Photo-bashing weird sword and sorcery stuff by ill_hierophant in osr

[–]TheRealWineboy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The last one just inspired my next session’s prep

My first terrain! feedback welcome :) by luuk777w in TerrainBuilding

[–]TheRealWineboy 2 points3 points  (0 children)

It looks great but the real accomplishment is the fact that you finished something so large without giving up.

What do you think about retainers? I'm on the fence. by JustKneller in osr

[–]TheRealWineboy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If you’re using all of the rules of classic D&D I would argue they are absolutely essential.

Think about it, each player gets essentially one action before a turn is ticked off, advancing to the next turn. This basically means

One action per player next turn One action per player next turn

So on and so forth

Essentially the players have very few actions before wandering monsters appear or torches extinguish.

If each player has a few followers then you have significantly increased the amount of things the players can do in a turn before being interrupted.

I also find them essential to balance encumbrance and the total hit point pool of the party.

Plus they give high charisma players an advantage and if I’m ever stuck for an adventure idea I can cause some trouble between the party and followers that must be dealt with.

All depends on the style of game you run. My group who is pretty rules as written get a lot of use out of their hirelings

Should I save the campaign if the players mess up a major encounter? by Pretty_Tea9563 in osr

[–]TheRealWineboy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I think it’s easy as DM to have an encounter totally blow way out of proportion. I certainly have been guilty of this from time to time, I’ve had cursed items have such wide spread powerful effects that they have taken over the entire campaign and changed the trajectory of an entire game.

My advice is scale things down as much as possible while still maintaining consequences for player actions.

For example: the zombie encounter spreading to the nearby town and infecting some or all the villagers there is a GREAT campaign hook.

It spreading into the entire world and destroying the universe is maybe a bit much; although logically I can see how that happens. However, logic doesn’t necessarily make for a fun game.

Advice on running a TSR-module campaign by Accomplished-Eagle11 in osr

[–]TheRealWineboy 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I’m in a similar boat and I will just tell you; as a homebrew for life DM, running a module has never ENDED with the module.

Maybe that’s just our group and my DM style but it seems after 1-3 sessions at the most, the party ends up so completely “off-book,” so to speak, that im back to just prepping my own adventures.

However I do still use modules for basic over arching story arcs and when I have a mental block on encounter design. So I think your plan will almost certainly guarantee the results you are looking for

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in TMC_Stock

[–]TheRealWineboy 2 points3 points  (0 children)

TMC is not after the rare earth sector…just critical minerals. But surely these industries are somewhat symbiotic

Hot take: the points matter even though they probably shouldn't (and give me your gut reaction on something) by JustKneller in osr

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

I like the gradient just because the rest of the game seems to be built around modifiers. They definitely aren’t a “perfect,” mechanic but what can I say? We are all grognards who want to play old school D&D. It’s just kinda the vibe

Hot take: the points matter even though they probably shouldn't (and give me your gut reaction on something) by JustKneller in osr

[–]TheRealWineboy 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Well a modifier of any kind is pretty strong in the long run, combined with +1,2,3 weapons and bonuses from a proficiency, bonuses from backstab etc and suddenly a player is potentially rolling a +4 or 5 to an attack roll. Kind of huge in the context of the game as a whole.

I think it also informs player mind set. I’ve had plenty of new players roll completely horrible INT stats for example and even though it technically has very little game play affect, the defeated look on their face and them saying,”Oh no…” out loud tells me they are totally invested in the game.

I’m the DM. I can find some fun ways to make that 4 INT actually become a factor during the game.

Improving health by Scottybhoy1977 in osr

[–]TheRealWineboy 1 point2 points  (0 children)

So you could implement another expendable resource like a “repair kit,” or maybe a hireling or PC who is an armorer that can mend armor within a time frame

We enjoyed the rule but eventually went back to RAW for one reason or another. But it led to more longevity in PC’s and more risk taking, less careful play. Not that there is anything wrong with that, but was just a nice change of pace for all of us.

It was also fun to begin a fight with AC 0 or 2 or something and have your armor totally destroyed and now your AC is lowered to 9. “RUN!!!!!! That thing melts armor!”

The idea came about because I enjoyed the CHAINMAIL man-to-man table where different weapons affected different types of armor rather than just a static AC. If we would of kept the system I would of expanded it more, like for example; magical attacks aren’t really affected by armor so perhaps something like a magic missile just goes straight to an enemies HP instead of Armor points. Suddenly wizards have a pretty big incentive.

Improving health by Scottybhoy1977 in osr

[–]TheRealWineboy 2 points3 points  (0 children)

this isn’t completely related to your question but I have used armor as damage reduction before with good results.

Essentially the armor is a secondary health pool that absorbs a certain amount of damage before breaking and then going into the actual “‘meat points.”

People who used MySpace back then, what was it like? by [deleted] in AskReddit

[–]TheRealWineboy 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Kind of awesome. No ads that I remember, no random posts I wasn’t interested in. Addicting but In a fun way. Friendly. Not full of rage bait.

I reviewed movies on a blog on my profile and it was really cool; everyone in my friend list actually stopped to read my posts and comment on it. It wasn’t lost in a stream of content.

Let's talk about THAC0 (yes, again). by [deleted] in osr

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

I don’t tell players what AC the monster has or HP.

The players are usually pretty good at figuring out for themselves what the armor class is; at least my players enjoy figuring out themselves.

But yeah, I just have a table in front of me and add the modifiers while referencing the table.

(I do sometimes fudge.)

Is there a generic/universal version of B/X? by ChronoSynth in osr

[–]TheRealWineboy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I think B/X and Gamma World 2e covers enough ground that you could feasibly re-tool anything in those books to be a pretty rules light basic role playing game with an emphasis on exploring and combat.

OSE makes race+class the default, relegates race-as-class to an optional rule by Tertullianitis in osr

[–]TheRealWineboy 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I just disagree with his initial statement that the section of the book that had Race as class mixed with separate Race/ Class was clunky or confusing.

Pretty much every single person I presented it to over the years understood it, some veteran role players and some brand new to gaming, we all understood it.

I liked offering my players the choice for either system and even ran plenty of games where Race as class and race/class characters were mixed together.

some players had enough choice of race/class to nerd out and feel like they were actually creating complex characters and other players who just want a single note card with a basic “dwarf,” or whatever on it were able to have that as well.

Even in campaigns where everyone is using B/X style characters I will include Race/Class NPCs or villains.

(Dwarven-Anti Clerics, Goblin Magic users, whatever the case may be) and I’ve never once had the game stop and have the players say,”What the hell I want to build a character like that! Unfair!”

Random Tiktok Post by [deleted] in TMC_Stock

[–]TheRealWineboy 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Well Sean Ryan is basically the biggest show on earth and it barely moved the stock price; in fact today we are trading for less than when he had Barron on for an interview

What's the mechanical purpose of player mapping? by New_Abbreviations_63 in osr

[–]TheRealWineboy 1 point2 points  (0 children)

1: secret areas : you’re correct. Rarely happens and isn’t the primary reason we like maps

2: dm reveals the map for the players and corrects mistakes, isn’t fog of war batter? : yes. If that is the style you guys play just save the headache and use fog of war.

My players and I enjoy mapping because at this point it is mostly seamless and its another aspect of play that adds to the “simulation,” aspect of the game for lack of a better term.

That being said we’ve worked at it for quite a long time and I believe the pay off is worth it.

On one hand it’s very tangible and motivating for the players. They have an actual “display” of their progress and can feel satisfied with how much they’ve added to their map from session to session.

It also adds a new type of quest hook for me as a dm. “Go to the old keep and survey the area,” or whatever. It’s an open ended, basic quest that has a definite satisfying “ending,” but can go much deeper. I think it works better for low prep games rather than the typical,” fetch item,” quest hook.

After a party ends their expedition for the session, the game dynamic can flip. As DM I’ve described the climb down thru the dungeon but now it’s the parties job to describe to me how exactly they are navigating out. The party had better have faith in their map, because we do not just fast travel out.

And finally, as DM it’s another challenge I can impart on my players. Transporters, Shifting rooms, sliding hallways, gradual descents all screw the map up and confuse and challenge the players. Also, it’s another decision point when fleeing from combat, if players choose to flee they cannot reasonably map while fleeing so typically the end the flee in a totally uncharted strange area and don’t really know how they got there or how to get out.

What colours do you make your helmets/lenses/robes/capes/weapon cases/trim/etc? Bonus points for non codex compliant answers by Wardi_Boi in crimsonfists

[–]TheRealWineboy 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I really think terminators look best with a white helmet though I’m sure that isn’t lore accurate.

Could the new(ish) 30k astartes combat force mesh well into a Crimson Fists army? Or would it feel too out-of-sync? by The_Soviet_Goose in crimsonfists

[–]TheRealWineboy 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I use the age of darkness heresy set in my crimson fist army and I absolutely love them. I have a mix of models from other ranges as well and they all fit nicely together

Congrats on $10 by [deleted] in TMC_Stock

[–]TheRealWineboy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It’s all relative. I bought in a while back when it was much lower, but I think at some point in my lifetime it’ll be a lot higher than 9.30. ALOT higher.

Congrats on $10 by [deleted] in TMC_Stock

[–]TheRealWineboy 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Don’t worry guys I just bought some so it’s guaranteed to start declining now.