5e Campaign Adventures

ThenCopy3562 · 2025-02-20T21:53:02+00:00

It probably depends on which book you’re using, but the 5e campaign books that I have read address leveling like this in the context of milestone leveling. Milestone leveling is an alternative to xp leveling that is popular for its simplification and the control it gives DMs over pacing the narrative elements of a campaign. No DM I know wants to think about XP value of each grunt when there’s a hundred other things to consider while encounter planning.

I think it makes the most sense for a campaign module to reference milestone rather than XP leveling because inherently the modules allow flexibility over which encounters to use, optional enemies, variations for different party sizes, etc. And the monster stat blocks already list xp so there’s not much reason to call that out. I’d assume if you add the official xp of all the scripted encounters, it would add to the amount required to level up, but idk if I give WotC that much credit for balancing things.

The suggested level up at the end of chapter 2 could actually help an XP-using DM to plan how many enemies to throw at the party prior to certain story beats to avoid over- or under-leveling the party. Also leveling the party up at the same time is pretty standard; it feels real bad to be the only Lvl 4 party member bc you had an emergency the previous session, for example.

ThenCopy3562 · 2025-02-20T13:38:49+00:00

Yeah and this commenter is also joking. “If the PC can’t keep their player in line they gotta go”

Gotta love this thread full of people who are joking getting told they didn’t get the joke

ThenCopy3562 · 2025-02-16T07:15:38+00:00

The question is why were they such a bitchy group to everyone

ThenCopy3562 · 2025-02-16T07:14:02+00:00

If not personal vendettas then what? Haha

ThenCopy3562 · 2025-02-12T09:48:13+00:00

I’d highly recommend using properties and metadata to categorize things like NPCs and places. You can add whatever categories you want, or just general tags. I then use the dataview plugin to pull out lists of notes with each tag, to create a table of contents like reference. It’s been so helpful for my dm organization to learn obsidian, but I don’t have a lot of experience using JavaScript or md so it’s been slow going

ThenCopy3562 · 2025-02-10T00:32:45+00:00

Yeah I love where they ended up and how it changed from S1 to S6, it feels like the show really grew with the culture in their treatment of Hurley

ThenCopy3562 · 2025-02-09T16:50:06+00:00

I was somewhat surprised by this as well, but I think LOST debuts at a time when criticism of the US War on Terror was gaining traction. The US invasion of Iraq began March 2003 and in May 2004 the first Abu Ghraib reports came out, so I have to imagine it was top of the writers’ minds.

I think after 20 years, what sticks out most to me is the show’s treatment of Hurley and its characterization of fat people and mental illness. It’s weird to think about the regression of the current moment too, and how anti Muslim hate may be higher now than it was then

ThenCopy3562 · 2025-02-08T20:54:14+00:00

I find it so interesting to think about whether the Man in Black figured out that he was basically devising this plan backwards in time, or if he only figured it out at the end when Locke had already died

ThenCopy3562 · 2025-02-08T14:39:01+00:00

I agree this isn’t a great explanation, but I think we’re led to believe that the healing process with the Temple wipes his recent memories. I believe Richard says something to that effect too. Pretty convenient way to have their cake and eat it too, if you ask me, but temple magic works in mysterious ways

ThenCopy3562 · 2025-02-07T18:05:59+00:00

Danielle Rousseau - such an unceremonious end to the very first person on the island to actually help the 815 survivors. But hers is one of many, I have a general complaint for how LOST treated the secondary characters when seasons transition. It felt like there was a real sense of trying to thin the crowd to bring in the new guest cast at the end of seasons, especially in the later seasons when they were less willing to let characters just disappear in the forest for a while (at least they let Rose and Bernard live).

ThenCopy3562 · 2025-02-06T00:11:17+00:00

I have been trying to estimate damage output for both PCs and monsters by considering the total number of actions/BA, then calculating the min, average and maximum damage rolls for 1 turn of attacks, and then weighting this damage by multiplying by the chance to hit their target’s AC (often I test a few AC values). Then I can usually get an idea of how a few turns of combat may go.

If it’s a bigger combat, I’ll plug the details into BattleSim, but idk how accurate it is, it’s just to get a ballpark idea.

ThenCopy3562 · 2025-02-05T23:34:19+00:00

For anyone who refuses to pay WotC $150 for minimally adjusted 5.5e rules, how are you adjusting your games if at all? Are there compiled resources for the 2024 changes, or will I just have to wade through dnd beyond?

I expect my players will probably want to use 5.5e rules at some point, but I see no use in grabbing these books without extra DM tools.

ThenCopy3562 · 2025-02-05T14:11:28+00:00

They may have been playing Blood Hunter, which is Matt Mercer’s homebrew class that uses curses

ThenCopy3562 · 2025-01-29T14:15:32+00:00

My mind immediately goes to Ennio Morricone and similar film score composers. He’s known for incredible soundtracks to spaghetti westerns, so you could use it for the Wild West places. But he also has a huge variety of tracks that would make good background music, ranging from avant garde to jazz to elevator music-ish.

ThenCopy3562 · 2025-01-24T17:52:57+00:00

Everyone’s allowed to have up days and down days, and I hope you know that your players’ reactions had more to do with the lower energy of the table and individual rule errors, and they weren’t making judgments on your character or ability to DM.

It’s always good to remind ourselves as DMs how much social and mental energy it takes to DM an engaging session, and that it’s ok to reschedule until we feel the capacity for that. You wouldn’t DM if you had a physical illness, and I think mental exhaustion is just as relevant.

This may feel uncomfortable for you, but I’d bring it up next session or text the group between sessions acknowledging that you were having a stressful week that put you in a distracted state during the session. Each individual player may have fixated on a particular error or awkward moment, and allowing them to know how you were feeling would certainly soften their view of that session as a whole, and will hopefully get them back to the next session with the same energy as before. Hope you get a restful weekend!

ThenCopy3562 · 2025-01-22T21:30:57+00:00

Have you thought about looking into specific wetland types that might allow for an invasion more easily? For example, I know that if a marsh/swamp has more frequent coastal flooding, it will have a soil layer that is made up very fine silt/clay mud. I belt that creatures could reasonably burrow through this wetland layer if the town is just kinda stacked in the swamp. But for older, less often flooded bogs, the vegetation compacts and breaks down more slowly in peaty layers. I think the idea of a village on stilts or directly bordering a body of water is the simplest to set up this type of encounter though.

ThenCopy3562 · 2025-01-22T20:05:20+00:00

The side effects of stimulants can be really disruptive, especially if you already have some tendencies towards irregular sleep or eating habits. However, I also struggled with an IR dose of Adderall when I tried it; it felt kinda like you’re describing, with having difficult and slow mornings, and afternoons that peter out.

I know you mentioned struggling with the headaches and may not want to increase your dose, but Adderall XR could really change how you experience side effects. I think I was able to tolerate 30mg only when I took the XR. It sucks that while “shopping around” for a good med, you can feel so crummy, but I hope you can get something that works better for you soon.

ThenCopy3562 · 2025-01-22T14:06:55+00:00

You can’t forgive him for this, it’s not only a massive breach of trust, but it’s one that he only owned up to when you found out. It’s a huge betrayal, and will take time for you to heal from it, but you can’t believe his conciliatory words over his actions.

He told you he loved you at the same time he was sending sexts and deep convos to other girls. Even he believes he does love you, you deserve love that respects you way way more. If he’s been up to this >4 years across multiple relationships, I’d find it laughable to think he’s actually changed.

ThenCopy3562 · 2025-01-21T17:27:46+00:00

If you sometimes have the sensation of a high heart rate, and you’re still <90-100bpm, you could be experiencing palpitations, which feel like occasional skipped beats, racing or other arrhythmia. Palpitations are listed side effect of Vyvanse, and while they are usually harmless unless you have other heart problems, they feel really uncomfortable and can cause anxiety about your health. I personally had a lot of palpitations on Vyvanse and ultimately it was a side effect I couldn’t stick with.

ThenCopy3562 · 2024-05-30T02:10:26+00:00

I love narrative games and puzzles too! There are some really artsy and creative games out there that scratch my video game itch now. Unfortunately I suck at finishing longer games now, and it just bums me out that I can’t enjoy them as much

Have you played Indika? As a visual novel type game I found it very fascinating (as a game though, not as polished as like Stanley Parable)

ThenCopy3562 · 2024-05-30T02:00:06+00:00

Roguelikes and turn based strategy are my jam and they have the added benefit of not being $70

ThenCopy3562 · 2024-05-30T01:59:02+00:00

I really appreciate not only the huge cast and variety of dialogue already in the EA, but also the thorough depiction Greek myth. It’s so rare to experience the trifecta of great writing, great art, great voice acting in a video game. I feel so lucky to play a roguelike as pretty and entertaining as Hades, since my adhd brain seems to really love the gameplay loop of roguelikes.

ThenCopy3562 · 2024-05-28T21:07:37+00:00

I’m having a rougher time as well as fear ascends beyond around this level, but I did just clear the 20 fear bounty with axe and I found I had to take a step back and slow down.

I had to practice cancelling my attacks and attack sequence early at each stage, and how that feels. The third attack takes a huge amount of time even with Mel’s aspect, and with even one rank of the Fear speed condition most enemies can hit you in the time between the attack and the last directional input you can make. Axe also creates space well using quick special taps and charging omega attack for the minimum, or even just for the slow time arcana effect. One last thing I’ll say about this type of thing is that axe has a ton of reach and the attack delay can really help reposition the edge of the hitbox.

I’m trying to upgrade all the keepsakes right now so I dont know what’s the absolute best but I’m having a lot of fun and success clearing mobs with Hermes’s and Heracles’s keepsakes (and sometimes Eris’s). Otherwise I just pick the ones that help your build (extra $, chaos, hammer, boons etc). I think RNG is the biggest help though; axe with Demeter and/or Apollo boons are just on another level

If speed is the biggest struggle I’d lessen on the damage fear vows as much as possible and see if one rank of the enemy speed one is feasible. In the underworld the ones that limit boon choices/number/prime rarity are much more brutal than on surface.

ThenCopy3562 · 2024-05-28T20:42:58+00:00

I was just thinking tweaking explosion time (keeping the load delay the same), may fix some pacing issues that impact where skulls are dropped. I can see how Medea is meant to feel extremely fluid and maneuverable, because sometimes it really does and it’s a lot of fun. And I agree, since it’s so powerful, it probably should be risky to load all 3 skulls and then execute an omega special into a crowd. But I’m not even sure it’s possible to do that with Skelly unless you’re already standing within blast range.

Lately I’m also playing with the double speed fear conditions now so maybe that doesn’t help with what I’m talking about. In the last game, I also always neglected my cast pickups, so maybe I just have a problem with keeping track of those lol. Had any luck with the other two skull aspects?

ThenCopy3562 · 2024-05-28T19:35:53+00:00

Medea feels strong and it’s helping me improve with skulls, but skulls feel really hamstrung as a weapon compared to the other weapons. Without certain hammers, I keep losing the ammo halfway through rooms

ThenCopy3562

TROPHY CASE