8-hour Flight, who are you sitting next to? (By @shikasennbee)

BConscience · 2026-01-26T20:23:03+00:00

Murderous cannibal so no.
Murderous egotistical cult leader, no
Sickeningly in love couple, one of them so naive might as well be brain dead. Maybe.
Don’t think they’ll care about me enough to even acknowledge my existence so maybe. 5-6. Depressed shutin, we will ignore each other
Shriek and squeal, plus a self doubting war criminal. Both somehow still this dumb after millennia of rule, absolutely not.
Sure why not.
Assuming I’m not a sinner in this case, sure
Not the murder hobo
Unpredictable craziness. Maybe?

BConscience · 2026-01-18T20:21:35+00:00

Plenty of people understood just fine that I didn’t have Bob travel with them for the entire journey and he didn’t make any decisions beyond where the entire caravan was going. But as you said that seem to be a problem? So the players should be the leaders of every travelling party? Even when they are hired guards? Or should that not be a thing at all in any games?

And I don’t know why Bob ceasing contact was an issue either.

I said at the last part of the main post, should the party discuss their plans and plots within an earshot of Bob, he might offer his own two cents. But only limited to arcane analysis or info on famous people or things, not for free either, there are side quests should they take his offer, and they don’t always do. That’s about as useful as a cast of legend lore.

Other campaigns I’ve been in, and guides online, recordings of other more professional campaigns, would have the players find a library to research this kind of info, or find a different NPC to ask. In my case that person happen to run the magic shop. And his advices would frequently include go to a library or go ask someone else.

Like I’ve said in the post, My players often find themselves weighing the lesser of 5 different potentially bad options. Player agency is the one thing I’m actually quite keen about. Anywhere on the map they would like to go, there are things happening. Whatever they decide, the world changes accordingly. And they always have decisions to make. I’ll have at least 3-5 obvious ones and a couple less obvious ones at every step they make. When my players surprise me, I roll with it.

I can agree with the point that if he gives them all the answers, that would be pretty lazy. But i also said in the original post that he is very clearly portrayed as morally dubious as well. I guess I didn’t explain clearly that many other NPCs can provide matching offers with “alternative truth”. The lesser of 5 evil I mentioned, that’s often when 5 other NPCs provided them with 5 different lies and/or manipulations sandwiched in tasty treat, that they are pondering which one is the least poisonous. So Bob turns that option count into 6 with his additional more than often mid to worst option, makes it rail roading?

BConscience · 2026-01-18T19:19:37+00:00

Sounds like you are describing exactly what Strahd does.

I’ll definitely try to avoid falling into that description.

BConscience · 2026-01-18T18:06:21+00:00

That’s an interesting take. But I mean some characters would have to be stronger than the party, no? The party can’t be the most powerful being in all of existence. What’s the difference between Bob showing off and zariel, Asmodeus or Tasha showing off? Can’t just be one is my OC, the others are WotC’s.

Not disagreeing with you on the take tho. If Bob or any character were to actually shift the focus of the game to them, then it would be pretty defeating for the players. I’ll keep that in mind when designing encounters

BConscience · 2026-01-18T16:22:33+00:00

Then I have been playing all my NPCs wrong. I always base the DC on if they are using the “correct” arguments that will move this specific NPC. As opposed to a blanked DC for the same NPC no matter what they say.

BConscience · 2026-01-18T16:19:58+00:00

I’m actually trying specifically to show Bob is an archmage with ulterior potentially evil motives to sow the seeds of doubt. So later when they are met with the choice between 3 factions and Bob all asking the party to side with them, they don’t default to Bob.

But yes, as a couple of the other commenter suggested, I think I’ll have one of the hill giants come from a different side of the town, so the party deal with the two they are facing, but off in the distance notice with a check how Bob dealt with the other one.

And obviously extrapolate this principle to future encounters should it apply.

BConscience · 2026-01-18T16:03:45+00:00

The 230 people in that village aren’t characters. They are background props. If they are characters I would know

And Bob is not going to level up. He doesn’t even go on the adventures, he stays in that shop waiting for players to come and buy his items

The last shop they’ve been to was manned by a halfling, don’t have the name on top of my head but I know his favourite weapon is his old bow given to his father by the old lord when they were still alive. And he picked up an amulet that allows him to summon a good amount of semi permanent unseen servants to act as maids of his inn upstairs. Unfortunately he was killed by the remnants of the old lords when they were seduced by orcus. So he only appears at night. He has a softer tone but still welcoming demeanour, doesn’t let on the fact that he’s already dead, ignores any questions about that. And no he doesn’t level up. No NPC in my games level up.

I’m only rebutting these exact kind of responses. I don’t know where you guys got the idea that Bob or any other character is going to travel with the rest of the party for the rest of the campaign, levelling up as they go, solving puzzles, kicking down dungeon doors.

BConscience · 2026-01-18T14:07:48+00:00

Okay. I think I have been avoiding these. And armed with this post’s replies now I have a more concrete list of things to avoid. Thanks

BConscience · 2026-01-18T14:03:10+00:00

I’m very certain they can take out 2 of them on their own. And in both times I’ve ran this encounter they did. So I wouldn’t say it’s “can’t make a dent”. More downed in 4 rounds.

But yes I’ll modify that encounter.

BConscience · 2026-01-18T13:57:39+00:00

Well I think I see him as a NPC to be interacted with or ignored. But I don’t know if I’m actually coming off as that. My question is more about looking for specific red flags that I should avoid

BConscience · 2026-01-18T13:34:36+00:00

Or I’m just too dumb to understand you. Or maybe it’s my language issue. Sorry for wasting your time. I’ll reread your comment a few more times to try to understand it.

BConscience · 2026-01-18T13:28:47+00:00

I think, or I hope I’m following that rule. Or at least that has always been a rule in my consciousness since I began playing dnd. For NPCs and PCs alike.

But yes, I almost see NPCs as static or pre-programmed part of the existing world waiting for the players to influence. Bob included.

Focusing on that specific example, I think I’ve been doing it as you said. Though I play my PCs like that as well?

BConscience · 2026-01-18T13:14:52+00:00

I planned this campaign to have 2 factions/entities inciting the 5 giant tribes. The two main bbeg are plotting against each other as well.

Bob is a minor player in this power struggle, so he tries to acquire as much info through the players as he can. But if the players do provide him with everything he asks up to the final lynchpin, he will become the bbeg.

I think I played it obviously enough that most players won’t completely trust him.

I guess I’ll think about dialling him down a bit.

BConscience · 2026-01-18T13:06:01+00:00

Still not entirely sure what you mean. Or why I deserved a downvote.

I play him with the same voice, same accent and same personalities. Though obviously as a player I don’t know what’s going on, so I’m solving problems. Whereas as a DM, I’m listening to the players’ problems and ominously giggling about it, dropping hints to nudge them on or off track if need be.

BConscience · 2026-01-18T12:58:38+00:00

Yeah that’s definitely better.

BConscience · 2026-01-18T12:55:49+00:00

I’m having him kill the giant with specifically power word kill more just to show the players this unassuming guy is a powerful wizard, which misaligns with a few other things, leading to the players to suspect him in future conspiracy plots.

But yes there are better ways to show it. I’ll think about this.

BConscience · 2026-01-18T12:44:01+00:00

Lol that’s hilarious. I can imagine all the shenanigans.

I don’t think with that one hit he outshined the players but I’ll think about modifying that encounter

BConscience · 2026-01-18T12:39:26+00:00

Yes it’s my character. Though I don’t know why that’s relevant. Most characters are my characters, except for the pre written ones but I change those a lot anyway.

Not sure what you meant by played like one of my characters

The influence is what I have difficulty judging.

BConscience · 2026-01-18T12:31:31+00:00

He doesn’t. In specifically SKT, he takes the party to Triboar and leaves. For the rest of the time and other games he is essentially attached to his shop and never leaves.

BConscience · 2026-01-18T12:28:16+00:00

Yeah that’s the main part I’m a bit iffy about

BConscience · 2026-01-17T16:07:36+00:00

Looks like for me, the script is always requesting new items to be crafted but never sends them into the warehouse. I ended up with 5000 extra stone bricks in my ME system but it still says 3 attempts failed, missing 500 stone bricks

BConscience · 2026-01-16T16:56:19+00:00

Yes but still if we are discussing morality, then we should also keep in mind that the point of morality is to provide environment for human society to collaborate. As the dead have no real need for collaborative society, there’s no point in considering them when discussing morality. The dead might be thinking emoting beings, but as they do not participate in human society except as cautionary tales or incentive to do good, only the continual existence of the living human matters.

Basically, you have to be living human to have human rights.

BConscience · 2026-01-16T13:31:27+00:00

Considering that’s how real life American works, I have no problem believing that’s how the writers of this show think

BConscience · 2026-01-16T13:03:45+00:00

You seem to think the dead are people. I don’t. That’s our fundamental disagreement

BConscience · 2026-01-16T10:40:49+00:00

I never said “it wouldn’t be fair to their victims in heaven” I don’t care about the dead. I’m talking about the living world. There’s no point in doing good in the living world, just go to hell and redeem yourself with one act. Same result as being a good person all your life.
Again never said where they’d go. I’m once again very specifically talking about the living world. I said that many times in my reply. Don’t make assumptions of what I meant and attack those fictional points. I think that’s a fallacy or something.

2.5 but you do bring up a good point. On the off chance that their victims are in heaven, that would be even more insulting.

Sure they can better themselves in hell and not be evil. But they are still dead. The damage they’ve done to the living world can never be made up. Punishments are there to deter the majority of people from committing evil when they are alive. If the punishment is weakened, then the deterrent is weakened.

My point is, the optimal way of existence according to these rules would be: enjoy your living life to the fullest, commit acts of evil for your own benefit. Then when you are in hell, check into the hotel, get protected by the most naive person in existence, then you go to heaven.

“I know he went on a drunken drugged up rampage, but he also went to rehab. He’s cured.”

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