of the two approaches, leaning harder toward the side of not explicitly naming things. Like obviously in-universe if you're doing lore as written from the established settings, there are some like spells that are literally named by/for their creators, but that's about as far as I prefer to take it. Like I personally hate shit like when players start talking about things in-character like they're reading out of the PHB.

>>98412955
The second one would be what a wizard/scholar would tell you, while the third would be what the average person would tell you. Though the scholar might not refer to them specifically as a bard. Sort of like how someone casting Cleric spells might be a cleric, priest, oracle, etc. even if a scholar can clearly identify that they're casting divine magic from a connection to a deity.

The existence of spell scrolls alone sort of necessitates that at a certain level of arcane knowledge, discrete magical effects do have clear names and delineation.
I recall that there was some lore about spells typically being written in Draconic or some other magical language, which could mean that serves as the 'true name' for a spell, while there might be some variation when it comes to translating it.

>>98413266
>The existence of spell scrolls alone sort of necessitates that at a certain level of arcane knowledge, discrete magical effects do have clear names and delineation.
Not really. You can have magic inscribed onto parchment that is designed to have a specific effect without the spell itself having an explicit name, hell in a setting where things are softly defined you could even argue that the "same" spell as written by multiple different casters might have little variations in the approach they took to achieving the effect, leading to differences in how it manifests visually, etc. which becomes a good in-story reason for players giving unique flavor to the way they cast certain things. It really all comes down to how the DM wants their particular setting to feel.

>>98413305
>hell in a setting where things are softly defined
D&D as a ruleset is really bad at allowing for such settings. It doesn't matter if you want to describe how a particular wizard wrote his 'orb of flame' spell in an eldritch language, because it's still Fireball. It has the same material components as Fireball. Someone watching him cast it can make an Arcana check to successfully identify that the verbal and somatic components are that of Fireball. A Helmed Horror that was given immunity to the Fireball spell as part of its creation will still be immune to it.

The specific effect is something that is fundamentally distinct on a cosmic level that people within the world can readily identify in spite of various levels of obfuscation.
The DM can want their setting to feel as mysterious and wonderous as they want, but unless you're actually altering the mechanics of the game to suit that purpose, it's not going to have the intended impact.

>>98413364
Anon you honestly just sound really unimaginative. All the stuff you described could really easily be handwaved as "with your 23 arcana check you can tell that the gestures and arcane words of power that the enemy mage is employing tend to evoke powerful and destructive fire magic". This shit is really not hard to pull off for anyone with less than moderately severe autism.

>>98413562
>"with your 23 arcana check you can tell that the gestures and arcane words of power that the enemy mage is employing tend to evoke powerful and destructive fire magic"
Thanks for illustrating the point. All of that and the player doesn't even know if the enemy is casting Fireball or Firestorm.

>Anon you honestly just sound really unimaginative.
I can imagine plenty of ways where I can be extra vague or unclear about what the PCs are witnessing. But why wouldn't I just give the players the correct information when they made a check specifically to see if they knew the answer?

>>98411647
I understand this but also i'm a first time GM so a tool to help my newbie ass as i'm still learning would be helpful

>>98413652
>Thanks for illustrating the point. All of that and the player doesn't even know if the enemy is casting Fireball or Firestorm.
So add more detail as well as telling the player the above the table knowledge they should have, "Anon, based on all that, you can tell the spell being cast here would be fireball" etc. This shit isn't hard, you're just being fucking obtuse. If you prefer hard-defined magic at your table that's fine too, but you're acting like it's somehow impossible to do it this way when it's actually easy as fuck.

>>98414215
>"Anon, based on all that, you can tell the spell being cast here would be fireball"
Meaning that it's just Fireball. Because you're playing a system with hard-defined magic.
>you're acting like it's somehow impossible to do
I didn't say it was impossible. I said earlier that it would require altering the mechanics in order to have the intended impact.
And if the intent is to make a soft magic system where spells don't have an explicit name, then adding a flowery description before you tell the player that the spell is Fireball doesn't actually achieve what you're proposing.

>>98414280
>Meaning that it's just Fireball.
Meaning that the effect is roughly analogous to the spell that they've learned that does approximately the same thing. Convergent properties that are the result of magic being a phenomenon that follows any kind of logic. That doesn't make specific measurements and formulations hard-coded into reality, it means that there are basic categories that can be used for analytical purposes. Basically, cladistics.

>>98414280
Anon I'm going to refer you right back to >>98413562
>This shit is really not hard to pull off for anyone with less than moderately severe autism.

I am sad to inform you that you appear to fall significantly past the moderately severe mark.

>>98412235
Hex
Bestow Curse

>>98403891
>It was a shame about the murder suicide.
The what now? I need an explanation, please.

>>98414625
The lead dev committed a murder suicide. You can easily look up more information yourself if you want.

>>98414640
Wow. I never really follow the personality circus stuff around these games, so I'd never heard. That's crazy.

>>98414472
>This shit is really not hard to pull off
Of course not. >>98414215 already illustrated how he would pull it off.

>you can tell the spell being cast here would be fireball
Which is exactly the sort of thing I would tell a player.
If we all agree that's the way to run a game, then what exactly are you not understanding?

>>98414698
>personality circus
More like industry news that helped push the hobby to where it's at today.

>>98412235
Here roll a d6
>1 - Druid's Taint- If the cursed wears metal armor or wields a metal weapon, it is damaged as if by the spell Heat Metal at the start of each of its turns so long as it continues to do so. The cursed will find themselves increasingly restless and irritated in urban environments, and when under a non-natural roof (uncarved stone as one would find in a cave would be exempt for example) they make all CHA skill checks with disadvantage and are unable to sleep/mediate.
>2 - Wordbroth - the cursed loses the ability to comprehend or create written language of any kind, as the symbols blend and swirl together in their mind (of course applying to spellbooks, scrolls etc. as well). The wordbroth overflows the mind, and takes up space for other activities - all concentration checks are made with disadvantage because of this.
>3 - Leg Rot - speed is reduced by 15 ft., any attempts to push or knock prone the cursed automatically succeed. All dexterity saves are made with disadvantage.
>4 - Tongues - The cursed grows a second mouth on the back of their neck which speaks whenever the player themself is not speaking. The mouth only says curse words, and binding or blocking the mouth in any way causes the cursed to begin suffocating.
>5 - Sympathy - The cursed cannot bring themself to kill a living creature. If a living creature dies in sight of the cursed, the cursed takes 3d12 psychic damage immediately as they are wracked with guilt.
>6 - The Librarian's Work- Swap CON and INT scores of the cursed.

File: 1783034609804503.jpg (53 KB, 640x480)

53 KB JPG

I hate Artificers.
Still think they're the ultimate scapegoat for not adding a proper pricing or crafting rules to magic items.

didn't ask

>>98414947
>I think that a class released six years after the core rulebooks is why those core rulebooks don’t have rules I want
You might be retarded

>>98414947
I think magic items are the lamest part of dnd

>>98415126
I like the ability to tell a story with them, building the world or history/lore or offering power at a personal cost
The commodification, the "let's go shopping for a bag of holding and some +1 javelins" I can take or leave.

>>98414732
Anon, what flavor of retarded are you? Both of those are me. I pointed out that you can give the player an explicit piece of knowledge from the PHB without that being literally what the character knows and you autistically claimed that was somehow contradictory.

The part I'm not understanding is how your defective brain works.

>>98415411
>you autistically claimed that was somehow contradictory.
Ah, I see the problem. You're imagining things I never said and getting upset about it.
Feel free to carry on without me then.

Dude i'm just so nervous for my first ever session of DMing. We had session zero last week. We have a setting, an event that is happening in the setting, we have characters and a reason for the characters to be where they want to be. I also have like six different events that they can run across, all of them leading to either an interesting little tidbit about the world, or something related to a broader, grander storyline. But i only really wrote up to that point, i know where i want the story to go eventually, i have ideas for later but i'm kinda just going on the basis of "here's some stuff, look into it, we'll figure out how to progress from there". I mean because i know you're not supposed to lay everything out. But it also feels like i didn't write enough. But i might be overthinking. I really want this to go right.

>>98392388
This. Every 5e thread deserves the pic of the gay mexican orcs in the op. If you disagree you are a bigot.

>>98415696
Babe it’s your first session
Just have some wolves for them to fight and a reason to get out of town.

>>98415696
Whatever you plan, your players are going to ignore it and try to adopt a mentally handicapped goblin they invented in their heads when you described the tavern. Don't think about it so hard, just have a few encounters planned that you can pull out of your ass if/when it makes sense and figure out what they want to do from there.

>Strixhaven is bad because it's entirely vague themes and such while the GM is expected to invent an entire adventure with zero support
>if I dump the setting into Silly Tavern none of that matters and I can play legally distinct Witch Trainer
Guys, I think I'm a big izzat genius

>>98415848
izzet

What do I need to buy to DM for the first time, other than the campaign book (i consider it neccessary). The rest I can print out or draw. Im going to use battletech minis for combat.
Im going to get the icewind dale book

I know this has been discussed to death;

I'm playing a rogue for the first time in decades, and as I understand 2024 simplified Hide and complicated it.

There doesn't seem to be a consensus on what defines "finds you". RAW implies an enemy needs some kind of check even if you're in LOS, but logic dictates that if someone can see you you're not invisible, which defeats the purpose.

The DC15 check implies you're like covering yourself with stuff, or hiding behind a curtain, or pretending to be a coat rack, or using the distraction of battle, so in theory someone can't just 'see you' if you passed that check.

Anyone know any rulings on that mechanic?

>>98416011
Op here can I create a self insert character as the DM and insert them into the prewritted game as like a players tutorial guide type character that shows up every now and then?

>>98416011
some dice, some graph paper, a pencil and a marker (you could get 2 in different colors that's not a terrible idea), and like a duotang or a binder you can prop up to cover your notes.
Minis are nice but if you want you can just use coins.


>>98416037
why would you
if you're a new DM, focus on DMing, not trying to play a character at the same time. That's stupid.

>>98410513
>>98410706
>>98410853
Ok so i'm this anon and here's what i came up with:
>Player 1, the noble, is sent to the neutral zone to formally investigate the region in the name of their empire under the guise of just being on a personal trip
>Player 2 is his knight so he tags along
>Player 3 is also a knight in the same faction, so he's being sent together to bolster their forces
>Player 4 has been secrently sent to investigate his own faction in the neutral zone as they are suspected of being a splinter faction planning a coup, and is escorting players 1, 2 and 3 as his cover story

I'm going to have the story beginning with them arriving at the neutral zone and meeting one another for the first time. Does this seem acceptable as a way to glue them together? I mean my players aren't very antagonistic at all, and they know i'm a newbie so i'm sure they'd be willing to help me out to make things go smoothly.