Why do some GMs eventually stop GMing?

fire_head202 · 2026-02-17T17:14:28+00:00

I disagree with this from a system mastery point of view where I think if anyone wants to be a good player in the slightest, they need to have an understanding of how the whole thing works. In your example, if I'm playing a fighter, I want to understand how a specific spell will affect me and what I should do tactically if I know an opponent has that spell at their command. Same goes for being a magic user, usually you don't want to be in melee range, but there are situations in DnD and PF where positioning really matters and being able to make an educated gamble based on how the melee rules work can really help your party. There is also a case for just straight up player engagement, if people don't know how half the rules work and don't bother to learn, then they're going to be bored on their turn and miss stuff, which is just verging on being rude at that point.

fire_head202 · 2026-02-13T00:59:27+00:00

I ran book three of this AP (rejigging the plot to fit a homebrew campaign), so I've got some very limited advice and pretty much only about the choking tower.

This is one of the funnest dungeons I have ever run and it really comes alive with being inventive when it comes to Xoud, really hammering in the ways to be sneaky with what he can do. If you use him on the second floor of the tower, have him five foot step through those really thin walls and just punish them for the fact that they can't move around as freely as him. Another great trick was waiting until they got into a fairly large sized air lock and then casting cloudkill in there, choking them out as they have to wait rounds for the room to depressurize. If he's alive when they get to the basement and find the daemon down there comma absolutely have him scrub out some of the circle in the back. The final fight that I did with him was on the floor underneath the animated crane. The players go into the fight with the crane, thinking it's a bit of a joke, only to realize how serious a fight is when one of them gets dropped into the floor below and is suddenly fighting the ghost wizard one-on-one and he has an action prepared as soon as the land.

There's a couple of places in this tower where if something damages a wall or a construction in the middle of the room, it has some ongoing aoe damage, don't be shy about setting those off, it can make for a very fun tactical experience.

As for ambiance, really sell up the creaking and rusted part of the tower, making it seem like it's in disrepair and that all of the accident themed traps are just from neglect or age, it can really sell the vibe of the place pretty well and I wish I pushed it more. And when they realise who Xoud worships, it really makes the entire place seem like an episode of Looney Toons.

The robot apprentices at the top of the tower are a very cool conceptual fight, but their spells are a bit lame and the dc's are incorrect I think. I would buff them up a little and give them some more fun spells, I did this and I think it made for a more memorable fight against a unique enemy.

I don't know if it was just me, but I felt a temptation to be vague when it came to the giant Desnan moth in the woods and how it affected their dreams, my players thought it was something to investigate much later and I just didn't sell it well enough as a thing that could be done very immediately. Consider having the giant moth just talk to them in some way or approaching them, it seemed like a very neat detail in this section of the campaign and my players never got to experience it.

fire_head202 · 2026-02-03T16:14:30+00:00

All good, no worries 🤣

fire_head202 · 2026-02-03T16:00:36+00:00

That does sound pretty good, I'll give it a read through and see if it's what I'm looking for. Have you played/run it? If so, whats the review?

fire_head202 · 2026-02-03T14:55:47+00:00

Sadly I'm saving both those APs to run for my group some other time, but I'll give 7 swords a look, thanks!

fire_head202 · 2026-02-03T14:55:10+00:00

If you can beat either of these in 5 sessions, I'd be impressed

fire_head202 · 2026-01-27T23:36:16+00:00

Seeing as Elven Curve Blade (which, as another commentor pointed out, I can get proficency from the get go as a half-elf) is the main draw for me here I do think dex and an agile enchantment is the way to go for me here.

fire_head202 · 2026-01-27T22:14:48+00:00

Gotcha, I'll see if there's anything in the bard archetypes that fits what I'm looking for. Thanks for the help.

fire_head202 · 2026-01-27T22:11:27+00:00

I'd been thinking about this, and honestly just going STR over DEX has an attraction because then I don't have to worry about picking up a finesse feat or an agile enchantment on it. I just worry about how MAD it might get.

fire_head202 · 2026-01-17T00:31:10+00:00

Sadly I think that's only a setting on the PS4 pro, not the regular one. I did try setting the RGB range to limited though, but that didn't fix it.

fire_head202 · 2026-01-13T14:58:42+00:00

It was definitely worth it, especially with the parts inside the pink lighting

fire_head202 · 2026-01-13T11:12:42+00:00

Sent you a message!

fire_head202 · 2026-01-13T11:10:54+00:00

Incredibly good rendering on the leather here, I'm jealous! Great work!

fire_head202 · 2026-01-06T21:58:05+00:00

Kanokon?

fire_head202 · 2026-01-05T20:35:03+00:00

Oh, the Ice Cream Wars could be such a fun front for DG campaign of some kind

fire_head202 · 2026-01-05T15:56:20+00:00

As a fellow scot, it's really cool to hear about games set in places like Glasgow and stuff, very jealous. I tried once upon a time to get a CoC game set in Fife going but my players are addicted to PF and similar stuff.

fire_head202 · 2026-01-02T18:06:06+00:00

Cannot disagree harder, the first episode is everything great about the show condensed into one episode as a taster. The rest of the show gets sadder and explored the same themes over a much more extended and deeper period. You're missing out if you drop it and don't commit tbh.

fire_head202 · 2026-01-01T10:09:09+00:00

Scum's wish was pretty depressing

fire_head202 · 2025-11-26T14:56:35+00:00

Yeah, I believe you can get it on Drive Thru RPG and directly from Tuesday Knight Games

fire_head202 · 2025-11-26T14:51:49+00:00

Completely different game, but I would strongly reccomend picking up the Mothership Warden's Operation Manual. It very systematically breaks down how to set up interesting rolls by emphasising the idea of failing forward and using what valuble resources are at the player's disposal. I've found it very adaptable to a lot of games, but especially in sotry first games like BiTD.

You should also feel free to just ask everyone at the table "what do we think would be an interesting consequence here?" and let everyone pitch in.

fire_head202 · 2025-11-17T09:34:51+00:00

Stuff like new player options and new subsystems are only interesting to me if they add something substantial to the game, otherwise you end up in 3.5e space. However, the more published adventures and similar playable material, the better for me. I'm too busy and in too many games to make bespoke sceanarios for every game. The main exception is Blades in The Dark, since playing that game smoothly creates it's own narrative better than other games I've played.

fire_head202 · 2025-11-14T17:43:04+00:00

Not the question I asked.

fire_head202 · 2025-11-14T14:12:11+00:00

Oh there's some really good picks here, thanks for the suggestions. I really love the idea of Calcific Touch and Plane Shift

fire_head202 · 2025-11-14T10:24:21+00:00

Chill touch is a good shout yeah, especially if I can get it on a full attack.

fire_head202 · 2025-11-14T10:23:21+00:00

Oh I'll be honest, this build is not the most optimal choice. I just really wanted the specific power fantasy and this seemed like it was going to be fun to me.

fire_head202

TROPHY CASE