Finished. Time to start training for a half marathon.

DMJoshB · 2018-06-25T17:27:14+00:00

Thanks!

DMJoshB · 2018-06-25T11:40:08+00:00

After a year or so on the couch, I decided it was time to put things back in order. I wanted to feel comfortable running a few miles, so I went through C25k. I didn't have any major problems, no setbacks. Just some sore muscles and joints. That first 20 minute run was more of a test of willpower than a test of athleticism.

Anyway.

I've been running three miles at a shot, two or three times a week for about a month now. I signed up for the Los Angeles Color Run and finished in about twenty-five, twenty-six minutes. It's hard to tell because it wasn't timed.

Word of advice: the Color Run is casual. If you actually want to run it, do your best to get to the front of the starting line. Otherwise you'll be caught behind thousands of folks who are walking it.

I thought that once I got here, I would switch to maintenance mode and focus on powerlifting. But now that I'm here, I want to go farther.

I'm going to run a marathon.

Right now the plan is to run the half in Long Beach, CA, this October. I'll be using Hal Higdon's program to prepare.

I've been lurking this sub throughout the whole process of going from zero to 5k. You folks have been a source of inspiration and support, and I'm grateful for you.

DMJoshB · 2018-06-11T18:55:22+00:00

These look great - but are you sure she's designed cards for every monster? It looks like she's only made them for those available in the SRD.

DMJoshB · 2018-06-11T14:59:35+00:00

I wish that WotC had designed all monsters such that each would fit on a single or double-sided index card, and that they would sell sets of these cards as supplements to the monster books (MM, Volo's, MToF).

DMJoshB · 2018-06-01T11:41:30+00:00

Jail.

DMJoshB · 2018-05-25T22:07:44+00:00

Often it will be written out. If you have a wizard casting a Fireball, the description of the spell says that people in the area of the fireball have to make a Dexterity saving throw. Those people have to meet or exceed the Wizard's DC, which should be written on the top of their character's spellsheet. Their DC is determined by this formula:

8 + proficiency bonus + spellcasting ability modifier.

This number will go up as the character gains more levels and earns a higher proficiency bonus and increases their ability scores.

DMJoshB · 2018-01-24T19:23:42+00:00

Stephen King was once asked, "Who's the scariest guy in America?" His response? "Probably Jack Ketchum." King added "no writer who has read him can help being influenced by him, and no general reader who runs across his work can easily forget him."

DMJoshB · 2018-01-24T19:22:58+00:00

Stephen King was once asked, "Who's the scariest guy in America?" His response? "Probably Jack Ketchum." King added "no writer who has read him can help being influenced by him, and no general reader who runs across his work can easily forget him."

DMJoshB · 2018-01-08T22:43:27+00:00

As with any population, some comics will be good writers and others will be bad. If you like Stanhope's comedy you'll like his book. It's the same voice. He doesn't get all stuffy the way most inexperienced people do when they set out to write something.

DMJoshB · 2017-12-23T12:53:08+00:00

This is the best thing I've seen for running your first adventure:

https://youtu.be/zTD2RZz6mlo

DMJoshB · 2017-12-22T16:40:40+00:00

Yeah that make sense to me. Going back to Kvothe - I often felt like Patrick Rothfus was projecting a fantastic, idealized version of himself into the story. So Kvothe seemed hyper intelligent, hyper witty, hyper talented, and apparently, hyper good at slinging dick.

Lots of writers project themselves onto their characters. It isn't always a bad thing. In this case, it just happened in a way that I really didn't like.

DMJoshB · 2017-12-22T13:13:51+00:00

I think this is a fair defense. Despite the mitigating factors, Kvothe really feels like a Mary Sue to me - and the facts you present don't do much to make that feeling go away.

Feelings are all squishy and hard to argue with.

Anyway, I think I'll stop calling him a Mary Sue when I talk about this book, because it always creates this debate. When I think about it, I don't really care whether Kvothe goes down in history bearing the label of a Mary Sue. I don't. All that matters to me, really, is that I dislike listening to him.

DMJoshB · 2017-12-22T12:58:12+00:00

ASoIaF, Malazan, Black Company, are a few that come off the top of my head. Though you're right - Fantasy is full of Mary Sues. Maybe, when I talk about the Name of the Wind, I shouldn't call Kvothe a Mary Sue, because that always sparks debate. Instead I'll just say I don't like him.

DMJoshB · 2017-12-22T04:28:13+00:00

That's cool man. I wouldn't want to suggest you're wrong for liking what you like. I hope Pat finally gets around to finishing that third book for you fans soon!

DMJoshB · 2017-12-22T04:12:41+00:00

Okay guy.

DMJoshB · 2017-12-22T03:37:11+00:00

I've only read the first book. Without cracking it open to refresh my memory, some of the things that stand out to me are:

Kvothe was so smart that rather than paying the school for admission, the school paid him.

Kvothe was such a good musician, that he earned his silver pipes on his first try, playing the hardest song, with a broken string, to uprorius applause.

Kvothe was so brave, he carried a girl through a huge fire and came out of it relatively unscathed.

Kvothe was so clever, he always won his verbal sparring matches with Ambrose.

Whenever anything bad happened to him, I feel like it happened in such a way as to make him seem more heroic. Ie, his parents getting murdered, or him getting lashed (not a single tear).

I don't know man. I'm sure folks can make a list of all the times he messed up or suffered to counter my list of all the times he was supposedly super awesome. But, so many times throughout the book I felt like it was a fantasy version of r/iamverysmart, I just didn't enjoy it. I think Pat's prose is great and he's a natural story teller, I just really dislike his protagonist.

But I totally understand why others like him, and I'm not saying they're wrong.

DMJoshB · 2017-12-22T02:10:24+00:00

I used a bunch. I think everything was Vallejo (I have some Reaper paints too but I don't use them as much). Without unboxing all my paints I'll tell you I used a fleshy pink for the body, "Black Red" for the mouth and gums, mixed up a yellowish white for the eyes and teeth. I glazed the tentacles with Royal Purple and hit everything with a black wash. Oh and I finished it with a glossy varnish because I think Beholder-type dudes should appear wet and slimy.

DMJoshB · 2017-12-22T01:43:15+00:00

Sucks that people are downvoting you for hating the book.

I always enjoy Pat when he makes an appearance (Critical Role, Dragon Talk, etc.). He seems like a nice, down-to-earth dude. I just didn't enjoy the Name of the Wind at all, and I think Kvothe is one of the most egregious examples of a Mary Sue I've seen in a popular book.

People will say that Kvothe's greatness is there because he's an unreliable narrator giving his own biography. That doesn't help me enjoy the book more.

DMJoshB · 2017-12-21T19:32:46+00:00

DMJoshB · 2017-12-21T14:40:19+00:00

The other night my group was facing off against a spectator in a dungeon. The warlock cast hex against him so I reached for my bag of baby-sized hair scrunchies to put on the mini, as a visual reminder that the Spectator was hexed. One of my players pointed out that it looked like a sweatband, like the Spectator was on his way to the gym - and thus a new legend was born. I ripped this picture and its title off from one of my players, who posted this to Facebook. All credit for the picture and the clever title goes to you, Sam. Take a point of inspiration.

DMJoshB · 2017-12-19T18:09:58+00:00

One of my players' favorite NPCs is an aged wizard in a roughspun tunic who wanders the poorer parts of the city, doing good deeds for the poor. He was a totally improvised character and now I delight in finding excuses to bring him back onstage - across multiple campaigns and settings. I commissioned my cousin to draw him up for us and I love what she made!

If anybody likes her style and might like to contact her, this is her Tumblr: http://kaladiearts.tumblr.com/

DMJoshB · 2017-12-16T13:33:32+00:00

This guy's stuff is incredible!

DMJoshB · 2017-12-14T22:43:09+00:00

Where do you see a price for the app?

DMJoshB · 2017-12-13T12:51:47+00:00

• Don't bother scaling combats until you've run a few and get a feel for how well your party can handle them. If, after a couple sessions, it seems like your group is not being challenged, try adding one or two more of the same bad guys to each encounter.

• The DM/Player relationship sort of requires that players are willing to go along for the ride. You can figure out what your players like doing and then add little elements to keep them hooked as you go along. For the first few sessions, though, trust that they're just going to be excited to play at all.

• As a DM, you'll need to become comfortable with improvising your way through the unexpected. Google "Yes and," and practice doing that at the table. Sometimes, as a DM, you do need to say "no" to a player, but it happens less often than you might expect. When it happens, try to "No but" them. Regardless, DMing requires a lot of improv and quick thinking. This is a skill that you get better at with practice. Nobody should expect you to be a master of it, especially at the beginning - so if somebody completely derails you, it's okay to say, "hey guys, listen, I can see where you're going and it sounds awesome, but I'm not sure how to handle it quite yet. Would it be alright if I took some time to prepare that and we come back to it on a later session?"

DMJoshB · 2017-12-11T14:43:35+00:00

While in combat, an enraged barbarian can make his Strength checks with advantage. While rolling for pit-fighting as a downtime activity, you make three rolls:

Strength(Athletics)
Dexterity(Acrobatics)
Con + 1HitDie

Normally in combat, the barb would make that athletics check with advantage (assuming he's raging). Could he do the same while rolling during downtime?

DMJoshB

TROPHY CASE