The other day I came across A Quick Primer for Old School Gaming on a thread on Enworld. Given that one of the goals of D&D Next is to allow for a wide range of play experiences with the same rules set, it occurred to me that I should look deeper into what a more "old school" style has to offer. The most salient points are organized into what the author calls the four "zen moments."
First Zen Moment: Rulings, Not Rules
This is an interesting point, and even if it's one that's widely known it's not necessarily one that's widely understood. The assumption that many people make is that the first TTRPG systems lacked a plethora of rules because the hobby hadn't evolved that refinement yet. This may be true to some extent, but it doesn't explain the recent proliferation of retro-clones. I personally appreciate a simple, streamlined system with only a few core concepts that can be applied to a wide variety of situations. The reason why I haven't embraced Basic D&D, AD&D, etc. is because after looking through the books I find the rules that do exist to be clunky. There are a lot of tables (some that need to be regularly consulted in-game), situational subsystems, and that's not to mention the utter lack of balance and non-intuitive systems like THAC0 (the system whereby lower AC is better). 4E may have suffered from supplement glut, confusing errata, and a few math errors here and there, but the core system was very solid and intuitive.
Here is where D&D Next has an interesting opportunity to realize a more old-school style of play while using modern rules to do it. Not only that, but players can toggle anywhere they like on the spectrum, and in some cases the more complex modules can inform rulings using the more simple core. To illustrate what I mean by this, let's use the Fighter as an example. The Fighter is going to have the option for maneuvers-based, 4E-style builds that will presumably be as balanced against competing options as possible (that's what a whole team of game designers, as well as a slew of playtesters who in some cases are competent in game design themselves, are tasked with accomplishing). Even if you're not interested in using those tactical modules or that complex Fighter build, it pays to be familiar with it because those maneuvers can serve as extremely useful reference points. In a purely old-school game using a non-modular system the GM can make rulings for improvised actions, but they'll always be a shot in the dark. The easiest methods are to substitute an attack for an improvised maneuver (like a Dex vs Dex contest to trip a foe), which if past experience is any measure is almost never going to be used because it's usually underpowered, or to simply allow the Fighter to attempt things like this in addition to attacking, which is obviously overpowered (and will result in players fishing for improvised actions every single turn, which will bog down gameplay). The middle ground is much more interesting, where maneuvers and attacks can be combined with a drawback in some sort of middle ground, with the end result being tactically powerful but not automatically the obvious choice all the time.
Improvisation and creativity can be maintained alongside balance, instead of "you need a feat/power/etc. for that" for the sake of balance. Ultimately I do think that rewarding creativity and improvisation is important because that's the biggest strength of tabletop gaming. You can attempt anything you come up with instead of being railroaded by computer codes like in video games. In a way, some modern game rules bring that "coded" element too far into the foreground, and that's just not playing to the advantage of the medium.
Second Zen Moment: Player Skill, not Character Abilities
This one's a little more contentious in my opinion, but the beauty of delving into this old-school toolkit is that everything doesn't come pre-packaged; groups can choose different elements to suit their tastes. Aside from the fact that simply testing player skill can bog things down (i.e. requiring players to specify searching every corner of a room instead of simply rolling a search check), it also breaks the immersion of roleplaying a character who is different from you.
The biggest sticking point to me comes into play during social challenges, and there are two issues here. The first is simply that different players have different levels of comfort and interest getting into character and actually acting. The classic example is a shy player who wants to play a smooth-talking Bard. Requiring such a player to come up with the actual speech he uses to change the king's mind is simply not good gaming if the player would rather just give a short, general description and roll a Diplomacy check. The rules shouldn't restrict personal style too much, and besides that it's easier to give roll-players what they want and allow roleplayers to ignore it than it is to force rollplayers to invent their own mechanics. Second, there's a disconnect with a clever player controlling a stupid character, or a smooth-talking player controlling a character who dumped Cha, etc. The idea is that Int, Cha, or whatever can be dumped but the character won't really suffer the drawbacks of doing so. In other words, the player's skill gives the character a free ability. Why should the Fighter be able to out-Charisma the Bard when the Bard class specifically gives up some combat expertise in order to have more of a social presence?
Ultimately, there's not "right answer" and fortunately it seems like D&D Next will support both playstyles well.
Third Zen Moment: Heroic, Not Superhero
I'm not sure that this one's all that important, but perhaps old-school grognards would disagree. The premise is that starting out as Joe Normal is requisite for the experience, and I don't necessarily buy that. More adept individuals have just as much of a need to survive using their wits as every day people, because the simple fact is that every day people don't run around doing the sorts of things that adventurers tend to do! It's really a question of how deep into the "origin story" you want to go ("I just picked up a sword for the first time" vs "I've already demonstrated my skill and potential in the field"). Where your character eventually ends up isn't necessarily an old school vs modern element, either. I would argue, in fact, that old school Magic Users are indeed superheroic; the goal of modern games is simply to allow the non-magic guys to do the same.
Fourth Zen Moment: Forget "Game Balance"
Isn't this an interesting point! As someone who was attracted to 4E specifically because the classes are all balanced against each other, you might think I'd wholeheartedly take issue with this. True, I don't want to repeat my 3rd edition experience where the casters are all but useless in the first few levels, and by the high levels the situation is flip-flopped. However, one component of the argument is that not every encounter should be assumed to be "fair," and I've come to realize that this is a very good point. Of course a modern game like 4E gives you to tools to finely craft a balanced encounter, but that doesn't necessarily mean you need to adhere to them! Admittedly it's easier in a more streamlined system to gauge threat level more quickly (in real time), but I think this is generally good advice for GMs in any system to keep in mind, as it grounds the players into the game world (which feels more dynamic and realistic by being inhabited by all manners of creatures, and not just those that are an "appropriate challenge").
Player Advice
It takes the effort of everyone in the group to run a game more old-style, and it's helpful for players to know the basic assumptions of what they should be doing. Mapping is emphasized (even if it's just a flowchart), as the player needs to keep in mind where things are to use the environment and terrain to not only their advantage, but to avoid getting flanked by reinforcements or trapped. Dungeons tend to be tests of attrition, with the end goal being the monsters near the end with the big loot pile. Fighting everything means you'll never make it far enough, so scouting ahead is important (see also using the environment to your advantage). Asking a lot of question is important, both to clarify what you may be facing and any details of the environment that may be important. As a side note, this is valuable in any game from the GM's perspective because having to think about such details can provide a spark of inspiration (which can lead to an interesting scenario, or just help to more fully flesh out the world).
Other tips include using hirelings, protecting the Magic User, keeping in mind that not all monsters will be within the party's skill to defeat, and gathering information about a dungeon beforehand. This means doing your research and talking to people in-game before heading out. Ultimately, it's about preparation and careful thought.
DM Advice
Spicing things up outside of the standard procedure is required. Otherwise things turn into "I attack," "Monster Attacks," "I attack again," etc. Yes, you can spice things up in any system, but you arguably have more time for it when combat options are simple and fights end quickly. Coming up with random consequences for bad rolls (and benefits for good rolls!) is encouraged, as long as you play fair and don't favor either the monsters or the players. You need to give players a reason to trust your judgement.
Colorful descriptions and improvised actions are often easier without the constraint of a grid and minis. Even if you use a grid, go with what makes sense in the game world rather than just what makes sense on the table in front of you. Resource management is important to consider, and make sure you can think of ways to counter the 5 minute workday. Apparently a lot of old-school gamers consider this stuff a feature and not a bug (personally I'd rather not be bothered with tracking rations, arrows, etc., let alone being locked into a spellcasting system that assumes this is important to you).
The closing statements are "You are the rulebook. There is no other rulebook." and "Make it fast, make it colorful, and make it full of decisions for the players." At the very least it speaks to my aversion for 3rd edition's "you need to have complicated rules for everything, which then must be remembered or referenced" philosophy.
As a final thought I'll simply state that there's some valuable stuff in the old-school philosophy, as well as things that are eschewed by modern games for a reason. One thing that this reading has emphasized for me is the value of keeping in mind the strength of TTRPGs, which is maintaining the sense that truly anything is possible. The more I think about it, the more I've come to the conclusion that a simple core that can handle a wide variety of situations is an admirable quality in game design. D&D 3E had too many complicated sub-systems, whereas 4E probably had too many specific "exceptions" such that they became hard-wired pieces. That's not to say that either are bad games (even if I despise 3rd edition personally), but rather that they don't play to the main strength of the TTRPG. Third Edition's major goal is simulationism and system mastery, whereas Fourth Edition's is tactical combat that borderlines on being a miniatures war(mini)game. Both are valid experiences, but they give up some of the open-endedness that makes roleplaying games great. I sincerely hope that Fifth Edition's modularity really can allow groups to switch as the situation dictates (namely for me, being able to bust out a tactical combat for major battles but otherwise have a simple core).
Friday, June 1, 2012
Thursday, May 31, 2012
D&D Next Pregens (Round 1)
Lightfoot Halfling Rogue
Halfling traits allow you to hide behind creatures larger than you, and to re-roll something twice per day. I find the hiding thing to be a bit silly, but whatever. This Rogue has the Commoner background (backgrounds determine skills) which allows you to choose a common profession, gaining knowledge and contacts relevant to your trade. You also gain the skills Animal Handling, Commerce, and Folklore (as you can see, the skills are very open-ended and almost resemble Traits in The One Ring). Training in a skill gives you a +3 bonus to any relevant attribute check.
Rogue builds are known as "schemes," and this guy is a Thief. This seems to be a heavily skill-based scheme, with less of an emphasis on combat. You can hide while only lightly obscured (or with only a quarter cover), you gain knowledge of Thieves' Cant, and you have training in Open Locks, Find/Remove Traps, and Stealth. Aside from your scheme, a Rogue also has Skill Mastery, which lets you take 10 if you roll lower than that with a trained skill. One bug related to this is that the Rogue pregen is just 1 away from auto-succeeding at finding any trap in the sample adventure. Given that perception is a Wisdom roll, and this Rogue has a Wisdom of 8, that's very problematic. Unless adjusted, most Rogues will earn too many auto-successes. Finally, Rogues get free Thieves Tools and, of course, the ability to Sneak Attack. For the 3 levels provided, Sneak Attack scales by 1D6/level. That could get messy. Additionally, while it's not worth spending your action to Hide just for Sneak Attack at level 1, by level 3 it becomes a more viable tactic. That's my biggest sticking point with this Rogue; a signature ability varies in its viability based on level.
The Rogue's theme is Lurker, which gives him various perks while hiding. Themes are really just pre-selected feats, and the designers talk about them as defining how you do your job. In broad terms, class is your combat abilities (and sometimes a few extras), background gives you skills, and theme is your style (how you use your abilities).
Hill Dwarf Fighter
I've seen a lot of complaints about this Fighter being too simple. The designers assure us that a more tactical 4E-style Fighter is forthcoming, and I don't lament that they decided to test drive the core rules with the simple version. They need to get the simple Fighter balanced and polished before they can design something more complicated, after all.
Hill Dwarves apparently get a boost to their Hit Die size, racial weapon affinities take the form of moving the damage die one step up, and Dwarves also get a list of other nifty racial traits (immunity to poison, low light vision, no speed penalty for being encumbered, and the ability to identify stonework and not get lost underground).
The Fighter's background is Soldier, and this lets him perform strenuous physical activity twice as long as normal. This is things like forced marches, holding your breath, etc. The trained skills that he gets are Intimidate, Perception, and Survival. These are a nice set of skills! I love how base skills are divorced from class now; no more being a second-class skill user just because you're a Fighter.
Simply put, Fighters have good armor, good weapon proficiencies, deal the most damage, and are tough. That's all this simple Fighter is, really, is class-based "better numbers." His theme (Slayer) provides a little more variety, however. The Reaper feat lets him deal Str mod damage even on a miss, and at 3rd level he gets Cleave, which lets you make another melee attack when you kill something. Nice! Oh yeah, and at 2nd level he gets something called Fighter's Surge, which is basically a twice per day action point.
Depending on what kind of guidance DMs are given on how to adjudicate improvised actions even the simple Fighter has the potential to be fairly interesting. Specifically, I don't think it would be a stretch to allow players to tack improvised actions onto their attacks (push enemies back, knock them prone, etc.) to "create" 4E style powers on the fly. Possible drawbacks might include a penalty to the attack, attacking with disadvantage, granting advantage to your opponents, or sacrificing some of your damage.
Human Cleric of Pelor
Humans appear to get bonuses in all of their attributes, and not much else. Interesting. This guy's background is priest, and that gives him free services when in a temple to his god. He also gains Diplomacy, Insight, Religious Lore, and Wilderness Lore as trained skills.
Clerics are kind of what you'd expect; they get a decent Hit Die, can wear good armor, get decent weapon selection, and they cast spells. They seem to get fewer spells than the Wizard, but can cast from a list of chosen spells spontaneously!!! I really hope that the Druid gets to do this as well. This Cleric gets Radiant Lance as his at-will spell (basically a big laser), as well as Detect Magic. He can also cast Cure Light Wounds, Spiritual Hammer, and Searing Light (a bigger laser). Clerics can also use Channel Divinity 4x/day, but you only start out with Turn Undead. You can channel other stuff as you level.
This pregen has the Healer theme, and it really turns him into a healbot. Your start with the Herbalism feat, which is basically "make antitoxin, healing potions, and healing kits for half price!" I can't say that I like this, as it hearkens back to the "spend gold for healing!" logic of 3rd edition (can we say "Wand of Cure Light Wounds?"). At 3rd level you maximize healing dice. Sick.
Mountain Dwarf Cleric of Moradin
Same traits as the Hill Dwarf, except I'm presuming the stat bonus is different. Also, it appears to get +1 to AC instead of a Hit Die increase, and its racial affinity is for hammers, not axes. Ok, cool.
This guy's background is Knight (can we say "Paladin?"), which gives you social perks when around nobility or others who recognize your station. You also gain training in Animal Handling, Diplomacy, Heraldic Lore, and Religious Lore.
The reason why 2 Cleric pregens were chosen was to highlight how your god can alter the playstyle of the class. Indeed! Whereas the Cleric of Pelor is a "zappy, zappy laser, oh you're hurt here's a heal spellcaster" this guy's very much an in-your-face warrior who buffs himself with his divine magic. His only at-will is Death Ward (which lets you stabilize your dying friends), and his prepared spells are Crusader's Strike (my hammer does more damage!), Divine Favor (buff those attacks!), and Healing Word (I'll heal you just a little bit as I'm smacking someone in the face). Again, he can choose to cast any of these spontaneously (but only 2x/day).
This PC has the most interesting Theme of the bunch, since as a Guardian he's kind of a defender. At 1st level you can use your reaction to give an attacker disadvantage when they attack an adjacent ally (you partially block it with your shield). At third level you say "you shall not pass!" to creatures your size or smaller, and they stop their movement when they enter your reach. Still not quite as functional as a 4E defender's mark + punishment, so we'll see how this develops.
High Elf Wizard
I'm sure the Elf gets some "hidden" stuff not directly stated on the character sheet (like the die increases of the Dwarves), but I don't know what they are. They do get their immunity to charm and sleep, auto-advantage to listen/search/notice, and low light vision.
The Sage background is thematic, and its Researcher trait allows you to know where to find a piece of information even if you fail a Lore check. Trained skills are Forbidden Lore, Magical Lore, Natural Lore, and Religious Lore. Forbidden Lore sure looks interesting (if situational)!
So casting restrictions are back. As in, you can't cast spells while wearing any type of armor, and when you take damage you have to make a Con check if you try to cast a non at-will spell. If you fail the action is wasted (but the spell isn't used). Wizards also have to prepare the exact spell that they want to use from their spellbook (didn't prepare Burning Hands, can't use it). Yeah, I like the Cleric's magic better. This Wizard does get a lot of spells, though. And his prepared spells do seem to be a good deal better than the Cleric's. Burning Hands, Comprehend Languages, Shield, and Sleep are your 1st level spells, and your at-wills (minor spells) are Detect Magic, Light, Mage Hand, Magic Missile, Ray of Frost, and Shocking Grasp. Ray of Frost does no damage but reduces speed to 0, which is interesting (you need to make a ranged attack to hit - oh, and a ranged attack with magic means you use your Int vs AC, so no need to have a decent Dex score just to hit stuff).
Two of those minor spells come from the Wizard's theme, Magic User. At 3rd level you get a familiar (which you can use touch spells with, hello Shocking Grasp!). Familiars are more like their 4E incarnations, in that they don't die permanently and you don't have to worry about Con loss.
Halfling traits allow you to hide behind creatures larger than you, and to re-roll something twice per day. I find the hiding thing to be a bit silly, but whatever. This Rogue has the Commoner background (backgrounds determine skills) which allows you to choose a common profession, gaining knowledge and contacts relevant to your trade. You also gain the skills Animal Handling, Commerce, and Folklore (as you can see, the skills are very open-ended and almost resemble Traits in The One Ring). Training in a skill gives you a +3 bonus to any relevant attribute check.
Rogue builds are known as "schemes," and this guy is a Thief. This seems to be a heavily skill-based scheme, with less of an emphasis on combat. You can hide while only lightly obscured (or with only a quarter cover), you gain knowledge of Thieves' Cant, and you have training in Open Locks, Find/Remove Traps, and Stealth. Aside from your scheme, a Rogue also has Skill Mastery, which lets you take 10 if you roll lower than that with a trained skill. One bug related to this is that the Rogue pregen is just 1 away from auto-succeeding at finding any trap in the sample adventure. Given that perception is a Wisdom roll, and this Rogue has a Wisdom of 8, that's very problematic. Unless adjusted, most Rogues will earn too many auto-successes. Finally, Rogues get free Thieves Tools and, of course, the ability to Sneak Attack. For the 3 levels provided, Sneak Attack scales by 1D6/level. That could get messy. Additionally, while it's not worth spending your action to Hide just for Sneak Attack at level 1, by level 3 it becomes a more viable tactic. That's my biggest sticking point with this Rogue; a signature ability varies in its viability based on level.
The Rogue's theme is Lurker, which gives him various perks while hiding. Themes are really just pre-selected feats, and the designers talk about them as defining how you do your job. In broad terms, class is your combat abilities (and sometimes a few extras), background gives you skills, and theme is your style (how you use your abilities).
Hill Dwarf Fighter
I've seen a lot of complaints about this Fighter being too simple. The designers assure us that a more tactical 4E-style Fighter is forthcoming, and I don't lament that they decided to test drive the core rules with the simple version. They need to get the simple Fighter balanced and polished before they can design something more complicated, after all.
Hill Dwarves apparently get a boost to their Hit Die size, racial weapon affinities take the form of moving the damage die one step up, and Dwarves also get a list of other nifty racial traits (immunity to poison, low light vision, no speed penalty for being encumbered, and the ability to identify stonework and not get lost underground).
The Fighter's background is Soldier, and this lets him perform strenuous physical activity twice as long as normal. This is things like forced marches, holding your breath, etc. The trained skills that he gets are Intimidate, Perception, and Survival. These are a nice set of skills! I love how base skills are divorced from class now; no more being a second-class skill user just because you're a Fighter.
Simply put, Fighters have good armor, good weapon proficiencies, deal the most damage, and are tough. That's all this simple Fighter is, really, is class-based "better numbers." His theme (Slayer) provides a little more variety, however. The Reaper feat lets him deal Str mod damage even on a miss, and at 3rd level he gets Cleave, which lets you make another melee attack when you kill something. Nice! Oh yeah, and at 2nd level he gets something called Fighter's Surge, which is basically a twice per day action point.
Depending on what kind of guidance DMs are given on how to adjudicate improvised actions even the simple Fighter has the potential to be fairly interesting. Specifically, I don't think it would be a stretch to allow players to tack improvised actions onto their attacks (push enemies back, knock them prone, etc.) to "create" 4E style powers on the fly. Possible drawbacks might include a penalty to the attack, attacking with disadvantage, granting advantage to your opponents, or sacrificing some of your damage.
Human Cleric of Pelor
Humans appear to get bonuses in all of their attributes, and not much else. Interesting. This guy's background is priest, and that gives him free services when in a temple to his god. He also gains Diplomacy, Insight, Religious Lore, and Wilderness Lore as trained skills.
Clerics are kind of what you'd expect; they get a decent Hit Die, can wear good armor, get decent weapon selection, and they cast spells. They seem to get fewer spells than the Wizard, but can cast from a list of chosen spells spontaneously!!! I really hope that the Druid gets to do this as well. This Cleric gets Radiant Lance as his at-will spell (basically a big laser), as well as Detect Magic. He can also cast Cure Light Wounds, Spiritual Hammer, and Searing Light (a bigger laser). Clerics can also use Channel Divinity 4x/day, but you only start out with Turn Undead. You can channel other stuff as you level.
This pregen has the Healer theme, and it really turns him into a healbot. Your start with the Herbalism feat, which is basically "make antitoxin, healing potions, and healing kits for half price!" I can't say that I like this, as it hearkens back to the "spend gold for healing!" logic of 3rd edition (can we say "Wand of Cure Light Wounds?"). At 3rd level you maximize healing dice. Sick.
Mountain Dwarf Cleric of Moradin
Same traits as the Hill Dwarf, except I'm presuming the stat bonus is different. Also, it appears to get +1 to AC instead of a Hit Die increase, and its racial affinity is for hammers, not axes. Ok, cool.
This guy's background is Knight (can we say "Paladin?"), which gives you social perks when around nobility or others who recognize your station. You also gain training in Animal Handling, Diplomacy, Heraldic Lore, and Religious Lore.
The reason why 2 Cleric pregens were chosen was to highlight how your god can alter the playstyle of the class. Indeed! Whereas the Cleric of Pelor is a "zappy, zappy laser, oh you're hurt here's a heal spellcaster" this guy's very much an in-your-face warrior who buffs himself with his divine magic. His only at-will is Death Ward (which lets you stabilize your dying friends), and his prepared spells are Crusader's Strike (my hammer does more damage!), Divine Favor (buff those attacks!), and Healing Word (I'll heal you just a little bit as I'm smacking someone in the face). Again, he can choose to cast any of these spontaneously (but only 2x/day).
This PC has the most interesting Theme of the bunch, since as a Guardian he's kind of a defender. At 1st level you can use your reaction to give an attacker disadvantage when they attack an adjacent ally (you partially block it with your shield). At third level you say "you shall not pass!" to creatures your size or smaller, and they stop their movement when they enter your reach. Still not quite as functional as a 4E defender's mark + punishment, so we'll see how this develops.
High Elf Wizard
I'm sure the Elf gets some "hidden" stuff not directly stated on the character sheet (like the die increases of the Dwarves), but I don't know what they are. They do get their immunity to charm and sleep, auto-advantage to listen/search/notice, and low light vision.
The Sage background is thematic, and its Researcher trait allows you to know where to find a piece of information even if you fail a Lore check. Trained skills are Forbidden Lore, Magical Lore, Natural Lore, and Religious Lore. Forbidden Lore sure looks interesting (if situational)!
So casting restrictions are back. As in, you can't cast spells while wearing any type of armor, and when you take damage you have to make a Con check if you try to cast a non at-will spell. If you fail the action is wasted (but the spell isn't used). Wizards also have to prepare the exact spell that they want to use from their spellbook (didn't prepare Burning Hands, can't use it). Yeah, I like the Cleric's magic better. This Wizard does get a lot of spells, though. And his prepared spells do seem to be a good deal better than the Cleric's. Burning Hands, Comprehend Languages, Shield, and Sleep are your 1st level spells, and your at-wills (minor spells) are Detect Magic, Light, Mage Hand, Magic Missile, Ray of Frost, and Shocking Grasp. Ray of Frost does no damage but reduces speed to 0, which is interesting (you need to make a ranged attack to hit - oh, and a ranged attack with magic means you use your Int vs AC, so no need to have a decent Dex score just to hit stuff).
Two of those minor spells come from the Wizard's theme, Magic User. At 3rd level you get a familiar (which you can use touch spells with, hello Shocking Grasp!). Familiars are more like their 4E incarnations, in that they don't die permanently and you don't have to worry about Con loss.
D&D Next Initial Impressions
So the playtest is out, I've had time to digest the material, and I even played a short session with some non-gamer friends. Below are my commentary on various elements (note that this is based on the May 24th Playtest Packet).
The Core and Skills
The core system is really solid. Its strengths are simplicity, mechanical consistency, and (mostly) transparent math. I'm also a big fan of the flexibility. Essentially, all d20 rolls are either attribute checks or variants thereof. Even saving throws fall under their purview; there is a saving throw for each attribute, depending on the specific effect (for example, if something is best resisted or avoided by the use of intellect, you'd make an Int save). Since everything boils down to attribute checks, improvising actions is more intuitive. Because of clunkier math, in previous editions it often wasn't mechanically advantageous to "resort to" attribute checks, but in Next it actually works. Skills are an add-on to this system rather than a separate subsystem unto themselves. The open-endedness of skills also caters to improvisation really well, and rewards creativity with mechanical advantages. One of the big keys here is NOT tying a skill with a specific attribute. Finally, one of the major design goals is to support virtually any style of play via modularity. You could run a 1st Ed style game, a 4E style game, etc. but (presumably) without the quirks and bugs of those editions.
Gridless Combat
It's not inherently better or worse, but it is a specific tool in a DM's toolbox. One of 4E's big weaknesses is that it's extremely difficult to run combats gridless. While tactical depth is a huge strength of the system, from the scale of the adventure it's inflexible in that the system pushes DMs toward big set piece battles almost exclusively. If Next is able to replicate 4E's tactical depth (or near enough) for big set piece battles but allow for simple gridless skirmishes using the same rules then it'll be a huge win.
Advantage/Disadvantage
The idea here is an extension of situational modifiers like combat advantage. Instead of adding a +2 or a +4 to your roll, you get to roll 2 D20s and take the best result (if you have advantage) or the worst result (if you have disadvantage). While it's admittedly more difficult to simulate degrees of advantage using this system it does offer the tactile pleasure of rolling more dice, requires less math/bookkeeping, and is easier to apply after-the-fact. Besides, it's not like modifiers are completely gone (for example, half cover still provides +2 to AC and Dex saves, whereas three quarters cover provides +5 to AC and Dex saves).
Movement
One of the big weaknesses of this playtest in my opinion is that Opportunity Attacks (OAs) are not in the core rules. Combined with the fact that you can split up your movement (move 10 feet, attack, move 20 feet), and it's really easy to ignore the beefy melee guys and bash on the squishies. Which realistically doesn't make sense. A guy with a sword (who knows how to use it effectively) isn't going to let you traipse on by to beat up his friend. A common complaint regarding OAs is that they slow down combat. Quick combat is nice and all, but there needs to be something in place to give enemies a reason for fighting the Fighter. Personally I don't think that OAs suck up too much time (indeed, if a lot of extra attacks are rolled they could end a combat quicker), but there are also a few alternative systems. One is that enemies who walk past a melee guy attack with disadvantage. Another is that to get past you need to roll a Dex contest (opposed Dex checks). Finally, something that Mike Mearls (lead designer) proposed in a live chat is that if you want to disengage you can give up your action (attack) to do so, and if you opt not to do that only then will your opponent get a free swing (in other words, it's standard OA rules but they can be avoided for the price of an action).
Spellcasting
It's Vancian, but so far not so bad. The spells are more balanced than in previous incarnations, with many of the deadliest and/or most debilitating effects having HP thresholds (i.e. sleep cuts movement in half, but only creatures with 10 HP or less need to make a Wis save or fall unconscious). Casters also have at-will spells so they aren't stuck shooting crossbows or throwing daggers when they run out of spells. The number of spells is also reigned in (as is spell scaling). This will not only maintain better balance, but reduce bookkeeping. Consider me cautiously optimistic, but fearful of eventual power creep.
Healing and Resting
You can heal yourself non-magically, rolling your HD to regain health each day. I don't think it provides enough self-healing (at least not compared with healing surges), so dependency on magical healing and/or magic items is likely to be high. I'll need to see how it plays out over the long term before I pass judgement on it, but so far I'm not liking it.
Monsters
The designers admit that they've spent the least time working on monsters, and it definitely shows. It's a far cry from 4E's concise, functional stat blocks. Monsters lack variety (there's not much difference between a kobold and goblin except AC, HP, and attack values), and those that do get some neat toys (casters) use the PC spell list, which is STUPID. I want everything I need to run a monster contained in its stat block; I do NOT want to have to cross reference several spells on different pages of a player's book. Finally, in the sample adventure the condensed monster stats omit the monster's attribute scores/modifiers. Given how important attributes are in the core rules this decision completely lacks any semblance of logic.
Caves of Chaos
This updated version of a classic adventure module is what we're given in the first playtest. I won't go into details, but I really like the sandbox nature of the adventure. Even the layout of the map resists railroading. Also making a comeback is the notion that not everything you encounter is wise to fight. Specific instructions on having monsters call for reinforcements is provided, so players who make foolish decisions could end up way over their heads really quickly (whereas clever players will benefit from making wise decisions).
The Core and Skills
The core system is really solid. Its strengths are simplicity, mechanical consistency, and (mostly) transparent math. I'm also a big fan of the flexibility. Essentially, all d20 rolls are either attribute checks or variants thereof. Even saving throws fall under their purview; there is a saving throw for each attribute, depending on the specific effect (for example, if something is best resisted or avoided by the use of intellect, you'd make an Int save). Since everything boils down to attribute checks, improvising actions is more intuitive. Because of clunkier math, in previous editions it often wasn't mechanically advantageous to "resort to" attribute checks, but in Next it actually works. Skills are an add-on to this system rather than a separate subsystem unto themselves. The open-endedness of skills also caters to improvisation really well, and rewards creativity with mechanical advantages. One of the big keys here is NOT tying a skill with a specific attribute. Finally, one of the major design goals is to support virtually any style of play via modularity. You could run a 1st Ed style game, a 4E style game, etc. but (presumably) without the quirks and bugs of those editions.
Gridless Combat
It's not inherently better or worse, but it is a specific tool in a DM's toolbox. One of 4E's big weaknesses is that it's extremely difficult to run combats gridless. While tactical depth is a huge strength of the system, from the scale of the adventure it's inflexible in that the system pushes DMs toward big set piece battles almost exclusively. If Next is able to replicate 4E's tactical depth (or near enough) for big set piece battles but allow for simple gridless skirmishes using the same rules then it'll be a huge win.
Advantage/Disadvantage
The idea here is an extension of situational modifiers like combat advantage. Instead of adding a +2 or a +4 to your roll, you get to roll 2 D20s and take the best result (if you have advantage) or the worst result (if you have disadvantage). While it's admittedly more difficult to simulate degrees of advantage using this system it does offer the tactile pleasure of rolling more dice, requires less math/bookkeeping, and is easier to apply after-the-fact. Besides, it's not like modifiers are completely gone (for example, half cover still provides +2 to AC and Dex saves, whereas three quarters cover provides +5 to AC and Dex saves).
Movement
One of the big weaknesses of this playtest in my opinion is that Opportunity Attacks (OAs) are not in the core rules. Combined with the fact that you can split up your movement (move 10 feet, attack, move 20 feet), and it's really easy to ignore the beefy melee guys and bash on the squishies. Which realistically doesn't make sense. A guy with a sword (who knows how to use it effectively) isn't going to let you traipse on by to beat up his friend. A common complaint regarding OAs is that they slow down combat. Quick combat is nice and all, but there needs to be something in place to give enemies a reason for fighting the Fighter. Personally I don't think that OAs suck up too much time (indeed, if a lot of extra attacks are rolled they could end a combat quicker), but there are also a few alternative systems. One is that enemies who walk past a melee guy attack with disadvantage. Another is that to get past you need to roll a Dex contest (opposed Dex checks). Finally, something that Mike Mearls (lead designer) proposed in a live chat is that if you want to disengage you can give up your action (attack) to do so, and if you opt not to do that only then will your opponent get a free swing (in other words, it's standard OA rules but they can be avoided for the price of an action).
Spellcasting
It's Vancian, but so far not so bad. The spells are more balanced than in previous incarnations, with many of the deadliest and/or most debilitating effects having HP thresholds (i.e. sleep cuts movement in half, but only creatures with 10 HP or less need to make a Wis save or fall unconscious). Casters also have at-will spells so they aren't stuck shooting crossbows or throwing daggers when they run out of spells. The number of spells is also reigned in (as is spell scaling). This will not only maintain better balance, but reduce bookkeeping. Consider me cautiously optimistic, but fearful of eventual power creep.
Healing and Resting
You can heal yourself non-magically, rolling your HD to regain health each day. I don't think it provides enough self-healing (at least not compared with healing surges), so dependency on magical healing and/or magic items is likely to be high. I'll need to see how it plays out over the long term before I pass judgement on it, but so far I'm not liking it.
Monsters
The designers admit that they've spent the least time working on monsters, and it definitely shows. It's a far cry from 4E's concise, functional stat blocks. Monsters lack variety (there's not much difference between a kobold and goblin except AC, HP, and attack values), and those that do get some neat toys (casters) use the PC spell list, which is STUPID. I want everything I need to run a monster contained in its stat block; I do NOT want to have to cross reference several spells on different pages of a player's book. Finally, in the sample adventure the condensed monster stats omit the monster's attribute scores/modifiers. Given how important attributes are in the core rules this decision completely lacks any semblance of logic.
Caves of Chaos
This updated version of a classic adventure module is what we're given in the first playtest. I won't go into details, but I really like the sandbox nature of the adventure. Even the layout of the map resists railroading. Also making a comeback is the notion that not everything you encounter is wise to fight. Specific instructions on having monsters call for reinforcements is provided, so players who make foolish decisions could end up way over their heads really quickly (whereas clever players will benefit from making wise decisions).
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
D&D Next Playtest Tomorrow!
My reactions to various details over the course of these several months has been very hit-or-miss. I'm excited to actually get my hands on some mechanics so that I can judge for myself. Lately I've liked what I've heard, so I'm really optimistic about this.
Oddly, one thing I'm looking forward to is the simple, bare-bones "core" that lies at the center of 5E's modular design. Several weeks ago I got a request for a quick game with a mix of new and very inexperienced players, and I just didn't have the energy (or inclination) to work up some pre-gens and design something with 4E, not to mention that I didn't have my battlemat, markers, minis, tokens, condition tracking paperclips, and power cards with me. I would have run The One Ring (since it's a simpler game with faster character generation), but it caters to a very specific tone and setting (obviously, being set in Middle Earth) and that wasn't quite what I would have gone for. To sum it up, I never ran the game and wished I had a really simple system that would have made it easier.
I've looked at some 1st and 2nd edition stuff, as well as D20 Microlight and some of the retro-clones, and they all have some combination of out-dated, clunky mechanics, rules that I'm not familiar with, and balance issues, among other things. Looking at it from this angle, it would be phenomenal if I could run a simplified game for a new group with the same rules (familiarity is key when GMing) that I use for my regularly gaming groups minus any tactical/complex modules. I think that's when the major strength of having a single, modular system really hit me.
In any case, I'm sure I'll have more to post come tomorrow (depending on what type of agreement WotC makes you sign before accessing the playtest materials).
Oddly, one thing I'm looking forward to is the simple, bare-bones "core" that lies at the center of 5E's modular design. Several weeks ago I got a request for a quick game with a mix of new and very inexperienced players, and I just didn't have the energy (or inclination) to work up some pre-gens and design something with 4E, not to mention that I didn't have my battlemat, markers, minis, tokens, condition tracking paperclips, and power cards with me. I would have run The One Ring (since it's a simpler game with faster character generation), but it caters to a very specific tone and setting (obviously, being set in Middle Earth) and that wasn't quite what I would have gone for. To sum it up, I never ran the game and wished I had a really simple system that would have made it easier.
I've looked at some 1st and 2nd edition stuff, as well as D20 Microlight and some of the retro-clones, and they all have some combination of out-dated, clunky mechanics, rules that I'm not familiar with, and balance issues, among other things. Looking at it from this angle, it would be phenomenal if I could run a simplified game for a new group with the same rules (familiarity is key when GMing) that I use for my regularly gaming groups minus any tactical/complex modules. I think that's when the major strength of having a single, modular system really hit me.
In any case, I'm sure I'll have more to post come tomorrow (depending on what type of agreement WotC makes you sign before accessing the playtest materials).
Friday, April 20, 2012
Star Wars RPG Options
For some random reason I've recently become somewhat obsessed with researching options for which system to run a Star Wars game in. The old West End Games (WEG) Star Wars game (the D6 system) and Star Wars Saga Edition (SWSE; a D20 system) were obvious choices. Another contender that I randomly stumbled upon was a Star Wars mod of Savage Worlds, a system that I'm not very familiar with at all.
Star Wars D6
I ruled out this option for the most part. Basically the system works by rolling a variable amount of D6s based on your rank in a given area (ability or skill). With Force Points the "handful of dice" issue is likely to be annoying, and in general I really don't like the way that the force system is handled. I've heard that characters in general are underpowered at first, but that Jedi soon end up overshadowing everyone else.
SWSE
I keep going back and forth on this one. On the one hand, it's supposedly the most "balanced" official option, with Jedi being more combat-capable than the other classes (though some Soldiers can certainly give them a run for their money, from what I hear) but not by very much. Unfortunately, it's also very rules-heavy as can be expected from a game that somewhat resembles 3rd edition D&D (with some of 4E's refinements, but not its streamlining). Like D&D 3E the feat system (from what I've seen) is pretty terrible. One specific problem brought up was that whereas one of the other systems (I forget which one) has disarming via a ranged weapon as an option in the general disarm rules (which are quite simple), SWSE "has a feat for that." Feats are just a huge personal turnoff for me. The condition track is also problematic, and it's actually something that I read a lot of people complaining about a while back on the WotC forums (regarding D&D, and whether or not a condition track system would be appropriate for that game). By and large I can definitely see the ever-increasing penalties leading to a "death spiral" functionally reminiscent to the problematic SoD/SoS (save or die/save or suck) spells of pre-4E D&D. Finally, there's a "fire and forget" mechanic for using force powers, which I think is a terrible idea. Fortunately it doesn't sound quite as bad as Vancian casting in D&D (force points recharge per encounter), but there's still a disconnect in terms of flavor. Jedi shouldn't have to "prepare" multiple uses of a single force power, they should get to spontaneously "cast" anything from their known list. Perhaps this can be houseruled, though.
The talent trees sound pretty cool, as does the dark side system. The skill system is also based on training (like D&D 4E) as opposed to skill ranks, which helps with micromanaging. Still, the rules-heaviness of the system and the need for system-mastery (thanks to the plethora of overly-specific abilities) makes the system sound a bit "clunky." Star Wars should be fast-paced. Oh, and not insignificantly the books are really expensive as they're out of print (I think the core book goes for like $75 on Amazon).
Savage Worlds
At this point this seems like the most promising option. The big selling point is that it's a fast-paced, rules-light system without a lot of specific rules to get in the way. Unfortunately, I know very little about the system, though it seems easy enough to modify. Skills and abilities are given a "dice rank," though unlike a game like TOR or WEG Star Wars increasing your skill does not give you additional dice, but rather a bigger die. For example, at character creation your abilities begin at D4, and you have a certain amount of points that you can spend to upgrade that to a D6, D8, D10, and up to a D12. You also always roll a "wild die" which is a D6 that can replace a roll on your other die (or dice), though I'm not clear on exactly how this works. It sounds like TNs stay fairly low (I think 4 is moderate?), and modifiers seem easy enough to adjudicate (and much looser than the various modifiers that seem to be tacked onto specific actions and rules in D20 games). Basically, it boils down to the bigger your die, the better your chance of success as opposed to an every-increasing modifier that you add onto a consistent die roll. It's an interesting twist. The system of Edges and Hindrances seems to be a fairly flexible advantage/disadvantage system. It's designed to be a universal system that can accommodate a wide variety of different settings, so tacking Star Wars onto it isn't much of a stretch. The Force fits pretty neatly into the "magic system" as an Edge, ensuring that Jedi will be no more unbalanced than a Mage in a fantasy setting for Savage Worlds. Since I'm unfamiliar with the system, I have no idea how balanced (or unbalanced) that is, but at least there's an established baseline. I don't really like the dark side system that the mod I found uses, but it seems easy enough to port SWSE's system into Savage Worlds without much problem.
Here is an overview of the system.
The Goal?
I have no idea. I won't be running any new games any time soon. Even when I have time again (in late summer), I'm pretty committed to TOR, and by that time the public playtests for D&D Next should be well underway. In other words, I doubt I'll have an opportunity to run a Star Wars game for either of my groups, at least not in the foreseeable future. Still, it's a setting that I've always wanted to run (and eventually play in!) so it'll be nice to have a rough "game plan" for when the opportunity does arise.
Star Wars D6
I ruled out this option for the most part. Basically the system works by rolling a variable amount of D6s based on your rank in a given area (ability or skill). With Force Points the "handful of dice" issue is likely to be annoying, and in general I really don't like the way that the force system is handled. I've heard that characters in general are underpowered at first, but that Jedi soon end up overshadowing everyone else.
SWSE
I keep going back and forth on this one. On the one hand, it's supposedly the most "balanced" official option, with Jedi being more combat-capable than the other classes (though some Soldiers can certainly give them a run for their money, from what I hear) but not by very much. Unfortunately, it's also very rules-heavy as can be expected from a game that somewhat resembles 3rd edition D&D (with some of 4E's refinements, but not its streamlining). Like D&D 3E the feat system (from what I've seen) is pretty terrible. One specific problem brought up was that whereas one of the other systems (I forget which one) has disarming via a ranged weapon as an option in the general disarm rules (which are quite simple), SWSE "has a feat for that." Feats are just a huge personal turnoff for me. The condition track is also problematic, and it's actually something that I read a lot of people complaining about a while back on the WotC forums (regarding D&D, and whether or not a condition track system would be appropriate for that game). By and large I can definitely see the ever-increasing penalties leading to a "death spiral" functionally reminiscent to the problematic SoD/SoS (save or die/save or suck) spells of pre-4E D&D. Finally, there's a "fire and forget" mechanic for using force powers, which I think is a terrible idea. Fortunately it doesn't sound quite as bad as Vancian casting in D&D (force points recharge per encounter), but there's still a disconnect in terms of flavor. Jedi shouldn't have to "prepare" multiple uses of a single force power, they should get to spontaneously "cast" anything from their known list. Perhaps this can be houseruled, though.
The talent trees sound pretty cool, as does the dark side system. The skill system is also based on training (like D&D 4E) as opposed to skill ranks, which helps with micromanaging. Still, the rules-heaviness of the system and the need for system-mastery (thanks to the plethora of overly-specific abilities) makes the system sound a bit "clunky." Star Wars should be fast-paced. Oh, and not insignificantly the books are really expensive as they're out of print (I think the core book goes for like $75 on Amazon).
Savage Worlds
At this point this seems like the most promising option. The big selling point is that it's a fast-paced, rules-light system without a lot of specific rules to get in the way. Unfortunately, I know very little about the system, though it seems easy enough to modify. Skills and abilities are given a "dice rank," though unlike a game like TOR or WEG Star Wars increasing your skill does not give you additional dice, but rather a bigger die. For example, at character creation your abilities begin at D4, and you have a certain amount of points that you can spend to upgrade that to a D6, D8, D10, and up to a D12. You also always roll a "wild die" which is a D6 that can replace a roll on your other die (or dice), though I'm not clear on exactly how this works. It sounds like TNs stay fairly low (I think 4 is moderate?), and modifiers seem easy enough to adjudicate (and much looser than the various modifiers that seem to be tacked onto specific actions and rules in D20 games). Basically, it boils down to the bigger your die, the better your chance of success as opposed to an every-increasing modifier that you add onto a consistent die roll. It's an interesting twist. The system of Edges and Hindrances seems to be a fairly flexible advantage/disadvantage system. It's designed to be a universal system that can accommodate a wide variety of different settings, so tacking Star Wars onto it isn't much of a stretch. The Force fits pretty neatly into the "magic system" as an Edge, ensuring that Jedi will be no more unbalanced than a Mage in a fantasy setting for Savage Worlds. Since I'm unfamiliar with the system, I have no idea how balanced (or unbalanced) that is, but at least there's an established baseline. I don't really like the dark side system that the mod I found uses, but it seems easy enough to port SWSE's system into Savage Worlds without much problem.
Here is an overview of the system.
The Goal?
I have no idea. I won't be running any new games any time soon. Even when I have time again (in late summer), I'm pretty committed to TOR, and by that time the public playtests for D&D Next should be well underway. In other words, I doubt I'll have an opportunity to run a Star Wars game for either of my groups, at least not in the foreseeable future. Still, it's a setting that I've always wanted to run (and eventually play in!) so it'll be nice to have a rough "game plan" for when the opportunity does arise.
Thursday, April 19, 2012
How Hard Should It Be?*
Another excellent article by Chris Perkins. This week he tackles encounter balance, and specifically the question of whether a DM should throw over (or under) leveled encounters at his players. For most of 4E's life I've adhered to the encounter-building guidelines in the DMG, and I'm starting to question the wisdom of that. In my TOR game Grimwine's player has consistently refused to run away from combat (incidentally he's the only one who has almost died twice), and it's been bringing to mind the philosophy of "oh, the DM wouldn't put it here if we couldn't beat it." Ultimately, I think that breaks immersion because the characters would be completely unaware of any encounter-balancing mechanics, and should behave with their own survival in mind, without constantly being the most powerful presences around. Obviously with "all balanced encounters" being the norm a DM needs to be explicit up front about his intentions to populate the world with all manner of threats, some of which the PC's cannot reasonably expect to defeat. It's also important that the DM always keep in mind alternative "outs," whether those be escape routes or motivations for the over-leveled threats that makes the PCs more valuable alive (captured) than dead.
Another interesting anecdote is that while all of the published 4E stuff is balanced for the party's level, there have been several combats in the published TOR adventures that assume the players will run away.
*That's what she said.
Another interesting anecdote is that while all of the published 4E stuff is balanced for the party's level, there have been several combats in the published TOR adventures that assume the players will run away.
*That's what she said.
Friday, April 13, 2012
Session Summary: The Old Forest Road
We finally got to play again two weeks after our big cliffhanger (sort of) during the last session. I should note that this summary will contain some spoilers from Tales From Wilderland, so if your group is planning on playing through the adventures in that book then avoid reading the sections marked as spoilers. Essentially what I've done is taken some elements from the first adventure, which is a journey down the Elf-path, and transplanted them onto the Old Forest Road. Again, such spoilers will be clearly marked.
The Nazgul has been chased off, but the party is now on their own, without the talents of a Wizard to fall back on. Lowthesis being the only member of the company to resist falling into a swoon from the Black Breath, he watched over everyone else around a small campfire until they recovered. Even after regaining consciousness they were quite drained, and so decided to remain at this camp to recuperate a bit. Two lookouts were now posted while the others rested.
Dreams
The company was plagued by nightmares while they slept. The details are as follows:
Lowthesis decides to join the other Dwarves, not bothering to wake his human companions. This sounds like Dwarven business, after all. As he approaches he learns that Balin is eager to press on and search for the pony. They still have a mission to accomplish, after all, and he doesn't want to return to his king as a coward. Dwalin and Oin are both less sure of the wisdom of continuing onward, as they'd planned on having Gandalf's assistance and they've already encountered a Nazgul; who knows what other evil creatures lurk amongst these trees? Ori is quiet, and seemingly undecided. Lowthesis is eager to press on as well, not being one to back out of a challenge (Bold), and tries to Inspire the others. He convinces Ori that Balin's is the better course of action, and while Dwalin and Oin still have their doubts, they will accept the majority vote and follow their leader.
Mirkwood's Western Eaves
The argument resumes in the morning when Ranulf and Grimwine wake up. Grimwine is ready to go, but Ranulf voices his doubts and advocates strongly that they turn back. Lowthesis ends the discussion by reminding him that this has already been decided last night, and that he can go back by himself if he so desires. Ranulf grudgingly follows.
Ori and Grimwine scout out ahead to look for the pony. After following his tracks to a point where the stop, with signs of a scuffle, Grimwine determines that the pony was eaten and that they should turn back and tell the others. [LM note: the pony was captured, yes, but was still alive wrapped up in a web nearby. I never described any blood splatters or anything, and honestly I expected Grimwine to try a little harder. Oh well, that's just fewer supplies that they have now, and they're suffering more Fatigue because of it]. The remaining week in the western eaves of Mirkwood are relatively uneventful, though several ruins are discovered and explored. Low on water, the party is quite thrilled to discover and old well, though after lowering down a bucket it's obvious that something metallic is down there. Ranulf lowers himself down to investigate, and finds an old skeleton covered in spider webs. An elven dagger lies on the corpse's lap, with no webs around the dagger's perimeter. Ranulf finds that the dagger cuts webs like butter, and cuts off a broach with an unfamiliar family crest from the tattered remains of clothing. [LM note: There were some other goodies in this area, but nobody found them]. A larger ruin of a small village was discovered a few days later, and it appeared to be some kind of trade center based on the numbers of different coins present. Some representatives included old Elven and Dwarven coins, as well as unfamiliar old coins with Dalish runes, and coins with horses on them. More treasure points were acquired. The first treasure found was a chest located by Ranulf, though he couldn't unlock it and called Lowthesis in to assist him. Lowthesis easily opened the chest, but claimed all of the treasure inside for himself (earning a Shadow point since a cut of that loot was rightfully Ranulf's; he's definitely living up to his "Grasping" flaw). The final ruins encountered was the wall of a large waystation, and atop it was a large boulder carved in the likeness of the Eye of Sauron. Lowthesis and Grimwine devised a lever that they used to topple the abominable carving (incurring Shadow points for approaching it), and by doing so allowed everyone else to pass by without making Corruption tests. Lowthesis may be greedy, but that doesn't mean he can't also be heroic.
The Mountains of Mirkwood
The players seemed to go out of their way to surprise me here. As the elevation increased and the terrain became more rocky, the forest soon became dominated by dark, twisted fir trees. Early on this leg of the journey a gorge was encountered with a 40 foot span, and a raging river 200 ft. below. A ruined bridge crossed over the gorge along the road, but about halfway across a large chunk had fallen off so that by the far end it narrowed to only 3 feet wide. [LM note: I fully intended for the party to head upstream to find a way around this gorge]. Lowthesis wanted to make a rope bridge across the chasm, but it meant that someone had to cross on the bridge first (at least to test its stability). The Adventurous Ranulf volunteered, and roped off though he was it was obvious that the bridge was unstable, and an unsuccessful Stealth roll made it obvious that he wasn't able to cross it. Thinking he could do better, Grimwine roped himself up and got an extraordinary success on his Stealth roll (easily an AP thanks to his Bold trait). I had him get nearly to the end, and then said that the only way further was to attempt a jump to the other side; I was quite clear that this was a one-shot deal, that a great roll was needed, and that a failure would most likely result in death. [LM note: this is usually a good way of telling your players "I'm not going to stop you, but this isn't a very good idea.] I think he had to blow a point of hope, but he ended up passing the daunting difficulty and made it safely to the other side, collapsing the ruined section of the bridge in the process.
Two days after this a torrential thunderstorm appeared out of nowhere, and Ranulf after heading out to find shelter encountered a hollowed-out tree with a plume of smoke coming from it. He called everyone else there, and after squeezing inside it became obvious that someone was living in here. Grimwine took some pheasant meat (he'd bagged them the previous day) and started cooking it on the fire, and soon they heard a scratching outside and a head poked in. The hermit was extremely surprised, and couldn't be quelled by Ranulf's botched attempt to courteously calm him down (too bad the Tolerance was only 1 here). Refusing to listen to reason and shouting about how he wouldn't be taken back he started stabbing his spear at Grimwine. Grimwine was starting to grow extremely angry, but a lucky hit (coupled with Grimwine's extremely low Endurance) knocked him out. Lowthesis was the next target of the Hermit's ire, having previously tried to wrench the spear from his grasp, but it was ultimately Ranulf who was able to restrain him. The hermit flung insults at Lowthesis, betraying his contempt for Dwarves by comparing them with orcs (though my personal favorite improvised insult was "may your beard become infested with insects!"). Lowthesis tried to offer him some treasure in exchange for letting them stay here, but he shouted about how the Shadow lives in things and would consume them all. Finally the hermit was placated by a promise to leave his "house" if he didn't attack them when they untied him. Grimwine's player admitted that if he'd been conscious he would have killed the hermit, Shadow be damned.
END OF SPOILERS!!!!!!!!!!!!
The rain continued on for several days, and soon the company came upon a roaring stream, flooded by the recent downpours. Ranulf constructed a boat (Boating and Woodright), but as he came close to the water he began to feel drowsy as the spray hit his skin. The Dwarves warned the company to avoid the water, because they didn't want to carry anyone around like they had to for Bombur! After plans to swing Tarzan-style across with rope didn't pan out (partially due to the extreme reluctance of Lowthesis to attempt such an insane maneuver), Grimwine concentrated on felling trees to make a bridge across. He got some high enough to avoid the spray, but when Ranulf attempt the crossing he failed (despite help from a rope handrail), falling into the stream (as well as a deep, deep sleep). Ultimately Grimwine conceded to go along with the plan that Lowthesis had advocated all along; to simply wait until the water levels went down. After 4 days (2D6) they were able to boat across, and Ranulf woke up shortly afterwards.
The next few days were some of the worst of their entire journey. I didn't go into specific detail, instead simply reading this short description:
Nobody triggered any hazards so I simply left it at that, except for the 2 Fatigue tests at TN 20 and the 6 Corruption tests (only Ranulf passed some of these, and only 2). So now everyone is good and miserable (as they should be after trekking across the Mountains of Mirkwood). The players objected strongly to this many corruption tests, so I revealed that I was going easy on them, and that by the original (un-clarified) version of RAW (rules as written), a journey across Mirkwood would take 40 or 50 something corruption tests. The Shadow's been banished (for now), so while there are still some strongly blighted places in the forest I figured the Road is as safe as it'll ever be until after the end of the War of the Ring.
And this is where we left off for now. The company has made it through the worst of what Mirkwood has to offer, but the northeastern edge of the Heart of Mirkwood still remains, as well as the Long Marshes (where they're scheduled to meet Oin's nephew, Gimli).
The Nazgul has been chased off, but the party is now on their own, without the talents of a Wizard to fall back on. Lowthesis being the only member of the company to resist falling into a swoon from the Black Breath, he watched over everyone else around a small campfire until they recovered. Even after regaining consciousness they were quite drained, and so decided to remain at this camp to recuperate a bit. Two lookouts were now posted while the others rested.
Dreams
The company was plagued by nightmares while they slept. The details are as follows:
Grimwine:
Two
bears, one of average size and one extremely large walk along the
bank of a swiftly-flowing river under a clear night sky. A light
frost crunches underfoot. At a fork in the path ahead the smaller
bear without thinking about it heads down the path ahead toward a
towering mountain. Upset, the larger bear cuffs him and turns down
the other fork, to the left. When the smaller bear doesn't follow,
the larger runs back and fights more violently with the smaller bear.
Before the conflict is resolved the scene fades to darker thoughts
of trees and spiders, and one nightmare after another bleeds into the
next.
Ranulf:
King
Bard sits alone on his throne, a look of despair on his face. You
call out his name but he doesn't answer. Hearing a clamor of angry
voices outside you slowly walk over to an open window, when all of
the sudden the shaft of sunlight disappears as the day turns
instantly to night. South of the Royal Palace you see that some of
Dale's buildings appear to be on fire, and Elves and Dwarves fight
openly with each other in the streets while Bardings barricade
themselves in the intact buildings. Your remaining dreams are
dominated by frantic searching, though you cannot remember where.
Lowthesis:
You
can feel the oars you hold cut across the still water of Esgaroth,
the Long Lake, and you admire your home, the Lonely Mountain, in the
distance. You soon find your self inexplicably deep in the
Mountain's winding halls, focused intently on the burning forge
before you. This is a joy you've long been deprived of, but it's
soon cut short. Your thoughts turn to a great jewel, skillfully
carved, and you hear muffled shouts, curses, and threats. As the
shouts become clearer your vision of the jewel becomes more and more
blurred. You suddenly find yourself startled awake as the jewel
fades to nothingness. Ranulf and Grimwine twitch uneasily in their
sleep nearby. On the other side of the fire you can hear the four
Dwarves all awake, softly arguing in the Dwarven tongue. The mood is
tense and secretive.
Lowthesis decides to join the other Dwarves, not bothering to wake his human companions. This sounds like Dwarven business, after all. As he approaches he learns that Balin is eager to press on and search for the pony. They still have a mission to accomplish, after all, and he doesn't want to return to his king as a coward. Dwalin and Oin are both less sure of the wisdom of continuing onward, as they'd planned on having Gandalf's assistance and they've already encountered a Nazgul; who knows what other evil creatures lurk amongst these trees? Ori is quiet, and seemingly undecided. Lowthesis is eager to press on as well, not being one to back out of a challenge (Bold), and tries to Inspire the others. He convinces Ori that Balin's is the better course of action, and while Dwalin and Oin still have their doubts, they will accept the majority vote and follow their leader.
Mirkwood's Western Eaves
The argument resumes in the morning when Ranulf and Grimwine wake up. Grimwine is ready to go, but Ranulf voices his doubts and advocates strongly that they turn back. Lowthesis ends the discussion by reminding him that this has already been decided last night, and that he can go back by himself if he so desires. Ranulf grudgingly follows.
Ori and Grimwine scout out ahead to look for the pony. After following his tracks to a point where the stop, with signs of a scuffle, Grimwine determines that the pony was eaten and that they should turn back and tell the others. [LM note: the pony was captured, yes, but was still alive wrapped up in a web nearby. I never described any blood splatters or anything, and honestly I expected Grimwine to try a little harder. Oh well, that's just fewer supplies that they have now, and they're suffering more Fatigue because of it]. The remaining week in the western eaves of Mirkwood are relatively uneventful, though several ruins are discovered and explored. Low on water, the party is quite thrilled to discover and old well, though after lowering down a bucket it's obvious that something metallic is down there. Ranulf lowers himself down to investigate, and finds an old skeleton covered in spider webs. An elven dagger lies on the corpse's lap, with no webs around the dagger's perimeter. Ranulf finds that the dagger cuts webs like butter, and cuts off a broach with an unfamiliar family crest from the tattered remains of clothing. [LM note: There were some other goodies in this area, but nobody found them]. A larger ruin of a small village was discovered a few days later, and it appeared to be some kind of trade center based on the numbers of different coins present. Some representatives included old Elven and Dwarven coins, as well as unfamiliar old coins with Dalish runes, and coins with horses on them. More treasure points were acquired. The first treasure found was a chest located by Ranulf, though he couldn't unlock it and called Lowthesis in to assist him. Lowthesis easily opened the chest, but claimed all of the treasure inside for himself (earning a Shadow point since a cut of that loot was rightfully Ranulf's; he's definitely living up to his "Grasping" flaw). The final ruins encountered was the wall of a large waystation, and atop it was a large boulder carved in the likeness of the Eye of Sauron. Lowthesis and Grimwine devised a lever that they used to topple the abominable carving (incurring Shadow points for approaching it), and by doing so allowed everyone else to pass by without making Corruption tests. Lowthesis may be greedy, but that doesn't mean he can't also be heroic.
The Mountains of Mirkwood
The players seemed to go out of their way to surprise me here. As the elevation increased and the terrain became more rocky, the forest soon became dominated by dark, twisted fir trees. Early on this leg of the journey a gorge was encountered with a 40 foot span, and a raging river 200 ft. below. A ruined bridge crossed over the gorge along the road, but about halfway across a large chunk had fallen off so that by the far end it narrowed to only 3 feet wide. [LM note: I fully intended for the party to head upstream to find a way around this gorge]. Lowthesis wanted to make a rope bridge across the chasm, but it meant that someone had to cross on the bridge first (at least to test its stability). The Adventurous Ranulf volunteered, and roped off though he was it was obvious that the bridge was unstable, and an unsuccessful Stealth roll made it obvious that he wasn't able to cross it. Thinking he could do better, Grimwine roped himself up and got an extraordinary success on his Stealth roll (easily an AP thanks to his Bold trait). I had him get nearly to the end, and then said that the only way further was to attempt a jump to the other side; I was quite clear that this was a one-shot deal, that a great roll was needed, and that a failure would most likely result in death. [LM note: this is usually a good way of telling your players "I'm not going to stop you, but this isn't a very good idea.] I think he had to blow a point of hope, but he ended up passing the daunting difficulty and made it safely to the other side, collapsing the ruined section of the bridge in the process.
WARNING: SPOILERS FOR DON'T LEAVE THE PATH!!!!
A few days after the incident at the bridge I had Balin go down to a stream to fetch water as the company was making camp. They all heard a "yelp!" and Ranulf and Grimwine rushed down to see what happened (one of the two, I think Grimwine, noticed that Balin had left his axe at camp). They found muddy Dwarf tracks followed by a set of spider tracks, both of which led to two trees with broken strands of webbing between them. Grimwine shouted for everyone to follow him, and he proceeded to track for several hours in the dark. Finally they came to a moonlit clearing, in the middle of which stood a ruined castle covered with spider webs. The defensive walls and outbuildings had long since crumbled to the ground, but a single tower still stood, as well as two sections of the keep's wall which formed an L-shape, above which was suspended a wriggling mass of webbing (Balin). Ranulf used his dagger to cut some webs off of the wall, noticing that the blade was glowing blue. When he climbed higher to continue cutting webs, he failed his roll and fell to the ground, sustaining some endurance damage and cracking a rib (failed protection test resulted in a wound). Grimwine tried next, but luck was against him and he too fell and was wounded. Ranulf then proceeded to tie a large knot in the end of his rope and toss it up the wall to stick onto the webbing. The impact caused the webs to vibrate, and Ranulf's dagger to glow brighter blue. First one spider jumped down amongst them, though it was easily dispatched by Grimwine in one hit. One of the players asked "do you think there'll be more of them?" to which Oin replied "there's always more." Using the general guidelines in Tales from Wilderland I had an increasing number of spiders appear each round, though in rounds 4 and 5 I substituted an attercop for a great spider. Several companions and Dwarves (I had each player running one of the Dwarves in combat) ended up ensnared by spider webs. My misinterpretation of the poisoning rules almost resulted in an insta-death for Grimwine, until I went back through the rules and realized that a player needs to roll an Eye to trigger a called shot (I had the called shot trigger off of the monster's Eye roll). The stalwart Beorning was still on the ground dying, even if he wasn't dead-dead, and Ori did get poisoned. Again this group demonstrated its reluctance to back down from a fight, so after both great spiders were killed (even despite Holding Spells on Grimwine, which was moot now, and Lowthesis) I had the remaining attercops flee. By the end of the fight 11 attercops and the 2 great spiders were dead, so I just had one of the survivors hiss "dinner isn't worth this!" Aside from opening volleys Ranulf didn't really get a single attack in, spending all of his actions to either cut allies loose from the webbing with his spiffy new dagger, or singing his battle chants to restore their endurance. The company quickly rescued Balin (and Ori, who had been dragged up the wall after succumbing to the poison's paralysis), constructed a quick stretcher for Grimwine, and then booked it out of there.
Two days after this a torrential thunderstorm appeared out of nowhere, and Ranulf after heading out to find shelter encountered a hollowed-out tree with a plume of smoke coming from it. He called everyone else there, and after squeezing inside it became obvious that someone was living in here. Grimwine took some pheasant meat (he'd bagged them the previous day) and started cooking it on the fire, and soon they heard a scratching outside and a head poked in. The hermit was extremely surprised, and couldn't be quelled by Ranulf's botched attempt to courteously calm him down (too bad the Tolerance was only 1 here). Refusing to listen to reason and shouting about how he wouldn't be taken back he started stabbing his spear at Grimwine. Grimwine was starting to grow extremely angry, but a lucky hit (coupled with Grimwine's extremely low Endurance) knocked him out. Lowthesis was the next target of the Hermit's ire, having previously tried to wrench the spear from his grasp, but it was ultimately Ranulf who was able to restrain him. The hermit flung insults at Lowthesis, betraying his contempt for Dwarves by comparing them with orcs (though my personal favorite improvised insult was "may your beard become infested with insects!"). Lowthesis tried to offer him some treasure in exchange for letting them stay here, but he shouted about how the Shadow lives in things and would consume them all. Finally the hermit was placated by a promise to leave his "house" if he didn't attack them when they untied him. Grimwine's player admitted that if he'd been conscious he would have killed the hermit, Shadow be damned.
The rain continued on for several days, and soon the company came upon a roaring stream, flooded by the recent downpours. Ranulf constructed a boat (Boating and Woodright), but as he came close to the water he began to feel drowsy as the spray hit his skin. The Dwarves warned the company to avoid the water, because they didn't want to carry anyone around like they had to for Bombur! After plans to swing Tarzan-style across with rope didn't pan out (partially due to the extreme reluctance of Lowthesis to attempt such an insane maneuver), Grimwine concentrated on felling trees to make a bridge across. He got some high enough to avoid the spray, but when Ranulf attempt the crossing he failed (despite help from a rope handrail), falling into the stream (as well as a deep, deep sleep). Ultimately Grimwine conceded to go along with the plan that Lowthesis had advocated all along; to simply wait until the water levels went down. After 4 days (2D6) they were able to boat across, and Ranulf woke up shortly afterwards.
The next few days were some of the worst of their entire journey. I didn't go into specific detail, instead simply reading this short description:
It's a dark section of the
wood surrounded by knife-edged rocky ridges. The talus from these
cliffs has carpeted the ground in razor-edged shards and gravel, and
a slight thinning of the tree canopy has encouraged the growth of
stiff shrubs covered in 3-inch thorns. The howling of wargs has
become a regular occurrence, and the occasional giant spiderweb or
troll track across the path has you on edge. Though you see no signs
of orcs, their refuse is everywhere. Everything from grotesque stone
carvings, to vast burnings and garbage piles, to the skeletons that
betray their propensity for conflict. From the rare trickle of a
stream you detect a faint tang of oil in the air. If the Forest Road
is ever to be re-claimed, it will take a great cleansing to restore
this section.
Nobody triggered any hazards so I simply left it at that, except for the 2 Fatigue tests at TN 20 and the 6 Corruption tests (only Ranulf passed some of these, and only 2). So now everyone is good and miserable (as they should be after trekking across the Mountains of Mirkwood). The players objected strongly to this many corruption tests, so I revealed that I was going easy on them, and that by the original (un-clarified) version of RAW (rules as written), a journey across Mirkwood would take 40 or 50 something corruption tests. The Shadow's been banished (for now), so while there are still some strongly blighted places in the forest I figured the Road is as safe as it'll ever be until after the end of the War of the Ring.
And this is where we left off for now. The company has made it through the worst of what Mirkwood has to offer, but the northeastern edge of the Heart of Mirkwood still remains, as well as the Long Marshes (where they're scheduled to meet Oin's nephew, Gimli).
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)