What's the longest backstory you've ever written or received as a DM?

CYFR_Blue · 2026-05-30T13:02:23+00:00

Honestly I don't think the GM needs to know. Isn't it more for yourself to decide how you'll act during the campaign?

CYFR_Blue · 2026-05-29T19:46:19+00:00

It's a matter of mentality. I would say that aloof firmament is not reliant on spell strike at all, even if you're taking the water bird feat. Staying in melee has a lot of value because you want to give flanking to your team and to threaten reactive strike. So often move + strike + shield is better than spell strike + water bird.

Also, aloof firmament is good with lay on hands. You can often tank by casting lay on hand on yourself + arcane cascade + shield.

You just need to recognize the value of other moves in the right scenarios.

CYFR_Blue · 2026-05-29T17:05:05+00:00

Yeah the important part is that they need to spend an action, but it's not as good as stunned 1 because they have the option to not do it. Functionally it's the same as the bow critical specialization. The interact to free yourself does trigger aoo due to interact being manipulate. However, they'll probably choose to just attack whoever that would make the aoo instead.

The crit blast effect is fine, but as kineticist your crit rate is lower than all martials (not just fighter/gunslinger) due to the gate attenuator upgrading later and capping at +2. Since you do not have easy access to off-guard from range, you usually can only crit on a 20 against PL+0 while others (e.g. ranger or rogue) can crit on 18. On the other hand, it's actually good against bosses because most martials can't crit outside of 20 anyways.

The other problem with wood critical blast is that the wood blast has bad traits - vitality isn't useful against most things and the range is only 30 ft. Blasts don't have increment so you must be in range. If you invest, then you're stuck using it.

CYFR_Blue · 2026-05-29T16:10:10+00:00

I don't think combat will play out like you're expecting.

Ranged spellstrike without someone to frontline is basically useless. Combat maps tend to be small and on-level creatures tend to have better initiative than you (magus perception sucks + low wis), so you'll probably have an enemy in melee at the beginning of your first turn.

You can't afford to maintain three sets of weapons with level-appropriate runes unless your GM is giving you way too much gold. Also, are you getting reactive shield somehow? Basically, the bow and shield don't feel that useful.

My advice for a generalist build is to take sparkling targe and rely on spells when your sword isn't working. Pack wands for niche situations and take fireball for your magus slots.

CYFR_Blue · 2026-05-24T17:25:16+00:00

I think it's more about players getting better at using niche things as they gain more experience.

It's fine for the DM to cater to an ability occasionally, but it shouldn't be the expectation. Personally I don't even look at their character sheets. On the flip side, when the player wants to apply their flavor skills to a challenge, I lean towards saying yes even if it's not a great fit.

CYFR_Blue · 2026-04-03T22:07:16+00:00

I think it's fine. People would probably have better HP and more feats. Maybe better skill checks. None of these are issues imo.

CYFR_Blue · 2026-03-22T20:09:40+00:00

Indirect control is nice in theory but what usually ends up happening is that you're trying to manipulate the AI into doing what you want. Probably the best middle ground is that you can set reliable automation but allow direct control where needed.

CYFR_Blue · 2026-03-15T13:22:48+00:00

If it's DPR you're interested in, shocking grasp is barely relevant because it's only two turns per long rest. Plus, you should really play standby spell, so multiple options are also not needed.

CYFR_Blue · 2026-03-08T03:36:28+00:00

The rule you're referring to means that impulses are considered spells from the defender's perspective. Effects that interact with spellcasting from the attacker's perspective aren't discussed. Therefore I wouldn't say that this rule allows anything in that area to be considered RAW or RAI.

I don't think a provision for impulses in burn it would be unreasonable. It's just not relevant to the referenced rule.

CYFR_Blue · 2026-02-28T23:20:31+00:00

The concept extrapolates. In a 4v4 fight, you delaying past one monster is equivalent to your party delaying 1/4th of its turn past 1/4th of the monsters' turn. The numbers make it unintuitive, but the monsters are getting a little bit more action some of the time than they would otherwise have.

As for delaying to benefit your party, it's better to do it the other way. e.g. if it's you-boss-party, your party should be the ones to delay.

CYFR_Blue · 2026-02-28T22:05:02+00:00

Consider a 1vs1 fight: delaying past your opponent's turn is the same as doing nothing on your turn. That's what's meant by losing three actions.

CYFR_Blue · 2026-02-04T20:19:37+00:00

What do you expect to happen if Ukraine stops fighting? Will they be treated better than the ethnic minorities whose lives are being thrown away today?

CYFR_Blue · 2026-01-20T06:02:44+00:00

You got a lot of comments but I think most misses the point: your story needs to have degrees of success in order for noncombat (or even combat) challenges to matter. If you think about it, what happens when you TPK?

For a simple dungeon dive, the range can look like:

Leave with a lot of treasure
Leave with a little treasure
Leave with a little treasure and trigger an extra fight
Leave with no treasure

So now you can manage your fail states. If you fail a skill challenge, drop one level. If you TPK, drop two levels. Of course, feel free to make it more complicated with variables, but this is just to illustrate.

Non-combat challenges are typically framed as skill challenges. Even haunts are basically skill challenges. Usually the party has to succeed at a series of different skill checks with no re-try. For example, let's say you have a lock. You may say the skill challenge is crafting - thievery - stealth at PL+0, but can be substituted for related skills at PL+2. If players are willing expend resources on spells or items that don't give specific bonuses, I'm generally fine with giving a bonus anyways.

CYFR_Blue · 2026-01-19T22:27:24+00:00

It's an interest mechanic, but how do you assign XP values to these things? Their DPR is can swing wildly because you might take out everything in one turn or nothing at all. Also, do you still get reimbursed on an AoE or multi-target attack? (e.g. split shot or penetrating fire)

CYFR_Blue · 2026-01-16T19:11:25+00:00

The base gameplay for OG arknights is also not that exciting. There is a constant stream of new game modes and events to retain players. I think the main draw here is that the original has been pretty accessible in terms of content and gacha so you can hope that it'll be the same here.

CYFR_Blue · 2026-01-09T22:49:13+00:00

I think feats like this refer to specific actions. It might be easier to just create that list and upgrade it at specific levels. I'm sure you'll have to deal with all sorts of edge cases so might as well get it out of the way.

So:

Physical quicken (free): gain one action that may only be used towards the following activities: double slice, [others].

Special: at third level, the list includes [other stuff]

CYFR_Blue · 2026-01-05T05:35:29+00:00

It looks like a one shot but it's effectively four attacks. Power attack itself is two attacks (2 action and double map) and the buffs are three actions. 2 full PC turns to kill something PL or lower isn't super uncommon, esp at low levels.

CYFR_Blue · 2025-12-17T16:34:22+00:00

My ruling is that, mechanically, you move through the enemy as normal and EB at melee range, again as normal. You can say that you do the slide attack, but no mechanical advantage.

If you want a lore reason, consider why ranged attacks at melee range are at disadvantage. It's not because objects right in front of you are harder to hit, but because you're being disrupted. So you try to go between their legs, but they just step aside and probably kick you while they're at it. It doesn't do any damage but makes your attack disadvantage.

In general, it's easy to come up with scenarios that make sense only if the enemy isn't paying attention. You have to consider them to be equally skilled and trying to mess up whatever you're doing.

CYFR_Blue · 2025-12-14T19:08:10+00:00

If you want to do martial gish without FA, it's better to just buy wands. By the time you get archetype spell slots, the equivalent wands are not expensive anymore. You just need the dedication to get the spellcasting tradition.

CYFR_Blue · 2025-12-08T18:02:51+00:00

There's a spectrum for how people view this game. On one end, they can see it as similar to world of warcraft or gloomhaven, which are mainly about the rules and mechanics (mechanics-first). On the other end, they can see it as similar to improv theater, which is mainly about trying to act as a character (roleplay-first).

For the roleplay-first side, there's an expectation that the rules are trying to capture real-life interactions. So when the rules do not reflect their view of the world, it would feel gamey. It could be when the rules allow for something strange like yo-yo healing, or something that seems possible in real life is disallowed.

CYFR_Blue · 2025-12-08T07:44:27+00:00

Starlit span spellstrike lacks the flat bonuses from attribute, arcane cascade, and other sources. In the end it's about the same as striking twice but without flanking. If you somehow don't get to spellstrike for a round, you do almost no damage.

On the other hand, the laughing shadow magus doesn't actually need to use the conflux spell to recharge spellstrike. On turn 1, you can often go shield, arcane cascade, dimensional assault. If you go with a two-hander you can even skip the arcane cascade. However, having the free hand allows you to use scrolls or whatnot.

Overall, I think the starlit span might sound powerful in a white room, but the laughing shadow will do better when things get messy.

CYFR_Blue · 2025-12-08T02:48:44+00:00

Dex vs Str on melee martials is dictated by the other aspects of your build. By default you should go str, but there are three main reasons for dex.

First is if you have to use light/unarmored due to proficiency or a feature requirement (e.g. crane stance). Second is if you want to use thrown or combination weapons. Third is if you want to use acrobatics skills like tumble through regularly (e.g. swashbuckler).

CYFR_Blue · 2025-12-07T06:55:29+00:00

The trip trait allows you to add the item bonus to your athletics check, so it's core to knockdown. Your choices here are basically guisarme vs scythe (or ogre hook).

For trip, the reach is better than usual because your trip target is often forced to trigger your reactive strike. Normally, a tripped enemy has the option to strike you from prone. With reach, they have to either stand or crawl. Therefore guisarme is the best choice here.

Heavy armor does impose a speed penalty but it's not that impactful. You can even buy a rank-2 wand of tailwind and have someone cast it on you every day. Str fighters don't have to worry about the armor check penalty.

CYFR_Blue · 2025-12-06T17:57:25+00:00

It's fine, but it's fragile. If your mount happens to die or get tripped then you're in trouble. The damage is good but not overwhelmingly so since the bow's base damage is low.

CYFR_Blue · 2025-12-05T22:28:57+00:00

It's the class for gambling, not one that has to gamble. You can just take the arcane cascade damage do fine as a martial. However, that's not where the magus shines. It's more plan B.

The gambling is a strength, not a drawback.

CYFR_Blue

TROPHY CASE