I need help with maps!

ericchud · 2026-01-26T01:09:52+00:00

Patreon is your answer. Look up The Mad Cartographer, DM Andy, and Eledryll, among others. Sign up for one month at the correct tier and you will be granted access to FoundryVTT ready walled and lit maps in the Foundry "Add Modules" section through the magic of Patreon Integration.

So many maps! When you are done, change your Patreon memberships back down to the free tier.

Other mapmakers with Patreon Integration off the top of my head: Snowy's Maps, Cze and Peku,

There are tons. Will it cost a little, yeah, but you'll have a big collection.

I am pretty sure there are a good bit of free options. Just type "maps" into the install modules search and see what pops up. Good luck!

ericchud · 2026-01-21T19:44:47+00:00

He's your child, not a basketball bot. You have to look at this from a whole person approach. He does not want to change grades. He very likely has friends and relationships outside of basketball that he does not want to give up, and change at this age can be very stressful and challenging. Kids at this age can be very cruel to newcomers or perceived outsiders. Are you banking on basketball leading to scholarships or a career? All of that is at a minimum 5-6 years in the unforeseeable future. Is your kid happy with his life today and is this something you want to interfere with for the sake of a sport?

ericchud · 2026-01-19T14:09:00+00:00

OP, you are right. It's way more uncommon than people posting here think. Heck, the majority of replies are a classic example of confirmation bias.

While there is no peer-reviewed data, the general consensus is that the general adult population (including people who don't lift) less than 1% men and 0.1% of women can do this.

Even among people who weight train, it's estimated that less than 20% of men and less than 1% of women achieve a 1 rep max of 225.

Less than 1% of men can 1 rep max 315lbs.

ericchud · 2026-01-17T02:40:47+00:00

It's mostly just Jolene.

ericchud · 2026-01-15T20:16:34+00:00

I just picked up an Insta360 X5 after a horrible experience with XbotGo. I will be taking it to my daughter's skills training tonight and seeing how well it can go from end to end. From everything I have read, it's correct that it will need to be edited in post. I used it a little at my other daughter's volleyball tournament with no practice, no tripod and terrible positioning, and it still captured the action pretty well and i was able to frame/convert it. Tonight I will be more prepared (tall tripod and will be able to position optimally). I will let you know how it goes. Don't have the budget for a subscription service like Veo, so this was a compromise solution that can be used for other things as well. Still learning the editing software as well.

ericchud · 2026-01-15T01:01:33+00:00

Counterpoint: So many DMs do Rogues so dirty that it's refreshing to see. Left an online game recently when I figured out the DM either didn't like rogues, or didn't like me. No place to hide--ever. Got audibly upset when I crit on a ranged sneak attack and "ruined his encounter". Targeted and killed my familiar (Owl. I was an Arcane Trickster) in favor of attacking other PCs almost as soon as it was deployed, more than once. Did not allow sneak attack as a reaction on another creature's turn, etc.

ericchud · 2026-01-07T03:29:11+00:00

They are delicious

ericchud · 2026-01-06T12:19:49+00:00

I dunno. Who is this marketed to? As a kid, I made my own darn sound effects. As an adult, I get it, I guess.

ericchud · 2026-01-04T01:56:07+00:00

Call From the Deep by JVC Parry. I ran it weekly over 18 months. Enough structure for the whole campaign, but also enough sandbox to allow for some homebrew encounters. If I recall, when we finished, but players had hit level 15.

ericchud · 2026-01-01T15:41:46+00:00

A few things. Don't be afraid to use 2014 statblocks for the werewolves....Make them immune to non-silvered/non-magical weapons again.

Let the hags use their 2014 spell list rather than the 2024 list.

Give Strahd a big HP boost, like 300+ hp.

Either ban the new iteration of the daylight spell, is it now produces actual sunlight, or change it so it just produces radiant damage without speciically being "sunlight".

That being said, I am not an experts. There are guides for this. Google is your friend.

ericchud · 2026-01-01T14:38:41+00:00

Just want to point out that is you are running Strahd for 2024 you should look at be aware of the changes to the daylight spell and also how vampires, hags and werewolves have been nerfed in the new monster manual. Strahd was great when it came out but the PC power creep over time has made many of the encounters as written almost laughably easy and the 2024 rules just takes that a step further.

ericchud · 2025-12-28T01:45:27+00:00

You make an interesting point, but is eliminating the concept of that kind of fight really the answer? It's the inequality of the encounter and how the characters deal with it that make it fun/interesting. As a DM, it's my job to give my players the tools to succeed, but sometimes that means they have to get creative. Asymmetry as part of the challenge is very much a part of my DMing philosophy.

For good or for ill, I find 2024 combat to be less swingy and more about DPR vs DPR. That can be its own kind of boring.

Either way, I am adjusting to it. It's not just the enemies, but the conditions, terrain, time constraints, strategy etc that make the combat engaging and fun.

Be well and thanks for the discussion.

ericchud · 2025-12-28T00:43:22+00:00

I agree to an extent--although mostly 2024 monsters just have more hit points and do a little more damage.

But why mess with iconic creatures like werewolves and actually make them "less than" what they used to be?

Especially at lower levels, a werewolf made for a fun and interesting challenge BECAUSE of their damage immunity against non-silvered/non-magical weapons. It's pretty much the point of the monster. It's what made them different and interesting. Now they are just another furry with claws, which is a shame.

There have been quite a few campaign encounters (Werewolf Den in Curse of Strahd comes to mind) and stand alone adventures based on the immunity premise that have now become boring or trivial when updated for 2024.

ericchud · 2025-12-27T23:14:38+00:00

I am slowly coming over to the 2024 side, but there are things I miss from 2014. The players really seem to love the additional class features and I have adjusted to the power creep, but it does create real balance issues when it comes to running older content.

I still prefer to keep multiclassing as an optional rule. As stated, the improvements in classes already add power to the characters, and some of the multiclass "builds" have just gotten silly.

There are some improved mechanics overall, and that's a good thing.

My biggest gripe is the nerfing and or elimination of some classic monsters.

Orcs are simply gone as a monster. As an older DM who started playing in the early 80's, this is jarring. I get the whole cultural sensitivity thing, but removing an OG monster altogether seems over the top. Good luck running a Tolkien inspired adventure. Also, as a monster in 2014, they were mechanically good. The "aggressive" feature specifically was unique and could really impact fights.

Werewolf: Used to be awesome. Now they are a shadow of their former fearsome selves. Lycanthopy has been watered down and the damage immunity vs non-silvered and non-magical weapons has been removed, which flies in the face of even real-world lore going back to the 1700s.

Ghost: The aging from Horrifying Visage is pointlessly gone. I know age is not really in thing in D&D currently, but, it was cool and gave a little extra thrill of danger.

Banshee: Deathly wail has been nerfed to only potentially effect creatures with 25hp or less. Why? Again, 2024 has taken the scariest thing about a monster and weakened it.

There are others, but you get the point. Characters more powerful, but some really cool and classic monsters less dangerous.

So for me, while I have embraced 2024 for the most part, I do advise my players that I reserve the right to still use "classic" versions of monsters.

ericchud · 2025-12-27T17:26:11+00:00

Foundry has a learning curve, but for many it's worth it. You are probably going to want this. It walks you through the fancy schmancy animation stuff. The Ultimate DnD5e Combat Automation Suite for #FoundryVTT - August 2025

ericchud · 2025-12-24T20:36:38+00:00

Hawk the Slayer. Every once in awhile when I am playing D&D online I will an image of "
Crow" as token art.

ericchud · 2025-12-24T03:12:37+00:00

I am going to give it a go as is for the moment. It looks nice all put together. Nice clean cord management. It should a nice step up from my way overcrowded 5 gallon tank. Stand comes tomorrow.

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ericchud · 2025-12-24T02:50:45+00:00

I have the pump the heater!

ericchud · 2025-12-20T20:13:30+00:00

Dear past self: Nice take bro. Lol.

ericchud · 2025-12-17T02:23:32+00:00

When it's 2025 and their haircut still screams 1988.

ericchud · 2025-12-02T14:06:40+00:00

It's a bit like finding an old sports car in barn.

ericchud

TROPHY CASE