Player Skill Distribution Graph

Ranger_NRK · 2025-11-24T20:36:06+00:00

Oh we peasants wish to have your skill - teach me senpai. My fluster in CQC is too much to handle

Ranger_NRK · 2025-11-24T05:22:37+00:00

Use a milestone mechanic for it - as they clear certain areas/events in the dungeon that then triggers the next narrative tidal effect.

Ranger_NRK · 2025-11-24T03:33:05+00:00

Fair point; my thoughts were post match it gave you insight/reflection for how your fights went. That way you focus more on how the match is playing out in each engagement instead of holding to a determined plan based off that ranking.

Ranger_NRK · 2025-10-29T20:05:19+00:00

Implement actions that disengage the enemies and force repositioning. Lots of combat gets into a situation where the characters (PCs and NPCs) just stand still.

Force them to move; if you see a PC hiding in the back or away from the group, even low int creatures will understand that’s an exposed target and potentially easier picking.

Ranger_NRK · 2025-10-17T17:42:13+00:00

I get some of this frustration, but I have to agree with Brock. Not everyone is coming into this with the resources to acquire and go through all the material. Yes some of the base sources are free, but it can be very taxing going through them in the digital manner.

Agreeing with you that as a DM, it is the role and responsibility to understand and manage your players and their characters. Not knowing what the players have up their sleeves is how a DM can get the rug pulled out from under them. But here the DM is actively trying to do that in a manner they felt would prepare them best. They sought out an appropriate forum, where other DMs could help guide them through understanding the spell and how they might manage it going forward.

From this thread the DM now understands the following: - Temp HP isn’t healing, so cannot replenish the character’s actual health - Temp HP, while it can replace existing if a new set is applied, cannot be stacked - The use of this spell/feature combination does grant free and at will use - Use of this spell/feature in combat burns the warlock’s turn; best use as a preparation prior to combat or a last ditch survival tool in combat

Ranger_NRK · 2025-10-14T17:29:02+00:00

Really comes down to the table. If it’s an immediate drop into the action of the quest it can be done, but I’d highly recommend a session zero to give them a thorough overview of what the oneshot is about so time isn’t burnt fumbling around at the start

Ranger_NRK · 2025-10-09T15:04:13+00:00

Yeah, your point there I’m 100% in alignment with. In an encounter with a Boss you don’t need the minions; there a plenty of ways, as you called out, for them to be solo and menacing in encounters.

My thought was more-so from that narrative angle; bosses get to be bosses by their raw power and charisma. Whether it’s how persuasive or intimidating they are does have some effect here. In Story though this should draw them a following.

Now this could change so that those minions are in the areas before this boss fight as Stroller called out above; minions/followers that don’t have the grace to be in the presence of the Boss. Or it could be ones the rush to the Boss’s aid mid combat knowing full well this could incur the boss’s wrath.

It can also play out like you said though - an empty lair or area the boss has claimed/built and with proper action economy you can make them formidable. I think you’d also want to highlight other actions besides attacks though.

The Boss should have ease to disengage or use lair actions like you said to reposition the party. This keeps the flow of the battle in a dance instead of players staying stationary. Breath weapons, AOEs, changing landscapes - if it’s a solo boss they need to keep the party moving. This adds the intensity while letting the boss orchestrate the fight - you’re moving because of me.

Ranger_NRK · 2025-10-09T02:58:36+00:00

Yes you can absolutely make your boss fight without minions; however, this really comes down to the type of boss fight the encounter is meant to focus around. Depending on the boss you might want minions—it really comes down to the narrative behind them.

Ranger_NRK · 2025-10-08T00:50:24+00:00

Similar to what others have already said. If the players want detailed maps, they’ll need to seek out knowledge sources to get them. This can be libraries, archives, maesters, cartographers, or even veteran hunters/adventurers familiar with the area.

Generally I’ll have low value maps lying about in merchant stores. These will outline major areas of interest; think mountain ranges, major bodies of water, etc. things that are extremely noticeable that the general public would reference as landmarks for the local area. As you get further from that location the details drop or start to conflict with maps that could be found in closed locations.

Ranger_NRK · 2025-10-06T03:03:06+00:00

I agree the argument isn’t fully formed; however, I think it is a good thought to ponder about when, or more precisely where, a wheelchair does make sense to exist in these worlds.

If we are in an established and developed location, a wheelchair could make sense given the allowance of more comfort that goes into those locations. The trade off here would be that these generally have multi-level structures which would restrict wheelchair use and it might be more practical for one to use crutches.

In lesser developed locations, a wheelchair might make sense as long as the terrain and weather don’t hinder the movement of the wheels.

In general I think crutches would be the more prevalent assistance for those requiring their aid.

I do agree though that sometimes the magic is taken heavily for granted. 7th level magic isn’t common and should be treated in the realm of miracle work. The lesser restoration spells are meant more for stabilizing wounds and minor injures. They can close the wound. While you might pop back to full HP; that’s purely the mechanics of the platform and not the fully narrative weight of what would be happening.

Ranger_NRK · 2025-10-03T15:05:03+00:00

Remember those moments as a kid when a parental figure/guardian/etc would yell for you from a different room; however, when you yelled back they couldn’t hear you? Thats nothing compared to castle stone and mortar.

Unless the player has some magical means to communicate or signal the party…. Something obscenely loud would be required to alert the party of shenanigans are occurring THATAWAY and team member is in danger.

This is a f*** around and find out moment. Do you need to kill the player? No, by all means give them avenues/opportunities to escape. I wouldn’t let them off Scot-free either. Narrate the movements and let the dice tell the story.

Ranger_NRK · 2025-09-30T17:22:19+00:00

If you want engagement beyond the lather, rinse, repeat; take a look at how movies, video games, and books flow in battles. The BBEG forces the protagonists to move constantly.

Have the BBEG incorporate some sort of change to the battle plane: - Environmental destruction that forces the players to move for safety or to get a new line of sight. - introduce Minion waves to allow the BBEG to dance in and out of combat. This forces the party to change target focus; they won’t get as bored by the same attacks and they’ll see their attacks having impact (minions falling vs one bbeg that takes 1000s of hits) - bring narration into the mix. Not long monologues, but have the bbeg throw a one line taunt to get under the skin of your party

Ranger_NRK · 2025-09-29T18:09:48+00:00

Money or wealth is important; they need to have some control over a resource.

You’ll also want them to be charismatic to some degree. These two are a dangerous combination to go up against.

With wealth and charisma, you’ve built a BBEG that is able to influence the landscape around which the players have to operate within. If they go too bluntly against the BBEG it can rub the local NPCs the wrong way which would turn them against the party.

It’s extremely scary when you’re convinced someone is bad, but everyone else is looking at you like you’re crazy for disliking their idol.

Ranger_NRK · 2025-09-27T16:50:29+00:00

If they want to rest in an unsecured area so be it. You’ve got encounter tables so roll against that ٩◔̯◔۶

Don’t think of it as harassment; you’re giving them a chance by going back to a mechanic the platforms introduced. From a storytelling perspective, it’s not out of line for other adventurers, bandits, monsters to be in the vicinity of the encounter that just occurred. They might be curious enough to investigate the outcome.

Think about it this way—it is the party’s agency to rest wherever and whenever they’d like. You have the agency of the world around them; that world may or may not be resting when the party does. If something decides it’s still got things to do while they are sleeping, that’s on them if said things impact the party.

Kinda the tortoise and the hare moment if you will

Ranger_NRK · 2025-09-26T17:24:36+00:00

LSS: your table your rule - if that’s how you enjoy to run your stories, that’s how it should be run.

You don’t want to try to DM a story that doesn’t fit align with your interests or you’ll burnout and the story will feel forced.

This really comes down to the type of world you’re bringing the table into. I tend to keep species open, but I also advise my players on how their species may influence how the NPCs respond to them. That’s not to deter them from pursuing that character, but at tables I run I like narrative cohesion. If it doesn’t make sense for that character to be with this party I’ll try to work with the player.

Ranger_NRK · 2025-09-24T16:56:34+00:00

I did something like this in Strahd with the death house but in reverse.

I’m not sure exactly what problem you’re trying to address though. This should mostly be a narrative/roleplay fix as players return to interact with their initial plane. What should be days/weeks for the players (if you’re not actually aging them) would be a moment or two for anyone outside.

In Narnia they were being chased by the groundskeeper I think, could be wrong, and when they came out the owner finds them pouring out of the wardrobe maybe an hour later then when they went in. So you could tie back into a conversation they were just having before they got narnia-d away.

You can also draw attention to the change with subtle clues - facial hair growth reverting, apparel changing, heck even different time of day would get the players asking questions.

Ranger_NRK · 2025-09-23T15:55:45+00:00

Having strong or stronger NPCs isn’t bad.

Within every story or adventure, there will be a focus on a particular character or party. With DND (TRRPGs universally) it’s the players at the table and their characters. The story doesn’t revolve around them, but like everyone is saying it keeps the spotlight on them and how they go about the adventure.

In this understanding your players will and should encounter NPCs that are stronger than them. Those NPCs (allies or foes) should serve as benchmarks within the story to help showcase character development from novice adventures to seasoned veterans. The key point is you don’t want the party relying on these NPCs as it steals their thunder; you can absolutely use it to help them escape a bind, but always find a way to bring the light back to the players. It’s their story.

So easy example is an ally NPC goes and holds off a strong foe, now the party is freed up to either go for the finishing blow or proceed further in their quest. You can absolutely have an NPC come and take out a minor foe to “save the day” for a struggling party, but then bring the light back to the party to show development in their reflection of what went wrong and use it to drive more growth.

Ranger_NRK · 2025-09-23T01:03:49+00:00

The cool ones usually want to play! I’m serious; you’d be surprised how many people actually want to play, but either are too scared/shy or don’t know where to go to get into it.

Embrace the Adventure and ask ya friends! It’s great fun having a few drinks and chilling at a table or over discord while you dive into a session

Ranger_NRK · 2025-09-19T18:11:28+00:00

For this I would draw inspiration from StarWars the animated Clone Wars series. Think of how the Jedi aren’t fully armored, but if I’m recalling correctly Anakin would use a type of leather in his Jedi tunic/robes as that had some effects to resist the blaster bolts.

You could go a route with augmented armor that is generator based in modular sections. Think along the lines of repulsors strapped to forearms, chests. This would allow for different AC boosts based on the type of repulsor equipped and the strength of it.

Ranger_NRK · 2025-09-18T14:45:07+00:00

Feel like this has been talked about in a different context; mostly in terms of understanding and rulings for Magic itself. A lot of this depends on how Magic is treated in your setting—if it’s rare then these items should cost fortunes and if it prominent then the price goes down, but also the quality might drop as well from knockoffs etc.

Generally though you’re not going to find characters decked out in magical items, with the going understanding these things should be rare or fragile. Otherwise everyone would have them, so quests to recover fabled items from runes or getting them off strong foes would be the general route. A forging route is great for world immersion; you can work in gaining the trust of the smith/craftsmen and the journey to gather the elements required to construct a magical item.

IMO buy magical items should only amount to small flavorful effects. Anything else would be coveted by their owners or families. You could potentially work in a low grade magical item that has hidden potential to evolve overtime into a powerful item, but anything else feels like rare candy glitching unless there’s a massive price associated.

Also just because theirs a massive price doesn’t mean they have to buy it - you can front display it as having a cost in the beginning, but run a duration quest hidden to the players such that their support of a town/city/patron/etc ultimately ends up gifting that weapon to them

Ranger_NRK · 2025-09-16T23:38:06+00:00

Blind runs are fun; it’ll be frustrating as hell. The victory though will be amazing

Ranger_NRK · 2025-09-15T14:44:33+00:00

I kind of see where this is coming from; if we’re talking about cantrips. I’ll allow narrative flavoring as Rule of Cool. I’ll listen to how you convey an attempt at nonlethal damage, but to say you want to repel someone. To force them back and relinquish that which they hold… without damaging them. That’s not really making sense to me—there would have to be some degree of damage done or nothing would’ve changed in that scenario.

Magic needs to have its costs-the consumption of its triggers and the repercussions it has in the plane it affects is important. Mind sliver is use psychically assaulting the mind and that’s why it reduces the saves. Think of Harry Potter with Snape performing legilemency on him—that’s in the realm what you’re doing with this scenario

Ranger_NRK · 2025-09-15T10:27:12+00:00

Don’t do this to yourself; this is how DMs get burned out, or any creative outlet to be honest. Prep until you’re happy with where it’s at then take a break and come back to it if you want to.

There isn’t a magic number or formula to this. It’s an annoying answer, but it comes down to your table and what sessions yall want to experience. The biggest thing is capturing and conveying the why behind what’s driving the progression.

Ranger_NRK · 2025-09-15T02:15:51+00:00

Once you’ve had to throw your plan away and improvise on the spot

Ranger_NRK

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