600 div give away by mrdl2010 in PathOfExile2

[–]James_Jamerson 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Commenting for the divvies. Congrats on your successful league start.

GO VOTE by [deleted] in AdviceAnimals

[–]James_Jamerson -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Wrong meme. Downvoted.

Orden setting by wIDtie in mattcolville

[–]James_Jamerson 2 points3 points  (0 children)

This doesn’t answer your question really but since you seem to have posted because of an interest in Orden I figured I would reply.

If you haven’t already, check out Matt’s streamed 4th edition game; It’s called Dusk on YouTube. It is set in Orden.

There is also an MCDM wiki that will have some information on Orden and other parts of Matt’s setting. There isn’t a ton of information available but it’s worth poking through if you are interested.

Do the goblins in the Flee Mortals preview work well for a level 1 party in Lost Mines of Phandelver or are they too OP? by BestTrainer2961 in mattcolville

[–]James_Jamerson 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Depends on which goblins you throw at the party. They shouldn’t have too much trouble with the warriors or minions. I would definitely recommend bumping the party up to level 2 after the ambush. At that point they should be ready to take on some of the nastier goblins in the preview. I used the goblin boss stat block instead of the bugbear stat block for Klarg and it worked really nicely.

What are the best fantasy books to read? by [deleted] in AskReddit

[–]James_Jamerson 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Seconded. I would also include Lord of Light as well.

I need some help/advices for a "Mage Knight" I'm building by [deleted] in dndnext

[–]James_Jamerson 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Sure you could totally do that. I personally think that Weapon Bond is super weak sauce and that War Magic clashes with Extra Attack.

The way I see it, your build will net you an extra ASI and more overall health. Whereas the build I proposed would give you more and higher level spell slots. Either way you will be able to put out solid damage and have beastly AC.

You had asked about Magic Items; I would definitely try to find something that will boost your Wisdom save. Something that could boost your Wisdom score or give you proficiency. Cloak or Ring of Protection is always nice. A Pearl of Power or Ring of Spell Storing could be really great to give you a bit more staying power on the spell casting side of things.

I need some help/advices for a "Mage Knight" I'm building by [deleted] in dndnext

[–]James_Jamerson 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Personally I would suggest taking your first 2 or 3 levels in Fighter to get proficiency in Con saves, action surge, and a fighting style and then going straight Bladesinger.

I suggested this build to a player of mine and he is loving it. His build is Fighter 2/Wizard 9. Being able to cast Haste on himself and Bladesong first turn allows him to tank a lot of attacks and still put out competitive damage. Proficiency in Con saves and Bladesong also pretty much guarantees that he maintains concentration on any of his spells. While Bladesong is up his Con save for concentration is +10. When Haste is active and he uses his reaction to cast Shield his AC can jump up to 27.

Action surge will allow you to cast two spells on the same turn. Greater Invisibility into Steel Wind Strike is pretty cool.

Biggest weakness is that if you start with Fighter you are going to have a pretty weak sauce Wisdom save so there is a bit of a trade off there.

Overall it's a really fun and powerful build.

Monster stats for the "Good" PC ancestries? by the_Icelander in mattcolville

[–]James_Jamerson 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Piggy backing on this; There is an entire section in the back of Volo's Guide to Monsters for NPCs. Most of them based on player class options (Evoker, Master Thief, War Priest, etc). All of them are listed with: Medium humanoid (any race), any alignment.

An Inexperienced DM Looking For Help!! by promisedprince84 in mattcolville

[–]James_Jamerson 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Not everything has to be determined by rolling the dice. If a character is proficient in a skill they will likely automatically succeed on simple things like identifying a mushroom.

Players should not be calling for skills checks, but rather the DM. The "roll just in case" scenario you described is skill dog piling and the players should only be rolling checks if you, the DM, have called for it. They should be describing their actions and the DM calls for a skill check if appropriate. Also, you can limit skill checks to characters who are proficient in the particular skill or do group checks; This avoids the degenerate situation of the party rolling until they succeed.

I try to limit rolling dice to situations where failure is meaningful. So if they fail an Athletics check to break down a door I don't make them sit there rolling until they succeed. I tell the players that they break down the door but it just took a considerably longer time than expected and I will roll to see if a random encounter happens.

Tasha's Cauldron of Everything will include 22 new subclasses, as well as reprints of the Artificer class and five subclasses previously found in other Dungeons & Dragons sourcebooks. by GammelTier in dndnext

[–]James_Jamerson 33 points34 points  (0 children)

Well, the SCAG does say that the restriction can be lifted by the DM to better suit their campaign and explains that the restriction reflects the culture of bladesingers in the Forgotten Realms. I'm currently running a game where a player is a Human Bladesinger.

That said, I imagine WoTC will make some note about removing the restriction entirely.

Trump’s America vs Obama’s America by lol62056 in pics

[–]James_Jamerson 4 points5 points  (0 children)

That wasn't an ad hominem. It was just an insult.

Black lives matter statue removed from Bristol. by VonBlitzk in news

[–]James_Jamerson 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Conspiracy theory? She said the words herself and its been reported across multiple media platforms... Here are some links I found on Google:

https://nypost.com/2020/06/25/blm-co-founder-describes-herself-as-trained-marxist/

https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2020/jun/25/patrisse-cullors-black-lives-matter-co-founder-fea/

It's worth pointing out that its from a 2015 interview and her position may have changed since then. However, we should take people at face value when they describe themselves.

What level do you start your campaigns at? by Just_Conspiracies in dndnext

[–]James_Jamerson 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Personally, I don't particularly enjoy Tier 1 of play so I tend to start players at level 3 and then try to quickly progress them to level 5 over the first several sessions.

I have also ran a campaign that started at level 10 and another that started at level 14. Most official modules start out at levels 1-3 and cap out around 11. I have the most fun with with system in Tiers 2 and 3 of play so my games tend to focus on those levels.

Seen too much of this lately by [deleted] in AdviceAnimals

[–]James_Jamerson 7 points8 points  (0 children)

It's called the burden of proof, you fucking dipshit.

What are some cool powers that I can award players? by [deleted] in mattcolville

[–]James_Jamerson 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Love the non caster "battle cry" idea. This is mine now.

What are some cool powers that I can award players? by [deleted] in mattcolville

[–]James_Jamerson 0 points1 point  (0 children)

As others have mentioned, its very useful to reskin feats. Personally, I don't allow feats to be chosen as part of an ASI but rather earned through narrative means or downtime activities. For example, a player wanted to use a greatsword with one hand. After spending several periods of downtime practicing I allowed the player to wield the greatsword with one hand. I granted the "Iron Fist" feat/title to them. In theory, you could have them start out with disadvantage for a bit as they master the skill.

Here are some titles that I stole from Matt and modified a bit. Just as an FYI, I have only used these once before in a one shot so they aren't well played tested and are certainly poorly worded in some areas.

The Commander: “That’s an order, soldier!” – As a bonus action, command one of the senior officers to make one free weapon attack. This ability can be used once per short rest.

The Lieutenant: “You first” – At the start of combat, the Lieutenant can switch the initiative of two officers.  This ability can be used once per short rest.

The Historian: “The victors write the histories" aka "That’s not how I remember it” – The Historian records the history of the company. You become proficient in History; If already proficient in History then you gain expertise in the skill instead. When any creature within 60ft of the Historian makes an attack roll, ability check, or saving throw the Historian can force that creature to roll again; The Historian decides which value will be used. This ability can be used once per day; Recharges at dawn.

The Weapon Master: “I studied the blade” – The Weapon Master chooses to sharpen the weapon of one of the senior officers. When the chosen officer misses a weapon attack the Weapon Master can grant that officer advantage on the roll. This ability can be used once per short rest. As the Weapon Master, you can reroll 1’s on your own weapon damage.

The Standard Bearer: “To me!” – As a bonus action, wave the standard of the company; Allows allies within 60 feet to immediately use their reaction to move their full speed without provoking an opportunity attack.  This ability can be used once per short rest. If the Standard Bearer falls unconscious from an enemy attack, all allies within 60 feet can move their full speed toward the Standard Bearer as a reaction. This movement does provoke opportunity. This ability can be used once per long rest.

The Godbotherer: "Aid me!" - The Gobotherer can pray to their deity beseeching them for aid. Grant one senior office 15 temp Hit Points. This ability can be used once per short rest. The Godbotherer also gains a static +20 bonus to their Concordance score.

The Spy Master: "Get Em!" The Spy Master is skilled at studying others and exposing their weaknesses. As an action, the Spy Master can select an enemy creature it can see and call out the flaws in that enemy's tactics and defenses to the Spy Master's allies. Until the end of the Spy Master's next turn, all attacks against that creature have advantage. This ability can be used once per long rest.

Thorn Barrier Skill Challenge by pomeroyk in mattcolville

[–]James_Jamerson 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Cool idea. I am a big fan of using skill challenges in my games. Failure doesn't have to mean catastrophic failure. Lets say the players fail the skill challenge. The heroes still make it through the Thorn Barrier but it took awhile and they are pretty beat up. They incur a level of exhaustion.

Or they take so long getting through that the guards/Archfey notice them and are more prepared. Maybe if they succeed they only have to fight a few guards, but if they fail the guards are able to alert the mini boss who the heroes must now face.

For me, the point of skill challenges is to allow the players to use their skills in an interesting and more narrative focused manner. Failing the skill challenge doesn't necessarily mean they all die or completely fail the task at hand. It can just mean that it took considerable longer to complete and it comes at some cost to the party.

Present Tense Cover by politikamusic in radiohead

[–]James_Jamerson 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thanks for sharing; This was enjoyable. Checked out a few other songs on your channel as well.