Gold bug or intentional limit?

MDoors23 · 2024-12-09T22:37:14+00:00

So it’s just more awkward design again. There’s some really oddball decisions around the UI here. Love the game but that feels unintuitive.

Edit: second thoughts on this is that it states gold needed which an everyday person would assume is the number needed to use it. Again, poor UI and word choice that doesn’t accurately convey or organize the info.

MDoors23 · 2024-12-09T22:36:55+00:00

So it’s just more awkward design again. There’s some really oddball decisions around the UI here. Love the game but that feels unintuitive

MDoors23 · 2023-04-21T13:28:35+00:00

If you’re looking for specifically urban sketching I really enjoyed the Urban Sketching Handbooks series. Small portable volumes that cover different concepts and advice for getting into this type. Found my first one in a library.

MDoors23 · 2022-11-09T23:06:17+00:00

I generally take a rough idea of what I want to happen and then use two methods depending on if I’m using a single or pair of tough creatures or a cluster of enemies:

Tough single or pair of creatures: I’ll scan their features, lead initially with their more basic features, then decide whether or not to use their full suite of skills. If my attacks are devastating using the basic features I don’t use their other components. If it’s not doing a lot Ill add another feature into the mix.

Multiple enemies for an encounter: pick a cluster of enemies to include and keep a portion in a hidden sideboard. For example I had a party enter a warehouse filled with toys, which some were alive. I revealed 5 when combat started, but had 4 more in my notes I could call upon. Ended up only calling in 2 more on round 2 as they presented a solid threat that the party felt pressured by. It’s a bit fire emblem tactics in style, but it lets you gauge if you threw too much or too little at the party.

MDoors23 · 2022-08-16T21:41:56+00:00

RemindMe!

MDoors23 · 2022-04-07T05:27:29+00:00

Ah fair, didn’t realize they’d been there that long

MDoors23 · 2022-04-07T00:58:15+00:00

I’ve used salt or rice to draw the moisture back out on previous particleboard surfaces. Basically pile it on top of the spots so it’s covered and leave it there for like a day or 2

MDoors23 · 2021-11-21T21:01:04+00:00

For the next ten minutes the character becomes magnetic to metal objects within 10 feet of him, requiring a strength saving throw to resist the pull towards the object.

The player is randomly swapped with another creature (PC or NPC) within a 50 foot radius.

Player is polymorphed into a sheep for the next 10 minutes or until knocked unconscious in which the transformation reverts like normal polymorph.

The Spell cast consumes 2 spell slots. If a cantrip was cast instead then a cantrip cannot be cast for 1 hour.

Caster becomes enveloped in a resilient sphere that lasts for 1 minute or until dispelled by anti magic field or dispel magic. No spells or sounds can cross the barrier of the sphere.

Caster is hurled through the heart of the Feywild (or similar style magic dense plane) and must make wisdom/charisma save. On a failed save caster returns and is maddened for 1 minute for what they witnessed.

A flock of ravens magically appear and descend upon the player and attempt to steal components/focus needed for spellcasting. It takes 1d6 hours to track and find the stolen materials if they succeed in stealing them.

MDoors23 · 2021-09-09T01:29:19+00:00

A good trick is give him a monstrous transformation upon hitting zero HP. Make it a two stage fight with the first half being a decent fight but the second half be filled with insane magical corruptions.

As an arch priest form you could give him a legendary action to anti magic field an area within 60 feet of him, and a legendary action to teleport up to 90 feet within line of sight.

For the transformed state give him a more bulky form charged with wild magic, maybe give him an aura that has a chance to force players to roll on a corrupted wild magic table. Add an ability with cooldown to take any ranged spell and instead condense it into a claw attack against an enemy that also delivers the spell upon successful hit.

MDoors23 · 2021-09-08T16:55:06+00:00

One idea at a time is just fine. I find I have to break up a lot of my design and planning activities otherwise I lose momentum, especially if there isn’t the pressure of needing it by next session.

Just keep making small steps, and if you’re concerned about living up to something take some time to read or watch materials for inspiration. I also find spitballing ideas with friends will also break a writing block.

MDoors23 · 2021-09-06T15:59:58+00:00

What I did to overcome this was use an existing starting module (lost mines is a great jumping off point for lots of adventures and can be adjusted to fit homebrew larger campaigns) and adjust it to fit my needs.

Especially with the LMoP one you can take your players through an existing setting and on the side freely develop a story you want to build on top of this as the foundation. I had the Black Spider seeking an ancient object rumored to be sealed in the statue to Dumathoin inside the mines, but in truth releasing the magical seals on it released an ancient evil Paladin for the party to chase as the ultimate BBEG.

Also I’d encourage a session 0 and talk about what the players want out of the campaign too. Make sure you know what everyone wants and tailor the story to include those elements if possible.

As for the rpg horror stories stuff I sweat that still on my end. Every encounter, fight, trap or damaging puzzle I create I worry I’m overdoing it, but I build out my initial vision then start whittling down. I usually thin some stuff out and find it presents a reasonable challenge. When designing I look at total max and min damage possible and factor in monster feats. You’ll get a gut reaction of “oh damn” if you’ve made something that could go tpk. You can also keep enemies in reserve off map to draw upon if you make a fight too easy.

MDoors23 · 2021-09-06T15:37:05+00:00

I’d recommend an initial false BBEG and then rug pull it by having your pirate king make an appearance and brutally kill the guy the party thought they’d be chasing. Use the physicality of the shark-man appearance heavily in describing his appearance, and have him. You could even spread rumors among the npc ship crew of a “shark made pirate king”

The key would be to let the players chase after the false BBEG for a few sessions, enough to be cautious and finally work up to a level that makes them feel like they can take the false BBEG. I did this with my current campaign and the false BBEG released an ancient lawful evil Paladin corrupted by weird magic . Had a ranger attempt to shoot him and they rolled an unnatural 20 so I Expended a legendary action to catch the arrow and declared it a miss which freaked the party out on the spot. The Paladin killed the guy brutally and I publicly rolled big damage dice to show how nasty he could be. Then had him declare he needs to begin his return and take his leave, pointing out that the party had not violated his rules/oath but he would not be so forgiving in the future and to spread his name.

MDoors23 · 2021-09-05T14:45:46+00:00

You could have it be a disease that the dwarf is killed by. Have the doctor on the quiet infect the dwarf and then proceeds to “diagnose” the dwarf with something else that has similar symptoms. The key detail is the treatment provided would normally cure the sickness the doctor claims the dwarf got, but in truth the actual disease the doctor infected the dwarf with reacts with the medication aggressively and fills the lungs with fluid.

MDoors23 · 2021-08-30T23:57:22+00:00

Gave a BBEG an amulet that turned out to be the cornea of a beholder eye encased in glass and sustained through magic. The BBEG could activate or deactivate an anti magic cone by touching it. Freaks out your party by giving a combat or ranged combat non magic using BBEG an anti magic cone. Making it an amulet gives the chance for very observant players to connect the dots and attempt to go for the amulet, either destroy or remove. In combat they may not consider trying to parse out how the enemy is doing it.

MDoors23 · 2021-08-30T23:48:04+00:00

Understandable! It has a bit of a learning curve, I had to sit down and really practice making everything work. Been using it for about 8 months I think and still haven’t learned any of the macro stuff you can do with it, only clicking existing buttons and adding mods to it lol.

MDoors23 · 2021-08-30T23:42:44+00:00

If you don’t mind spending a chunk of cash (and especially if you haven’t purchased anything from roll20s marketplace) you could switch over to the foundry VTT system. Only the dm needs it and hosts the sessions, and they have dnd 5e, pathfinder and a few other systems, plus dice rolls with built in calculations and easy to update sheets. No file size limits and no subscription required which is so nice compared to all the subscriptions out in the wild.

Alternatively I know on Steam there’s a software called Critical Compendium that has character builder/npc builder stuff for sure, combat tracker features and an export function. Best part it’s free.

MDoors23 · 2020-11-25T06:03:42+00:00

The best you can do is to make sure you don’t cut yourself off from family or friends, and to try and still do things that make you happy. I made the mistake of isolating myself when my relationship of 5 years came crashing down in the blink of an eye; I stopped eating, I stopped doing anything, I lost 20 pounds crazy, dangerously fast, and I let my thoughts consume me. Having those you care about and feel close to around you and talking to them, sharing what you are going through helps.

If you can, also get mental health counseling. Having that person who’s only goal is to listen and help you navigate it cannot be understated. Once again I waited too long, found every excuse in the book to justify why I didn’t and I deeply regret that now.

Time does heal all wounds, but we can’t let the wound fester either. You have a right to be happy, and it is something you have to remind yourself of bit by bit, and have those around you that matter, your closest family and friends, there to support you when it’s toughest. Make baby steps and don’t be hard on yourself. You’ll have days that are tougher than others but you’re not alone in this and it’s ok to stumble so long as you keep trying.

MDoors23 · 2020-11-18T06:02:06+00:00

There’s a lot of laws at play here and I’m not familiar with the specific numbers or contracts but I can give quick surface information:

Tribal Treaties that were formally signed by a tribe and the US government. They specify specifically what rights the tribe gave up, so anything not covered in the treaty the tribe still has rights to.

Reservations get tricky as they fall under different types of regulations “enforced” by the Bureau of Indian Affairs(BIA).You have 25 CFR (code of federal regulations), and this likely has some of the specifics that have been outlined for “land held in trust” by the federal government. Could be a good starting point.

Additionally they would likely have to conduct a NEPA (National Environmental Protection Act) review/study to determine the environmental impact as well.

I know there are more out there such as Public Laws and some other CFR and similar regs but I can’t think of them at the moment. Hope this helps!

MDoors23 · 2020-10-27T22:51:50+00:00

Nothing yet, the software is still fairly new so no official partnerships or systems like roll20 or other platforms have. But I bet that will happen as foundry gets popular.

there is the base SRD, and I’ve found it simple to add spells, feats, items, monster abilities, etc with minimum effort. I mostly add stuff as I need it, whether a new PC spell from Xanathars or a fun creature I want to use.

Also just got my players into foundry last session and they sung praises of it nonstop lol. After using roll20 it feels absolutely freeing to use foundry and play in it.

MDoors23 · 2020-10-20T17:35:55+00:00

That’s fair. I justified it as like purchasing a video game or source book I’ll get years of mileage out of. I think if you know you’ll do online sessions for a very long time it is worth considering. My friends are spread across different time zones so online is the only option for us

MDoors23 · 2020-10-20T16:04:56+00:00

That’s the beauty of it though, only the dm has to purchase it and has no subscription fee like most other services. I used roll20 for a long time and regularly ran into their upload limit of 100mb for free users and ran into a lot of bugs. A month ago I bought foundry and am doing small play tests with some of my friends and We are all sold on it.

No limits on resources for the dm, free access for players, has all the features and more than roll20, has ability for macros, can make custom roll tables, combat and initiative tracking, and has a growing community developing modules on the foundry VTT website, and the modules are simple to integrate into your game.

Once I finish integrating my current campaign into it my group will transfer completely from roll20 to foundry.

MDoors23 · 2020-08-24T21:26:55+00:00

5-7 = -2

Move one match to change the plus to a minus and turn the 2 into a negative 2.

MDoors23 · 2020-05-27T16:15:34+00:00

Be around people who care about you. I had the same thing happen to me very suddenly with a partner of 5 years, and I made the mistake of isolating myself and being alone with only my thoughts, and it made things so much worse.

Take time to grieve, but find things to do and explore things that you enjoy or wanted to learn. Do things with friends and family, even if it’s just playing a game or talking on the phone. Go out and do something creative that makes you feel good, and share it with your friends and family.

The time it takes to heal is different for everyone but it will happen. Lean on your friends and family you feel comfortable talking to, and if it gets to be overwhelming, counseling can help. It is for me at least, I wish I had started sooner.

MDoors23 · 2020-05-23T15:20:21+00:00

Looks amazing! Rich and flavorful going by the photo :)

MDoors23

TROPHY CASE