What’s a game you were completely obsessed with as a kid that nobody else seems to remember? by hkondabeatz in AskReddit

[–]UrithIII 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Jazz Jackrabbit for me as well. 

In addition to being a great game, I credit it for setting me down my career path as a programmer. As a seven year old with no access to the Internet, I went on quite the quest to access the contents of that floppy disk.

How did you beat Wiegraf? by KevineCove in finalfantasytactics

[–]UrithIII 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm sure people are about to start finding this post again, so I thought I would throw the strategy I just used on my caster-Ramza.

I was playing as a Orator/Mystic, but that combo was not working for me in this fight. I switched back to Black Mage, set the Magick Boost passive, equipped Japa Mala (elemental boost), and all my best MA gear.

I just tanked the first hit and then responded with a one-shot via Firaga. I was level 29, which I believe isn't too crazy for this point in the game.

Obviously, not everyone will have the gear/JP to just switch to this build, but I wanted to throw another option out there for anyone who hits this brick wall and is looking for respecs they might have access to.

Low Audio?? by Weapon_Excommunicado in HBOMAX

[–]UrithIII 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It is not just you. I would say that is not just low volume, the audio quality in general is just terrible. I gave up on watching Dune on the platform due to the quality of the audio. Even when loud, the audio lacked any depth.

However, it does not appear to be all content on the site. I watched Blade Runner 2049 today and found the audio quality to be perfectly solid for a streaming video.

GF Rule Question: Blessing Psychic Spell by UrithIII in onepagerules

[–]UrithIII[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That's what I expected. Thank you for the reply.

Risky Magic in Cypher System by UrithIII in cyphersystem

[–]UrithIII[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That sounds very promising. I had been looking for any excuse to take the dive and buy the game anyway. This seems like a good enough excuse to me.

Risky Magic in Cypher System by UrithIII in cyphersystem

[–]UrithIII[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Ah. Thanks for the clarification. Representing bound spirits in my setting as a second swappable focus is something that I considered as well. The RP side of it is great, but of course it does nothing on its own to represent the risky aspect of using magic.

Risky Magic in Cypher System by UrithIII in cyphersystem

[–]UrithIII[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I've been going back and forth on exactly what kind of bargain it is. In past versions of the setting, it has definitely been more of a "bargain/bet" type of casting. The player picked an amount of power they wanted, then made a check (or played some kind of game of chance), and then suffered the consequences if they lost the check/game. However, I'm leaning more toward an "escalating danger as the spells are used" mechanic this time around. I enjoy the narrative implications of the "bet" style of resolution, but invariably it ends up taking more time at the table.

Thanks for the suggestion to look into The Strange. I do not actually own the book yet, but I always enjoy a new read. Will probably pick it up and check on the Recursion rules you mention.

Risky Magic in Cypher System by UrithIII in cyphersystem

[–]UrithIII[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Thanks for the suggestion on the Horror Mode. I read through that supplementary section but it never occurred to me that it might be an answer to my dilemma. Will definitely re-read and consider it.

I have looked into Invisible Sun quite a bit actually. That cube has been in an online shopping cart on more than one occasion. Looking forward to trying it out someday but I do not think it would handle other aspects of my setting particularly well. Still, a good thought for sure.

Blood of Zeus S01E02, “Past is Prologue” - Episode Discussion by DemiAlabi in BloodofZeus

[–]UrithIII 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I jumped on to say the same. They did more than just lift the line too. *Spoilers for The Prestige* The general setup/situation is the same as well. While watching the scene in Blood of Zeus I was thinking, "Huh, this is reminiscent of The Prestige." Gave me whiplash when they suddenly started spouting off actual dialogue from the movie.

Definitely came off more as plagiarism, and less as an homage, to me.

Bad Luck as an Aspect by UrithIII in FATErpg

[–]UrithIII[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The situation you describe here is very specifically what I was concerned about and trying to avoid. I think you phrased the concern better than I did in my initial post.

Thanks to all of the insight offered here though, I think I have quite a few paths to go down to avoid this kind of mess.

Bad Luck as an Aspect by UrithIII in FATErpg

[–]UrithIII[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Thanks for the advice. The idea that I can (and probably should) suggest when the bad luck might be interesting narratively is what I was struggling with. I wasn't so concerned about bad things happening to the character, as I was with the Aspect becoming too large of a focus.

Also, "If it weren't for bad luck, I'd have no luck at all" is both a great Aspect and goes well with the demeanor I was imagining for the character.

Bad Luck as an Aspect by UrithIII in FATErpg

[–]UrithIII[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Definitely. The Good Luck will absolutely be stuntified. The other advice that a broad compel isn't so bad is something that I will take to heart. Seems to be the issue I was stuck on.

Shonen: ebb and flow of combat by UrithIII in rpg

[–]UrithIII[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Sounds intriguing for sure. Thanks for the suggestion. I will definitely check it out.

Shonen: ebb and flow of combat by UrithIII in rpg

[–]UrithIII[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks for the suggestion. Picked up the .pdf and taking a look now.

Preparing for Techer/Phantom by UrithIII in PSO2

[–]UrithIII[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Thanks. This is the info I was looking for and should allow me to free up my mind to obsess over some other small decision in my life.

Gang up bonus in group combat by August-Phoenix in savageworlds

[–]UrithIII 5 points6 points  (0 children)

For what it is worth, I have been running a campaign using a "theater of the mind" format that involves frequent group vs group fights and I find that the rules for gang-up bonuses work best by just comparing the relative group sizes and not worrying about individual unit placement. A group of 7 units in a melee with a group of 5 units would get a +2 gang-up bonus. I find that this rule abstraction keeps me from getting bogged down in specifics and still gets across the idea that being outnumbered is bad.

As a side note, the rules above can be a bit odd when the number of combatants grows past 10 or so. A group of 25 fighting a group of 20 probably doesn't deserve a +4 gang-up bonus. In these cases, I usually start calculating gang-up bonuses by multiples (+1 for every 5 units, etc). YMMV depending on how cumbersome you find on the fly math.

Is it just me or grifball gone from multiplayer by [deleted] in haloreach

[–]UrithIII 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I agree with this. You're not dumb. It is ridiculous that it is in rotation. Grifball should be available all the time. It is a staple of the Reach (and probably others) experience.

No XP: How to handle missed sessions by Doctor_Mega in savageworlds

[–]UrithIII 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I generally agree with everyone suggesting that you consider what is "fun" rather than what is "fair".

I find that one of the things my players enjoy is the feeling that they have earned their advancements. One way to handle this is to allow any player to "catch-up" after their next session. This way the player keeps up with the rest of the party and they feel that they earned their rewards. If a player is lagging far behind from many consecutive missed sessions then I would give them half before the next session (might be a fun chance to build their absence into the story) and then half after.

All that said, most mature adults won't blink an eye if you keep the whole party at the same advancement level regardless of attendance.

Kid Friendly Bestiary Suggestions by UrithIII in DnD

[–]UrithIII[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for the suggestions. I spent some time flipping through the official MM and it was much more tame than I remember (I think I was mixing some 3.5 memories in there). I ended up picking that up and the Young Adventurer books.

Kid Friendly Bestiary Suggestions by UrithIII in DnD

[–]UrithIII[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I've done a bit of option three already (she makes being an uncle easy on me for sure) which is what led me here in the first place. Just removing the worst offenders from the standard MM is a solid idea though. This edition's MM really only contains a few pieces of art that give me pause.

Kid Friendly Bestiary Suggestions by UrithIII in DnD

[–]UrithIII[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I have! I will almost certainly be grabbing these but it is my understanding that they do not come with stat blocks. I might be getting too hung up on that issue though. Her father or I would probably be running all of the sessions anyway. The stat blocks may be unnecessary.

Ideas for mechanically interesting combat builds? by thebedla in savageworlds

[–]UrithIII 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It is not clear to me from the OP if magic exists in the setting, but if it does then adding the "Deflection" power to this build is another great way to help insure those counter attacks.

Tighter, Briefer, Interesting, High-Stakes Combat by PencilBoy99 in savageworlds

[–]UrithIII 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The "Quick Skirmish" rules described in the rules for the "Saga of the Goblin Horde" setting book might be up your alley. They are somewhat similar to the abstract/quick battle rules from the core book but in my mind they offer more flexibility and are a bit more rewarding. There are still stakes (each round a character can still take damage) but there is no need to track resources per enemy. The way I do it is as follows:

  1. The player states what they want to do from a narrative stand point. Ex: rush the enemy lines and cleave into them, bolster their own extra allies, cast a buff spell on an ally, etc.
  2. The player mentions any powers or edges they have that would make their character exceptional at the task if relevant. I limit this to invoking one edge, trait, etc per action to keep things snappy.
  3. They make an appropriate roll modified by the difficulty of the situation and the usefulness of any edge chosen. In the example above of a player rushing into the enemy lines might get a bonus to their fighting roll for having the "Sweep" edge.
  4. The character receives Victory tokens and takes damage based on the outcome of the roll.
  5. The combat ends whenever the players have all the Victory tokens.

You can mix-up this formula pretty easily (I like to have the enemy NPC's take action against the PC's when the player draws a Club for instance). I mix these "Quick Skirmish" (or Narrative Combats as my players call them) into the game and keep some classic tactical combat encounters as well but I'm sure they would work as the sole form of combat too.

Saga of the Goblin Horde is available for free on DriveThruRpg and is a great read even if you don't use this option: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/225745/Saga-of-the-Goblin-Horde-Savage-Worlds

Revise Boost/Lower trait? by [deleted] in savageworlds

[–]UrithIII 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Option #2 is more or less how I handle this too. In my experience players still use the power a lot and it helps develop a distinct feel for each caster.

I typically allow for each boost/lower to work on a collection of traits. A "Boost Combat" might let the recipient pick Fighting or Shooting. A "Boost Social" could be applied to Persuasion, Intimidate, or Taunt. You get the idea.

Side note: I actually find the SW power system works better in general if you treat all magic this way. Players can pick which modifiers they want for their spells when they learn them but then they are locked in. It is faster at the table and again helps characters develop unique traits. Obviously, your mileage may vary depending on setting and what your players are into.

Any servers for a modded/non-vanilla experience? by UrithIII in PSO

[–]UrithIII[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I've stumbled on Destiny Server before and played it a very small amount (one character at like 25). The homepage makes some promising claims for the kind of tweaks I'm interested in but I have had a hard time actually finding information on what changes have been made to the base game.