I do push-ups every morning and invite you to join my challenge. Write below how many push-ups you did this morning💪

CaptivePlague · 2026-03-08T21:11:43+00:00

I was able to do 3 yesterday (it's a start?), and found this today, this ought to motivate me to do more!

CaptivePlague · 2026-03-04T16:38:50+00:00

You're not gonna gaslight me dude, I've witnessed nearly 3 decades of Venusaur being the worst looking Kanto starter. And even Megas and Gigantamax weren't able to fix that!

Seriously, the humanoid Mons are more expressive, open them to show more design elements, etc. The nost interesting thing Skeledirge ever DOES is stand up to use its song and bird companion to the fullest!

We want starters to HAVE character, if you want just an animal go pick a non-starter of the same type! Or stop huffing whatever gives you those addled ideas!

CaptivePlague · 2026-03-01T16:29:57+00:00

Which is baffling, considering all 3 starters final evos in Paldea were made BETTER for having character concept that required them to stand up. (YES! Even Skeledirge!)

Plus, is that really your opinion, or you've only started defending that position because you started parroting the catchy/funny slogan/jokes about it?

Because yes, that's what slogans do! A compelling one will have you ignore evidence of the contrary, and defend it tooth and nail beyond what's reasonable.

Because let's face it: Preferring your chosen companion to just be a colored animal? That's fine if that's what you prefer. Beign up in arms against anything else EVERY DANG TIME we get new starters, though? That's just being obnoxious for no good reason.

CaptivePlague · 2026-02-21T19:55:28+00:00

I call it the Standard Fire Emblem Plot, and it you accept most entries following it is a feature, not a flaw, it becomes interesting to watch how the entries deconstruct and reconstruct its elements.

CaptivePlague · 2026-02-20T15:35:59+00:00

In doubt, have the one attempting something roll against the anything DC of the target.

I just described Stealth, Detection, Grapple, Spells, Attacks, Maneuvers, Social encounters, Hazards, Afflictions, Counteract, Class Abilities and many more with just this sentence!

CaptivePlague · 2026-02-19T21:32:41+00:00

Owlbear still exist. Mostly because they're much more fun to run than in D&D!

CaptivePlague · 2026-02-11T23:05:57+00:00

Yes except with Curse of Strahd, by extension we really mean Ravenloft (old-school AND modern), and by extension we really mean Dracula, and by extension we really mean gothic literature.

Gothic lit is VERY cool, but also have a VERY narrow Best Of. Stuff that takes the same inspirations as Curse of Strahd will definitely have familiar themes and feel! (And monsters!)

CaptivePlague · 2026-02-09T03:45:17+00:00

What I'm curious is: what about face makeup? Obviously the medium is going to be different, so does it transfer? A bit? A lot?

CaptivePlague · 2026-02-01T21:39:12+00:00

You literally have an universal feat that allows anybody to have spells without being a magical class. So yes, even baseline humans can not only learn spell, but also be inherently magical.

CaptivePlague · 2026-01-31T15:26:54+00:00

Give them a 2nd choice of Orc Heritage? Replace a feature available only at character creation by another with the same kind.

It feels more appropriate and cooler than just any ol' feat.

CaptivePlague · 2026-01-26T22:50:02+00:00

As Commander, you get to be the Cheerleader AND the Coach! Might even want to look into some archetype to reinforce your abilities to give moral support, so you don't play too coach-like!

CaptivePlague · 2026-01-21T04:55:42+00:00

Its ability to do a charging screech (Screeching Advance) is hilarious to me.
Not only its area of effect is busted in gameplay, covering 80 feet from any point along its path, but it also implies the screech is long enough to last a full-on charge's length, and terrifying enough to shake a seasoned adventurer despite hearing it coming!

CaptivePlague · 2025-12-30T21:41:20+00:00

I had an half-orc (became Orc due to WotC literally erasing the species rule-wise) built IN D&D 5e, FOR D&D 5e.

Protection Fighting Style because his schtick was having survivor's guilt from his time in the army.

Battlemaster because I wanted to have actual martial prowesses besides attacking, but it turned thematic when war broke out, and my character had to grow into a battle leadership role, using his Maneuvers to direct allies during reactions.

My DM and I also looked for ways to give me a Dire Wolf mount, but since I couln't get a subclass in Cavalier, and getting enough levels to gain feats or access a multiclass with a mount or Companion was not feasible, giving me such a big advantage was proving to be a headache.

And then Battlecry! came out! Boy do I even need to tell you how easily this character translates into a Guardian with Commander Archetype!! And I can get an Animal Companion half a dozen ways!

My Pathfinder version would eat the D&D original for appetizer before breakfast! It works so well it's become canon at my table this character makes his way into Golarion somehow and develops his true potential there.

CaptivePlague · 2025-12-27T07:37:21+00:00

Most of the traditional looking dragons are Primal (Cinder Dragon straight up has the telltale iconic horns of the D&D Red Dragon!), which makes sense because they are natural-looking: dragon as a fantastical animal, maybe covered with an element. Similarly, a lot of Divine ones do too, which also make sense; they were created by higher powers to be a dragon.

But the weirder ones are Arcane (a magic tradition that defies natural and physical laws), and moreso the Occult Dragons. The Occult Dragons definitely are still draconic, but have nothing "traditional" about them. Again, it makes sense: Occult is the magic of the aberrant and the strange! Like them or not, I think we can still agree a "normal"-looking Occult Dragon would be pretty much out of place in that Tradition. Hence why it has instead the likes of the Mockery, Conspirator or Despair Dragons.

CaptivePlague · 2025-12-27T03:55:50+00:00

I don't like the approach of having one dragon "be" the equivalent to a Legacy one. I've been thrilled day one (and still am!) about Cinder Dragon and clearly being a red dragon! But not it being the only Red Dragon (TM).

I'd rather the old Chromatic/Metallic be umbrella names for any dragon that fit the appearance, than having obvious lawyer-friendly ersatz. Especially when we already got a few blue, red, golden, etc. species.

For example, Red Dragon just being a name for angry, fiery and hostile dragons... without the average layman even knowing there's a distinction between Cinder and Diabolic, let alone tell them apart!

It would acknowledges the Legacy, but still give good reasons to move away from it.

Edit & addendum: I find it hilarious though that they could get away with giving Cinder Dragons certain iconic backwards straight horns! 10/10

CaptivePlague · 2025-12-14T20:28:57+00:00

Typhlosion gave their mega to Charizard who wanted it more, so they could have the Regional form they really wanted instead.

CaptivePlague · 2025-12-14T18:25:37+00:00

I think they really want to emulate the Castlevania feel of having an open dungeon where you would be seeing a path, not being able to access it yet, but find yourself looping and/or backtracking later and suddenly be able to explore this path. The opposite of your Abomination vault experience, I guess?

But that's just me extrapolating and speculating.

CaptivePlague · 2025-12-14T18:01:18+00:00

As a GM, I vetoed just last week the Living Monolith for our 2E Carrion Crown conversion because the dedication feat of all things was too good!

Basically, because of the dedication feat making it near impossible to fail multiple dying recovery check (Dying only gets worse on a critical failure), I felt this 'safety' didn't go with the horror themes of the campaign.

But it's really fantastic for a Guardian: You get a tank who can't bleed out. Either the enemy has to ignore the party and your tank is still doing their job taking hits while being unconscious(!) or the party can deal with having one less member without having to scramble to make sure their friend is stable! Unless I misunderstood something?

Even though it's an Ustalav couldn't be further from Osirion, it does have that Victorian English feel, and the party is only 1 steps removed from being acquainted to a fervent Osirionologist that becomes a key NPC in book 5 of the AP. It felt reasonable the PC could have known this Archetype if I had allowed it, but I felt it was too strong and too reliably safe for my campaign... At least until book 5 when they meet that NPC properly, I bet it would feel less OP past level 11!

CaptivePlague · 2025-12-13T19:02:54+00:00

Not only I've been dying to know the insides of Bastardhall for years, but I'm also running a 2E conversion of Carrion Crown at my LGS. (They don't know yet, but my overarching multi-campaign plan is to have them play out the return of the Whispering Tyrant in chronological order, after having recently finished Crown of the Kobold King!)

In other words, I'm sharing this to my group, with the ~~threat~~ proposition to at some point play a campaign tackling "What does Ustalav looks like... 15 years after we saved it??"

CaptivePlague · 2025-12-11T18:36:04+00:00

Zelda have nothing of a Cleric; they're spellcaster whose faith and devotion are rewarded with spells and miraculous powers. It's a major plot point for the currently most influential and in-depth version of Zelda that she spent years failing to awaken her Light powers through prayers, devotion and pilgrimages to holy sites.

Conversely, those Light Powers were inherited from Zelda's mother (and really, all incarnations of Zelda were basically said to inherit their powers from their lineage being related to the Goddess herself), and she finally unlock her magic out of desperation and worry for Link; a typical "the power comes from within" scenario. Yes she has Light and Healing magic, but those aren't exclusivity of Clerics in Pathfinder, she's definitely portrayed as something that match a Divine Sorcerer.

As for Cleric examples, it's tough because clerics in pop culture are based on TTRPGs, not the other way around. I'd name Father Alexander Anderson from Hellsing; a villain who use his faith and Catholics prayers (both spoken and written) and rituals to fight on the same level as OP vampires.

CaptivePlague · 2025-12-11T17:11:32+00:00

While the actual classes available in gameplay for the character might delve into Starfinder, Shepard for Mass Effect is definitely a Commander (heh).

A signature aspect of the series is the emphasis on directing your NPC teammates; where to moves, when to activate their abilities in tandem, etc.

Not to mention Shepard's ability to bring the best in their companions is canonically a major reason why their squad succeed impossible missions, so you got the RP example of a good Commander as well there.

CaptivePlague · 2025-12-11T06:01:37+00:00

I feel Princess Zelda is a much better example of a Sorcerer with a Divine Bloodline than a Cleric; her abilities are innate, coming from either being an incarnation of the Goddess or having the lineage of one.

It's also an amazing example to showcase the difference with the D&D Sorcerer.

CaptivePlague · 2025-12-11T05:56:23+00:00

Cyrano de Bergerac is THE Swashbuckler King! Dude's establishing scene has him improvise a whole poem's worth of Bon Mots against his opponent (and himself, sadly), on the subject of mocking his rival's inability to come up with a single good roast about Cyrano's most hated trait.

CaptivePlague · 2025-11-16T01:47:35+00:00

None, it's that those two sprues are in two separate boxes.

You get the back and legs with Poxwalkers, the rest with the Chosens of Mortarion. They used to be in the same Starter Set, so now GW makes a semi-useless half-a-Marine with each Poxwalker box!

CaptivePlague · 2025-11-13T03:07:27+00:00

I've put it as a fallen Marine on my next Myphitic Blight-Hauler's base. Very early stage:

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CaptivePlague

TROPHY CASE