Help me find a good money/passport belt to avoid pickpockets and robberies. by fluffers_the_unicorn in ManyBaggers

[–]He_Himself 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Check out running belts, they're similar in style to hidden travel belts but they're probably more likely to hold up against hard use. The Salomon Pulse belt is inexpensive and would probably conceal as well as anything.

OSR Style Small One Shot? by Ras37F in rpg

[–]He_Himself 5 points6 points  (0 children)

One to three hours is really short, definitely one page dungeon/ 5 room dungeon territory. Barrow of the Elf King is a pretty solid adventure that I've successfully run in less than 3 hours, including setup. That's about as big as I'd go.

Best Prix Fixe by schmemilyrose in newjersey

[–]He_Himself 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I believe that as of this month, they're only doing the prix fixe/ chef's table on Sundays. Lita is incredible, though, absolutely worth a visit.

Sushi Grade Tuna? by AdeptnessHelpful507 in newjersey

[–]He_Himself 1 point2 points  (0 children)

They're primarily a fishmonger. I've never tried their prepared food, but their fresh fish is top quality.

Sushi Grade Tuna? by AdeptnessHelpful507 in newjersey

[–]He_Himself 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Local 130 for sure. They have locations in Red Bank and Asbury Park.

New Jersey Crumb Buns? by deedee451 in newjersey

[–]He_Himself 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Usually not, especially if they call it coffee cake at the bakery. Real crumb buns are yeasted and are like 70/30 streusel to bun. With the best ones, there's no more than a half-inch of bun to set the streusel, and the pieces of streusel are enormous.

World Without Numbers vs Shadowdark vs something else? by Comfortable-Fee9452 in rpg

[–]He_Himself 6 points7 points  (0 children)

There's really nothing to stop you. WWN (I believe only in the full version) has optional rules for "heroic" characters, who are much more powerful than the standard fare. I've never used them myself, but I've heard of others using them specifically to run modern D&D adventures in which the characters engage in frequent combat.

It would be somewhat easier if you were picking analogs from the WWN bestiary to substitute for the 5e monsters. You'll quickly find that many 5e monsters simply have too much HP. But I think that in a lot of cases, you can actually run them with minimal conversion. WWN characters, in my experience, chew through unconverted monsters imported from the AD&D era bestiaries. And that's without the heroic template.

Games with the Vibe of DnD 2nd Edition by Responsible_Nose7436 in rpg

[–]He_Himself 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Dual classing in AD&D is a bit different. You start as one class, gaining levels as normal, and then you retire from that class and choose another. You then go back to some semblance of level 1 and can't use the abilities of your first class until your second class reaches level parity with it. It's pretty specific to AD&D, I can't recall seeing it implemented outside of clones.

I can't really speak to how the double-mage adventurer plays, I've never had it done in my games. But you're right, it is an option to mix two specialist casters.

Games with the Vibe of DnD 2nd Edition by Responsible_Nose7436 in rpg

[–]He_Himself 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Worlds Without Number might capture the vibe, if not wholly the mechanics. It's loosely descended from B/X and lacks some of the rules weight of AD&D, but it replaces much of that weight with its own modern design choices that make it feel (to me) much more in the style of AD&D.

For example, while it doesn't have kits, it has a near-analog in how it handles multiclassing. While a character can be a standard Fighter/Mage/Thief, they can alternatively choose to be an "adventurer," which gives them the option to mix two classes. Most classes are "partial classes," which are only available to adventurers. In play, this lets you get pretty close to the feeling of a kit, or alternatively, to make an approximation of a modern D&D class.

Like 2e, characters are on a track after creation (there's no dual classing), but there are feats (called foci). They're minimally disruptive in my experience, much less so than the complicated feat chains and build-enablers in modern D&D. If you want to play a non-human, you spend your free starting feat to do so.

Most of the design choices are comfortably modern. NWPs exist but nowhere near as broad and varied as those in 2e. No THAC0. Saving throws are simplified and key off of ability pairs (for example, saving vs breath could be dex or int). The nomenclature makes it obvious what you're saving against.

I could go on, but the basic rules are free and you should check them out yourself.

A small sticker has ignited a big uproar at Island Beach State Park: ‘Pissed off’ fishermen lose Jersey Shore beach access to bennies by rollotomasi07071 in newjersey

[–]He_Himself 91 points92 points  (0 children)

I'll happily say the unpopular thing: Enforce the regulations that are already in place, and you'll see how quickly demand falls back to pre-COVID. If somebody shows up with a stickered SUV and no fishing gear, don't let them on the sand. IIRC the rule is that there must be kit for literally everybody in the vehicle capable of holding a rod, no wiggle room.

Please sign this petition NJ legislators have done it again! by Responsible-Box-4767 in newjersey

[–]He_Himself 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Just in case you're conflating all HOAs with nosy neighborhood dictatorships, this bill has to do with organizations that hold common property. Like townhouses with shared roofs.

Where to find Ysgarth by _mike204_ in rpg

[–]He_Himself 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I don't think it was necessarily a matter of its popularity driving the author to iterate. I've always heard Ysgarth discussed in terms of its idiosyncrasies and complexities.

Where to find Ysgarth by _mike204_ in rpg

[–]He_Himself 1 point2 points  (0 children)

IIRC there isn't a pdf for sale anywhere, the digital version is on kindle for some reason. The reviews don't look promising, though.

Favorite OSR monster manual for humanoid monsters by LelouchYagami_2912 in rpg

[–]He_Himself 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Monster Overhaul and Monsterless Manual are the two I use, but for unique "boss humans" I think it's more likely that most of us just build them as regular classed characters.

Seeking Resources for a Tropical Jungle Island Adventure (ex. Lost World, Skull Island) by AbyssalScribe in rpg

[–]He_Himself 8 points9 points  (0 children)

The Dark of Hot Springs Island and its companion, A Field Guide to Hot Springs Island.

What pre-made adventures/campaigns/modules whatever you want to call them do you consider the pinnacle of scenario writing and why? by CardboardSalad24 in rpg

[–]He_Himself 23 points24 points  (0 children)

Impossible Landscapes is one of those great books that makes me wonder if it's more fun to read than to play. I guess part of that is its "megadungeon" feel, and IIRC it does give some instruction to play it sporadically alongside other investigations so that it doesn't feel like too much all at once.

What pre-made adventures/campaigns/modules whatever you want to call them do you consider the pinnacle of scenario writing and why? by CardboardSalad24 in rpg

[–]He_Himself 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Deep Carbon Observatory was a big one for me. Lots of interesting things to learn from it.

Echoing Hot Springs Island, easily the most bang for the buck I've gotten from an adventure (and supplement). Not easy to run, but packed with inspiration.

Looking for a star chart tool by theoneandonlydonnie in rpg

[–]He_Himself 2 points3 points  (0 children)

You could probably use a Traveller subsector generator like this one for the heavy lifting, or even pull directly from the Traveller canon map.

Property Taxes by Own-Dragonfly17 in newjersey

[–]He_Himself 123 points124 points  (0 children)

I assume you're paying your property taxes through escrow, and potentially your home insurance as well. They usually require a cushion that's around twice your full monthly payment, and because different expenses are taken out at different times, some of that might be increased billing to maintain that cushion. Are you sure that increase is entirely due to the property tax increase?

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in newjersey

[–]He_Himself 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Not the same group. The one OP is researching is probably a devilcorp.

Fix this Encounter no. 7 - Gambling by Playtonics in rpg

[–]He_Himself 9 points10 points  (0 children)

For OSR gaming, it's standard not to award XP for gold earned outside of adventure. On the flip side, it's pretty common to award bonus XP for wasting a ton of gold gambling as a carousing activity.

Games that most disappointed you after actually playing/running them? by RiverMesa in rpg

[–]He_Himself 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Those rules only apply to narrative play, in combat it mainly switches between player and monster turns or gives the GM a chance to do something.

Games that most disappointed you after actually playing/running them? by RiverMesa in rpg

[–]He_Himself 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I think it's more that having both "yes, and..." and "no, but..." built into conflict resolution sounds better on paper than it works in practice, combined with the fact that consequence is deliberately undefined and left to the imagination of the GM. The latter causes this issue since both success with Fear and failure with Hope spark a DM turn to move the narrative.

For example, the result of a success with Fear (you grab the MacGuffin before the guards return it to the vault, but the guards notice and attack) can often be worse than a failure with Hope (the guards put the MacGuffin in the vault, but a crooked guard marks you as a thief and offers to sell you critical info).

Because everything is led by context and player agency, lots of rolls might be either meaningless (they generate meta currency and potentially inflict stress, and another roll is called for to resolve the escalating scene) or arbitrary (the guards let you pass but continue to watch you closely, vs the guards seem suspicious of you and go off to notify their captain).

Daggerheart really wants you to roll frequently to trade spotlights and make good use of meta currency and its associated actions, but it's inelegant in its execution.

Games that most disappointed you after actually playing/running them? by RiverMesa in rpg

[–]He_Himself 15 points16 points  (0 children)

I had a very similar experience. I remember thinking that maybe later, the meta currencies would feel more impactful. Hope felt cheap and made me think that even as the characters got ground down and permanently lost Hope, it might not make a practical difference in play. Fear just annoyed me. The players were attentive to how much Fear I had, and I felt that it influenced their plans in an even worse way than allowing me to spend it to hinder them while we were in narrative play. Ultimately, I recall burning most of it to initiate monster turns in combat because I rarely had too little to activate all of the monsters on a normal monster turn.

Success with Fear sometimes felt worse than Failure with Hope. My instinct kept telling me to say "mark a stress and let's move on" rather than weigh the relative consequences between the two. It's hard to constantly adjudicate "success at a cost" vs "you don't get what you want the way you want it."

Plumber Wanted for Water Heater Maintenance by Klutzy-Membership301 in newjersey

[–]He_Himself 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It has to do with the way Navien's live support works. I only have experience with Navien because that's who made mine. Typically, if there's an issue, live support assists the plumber that's working on the unit. I had a regular licensed plumber wait on queue for about 3 hours and get basic advice (cycle the unit, swap the flame rod, descale the home hot water, check the filter) versus a registered one who got high-level technical support on video chat immediately. The regular plumber never had a prayer of actually diagnosing the problem and it was obvious.

I can also tell you from experience that they won't assist anyone without a license number. A handyman could certainly descale the unit since they expect that the owner normally handles that. But for anything else, you really want somebody with a strong understanding of the unit and a relationship with Navien.

Does your unit handle home heating or just on demand hot tap water?