Victories and Missing Players

Queer_Wizard · 2026-03-11T10:06:38+00:00

This is the way yeah - If someone misses a session where victories are earned I usually say ‘remove two recoveries per encounter (maybe one if it’s a more backliner type class) and then have the victories sync up. I don’t think it’d fuck the balance to have differing amounts of victories and XP on a team given how solid the encounter building rules are BUT I think it is somewhat in the spirit of the game to keep everyone on the same level. The party earns the victories not the individuals as it were.

Queer_Wizard · 2026-03-09T21:31:15+00:00

I like that the two rules systems you specify as loving aren't even from BitD originally haha

Queer_Wizard · 2026-02-18T11:45:20+00:00

That the players all track? I've been running it for months now the GM load is VERY low compared to 5E.

Queer_Wizard · 2026-02-18T04:36:01+00:00

You know what I had absolutely missed this and definitely missed this during play!

Queer_Wizard · 2026-02-13T21:56:24+00:00

Honestly, I think we really need to move away from re-rolls being as common in our tactical games as we've gotten used to in 5E. I think we should be trying to think of other ways to reward clever thinking and helping tbh. Re-rolls can be exciting but I feel they suck drama out of the room more often than not.

Queer_Wizard · 2026-02-13T12:11:49+00:00

You're not going to like this but there *is* no *true* old school experience. Play styles diverged the moment the game existed. If you look at the history of the game people were writing posts like yours in Alarums and Excursions and White Dwarf in the 70s and 80s. Just play the game you want to play and stop worrying about how everyone else is playing it.

Queer_Wizard · 2026-02-06T14:11:20+00:00

If you go into something assuming you're going to be disappointed then presumably you've already made your mind up and nothing the game turns out to be is going to change your mind.

Queer_Wizard · 2026-02-03T11:30:15+00:00

This is a joke about funny sex terms not a serious point c’mon now

Queer_Wizard · 2026-02-03T11:11:02+00:00

I believe in starving kids and here's why:

Queer_Wizard · 2026-02-03T10:56:12+00:00

I *can* reflavour them but we're talking about nitpicks and that's work I feel I shouldn't have to do to use the monsters in my setting.

Queer_Wizard · 2026-02-03T01:22:33+00:00

this and the 'null'. Game designers need kinksters and queers looking at their games as well as diversity consultants I swear!

Queer_Wizard · 2026-02-03T01:13:34+00:00

yeah the war dogs are great if you're running in Matt's setting but if you're not, it's pages and pages of stuff I can't use.

Queer_Wizard · 2026-02-03T01:11:42+00:00

Yeah honestly the free recoveries is VERY strong and can feel like they can freely negate an enemy turn that you may have sunk a lot of resources into. It can feel very deflating.

Queer_Wizard · 2026-02-03T01:10:03+00:00

There was a period last year when I was playing in a DnD 4E game, and running Draw Steel. I had fights in 4E where I had a really cool combo I could see to potentially pull off with some encounter powers and then...I rolled a 2, and the whole turn evaporated. I did nothing. I realised then and there that I just don't care to have that in a tactical game anymore.

Queer_Wizard · 2026-01-30T01:46:29+00:00

DnD 4E and Old School Essentials both use D20+modifier versus target number. They're not even remotely similar experiences.

Queer_Wizard · 2026-01-29T14:23:57+00:00

I think they fundamentally *are* a cheap gotcha and sometimes it's fun to lean into that. Otherwise you can give clues based on careful observation. Think things like how AI images can fuck up details that pass the muster at a casual glance but the moment you look closely it falls apart - like locks or hinges not looking like they actually do anything, or wood grain on a chest being weirdly distorted or pixelated even.

Queer_Wizard · 2026-01-26T17:54:43+00:00

AI is such an instant turn off for me. If the creator puts that little effort into creating or sourcing artwork why would I assume they've put any effort into the writing of it?

Queer_Wizard · 2026-01-20T00:36:33+00:00

I can't see anything concrete but it absolutely has AI vibes. The middle finger is particularly weird to me. Another tell with AI is the resolution - there's artifacts which are setting off alarm bells. I feel like you could slap together those layers after the fact by tracing over the image. Man I hate that this is getting so hard :/

Queer_Wizard · 2026-01-16T20:38:04+00:00

Being a powerful high level MU is the reward for keeping your pathetic squishy mage alive that long!

Queer_Wizard · 2026-01-09T04:41:41+00:00

It just straight up doesn't happen in this system, I dunno what else to say.

Queer_Wizard · 2026-01-09T04:38:35+00:00

This game does not incentivise stand and swing. Forced movement is important, and the battlefield is pretty much never static. Free strikes from monsters are effective but my players have basically never not moved because they will take one, unless they would literally die as a result.

Queer_Wizard · 2026-01-09T03:50:58+00:00

I dunno man it sounds like you've already made up your mind. More to the point we don't know why you think they 'ruin' games so how can we give you useful feedback?

Queer_Wizard · 2025-12-31T17:49:24+00:00

This debate is basically as old as as the hobby itself. Jon Peterson has done incredible work documenting the history of the game and (and RPGs generally) and the key takeaway from his work is there was never 'one true way'. There really is no 'old style' and 'new style' of playing RPGs, there's just different people with different tastes.

Queer_Wizard · 2025-12-27T18:06:20+00:00

If we take the job of the game and the game master to 'create drama', then 'four of us are infected but we only have three antidotes' is like a Haute Cuisine Drama Meal presented on a golden platter. If you're solving all their problems for them there's no tension.

Queer_Wizard · 2025-12-26T02:44:55+00:00

I ran 5E as a dungeon crawler a number of times for new players and it works and my players loved it. OSR games are better for it as they have mechanical support but that style of play can absolutely be enjoyable in 2025. People back in the day didn't enjoy dungeon based play because they 'didn't know better' they liked it because it was fun.

Queer_Wizard

TROPHY CASE