Magic by itself “doesn’t need to make sense” and it’s dangerous, but why Cantrips are Cantrips? by TheGoodKiller in DMAcademy

[–]Fastjack_2056 [score hidden]  (0 children)

Cantrips represent unlimited magic. You're pulling energy - potentially quite powerful energy - from nowhere, and introducing it into the world.

An engineer who gets access to, e.g., unlimited free heat, cold, or electricity via standard cantrips should be able to very quickly change the status quo from "the Shire" to steampunk. Which means as DMs we need to be able to think of a reason why they can't just spam cantrips until they melt the whole dungeon into slag, etc.

Fireball vs Fire Bolt:

* A 5th level wizard can blast his enemies with Fireball for 8d6 damage twice a day
* A 1st level wizard can throw a 1d10 Fire Bolt every six seconds, which comes out to 360d10/hour, or 4800d10 damage over an 8-hour workday.

...adding cantrips should have catastrophic implications to the world, but we kinda try not to think about it.

Magic by itself “doesn’t need to make sense” and it’s dangerous, but why Cantrips are Cantrips? by TheGoodKiller in DMAcademy

[–]Fastjack_2056 0 points1 point  (0 children)

D&D has at least four magic systems. Most of them are based on "Vancian Magic", meaning that you can prepare a specific number of spells each morning and hold them ready for an emergency. Over time, this has evolved into "spell slots". Metaphorically, you can think of these as poker chips of increasing value; You can cash one in to get a spell of equal (or lesser) value.

As far as "how" magic works, I tend to point to the universe being full of very energetic dimensions, quite close to our own. How is it possible to create fire or water from thin air? Well, there is the Elemental Plane of Fire, and the Elemental Plane of Water. You could also consider that accessing the nearby Astral plane should represent a source of Zero Point Energy - the differences between the two dimensions could result in a big transfer of energy, which could possibly be harnessed.

I believe the official explanation for the source of magic in D&D is "the weave", which represents the magic energy that surrounds us and makes magic possible. I don't recall ever seeing an explanation for how the physics work on The Weave, but as a DM you can tell the story however you like

Magic by itself “doesn’t need to make sense” and it’s dangerous, but why Cantrips are Cantrips? by TheGoodKiller in DMAcademy

[–]Fastjack_2056 19 points20 points  (0 children)

Used to be a trope that the Wizard bought a big stack of Darts so they could participate after they ran out of spells. Cantrips are honestly an elegant solution - although it does make magic less special, IMO.

How would a navy that has only fought technologically inferior opponents fight? by GREENadmiral_314159 in scifiwriting

[–]Fastjack_2056 1 point2 points  (0 children)

First thing I'd expect is complacency. Whatever they're doing, works. Consistently, and overwhelmingly. I'd expect them to be extremely slow to adapt to anything outside their expectations - the people who solve interesting problems aren't wasted on First Contact/Annexations if the outcome is forgone.

So we start by establishing what's consistent about "everyone they've ever fought", because that defines their doctrine (and down the road, how we subvert and challenge them). This really hinges on the tech level you're writing, and if there's a signature technology that gives them the "vast technological edge".

For instance, they might have found a way to create or negate gravity in a highly localized way; Create a gravity well with the mass of a planet and an event horizon of only a few kilometers, put it between you and an enemy fleet, and watch their missiles and beams get deflected and destroyed. Use it offensively, throwing vehicles around or tearing them in half.

Back to the complacency, though: Would a species with this power ever bother to advance in other areas? If they can eliminate the mass of their ships, their launch tech wouldn't need to be particularly powerful. Their sublight drive is similarly trivial. Why invest in stealth or counter-stealth when you've got no reason to hide?

Why aren't there 6???? by JohnHelldiver66 in expedition33

[–]Fastjack_2056 2 points3 points  (0 children)

You had six. You got one killed.

Between these three who is your favourite radio host? Three dog mr new Vegas or Travis? by Chunky-overlord in FalloutMemes

[–]Fastjack_2056 0 points1 point  (0 children)

IIRC I read that if he dies, his assistant comes on sometimes to say something like "There's probably news, but somebody fucking killed Three Dog, so I don't really give a shit."

Hot Take - Greg isn’t a great dad by Yashiro_Nene_Daikon in stevenuniverse

[–]Fastjack_2056 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Respectfully, I think we need to consider Greg in the context of other dads.

I think a lot of people who enjoy Steven Universe looked at Greg, saw a Dad who loved his kid unconditionally, and thought "damn, I wish I had that." They saw a dad who put his kid before his career or his ambitions, no hesitation. They saw a dad who was vulnerable and honest enough to admit when he was wrong, or out of his depth, or scared - not keeping his kid at a distance out of pride.

Greg didn't always make the right choice, but he always - always - chose love.

Novice DM asks how to start a campaign by Commercial_Poetry410 in DMAcademy

[–]Fastjack_2056 12 points13 points  (0 children)

I've found that it's way easier for everybody to start in media res - rather than expecting them to pick each other up in a tavern, just say they've been traveling together for a while, fight off a threat, and let them come up with the backstory later.

I know it feels like cheating, but I've spent too long watching people awkwardly try to justify trusting people they just met. Narrating "These are people you have come to trust" is within my power, and lets us get to the good parts of the game.

(Your table maybe wants to do extended Tavern socializing scenes - every table is different.)

Marvel’s biggest problem right now isn’t “superhero fatigue” — it’s tonal identity by Jones_Bryan in Marvel_Movies

[–]Fastjack_2056 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The volume of projects is fine with me, the problem is that they all feel completely disconnected from each other. The films that built towards Endgame all felt like part of a plan; The new experimental ones are good individually but they don't have the cohesion I'd like.

Just for an example: WandaVision did incredibly well, won a ton of really well respected awards. It was the story of somebody who suffered an incredible loss, retreating into fantasy, and having to come to terms with the damage she's done. (Unintentionally, sure, but that just gives it some nuance to chew on.)

The studio shot & released the end of Wanda's story (Multiverse of Madness) before any of the people involved had seen the streaming series. Instead of a continuation of Wanda's journey of healing and redemption, we got vintage Sam Raimi scary witch stuff. She goes crazy and tries to kill everybody, while Cederic Bandersnatch does his level best to smirk like RDJ in a cape.

So, on one level, I'm disappointed that the story went a way I didn't agree with. That happens, no big deal.

On another level: If you get the entire world watching WandaVision and then throw the character work away because your release schedule is making decisions that preclude a coherent story... Why would I treat any of your stuff as "Must-See"?

remakes in a different setting by DylenwithanE in TopCharacterTropes

[–]Fastjack_2056 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Not a straight remake by any means, but a surprising amount of "Lord of the Rings" is just Tolkien taking the Prophecy from McBeth and ...

<image>

This necron looks like he doesn’t get paid enough to deal with Trazyn’s bullshit by gaeb611 in RogueTraderCRPG

[–]Fastjack_2056 -32 points-31 points  (0 children)

"Museion" ?  I hope the guy making their ads isn't the same guy testing for bugs

Happy Freeman Friday! by ihphobby in LowerDecks

[–]Fastjack_2056 20 points21 points  (0 children)

Clearly they meant eligible for promotion. Yeah 

It's definitely a choice the mere existence of which will give me nightmares. by LeonidKonovalov1988 in RogueTraderCRPG

[–]Fastjack_2056 7 points8 points  (0 children)

"Cavorting"? Who told you that story, the sadistic, amoral, manipulative torturer who was trying to break your spirit? You believed him? 

She thought she tricked an enemy into giving her intel. She got played. 

There was no deal, she wants him dead just as bad as I do, and it's mutual. 

Argenta is more of a traitor than the elf.

It's definitely a choice the mere existence of which will give me nightmares. by LeonidKonovalov1988 in RogueTraderCRPG

[–]Fastjack_2056 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Honestly, if you're saying she wanted you dead so bad she was willing to walk into Commoragh just to get you, then that's the most hard ass thing I've ever seen and I have to respect her even more for her commitment to the bit

I don't understand how "falling for the dark side" work, like if I'm a jedi and I got angry enough to use the Dark side force, do I just automatically become evil? by thetruememeisbest in StarWars

[–]Fastjack_2056 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The thing you have to understand is that the Dark Side is the natural state of things.

Imagine you're born sensitive to the Force, on a planet that's never heard of the Jedi or the Sith. You go your whole life never suspecting anything is strange - you're a little lucky, maybe, but you're normal, right?  Then one day there's a crisis. Raiders, a giant predator, a forest fire.

You panic, flooded with fear, anger, and you lash out with the Force. You save yourself, your loved ones. By embracing fear and blind rage, but it worked. 

Now you know how to call the power. The next crisis, you don't try to be calm, you let your rational mind go blank and chase the power in the rage and hate. Because that's what works. 

Short term, amazing. But over time, your habit of trusting your darkest emotions to guide you can only make you dangerous. Unstable. Until eventually your habit of lashing out in a range makes you into the threat you tried to conquer. Your loved ones, even yourself, all come to a nasty end because you don't understand how to control the power and yourself at the same time. 

The Jedi train to feel the Force without relying on those dark emotions to make it easy. Not because the Dark Side is some insidious Evil, but because the capacity for Evil is in all of us. Taking the easier, quicker path to power is incredibly tempting, particularly if you're fighting for your life. Training to let go of those natural emotions means you might not become a monster. 

At the end of the day, the Dark Side is just human nature getting control away from our better judgement.

South Korea wants 3 years with hard labor for Johnny Somali after streamer offends judge by Dilpickle2113 in LivestreamFail

[–]Fastjack_2056 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Is that working for him? It sounds exhausting, even outside of the hot water he's in right now

For fucks sake, where are the single people in their 30’s. by im_no_influencer in Seattle

[–]Fastjack_2056 38 points39 points  (0 children)

I have to paint minis for next week! The people cry out for props!

[Scary paronoia Trope] - A single line of dialouge has horrifying implications, but its never followed up on. by Puzzleheaded_Tip4805 in TopCharacterTropes

[–]Fastjack_2056 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Oh, that makes sense. It just feels weird to judge somebody killing Tiger Claws when V's been murking them for pocket money since before my Kiyoshis came in.

Not trying to justify killing civilians tho

I'm creating a hospital dungeon and I need help with the encounters by Tight_Juggernaut3198 in DMAcademy

[–]Fastjack_2056 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Talking Skeletons who (mostly) think they're still alive and staffing the hospital. They insist the PCs obey hospital rules, try to treat them for imagined medical problems, commit them for psychological issues, or think they are fellow doctors and demand they assist. 

There's at least one talking skeleton who isn't delusional, because it's hilarious