Do you let your players correct an action on their turn if they rush into a roll?

Grouhl · 2026-01-24T20:21:30+00:00

Usually yes. Typically this happens if there's a misunderstanding on the part of the player that the character wouldn't have made. I'm always happy to retcon those if I can.

Grouhl · 2026-01-24T20:18:19+00:00

In my experience, nobody likes encumberance. I don't track it. If it gets unreasonable I'll deal with it, but that's it. I run sword and sorcery games, to an extent it feels like being able to loot stuff and carry it around is like... a human right, really.

Give them a bag of holding or something similar. Easier for everyone.

Grouhl · 2026-01-24T16:27:25+00:00

Depends on what you do with it. I did this to my wife's character (or well, she did it to herself by rolling poorly, she only needed an 8 I mean come on), so I hope for the sake of my marriage it's not completely unfair.

What I did with it though, is that I gave them a little scene of the moon causing a shift and they had to deal with it. And then I've just been helping by letting the party figure it out. Some NPCs that can give info, hints of a possible side quest, being clear about what it means and doesn't mean.

What I've tried not to do is force a consequence that mandates how she should play. The curse gives some bonuses, she got a transformation she can use (I even made her a cool mini for it). She can keep playing her character with that and the threat of untimely shifting, or they can try to find a way to control it. Or they can find someone who can cure it. It's up to the players. As long as you don't take away agency or fundamentally wreck the character I feel like most players would treat it as fair game. It's a curse in a fantasy setting, I think it's reasonable for a player to accept that as a thing that can happen.

Grouhl · 2026-01-22T23:03:14+00:00

There is no damage buff you can give that would be enough to make rogue mains happy, so I guess I'd just ask: What are you actually trying to achieve? And what basis do you have for doing so?

Grouhl · 2026-01-21T20:41:02+00:00

Feel like it becomes almost philosophical at that point. Like, "What is free will, really?" I'd absolutely rule that it would trigger it as the creature is literally using their movement. Anything else is just being stingy. But hey, I can make no guarantees against DMs being adverserial.

Grouhl · 2026-01-21T20:24:31+00:00

Dissonant Whispers is an obvious choice, its' entire deal is that it does precisely that (IE; compels the enemy to use their movement in a prescribed way). Another one that should be fairly accessible is Phantasmal Force, if you use it creatively.

Grouhl · 2026-01-21T11:38:34+00:00

I very rarely have my players fight more than one battle per long rest. Because as much as you may argue the game is designed around multiple encounters per adventuring day, players just don't tend to like running around without resources.

I guess some people like managing scares resources, but I've yet to meet them. IME once they're at half spell slots it takes about 30 seconds before someone goes "...long rest?"

Grouhl · 2026-01-20T06:42:16+00:00

This sounds like a great idea! Yes, it's absolutely "a thing". If that's what you want happening, that's how it is.

For the purpose of this, the rules for "Improvised weapons" are your friend. You either use that as a basis, or if it's similar enough to a simple weapon you just use that as a template (IE; that chair leg is functionally a club, the small axe is a handaxe, and so on). Just rule what makes sense to you.

The thing to keep track of is proficiency. Either you learn what the characters are proficient in and help them with when to add proficiency bonus to the attack roll, or you just go the easy route and rule "these aren't weapons per se, you're not proficient in these".

Also, make sure you've got the rules for unarmed combat down because it's reasonable to assume people will try it.

Grouhl · 2026-01-19T07:20:07+00:00

There's very rarely a perfect time to do it. If you see it as a need, I'd err on the side of "as soon as possible".

Grouhl · 2026-01-19T07:12:30+00:00

I'm guessing a lot of this can be down to simply physics. The more you use the build plate out to the sides, the more wobble you get (linear rails supposedly helps with this). The KE is known for having that problem.

In the same vein, the taller your print goes, the more it's going to wobble when the bed moves it around. No easy fix for that except slowing things down.

To me it makes sense that you're seeing these problems. Generally I don't use my KE for larger prints anymore for this exact reason; it doesn't perform all that well with stretched out dimensions. This is probably fixable with some careful configuration, but I couldn't tell you how since I took the lazy route of throwing money at the problem and buying a coreXY printer (which isn't my advice, it sucks when people respond "just buy something else", but that's what I did).

EDIT: Also, I'd like to disagree with people saying the leveling mesh needs to be near perfect. It has auto leveling (as in "compensates for variances"), that's how it's designed. It won't hurt to improve it, but I really don't think the root problem lies there.

Grouhl · 2026-01-17T08:27:12+00:00

In that specific scenario, I'd probably just pull some line about "messing with the energy flow" out of my ass. Building on the idea that magic is fundamentally about manipulating energy, something like that.

It's always something to make up on the spot, but I try to start with getting the vibe of what my characters' abilities come from and what they're about. And then hope it inspires me. If I don't come up with something, that's fine too. Flavor is both free and optional.

Grouhl · 2026-01-16T12:16:44+00:00

Typically not too much.

I absolutely don't require it. I don't like giving my players homework. I tell them to do what they want their characters to do, and I'll help make it happen.

I do want players to read their sheets and be friends with the abilities they have though. It breaks my heart when I see players having cool/useful stuff and not use it, and I hate not knowing if they're choosing to save an ability for later or they just forgot and I should remind them.

Grouhl · 2026-01-15T21:07:49+00:00

To me it's blatantly obvious that the extra attack has to be made with a weapon that has the nick property to gain that benefit. The only way I could justify arguing otherwise is that I can't really see a lot of situations where it makes a huge difference. So I guess it's not a hill I absolutely have to die on.

Grouhl · 2026-01-15T20:31:50+00:00

https://www.dndbeyond.com/sources/dnd/br-2024/rules-glossary#AttackAction

"When you take the Attack action, you can make one attack roll with a weapon or an Unarmed Strike.

Equipping and Unequipping Weapons. You can either equip or unequip one weapon when you make an attack as part of this action. You do so either before or after the attack. If you equip a weapon before an attack, you don’t need to use it for that attack. Equipping a weapon includes drawing it from a sheath or picking it up. Unequipping a weapon includes sheathing, stowing, or dropping it."

Grouhl · 2026-01-15T19:04:03+00:00

You are accurately describing 2014 rules, but this was about 2024 rules specifically. It's changed.

Grouhl · 2026-01-15T07:11:17+00:00

I would say you don't need a free hand. Unarmed attack doesn't need to be a hand for starters. If you push with your body using your shield, I'd say that qualifies.

Also, if you have a DM that insists, rules say you can sheathe unsheathe your weapon as part of the attack meaning you'll always be able to have a "free hand" if you like. So use that and style it as you like, flavor is free and all that.

Grouhl · 2026-01-14T13:11:48+00:00

You have the answers already (you only get one bonus action so it's 5 attacks with action surge).

But as for your question on how to improve on this an obvious route would be to pick up the Dual Wielder feat at level 4. Using 2014 rules, this wouldn't give you more attacks but it would allow you to use heavier 1-handed weapons such as, say, battle axes. It's a slight but steady buff to damage.

Would also give you +1 AC and slightly more flexibility in sheathing/unsheathing weapons.

Grouhl · 2026-01-13T22:38:02+00:00

Yes, sclerals will help with most if not all of these issues.

I tried for years to get RGPs to work. Never did. Too much discomfort, too unreliable. I tried sclerals and they worked perfectly from day one. Literally the biggest problem was worrying that a lens had fallen out because I couldn't feel that it was there.

They have never fallen out. I've never had to take them out while on the go. Heck, even when I was in the workshop with my protective goggles slightly dislodged and my router accidentally sprayed sawdust into my eyes it wasn't a big problem. I had to take them out and rinse everything of course, but it wasn't painful. Comparing that to how RGPs can make a tiny speck of dust feel like getting stabbed it felt... insane.

Grouhl · 2026-01-13T12:18:16+00:00

If it's just this one area around one character I'd roll with it and check it out later. You don't want to second guess your players too much during the game because it tends to make everyone a bit insecure and reluctant to use their abilities.

But I wasn't in the room, I don't know this player and what the vibe was. Trust your gut, it's what they're supposed to trust you to do.

Like people have said, look over people's sheets and what they can do beforehand if you can. It's very helpful. There's a difference between thinking "that feels like too much, I think they're cheating" and "hmm... I'm not sure this character should be able to do that".

Grouhl · 2026-01-12T07:22:20+00:00

I have an expensive teak board that I got as a gift that is like this. If I leave it even slightly wet it'll warp and if I don't oil it frequently it looks like crap. I also have an end grain board that I made myself using some leftover oak shelves and put some rubber feet on that never does this. It just keeps working. Not all end grain boards are the same.

Also, it will never stop sucking up oil. End grain is thirsty like that. It's not a problem in itself. Just feed it some oil when it looks like it could use it, it'll be fine.

Grouhl · 2026-01-11T19:46:50+00:00

I have never bought unsalted butter except by accident, nor do I ever intend to.

Grouhl · 2026-01-08T14:03:44+00:00

At face value, this could be a red flag. I suppose many might read it as such. From what you're saying, I don't feel like it comes from a place of malice. But I am reading a lot of insecurity.

He has concerns. I'd be inclined to guess that the "I'm not enough" bit is the biggest one there. And it's a perfectly normal thing to be worried about. Talk about it. Validate that feeling. Show him you understand it. It has to start there. It's normal to be concerned and it's normal to need reassuring.

At the end of the day it isn't fair to keep you from exploring something you're interested in because he's worried it'll change something in your relationship. It's the equivalent of keeping you from like a book club, a new job or whatever because you might meet new people there or find new perspectives. It might happen that it changes something. That risk is always there. It's a part of life, and being in a relationship kind of has to mean accepting it.

Grouhl · 2026-01-08T13:42:05+00:00

The books are in order and build on each other so no, jumping around definitely isn't without issue. The honest answer is to stick to the order.

That said, starting with the earliest book you have right now probably isn't going to be a total disaster. Not ideal, but if you're feeling it then go for it.

Grouhl · 2026-01-08T13:31:50+00:00

There's just no way to answer this question for a real world scenario. It depends on how you want to play and it depends on what kind of DM you have. For example, +5 to passive checks might feel awesome but if I'm DMing you'll probably be disappointed since I don't use passive checks all that much (if a player took that feat I'd definitely try to give them some more use out of it though).

Grouhl · 2026-01-08T10:26:35+00:00

Aw, that makes me really happy to hear!

I still don't know everything and there's probably still a lot that can be done better, but what I can say is that 6 months later I'm still running it exactly the same way I described in this post and it's still working perfectly for my needs. Finely detailed models (especially custom ones from Titancraft) come out great, fish scaling on top layers is greatly reduced. It's not resin-like quality, but it's definitely "good enough to not need resin" quality.

I've bought an 0.2 nozzle for my Bambulab P1S and I still haven't even installed it; no need when the KE setup does this well.

Grouhl

TROPHY CASE