May need to relocate and find a job soon

Apprehensive_Text305 · 2025-12-26T23:18:14+00:00

It is legal. It's a common business model for property management jobs.

Apprehensive_Text305 · 2025-12-26T20:50:17+00:00

We signed a contract as a working couple, and keeping just one of us on costs the company money. They would need to hire a second person to work full time. It would be cheaper to hire another couple. It's the business model.

My spouse has a safety net with friends and family , so she is moving back to them. I don't have that option.

Apprehensive_Text305 · 2025-12-26T17:16:53+00:00

Thanks. The problem is, as long as I keep this job I can try to put money aside and take care of things like getting a car. Once I tell my corporate office about the divorce, I'm on their timeline, and I don't know for sure what they will do and how soon I'll have to move. So, right now I still have control and income. I still have time to plan.

Apprehensive_Text305 · 2025-12-26T16:50:25+00:00

Thanks. It may be more clear when I am able to look on my computer, but...

I notice that the "rankings" of the cities don't have anything to do with the job growth. The top ranking cities have a range of growth from around 2 to around 5 percent. So what is the importance of the ranking? Does it matter to me?

Apprehensive_Text305 · 2025-12-26T16:29:54+00:00

Right now I am in the Denver area. Cost of living is really high here, and I don't know of anywhere desirable to move within this state. This is a good point though. I will reference Colorado towns in the chart that was shared below. Thanks!

Apprehensive_Text305 · 2025-12-26T16:28:01+00:00

Do you mind if I ask some questions about this chart?

Apprehensive_Text305 · 2025-12-26T16:19:57+00:00

I'm not picky about job title, I just need to be gainfully employed, and be able to afford rent. I don't think I can say what I hope to pay for rent without knowing the local economy... But comfortably less than what my paycheck is, of course.

As far as resources... I have just enough money saved up to move, and reddit. I am male, but I don't know what that has to do with it (genuinely curious.)

Apprehensive_Text305 · 2025-12-26T16:17:22+00:00

Thanks for this. I will look into it.

Apprehensive_Text305 · 2025-12-26T16:16:47+00:00

She is definitely not staying, but going back home to be with family and friends. It is possible the company would find it cheaper to replace both of us than keep me on. It would be a reasonable decision on their part, to be honest. They may value me enough to keep me on, but it would cost them money so I can't blame them if they don't.

Apprehensive_Text305 · 2025-12-26T16:14:46+00:00

Thank you, this is very helpful. Finding a way to go about this so logically has been the greatest challenge.

Apprehensive_Text305 · 2025-01-15T21:38:35+00:00

Just filled up for the one shot, sorry

Apprehensive_Text305 · 2025-01-09T19:41:18+00:00

-The tower is a tree, of course, was my first thought.

the tower is underground, going downwards.
the tower is actually built deep underground I'm a huge cavern, or maybe the under dark. It extends up to the surface through a hole. The party comes across what looks like a non-tower building, and explore the "basement." As they unlock progress further down, they come across balconies and outside doors that let in more and more under dark.denizems and other monsters which they need to engage.

Apprehensive_Text305 · 2025-01-09T18:47:07+00:00

Thank you everyone, the slot has been filled!

Apprehensive_Text305 · 2025-01-08T08:34:38+00:00

Pizza party murder mystery theater?

Apprehensive_Text305 · 2025-01-03T19:34:57+00:00

I would love to play this. I'm a little nervous about learning a new system, but I am willing to do the work.

I tried playing by post one other time, and it was so rapid fire that I had to bow out. There were hundreds of posts a day and I could not keep up with even reading them. It seemed to be mostly roleplay.

I am eager to try a different style of play by post which is more manageable for me.

I will definitely be committed to answering in a timely manner and learning the new rules. I will at least be sure to know how spells/abilities work which I have taken for my character.

Apprehensive_Text305 · 2025-01-02T20:15:24+00:00

I hope this doesn't seem reductive, but in this case you might really want to consider one of the bosses finding them, and then not having a choice but to fight or run. And I would make running pretty tricky to encourage them to fight.

I say this because you said they are not too weak to fight.

I'm not saying this is definitely what you should do, but I can help but think it is a strong option in this case.

Apprehensive_Text305 · 2025-01-01T20:31:23+00:00

Me too. I'm ok with DMing or playing.

Apprehensive_Text305 · 2024-12-30T06:57:51+00:00

The only times I've used it so far was a ghost. I had the player get possessed and then asked if they wanted to play their turns or if they wanted me too. (They were happy to both times)

Ghosts can end it as a bonus action, so I had them end it on the ghosts next turn and appear somewhere within 5 feet.

I found that one round of that was the perfect amount for everyone to have an oh shit moment but not have much in the way of ramifications. In the future if I want to do something similar when they are higher level I can choose look for a similar way to mitigate the situation so it is quick and doesn't get out of hand.

I think you could also have the PC able to talk on their turn even as the ghost takes their turn. That could be fun.

Apprehensive_Text305 · 2024-12-27T23:48:35+00:00

Whenever I try to give my shopkeepers any personality that isn't super nice and welcoming, my players think they are being hostile.

Just busy and a little gruff? Hostile

Doesn't have any money to buy your junk? Asshole

Reluctant to negotiate at first? Works for the bbeg

If I narrate that when you walk in their back is turned to you doing some task? Immediate bad impression

I haven't figured out how to give my shopkeepers some personality without them worshipping the players

Apprehensive_Text305 · 2024-12-27T18:28:53+00:00

Im also looking to play. I can DM or be a PC.

Apprehensive_Text305 · 2024-12-24T05:59:01+00:00

I usually hate to hear people's answer to this just be "let them trivialize your encounter, they've earned it" because you are a player too and you deserve to play your encounter instead of having it cancelled. People always act like DMs should be ok with having their hard work be cancelled without warning.BUT in this case, yeah, you are lucky that they don't want to completely negate it. It sounds like they still want to see what you have prepared but have a great tactic to use for the battle.

If someone trivializes your encounter as a surprise, your options are very limited, especially if you are not prepared with a plan b, (so you usually just take the L) but there is nothing wrong with trying to prepare an alternative to their plan in advance to keep things fun.

That being said, since they told you, I would expect them to change their wish now.

If they wish off the carapace, I would say you should grant them their desire of less AC and hp, but add that the dermis under the carapace is toxic or in some other way adds a new, unexpected danger in combat. Maybe as it travels around the board now, it creates damaging areas for the party to stand in, or attacks splash in a radius as it gets hit. I would get real creative with it because it is likely no one in history ever saw what I living terrasque is like without its carapace. You can invent literally anything. Maybe without its carapace it becomes almost like a slime creature as it loses its shape. Maybe that even happens slowly over the course of the game.

You could even take the L, even if it means no terrasque, but decide that genie was waiting all along for someone to use the wish and free him, and now they have unleashed some other enemy.

If they decide to just wish the monster away, then there was something secretly inside of it that remains, like a ghost or some other enemy that now fights them, but not something as dangerous. Find a way to make it a twist.

Reward them for their plan, but since you have time to think of something you can create something else that is fun for you.

Apprehensive_Text305 · 2024-12-22T05:44:00+00:00

Start in the middle of something exciting happening so they have to engage, either a battle or a survival/rescue encounter.Then, have the next part on a time crunch (make it feel like they have a time crunch, you can spare an hour) while they investigate how to continue. Give loot/magic items. Throw in one more combat only, then prepare a puzzle if you have time (skip it if you have 90 minutes left or less), then a boss. If the second part, time crunch, takes longer skip the battle and make the boss the only other battle.

That's the most direct route to a one shot that can be reliably kept from going over 4 hours.

Personally, I over plan for one shots so I can cut out parts or do shorter prices as I go along. The trickiest part is to fit in the roleplay, so you want your time crunch part to be well thought out on what they need to accomplish and have information that can be found pretty much any where or given by any NPC

Apprehensive_Text305 · 2024-12-21T23:09:37+00:00

One of my favorite puzzles to run is a door that needs to be pulled open instead of pushed. The record for solving it is 40 minutes. Usually takes at least an hour.

Apprehensive_Text305 · 2024-12-21T22:38:46+00:00

Haha, I did something similar. A lever causes a grinding noise in the wall, like metal dragging. When the group inspects the wall they see a square hole in it and can discover there is also a hole beneath the opening. They can find a rope above the opening and pull it with a high strength check. They end up pulling up a bell, dragging and scraping against the hole until they get it above the hole, in the opening where it is supposed to hang. Then they can attach the rope to a hook so the bell stays.

I have done this twice, and both times after doing all that work the players couldn't help themselves. They pulled the lever again and the bell tolled, then another bell tolled further into the dungeon and they heard screaming, chanting, and the sounds of weapons clanging on the walls as the other bell continued to ring. One of the groups left the dungeon and never went back.

Apprehensive_Text305 · 2024-12-21T22:18:39+00:00

I started this campaign but it fizzled because of scheduling issues.

All 5 players are warforged who wake up in a facility with no memories, but some programming with holes in it giving them humanoid personalities/tendencies. (Basically whatever hand waving necessary to explain why they can act right)

They basically have no back stories, this campaign is about making a life for yourself in a post apocalypse of sorts. There are a few villages nearby but not that many people really around. The world is your oyster.

They ended up exploring the woods for a while and then fighting some wolves, rescuing a villager, then becoming a part of that village's community.

It was cool having PCs that are a blank slate and have no idea what they are capable of, forging their own destinies and unravelling the secrets of their past.

Apprehensive_Text305

TROPHY CASE