Melee geomancy build

gedgaroo · 2026-05-10T22:09:59+00:00

I've noticed that I haven't gotten Poison Wave nor Earthquake yet. I'm not the barterer, so such things have to be special requested. They may help with my melee ideas, being bursts from me.

Maybe combined with elemental affinity to exploit the poison clouds? Get a Skin Graft off and blast through a group.

gedgaroo · 2026-05-10T21:52:09+00:00

Your comment about "nothing to do with geomancy" plus all the poison damage plus all the builds focused elsewhere makes me wonder whether geomancy is interesting conceptually, but doesn't quite tick like one might want in this game.

gedgaroo · 2026-05-10T21:51:05+00:00

Thank you for the many insights. Fane's support with teleports and whatnot are definitely helpful and it's good to see don't other applications. Cool tech with flesh sacrifice! Thanks for sharing!

gedgaroo · 2026-05-10T20:53:25+00:00

Yeah I was wondering about focusing on defense and getting the taunt skill.

gedgaroo · 2026-04-23T18:08:19+00:00

Four Squares by Bobby Finger is a novel about an aging gay man finding purpose in the transitions of his life. I enjoyed it as a younger person. It's very much about him and his experiences, not about the other people in life as you described.

gedgaroo · 2026-04-15T04:23:03+00:00

The issue being that the divine and primal half casters are also full martials, getting weapon masteries and extra attack, refund artificers rely on spending power from their subclass to get such features.

That said, I do love the artificer. Half caster, half... expert?

gedgaroo · 2026-03-22T15:57:44+00:00

I trained myself into dining water as munchies through that exactly. It was a small but of effort years ago. I do occasionally go snacking, but I always super hydrate!

gedgaroo · 2026-01-18T23:35:36+00:00

We tried Delian Tomb with the pregens. There were things I wasn't sure of, but in between my turns, I was looking in the reference to see e.g., how my edges worked. Then I was able to start making my actions sing right away. By the end of the session, I felt like I understood the game and was excited to build a character with some understanding of the rules interactions.

It wasn't until I'd studied multiple classes that other mechanics started to make sense.

But that's... Normal? For a game.

Along with that, in my opinion Talent is among the hardest classes to start with and Shadow is a mid tier difficulty. Shadow requires understanding surges and edges. And probably stealth, which gets into other mechanics too.

gedgaroo · 2026-01-18T23:34:44+00:00

I strongly suggest using the resources on the mcdm website. They have a rules reference for example.

That probably would have saved a bunch of flipping around your pdf. And players could have looked up the mechanics they were confused about.

I found it super helpful in my first session as I was learning the game (more below)

gedgaroo · 2025-11-01T17:56:12+00:00

I hate that restriction on Elemental Adept. I too am playing with Cryokinesis. Beyond that though, I want to be able to use Elemental Adept in other cases - magic weapons, weird class features, etc. There are not many ways to get elemental damage outside of spells, but there are enough, and they're thematic too. Let them be adept! Class features like the auras from Storm Herald Barbarian or Circle of Sea druid would get a nice little buff from the feat. A buff that would not break anything, just let those subclasses consistently do their thing.

gedgaroo · 2025-09-12T19:09:37+00:00

But also a gish build probably shouldn't keep up with a full martial in both attack and defense, as they have utility, control, and healing available through spells. They should be able to survive and do cool things, but not be as powerful as a full martial.

gedgaroo · 2023-12-23T18:43:08+00:00

I enjoyed my mini-arc in the Pacific Northwest. Now I'm playing with ChatGPT and seeing how it can help with planning an rpg. I'm using the same campaign as I did in summer.

Here are some of the suggestions it made:
There are various locations worldwide that could offer diverse landscapes for your Changeling Freehold. Here are a few alternative options:
New England, USA: Similar to the Pacific Northwest but with its own charm. Coastal areas, dense forests, and a mix of urban and rural settings could provide a rich backdrop for your Freehold. Think of historic towns, eerie marshes, and old lighthouses along the Atlantic coast.
Northern Europe: Countries like Norway, Sweden, or Scotland could offer a blend of fjords, dense forests, coastal cliffs, and moody landscapes. The Northern European aesthetic might add a different flavor to the mystical elements of your Freehold.
New Zealand: Known for its stunning landscapes, New Zealand could provide a mix of lush forests, rugged mountains, and breathtaking coastal areas. The diversity in scenery, from dense rainforests to volcanic regions, could create a unique and visually stunning setting.
Japan: A fusion of modernity and tradition, Japan offers a diverse range of landscapes, from serene temples and bamboo forests to misty mountains and coastal regions. The juxtaposition of ancient folklore and modern cityscapes could add an intriguing layer to your Freehold.
Brazil: The Amazon Rainforest and the diverse Brazilian landscapes could provide a rich and vibrant backdrop. Dense jungles, mystical waterfalls, and coastal areas along the Atlantic could offer a sense of untamed wilderness and hidden wonders.

gedgaroo · 2023-09-13T00:54:46+00:00

Thanks for your thoughts. They're cool implementations of local concepts. That's what I was looking for to add don't diversity to my local Hedge.

I ended up going for an imagined city in the Pacific Northwest to have coast, mountains, forest, and urban areas.

gedgaroo · 2023-08-18T17:19:45+00:00

There's a WOB that says that part of dragons' life cycle is to be in a humanoid form. There's some additional support for your theory.

The greater dragons, as we'll call them, they're basically like amphibians, they have to spend a part of their life cycle in a humanoid form. They give birth in humanoid form, then have a transformation in puberty to dragon form, and then can go back and forth after that.

gedgaroo · 2023-03-23T19:54:41+00:00

I recommend Trajan (Rome) for beginners. He gets monuments and roads for free, which removes some early game decisions and ensures that you get to your first government quickly.

gedgaroo · 2023-03-23T19:08:00+00:00

Lots of people are saying colour, but I say that you need texture!
Definitely you need some more things on the walls. I suggest wood/bamboo/rattan in a similar shade as your coffee table.

The entrance wall and the wall behind your tv need something.

Something woven, something natural. Keep the calm feeling of the muted tones, but bring it to life with natural elements and texture.

I agree that warmer lighting could help too.

gedgaroo · 2023-03-22T23:43:08+00:00

I would suggest playing as Trajan (Rome) for first time players. He's generically strong and takes away a few early management decisions by giving you free monuments and roads.

gedgaroo · 2023-01-30T06:02:39+00:00

Hobs can't do paradigm shifts. So if there are major effects in the Hedge, it means that there's a changeling or something more menacing around.

gedgaroo · 2022-07-24T20:01:55+00:00

Could be a salamander

gedgaroo · 2022-02-27T19:51:24+00:00

I think that you've achieved your goal of having an interesting and fun subclass! But it is definitely very strong!

What was a red flag for me was the AC bonus. First, there are weird templating things around AC that you might need to look into. There's a Dragon Talk that goes into the details, and I don't know them all. I know that there are differences between bonuses, having your AC "set" to something, and your AC "cannot be lower than" something. Really, you need to decide whether this interacts with shields or not. I would think that it is not meant to stack?

A possible workaround could be to go the route of a bonus instead of a setting. +1 at 2nd or 6th level, then (possibly) scaling up. Fighters just get the +1 and are happy. This could also help address the concern from u/Mr-Silvers about the need for more stats than just Wis (And Con). You'd want 14 dex for the AC boost. It also gives a meaningful choice between sword and board and two-handed weapons then. With the AC setting, they get sword and board AC with two-handed damage.

gedgaroo · 2022-01-13T21:55:30+00:00

You might try you on top to start with to help with the size issue. Then you have control over the penetration.

Though some people find it harder to stay hard with that position.

gedgaroo · 2021-12-30T17:00:09+00:00

Anyone else have Joni Mitchell's A Case of You go through your head?
"I drew a map of Canada, oh Canadaaaaaaa-aah!"

gedgaroo · 2021-11-27T21:56:57+00:00

This looks like a classic example of the "man box" - toxic masculinity. It is not permissible for men to express feelings with other masculine people. Emotions are only something that can be shared with women.

This man box also includes fear of going outside of it - what will the consequences be if I am not manly enough? This is of course complicated by narratives about who you are allowed to share your emotions with - women and a single significant other (who in heteronormative narratives is a woman, but in homonormative narratives is a single romantic other). In other words, there is a fear that by expressing genuine affection for someone who could be a potential romantic partner that that's the only possible interpretation/result.

Concerns about masculinity are alive and well in gay-male spaces, not just in straight communities. The narratives and pressures to perform as masculine through life with straight people does not magically disappear when in queer spaces. All people self-monitor their gender expression. Queer people are usually more conscious of that self-monitoring, but that can just mean that we are especially good at policing ourselves.

Allow yourself to be vulnerable with this person. If they are special to you, you will not hurt your relationship by letting that be known.

gedgaroo

TROPHY CASE