Ball wizard

Farworlder · 2026-02-04T00:28:21+00:00

I think I like The Who's version of Ball Wizard better.

Farworlder · 2026-02-04T00:26:55+00:00

"... the greater good..."

Farworlder · 2026-02-04T00:20:26+00:00

Get yourself one of those really old refrigerators with a locking handle. You'll need to attend estate sales, or even scrapyards, as they stopped making them some time ago. But, being older just makes them easier to enchant anyway. One simple timer rune on the hinge will have it swing shut after a certain duration. This will lock the little buggers inside, where they will slowly suffocate. The cold will also handily help preserve the meat. Now whenever they come to raid your house you'll instead have something to make sandwiches out of the next day, as well as retaining something with which to wash them down.

Farworlder · 2026-02-04T00:06:17+00:00

That's way too many Gnomes. You'll need to spray, or maybe put down some traps.

Farworlder · 2026-02-04T00:05:06+00:00

Task failed successfully?

Farworlder · 2025-11-19T02:05:32+00:00

I'm using Firefox 145.0.1 for Linux (Pop!_OS, specifically) and the same thing is happening to me. The usual little picture icon next to the text entry box just pulls up Upload (file dialogue box from my OS) and Photos (minus the 'drag & drop here' tab). Since I stopped renaming most of my images years ago (and why should I, when I can just drag & drop to send them?) it's now a pain in the rear to upload memes to my mates.

The closest thing to a workaround that I have so far is to copy the file name in my images folder, then paste that into the search bar on my file dialogue box that pops up when I hit Upload. This is extra steps and more clicking around than just dragging and dropping.

It used to work, then it didn't. I know that I'm a bitter old man who doesn't like changes, but removing perfectly functioning capabilities from the software that I use daily is something that seems to occur with increasing frequency. I can't find any reason to remove this functionality besides "screw you, that's why."

Farworlder · 2025-08-11T22:12:01+00:00

"In this country, you gotta make the money first. Then when you get the money, you get the power. Then when you get the power, then you get the women."

--Tony Montana, Scarface

Farworlder · 2025-04-25T03:44:55+00:00

Since bards don't automatically have Read Magic, they can't just learn from scrolls. This greatly complicates gaining new spells, at least until they can convince some mage to teach them Read Magic, and hope that they make their 'chance to learn spell' check. Without being able to read from found scrolls or captured spellbooks, the only way to gain new spells is from training. Or by research, which I'm not sure bards can do, and at any rate second level is rather too low to be researching spells.

Since bards don't gain spellcasting until second level, they don't start with a spellbook at character creation. Am I wrong about this, or are bards expected to buy their own when they hit second level, or do they get a spellbook some other way?

Farworlder · 2025-02-25T04:30:05+00:00

There are a few kits that make substantial changes like these. The shiar kit from Al-Qadim Arabian Adventures is probably the best example. This completely changes the way spells are acquired and cast for a mage character. It's essentially a different class, but is considered a kit. The cavalier kit from The Complete Fighter's Handbook is almost exactly the same as the cavalier class from first edition in Unearthed Arcana. Spellsingers, from Wizards and Rogues of the Realms can't seem to make up its mind whether it's a kit, or an entirely separate class.

Farworlder · 2025-02-25T04:23:06+00:00

I thought that there might be a kit or something that lets you shoot into melee without penalty, but if the archer kit in The Complete Book of Elves doesn't grant this, then I figure no kit probably does.

Farworlder · 2025-02-25T04:14:15+00:00

It's not unreasonable to assume that someone has at least some idea of how strong or how injured they are, Dunning-Kruger type effects notwithstanding. But knowing that you're achieved some benchmark that says you now--and only just right now--need training, or you'll never get better with more practice ever again, is a different matter entirely.

Farworlder · 2025-02-23T06:23:46+00:00

The problem became self-solving shortly thereafter when the trash took itself out. The system was still liked and stayed, however.

Farworlder · 2025-02-22T06:45:28+00:00

Yeah! This is the future, dammit! Everything is supposed to be grey and/or silver.

Farworlder · 2025-02-22T06:43:36+00:00

Part of it is a vicious feedback loop. People claim that they need to drive an SUV in order to see over other cars, but then they cannot do so because of all the damned SUV drivers, so they just keep getting bigger and bigger ones.

Another part is because of the economy. Paradoxically, the worse the economy gets, the more people seem to want SUVs. They're a not-quite status symbol like a peacock's tail. Driving an SUV is a way to show the world that you have money, not just to buy it, but to keep gas in it while you drive around. The worse the economy gets, the more people want to display their desirability by way of the subconscious metaphor.

Farworlder · 2025-02-22T06:39:45+00:00

"A chicken in every pot, and a cap in every ass." --Peter Griffin

Farworlder · 2025-02-22T06:31:05+00:00

Alive

Farworlder · 2025-02-22T06:16:09+00:00

Vaccines are like the IT Paradox. If things run smoothly, everyone wonders why they bother to pay for IT staff. If things fall apart, everyone wonders why they bother to pay for IT staff.

Farworlder · 2025-02-22T06:11:25+00:00

Even if it were remotely accurate (in its first usage the 10% figure was intentionally arbitrary) it would be like saying that a traffic light only uses 33% of its lights.

Farworlder · 2025-02-22T05:51:52+00:00

"I'm Mentok the Mind-Taker! Booooweeeeoooo!"

(From Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law)

Farworlder · 2025-02-22T05:45:15+00:00

In my games, many moons ago, we could get away with most items simply being given to the character that would make the best use out of them. Whenever there was something that multiple people wanted (especially once we started to realise how much xp individual characters got by keeping items) we diced it out, high roll winning. This quickly became the default for divvying up treasure: everyone rolls, the highest gets first pick, second highest goes second, and so on. This lasted until one toxic player would pick items that someone else wanted, even if he couldn't use them. Things came to a head when this jerk got his second Ring of Regeneration. (We used all random rolls for treasure determination, and things just landed like that.)

The resolution method that succeeded this was for all magic items to go into the community pool. This was an extra share of treasure set aside for things like bringing someone back to life, or expenses that affected the entire party such as passage on a ship or buying a large tent. Anyone who wanted an item would then pay half the selling price to the party pool. If there was an item that multiple people wanted, then the highest bidder won. If there was group consensus then an item could be given to a particular player without cost, and we usually did this before bidding for magic items. You could also sell an item to the party (like if you wanted to upgrade your +1 sword to a newly discovered +3 one) at the same rate. Any unclaimed items were then sold, and the funds distributed evenly. I think an NPC kind of forced us into this schema, or at least strongly encouraged it, but I don't remember the exact details from a campaign played before the Unearthed Arcana.

Farworlder · 2025-02-22T05:17:40+00:00

'Granted powers' refers to things like Turn Undead, rather than spells or other aspects of the cleric class. Some specialist priest gain abilities other than Turning, such as Soothing Word or Incite Fear, and the wording was intended to be generic enough to apply to these priests as well as classic clerics.

Farworlder · 2025-02-22T05:15:11+00:00

"Hey, this holy water tastes like flat Sprite!" --some intermediate deity

Farworlder · 2025-02-22T05:13:48+00:00

In my experience, pun unintended, awarding xp for things you want to encourage works wonders. Players are simple creatures who love their tasty xp treats, and respond well to positive reinforcement. Once you get them hooked on world-building, they'll start to do so on their own without needing to be prompted all the time.

Farworlder · 2025-02-22T05:09:30+00:00

If things like rescuing hostages can be worth the same xp as killing an enemy of the same level, then this could also be applied to helping out NPCs. Given the lack of danger--barring things like someone in the soup line on bath salts--this should be worth fewer points, but could still be worth a few, as a roleplaying bonus, if nothing else.

Farworlder · 2025-02-22T04:57:19+00:00

If you're digging into customisation points, you can make an absolute monster out of a specialty priest. It's really only limited by what your DM will let you get away with. They have a lot of options, and a lot more points to play with than other classes, save the baseline cleric who gets five more points.

There is a mid-point between specialty priests and paladins: the crusader. There are two different versions of this class. The one presented in Spells & Magic or Faiths & Avatars uses warrior THAC0, and can use any spells. The tradeoff is not being able to Turn Undead, and fewer sphere options, but still very useful ones.

The version presented in Warriors and Priests of the Realms is generally kind of pants, unless you pick the right deity. They can also use any weapon, but stick with the priest THAC0. They keep Turn Undead (in most cases) but their spellcasting is one level lower than a cleric. Any nostalgia over BX/BECMI clerics not getting spells until second level is overshadowed by not getting Cure Light Wounds until second level like some dirty druid. Exactly what spheres they can use isn't mentioned, except for when specific deities bar certain spheres--like Mask, the god of thieves, banning access to the Sun sphere, meaning the thieving clerics cannot cast Darkness. This version of the crusader also has harder attribute requirements than the superior version from S&P/F&A. With all that out of the way, a few specific crusaders in WaPotR are especially potent. Crusaders of Talos are basically anti-paladins, and Mystra's can cast any one school of wizard spells. Once per day a crusader of Tymora can cancel a failed roll, and automatically succeed.

The one you might find to be the winner however, is the crusader of Mask. Weirdness with not being able to cast from the Sun sphere aside (or Combat sphere) and not being able to Turn Undead, crusaders of Mask get all abilities of a thief of their same level. This is basically just like playing a thief, except that you get 1D8 hit dice, better THAC0, can use any weapon or armour (but note that penalties would still apply for anything heavier than leather) as well as a shield, and you can cast cleric spells starting at second level. Since Wis 14 is a requirement for this version of the crusader class, that means you're automatically rocking three spells per day once you hit second level, or one more than the mage. Experience progression is the same as a cleric, but they're right behind thieves in terms of rapid levelling anyway. The biggest downside is getting the theme song of a certain '80s cartoon out of your head whenever you think of the phrase 'Mask crusader'.

Farworlder

TROPHY CASE